Below is the definition of Love.

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Cor%2013:1-13:13;&version=31;

In a time I've been thinking about the four facets of love- emotion, actions, forgiveness, and rejection of pride, I got to review one of the passages where Jesus demonstrates His love for us. At a sad moment in His life He is there for the people. We do things that grieve God, and He lets us because he wants us to realize our shortcomings and seek His ways.


Matthew 14 Herod believed in resurrection, he thought John the Baptist had come back from the dead. Although fear kept him from having John killed, a moment of lust or severe emotion caused him to swear an oath which he then honored and had John killed. Jesus heard about John and went to a
secluded place.
Jesus and John were related, His mother and John's mother were relatives. It is
possible they played together as children. Even though Jesus knew John would die and how, the news
that it actually happened was probably very distressing. He went to a secluded place to pray. The very
nature of man caused John to be killed, and yet people (the nature of man) followed Him looking for
healing from sickness.
In the midst of great sorrow He felt compassion, He then fed them as knowing
they were hungry and food was not readily available. He met the needs they brought to Him and met
the needs they hadn't even considered. What an awesome God.
After ministering to these needs He went to be alone with His Father. Meanwhile His disciples were crossing the sea in the middle of the night in a storm, as fear gripped them He went to them. Being a man the sea provided a barrier to the disciples understanding. They might have thought that if Jesus was there they would be safe, and probably regarded leaving Him on a distant shore as a surety that they were on their own. God came to them, when they needed Him.
So in three acts Jesus after being reminded of our nature through John's death met the needs the
people brought to Him, met the needs they hadn't thought of (fed them), and went to His disciples when
they felt alone, isolated from God and helpless. When they realized who He was they worshiped Him.

I finished the first pass of my trail the other day. What an accomplishment. Now for some fine tuning. No pics of the bottom yet.

Well the traveling season has started, I pray for the safety of all. Below I talk about marriage, and I must confess I do not have all the answers. In 20 years or so of being married I have been selfish in some ways and not put my wife in her proper place. In thinking about it however and reflecting I do believe that what I wrote below is true (I'd like to think God inspired it- but then pride comes knocking), and furthermore I am confident that the principle outlined can be applied to all marriages. Existing ones included, and can give those considering it a benchmark as to how to be. I believe God's word supports what I have said.

2 Cor 10 God's plan for marriage. It doesn't fit here necessarily but its been on my mind lately. Imagine this- two people who have the other's best interests and comfort put ahead of their own. Simple isn't it? Now we as humans come along and make a mess of it. We expect certain things in marriage, or we may feel something is missing. Notice how in the last two statements the emphasis is more personal and not "other" focused. If we have expectations that aren't being met for the other person - why aren't we meeting them? If we feel the other person is "missing" something then why don't we provide it? We become way to "me" focused. The other thing I've noticed is that we get to focused on this life. Cling is a wonderful descriptive word describing it.

Lets face it we're all selfish, or can be. We usually have to make a conscious choice not to be. I think that is why God is the way He is. He wants us to choose His way deliberately and consciously. He will marvelously make sure that all injustice is in some way righted, so He doesn't "have" to act "now" in most things, but He can watch and see if we choose Him. So if you are mad at God for injustices in the world or in your own life then do you have a reason? Of course you do, nobody is ever angry without reason, but now the more important question- IS it a valid reason? Are the injustices you are angry about really a result of somebody's selfish choices? Maybe even your own? Is being mad at God valid anyway?

I wonder what this chapter holds. Wow - Paul is defending his ministry. The quote I underlined is in verse 12 - When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves they are not wise. We should not boast because we do have flaws. If we recognize we are flawed then what we think should happen may and probably is in all likelihood flawed as well. Would you agree? We shouldn't compare ourselves with others, and we shouldn't even compare ourselves with our own past actions. Its too easy to then think we have "arrived" or become something other than the flawed people we are. When we do boast -being humbled is not far away. Or we can be stubborn, and refuse to acknowledge being humbled.

Something I omitted in yesterday's post, actually it didn't come to mind until last night. In our relationships with people in loving them we don't know how it will turn out. We don't know if they will love us back. Even if they seem to return it they may not be fully committed. I think knowing would change our outlook on people, maybe to the point of being detrimental. We usually pass judgments, and act on them - this person will never change, but we have to admit they could.

With God He loves us and He knows whether or not we will ever love Him back. Even those that won't ultimately He loves. A lot like a parent who never gives up on a child although His relationship with us is even deeper than that. Parents always have hope. In the scripture below God knew how Judas would ultimately respond, and yet He did not with hold His love, and treated him just like the others.

Matthew 10 The thing that strikes me about Matthew 10 is the fact that Jesus summoned His 12 disciples which included Judas, and gave them authority to cast out unclean spirits and heal every kind of disease and sickness. Most people will tell you that somehow Judas didn't get this authority or that he didn't do what Jesus instructed him to. He was given authority and sent out though to preach and heal. He also warns His disciples that they cannot know men's hearts furthermore when believer's family (parents or kids) turn them in for their belief they are to ENDURE. Endure to the end- Christian walk will not be strife less or without difficulty. There will be family strife in being a Christian, it doesn't say husband- wife specifically, and main examples are woman versus woman or man man conflict within families that can transcend generations (ex. father and son). Your family won't understand your commitment or having known you their entire lives won't believe it is genuine. Beyond that we tend to have closer relationships with similar gendered family members, we know how they think, etc. So that strife will most likely come primarily from that area. They know the choices you face and how you think, so their skepticism can be greater.

Verse 10:27 is why I'm writing this. What God tells us in secret (which could be our thoughts and meditation) we are to proclaim or share with others.

Why does God love us? How do we love others? This came to me today, and I have thought about it a great deal. We certainly aren't deserving from the aspect of our actions. Most of us slip into a self serving state, we envy other's or their relationships or their possessions. We boast at our accomplishments and our knowledge, and take pride in them. We are often easily angered, all we have to do is have someone repeat something that we find offensive and the angers swells up within us until the pressure finds an escape. We keep records -you did this.... We do evil things, we gossip, we set traps, we try and manipulate people to do what we want. We give up on people, and relationships, passing a judgment that they will not or cannot change, we normally don't trust people- we eye them with a "healthy dose of skepticism", we don't usually protect people from their own actions but rather let them hang themselves.

These are all the opposite of love, and yet God loves us. My conclusion may be in error but I think He loves us for the unique people we are. Not for what we do, or have done, or didn't do. Not for any personal action. Nor does He love us because of the way we treat His other loved ones. So its not our actions toward others, or lack of that is the reason God loves us.

I think the reason is contained in the hopes He has for us, and even if we don't realize that hope or move that direction in life still He has that hope.

We like God have to love our brothers and sisters on this planet the way He loves us. Because they happen to interact and be a part of our lives. We need to embrace all the relationships in our lives. Too often we like to pick and choose. Come to a deeper understanding how to live and realize youthful mistakes were made. It doesn't matter, we have to take all those relationships where they are at hope positive things for the future. Focusing on the past, what may have been missed, etc is not love but rather it opens the door for selfishness. On the other hand we can't be blind to current actions, and not be true to our feelings about them. Overlooking (although I don't really think that is possible- to overlook you must see) sets us up to feed the selfish nature in other's. We may feel like victims sometimes, but we probably contribute.

I was also reminded today to be careful about the hopes for the future. We easily get caught up in them, and then if they aren't realized bitterness and regret come knocking.

We have to look at others as the unique people they are. Love them for now and who they are, not past actions, nor what you expect in the future. See them as the unique one of a kind treasure they are.

There is no scripture review, although I read 1 Cor 13 and Romans 12 before writing this, they definitely fit. Also I heard radio shows on Romans 12. My review of 1 Cor 13 which I have done but not posted, left me feeling like I had not done it justice. That chapter is so deep and powerful that doing it justice is difficult. Its my prayer to love people the way it says to.

The picture is from my trail. We are all on a journey of sorts, and the path isn't always paved or smooth, but there is a path. Its neat to reflect back on the path we have come down, and maybe get a vision of what is ahead.

Oh Lord Your insights lately have been wonderful. It was good to re-read this and I actually realized something I had wanted to know had been answered completely- sharing. I added the part below about opening up to others is a step of faith- that is my next prayer. I am happy plastic, the lyrics fit me, my real struggles I am afraid to share. Afraid of human condemnation, rejection, not willing to take the step of faith Jesus requires for my healing- rather we should focus on what God wants. Imagine the dialogs if we were to focus on what God wanted. I'm trying to get there, but don't think I have the answers, or am perfect, far from it- I just hide things well.

I was also reminded of the struggle we face today as humans between our emotions and our logic. Most people are far more affected by emotions than they want to admit, and our emotions often lead us into illogical irrational behavior. Those feelings and emotions are there for us to enjoy and explore, but not let them dictate our lives. Its a balance we must strike, and one that we will learn more of as we live.

Mark 5 Mark 5 is another perspective on the man possessed by a mob or legion of demons. Mark tells us the possessed man was unable to to be bound (no one), and "no one" could subdue him. Now the demons instantly recognized Jesus and bowed before Him. He cast out the demons, they went into some pigs and the pigs went into water and drowned. The people of the town asked Jesus to leave, again they weren't too concerned that the man no one could bind or subdue had been healed, but rather seemed to worry about their lost income, or were possibly afraid. Jesus left based on their wishes but He left Himself a witness.
The woman with the medical condition is then told- she exhausted all her resources and had visited doctors exhausting human wisdom. She thinks (internally) that Jesus can heal her if she only touches His garment. This happens but Jesus makes her confess to the crowd that she was healed. I don't think God working in our lives is intended just for us but rather to share.
This is then questioned because as Jesus raises the synagogue official's daughter -He tells them to tell no one what happened.
The lady healed of the hemorrhage had a miracle performed on her, the man with the demons cast out had that happen to him. Jesus told the man to tell his community "what God has done for you". He made the lady confess the reason she touched Him publicly. He then tells those that witness a resurrection to "tell no one".
When we tell others what God has done in our lives our confidence is much stronger than telling others what we have seen in other's lives. Jesus seems to want us to share our personal experiences of His working in our lives. He works in your life everyday, can you see it? If you can't are you looking for it? I've been amazed by some of the unexpected little things that I see in my life. The thing I dreaded this morning -suddenly not happening. It can work the other way- the wonderful day you had planned turning into a trial. Its God working with us, growing us.
I also question the practice of confiding in others, and that has been my prayer of late. On the one hand confiding in others makes us accountable and in some ways allows us in our own strength to change habits. But people can't know our heart and as we fail or continue to fail in some things they may give up or question our commitment. If we on the other hand confide in God then He can work for not just a change in habits but true repentance or changing directions. But like the woman healed of hemorrhage we should give Him the glory for His work in our lives. If others don't know our struggles then will the victory He gives or deliverance - how do we share that? This is one reason I'm writing this- God is showing me things and teaching me at a level that I cannot keep up with in terms of giving Him praise. A song I recently heard was about keeping up an appearance of Godliness. The song said that the church is full of happy plastic people, hiding their true selves behind walls. Those lyrics are true from what I have observed, there are few serious issues or struggles by Christians that are openly known by others in the church. That knowledge comes out much like in the world- through whispers and gossip. Yet when we show our weaknesses to others then God will use that weakness and make us strong. Talk about taking a risk though, but instead of considering it a risk, maybe it is an exercise in faith. The problems people made public before Jesus He healed. ALL of them. Those problems of a person that others knew about and brought to Him He resolved. Its faith. Its also a fearful consideration.
Another issue is how do you share with people your pressing issues (if it involves others)? A real risk is encountered of doing or saying something that could be a detriment to another's walk. Additionally those involved may not want you to share with the people you think you should. Its a very involved and intricate question. Those who think it isn't an issue haven't considered it very deeply or have a prideful stance of thinking they can judge character well. Only GOD knows a man's heart. I would encourage people to stay self focused, there should be enough problems there to keep us in prayer and seeking Him for a while. Additionally I would be willing to suggest that as we address our personal problems, the ones we share with others will go away.

I loved reviewing this, it is so true, and it ties into reading second Corinthians. I attended the church Christmas program tonight, watching all the young people singing. It also had a puppet show and some readings. May God bless all the children, and all people everywhere. Some of the kids yawned, some frowned at times, some smiled and bounced. They have such hope, that sometimes we adults lose, and they blessed me greatly.

Mark 4 Mark 4 covers some of the stories that I've already commented on from other parts of other Gospels. However there are some things to add, perspectives gained from reading the Mark version. The parable of the sower is repeated. I think it is interesting that the farmer sowing seeds sows them everywhere. Usually farmers as we know them are very careful about waste and sow only in the areas where the crops have the best chance to grow. In this parable the seed (or Word of God) is sown everywhere, and It should be.
The cares of the world are appropriately called "thorns". They certainly seem to stick to us and distract us from the focus we're supposed to have in this life. Pulling thorns is also something I hesitate to do - I'm talking about weeding a garden. The non-thorned weeds are easy to pull, but the thorny ones are often thought about very carefully.
There is another reference to "measures" in this chapter. Take care what we listen to. By your measure it will be measured to you. This is I think the third reference I've found to make us reflect on how we measure things, because God will use our measures to bless us.
Another story is that the sowed seeds grow on their own. Going back to the parable of the sower, if we sow the seeds (everywhere) God will grow them.
And that is followed by the parable of the mustard seed. A little bitty seed (or God's Word sown) can become significant, and dwarf the other plants or concerns. This connotes to me that we don't have to beat others over the head with the Gospel, but we do need to sow a small seed (everywhere). Then we can watch God work in growing that seed and praise Him.

This picture was from trail work. Imagine this view with no sound, that is how it was Saturday, no wind rustled leaves, no birds, no hum of any kind.

I've taken a break from Bible reading lately and was feeling some self condemnation over it. The something marvelous happened when I started back that I really can't explain.

First the men's group at my church is seeking direction, and members. So that has been a issue of prayer lately. In my own personal reading I often looked for the clear role of fathers (or men). In reading 1 Thess 2:11 there was a glimpse "a father deals with his own children encouraging comforting and urging his kids on to Godly lives. In my reading I stopped just befor 1 Cor 14. In that chapter Paul is writing about the importance of prophesying. In 1 Cor 14:3 "everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their, encouragement, and comfort", this passage is almost a perfect fit. Then I thought of the families I know and the father figure. The words the dad speaks affect the family for generations, if he has a poor outlook about his children they will perform poorly, if he has a positive outlook then they will flourish. Those men who by their actions aren't involved with their families are sending a signal as well. it isn't very positive either. So then I wondered what I had said or spoke about my family versus what I want for them. God wants only good things for us, and when bad things happen its definitely a result of a problem with men and not God. He is easy to be angry with, but its futile.

Now everyone thinks I'm sexist. Well before God there are neither male nor female (Gal 3:28). Often times our pride pokes fun at the characteristics and opinions of the opposite sex, but God made woman for man and man is born of woman. Clearly we need each other, on a very deep level. We need that point of view that the other sex has, we are missing it (if we are honest enough to admit it). What do groups of only women talk about? What about groups of only men? is it edifying, uplifting, something your are not afraid to share? With you spouse, kids or mother and father? I think in mixed groups the topics tend to be a little more uplifting, wholesome, or some other positive adjective, as they should be.

We create tomorrow by the decisions we make today, just like our today was created by decisions made previously. So take the advice you always hear, if you can't say anything good keep your mouth shut. It is so important, and not for today but literally poorly chosen words can affect your grandkids.

At the end of 1 Cor it talks about seed dying to create the next crop, this chapter has a reminder of the parable of the sower. Again another God tied happening. We also talked about the difficulty of keeping faith tonight at church. We would much rather worry and fret, it is important to acknowledge God and how He works in our lives. Like the women healed of hemorrhage. I'm sure there are no coincidences, and no not everything always goes the way I want.

Luke 8 This chapter repeats many of the stories I have covered from other gospels. the parable of the sower for example, and the casting out of legion. In reading this the first thing I notice is that the women He healed now follow Him and support His ministry. They are grateful, and in following Him they have publicly acknowledged Him as their Healer, and have dealt with the fear that seems to come with miracles.
For instance He casts out legion into the swine and they run down the hill into the water and are drowned. This miracle was witnessed and relayed to people who came to verify it. They saw a man that had been clearly demon possessed sitting clothed and in his right mind. Instead of being grateful they became fearful and acting on their fear they ask Jesus to leave, so He does. He does leave the healed man as a witness to the town though, and the healed man proclaimed what Jesus had done for Him.
Once back across the sea a synagogue official came to Jesus on behalf of His daughter. He recognized what Jesus could do although I have to wonder if he came in an official nature or probably just as a desperate dad. Jesus started on His way and eventually raised the official's daughter from death. The inquiry was public, and acknowledgment of God's power and authority.
A strange thing happens on the way, a woman suffering for 12 years knows in her mind that Jesus power could heal her. She didn't have friends helping her so she may not have told anyone, but had the faith within herself to believe. She works her way through the crowd and receives her healing. Jesus then stops and asks "who touched Me" and eventually the woman confesses before Jesus and the crowd. Is there a miracle recorded in the Bible that affected just one person and that nobody else knew about? I can't think of one and this miracle is no different. Jesus wanted the woman to publicly acknowledge her healing, He sent the man possessed by legion back to those who knew him before his healing. We should acknowledge what God has done for us. The big miracles and the small ones for God does not reserve the knowledge of miracles to just those people affected by them. We want miracles but don't want to share them, we may feel we are opening ourselves up for scorn. It also limits the glory God gets for His actions.