Is There Anything New Under the Sun?

Posted by & filed under Franks Blog.

Genesis 1:26-28 “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.’  So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.'”

 

When it comes to the environment, we as God’s people, need to take an active role in what is taking place. When this mandate was given to us it was before the fall of man. We see through out Scripture how the Lord worked to bring about redemption for those who wanted it, although redemption is free, it does come with responsibilities and one is this mandate that God gave man before he fell.

 

One issue that is constantly popping up is what is called the “green movement.” To fully understand this movement, we need to go back to Karl Marx and Lenin and their teaching.

 

The buzz word for this green movement is the word ‘pollution.’ It is interesting to see as well that the Marxist seized upon pollution, real or imagined, as their weapon and their war on freedom.

 

It’s not that there is no pollution, because there is. However, it can be cleaned up and, in the USA, a remarkable job is being done to achieve that. However, the environmentalists following a Marx philosophy believe that the use of fossil fuels and subsequent carbon dioxide emissions plays havoc with what we’re faced with today.

 

Thomas Jefferson said: “A reformation in government follows revolution of public opinion.” How true a statement that is. Who are the opinion makers today in our society? They are the ones that use words to make a living. They are the ones shaping the opinions in our culture. What about God’s opinion? Should we, who are called the “body of Christ,” His bride to be using His Words (the Bible) to shape public opinion?

 

We are going to live by someone’s morals. Who should it be? Public opinion? Powers to be? Or God’s morality? It should be the latter. This is why we cannot be silent when it comes to some of the ‘hot issues’ we are faced with today.

 

To me pollution is not the problem that we face today, but rather ideas that are being advanced contrary to God’s Word. The ideas of Karl Marx brought about the Russian Revolution in 1917 that resulted eventually leaving a nation in chaos and around the world with over 110 million people dead and with millions  forced into oppressed societies.

 

Ecclesiastes tells us that there is nothing new under the sun and yet our politicians, government bureaucracies, university professors are telling us that the greatest problem that we face is pollution, not seeing that the ideas being put forward will have dangerous consequences.

 

One of the main goals of Karl Marx was to get rid of Christianity. Why? Because he was convinced, like many materialists today that Christianity is based on a system of beliefs and not facts. They believe only science has facts and that is the way to go.

 

Federick Engels steps into the picture and along with Marx comes up with three laws of matter to bring order to their belief system. The law of opposites, the law of negation and the law of transformation. We also see that this provided the rationale for today’s green movement.

 

The law of opposites is how opposites work in unity. For example, electricity has positive and negative, or atoms with protons and neutrons, and even with human beings we have opposites with altruism and selfishness, humility and pride or masculinity and femininity.

 

Marx’s philosophy brings out that in the animal kingdom the law of opposites is kept in check, but in the human race this is not the case and so this is where government comes in and is why in many countries where you have Marx’s philosophy you have a tyrannical government.

 

We find that the law of negation is a key pillar for the environmentalists today. This law states that all of nature is expanding in death. For this philosophy all species have the tendency to proliferate. They see that within the animal kingdom this is kept in check, but for the human race this is not the case.

 

So for the Marxists they look upon the human race as becoming a population bomb that places the entire planet at risk and so systems must be put in place. Look at what is happening with abortion, now being advocated to the third trimester and even when the baby is born the mother can decide to end the baby’s life. The buzzword for the environmentalists today is the word “sustainable.”

 

The law of transformation is the thought that a particular species can leap forward through continuous development into a new form. For the Marxists this is particular true with human beings producing an elite that can rule, govern the rest of society, and even decide who should die. The elitist then would be able to decide what morality to follow, rules and laws that should be in place.

 

Marx also believed that the earth possessed natural wealth, but it did not belong to man and could only be used if necessary, but not to take a profit from it.

 

Yet when we look at the Cultural Mandate that God gave us we see that God provided all of this to be used, not hoarded, but used for betterment of mankind.

 

When Vladimir Lenin continued on pushing the “Green Giant” it brought about the Russian revolution in 1917 where a million people died and country left in a terrible mess. One of his first decrees was to make all land, forests, water, minerals, etc. to be the property of the State and eventually develop natural preserves that would be totally left alone and no human would be allowed in. Some of these areas were rich in oil, minerals and gold.

 

When I think of the recent fires in California that left many dead, houses and business burned – the one thing that gave fuel to the fires were debri-dead trees, bushes, etc. that were not cleaned up. Does this sound familiar today coming from our so-called socialists? Take for example AOC and what she is preaching about to take away our energy because it’s causing pollution, take away our guns, get rid of private property and let it come under the control of the State, have less children, no children, and when it comes to the abortion law about aborting at baby at birth or even in their third term, we find these socialists silent and even giving a wink to infanticide. What evil!

 

Ecclesiastes 1:9-10 “That which has been is what will be, that which is done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which it may be said, ‘See, this is new?’ It has already been in ancient times before us.”

 

Spiral of Silence – Part 2

Posted by & filed under Franks Blog.

2 Corinthians 4:13 “It is written: ‘I believed; therefore I have spoken.’ With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak.”

 

I was watching the debates of the presidential candidates. If we mean that each side can come and present their views then that is a debate. But often what happens with Christians who do not ‘toe the political correctness line’ that they are not listened to as far as their views are concerned, but are actually maligned because of their Christian stand.

 

Therefore, many of these debates are not real debates at all. The reason for this maligning of Christians is to silence them. We must learn to speak the truth with boldness, not in an argumentative way, but speaking like Paul in the synagogues where Paul reasoned, explained, proving and persuading. Or like Apollos, who “vigorously refuted the Jews in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.” Acts 18:28

 

There are two things that come to mind regarding the spiral of silence. First, we have the need for acceptance, and secondly is, what we believe is a conviction or only a preference. I have written about this previously and I think it is important for us to re-examine our belief.

 

I wrote about acceptance and rejection that keep people locked in their ‘little kingdoms.’ Human need is to be accepted and the last thing that we want is rejection. We need to come to the realization in a far greater way that this need of acceptance has already been met through Christ. He has accepted us. Unless we come to the place where we recognize that we have been accepted in Christ I doubt that we will be able to stand and speak the truth.

 

But another reason why we do not speak out is this: Do we really believe in what we say we believe in? Is it a conviction within us or is it something we prefer? There is a big difference. Paul said: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.” What Paul seems to be saying is that what he believes in is real and he realizes that, and because of that – he speaks. Could it be that what we say we believe in is not real to us, not a conviction, but a preference instead, and so we do not speak? I used the example of the three men thrown into the fiery furnace in the book of Daniel. These men boldly spoke out and in so doing show us what conviction really is.

 

First, we see that what they believed was unchangeable. They were given the chance to change their minds, but it was useless. If what we say we believe in can be changed through pressure or whatever then it is not a conviction.

 

Secondly, they were willing to stand alone. There must have been hundreds of other Jews living in the capital at the time. What were they doing? They must have been bowing down, because the only Jewish people brought to the king were these three men. Now we do not want to stand alone and would like others to stand with us, but even if not, then we are willing to stand alone upon what we believe, because we know that what we believe is right.

 

Thirdly, what they believed in was non-negotiable. Nebuchadnezzar was willing to give them a second chance to change their mind, to reconsider, to be able to sit down and negotiate and trying to get them to think of the consequences, etc. What was their response? “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, ‘O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.’” Daniel 3:16-18

 

Fourthly, they did not need the assurance of success before they took a stand. This is what we have with the spiral of silence. If we know that we might be successful, then we will stand, or if we know that others are standing on what I believe, we stand; but all this shows that our faith is only a preference and not a conviction.

 

There is a need for us to be convinced that the Biblical worldview is the only worldview that answers the questions that plague mankind today, like, where did we get this universe and why is man different from the rest of creation; why is the world in such a mess and what is the solution? The only worldview that answers these questions and makes sense is the biblical worldview.

 

I am concerned like the late Chuck Colson who said: “By rejecting Christianity and its moral framework, Western liberal democracies are in grave peril of collapsing upon themselves. They will no longer be able to preserve human rights and liberties. What comes next is tyranny.”

 

We cannot allow the ‘spiral of silence’ to keep us silent any longer.

 

Might we do what Paul admonished Timothy to do: “Give diligence to present thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, handling aright the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15

The Proverbs 31 Woman – Chapter 38 – Real and Respectable

Posted by & filed under Carols Blog.

Real men are offended when women compete with them, especially their wives. They don’t like being shown up by a woman who thinks she is better than a man. Real men don’t like being bossed, told what to do, when and how to do it. This does not make a man less a man because this offends him or simply makes him angry; rather it reveals that he’s a ‘real’ man because of how it goes against God’s design of a man.

 

Real women are offended when men, especially their husbands, expect them to behave in ways that are improper and shameful, or to expect their wives to walk behind them and be quiet. A real woman knows her worth from her Father God. She knows how to conduct and present herself so that she does not feel ashamed before her heavenly Father. She raises her daughters respectfully as well – ignoring the opinions of worldly women.

 

“The righteous hate what is false, but the wicked bring shame and disgrace. Righteousness guards the man (and woman) of integrity, but wickedness overthrows the sinner.” Proverbs 13:5-6

 

A woman cannot teach a man how to be a man and neither does it work the other way around. Should either attempt to teach the other in this way – they will see where it takes them that neither of them will appreciate.  When a husband and a wife don’t respect each other’s God-given design and boundaries – their marriage will be a disaster and their children will suffer as well. In turn, this affects society (as we’ve seen in America) and the whole world. It’s wise to get the right understanding from God’s blueprint of the male and female genders with their roles on the earth; saves you a lot of battles, heartaches and shame.

 

“Has not the one God made you? You belong to him in body and spirit. And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring.” Malachi 2:15

 

Children today are being trained to think evil is good and good is evil; they are being forced through public education to think and behave in ways that go against the way God established the male and female roles in life. What we need are godly parents raising godly children.

 

Today, women know how to play sports, but they don’t know how to cook and clean a house. In fact, they feel it below them to do so. Women know how to raise their voices, but they don’t know how to raise children. Women hold management positions in the world, but they fail to manage their own households. Women know how to use their charms to get a man, but they don’t know how to be their husband’s helpmate.

 

What a shameful thing it is that women get together and share tactics in how they stand up to their husbands, and how they get their husbands to serve them. Women today praise each other for getting in the face of their husbands to tell them off. They boast of their beguiling ways as if it makes them more a woman. So very evil!

 

Woman came from the rib of man to be his helper; to be the wife at his side and on his side; the mother of his children; the one he can trust with his weakness and fears; the one who looks to her Creator Father for her husband’s good, and who entrusts herself to her Father God for all His good in her life.

 

An honorable wife can cause her husband to be respected in the gates of their society. The woman who faithfully prays and depends on the Lord with her thoughts, desires, fears and concerns for her family – is a wife no man should live without; it’ll be hard for a man to fail with a wife like this.

Spiral of Silence

Posted by & filed under Franks Blog.

2 Corinthians 4:13 “I believed; therefore I have spoken.”

 

Over the past few weeks I have been hearing a lot about the “spiral of silence” and decided that I would do some research and see what it is all about and how it pertains to us.

 

Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann was a German political scientist who came up with the ‘spiral of silence’ that gave an explanation of how public opinion can influence individual opinions or actions. For example, in 1991 support was measured for the Gulf War. The researchers wanted to know if the support was a consensus view or did media coverage contribute to a spiral of silence that dampened opposition to the war? They concluded that those who watched television and sensed that the public supported the war were more likely to support the war as well. They found that this study supports the ‘spiral of silence,’ that people can be swayed by public opinion rather than face social isolation.

 

Wikipedia says: “The phrase “spiral of silence” actually refers to how people tend to remain silent when they feel that their views are in the minority. The model is based on three premises: 1) people have a “quasi-statistical organ,” a sixth-sense if you will, which allows them to know the prevailing public opinion, even without access to polls, 2) people have a fear of isolation and know what behaviors will increase their likelihood of being socially isolated, and 3) people are reticent to express their minority views, primarily out of fear of being isolated.”

 

This brings out several things that we need to consider.

 

First, even if we are in the minority (or think that we are) we must speak the truth and not what is “politically correct.” I am afraid God’s people have been too silent when it comes to expressing God’s truth. Instead of allowing people who are opposed to God’s truth shaping public opinion we, the church, should be the shakers and shapers of society.

 

Secondly, we know that Satan has divided this world into little kingdoms (or one could call them prisons) and the bars that hold people in are not made out of steel, but acceptance and rejection. These are the needs that every human being has – to be accepted and not face rejection or isolation. We want people to be released from these prisons and be able to enter the Kingdom of God. This is what the Gospel is all about. We read in Ephesians 1:6 (KJV) “To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.”

 

All our needs have been met in Christ.

 

Thirdly, we need to do what Paul told the Corinthian church to do and that is to examine their faith. “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” 2 Corinthians 3:5 (KJV) Is our faith a preference or a conviction? There is a difference between the two. We see this coming out in Daniel 3 with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego when they were confronted with the fiery furnace.

 

Public opinion was to bow down and give allegiance to Nebuchadnezzar by falling down and worshipping the statue that he built. This was a classic example of the ‘spiral of silence.’ We see that these three men were willing to speak out, face the consequences and give God the glory. At the end, we see the results: “Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, ‘Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king’s word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God.’”

 

We might not be faced with a fiery furnace, but on many issues, we will be faced with public opinion. The question is: Will the ‘spiral of silence’ kick in or will we speak out. We do not need to speak out in an argumentative way, but we should speak from our conviction and from our study to show ourselves approved unto God like we read in 2 Timothy 2:15 “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”

 

Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “It is written: ‘I believed; therefore I have spoken.’ With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak.” (2 Corinthians 4:13) Paul was saying, he knows that what he believes is real and because it is real – he speaks. So, it should be with us.

 

Someone said: “Christians today are in danger of being sucked into such a ‘spiral of silence.’ But this is not inevitable. We can break the ‘spiral of silence’ (1) if we are really persuaded of the truth of the Gospel and the Christian worldview, and (2) if we will simply begin to speak up when opportunities arise, trusting the Lord to use our words as He will.” (Luke 12:8-12)

 

May God give us the boldness and courage to stand, and to be accountable.

 

Remember the words of Thomas Jefferson: “Reformation in government follows reformation in opinions.” Let us speak up and get God’s truth and opinions out in the public square!

 

Nearer To You

Posted by & filed under Carols Blog.

“You opened by mind to Heaven above
and captured my heart with Your holy love.
A life of joy and lasting forgivenness,
I never fear cuz I’m in Your presence.

You gave me strengths and weakness too.
Weakness is better, it’s drawn to You.
I treasure Your words that light my path
and show me wisdom where I lack.

Reduce me! Subdue me! So I won’t stray.
I’ll reach for Your Standard all of my days.
My life is in YOU LORD, secured forever.
I’ll NOT turn back, no never never!”

(Poem out of my book: POEMS from the Kingdom of the Heart)

The Proverbs 31 Woman – Chapter 37 – Leaders of Influence

Posted by & filed under Carols Blog.

“Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.” Daniel 12:3-4

 

Righteousness is doing that which is right according to God. In each human a seed of “greatness” has been put by our wonderful Creator Father God. My husband has told each of our grandchildren: “There’s greatness in you!” And he’s right because God has said that we are created in His image. And, God is GREAT – that is for sure!

 

In each of us is a seed of greatness that only needs to be developed and used for righteousness. This always blesses our Father God, no matter what we do that is productive with our strength and time. Whether you want to me a mother and helpmate, farmer or fisherman, builder or soldier, designer or doctor, artist or author, teacher or missionary, pastor or president, to name a few – it’s there in its “seed” form of desire and yearning. As a little girl, whenever I was asked what I wanted to be when I grow up it was always a “mother.” After I became a Christian and began to read God’s Word and specifically the part in Proverbs about the “Proverbs 31 Woman,” that teaching of the indwelling Holy Spirit became my power and joy.

 

Mom, pay attention to the little things your little children do; what they lean towards; what they like doing with their hands (not counting remotes for games and all). A child will be inclined to express a desire (seed of greatness) even at a very young age, and so often it’s not taken seriously by parents that are far too busy. If there’s anyone in a child’s life who should see their potential – it’s their daddy and mommy. Today we have teachers and even deceived parents telling their children that they can’t trust the gender they were born with! Sheer evil! The clear deception of the devil.

 

A parent can either help develop that “seed,” or they can cause it to die in the ground without watering (attention and encouragement). A little growth (starting to show) can be choked out by weeds that are not pulled away. A “weed” can even be what the parent/parents want their child to do or be that they always wanted to do or be and never was able for whatever reason. They can set up their child to fail this way. So help your child to grow up to be the best he/she can be – according to what their Creator Father put in them. They will shine brightly doing that which is a benefit to others and to the society they live in. The will become leaders that influence others in the right way.

 

In every generation God chooses faithful men to get their work done on time and in the right way in accordance with God’s redemption plan.

 

Does your husband know what God requires of a man, a husband and a father? Does your husband feel your support of his true masculinity as God designed a man for the work he is to do – unto the Lord, and how he is to lead his family and be a good influence out in society? And, do you and your husband talk about this, pray about this and listen to God in His Word about it? Do you pray for your husband’s line of work with his position and responsibility, whatever it is? God has made the man to be the head of his wife and children, and it’s the wife’s position and responsibility to respect that and support him in every way she can; even making sure the children respect and obey their father.

 

What if it comes down to whose job is more important: yours and your husband’s? How do you judge that? Do you both see what is important at home for the family in determining whose career is more important? Is it about who makes more money?

 

I have found that what I think of my husband and how I go about supporting him can help make his work far less difficult and more meaningful to him. You might not mean to, but as a childish or covetous wife you can hinder your husband from being happy in his work whatever it is. (Ecclesiastes 5:18-20)

 

Jesus came to some men and asked them to leave their work and come join Him in the Father’s work. They had debts to pay and families to feed, but the Lord met their needs. I would imagine it was hard for each of them to leave what they had been doing all their lives and go with a man they hardly knew yet. But as they walked with Jesus – they found the life that is truly life. I’ve often wondered what their wives and children thought; at least those apostles who had wives and children.

 

Jesus didn’t go to these men’s wives to tell them His plans for their husbands and neither did He ask their permission if He could train and use their husbands. I would imagine that Jesus knew what these men would face at home after telling their wives what they planned to do with Jesus; that it would cause marital problems with some of these men, but Jesus had the eternal future of their families at heart. When the Lord calls a man (with wife and children) his wife makes a choice too, whether to submit and follow, or to resist and separate herself. To submit and follow is wise and noble. To resist and separate is not only wicked but will influence your children’s thinking in the wrong way.

 

Whether the Lord has told His man to leave his work or remain where he is – every born-again man has been given the Lord’s “Great Commission,” (Matthew 28:18-20) and he starts at home with his wife and children – making disciples. Boys without fathers make the best recruits for gangs, terrorists and criminal activity of all kinds. People without God make the best recruits for the devil and his evil work in the world.

 

When we commit to God’s will – God commits to us. When the Lord invites us to step out with Him – He takes hold of us, and our concerns become His concerns. God is more than capable of leading men and providing for their families. If you do not trust God’s love and wisdom this is something YOU need to work on. Don’t come against your husband with argument and ultimatums. Fear will cause you to do this. Faith in God and His Word will keep you at your husband’s side.

 

If you are a ball and chain around your husband’s ankle, making it hard for him to do God’s will, what might God do about that? If you think you should make your husband choose between you and God, beware. Your husband will not stand before you on Judgment Day.

 

When a man fears his wife – God passes him by. When God passes your husband by – you all lose out. Don’t underestimate a man’s deepest need to intimately know and serve His God. Your husband needs this more than he needs you.

 

A long time ago I tried to “groom” my husband (like most wives do) into my definition of what a man’s spiritual leadership looks like, but my discerning husband wasn’t going to put up with it. The day came when he had had enough of my sugar coated criticisms and he said, “Carol, you aren’t going to change me, so if you think I’m not the man I should be then you’d better go to God because He’s the only One who can change me.” So I did, and God started changing me first. We both changed over time.

 

The spirit of jezebel has women thinking and believing that they can and should validate a man’s masculinity and his spiritual leadership. The devil is bent on changing God’s design as male and female, femininity and masculinity. We see his success in homosexual activity and transgender operations.

 

As God called to Adam, He calls to all men in hiding, “Where are you man?” (Genesis 3:9) God will hold men accountable for leadership on the earth and the influence they have on their wife and children, and on society as a whole.

 

When God needs something done, according to His plan and purpose, and there isn’t a man to be found in that place through which to work, He raises up a godly woman to take that place. We see this in the account of Deborah and Barak. (Judges 4) Deborah, a judge, did not want the honor that should’ve been Barak’s in leading the men into battle, but Barak wouldn’t go unless she went with him. And so the honor of victory went to an obedient woman.

 

Every man is to come out of hiding and lead. Every boy is to be raised for leadership; to benefit his family and society. A godly mother will work hard at this for her son to grow up to be an honorable leader in the area of his calling and gifts from God. Mothers and fathers are to endow their sons and daughters with: truth – the knowledge of God; with reliability – training them to be honest/trustworthy/responsible; with wisdom – the short and long term consequences for everything they do.

 

As women we need to remember what happened to Moses’ sister Miriam who interfered with how God was leading Israel through Moses. She said to her other brother Aaron, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us as well? And the Lord heard it.” (Numbers 12:2) God struck her with leprosy and she was put outside the camp seven days. God humbled her. Moses prayed for her as the Lord instructed, and she was healed and brought back in. Miriam learned a hard lesson in honoring who God has chosen to lead His people.

 

Sickness, death, family and social destruction ramp up when the wrong people are leading and influencing society.

Posted by & filed under Mikes Blog.

How wearisome it is for the human race when they refuse to learn from the past generations. Man is never satisfied, nor content; for he is always looking for pleasure. Man thinks the good things in life are having huge homes and great sums of money, but to get this his days are filled with stress, pain and grief; even at night his mind cannot rest. Some people work wisely with knowledge and skill, but even they must give what they worked so hard for to people who do no work at all. This is a great tragedy. Think about it; what do people get in this life for all their hard work and anxiety? Nothing!

What is it that man has not learned? That life without Jesus is meaningless.

Our Belief: Preference or Conviction

Posted by & filed under Franks Blog.

A belief one supposedly has is either a preference or a conviction. A preference can be a strong belief and with that belief go into full time service, being a teacher, pastor or even a missionary. It can be a strong belief and give all of our wealth to it and be energetic in proselytizing others into it as well as teach our children our belief. With all of this it can still only be a preference, something we prefer to believe, or that we are pressured into believing. We might prefer it over some other religion, but that is all it is. The reason it is a preference is because it can be changed when enough pressure is applied.

 

We see in Daniel chapter 3 that King Nebuchadnezzar made a statue and commanded all to bow down and worship when they heard the sound of a music instrument. Pressure can come through peer pressure, family, jail or prison and persecution. We see this with Shadrach, Meshed and Abednego and the pressure applied to them by King Nebuchadnezzar. What would I do if faced with a burning furnace? Would I recant, or would I be like the three men and be willing to die for what I believe in?

 

What we see with these three men is what a conviction really is. There are several issues that come out showing what a conviction is. The first thing that stands out with these three men is when the pressure of the fiery furnace stands before them and they did not change their belief. They told Nebuchadnezzar, after he gave them a chance to change their mind: “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” Daniel 3:16-18

 

Another aspect of conviction that stands out with these three men was that they were willing to stand alone. These three men did not bow. There were other Jews in the city, what were they doing? They were bowing. If we need other people with us before we stand then our belief is a preference instead of a conviction. A belief that is a conviction is non-negotiable. A belief that is a conviction is God given; it is part of one’s life.

 

Nebuchadnezzar gave these 3 men a second chance. “Then Nebuchadnezzar, in rage and fury, gave the command to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. So they brought these men before the king. Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying to them, ‘Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the gold image which I have set up? Now if you are ready at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, and you fall down and worship the image which I have made, good! But if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?’’ Daniel 3:13-15

 

One last aspect that stands out to me in this passage of Scripture regarding these three men is that they did not need to be assured of success before they took their stand. “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, ‘O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” Daniel 3:16-18

 

A question that comes: How do we know if our belief is a preference or a conviction? The answer is our life style. Conviction will show up in how we live our daily lives. James tells us: “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?” (James 2:14) We are not saved by works, but where there is real faith (conviction) it will be seen in how we live, spend money, our time, etc.

 

The writer of the book of Hebrews tells us: “that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” (Hebrews 6:12) The word for sluggish could also be translated as lazy, stupid, slothful. One could continue in Hebrews 11 looking at those we should imitate like Noah, Abraham, Moses and others who were stoned, sawn into, wandered and lived in caves, destitute, but kept a good testimony through faith. The characteristic that stands out in their life style is obedience and sacrifice.

 

We are coming to the climax of the ages and there is a need for men/women of conviction who will take their stand no matter what.

Are We Complainers?

Posted by & filed under Franks Blog.

Genesis 42:36 “Their father Jacob said to them, ‘You have deprived me of my children. Joseph is no more and Simeon is no more, and now you want to take Benjamin. Everything is against me!’”

 

When we look at the end of Jacob’s life, we see how he thought that everything was against him, that this was not only for his good, but for the good of the world. The one thing that we see with Jacob is that he was a complainer.

 

It is said in Jewish wisdom that God gave the Patriarchs a life span of 180 years. However, we see that Abraham fell short of that time by five years, maybe to spare him the agony of seeing his grandson Esau leave the faith. Abraham’s son, Isaac, lived out his 180 years, but Jacob died at a relatively young age of 147. What happened?

 

The Hebrew word for complaining is ‘mitlonen.’ Verbs convey meaning in God’s language and some verbs are reflexive which is something that we do to ourselves. These verbs most usually start with the prefix MIT, which brings out that you do something to yourself. In others words, complaining is not something you do to other people, but you do to yourself. People who have a habit of complaining are really causing harm to themselves.

 

The book “Switch on Your Brain” by Caroline Leaf, basically brings out the same thought that we should be thinking or making choices for life, and not for death, or like Paul says: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me — put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:8-9

 

Dr. Caroline Leaf says in her book that your brain controls your body, but your mind controls your brain. Are our thoughts filled with hatred and complaining, or are they filled with the thoughts Paul is bringing out in Philippians 4:8? Either way our thoughts will affect our body and one place where it will begin to show is on our face.

 

It is said that a personal friend of Abraham Lincoln brought to him a possible member for the cabinet and after being interviewed by the president he was rejected. When the friend asked why Abraham Lincoln said: “I did not like his face.” The friend replied: “What does the face have to do with it in filling the job, he is not responsible for his face.” Lincoln replied: “Yes, for the first forty years of his life he isn’t, but after forty his face is him.”

 

When Jacob found out that Joseph was alive and both Simeon and Benjamin were safe, Jacob was glad and decided to go to Egypt. When he arrived, Joseph introduced him to Pharaoh and Pharaoh said: “How old are you.” (Genesis 47:8) What an interesting question. He did not ask about his journey or seeing his son after he thought he was dead, but how old are you. What is the thinking in back of that question? Could it be that Jacob looked far older than his years and his faced showed it?

 

We all can remember seeing elderly people whose faces radiated life and happiness. Elderly people that saw life has a great adventure and when circumstances came their way that they had no control over, they did not complain, but made the choice to make the most of it

 

What does your face show?

 

 

Promises Made Good

Posted by & filed under Mikes Blog.

Nehemiah 9:7-8 NLT

When Abraham proved himself faithful to what God had asked of him, God made a covenant with him that blessed Abraham in every way. For God will always do what He promises. He is always true to His Word. Today, it seems that His children want all that God promises, and then promise to be faithful to Him, but then our promises fall apart.  No wonder there aren’t wonders being done when God’s children are unfaithful to what God has told us to do. We have become slaves in a land of plenty, because we serve those in power over us; we serve their desires instead of God’s desires. Therefore, we are in great misery.