The Body May 11, 2006
Posted by noshoes in Church, Friends, Wisdom?.12 comments
I am reminded that the body and the spirit are two entirely separate entities. The body is the temporary home of the spirit a temple if you will. Yesterday at church one of my friends and a fellow manly man was strolling up the sidewalk to the church.
Last week I saw him on several occasions with a bandage wrapping his forearm and you can bet I was anxious to see the damage. I asked him how and he said it was the result of a car accident.
Now that the gauze was no longer present I quickly asked to see the injury. It is a beauty and I can imagine the scene of the accident was very bloody. I have had my share of stitches and the experience is a mixed one. It always strikes me funny as the doctor numbs the wound and begins to vigorously scrub the area inside and out. For an experience physician the procedure is routine and they think nothing of sewing you back up.
This is where I start pondering. I have an abiding faith in the God of the Bible and I have been aware from an early age of God’s Word concerning the body. Seeing the stitches reminded me that the body in little more than a suit of skin and flesh and bone. When the body gets torn, ripped, or cut we have it sewn back up and carry on with life.
There will come a day for each of us when we will no longer reside within our body as we once knew it. Our body will eventually wear out just like an old comfortable outfit and it will be thrown away, with much pomp and circumstance in many cases, where it will return to the dust God made it from.
When we know the truth about the body we can live in liberty!
And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Matthew 10:28
But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. Romans 7:23-25
And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. Romans 8:10
For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. Romans 8:13
For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. James 2:26
As alway it is a decsion for each individual. It is a responsibiltiy given to each person by a wise and loving God. When you hear the truth you will do somthing with it. The only question is what?
The fruit of the tree of the knowledge of Good and evil April 24, 2006
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Genesis 2:17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
Many times in the past I have thought about connection. I am speaking of connection in the context of my interaction with human just like me wherever I encounter them. We are essentially alone in our own consciousness except for God who knows us better than we know ourselves.
These contemplations are most often stirred by contact with people who I meet that I find very desirable. The frustration occurs when wisdom collides with emotion. The frustration is finding the closest vantage point on another’s soul with which to make camp and fellowship. I have included the verse above because it is at the root of my philosophy concerning human relationship. I know that in light of God’s Word that strong boundaries must be maintained in my friendships with people. I also know that God desires that we be transparent with our siblings through adoption into the family of God.
It is the knowledge of evil that keeps us at varying distances from every other person in our lives. Not only the knowledge that we have sinful and wicked thoughts but that everyone else does. We are well acquainted with shame and we hide. When the first man and woman were created they set into motion the entire human experience.
Genesis 3:6-21 6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. 8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?" 10 He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid." 11 And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?" 12 The man said, "The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it." 13 Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." 14 So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, "Cursed are you above all the livestock and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring [a] and hers; he will crush [b] your head, and you will strike his heel." 16 To the woman he said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you." 17 To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,' "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. 18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return." 20 Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living. 21 The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. 22 And the LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." 23 So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. 24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.
What a difference the knowledge of evil makes. We hide our own wickedness from those around us, we protect ourselves from the evil of others. We run from God when we should bear our souls to Him.
I write this because I am convinced that with Jesus we are given the ability to draw closer than we at first believe possible. In fact it is in drawing closer to Jesus that we find the capability to fellowship with our brothers and sisters. 1John 4:7-8 7Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son[b] into the world that we might live through him. 10This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for[c] our sins. 11Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. 13We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. 16And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. 17In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. 18There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 19We love because he first loved us.
Jesus gives us the confidence to trust our new nature in Him.
1 John 3 20-22 20For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. 21Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. 22And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
Find believers around you who you can begin to be honest with. Friends who allow you to be genuine and will not ridicule you when you expose your weakness’. You will grow in this way.
Dumpster Diving March 21, 2006
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I am, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, a dumpster diver. It is because dumpster diving is one of the most exhilarating experiences anyone willing to give it a try can have. It is also because you will find things of value that you may take and later use for just the price of a little digging.
Go and enter the dumpsters in your area and be richly rewarded with a whole new outlook on life. Liberate yourselves from the bondage of snobbery and get up to your neck in rubbish! Soar to the highest heights of self determination and reclaim the slightly damaged but useful items of a wasteful and bloated society.
Yes you to can be a dumpster diver.
Birthday Conundrum January 12, 2006
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A child newly born into the world had absolutely no choice in the matter. Ask anyone if they remember the day of their birth and you know what they will say. The mother on the other hand knew all to well what was to come. Being a man I am truly amazed that a woman is willing to experience the horror of child birth to begin with.
Why is the child the recipient of all the smiles, pats on the back, spontaneous outbursts of song and gifts? Who did all the work? Who made all the sacrifices? Who allow their very own body to be host to the largest know parasite on the planet? If you answered the woman who will now forever be know as mother you are darn right and what does she get on the birthday? A killer to do list. Crazy!
Birthday Conundrum January 12, 2006
Posted by noshoes in Wisdom?.6 comments
A child newly born into the world had absolutely no choice in the matter. Ask anyone if they remember the day of their birth and you know what they will say. The mother on the other hand knew all to well what was to come. Being a man I am truly amazed that a woman is willing to experience the horror of child birth to begin with.
Why is the child the recipient of all the smiles, pats on the back, spontaneous outbursts of song and gifts? Who did all the work? Who made all the sacrifices? Who allow their very own body to be host to the largest know parasite on the planet? If you answered the woman who will now forever be know as mother you are darn right and what does she get on the birthday? A killer to do list. Crazy!
Becoming January 11, 2006
Posted by noshoes in Creation, Plants, Wisdom?.add a comment
Everyday you and I see and hear things that change us. You cannot remain the same you are always becoming. While the body continues to age and become more infirm the spirit has the capacity to be transformed and renewed eternally!
You cannot become anything more than who you choose to believe you are and that all starts with where you believe you have come from! What happens in a human’s life when he or she believes that they are a random product of nature? What happens when a person chooses to live a life where there is no truth and everyone is there own law.
2 Timothy 3
What happens in a human’s life when he or she put their trust in a loving God who has given us all the answers to life’s questions in His written word? What happens when a person understands the nature of good and evil and has experienced the grace and forgiveness of a Holy God? How will a person live when he or she believes that we are accountable for our actions and that there is a truth that never changes?
Psalm 33
Are you becoming an ape with all the future that the life of an animal holds or are you becoming a beloved child of God our loving creator who is destined to live with Him for eternity?
Becoming January 11, 2006
Posted by noshoes in Creation, Plants, Wisdom?.2 comments
Everyday you and I see and hear things that change us. You cannot remain the same you are always becoming. While the body continues to age and become more infirm the spirit has the capacity to be transformed and renewed eternally!
You cannot become anything more than who you choose to believe you are and that all starts with where you believe you have come from! What happens in a human�s life when he or she believes that they are a random product of nature? What happens when a person chooses to live a life where there is no truth and everyone is there own law.
2 Timothy 3
What happens in a human�s life when he or she put their trust in a loving God who has given us all the answers to life�s questions in His written word? What happens when a person understands the nature of good and evil and has experienced the grace and forgiveness of a Holy God? How will a person live when he or she believes that we are accountable for our actions and that there is a truth that never changes?
Psalm 33
Are you becoming an ape with all the future that the life of an animal holds or are you becoming a beloved child of God our loving creator who is destined to live with Him for eternity?
Emotion January 7, 2006
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You must be willing to be a traitor to your emotions! You must see yourself as separate from that component of your being which is motivated by rapidly changing circumstances and fleeting moments of excitement. To understand the course being set by your feelings and passions and to have the temerity to, against the leadings of your fickle heart, turn on those very same feelings and render them powerless to cause action is freedom to truly live and love.
The same emotions that would lead you to make rash and harmful decisions are, in the end, the source of torment for the results of those very same decisions.
Proverbs 4
23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. 24 Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee. 25 Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. 26 Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. 27 Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.
1 Thessoloninas 5
16 Rejoice evermore. 17 Pray without ceasing. 1 8In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 19 Quench not the Spirit. 20 Despise not prophesyings. 21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 22 Abstain from all appearance of evil. 23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.
Try this a time or two with the knowledge that repairs are more easily made to surface damage than they are to breaches of the core. Simply hold your position for a longer time than your emotions dictate. Be a traitor to emotions who do not hold allegiance to your long term good and remain faithful to the truth God instilled within you from the beginning.You might just discover that it is your own emotions that are more often the real traitor!
Emotion January 7, 2006
Posted by noshoes in Wisdom?.5 comments
You must be willing to be a traitor to your emotions! You must see yourself as separate from that component of your being which is motivated by rapidly changing circumstances and fleeting moments of excitement. To understand the course being set by your feelings and passions and to have the temerity to, against the leadings of your fickle heart, turn on those very same feelings and render them powerless to cause action is freedom to truly live and love.
The same emotions that would lead you to make rash and harmful decisions are, in the end, the source of torment for the results of those very same decisions.
Proverbs 4
23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. 24 Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee. 25 Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. 26 Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. 27 Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.1 Thessoloninas 5
16 Rejoice evermore. 17 Pray without ceasing. 1 8In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 19 Quench not the Spirit. 20 Despise not prophesyings. 21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 22 Abstain from all appearance of evil. 23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.
Try this a time or two with the knowledge that repairs are more easily made to surface damage than they are to breaches of the core. Simply hold your position for a longer time than your emotions dictate. Be a traitor to emotions who do not hold allegiance to your long term good and remain faithful to the truth God instilled within you from the beginning.You might just discover that it is your own emotions that are more often the real traitor!
Sweet Letter January 6, 2006
Posted by noshoes in Internet, Wisdom?.1 comment so far
This sure is a touching and sweet letter simply written by a man taking care of his family to the very end.
These men know the risks of working hundreds of feet under ground in a West Virginia coal mine and they take them willingly.
Wonder January 4, 2006
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The cosmos is best experienced through a child’s eyes. The trick is to keep from ever forgetting that you are in essence always a child and that God the creator of everything is the source of your life!
Wonder January 3, 2006
Posted by noshoes in Little People, Photoshopped, Wisdom?.4 comments
The cosmos is best experienced through a child’s eyes. The trick is to keep from ever forgetting that you are in essence always a child and that God the creator of everything is the source of your life!
We’re All Gonna Die! January 1, 2006
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We are headed for a new year my friends. As time passes, we need look no further than the devices our forefathers constructed to mark its steady and unrelenting march. Now time is life and when your time is up you life on this earth will cease as you once knew it. Fear not Jesus has a place for you with Him beyond this blink of an eye.
Do you ask yourself questions?
Why do I exist? Why people do “evil” things? Where did everything that is come from? How does my heart keep beating? What is death? What will come of me after I die? Why I have to clip my toe nails at least twice a month?
If you have not asked and begun to find answers for these questions start with this question. Why do I avoid seeking who and why I am?
2006 wow, I pray it will be the most meaningful year of our lives to date. There will come a moment in this process of time when God the creator of time will declare that there should be time no longer. It’s a mystery and a comfort to know that my Father in heaven knows more than me. He even knows more than those people who say they know how but can never answer the question why.
This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.John 15:12-14Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.James 4:14LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is: that I may know how frail I am. Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah. Surely every man walketh in a vain shew: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them. And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee.Psalm 39:4-7
Your gonna die why not try to find some meaning before it happens? You will be richly rewarded!
We’re All Gonna Die! January 1, 2006
Posted by noshoes in Wisdom?.3 comments
We are headed for a new year my friends. As time passes, we need look no further than the devices our forefathers constructed to mark its steady and unrelenting march. Now time is life and when your time is up you life on this earth will cease as you once knew it. Fear not Jesus has a place for you with Him beyond this blink of an eye.
Do you ask yourself questions?
Why do I exist? Why people do “evil” things? Where did everything that is come from? How does my heart keep beating? What is death? What will come of me after I die? Why I have to clip my toe nails at least twice a month?
If you have not asked and begun to find answers for these questions start with this question. Why do I avoid seeking who and why I am?
2006 wow, I pray it will be the most meaningful year of our lives to date. There will come a moment in this process of time when God the creator of time will declare that there should be time no longer. It’s a mystery and a comfort to know that my Father in heaven knows more than me. He even knows more than those people who say they know how but can never answer the question why.
This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.John 15:12-14Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.James 4:14LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is: that I may know how frail I am. Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah. Surely every man walketh in a vain shew: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them. And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee.Psalm 39:4-7
Your gonna die why not try to find some meaning before it happens? You will be richly rewarded!
Are You In The Spirit Yet? December 9, 2005
Posted by noshoes in Babies, church folk, little friends, Photo Shoot, Wisdom?.add a comment
Ah yes Christmas! For those of us that have grown up it can be hard to experience Christmas to its potential. This year I am going to do a little vicarious living and let the little people I find in my life this year set the example!
I am going to turn the whole commercial enterprise we know as Christmas into a sacred and joyful time with family, friends and any strangers who have caught the spirit. Christmas is going to be what you make of it so without regard for your circumstances make this one the best yet!
John 4:23-26
23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
25 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.
26 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.
Are You In The Spirit Yet? December 9, 2005
Posted by noshoes in Babies, Church, Friends, Wisdom?.1 comment so far
Ah yes Christmas! For those of us that have grown up it can be hard to experience Christmas to its potential. This year I am going to do a little vicarious living and let the little people I find in my life this year set the example!
I am going to turn the whole commercial enterprise we know as Christmas into a sacred and joyful time with family, friends and any strangers who have caught the spirit. Christmas is going to be what you make of it so without regard for your circumstances make this one the best yet!
John 4:23-26
23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
25 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.
26 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.
Breath November 28, 2005
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We must breathe oxygen in the air to keep on keeping on. What a strange and wonderful design has the human body. We are absolutely dependent on God for this life.
We are given the freedom to choose for ourselves what we will take to be the truth but the truth remains what it has always been from the very beginning. We try as we might to explain our existence without a creator and the theories come and go. God never changes and His word remains and flourishes confounding the fools that exclaim “there is no God”.
I have found a reason for my life and it has made all the difference! I breathe to glorify the God of the universe and God of the universe is filled with joy to be my Father.
Breath November 28, 2005
Posted by noshoes in Babies, Church, Wisdom?.3 comments
We must breathe oxygen in the air to keep on keeping on. What a strange and wonderful design has the human body. We are absolutely dependent on God for this life.
We are given the freedom to choose for ourselves what we will take to be the truth but the truth remains what it has always been form the very beginning. We try as we might to explain our existence without a creator and the theories come and go. God never changes and His word remains and flourishes confounding the fools that exclaim “there is no God”.
I have found a reason for my life and it has made all the difference! I breathe to glorify the God of the universe and God of the universe is filled with joy to be my Father.
Oooooops! November 28, 2005
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Today I placed the camera atop the tripod with flash attached and turned to retrieve a second remote flash. Count to three and crash I spin around to see the tripod laying flat against the tile floor with the tripod mount and the a section of the lower housing of the camera firmly attached minus the rest of the camera.
I slowly pick up the pieces and find that the lens, the flash, and the camera all still function. It is hard to believe but I am pleased I can continue with the shoot. I must say I am more surprised that I am not overwhelmed with grief and anger.
Every tragedy in this life, big or small fades in significance when seen in the light of an eternity in heaven. Thirty years and by the grace of God I am finally beginning to rest in the truth that the kingdom of heaven is my home and the ravages of sin on this world and on my person are as trivial as they are temporary. The camera body is battered and broken but it was inevitable. My body will experience the same in due time and God my father will be sufficient to see me through. It is obedience to His will for my life that I desire. Let my failings and disappointments be accepted with the grace and faith that Jesus accepted the scorn and rejection of His beloved creation even unto death on a cross.
If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. Colossians 3 : 1-3
Being dead is such a liberating way to live!
Oooooops! November 27, 2005
Posted by noshoes in Photo Shoot, Wisdom?.1 comment so far
Today I placed the camera atop the tripod with flash attached and turned to retrieve a second remote flash. Count to three and crash I spin around to see the tripod laying flat against the tile floor with the tripod mount and the a section of the lower housing of the camera firmly attached minus the rest of the camera.
I slowly pick up the pieces and find that the lens, the flash, and the camera all still function. It is hard to believe but I am pleased I can continue with the shoot. I must say I am more surprised that I am not overwhelmed with grief and anger.
Every tragedy in this life, big or small fades in significance when seen in the light of an eternity in heaven. Thirty years and by the grace of God I am finally beginning to rest in the truth that the kingdom of heaven is my home and the ravages of sin on this world and on my person are as trivial as they are temporary. The camera body is battered and broken but it was inevitable. My body will experience the same in due time and God my father will be sufficient to see me through. It is obedience to His will for my life that I desire. Let my failings and disappointments be accepted with the grace and faith that Jesus accepted the scorn and rejection of His beloved creation even unto death on a cross.
If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. Colossians 3 : 1-3
Being dead is such a liberating way to live!
Mr. Billy 