Search & Rescue

2011-11-26T03:28:00.001-08:00

I AM

Exodus 3:14: And God said to Moses, “I AM THAT I AM” (I am because I am, I am the ever becoming One), and you shall say to the children of Israel, I AM has sent me. “Am” is from the verb for “to be”. Several more times in the ensuing chapters, God continues to refer to Himself as “I AM” in the process of getting Moses to understand and trust Him. Not knowing the Hebrew word for the ever being one… I continue.

The word “I” in the Greek is the term “ego”. And as we know, everyone has an “ego”. That part of us that says, “I am number one in my world”. Is there a similarity and are there differences from what is said in Exodus 3 and how I view myself?
In Isaiah chapters 40 – 46, repeatedly, God refers to Himself as “I AM”, and says, “I will share My glory with no one else”. He is the only One with the characteristic of “ever being”, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, as revealed in Genesis chapters 1 &2, “Let Us make man in Our image”. Not three God’s, but One God revealed in three Persons. So, I contend that the great “I AM” is revealed and consigned to only One.

In the New Testament, Jesus refers to Himself and “I AM”. In the Gospel of John, these statements start in chapter 4:14, 26, 32, 38; chapter 5:34, 36, 43, 45; chapter 6:35, 40, 41, 48, 51, 63, 70; Of course the most famous and most quoted is John 14:6, “Then Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father but by Me’”. That is a pretty bold and narrow statement. But, when you take the essence of all religions and compare them to Christianity, it looks like this; religion says, do the best you can and it will all work out in the end. While Christianity says, your worthiness is like filthy, dirty rags (those of a woman during her menstrual cycle), and you need someone who is pure and righteous that will take the dirt and filth and destroy it and make you pure and righteous. How would you like it if the person in front of you in the line of trillions of people was the last one “good enough” to make it in on his own “good works”? Or, would it be easier to rationally think through the facts and come to the conclusion that you needed some “outside help” to get to heaven?

That thought brings me to the alter-ego statement, “I think, therefore I am”. If we are created in the image of God, then we have the capacity to think and reason, just as He does; and we are and do. The problem comes with the “fall of man” and the sin nature we all have; some may want to deny that sin problem, but we all have the propensity to want our own way, do our own thing and command our own destiny. And those things are simply the proof of sin. We think with a distorted view and cannot see the truth of our situation. Thus the statement becomes, “I think, therefore I AM”!!! I am the ever becoming one. Yet, we all die, another proof of sin. The egotistical person or persons will come up with, “Well, dying is just part of the evolutionary design so the next generation can move us farther along the path”. Yet these people deny design, because that supposes a “Designer”, a God, and that means responsibility to that God and they really get things distorted and in a lot of cases contradictory. Don’t get me started on “global warming” or the newer phrase, “global climate change”; climate changes, and it happens all around the world, the globe, which is the basic definition of climate. The Bible says somewhere, “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools”. The Book of Proverbs contrasts the wise man and the fool. By reading it “you” may become a wise man.

I think, therefore I am, type of person must then think, now let’s think, I created me and everything else. But then the question becomes, “If you created it why can’t you control it”? It may seem that the One and only true God is not in control as we see wars and calamities all around the world, but He is. It is because He made us with the freedom to choose, and with only one choice, we condemn ourselves. That choice is, “to do it my way”. God is in control, but He is not controlling. If you look closely at all recorded history, you will find patterns. Patterns revolve around certain people groups. And even within those people groups, there are two types of people, those who obey and those who don’t. Obey who or what? The answer is those who obey God’s laws and standards, and those who don’t. But does that then lead us back to my obeying mean good works? No, because you can’t obey perfectly, again, because of our own ego, and that because of sin. That’s why God is the Creator and sustainer of all that is. That also shows us that we need someone to intercede for us, before the presence of that One, True and Holy God, revealed in three persons. And if you have not understood that up to this point, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, one God revealed in three persons. It is only within the power of the Holy Spirit living within us that we could ever hope of being “good enough” to even stand in the presence of God.

Ego is a dangerous thing to live with. It needs to be put into subjection under the One who allowed it to be. In Christianity, is the only way and truth and life, Jesus, who allows for the proper side of ego and lets it, function in a good and constructive manner. I know whereof I speak. You see, I once was blind to the truth, but now I see. To the age of almost thirty, I was in full control of my own life, but it was out of control. So, was I really in control? Or was I just “playing the game” as so many others were? Yes, I was just playing the game. Then I heard about the life I had been trying to live, that God offered. But the problem was I had to give up control. Was I willing to do that? Was I willing to give up, “I am” for “HE IS”? That’s your choice.

Thanks for listening,
Ron

2011-04-11T01:55:00.000-07:00

Preparing For War

I was going to title this “Going to War”, but I didn’t, for a reason that will be forthcoming.

Going to war precludes that you have prepared. Only those who have “signed up” will go through the proper training that will prepare them for war. Today, in 2011, many wars are going on around the world, more than at any other time in the history of the world. These fighters or warriors, have all had some kind of training, some very technical while others will just point and shoot. I will be the first to admit that war is ugly and a disgusting thing, but there are right and wrongs in this world. But some people just don’t like other people, because of race, religion, or a dozen other ridiculous reasons. It is wrong to commit murder, the taking of another person’s life for no reason; and then there is war, which is defending one’s own life and property. Your “rights” stop at the end of my nose.

Back to the training part: Proper training will, in most cases, assure victory. Plans, equipment, strategy, personnel and execution will produce success. The main problem with victory and success is that casualties will occur. The main point of “Basic Training” is to create a unit, defined as “many parts working as one”. That process is done by stripping away “self” from the individual and rebuilding a bond with other members. Some of you may have seen the movie, “Band of Brothers”, that’s what it’s all about. Something happens when people share things in common and have a common goal and purpose. Not everyone will be doing the same job or task, but all will do his part to accomplish the mission. The mission is bigger than the “sum-total-of-it’s-parts”. Some army’s will look disheveled or rag-tag, while others will be decked out in the finest of uniforms. Think of the movie “Braveheart”, here you had a bunch of farmers, going up against the King’s finest, in full “battle array”. A modern saying is, “It’s not the dog in the fight, but it’s the fight in the dog, that makes the difference”. Preparation starts in the heart and in the mind. Do I believe in what I’m fighting for? What am I willing to give up something (self), to defend what is right and true? What will it cost me to prepare for my mission?

The Bible tells us in 1 Corinthians chapter 12, that the “body (one) is made up of many parts (hundreds or thousands; millions or billions if you break it down to the cellular level). Each part has its own thing to do, but when done properly, functions with other parts, doing something different, functioning with other parts, that makes the whole thing “work”. Oh! Did I mention… God caused it to be. I could get off on just talking about how complex and complicated the body is, but that is not my point. The bonding agent in the human body is called laminin. Under the microscope it looks like an x with one leg longer than the other three, thus the shape of a cross, interesting.

Back to the war and the battle: That’s almost like, “back to the future”, where the war and the battle will take us. Remember “Doc” saying when the picture or writing was erased from the paper, “Of course, your future isn’t written yet, nobody’s is”, another reason to prepare now. We may not know what the future holds, but we know Who holds the future.

So… how are you preparing for your future? Are you preparing spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically? And then… what does each look like?

Spiritually: Do you have a good handle on the word of God? Do you continue to read and dig and study to know God? Or, do you read just to have more knowledge? Steven Hawking has been considered one of the most brilliant men over the past decade, yet he knows nothing about God, at least I have never heard him or his narrator say anything about the great God and creator of the universe. The Bible tells us over and over, that we are to be like Him, and those who seek Me diligently will find Me, do you want more and more of God’s kindness, learn to know Him better and better. If you don’t know Him better than you did last year or last month, you are not seeking Him. Romans 12:1,2 “Therefore, I urge you brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world: but be transformed, by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is the good and acceptable, and perfect, will of God”.

Mentally: Does anyone lack wisdom, let him ask God, who gives abundantly. That is from the book of James in the New Testament. The entire book of Proverbs is full of the wisdom of Solomon, on about every topic you can imagine. This wisdom is about life and how to live it, and in some cases, how not to live it. It won’t tell you if you should buy a new car, but it will give you strong guidelines as to how to make such decisions.

Emotionally: I’m sure you have heard the phrase, “He really doesn’t have his heart in it”. That’s your emotions. Do you go around in a “hap-hazard” or “willy-nilly” way, with no real purpose or direction? I know that from time-to-time we all have those days when we think, “I really don’t care what I do today, or what happens today”. But a lifetime of this kind of thinking is not good for one’s mental or emotional being. What’s your heart telling you? Do you need to get it engaged? In The Gospel of John Chapter 21 verse 15 - 17, Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love Me more than these? Peter answered, Yes Lord You know I love You? Jesus answered, Feed My lambs.” Then Jesus said to him again, “Peter, do you love Me? He answered, Yes Lord You know I love You. And Jesus said, Tend My sheep”. And then a third time Jesus asked him, “Peter, do you love Me? And Peter was grieved because He asked him the third time, Do you love Me? And Peter said to the Lord, Lord You know all things and You know that I love You. Jesus said, Feed My sheep”. So my question is, “Do you love the Lord? Is your heart in it, all of it”?

Physically: I am trying to get my body, what there is left of it, back into better working condition. I know I will never be able to do what I did when I was in my
20’s or even 30’s, but I can be better than I am now. The physical has a lot to do with the other three areas mentioned above. Stuff goes on in the body, chemical reactions, that create and cause the mind and the emotions to function better. The last thing you want to do is withdraw or sit idle and do nothing, which is what happens if we get depressed. We just want to sit and click the clicker. “I want someone else to fix me, but I don’t want to do anything about it”. A verse that is coming back to me more frequently, these days is found in the Old Testament book of Jeremiah, Chapter 12 verse 5, “If you have run with men and they have tired you out, then how can you compete with horses? If you fall down in a land of peace, how will you do, in the thicket of Jordan”? I believe this verse speaks to more than the physical, but if you walk around the block and get tired, what are your chances of running a marathon? Come on… get busy!

Are you “chomping at the bit” to get into the game? Are you getting ready to get ready? If the “Coach” were to call you for that “last second shot”, are you ready? If not, what are you waiting for? Get engaged, head, heart and gut. Some of you need to “suck it up” and get busy. Not just for busyness sake, but get to know Him and let Him direct you where He wants to use you.

War is hell… but someone needs to stand up and fight for what is right! By the way, I wrote a peace entitled, Head, Heart, Gut, if you haven’t read it, let me know and I will send it to you, reskew@aol.com, or check out my blog, reskewsquad.blogspot.com, for other writings that may inspire you.
Following the Shepherd,
Ron

2011-04-11T01:51:00.000-07:00

Procrastination – Preparation – Perseverance

Let’s get some basic definitions down before we start.

Procrastination: to put off doing or to postpone habitually
Preparation: the act or process of preparing
Perseverance: the act of persevering, continued, patient, effort

Several questions come to mind: Who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going? Some witty but stupid answers also come to mind: Who am I? I am me, I always have been for as long as I can remember. Why am I here? I am here, because, I am not there. Where am I going? Crazy, do you want to come.

Procrastinate… now! Don’t put it off another minute. Never do today, what you can put off until tomorrow. Some people just don’t want to deal with making tough decisions. So, they just put it off, and put it off, and put it off. What if I’m wrong? What if it doesn’t work out? What if they don’t like me? Sometimes, life is just hard. We get to a point where we say, “I’m between a rock and a hard place”. By continually putting off making decisions, we get to the point of learning “the hard way”. Sometimes others will not have the time to wait, because they need a decision, they will no longer wait on us to make that decision, and they will make the decision for us. Then we have to deal with their decision and we may like that even less.

Preparation: Then you have those who… are always preparing! They have list after list, after list. They can tell you what you need for every event or occasion. But, they themselves, could not “put on” said event or party. I often think of the husband and wife who are going on a two week vacation. I ask the question, “Can a wife fill a suitcase so full that the husband cannot lift it”? The answer is yes and no. Yes she can, but even though the husband cannot lift it, he will find a way to get it to the car, out of the car, to the airplane, out of the carrousel into the rental car, out of the rental car and into the hotel. All without saying a word about how his wife over packed.

And that brings me to perseverance, what a segway. The husband has had to persevere with continuing, patient, effort.

By now, you are probably asking, “When is he going to get to the spiritual stuff”? Right now!

From day one, in the Bible, men and women have put things off, things that didn’t seem important at the time. When Noah was building the ark, the entire world was mocking him. “It’s going to what”? “What’s rain”? “Man, you’ve been at this for a loooong time, and we haven’t had on drop of water from the sky”. When Moses went up on the mountain, the people “went to hell in a hand-basket”. They didn’t wait and pray as they should have. They continually wanted what they had left in Egypt. They kept telling themselves, “Things were soooo much better back there”. Like living in slavery for 400 years, making bricks with no straw, wandering in the desert for 40 years because of unbelief and disobedience. And then, after living in the land of milk and honey they said, “Give us a King”! OOPS! About which I wrote another paper on that very topic. If you did not receive it let me know and I will forward it.
But now that we live in the 21st century, things are different. We are much more sophisticated, much more educated, much more aware of things going on around the world.

What types of things do we procrastinate about? How about Bible study, prayer, worship, tithing, caring, sharing you faith, and you fill in the blank, surely you have thought of something.

How are you preparing spiritually? You never know what type of adventure is around the next corner. Do you know enough or do you know enough to know you need to know more? Read it slowly, it will come to you.

When you get to a tough time in life, will you bail? Or will you stand firm? Ephesians 6: 10 – 20. This passage talks about putting on the “full armor of God”, in order to pray and stand firm; so that… you will be able to stand up against rulers, and powers and authorities, and world forces, and spiritual forces of wickedness in heavenly places, and yes, the devil himself. I guess this is a follow-up to my last writing, Preparing for War. This current writing’s title has been in a list of writing topics for at least a year. That list has over fifty titles, and most has been written on.

So, where do you find yourself? Are you procrastinating? Are you preparing? Are you persevering? How would you convince me of your position? Procrastinators in Noah’s day found themselves scratching at the door of the ark… after the door was shut. Some of the people who worshiped the “golden calf” died when the desert opened up and thousands were swallowed up. The people who wanted a king, got what they were asking for, and lived in fear.

Matthew Chapters 5, 6, 7 are called the Sermon on the Mount. Ask, seek and knock are the keys to this passage. You are to ask Him. You are to seek Him. You are to knock at the door of His throne. And then be amazed at His leading and guiding words, back to you. But you have to slow down long enough and be quiet enough to hear “His still small voice”. Isaiah 30: 15 says this, “For thus the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, has said, ‘In repentance and rest you shall be saved. In repentance and rest you shall be saved. In quietness and trust (confidence) is your strength is you strength.” Are you ready for the ending, you had better sit down… “But you were not willing”. When I was a kid, one hundred miles per hour was fast. Today, with “bullet trains and Concord jets and space shuttles”, one hundred miles per hour, is slow. What does it take to be willing? Maybe my next writing, who knows?

Following the Shepherd,
Ron

2011-03-27T00:13:00.000-07:00

The Estate – The Legacy

Having been a Co-Executor of an Estate for the last ten months of a very dear friend, and it ain’t over yet, I have learned a lot about life and a lot about stuff. When this dear friend went home to be with the Lord, all of the “things she held dear” stayed here on the earth. All of her plans, thoughts and wishes came to a screeching halt. Not really, because of her will, but we were left with the task of finishing up and finalizing those wishes and plans, to the best of our ability.

Some of you may have seen or heard of the T.V. shows about hoarding. I consider our friend as a “collector with a purpose”. You see, hoarders, buy, find, keep, and clutch to things for themselves. Our friend was a friend to many and knew the needs of those friends. She also had a heart for foreign missions. So she would find someone who had something they may be throwing out and rescue it for another friend who had that need. It was never for herself. She would have a bazar and buy and sell all kinds of stuff, from T-shirts to turnips. She would take or send box loads of hats, clothing and trinkets to missionaries and missions around the world. And yet, at her passing, her two-car garage was packed wall to wall, front to back, basically floor to ceiling with stuff. Plus one whole bedroom was packed with boxes. So, as Executors of her Estate, we wanted to fulfill her wishes and plans for the things she left behind.

Over the past ten months, we have had side splitting laugher and mumblings of disgust all in the same day, sometimes the same hour, as we went through box after box, after box, after box, after box and I could continue that phrase for the rest of the page. My wife and I have made a commitment to not leave this type of situation for our children, and they have told us so.

Estate: the assets and liabilities of a dead person. Legacy: anything handed down as from an ancestor. In her estate she had stuff that needed distributed, she had things that were worth something and stuff that was junk. She had financial assets and financial liabilities. The stuff is almost all distributed or thrown away. As for her legacy… that will live on in the hearts of many. Most of what she did is known only by the person who received the gift. But, isn’t that enough? She never climbed or clamored for the spotlight. She just went about… doing good. She is and will be missed by many.

How about you? Are you busy planning your estate, your 401k’s, your retirement plans, your vacations? Or, are you developing a legacy? The old saying, “I’ve never seen a hearse pulling a U-haul”, is very, very true. Are you busy building your life plans and how you will retire? Another saying is, “The one who dies with the most toys, wins”. Are you teaching your children that the most important thing is living well and retiring well? Do you want them to grow up just like you? Most of us want our children to have more for than we had, but more of what? Is it just money and stuff? Is it power and prestige? What will they pass on to their children? What lifestyle? What mindset? Are you building a legacy or are you just passing on an estate? The legacy has nothing to do with stuff! It is about the mindset, the character, and the integrity of a person. Thus the saying, “Do your givin’, while you’re livin’, so you’re knowin’, where it’s goin’”. You can only pass on a legacy while you are living. Yes, the memories of you will continue, but you’re done.

Will your legacy be, “Oh, he/she was a really great guy/gal”. Or will it be said of you, “He/she really affected my life. He/she helped me through a tough time. He/she gave me hope and told me about Jesus.” Two things will remain after the last person has died, (if you can perceive such a thing), God’s word and Jesus. So, when you die, what will you take with you? The bumper sticker says it like this, “No Jesus, no peace-Know Jesus, know peace”.

You, in normal circumstance, pass on financial and physical stuff. You have to make it a choice to pass along the character and the integrity, and the spiritual legacy. And that is only accomplished through massive amount of prayer. The powers that be in the Psychiatric field tell us we are basically good and some, a few, will have tendencies to do bad. The Bible tells a different story. It says that we are all bad and need a Savior, to save us from our badness. This truth has to be explained to our families and friends, in order to live a better life and have a legacy not just an estate.

I hope you can make the “jump into hyper-space” with me. I just heard a preacher on the radio talking about being satisfied. I think that has a lot to do with inheritance and legacy. Please take the test below.
Answer 1 to 5, 1 being very dissatisfied, 5 being very satisfied. Please be honest, no one will see but you.

1.How satisfied are you with life in general? 1 2 3 4 5
2.How satisfied are you with your job? 1 2 3 4 5
3.How satisfied are you with your marriage? 1 2 3 4 5
4.How satisfied are you with your Church? 1 2 3 4 5
5.How satisfied are you with God? 1 2 3 4 5

This test was given in an upper class, evangelical church in a very affluent city. He went on to say that, most people in the class where this test was given answered mostly 2’s some 1’s and very few 3’s or above. Why is that? His sermon and point was most people have a vague or casual relationship with God. They bury themselves in work, activities, and, as I call it, stuff. We say, “I must be doing well, look at all the stuff I have”. The busier I am the better. I don’t have time to sit and be quiet, it drives me nuts, I’ve got to be doing something. When all the time, that is what the Lord wants us to do, be quiet and listen to Him. Can I leave a true spiritual legacy to others, it I don’t have it for myself.

So, what are you leaving for you family and friends? Are you leaving an estate or a legacy? If you need help changing you 1’s and 2’s and 3’s to 4’s and 5’s write me an email, I think I can help.

Following the Shepherd,
Ron
reskew@aol.com

2011-01-30T23:17:00.000-08:00

If All Roads Lead to God…?

Let’s look at the question posed by the title above. Many people in today’s society think that, if you are looking for God, you can find him anywhere. The nature lover says, “I can find God when I’m out walking in the woods or climbing a mountain, I just feel so close to him. God is nature.” Others say, “I worship god and my ancestors, because we are all one in the cosmos”. Some say that oxen are god’s and should not be harmed. While others believe we are on an eternal journey and come back in this life as other beings and animals until we attain our own godhood. Which one would you like to follow in your search for God?

Then you have the three main religions of the world, each saying that there is only one God, those religions being, Muslims, Jews and Christians. Of course you have varying sects or denomination in each. Each say that their religion is the only way to God, yet all differ and are exclusive from one another. If all roads lead to God, what should it matter? Only your eternal destiny is at stake.

In the following, I will attempt to make things simple and plain. I am not attempting to “bash” anyone, I am just trying to give you some facts and let you make the decision, “Do all roads, really lead to God”? There will be depth of facts and nuances that I will not discuss because of time and space of this document. If you want more of these facts I recommend two books (volumes), Evidence that Demands a Verdict by Josh McDowell and More Evidence that Demands a Verdict. This work was written while trying to disprove Christianity. As a result Josh McDowell came to know Jesus Christ as his personal Savior.

Islam or Muslim’s believed Allah is God and Mohammed is his prophet. The Koran is their “holy book”. Within its pages followers are told that only Arab Muslim’s are accepted by Allah and all other people are infidels and are not worthy to live and should be killed. And that they are the only true “road to God”.

Judaism has been around for a long time. Their founders are Abram (Abraham), Isaac, and Jacob (Jacob’s name was changed by God to Israel) and that’s where the name of the nation comes from, more commonly known as the Jews. Then you have Moses who brought the “slaves” out of Egypt and took them to the ‘Promise Land’. In that journey, they went through the Arabian dessert where Moses received the “Ten Commandments”, on Mt. Sinai. These Ten Commandments were the foundation of their belief system; also the sacrifice of animals, shedding of blood, for the taking away of their sin. Their “holy book” was the Torah. They learned the there was only one God and His name was Jehovah. He was the Creator of the Universe and they were to look for the Messiah, the one who would save the people from their sin. Sin, you say? Yes, remember the story about Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and how the snake tricked them into eating the “apple”. That was sin, going against the law and rule of God, choosing one’s own way. So, if you say, I will choose my own way to God, my own “road” is that not sin? Much more could be said, but if you are interested call me, information will be listed at the end of this writing.

Christianity is a continuation of Judaism. Remember I told you that because of the sin of Adam and Eve, God had said He would send the Messiah, one who would take away their sin. Not only theirs, but the sin of the entire world. You see, all humans are related to Adam and Eve and thus have the infraction of sin on their lives and need to be forgiven. So, the Messiah would be sent from God as the only satisfactory sacrifice for the sin of the world, Jew, Gentile, Arab, Muslim, Hindu, Aztec, African, Buddhist; in other words, all the people of the earth. This Messiah had been prophesied or foretold from that day in the Garden, in Genesis 3:15. Christian’s “holy book” is the Bible that includes the writings of the Torah, what is called the Old Testament, and the writing of Jesus’ followers, the New Testament. Christians believe that Jesus was the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah. These facts can be learned and confirmed in the book mentioned by Josh McDowell.

The Torah and the Bible talk about a Messiah who would take away the sin of the world. He would do that by dying on the Cross as God’s one and only satisfactory sacrifice for sin, the shedding of blood. This is the fact of God reaching down to man to forgive his sin. It is not about being good or good enough to warrant God’s forgiveness. You have probably seen the guy at football games with the rainbow wig holding the sign, John 3:16; some may even know what that Bible passage says. If you don’t, it says, “For God so loved the world, He sent His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting life”. Read Genesis chapters 1,2,and 3, then read The Gospel of John chapters 1,2, and 3.

All roads lead to God? Have you ever considered what God has to say about that? “You shall have no other gods before Me”. Can a Muslim get to heaven by killing people who don’t believe the way he does? Can a Buddhist get to heaven by worshiping his ancestors? Can a Hindu get to heaven by worshiping oxen as someone who is traveling back to this world as an ox on his way to his own deity? Can a Pantheist who says all things are God, get to heaven? Only Judahism and Christianity talk about and deal with the thing called 'sin". All of these roads cannot possibly ultimately lead to God when they oppose each other. Not to mention the atheist who says, there is no god and we evolved from the apes. Two atoms, whizzing through space collided, and that began it all. Where did the atoms come from?

So, is there a true “Road to God”? I believe there is. It is God’s way, not mine. Jesus, the Messiah is God’s one and only way to heaven. If I’m right (and I believe I am) I will make it to heaven based on the finished work of God in Jesus. Then you will spend eternity separated from God. If I am wrong, and you are right, I have lived a life I am not ashamed of and have been at peace with “my God” for many, many years. And I will see you in “Heaven”. By the way, Who created Heaven? Was it man or God? Should not the Creator have a say in who will be allowed in?

Those who think that “all roads lead to God” have probably not read any of the “holy books” of any of the religions. They think they know it all.
If you have questions write me at reskew@aol.com.

2010-10-24T12:16:00.000-07:00

Human Beings

In the beginning… God created the heavens and the earth. The Bible goes on to tell us that He created all other things, land and sea, sky and air, sun and moon and stars. Then He created the things to inhabit these spaces, beasts of the fields, birds for the sky, and fish for the sea. Then He created His “crowning achievement” (if you can call anything that God does, an achievement), He created man, male and female He created them. Of course our evolutionary friends will have great problems with this thesis. To them, two random atoms whizzing through the universe, collided and the spark of life began. At this point, I have two questions: 1) Where did the two atoms come from? 2) Where did the universe come from? There was probably nothingness and then something happened and then the two atoms collided and then the universe happened and then nothing turned into something. That makes it perfectly clear doesn’t it, or does it make it more foolish? I assume that most evolutionists and atheists don’t want to think about the possibility of there being a God, because if He is, then they are responsible to Him for all they do. And they don’t want to do that.

Anyway… back to the future…. We are created and we are responsible to Him. He created us with love and purpose. Love because we were created in His image. Purpose because He wanted us to reign over His creation. Personally, I think that all the created things were created in full maturity. If you would have cut down a tree in the “Garden of Eden” you would have been able to count ten, twelve or twenty rings of age or even more. And the same would be true for the other plants and animals.

I really am trying to get to my thesis, which is human being. We really are His crowning glory, because of being created in His image. Of course, I do not think that God looks like me. There is something unique about this likeness, but I can’t explain it. And neither can anyone else. But, we are something special and love beyond our imagination.

This thing about being human beings is simply this; we are human beings not human doings. I think God wanted us to “be” more than He wanted us to “do”. Does that seem to make sense to you? I’m sitting here writing and listening to some music on my computer. The music combines and enhances what I’m writing. You will probably be surprised to know it is a kid’s album, not by kids, but for kids. Its title is The Polka Dot Bear by Barry McGuire, way back in the 1980’s. But, isn’t that what God wants us to be… kids? We can’t do anything for ourselves, we must rely on Him. And that’s called being, not doing. Unless you become as a child, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven. It’s a simple love relationship. Do I love Him enough to surrender and submit? Will I say, “Not my will, but your will be done”. If the relationship is not growing, the being is not growing. He breathed life into us, His life, and His being. His likeness should be more and more in control. When he Holy Spirit, I assume you know that the Holy Spirit was given to you when Jesus became your personal Savior. You can find this in the Gospel of John, chapters 14-17; along with some other important things. Anyhow… the Holy Spirit works in our lives, as well as the rest of the world, to convict us of sin, righteousness and judgment to come. He convicts us to make us more like Jesus, that being thing, being like Jesus, not doing more things to make “me” feel better because “I” have done all of these great things. When we “be” we “do”. When we “do” we don’t necessarily “be”. But this being happens only by submitting to the Holy Spirit.

Let me interject at this point another side-bar, side light or whatever you want to call it. God revealed Himself to Moses as “I Am”. Thus, referring to Himself as the “ever being one”. Jesus referred to Himself as “I Am”. If we are to become like Jesus, then we need to be in the process of being and becoming. We will never become or be God, but our likeness can be restored. The relationship needs to deepen every day. Do I love God more and more each day? Do I see my sinfulness more clearly every day? Am I sorrowed by that sinfulness more and more? Not that I have achieved the point I want to, but I strive to be less and Him more. Like John the Baptizer said, “He must increase and I must decrease”. By the way… John was not a “Baptist”. (A touch of humor there).

Three books I have recently read or am in the process of reading, The Wright Brothers – Overland Stage, by Tim Wright. This is a book about the local Indy band and its successes and failures, from Tim’s perspective. This is Tim’s own personal striving to “get to the top” of the music industry. So much of self was interjected into life, he and the band forgot about their Christian roots and how to allow God to direct the paths. Another book is Radical by David Platt. David had to go to a Southeast Asian country and see “church” done in such a different way that when he came back to the USA he was shocked to see how he had been following the American Dream and playing “church”, and he was the “Head Pastor” of the church. Now he is in the process of changing the “way he does church”. The third book is The Pursuit of God, by A. W. Tozer. This writer has an interesting perspective, having written his book in 1948. His main thesis is that people, the church, have left their pursuit of God for the American Dream. They have lost their awe of God and replaced it with the comforts of the world. And in doing so have lost the zeal and affection for God. Their thinking is something like this, “Oh I leave the tough stuff for God to take care of, and I can handle the little stuff”. God is not an American. We think that God has to do it the “American Way”. God’s own words are these, “Without Me you can do nothing”. When will we ever get this through our thick skulls? It’s not about me; it’s about Him and Him alone, His will, His way, His purpose. Our part and our only part is listening and obeying.

If we are to become like Jesus and we are, Jesus life was boiled down to this, “Not to do My will, but to do the will of the One who sent me”. “And the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve”. We are to serve and to be obedient.

I think I’m done, but who knows? My challenge and questions are few. Are you a human being or are you a human doing?

Ron

2010-10-24T11:58:00.000-07:00

Human Beings Part Two

With all of this stuff rattling around in my head, I must continue.
Human beings, they are more being than doing this is the key. Jesus says, “You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free”. He also says, “I Am the way, the truth and the life”. Thus, knowing Him is the essential part of the entire equation. If you are not in the pursuit of knowing Him, you are not in the pursuit of “being”.

As I have read the book Radical, I have come to some conclusions. I think it starts out strong, but falls away in the end. What do I mean by that? In the first two chapters or sections, David Platt describes his experience in the Far East. He is finding people who have a hunger for God’s word and is amazed at how far the people travel to hear God’s word. They walk or ride bicycles for miles, even a full day just to hear the word, spend several if not many, 10 or 12 hours in listening and asking questions. Then they ask if they could do it again tomorrow. David is astonished and amazed, and also tired from a very long day of interaction. But he agrees to continue to teach the next day. This seems to happen day after day after day. The interesting thing is that these people are not asking how Americans “do church”; they are asking and begging to be taught the word. They are not asking about the latest music trends or what the latest Christian Books are. They are saying, “Teach me the Bible”.

To me this is another part of the “American Gospel” that is lacking in substance. We, the American church look for the next best seller or the next conference, in order to help us in our short comings and our problems. The answers are given to most problems, “Well, just do more, or try harder; you’re not having enough quiet time, you’re not praying enough”. These are not bad in themselves, but how do they help us “be”? Am I interested in getting the next wrist band or the next t-shirt or the next syllabus? Again, conferences are not bad in themselves, but some people have every book and every CD on their shelves, they have a t-shirt for every day of the week, but nothing is going on in their heart. They are not becoming! I also wrote a paper on “Head, Heart, Gut”.

The weak part of the book Radical is that, when David returns home to the USA, he sees a different kind of American church than when he left and a far different kind of church than in the Far East. So he starts teaching on “going into all the world and preaching the gospel”. Here is where I think the departure starts; people are encouraged to look at their lives and see what they can do without and think of how they can reach people in other lands with the gospel. Again, let me say, this is not a bad thing, but it misses the entire point of David’s time in the Far East, and I think David loses sight of what he was being taught by God (not that I know what God was trying to teach him). But as I was trying to think through and process my way through his book, it seems that the emphasis was on the hunger for God and His word. Jesus told His disciples, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness”. Are we hungering and thirsting for righteousness? Or, are we looking for a way that makes us look like we are hungering and thirsting for righteousness? Do we know the difference? The Apostle Paul makes the statement, “If I give all I have to feed the poor and do not have love, I am nothing”. Thus, it is a heart problem!

Clean and unclean things…. It is not what goes into a man that defiles him; it is what proceeds from within (out of the heart).

I cannot tell you what God is telling is you to do other than; He wants you to be holy, not happy. Holy is a state of being, happy is defined by situations and circumstances, again, “being” or “doing”. Believe it or not, you can be holy without being happy. One short interjection: The “Be Attitudes in Matthew 5 says “Blessed” this not to be confused with happy. I have heard so many people and even pastors say that it means happy. That word goes far beyond happy, and if I am not happy does that mean I am not blessed?

Back to Radical: Just my opinion… it seems that David jumps off and begins a series on “Going”. And that seems to lead to busyness and not righteousness. The pastors in the Far East were not looking for people to come to build something (even though there is nothing wrong with that), they were looking for people to come and teach them the Bible.

We need to be challenged to read and study our Bibles and be “transformed by it”, the entire thing Genesis 1 through Revelation 21. We need to get to know the God of the Bible; Who He is and how He works, then get to know Jesus and who He is, and then the Holy Spirit in the same way. Constantly asking the Lord who He wants us to become and then what He wants us to do, where He wants us to go.

Would we be willing to walk for a day to hear the word taught? Would we go if the band was not going to play? Would we go in stealth so as to not be seen? Would we feel comfortable packed like sardines in a small room with one 40 watt light bulb hung in the center of the room. Dear friends, this is radical. What would you do if there was no music, no band for worship, just two hours of your Pastor teaching through the Bible? Then you took a fifteen minute break for bathroom breaks and something to drink. Then the teaching would start again for another two hours.

I know I’m short on scripture in this writing, so here goes…. Let’s look at two and maybe more passages to see what the progression is in “being” and “doing”.

Isaiah 6:1-13 (You can read the entire thing for yourself) In the year that King Uzziah’s death, I saw the Lord sitting on the throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple… “Then I said (Isaiah) woe is me, for I am ruined. Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips… Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I, send me!” And He said, “Go and tell the people.”

First, Isaiah, saw the Lord. My question to you is, “Have you seen the Lord in this way?” Maybe not in the physical sense, but have you had an intimate, eye opening, revelation of the Lord and how magnificent He really is. Second, was your response, “I am a man/woman of unclean lips?” Third, then did you submit to “being” before “doing” or going? Even though Isaiah had been God’s prophet for many years, he had a new experience, which changed him for the rest of his life. God said go tell the people. What was God asking Isaiah to tell the people? “Keep on listening, but do not perceive; Keep on looking, but do not understand. Render the hearts of the people insensitive, their ears dull, and their eyes dim… lest they repent”. You see; God knew their hearts and that the people would not repent, so He told Isaiah to stop preaching to them. Thus and therefore, we must be about going, before God says, ‘It’s too late, stop preaching”. When I first turned my life over to Jesus in 1974 I did not know any of the things I am writing about today. I have grown and changed and have become more aware of how Holy God is and how sinful I am. If you knew me like I know me, you would probably not want me as a friend. But if I knew you like you know you, I wouldn’t want you as a friend either.

The next scripture is from the New Testament: Matthew 18:1-27 (Again you may read the text for yourself). Jesus was in the garden of Gethsemane where He was praying before His crucifixion. The soldiers came to arrest Jesus and Peter tried to defend Jesus with a sword. Remember that Peter was a fisherman not a soldier; “doing’ not “being”. Peter followed Jesus to the courtyard of Caiaphas and waited at a distance. This is where Peter denied Jesus three times, just as Jesus had warned him. It is purported that Peter went out a wept (Not in the text); the sorrow of the sin of “not doing” and “not being”.

Our Bible study group studied one of the passages that David Platt uses in book; Luke 14:25-35. Again you can read this for yourself, the essence is counting the cost, choosing to love the Lord more than brothers and sisters, building a tower without calculating the cost whether you can finish it or not, and going to war against a more powerful enemy. David’s conclusion was from verse 33 saying, “So therefore, no one can be My disciple who does not give up all his possessions”. Does Jesus mean this in a true physical sense? Or is He trying to get at your heart? Is he trying to get at “your being” or at “your doing”?

In all of our being and doing, Who’s reputation is at stake? Anyone who undertakes a multi-million dollar building project and can only complete $100,000 worth did not calculate the cost very well and his reputation is ruined. If I say I am a Christian and I love Jesus and I am going to do great things for Him and fall flat on my face, whose reputation is at stake? If I make bad decisions it still reflects on Him.

I thought I was done when I wrote American Dream and the American Gospel. Next I wrote American Dream 2. Then I wrote the paper Aaaaand Their Off. Then I wrote Human Beings. Now with Human Beings 2 about to be finished, I am still in the pursuit of God and His answers for me.

This line of thinking may go on for quite some time, but for now, the summary, not a conclusion, the real conclusion is up to you, is this; I can only take these thoughts and ponderings and musings before the Lord for myself and ask Him, who He wants me to be and then what He wants me to do.

I am wrestling with the Lord on all of this; I think I am beginning to walk with a limp. If any of these writings have moved you, you need to take the information to the Lord and ask Him to reveal Himself and His will for your being and doing. I welcome your thoughts and feedback.
Ron

2010-09-29T01:00:00.000-07:00

I’ll Have That To Go Please

In our instant society we rarely have the time or take the time to sit down and eat together. We have “too much on our plate” to sit still for more than ten or fifteen minutes. Even in the “sit down” restaurants there are always to take it to our houses and eat it there. There is “Car-Side To Go”, “Curb-Side To Go”, the normal “Drive-Thru”. If the drive thru is backed up you can always go inside and ask for it to go. Slogans develop for these methods, “Have it your way”, and if you’re old enough, “Takehomeasack”. One of our normal eating places is “behind-the-wheel”, and that is located wherever our GPS tells us we are. Should we not be more concerned about when and where we eat?

Is it not the same with our spiritual life? “Hey Jesus, could I get that to go, I really don’t have time to sit with you for very long, I’m really, really busy.” To get to know someone, you need to spend time with them. When you spend time with someone you get to understand them and what is important to them. You learn more about their personality and the way they think. You begin to understand their passion.

Let’s say, you’re at work and your boss wants to have a meeting to discuss a new product line or a new process for that product line. You go in, pen in hand, and pay close attention, take notes, ask questions. You do this in order to go back to your work station or office and prepare to relay these ideas and changes to your co-workers. What if you told your boss, in about ten minutes, “Hey, I’m really busy and I have other work to do, I’ll catch up with you later and we can finish this.” You just wouldn’t do that… would you?” Your boss knows what you have to do and is concerned about developing the entire company and you are just a small part of the entire process. In essence, he is saying, “Here is how I want you to develop and build your part of the company, and this is a very important part of the finished product.”

Is that how we are responding to Jesus? He is offering us a part in the process and development of building His church and we are saying to Him, “I’m really busy and I can’t put in that much time to “Your” project right now.” First of all I would say that we have not spent enough time with our “Boss” to find out Who He is, and what His passions are.

Then there is the matter of execution. If we have spent time with Him, how do we execute the task He has given us? Let’s take for example, Jesus’ words in Matthew 28:18-20, All authority has been given to me in heaven and earth, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I command you; and remember, I am with you, even to the ends of the earth.”

According to a friend, Keith Green, in a song about this passage, he writes, “Jesus commands us to go, it should be the exception if we stay; It’s now wonder we’re moving so slow, when God’s children, refuse to obey, feeling so called to stay”. “But, I’m too young… I’m too old… I’ve got these bills… I’m not healthy enough… I don’t have enough training….” Remember, He is the one in charge of this company and He sees the bigger picture and knows the final product. He just wants you to be the part of something really big and really great. He just wants you to do your seemingly small part. Going doesn’t necessarily mean “around the world”. It could mean “across the street”.

In the book of Acts, chapter 1, verse 8 we are told to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the remotest parts of the earth. The old saying goes like this, “Grow where you’re planted” and I add, “If someone uproots you and plants you somewhere else, grow there”. Another song just came to mind by the group First Call, the main line or chorus goes like this, “We may not know what the future holds, but we know Who holds the future”.

This Christian life is not for the faint of heart. It is for the one who has a “child-like” faith and is willing to say “Yes” to the One Who is worthy. This life is not a “bed of roses” and don’t let anyone tell you it is.

Will you tell Jesus, “I’ll have mine, ‘to go’, meaning, yes I will go, across the street or around the world”.

Following the Shepherd,
Ron

2010-07-16T00:47:00.000-07:00

American Dream Part 2

Just to refresh your memory, hermeneutics is the key to all studies.

The study of interpretation of the Bible; the study of the principles of Biblical exegesis

I believe this means, to take all of what the Bible references on a topic and interpret them in a fashion that is consistent with the theme and context of the word and the text. (And if it ain’t there, don’t say it is). The word exegesis means out of, not in to. What do I get “out of” what I read, not what can I read into what I read.

Member vs Membership

My references books for this next portion are Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, and the New World Dictionary, and, oh yes, the Bible, The New Analytical Bible, KJV, and the New American Standard Bible.

The New World Dictionary defines member in this fashion: 1. a part or organ of a human or animal body. 2. a part of a plant, considered with regard to structure or position rather than function. 3. a distinct part or element of a whole, of a mathematic equation, 4. a person belonging to some association, society, community , party etc.

Membership: the state of being, or status as a member, 2. members collective, 3. the number of members.

The New Analytical Bible’s definition of member: part of the body.

Membership: The New Analytical Bible does not contain the word “membership”.

Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance: Member: no definition is given; membership is not listed as a word used anywhere in the Bible.

The discussion should be over at this point, but I press on.

There are only three references in the Old Testament for the words member or members. There are thirty-four references in the New Testament for member or members. Most of the references are in Romans and I and II Corinthians

I have heard it said by many preachers that I admire, “Let the plain things be the main things and let the main things be the plain things”.

I truly believe that we are members of the body of Christ; all, at any time of history, from any point around the world, who have named the Name of Jesus as their Savior. Although there are many and very close similarities in the two words, the act of “becoming a member” or on a “membership role or list”, I do not believe it is a biblical idea, dogma or mandate. I am active in a local expression of the “Body of Christ” because He has placed me there. I am there for a reason, sometimes I know why and sometimes it is not revealed until I have been there for a “season”. That main reason for my being there is for “body building”, of which I wrote about in an earlier paper. It is not for my glory or my lording over others, I am part of the body and to glorify the Lord, no one is more important than any other as defined in I Corinthians 12, even the Pastor. We all just have different forms and functions. When did Paul, Peter, James or John really talk about becoming a member of a local body of Christ? All of their writings were focused on knowing Jesus and keeping the faith. They taught about the sovereignty of God and the sacrifice of Jesus. None of them talked about membership or being on a list. Other that Paul who told a church to put widows on a list in order that they would not be left out and not be properly taken care of.

If I come and declare my allegiance to a particular local gathering as to God’s calling of me to this body, is that not the same as “becoming a member”? Just to be put on a list and declared by others that they accept me as part of their “body or fellowship”, seems anti-climactic. If I give my time, talents, energy and tithes to this local expression of the body of Christ, and pray for its leadership, does that not mean I am a member of that local expression of the body of Christ?

This brings me to the next point of eldership and church government. I believe that an Elder led body is scripturally correct. A “voting membership” is not a biblical doctrine. Thus, why have a “membership role”? If I don’t “get to vote”, do I “get a say” in the issues that will affect me and my family? Then the question becomes, “Do the Elders (shepherds, pastors) know their “flock” well enough to lead or judge rightly, the condition of the flock and lead them in a correct manner? Do the shepherds move about in the congregation to touch, feel and sense the needs as a shepherd of a flock of sheep would do? Do the shepherds feel as though they are the “ones with the knowledge” and they alone know what God is doing? And that brings me to, are the shepherds not just a “part of the body”? And what part? Do they not need the other seemly members also, as described in I Corinthians 12? I have attended churches which had both typed of leadership and considered myself as a member of each body. Neither type has done a very good job of informing the members or asking for prayer about major issues and direction for the church.

I have been told by both types of leadership that “they considered me as part of the overall leadership team of the church” and yet, none of the “elders or pastor” have asked my thinking on any issue. And I had attended and been considered as a member for 10 and 20 years respectively.

We really do need each other! I guess I’ve just been around too long and seen too much in the “body politic” of many different churches, and the control of money, time and people. I have seen too many churches over the years that have used many different types of leadership and membership to not speak out.

Just an old man’s ramblings; what do you think?

Ron
reskewsquad.blogspot.com

2010-07-03T01:04:00.000-07:00

The American Dream and The American Gospel

Hermeneutics

The study of interpretation of the Bible; the study of the principles of Biblical exegesis

I believe this means, to take all of what the Bible references on a topic and interpret them in a fashion that is consistent with the theme and context of the word and the text. (And if it ain’t there, don’t say it is). The word exegesis means out of, not in to. What do I get “out of” what I read, not what can I read into what I read.

My writings come from a fertile and active mind. The inspiration comes from a variety of conversations, musings, or thought processes. All, to me, have a meaning and purpose in order to clarify a position or standard by which to live and conduct ones life.

Most of my writings will take a course like this; inspiration, thought, prayer, study and prayer. Then, after several days, when I have time, I will sit down at the computer and begin to write. Sometimes, as I write, even more thoughts and perspectives come to me. Sometimes, like now, my computer is doing crazy things and I will save what I have and shut it down and go back to bed. I do most of my writing between 2 and 5 AM. Which explains a lot, right?

All of my writings, as of late, are based on a Biblical doctrine (truth) and a belief that I hold because of study. What “bugs” me most, is the thinking today in the “church” (as a whole) is this “Americanized Gospel”, as if, “If works in America it will work anywhere”. For instance… the prosperity gospel or name it and claim it. Now if I take that topic and try to make it work in the rest of the world, the people in third world countries will be very disappointed in the outcome. Why? Because they have no financial means to start the process. But then, those proclaimers will tell them, “You don’t have enough faith”. Am I making sense or is it just the 3:30 AM blues?

In other words, I take what the Bible says to determine what I believe. I don’t take what I believe and find something in the Bible that sounds like that and make it fit. That’s where I’m going in this writing. Will, what I believe the Bible says; work, no matter where it is preached? Paul and the other Apostles wrote in the first century, we are reading it and living our lives according to it in the twenty-first century. Are we understanding it and living it as the Apostles wrote it? Do we let the Bible speak for itself, Genesis through Revelation, in context as God intended?

If King David had wives and concubines and Solomon did also, then doesn’t it seem right that I can do the same? I’m stretching to make my point. Many people say, “I think there is sufficient evidence to build my case”. I am into “Building the Body” (which is a previous writing) rather than “building my case” (which I am trying to do now). That is really not “my case”, but determining what the Bible really says about a topic.

To my main thesis for this writing….

The American Dream and The American Gospel

My Pastor inspired this part of my writing. How does the
“American Dream" fit into the “church”, or does it? Has the “American Dream” crept into the church and caused the “American Gospel”?

Peace and prosperity have become “by words” in the church today. America has lived in a time and place that supplies that type of “peace and security”. Thus, it only allows the church to slip, slide and relax into a false state of ease and comfort. And, if “you” are not in that place of ease and comfort, then there is something wrong with you.

Do you think “Christianly”? Do you live “Christianly”? Would you live the same way if you were a missionary in Thailand or in the Congo in Africa, or in China? How would your surroundings affect your thinking? Would you be more aware of you lack of food and water, “normal food and clean water”? Where would your “American” thinking be then? What is “normal” anyway?
Does normal depend on location and culture? I think it does. Thus, should the gospel become “normal” to fit the culture? As the Apostle Paul wrote in Romans, “may it never be”.

So then, my question to ponder is this, “Is it Biblical or is it Cultural”? Can you find, in a hermeneutical sense, reasons for why you live the Gospel the way you do? Do not stretch to find a few verses to meet your needs and discard the other verses that oppose your selected viewing area. My next question is this, “What will the “church” allow to come into their midst and take up a place of importance?

My daughter just emailed me a web link from a good Christian organization about “The Emergent Church” and asked what I thought? I’d like you to meet her sometime. She’s a thinker, she’s a studier of the Bible and she loves her dad. Anyway, I told her, The Emergent church is nothing new, it is just “repackaged” for the 21st century, and straight out of hell. If you’re not familiar… it’s a come as you are and we will not judge you, you’re just as good as we are and “I’m OK and so are you”. Yes, Jesus is cool, but we aren’t going to make you follow our beliefs or make you feel uncomfortable.

Back to my point… Is that thinking, “Biblical or Cultural”? From where I sit, it is not Biblical. Then there’s “tolerance”. Well, didn’t Jesus teach tolerance? With statements like, “I Am the way, the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father but by Me”. I say, no, He did not teach tolerance. Why do you think the middle-east has been torn apart for thousands of years? Why don’t the Muslim’s tolerate the Jews? Everyone asks the Jews to tolerate the “Palestinians’” and the Muslims, why does tolerance not work both directions?

Back to the Church….

I have a quiz I like to have people take which asks the question, “Is it Biblical or is it Cultural”? This quiz has about thirty questions. It has some silly questions like, Should the carpet in the sanctuary only be red? Try asking that question in a little village in a remote part of Africa that has dirt floors and a thatched roof. But some of the questions are ones that most Christian should not have trouble with answering, “Biblical”. Yet some miss those questions. Why???

1. They don’t know (read) the Bible to begin with
2. They have never been taught that they are responsible for their own growth.
3. They have been caught up in the rhetoric of easy believe’ism.
4. They have believed that they are Americans and the “bad stuff” is for those other people.
5. They have bought into the “American Dream in the American Church” syndrome.
6. They have never encountered the true Jesus of the Bible. The one who was a bloody mess from the beating. The one who hung on the cross in agony.

The American Dream has crept into the church and has distorted the True Gospel. In II Thessalonians 2:1-3, Paul tells it like this, “Now we request of you, brothers, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together to Him, that you may not quickly be shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by spirit or a message or a letter as if from us that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy (falling away) comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction”. The types of things mentioned above are just a few examples of that apostasy and the process by which the gospel has been altered. I could never understand how or why people could “walk away from Jesus”, but now I see more clearly that they never really “knew” Him. And this will remain one of the mysteries of the Bible, one of the things that only God knows; did they or didn’t they… but what if… I think they… they said… they came to church all the time…. But only God knows the heart of a man, and He will judge him rightly.

So then, have you been on the slippery path of the “Americanized Gospel”? Or, are you staying true to the Bible and its true teachings? Does a little buzzer go off in your head when you hear a Pastor or Preacher talk about the best way for you to become prosperous? If you’re sick and you Pastor tells you it’s your fault and if you only had enough faith, you wouldn’t be sick. Do you believe him?

I’m looking for someone to tell me how to become more like Jesus. How about you?

Ron
reskewsquad.blogspot.com
reskew@aol.com

2010-05-27T00:47:00.000-07:00

Body Building

In my younger days, starting in high school, I lifted weights. It was just something that the athletes did to help in development and train for sports. It was not part of the schools program; we had to go to a local gym that specialized in body building for body building competition.

There were different types of programs depending upon what you wanted to accomplish. In all of the programs, there were the basics, exercise, nutrition and rest. I can remember the season of life I was in and the purpose for lifting, which is not the topic of conversation for now.

My regimen went like this; Monday, Wednesday and Friday were lift days. This meant that on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday I rested. The diet went something like this; I would leave work and hit McDonalds. I would order three hamburger patties and a chocolate shake, no bun, no pickles, no catsup. This caused quite a stir for the first two to three weeks. “You can’t just order the meat; you have to get the bun also”. Different days and different crews is why it took so long. Eventually, when they saw me coming, my order would be ready. After my workout, that took about two hours, I would go eat dinner.

Weight lifting workouts went something like this; stationary bike for about 10 minutes (warm up), squats and leg lifts (lower body), then arms and chest (upper body). The regimen was heavy weight, few repetitions, for building mass in the muscles. For definition or cut, it would be light weight and many, many repetitions’. In that framework were sets, usually three sets of ten or three sets of fifteen.

Most exercise or weight loss trainers will tell you that if you have a partner your workout will be easier; it’s that encouragement and accountability thing.

The manager of the gym told my workout partner and myself that he had never seen anyone “bulk up” as fast as we did, and he was a “professional body builder” himself and performed in body building competition. I will admit, we were committed to body building and each other.

Of course there is a point to my writing.

If you will turn with me in the Bible to Ephesians the fourth chapter and the eleventh verse, I will begin. Context: Paul is writing to the Ephesians to instruct them about the way they should live their lives when they become Christians and what God has done to enable them to do so. In verse one Paul instructs them to “walk in a manner worthy of your calling”, that of being a Christ follower.

Ephesians 4: 11,12 “And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, and to the building up of the body of Christ”.

These people are your partners in your spiritual workout. These are the people who instruct you and guide you in your own maturing in Christ-likeness. These are the people who feed you, develop you, set out a regimen or a program for you to follow and learn the ways of Christ; in order that, you may grow to the point of feeding yourself and then move on to become one who instructs others; that you may become one who develops others and help them get stronger and wiser in their walk with the Lord.

And that brings me to the a few more verses. Ephesians 4: 13, “to the attaining of unity”. Unity doesn’t mean sameness. As in the military, a unit could be a squad, it could be a platoon, it could be a company; many members with one goal or purpose.

Ephesians 4:14 “no longer tossed about by waves or carried about by doctrine, or trickery of men”. In other words, you will know the truth about Jesus and not be persuaded by men that there are “other truths” you should know about.

Ephesians 4:16 “the whole body is being fitted and held together, for the proper work of the body”. God has a plan and a purpose for the “Body of Christ”, the body as a whole, and each individual member. Don’t think you are not important. In I Corinthians 12 Paul discusses the body and the functioning of the body by use of the “gifts of the Holy Spirit”. In this passage he declares, if we were all an eye where would the sense of smell be? This is another topic for another day.

But for now, ‘We really do need each other”. Stay close to others, don’t wander off, don’t get caught up in the philosophies of man, don’t mix the Bible with the other religion’s teaching or the worlds teaching. Find that person or a group of people who you can encourage and be encouraged, where you can be accountable and hold others accountable. Don’t forget to rest… rest in the ever loving arms of the Savior, Jesus.

So, what do you say, you ready to partner-up? Let’s do some “body building”!

Following the Shepherd,
Ron

2010-05-12T03:57:00.000-07:00

WHY?

So… what’s the big idea? What’s the problem? Can’t I ask why when I want to? I’ve been doing it all my life!

Anyone who has been around children, even for a short period of time, will have to answer the question, “Why?”

Last night our Bible study watched a video from James McDonald called simply, “Why?” He started with a true story about a man whose great desire was to be a “full time” missionary and worked hard to get ready to serve and raise his support. He purchased his ticket, said good-bye to his parents and got on the plane to fly to his assignment. The plane crashed within hours of its departure and he was killed. The parents received a letter from their son, which he had written just moments before he got on the plane. Just a note scribbled on a magazine page he had torn out, that said something to the effect, I love what I’m doing, I love you. In the middle of the magazine page was a bold print of one word… “Why?”

The discussion after the video was about the “Why” questions in our lives. Is it proper to ask God “Why?” Or, “God, why me?” Or, “God, do you really know what You’re doing?” Or the, “What have I done to deserve this?” Of course we think about all the bad things that happen to us. “Why do I have cancer? Why did my child rebel? Why did my business fail? Why did I lose my job? Why did my spouse walk out? But God, aren’t You supposed to protect me? They said, If I trust in Jesus, everything would be fine!

These types of questions and statements are designed to limit God. He can only do things that make sense to us. But, but, but…, I read this scripture that said, He would take all my diseases, and heal all my sickness. And He said, My yoke is easy and my burden is light. Then, why do I feel all this heaviness, sadness and sorrow?

It’s because you are thinking like a normal human being and you are looking for the easy way out. You have been taught, wrongly, to read the Bible for what you can get. You have never been taught to read the Bible for what it says, fully and completely in its context for the truth that God has shown over and over. Why did the Israelites go through so many hard times? Because they did not listen to what god was telling them. They did the “cafeteria” method of religion; I can go down the line and choose whatever I want.

I think we need to ask the question in a different manner. Why can’t God be God? After all, didn’t He create everything? Maybe some will even have a problem with that statement, but then that would make you God… I don’t think so…. Ask Job. Even though he was upright in the sight of the Lord, he was still a sinner, one of the created beings.

I digress…. God has to be God and He has to have a “master plan”, which He says He has. Some familiar scriptures, Ps 139, I formed you in your mothers womb. Jeremiah 1, I knew you before you were born. Jeremiah 29, I know the plans I have for you. These verses were all written in times of sorrow and doubting and confusion for the writer. They were all asking the question, “Why?” Our “hero’s” of the faith all ask the question. All of our hero’s got the same answer that we get. “Do you love Me? Do you trust Me?

Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love me?” Some of you know his answer, “Lord… I like you a lot”. Jesus asked a second time, “Peter, do you love Me”? Peter’s answer was, “Lord I really have great affection for You”. The third time, Jesus asked, “Peter do you love Me”? Peter could only reply, “Lord, You know all things”. We know that Jesus was using the word agape signifying an “all out, unconditional love for Him”. Peter’s best response was, “Lord, You know all things”. Because He does. That’s what we rest in. We don’t rest in what we can figure out or scheme around, but we rest in Him.

The Names of God and of Jesus are an essential study or just getting the poster that has the names on it is good to read from time to time. Just a few, Alpha and Omega, He is the first and the last, the One Who was and is and is to come. I am the vine and you are the branches, if you abide in Me, you will bear much fruit. Jehovah-Jirah, my provider.

My basic “why” question is, “God, why did you choose me”? Jesus says, No one comes to the Me unless he is drawn by the Father. He also says, You did not choose Me, but I chose you. So, What in Your loving providence, happened, that You chose me?

I love the old adage, “When everything else fails, read the directions”. Do you read enough of the Bible, which means all of it Genesis to Revelation, to know the God Who wrote it? Or are you still using it for the flowery fluff just to make you fell good? Do you know that hard times will come? Do you know the God who will get you through those hard times? Has he been faithful in the past? Is that not an indication that He will be faithful in the present and in the future?

I hope I have given you some things to think about. I hope I have given you someone to think about.

Following the Shepherd,
Ron
reskewsquad.blogspot.com

2010-04-21T10:14:00.000-07:00

What If – What Is

Only one letter is different in the title, but that one letter will describe a world of difference.

Last night I was talking to a friend, which may shock some of you that I have a friend, at Bible Study. Yes I study the Bible, it is not a book that occupies a space on the table or sits on a shelf somewhere. Any way, I had shared part of my life’s story about how I came to know Jesus as my personal Savior. The story included the fact that I had been married for two and a half years in the late ‘60’s, that’s the 1960’s not the 1860’s, I old, but not that old. I came to know the Lord in 1974 and shortly after that the Lord revealed to me my shortcomings in the marriage. I told the Lord, “She is somewhere in California and I don’t know where. Have her call me in the next week and I will ask forgiveness for my faults in the marriage.

I must insert here that she left me while I was at “Summer Camp” in the National Guard, for two weeks. I came home and she told me she wanted a separation. This action turned into her living with another man for several months and then she moved to California with him. When she left for California, I filed for a divorce. And the rest is history.

Back to my story…. I told the Lord, “Have her call me within the next week and I will ask for her forgiveness”. She called two days later. I had moved two or three times in those eight or ten years, so you have to know, “It’s a God thing”. I did what I said I would do and asked her forgiveness and she told me it was all her fault and it was OK. I went back to my mistakes and faults and asked again for her forgiveness. She accepted it request and started to cry and said she had to go. That was in the spring of 1975.

I did some Bible study about a year and a half later, on the topic of marriage and divorce, which would have been in late 1976. Let me first say that God hates divorce. It is a ripping and tearing of the flesh of the two that have become one. The scar is always there and the wound is very deep, even if they are not Christians in the true Biblical sense; and more-so in the true Christian marriage. My marriage to that woman was before I was a Christian, but the scar was deep and the nerves were pulsing.

She called me in, I think 1978, and was back in Indy and asked if I could go to her father’s funeral with her. I told her no, because I had remarried in July of 1977. The phone call was very short after that.

This is where the “What if” comes into play. In 1987 or so, she called me and told me she had finally gotten this “Jesus thing”, and had asked Jesus to be her Savior. My mind began to play the “what if” game. What would have happened if I had waited for her to come to know the Lord? Would God have been more please if we were to remarry and start life together again? I had to stop myself from playing that game. There are no “what if’s” in God’s economy. I couldn’t let it happen then and I can’t live my life today, “playing that game”. I would not have the great kids I have or the great in-laws and
out-laws I have. Not to mention the wonderful G’kids I have. Life would have been totally different. And I don’t think I could live with that.

That brings me to “What Is”…. When I did my study on marriage and divorce, I took that information and made life decisions based on God’s Bible. I did not make decisions on how I felt that day. My feelings change based on several influences and I would probably make some bad decisions if I did not “run it past God’s guidelines”, the Bible.

I must now look at and live my life according to His word and the leading of His Holy Spirit. There are no “What If’s” in the Bible. There is an abundance of “What Is”. So, “What is” in your life? Are you playing the game and falling for the temptations of what might be? There are always answers if you are willing to look for them. Then you have to have the courage to live by them.

I have been studying the Bible for nearly to 36 years, I am not a Biblical Scholar, but a serious student of the Bible. If you have question about your life and things that don’t seem to be right, drop me an email, reskew@aol.com title it “Life Questions”, some of your emails might go to spam, so I need to know I need to answer it.

Following the Shepherd,
Ron
reskewsquad.blogspot.com

2010-04-07T00:57:00.000-07:00

The Truth About Relatives

There is a new “reality” show on T.V. now, 2010. I don’t know what the name is, but some of the stars are Lisa Kudro, Spike Lee, and Brook Shield. I have not watched it; I only have seen the “trailers” and advertisements for it. But, these people look for their relatives from decades and centuries past and see how they have come from a long line of kings and queens. If I’m wrong, someone please let me know. I doubt if any of these stars will find a scoundrel in their family tree.

If I were to say to you, “How many of you are related to “Jack the Ripper?” would you raise your hand? What about Gingis Kahn? What about Mao? Even if you are not oriental, could your search bring you to a point in history to show you are related. I have heard of many family tree searches that lead to kings and queens and people of prominence being found by the person doing the search. None tell you that you come from a long line of “gypsies, tramps and thieves”.

And there are some that tell you, “Your first ancestors were apes”. It is that evolutionary strand that runs through all of us. Darwin told his followers that, “If my theories are found to be wrong in the future, discount all that I have said or thought”. And many have, but some kept the myth, the lie, alive for their own purposes. But, no one from that “camp” tells you that about Darwin. Yes, apes have a similar DNA and the word “similar” is the key. The term for a “word studier” escapes me at the present, it begins with and “e”. The word similar does not mean “the same” or “identical”. It more describes things that are closely related, and that seems to be related to our topic. There are distinct differences and not interchangeable in DNA structure. No, I’m not a scientist, but I play one on T.V. You don’t have to be a scientist to think logical about many issues outside your expertise.

Example: The space scientists are looking for water on Mars or one of the other planets they have landed and “planet exploration devise”, a robot. Because they know water is a key to maintaining life, as we know it. My thinking is this: What does it take to make water? You need some H’s and some 2’s and some O’s, then these elements have to be connected in the right form or fashion. The scientist can’t make the connection in the laboratory, so why does he think he can make the connection in space? Oh yes, one other thing. When we do send a man in space what does he take with him? He has to take some H’s, some 2’s and some O’s. He has to take along water and oxygen. If there’s no oxygen there can be no water. Does that make sense?

That’s the type of thing I am talking about when it comes to relatives. If you look back you will find some really bad people in your past. It may not take but a few generations. If your last name is James, are you related to Jesse James? If two people have the same last name are they related? If one is of Caucasian descent and the other is of African or Asian descent? How did it happen and where did it all start? I thought you’d never ask.

I am not sure if I have written anything, lately, that did not turn to the spiritual side of things. I take everything to the Bible and see if it makes sense from that perspective. Why, you ask? If you want a thorough explanation go to Josh McDowell’s Evidence that Demands a Verdict. My short version is this. It was written over a period of about 4000 years, by 40 authors, with varying roles and occupations from Kings to doctors, to shepherds, and fishermen, on two continents, and is the explanation of God’s story about man. And one more, small item, it is without contradiction.

Back to relatives: We’re all in this together. It is explained over and over in the Bible. In the beginning… God…. Then it tells us that He created man and woman. Them be our relatives. You can read the “begat’s” in Genesis. But then, God became angry with “those men” (several decades later), and destroyed the earth with a flood, saving only eight, Noah’s family. Then… them be out relatives.

But to my point…. Why should we find some scoundrels in our family tree? It is because of the other issue about our relatives. That is the sin issue. God removed Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden because they disobeyed Him and broke the relationship of love, obedience and trust. God gave them the tree of life and the tree of good and evil, as we now call them. They chose the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If then, they would have eaten from the tree of life; they would have spent eternity in the state of disobedience, sin, with no way out. So, God removed them from the Garden to protect them. In that process, He made a sacrifice, a blood offering. From that point on, man was a scoundrel. That’s the long – story – short.

So, don’t believe everything you hear and see on T.V., or the internet, even my stuff, read the books…, the what? Do people read anymore? I mean books. But, that’s another topic for another day. I think there are more people today who are illiterate than in times past. They read blogs and face book and twitter, and opinions about opinions. They read anything except the material that presents the facts.

By the way… my blog is: reskewsquad.blogspot.com
Other responses can be sent to reskew@aol.com

Following the Shepherd,
Ron

2010-04-04T01:09:00.000-07:00

The Battle Within
Dream 2

I was trying to get some key people together to go over the plans for the new year in ministry. Those who had been involved with the ministry last year and said they would help this year. As people started showing up I knew there was not enough room to hold them all, actually more came than I expected. And to my surprise, many whom I did not even know. I talked to someone I did know and decided to move the meeting to a place that had more space. But that got confusing, because the person I talked to had two offices and we couldn’t understand which office we were talking about.

Then the band showed up. Not a full complete band, but what seemed like a “pep band”, drums and horns. I asked them to stop playing and they continued to finish up the song they were playing and slowly, but very slowly, drug out the ending in a long drone. Finally, I had to start collecting the drummer’s sticks so they would stop playing. I was very angry and the longer it went on the angrier I got.

After that I tried to get everyone’s attention and as I got the attention of a few some others would start up conversations on their own. I would concentrate on that group and another would start up. Finally I had everyone’s attention, but I heard talking from the hallway behind me. I made a request that, “If you can’t see me, move into the room where you can, we have plenty of room”. The people in the hall, busted down the wall to walk through instead of walking around the corner. Now I would have to pay for the repairs to the wall when we got finished. And I got angrier. Then the conversations started again and pats of the band began to play again.

Then I woke up…. I heard these words, “Write down what I have to say”.

This is My church! I am trying to get them to see and understand the mission I have for them. I am trying to gather together those who have been faithful in the past and give them instructions for the future. The true battle is about to begin and they need to listen and be aware of many things. More people have come to the meeting than were invited. They were invited by people I invited, but I did not invite them. Those are the one’s who are causing the confusion and creating the distractions. Many are having conversations among themselves and I am not in the midst. Their planning looks good, but I am not in the plans. Their musicians are very talented, but they take no time for Me. They play their own tune and create music that I am not pleased with. I have sent people to correct and instruct them, but they don’t listen to their advice, as I have instructed. Those talking outside in the hall are those I wish to hear My message. Instead of walking in My ways and in My directions, have come in their own way and have cause more destruction in doing so.

Yes, I am very angry! I have talked and instructed and warned and begged, but few would listed to Me. My path is narrow and My words will divide. I did not say, “Build it they will come”. I said, “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel”.
I did not say, “Can’t we all just get along”? I gave absolutes and not merely suggestions. I did not say, “Be tolerant of one another”. I said, “Love your enemy and pray for him”.

Yes, oh yes, in the midst of all of My anger, I heard a small one crying out in the middle of the night, and I went to comfort him. I held him in my arms and sang sweet songs to him. I gave to him spiritual food, and soothed his soul. I looked at him and saw the smallness of his frame. I saw the weakness of his being. I loved him, and told him so.

Goodnight,
Sleep soundly,
Jesus

2010-03-25T11:25:00.000-07:00

Clue

Disclaimer

Usually the disclaimer is written at the bottom of the document and in font to small to read with the naked eye. But I, being an honest and forthright man, place it at the beginning. To whit…, I haven’t a clue how my brain works. A thought or word or picture pops in and the little synapses’ just start their processes and I can’t stop them until I write something down on paper.

The word “clue” popped into my brain upon waking early this morning about 4:30 am. Soon, I found myself thinking in this vain… Who did what to whom, with which, and where and how and why? Of course I was thinking in regards to the board game Clue.
But then, the question was… Was Mrs. White the victim or the suspect? It was obvious that the Ballroom was the place and it was done with the Candlestick. If… Mrs. White was the victim, then who was the suspect? Or if she were the suspect, then who was the victim? We seem to be missing one other person. As the old radio program stated, “The Shadow Knows”.

I think we go through life with a similar question lurking in the “back of our minds”. Who did what to whom, with which and for what reason? Those who know me know I’m going somewhere with this, others “don’t have a clue”.

Of course I am talking about our relationship with God. There are things that are not fully explained in the Bible. Some things are not revealed so we would trust Him and “walk by faith”. Other things are just because He is God and we are not. My pursuit goes on….

The age old argument about predestination and free will is where I’m going. There are great scholars on both sides of the argument. I am not one of them. I have a simple answer, which is not simple and is not the answer. It is this… God knows the ultimate reasons for what He does and why He does it. I am only guessing. But I will tell you what I think and why I think it. There are Calvinists and Armenians. The Calvinist says, “God does it all and you have nothing to do with it”. The Armenian says, “You have free will and can choose God or not, it’s all up to you”. Well, I am a “Cal-Menian”. I use to think it was a 50% - 50% deal, where God did half and I did half. Over the past 30 plus years, I have slid in my thinking to 95% God and 5% me. Yes, I still have free will, but I see more and more in scripture that God works in the hearts and minds of men to draw them to Himself.

Yes it is obvious that in Genesis 2, God gives man the right to choose, I do not deny that. And as they say, “The rest is history”. We see what the consequences of free will are. But yet, the all knowing God worked His will, in spite of the stupidity of man. He kept calling them to return to Him, which we know as repentance. You’re going the wrong way, turn around, do a 180, come back to Me. Some did, the called, the elect, the chosen. Some didn’t, because of their own free will.

In 2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but for all to come to repentance.

Other scripture for your study, if you are interested:

Elect - Isaiah 42:1, Isa 45:4, Isa 65:9, Mat 24:22, Lk 18:7, Rom 8:33, 2 Tim 2:10,
1 Pet 1:2 and 5:3

Chosen – Joshua 24:22, Psalm 33:12, Prov 16:16, Isa 66:3, Mat 20:16, Mark 13:20,
John 6:70, Jn 15:16, Acts 9:15, Ephesians 1:4, 2 Thes 2:13, 1 Peter 2:4, Rev 12:14

Draw – John 12:32

I don’t expect you to be persuaded to my way of thinking. Like I said, it has taken me over 30 years to get to this point in my walk with God, by faith, trusting Him for the things I can not see, the things I can not understand and the things I can not change.

With Love,
Following the Shepherd,
Ron
reskewsquad.blogspot.com

PS: So, was Mrs. White the victim or the suspect?

2010-03-17T01:17:00.000-07:00

Head - Heart - Gut

What goes on within a person that determines who they are and who they become?

Thus my title, head, heart and gut. It starts in the head with the increase of knowledge. This knowledge comes from reading, watching, and studying a particular subject, be it math and science, art and literature, economics and government, or medicine and the psycho-sciences. Depending on how you are “wired” (and that’s a totally deep subject of its own), your interests will cause more and more desires, and more and more knowledge of that particular subject.

After you get more and more knowledge, you have a decision to make. What will I do with this knowledge? Is it just random knowledge or will the study lead to new discoveries? Will I create a game like Trivial Pursuit? Will I discover the newest “black hole”? But most of all, who am I becoming by the results of this knowledge? Even though, “It’s not about me” … “It’s about me”. Who I am as a person will greatly determine what I do with all the “head knowledge” I have accumulated.

Thus, it becomes a heart issue. You know, that deep “thing” within all of us, that makes us… us; different from all others, that persona, that personality, that ego, that soul. The phrase, “I am what I eat” is better described as “I am what I think”. As I often use the Bible as a reference, because it has so many good thoughts on life, one passage says, “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he”. That thinking is not just the intellectual aspect, but that deep seated, inner person.

Which brings us to the gut. What is it, in your life that keeps you going? What keeps you motivated? What deep churning within you seems to have you restless? What keeps you unsettled in your longings? That’s the “gut” issue. I’m not saying you stay up nights worrying, but there is that unrest in your soul, “gut”, that there is more. Then, the term ‘gut check” comes to mind. To me that means, something is not right and I need to take a step back and refocus and rethink all that’s going on. I need to get back to basics and look at the issue from a new perspective. What are the basics that you return to when things seem “out of sorts”?

A few things come to mind.

1. There is a God. The world is too complex to have “just happened”. Some say that random atoms collided and that started it all. Where did the two atoms come from? What would have happened if three atoms collided simultaneously? What was the DNA of those two atoms? Can the DNA of a rock be the same as that of a person?

2. This God has plan and purpose for His creation. Our responsibility is to find this God and find his plan and purpose. Again the Bible, “The heavens declare the glory of God and the earth shows forth His handy work”.

3. Man took it upon himself to try to run things and ruined things. Interesting words run and ruin… the only difference is the “ I ” in the middle.

4. God’s purpose was not thwarted. Enter Jesus, “stage left”. And as they say, “the rest is history, His Story”.

What’s your gut telling you?

Following the Shepherd,

Ron

2010-03-13T02:54:00.000-08:00

Amnesia

I went to sleep praying and woke up with a head ache. I must have prayed toooo hard.

You see, I have a lot on my mind at this point of my life. We’ve just entered the year 2008 and life is going in a different direction than I had imagined.

All of that brought me back to the lifelong question, “Who am I”? Which reminds me of several movies I have seen which depict people who have suffered accident or loss, or injury or disease and have lost their identity. They can’t remember who they are.

Many methods are used to help them try to regain their true identity. Some are seeing old friends, hearing favorite songs, eating favorite foods, visiting familiar places, going back to childhood surroundings and the worst, shock therapy.

What will it take for me to regain my true identity? Would I even know if I found it? How will I begin the journey? Do I even want to find out?

I started out life at an early age and close to my mother. Life began in a small mid-west town and at a time when the streets were still dirt roads. When you got off the highway which ran through the town, you were on a dirt or gravel road. Things like this are part of who I am, good, bad or indifferent. The two room school house that housed six grades, three in one room and three in the other. One teacher for each room. Many moves from our small town to the capital city and back again and as a child, never knowing why. This is a part of who I am. Amnesia would have been preferred to some of the memories, but … it’s part of who I am.

I’m going to take a large leap to another dimension, that of a spiritual nature. I must never forget or have selective amnesia about who I am spiritually. The price was too great and the suffering too intense for me to forget. The Crux of the matter, is the crux of the matter. The Cross, an instrument of death. We wear it around our necks with the glimmer of high polished gold or sterling silver on a chain to match. As one of our Pastors said last week, “Would you wear an “electric chair” around your neck, or a “hangman’s noose”, or a “guillotine”? Where do I find my true identity? How do I find my true identity? Who am I? Who’s am I?

God gave us an incredible gift, that of free will, an ability to choose. If you have ask Jesus Christ to be your Savior, you still have choices. The choices are, to obey or to disobey. You can never say, “Oh, I forgot”, or “I didn’t know” or have “selective amnesia”. You are accountable from day one of your spiritual journey about the choices you make. You can’t blame it on your parents, or your teachers, or your boss, or your spouse. When you become a Christian, the Holy Spirit comes to live within you and He will lead you into all righteousness. No Excuses. Now the choice is yours. Shock therapy or obedience?
Jan. 4, 2008 Ron E.

2010-02-04T09:05:00.000-08:00

Old Folks

After many years of being around “old folks”, I am beginning to understand them. Why, you may ask? Well, I are one!

Yes, the year of 2009 led me into the magical age of 65. It is a time when all of your youthful fun and fantasies have been realized and “you have arrived”. Some call it “the life of Riley”. Everything just seems to go extremely well, and now, you can just “coast” the rest of the way.

I’m beginning to understand the thing about, old folks not remembering things, like times, dates, events, others birthdays and anniversaries, appointments and such. In a favorite song of mine by the Statler Brothers, The Class of ’57, the line goes like this, “Things get complicated, when you get past eighteen, the class of ’57, had its dream”. And it just seems to compound when you hit sixty-five. It seems the family gets larger with grand-children and schedules expand. You try to make all the games, performances and major events like birthday parties… for everyone. While all the time, trying to enjoy “your life” for yourself. Projects and the “honey do” list really get shoved to the bottom of the list and you never seem to get anything done. I’m really not complaining, just making known to the readers I’m not going crazy, I’m just really busy. And did I mention your own job or business; all the things that need to be done and schedules that need to be kept in order to keep your clients and customers happy.

Then there are the things that jump up, out of nowhere, to put you further behind. Last September I got a notice in the mail that there was a warrant for my arrest for not paying my State Sales Tax. Well, to their surprise, I don’t pay Sales Tax, my business is exempt.
I have to file a form each year to show how much I made and that the total amount is “tax exempt”, put a zero on the bottom line and send it in. The main problem was that I had been trying to satisfy this problem since the beginning of the year. Somehow, the state had not gotten my original filing. I got a notice of this in May 2009, because it was not evident, since I don’t usually do my taxes until April. With a phone call and a fax, I thought the issue was resolved. In June I get another letter saying I was delinquent and penalties were being added, the same in September, but also came the letter informing me of the warrant. This prompted a trip to downtown Indianapolis to hopefully rectify the situation. Finally, resolution, what a relief.

Time marches on and no man is left behind. In January of 2010, however you want to pronounce it, We were in the process of refinancing our home to try to save money, remember I are old, our (my) credit report came back with this same issue staring us in the face. A credit rating of over 800 was dropped to 600. So, it was time for another call to the tax office to see what happened and what could be done, hopefully there would be no trip to downtown. The agent could not understand what I needed or how to help me so she got her Supervisor on the phone. Even though it was a thirty minute call, he did take care of me. He also helped me with a possible delinquent situation because of all this, when filing my 2009 taxes in 2010. Ain’t Life Grand!! I are getting older, quicker, faster!

Ron

2010-02-04T08:59:00.000-08:00

January 2010
Perspective

You will have to bear with me on this one. It will be random and all over the map.

Getting older is not as “fun” as I thought it would be. Now I see why “old folks” were always considered grumpy. Old folks have been through a lot, seen a lot, experienced a lot, cried a lot, laughed a lot and in general, know what life is all about.

As I have, from time to time, I will take opportunity to insert a passage from the Bible.
1 Corinthians 13 verse 11 the Apostle Paul writes… When I was a child, I used to speak as a child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things.

How do you know when you “become a man (woman)”? What clicks in your brain that makes a difference in how you think, act and talk? My thinking has changed, I no longer look at life as though I were 18 or 25 or 40. Yet, the things that are important have grown to greater proportions. In some ways, I still think like I did when I was 20. In most ways, I have a better understanding and appreciation for a new way of thinking. Things that once were funny, when I was 20 – 25 are no longer funny. It’s not that I am grumpy, I just have a different perspective and it is no longer funny to laugh at other people and their “short-comings”.

This is not where I thought I was going with this writing.

Time keeps on slippin’, slippin’, into the future. Remember when the Y2K was the super crisis? It was going to take down the entire world and we would eventually get back to living like we did in the 40’s and 50’s. Well, we made it into the 21st Century and we are still here. Aside from computers and instant contact with anyone, anywhere around the world, life is just about the same as it was in 1990. There are wars abounding in the same places as they were in the 1990’s. There is still famine around the world. There are still starving children and the homeless in America. The American government has sent and spent millions and millions of dollars in America and around the world to help fix these problems, yet to no avail. The American people are told to give more in taxes to help the poor. And we still have the poor, or should I say, the next generation of the poor. Do you ever ask yourself, why? As the saying goes, when you find yourself in a whole, the first thing to do is, stop digging.

In the 1700’s and 1800’s the slaves were the oppressed people of the land. Abraham Lincoln waged war on the congress and the nation, to end slavery, which ended in a truly long and bitter war. Today, the government of the USA has put the slaves back into captivity. But this time it is not just the black race, but also the white race and anything in between. The government has said over and over for the past 60 years, “Oh, you just can’t make it on your own. You need our help. We can make life easier for you, (not better, but easier)”. The government has made poverty a growing business run by thieves, swindlers, those who want to have rule and superiority over others; put someone else down so I can feel higher, better, more intelligent. The bottom line is that… if you can not see these things, maybe you have not “become a man”, yet. Maybe you are still childish.

My perspective didn’t change until I was about 30 years old. I was still thinking childishly and acting very immature. You may be asking, “Okay, what happened and how did you “grow up”?” I’m glad you asked…. I knew there was more to life than I had been experiencing up to that point. I had watched a dad abuse his wife and kids because of alcohol. I had watched friends destroy their lives with drugs. I was the product of a short marriage, 2 ½ years, because of my wife’s affair. I had watched others in various forms and fashions live, or should I say exist, in various states of dysfunction. I was searching for something that would answer the questions of life. The musical group, Chicago, had a song out called, “Searchin”. Searchin’ for the questions of life… Who am I?

Not only did I want to know, “What was going on?” I wanted to know why? But, deep down, I wanted to know, who I was. Was my life meaningful? Did I have a purpose? Who was this little boy from a small town, who had moved into the big city? Was I different (weird)? Did I know as much as the “city kids”?

It took almost 30 years on this planet to discover the answers. The search began with attending a Bible Study. Please, don’t turn me off at this point. I know, some are saying, “I’ve tried religion and it didn’t work for me.” I too, had a religious up-bringing. That is like getting a vaccination, you get just enough of the bacteria or virus to make you not feel good and to give your body a chance to build up an immune reaction so as to not get the real thing. Religion is man's search for God, Christianity is God reaching down to man, only through Jesus, and making a way back to Him. The Bible is so simple that a child can understand it, yet so complicated, theologians study it for their entire life. The simplicity is this… Jesus died on the cross for the sin of the entire human race. If you accept this simple, but profound statement, you are on your way to becoming a man, (discussed above). The day I did that I did not know everything about the Bible. All I knew was that Jesus died for my sin and I was free to live for Him. Did you get that? Free to “live for Him”. I was no longer bound by my old way of thinking and acting. I was a slave that had been emancipated, (discussed above). After 35 years of reading and studying, I know a lot more that I did. I have a new perspective. I now see a lot of possible reasons why my dad was like he was. I understand why my ex-wife was the way she was. I understand the bondage we all lived under, because of the, yes, sin problem, not doing things, God’s way.

No one is forcing you. You have to make the decision on your own. It has been put this way… When the pain of remaining the same is greater, than the pain of change, then you will change.

Following the Shepherd,
Ron
reskew@aol.com
reskewsquad.blogspot.com

2009-12-02T04:46:00.000-08:00

Hand in Hand

This writing is dedicated to my children and grandchildren. You will understand more as you read.

Most of us who are adults, over twenty-five, have children. There are times when you hug them, hold them, feed them, rock them to sleep and change their diapers. I have written poems for both of my children as the words came to me as I was doing the “middle of the night feeding”. The poems were questions about who these little people were going to become. I wrote of how I would or could have an affect on their lives; but, most of all how they would show me who I really was. Could I love them enough to say “No”? I wanted them to be safe and I would do anything and everything to protect them. They needed to know at an early age, that dad was going to be there.

Now to the hand holding….

When my kids were four to eight or ten, when we would go to the grocery store or shopping, we would park the car, get them out of their seats and hold their hands. Or venture across the parking lot was the first adventure. They had been sitting and wanted to get out and run. It was always stated that, “When we go across the parking lot, we always hold hands.”

Why did we do that? Well, by being adults and older, we knew what might happen. We could see more, because their eyes were at bumper of fender height. We understood the dangers “out there”.

Their hands, by being smaller, could not grasp our hands. So the finger method was used. They held our index finger and we held their hand and sometimes wrist. I’m not sure what they remember about those kind of things, but it comes out when I see them hold their kid’s hands in the same manner.

I write that to say this….

Hand holding, from God’s perspective is much the same. We think we have a good hold on God’s hand. We love Him and trust Him and sometimes, hold on for dear life. If that last phrase sounds funny, that means, I’m getting old; it’s a phrase that comes from “way back”. What we don’t realize is that, God has a stronger grip on us than we have on Him. We have His finger, but He has our whole hand and sometimes wrist in His grasp. When things are good He will loosen Hid grip and let us run freely. When danger comes, He can “whip us around and move us to a place of safety”. He is “bigger” and can see more than we can. He knows and is able to sense danger better than we can. It becomes more obvious each day that He controls my life. And that, not in a negative way, He loves me so much He sometimes says, “No”.

Following the Shepherd,
Ron

2009-11-23T23:51:00.001-08:00

This Thing Called Christmas

As I awake from sleep at 4:37 AM, my mind wanders to this thing we experience between Thanksgiving Day and New Years Day called Christmas. Sometimes I will hear “Christmas Carols” on the radio and think about the lyrics and whether they are telling an accurate story of what this season is all about.

The ones that talk about St. Nicholas or Santa Claus are an aspect of this season. But, why then don’t we call it St. Nicholas Day? How did the term St. Nicholas come to be and how did the term Christmas come to be? Which came first (the chicken or the egg?)?
Could you have a St. Nicholas Day without first having a Christ-mass day (it‘s not that I don‘t know how to spell, I‘m trying to get you to think “outside the box”)?

St Nicholas… if you type St. Nicholas into your web browser and click “go”, it will take you to all kinds of information on St. Nicholas. He was a real man who lived in the his adult years in A.D. 300’s and is reported to have died in A.D. 343. This should be your first clue as to “Who” came first. A.D. simply means, Anno Domini, in the year of our Lord. So… you have to have a Lord first. St. Nicholas lived in the area of Turkey on the south-west tip in an area called Myra. His life was dedicated to helping the poor, from the commandment that Jesus himself gave, “sell what you have and give to the poor”. Again, “Who” came first? The St. Nicholas celebration was held on December 6, to honor the death of St. Nicholas and help preserve the day of Christmas to focus on the Christ Child. St Nicholas’ life became legend and his mission became that of many, many people throughout the world. That is why St. Nicholas or Santa Claus is celebrated throughout the world. Much more can be said of St. Nicholas, but if you need that information, search it out for yourself.

Jesus Christ…again, if you type the name Jesus Christ into your web browser and click “go”, you will have a lot of information. He was a man who lived at a certain time in history. That time is what we now understand as the separation of B.C. and A.D., the actual date is uncertain, but his life is not. Jesus had many, many wonderful teachings such as, sell what you have and give it to the poor, turn the other cheek, honor your father and mother, and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength.

But… it was more than His life and teachings that make Him different from any other man. It was His death and resurrection that set Him apart from any other man or religious leader in all of history. To have death and resurrection, you must have a birth. Many, many religions follow the essence of Christianity without taking the person of Christianity.

The real teaching of Christmas is that Jesus was God who was born of a virgin, a miracle. That’s what we celebrate on December, 25th.

2009-11-23T23:45:00.000-08:00

Amusements

Where does your mind go when you hear the word amusements? Is it the latest roller-coaster? Is it the amusement park you go to every summer? Is it the local movie complex? Is it the day you take off work to go golfing? Or is amusement to you that quiet day on the lake or river to go fishing? Or maybe it’s just being “left alone” with the remote to live vicariously through our favorite pro athlete. For women it may be, to live the in romance of a beautiful leading lady being wooed and enticed by a handsome leading man.

Amusement: 1. the condition of being amused; 2. something that amuses or entertains; 3. entertainment.

Then you go to the base word amuse and the definition is this… 1. to keep pleasantly and enjoyably occupied or interested; 2. to make laugh, smile etc. by being comical or humorous. 3. to engage or distract the attention of. Synonyms are… entertain, divert, beguile.

If you break down the word even more, from amuse to muse, the definition is, 1. to think deeply and at length; 2. to meditate.

Now, if you look at the prefix “a”, this is a negative prefix that means “not to”; thus, not to think or meditate.

My point is this… how much do we “amuse” ourselves, are we saturating our minds with “amusements” so that we don’t have to think? Have amusements become an addictive process that is called “normal”? Do we say, “I would rather be entertained than have to deal with reality”? Do we get our lifestyle and thinking from Hollywood or do we “muse” on reality? Do we spend more time thinking and reading about the latest gossip from Entertainment Tonight or the Tonight Show, or Late Night? Do you know more about Sarah Jessica Parker than you do about the Apostle Peter? Does this type of thinking, or lack of it, lead to indifference and apathy? The next portion is from my writing of The Spiritual Implications of the November 2008 Elections.

About the time our original thirteen states adopted their new constitution in 1787, Alexander Tyler, a Scottish history professor at the University of Edinburgh, had this to say about the fall of the Athenian Republic some 2,000 years earlier: 'A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government.' 'A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury.' 'From that moment on, the majority always vote for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship.'

'The average age of the world's greatest civilizations from the beginning of history, has been about 200 years'. 'During those 200 years, those nations always progressed through the following sequence:
1. from bondage to spiritual faith;
2. from spiritual faith to great courage;
3. from courage to liberty
4. from liberty to abundance;
5. from abundance to complacency;
6. from complacency to apathy;
7. from apathy to dependence;
8. from dependence back into bondage.

So in the light of “amusements”… where are we in the process of life as we know it? If I don’t think, I don’t have to worry and if I don’t worry, someone else will take care of it for me. And if someone else will take care of it for me, they will take care of me! The “proverbial they”, will do it all. They is me and they is you!!! We will be responsible for taking care of those who only want to be “amused”.

Matthew 5:6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. (Those who hunger and thirst for truth). After all, I’m just trying to get you to muse, to think

Following the Shepherd,
Ron

2009-11-04T02:16:00.000-08:00

Cost - Value – Worth

The title should conjure up a lot of thoughts. Isn’t what it costs, what it is worth? Isn’t its value reflected on the price tag? Why would I pay more than it’s worth?

I’m thinking about several ways to compare and analyze cost, value and worth. I manufacture a widget. The material for my widget costs me $50.00. To pay a person to manipulate that material into a finished produce costs me $50.00 per hour and it takes an hour to produce it, therefore the widget costs $100.00. Now, if I sell my widget for $100.00 I make no profit and I will soon be out of business. So, I mark it up 30% to make a profit of $30.00.
But wait, I have to pay for heat, electricity, water and a few other odds and ends, so I had better mark it up 50% and make $50.00. I almost lost my shirt on that one.

To the consumer, my widget costs $150.00 and that’s a great value. Some people around the world would pay twice that for the same product. Just so they could say, “I’ve got one”. But, I’m not a large enough company to go international. That would take a lot of money and a lot of talented people to produce my widget.

So, is my widget worth $300.00? To some, maybe yes, but to others it’s not.

I’m a car guy. I like to watch the Barrett-Jackson car auction. They showcase some of the most incredible automobiles in the world and they’re “for sale”. I have owned six Corvettes and when a Corvette comes on the block, my heart races. The early Corvettes 1952 through 1967 are my favorites. The original cost for a Corvette in those years was $3,000.00 to $6,000.00. At the Barrett-Jackson today, these cars sell for $30,000 to $200,000. That would be their value in my analogy. Now, what is their worth? To the person who just paid the money, their worth is just what he/she paid for it. Sometimes they think its worth is far more than what they paid. To me, they are not worth that much. Don’t get me wrong, I would love to own one again… but, there are things in this world that have much more worth to me than owning another Corvette. Seven would be a nice number and also a biblical number, which brings me to my point.

Biblical, scriptural and spiritual cost, value and worth are my main purpose for writing this paper.

What did it cost Adam and Eve for their disobedience in the Garden of Eden? Actually, it cost them everything. It cost them their home, their own personal relationship and their relationship with God. How would you rate the value and the worth of sin?

What did it cost Lot in his disobedience in the land of Sodom and Gomorra?
It cost him his wife. How would you rate the value and worth of sin?

What did it cost King David in his disobedience with Bathsheba? It cost him his son. How would you rate the value and worth of sin?

What about you? Are you willing to pass up the best to get a passing pleasure?

The cost of an item, as discussed above, depends on what the raw materials and labor cost, plus overhead. Your raw materials probably had a cost of $4.00 - $6.00, you know, dirt. But, you were fearfully and wonderfully made. He knit you together in your mother’s womb. He knew you from the foundations of the earth.

The value of an item is what its marketability is. How well will it sell? Who will pay the price you’re asking? You were bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your bodies.

Worth is in the eye of the beholder. I don’t believe that any Corvette is worth the type of money paid for it. I think that everything in this world is highly over-rated and over priced… except the soul of a man.

The cost Jesus paid for your and my sin was total obedience. He willingly went to the cross to pay the penalty for the sin of the world, every person that had been born and would be born in this world. The value He placed on you was His blood, the sacrifice of One for the many. Your worth to Him is so great that, as it has been said, “If you were the only person in the world, Jesus would still have come and died for you”.

Value and worth are also associated with how many were made. The 1953 Corvette went into production and GM was so scared that they only produced 300 units (cars). It went over well, so the next year of the 1954 Corvette 3,639 units were produced. But at the end of the 1954 season they had 1,076 left over. So, in 1955 they wanted to continue the “True American Sports Car”, but only built 700. So therefore, the worth is based on the number made.

There is only one of you. There will never be another. Even if you are a twin or a sextuplet, Your DNA is totally different from that of any one else in the world. You are special. God looks at you and sees the beauty and potential He has designed for you and you alone. It cost Jesus everything He had to make you everything you could be. So you must be very valuable and a “Pearl of Great Price”. Your worth is beyond measure.

No other religious leader has laid down his life for his followers. Most of them ask you to lay down your life for them. Most ask you to give all you have, time, money and energy to them.

Jesus says, “Come to Me and I will give you rest”. He also says, “Take up your cross and follow Me”.

The King of Kings and Lord of Lords left His Throne in heaven and came to this earth, became a man, lived a sinless life, died on the cross, rose from the dead, went back to heaven and there intercedes on our behalf. Will you accept the gift He offers? You are of great worth!

Following the Shepherd,
Ron Eskew

2009-11-04T02:12:00.000-08:00

The Gift

As we have just gotten through Christmas 2008 my mind goes to an observation of this dearly loved season. I’m not sure all appreciate it in the same fashion.

We spend a lot of time thinking about that special gift for each person which will fill their hearts with joy. For the little ones, that’s not hard to do. As the age goes higher it becomes more difficult. But, we get clues all year long about something the person wants and they never seem to find the time or have the money, even when it’s “on sale”. So, we file it away and when the time comes, hopefully when it’s on sale, we buy it for them and save it until Christmas to have the perfect gift.

We give it with great joy and pleasure, knowing that we have hit the mark with that one person. They receive it with joy and ask, “How did you know?” You remark, “Remember last Aug. you said you really wanted it, well I kept my eyes open for the sales and bought it for you in Oct.” You have a friend for life, or so you think.

As time passes, you never see the person use it, wear it, read it, or make any further comments about the gift. Was it really as important as the person made it out to be? Was it a “passing fancy”? You’re confused, but not sure how to ask the question in the right manner as not to lose a friend or hurt the relationship, but you are curious.

What happens to the gifts we give? Are they used, abused, or just forgotten about? It’s all up to the person who receives them. You see, we have good or even great intentions with our gift giving. All we want to do is share and inspire a bit of joy and happiness. But the receiver is the one who has the option to maintain the gift to its full potential. Clothes and shoes we like normally get worn out. All the while we wish we had bought a second pair to have when the original wear out. I can only give the gift I want to give a person and it’s up to them what happens after that. I can’t tell them to use this only on special occasions or just when the sun is out. I can’t tell them how to play with the new game.

Some people just seem to ruin a gift within a few short weeks if not days. And I can say nothing about it. When it leaves my hand it’s “all theirs”. It now longer belongs to me; I have no control over it. If I want to control it, I keep it for myself.

Sad, but true, the gifts we give don’t belong to us any more. We paid for it, we wrapped it, and we gave it. It is no longer ours.

I see people all around me who have been given a wonderful present and don’t really appreciate it. To them it wasn’t big enough, it wasn’t strong enough, it wasn’t fast enough, and it wasn’t shiny enough. They say, “I tried it and it didn’t work for me, so I will try something newer and bigger”.

That is what I’m seeing in the world today regarding Jesus. This wonderful Gift has been given and so many, too many, are saying, “I tried it and it didn’t work for me”. Some even say, “Oh, I love Jesus”, and live life without Him. People put Him on the shelf like an old book and dust it off every month or two, but don’t pick Him up and read Him. They abuse Him by not living in the manner which is pleasing to Him. They give “lip service” not “life service”. They pick and choose like going down a cafeteria line and picking out all the sweets and goodies, while skipping the meat and vegetables and salads.

With gift giving there is also gift receiving. One, you have to receive the gift. Someone can hold out a gift and offer it to you. But, until you take it in your hand and bring it into your possession it is not yours. Two, what you do with the gift is up to you. I can’t tell you how to appreciate it. I can’t tell you how to use it. I can hope and pray that the gift will be used properly and with great care and love. But ultimately, it’s up to you.

Which brings me to and end; one, what will you do with Jesus? And two, my next writing will be Cost, Value and Worth.

Following the Shepherd,
Ron Eskew

2009-10-09T00:25:00.000-07:00

Give Us A King

First let me say that I’m an Old Testament guy. A lot of my life is based on the information, and “God Breathed” inspiration from the Prophets. As I tend to have an active imagination, one word will spark at thought which turn into a flood of thinking and you get the outcome.

My text is 1 Samuel 8:4-9 “Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah; and they said to him, “Behold, you have grown old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint a king for us to judge us like all the nations.” And Samuel prayed to the Lord. But the thing was displeasing to Samuel… And the Lord said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being king over them. Like all the deeds which they have done since the day I brought them out of Egypt even to this day – in that they have forsaken Me and served other gods – so they are doing to you also. Now then, listen to their voice; however, you shall solemnly warn them and tell them of the customs of a king who will reign over them”.

The essence of the warning was that the king would take their possessions and eventually their children. The king would take their harvest or livelihood for his own purposes…. The peoples response was … that’s ok we want a king.

The Pilgrims came to the New World to escape the control of a king (kingship, regardless of which king it was) who had taken over all the functions of society and controlled life for all people.

Our Founding Fathers saw the past and knew something different and better had to and could be done to make life worth living and give stability to a large group of people. Though not everyone agreed on everything, a solution was reached and the Constitution was established for the new America. And as they say… the rest is history. I don’t think the Founders would recognize the U. S. today, for several reasons. The Constitution was formed to keep the government out of the peoples business. Remember, they left Europe and England because of the suppression of the king (government). Yet, today April 2009, government is encroaching more and more upon the individual’s rights.

As the Israelite’s told Samuel, give us a king, have we not asked for what we want? All along, God was saying, “That’s not a good idea”. The American people were saying, “Give me, give me, give me”, and God said ok.
So… we live with the consequences.

Even though there were a few good kings in the southern kingdom of Judah, the people suffered the consequences of all the bad kings. Even though America has had good leaders and Presidents, we have and will continue to suffer the affects and bad decisions for bad leaders.

Who are you looking to for the essence of life? More properly, to whom are you looking for the essence of life? Who is more likely to tell you the truth about life? Is it not the Lord, God Almighty? He is the One who wants your all. In the text above, God references “out of Egypt”, some 800 – 1000 years after the event, does it even enter your mind, “Why would God reference something that happened ‘soooo long ago’”. They might be saying, “After all we are living in the modern age”.

Are we too saying, “We live in the 21st Century, what does something that happened (now) 2700 years ago have to do with us, we live in the modern age”. I have to inject this, Solomon said, “There is nothing new under the sun”. The basics are these, God is God and we are not; God is perfect in all His ways and we are separated from that perfection by sin (missing the mark of perfection, choosing our own way). Does that make sense in the context of 1 Samuel 8:4 – 9? Does that make sense in light of where we are as a people or as a country? We have grown up in and on our own ignorance about what is real and true. We have been lulled into a false sense of security about what “the king” can do for us that no one else can do. We have released our responsibilities for bearing one another’s burdens, be it physically, emotionally or spiritually, to the government, and they have taken it and are asking for more.

The question is, “Are we going to allow them to take it or are we going to humble ourselves and fall before the Lord, God Almighty and say, “Forgive us, we have sinned against You and You only”? “We don’t need a king, we need Father God, the Lord Jesus and the precious Holy Spirit to rule over us.

Your next question might be, “But, how do we do that, isn’t it too late”? It may be too late for the country, but not for the individual. In that, God will never turn away a truly repentant heart that says, “I blew it, I’m wrong, You’re right, forgive me”. Those leaders (kings) who choose to continue to go their own way will reap the rewards of their sowing. You’ve heard, “I keep digging but I can’t seem to dig myself out of this hole”. You’re right.

As we see in the rest of the Old Testament, those who said yes to God knew His blessings, but those who didn’t saw the consequences of their own decisions. Even in the New Testament the facts remain the same, grace to those who repent and consequences to those who went on in their own ways.

It’s time to repent; turn away form whatever is taking you away from God.
Repent for your own sin and then repent as a family. Next, repent as a local church body.

Following the Shepherd,
Ron
reskew@aol.com

Sorry!!!

2009-08-15T01:57:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't written lately. I've been working on my book, "On Eagles' Wings". It's a longer process than I expected. I hope to have it ready by Oct or Nov.

As for the watermark in the corner.... I was on a mens weekend, called a Discipleship Walk. Some may know this type of weekend as "The Great Banquet", "Walk to Emmaus", "Crisillo" or "De Colorus".

Any how... we had severe storms all through the night and coming back from breakfast, someones sweat shirt was on the step of the building. I picked it up to hang it up to let the water run out of it. This image was left by the sweat shirt. Jesus was there protecting us from the storm.

Not everyone is protected all the time. Some die of cancer or car wercks, while others live through the event. This life is crazy, but Jesus is always there, even through the storms.

Thanks for following along,
Ron

Tower of Babel

2009-07-12T06:01:00.000-07:00

The Tower of Babel

In the Book of Genesis, in the Bible, in chapter 11, we are told that the world was of one language and the same words. The people came together, because they were so wise and intelligent they decided to make bricks and build a tower that would reach the heavens. I think this means something similar to “Jack and the Beanstalk”. That is, to be able tto reach the heavens and step off onto another level and become gods.

At this point God saw the intent of their hearts and stopped the abomination. He did this by confusing the languages or creating a multitude of different languages. If people couldn’t communicate then they could not assume that they were god or reach to become god.

Are we, in the twenty-first century, reaching for the heavens, to become god’s? In that, I mean, the communication level of today’s society is becoming so strong and so easy, that we can communicate around the world in an instant. This makes us feel strong and important, almost like god’s.

I’m not saying that communication and technology are bad, but let’s stop and think about it. We had the telephone and telegraph which connected the east coast to the west coast.
Then radio and television brought us closer to one another. Then came he computer and the internet. With satellites orbiting around the earth, we developed the cell phone. A cell phone can now do more than the first computers.

In the cell phones, you have internet access for your emails. Now you can blog, facebook, text, twitter and who knows what else. This technology makes people feel important and powerful, and sometimes they just act stupid. College students’ text answers to tests to the next class. Probably even junior high students do the same. Integrity is a thing of the past.

This brings me back to the Tower of Babel. With the ability to communicate around the world, and the language barrier is being broken down more and more each day, does that bother you or scare you? Something that God did for a purpose, man is undoing. Does it bother you that the people who do not recognize God and reverence God are the ones who are trying to more and more control you and make you feel that you need them to feel safe and secure?

Think about it!

2009-06-10T13:13:00.000-07:00

You – Topia

It’s a new generation and new words are popping up on the horizon every day. Even though it is not in Webster’s Dictionary yet, I feel that at the next printing it will be. Believe it or not it is not a hip new culture word yet, it popped into my brain a week ago. So… when you hear it being used in the future, you can say, “You heard it here first”.

So what is the thinking process behind this writing, you say? The time of man, I say.

Every youthful generation has had its share of the pie, but the youthful generation of 2005 – 2009 has seemingly gobbled up more of the pie.

When I was graduating from high school, our class was going to go out and change the world. We knew we were smarter than the previous graduating classes and could see the future and knew what to do with it and for it. And off to college we went. Some became lawyers, some doctors, some teachers, and a few never got past year one, because they were partiers, yet the dream lived on. Those who completed college and went on to Master Degrees and PhD’s, continued the quest for utopia, the quest for self gratification and a sense of fulfillment. Most of us had enough common sense and good upbringing to realize that there was a thing in life called balance. But, in our quest for this utopia, we left behind our families, our wives and our children.
We were on a mission to have more than our parents, we were tired of hearing the phrase, “I’m sorry son/daughter, we just can’t afford it right now”.

[“Back in the day”… there were no Credit Cards. If, and I repeat if you had credit at a store, you paid it in full at the end of the week and only bought what you could pay cash for. It didn’t make any difference whether you were “rich or poor”, you always paid cash you lived on “what you had”.]

Back to the future…. As this generation grew up and wanted more, they could never define, “How much was enough”. The phrase was, “Just a little more”. If you made $20,000 maybe $50,000 would be enough. Of course when you got to $50,000, that didn’t seem to be enough, so then it was $75,000.

“You need a bigger car”, no problem, pay it off in three years. Bob and Judy just moved to a bigger house, we need to have one too. Now you salary isn’t large enough to keep up so you need $125,000 to make ends meet. Steve and Sarah went to Hawaii on vacation. We only get to go to Florida this year, but next year we’ll go to Hawaii.

Where does it stop? It doesn’t… for most people. That is why utopia will never be reached. You are bound to the past by debt, which is robbing your future.

Were we really going to change the world when we graduated from high school or college? Or was the world going to change us? The answer is obvious; we were changed by the world. We got “caught up” in the vortex of “Have it your way”, “Have it all”, “Have it now”.

Back to the future, again…. Therefore, because all that I have said, this generation is “caught up” in the You – Topia Generation. Those who are of the age from 18 to 35 or even maybe 40 years old, have the mindset of, you promised me, you owe it to me, now hand it over. No one is responsible for his own way in life. “I’m stuck here because you didn’t give me something I needed”. “I’m stuck here because you won’t give me a raise”. Even though the person has never put forth any effort to “work at the job” and try to improve himself/herself.

You – Topia: It’s all about me. It is no longer about we or us. It is no longer about how I can help you, so we can improve the product to make more profit, to improve the company, to sell more products, to be able to hire more people, to get a raise. It’s more truly stated, “I am here for the duration, you need to pay me more money every year and not bug me about how much work I do or don’t do”. And boy, are you lucky to have me!

Another aspect of this generation is that they think history started when they were born. And those of us who have lived a little longer are just “old fashion”. “You – Topians” have yet to figure out that is was us/we, the old guys/gals who brought the past into the future through blood, sweat and tears. They have yet to realize that, those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it. They have yet to realize that freedom is never cheap just because it is free. But they are about to loose their freedoms and don’t even realize it. Freedom is never cheap, just because it’s free.

What did that credit card do for you? Did it give you the freedom you thought it would? Probably not, so you got another credit card because the old one didn’t have a high enough credit limit on it. And now you’re still not satisfied. How much is enough? Do you continually want more? Can you live within your financial budget? Or do you ask, “What’s a budget”? At this point, can you even “get out of debt”? Are you so “in hock” that the interest rate keeps you even on the principle when you make a payment? How do you stop the madness? Are you having fun yet? Have you found utopia, or have you found “you – topia”?

Walking the Walk and Talking the Talk,
Ron
reskew@aol.com

2009-06-03T13:32:00.000-07:00

Oath of Office
February, 12th, 2009

Watching the swearing in of the 44th President of the United States, I was truly amazed at the nearly 250 years of the ease of transition from one President to the next. That can only come from a free society and the rule of law, not to mention the grace of God.

The “Founding Fathers” of this country, after long and hard discussion, came to the conclusion that man could not be trusted to govern for himself. So a Constitution was developed to guide, defend and protect the transition of power, so that no “man” could move beyond what it dictated. So, when a President is duly elected, he has to take the oath of the “Office of the President of the United States”.

Each president recites the following oath, in accordance with Article II, Section I of the U.S. Constitution: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

I may do further research into the “faithfully execute” clause and insert it later.

For now I am more concerned with the next phrase, “and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States”.

If you were to do a “man on the street” interview, and ask the question, “What do you know about the Constitution of the United States”? Most would probably answer, “Not much”. Because we know little about the Constitution, we were never taught much about it in high school or college.

If you pursued a degree in law, you would have studied law, leaning toward the area in which you were interested, criminal, divorce, medical, etc.

Constitutional Law is something that most Attorney’s shy away from. That is the area in which “even angels, fear to tread”. That area is the top of the ladder kind of stuff. That’s the stuff for the “Supreme’s” and District Court Judges.

As in any field of study, the more you study the more you know and the more you know the more you advance in your field. Even to the point that you are able to teach others and guide them to truth in said area. Would you expect a person with a BA or BS in Art, and there’s nothing wrong with having a degree in Art, trying to teach a college level biology course? Would you want someone removing you gall bladder if their degree was in business? Some things just seem to make sense while others don’t.

In light of this thinking and the topic at hand, the oath of office, would you not think that if someone swears to uphold the Constitution, they should know something about it… more that the average person? Would you not think that a person who swears an oath would have read it at least once? “But Ron”, you say “That’s a very long and complicated document. It would take days to read it and months, if not years, to understand it”.

Exactly my point…. It has become a very complicated and in some cases a convoluted document. Not to mention the laws that have been molded by a radical Supreme Court. My understanding as to “law making” is that a law starts in the House of Representatives and is discussed and passed there. It then goes to the Senate, where the Senators have a chance to edit and revise it. After the revisions, it goes back to the House for final approval, before going to the President for his signature (or VETO) and then it becomes the law of the land. But the Supreme Court has “interpreted some laws to fit the needs of radical liberal groups and therefore creating a whole new law, thus, by-passing the House and Senate. I am prepared to start reading the original writings of the Constitution and see just what the Founding Fathers had to say in regards to the beginnings of our nation.

That one “Bill” should be sent forward to become law, but in the twentieth century, it became fashionable to bunch several bills together for a single vote. Then “special projects” were added for personal interest and the original “Bill” was so desperately needed that a lot of trash became law also.

Is there an “Oath of Office” for Christians? Who get to write it? Is there a “body of men” that can add or subtract from it to fit their “special needs”?
Who gets the final vote for passage of the oath?

Or does it work like this? A Commanding Officer has ten men lined up in front of him. He tells them that he has a very dangerous mission and needs three men to volunteer for it. An amazing thing happens, seven men step backwards.

It’s all backwards from the way we think. When God calls, how many step backwards? Thus leaving the job at hand left to a “few good men” instead of “all the Kings men”. And as in the movie Braveheart, will you fight for the heart of your King?

So, let’s go back to the oath itself.

Who writes it? To my way of thinking, God writes it. Is it similar to the Presidential oath of office?

"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of Christian (President of the United States), and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Bible, its contents, its concepts, its teachings, One God revealed in three Persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, my Lord Jesus, His virgin birth, His sinless life, His death on the cross, His burial, His resurrection, and His return to earth in the future, (Constitution of the United States)."

Who gets to vote on it? Actually, none, God said it… that settles it. But in “real life” we all get to vote on how we participate in the execution of it. Like I said above, it seems that too many are taking a step backwards instead of moving forward into the most incredible life that God has planned for us.

Matthew 28:19 says, “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel, making disciples and baptizing them in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and behold I am with you always, even to the end of the age”.

In the Gospel of John Chapters 15 – 17, Jesus gives a volume of instructions to His disciples. Starting with “Abide in Me and I will abide in You”. The first aspect and most critical of carrying out our oath of office is abiding. That takes place when we humble ourselves and daily, minute by minute, place ourselves under the authority of Jesus.

Then He tells us that He knows we cannot do it on our own, so He is sending us the Holy Spirit to live in us to help us making those decisions that are pleasing to Him.

Jesus then says, “I glorified You (Father), having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do”. So where are we in our mission that Jesus has given us to do on this earth?

The word “Christian” actually means “little Christ’s”. The question has been ask, “If you were to stand before a Judge in a Court Room, would there be enough evidence to convict you of being a Christian”?

Do I know how to defend my faith in Jesus? Do I know enough to know that I don’t know very much and I need to keep studying? Do I need to read that last question again? Do I know when to say, “I don’t know the answer to that question, but I’ll find out and get back with you”. There are basics and there are tangents. A lot of people know about Jesus, but they don’t know Jesus. Do you understand the difference? Many religions talk about Jesus as being a good man, even a great man. Some say He was a prophet. Some say He was the third reincarnation of “Hoopta-halla-bahsradah” (not a real person, just want to get your attention). But what is the truth?

Can you rationally explain the virgin birth? Can you rationally explain the substitutionary death on the cross? Can you rationally explain the resurrection?

These are the kind of questions that come from the phrase, “I will faithfully execute the office of Christian”.

Following the Shepherd,
Ron Eskew

2009-05-25T07:23:00.000-07:00

Who “invented” the TV dinner?

Several individuals developed the TV dinner.
Like many creations, the story of the development of the TV dinner is not straightforward. Many people and companies played a role in the development of the concept of a complete meal that needed only to be reheated before eating. The invention of the TV dinner has been attributed to at least three different sources, primarily Gerry Thomas, the Swanson Brothers, and Maxson Food Systems, Inc.

Maxson Food Systems, Inc. manufactured the earliest complete frozen meal in 1945. Maxson manufactured “Strato-Plates” – complete meals that were reheated on the plane for military and civilian airplane passengers. The meals consisted of a basic three-part equation of meat, vegetable and potato, each housed in its own separate compartment on a plastic plate. However, due to financial reasons and the death of their founder, Maxson frozen meals never went to the retail market. Some feel that Maxson’s product does not qualify as a true TV dinner, since it was consumed on an airplane rather than in the consumer’s home.

Following in the footsteps of Maxson Foods Systems was Jack Fisher's FridgiDinners. In the late 1940's FridgiDinners sold frozen dinners to bars and taverns. Frozen dinners did not take off, however, until the Bernstein brothers came on the scene.

In 1949, Albert and Meyer Bernstein organized Frozen Dinners, Inc., which packaged frozen dinners on aluminum trays with three compartments. They sold them under the One-Eyed Eskimo label, and only to markets in the Pittsburgh area. By 1950, the company had produced over 400,000 frozen dinners. Demand continuted to grow, and in 1952 the Bernstein brothers formed the Quaker State Food Corporation. They expanded distribution to markets east of the Mississippi. By 1954, Quaker State Foods had produced and sold over 2,500,000 frozen dinners!
The concept really took hold in 1954 when Swanson’s frozen meals appeared. Swanson was a well-known brand that consumers recognized, and Swanson launched a massive advertising campaign for their product. They also coined the phrase TV Dinner, which helped to transform their frozen meals into a cultural icon.

But this is where different stories begin to emerge. Until recently, the most widely credited individual inventor of the TV dinner was Gerry Thomas, a salesman for C.A. Swanson & Son in 1953. For example, the American Frozen Food Institute honored him in their "Frozen Food Hall of Fame" as the inventor of the TV dinner. However, his role as the inventor is now being disputed.

Conversely, Betty Cronin, a bacteriologist who was also working for the Swanson brothers at that time, asserts that it was the Swanson brothers themselves, Gilbert and Clarke Swanson, who came up with the concept of the TV dinner, while their marketing and advertising teams developed the name and design of the product. Cronin also worked on the project, taking on the technical challenge of composing a dinner in which all the ingredients took the same amount of time to cook, also called synchronization.

So who really invented the TV dinner? It depends on your definition. One thing is for sure, though: the first company to use the name and successfully market the TV Dinner was Swanson.

My Text

Weren’t T.V. Dinners great? As a kid I had my fair share of them. The Chicken was good, but I liked the Salisbury Steak. The veggies and mashed potato’s were OK, but the desserts were tasty and not enough of it.

BUT… they were nothing like “mom’s cookin’ ”. Her fried Chicken was “to die for” as they say today. I’m not sure if you could call it “Salisbury Steak, but when she pounded out the Round Steak and threw in salt and pepper and some other spices, of course known only by her, it was mighty tasty. With potatoes and carrots it was quite a meal.

Mom knew us and wetted our taste buds from early childhood. She knew what was good for us, because she knew us best. She knew how to get us through illnesses, without going to the doctor. She had those “home remedies” that were handed down from her mother and her mother-in-law, and back and back and back. The chicken soup, the tea and crackers were part of the regimen for wellness, if you were sick.

No, we didn’t have steak or chicken every night. We had beans with cornbread and beans with beans, we weren’t rich. Mom had taken a job in a factory, and dad came back from war. As a child, and not knowing all the “family factors”, I guess we needed the dual income. You see, my dad was a drunk, he did not want to be called an “alcoholic” because he said, “Alcoholic’s had to go to meetings and drunks didn’t”. So, he drank up a large part of his income and mom had to work to finish paying the other bills and feed us kids.

Thus enters the T.V. Dinner…. They were quick and easy. Out of the freezer and into the oven and within 15 minutes you had the full meal. It also became popular to watch the evening news while eating these dinners. There was no conversation because adults wanted to hear what was going on around the world, and of course the kids had to be quiet. T.V. dinners were only part of the families decline. And as they say on T.V, “Stay tuned for “Part Two of Our Mystery Series”.

T.V. Dinners Part Two

Please let me say right up front, that I do not blame the decline and fall of the family unit on T.V. Dinners. There are many, many factors that attribute to the issue and I will only discuss a few.

The break down of the family is the man’s fault. He has not taken his rightful place as head and leader of the family and led them to Christ. It is the woman’s fault in not supporting and encouraging the husband to do so. It was Adam’s fault for not setting the guidelines more clearly with Eve. It is Eve’s fault for not listening to her husband.

Ephesians Chapter 4 verses 11-16 : And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers. For the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him, who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by that which every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.

It’s the apostles, it’s the prophets, it’s the evangelists, and it’s the pastors and teachers who are at fault for the demise and downfall of the family. It’s the dad’s and mom’s fault for the downfall of the family. In essence, it’s the church that has been directly responsible for the breakdown of the family. You see, the church is “the people”. The church is not the building; it is where the church (people) meets. But it is the responsibility of the people to “make things work”.

How do we know what we are to do? We ourselves are ultimately responsible for knowing Him, Jesus. It is the role of the pastor-teacher to help us grow and understand, so that we can “feed ourselves”, so that we can feed others, so they can grow and feed others, etc, etc, etc.

How does all of this connect, T.V. Dinners and the body of Christ? It’s simple to a somewhat warped mind like mine.

In the past few decades, I’ve seen a trend taking place all over the United States. It has intensified in the past few years. That being, some churches having success in an area of church functioning and prayer has gone into it for their church. What do we need and how do we go about it. Some might call it a “business model”, plan the work and work the plan. Then another church will hear of it and bring that model to their church. It seems to be working for them and they tell a friend or a sister church to use it also, etc, etc, etc, thus the T.V. Dinner. I’ll just warm it up and serve it, “It’s just like momma use to make”. Or was it?

The problem I see with this is, the Pastor is not truly in touch with his people. The Lord is my Shepherd…. As a Shepherd, He knows His sheep and calls them by name. He binds up their wounds and anoints them with oil. He will sometimes carry them on His shoulders to keep them close and learn to know His voice and His smell, so when around other shepherds they will not stray. The real shepherd will not serve you a T.V. Dinner, something that another has taught his flock, he will teach you “according to the proper working of each individual part”. The real shepherd will not care about what is going on across town or across the country because he knows his sheep and what they need.

There’s enough fault and guilt to go around. Just concentrate on you own. T.V. Dinner, anyone?

Following the Shepherd,
Ron
reskewsquad@blogspot.com

2009-05-20T05:24:00.001-07:00

2 Chronicles 7:11-14

Thus Solomon finished the house of the Lord and the King’s palace, and successfully completed all that he had planned on doing in the house of the Lord and in his palace. Then the Lord appeared to Solomon at night and said to him, “I have heard your prayers, and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My Name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and heal their land”.

The context of this passage is that David wanted to build a building, a house, for God. The Israelites were no longer roaming in the desert and yet God was “still dwelling in a tent”, while David lived in a great palace. David had brought the Ark of the Covenant back from Kiriath-jearim. So David started gathering material from all across the region. God told David, he was a man of war and could not build Him a building. Solomon wanted to honor his father’s wishes to build a house for God.

One thing struck me as I re-read the passage. God had already selected this place for Himself. Then it was to be a place of “sacrifice”. In the dedication, Solomon had offered a sacrifice of 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep for all the people. That’s quite a sacrifice.

Jesus paid the ultimate sacrifice on the cross; One, for all. So you might think or have heard that it is no longer necessary to make a sacrifice. Then why are we told in the New Testament, offer up a sacrifice of praise?

Now, to the main body of the text. If My people… who are called by My Name…. In the Old Testament God’s people were the Jews. In God’s economy in the New Testament, those who have ask Jesus to forgive their sin and looked to Him as Savior, “are God’s people”. So this Old Testament passage can apply to the New Testament believer. And because that is so, we must pay close attention to it.

The next phrase is, “will humble themselves”. Humble means: absence of pride, meek, modest. In the context, it means knowing one’s position before God.

Then God tells us to “pray”. What do we pray about? In the previous chapters, God has been reviewing the Jew’s “shortcomings”, their sins,
and is in essence saying, “Don’t do that”. He’s reminding them that they have just offered up a sacrifice of 142,000 animals and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin, i.e. Jesus blood on the cross. Pray daily for the forgiveness of sin. Pray to walk closer to the Lord. Pray for others so that they may do the same.

“And seek My face”. Do you pray for your wants and needs and then hang up the phone? Or do you truly seek God’s face? Seek His will? Seek His mind?

This is where most people go on to God’s response… “Then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and heal their land”.

Let’s take this one from the top. “And seek my face and “turn from their wicked ways”… “Then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and heal their land”.

Turn from whose wicked ways? God’s people are to turn. God’s people are the problem. Yes, God is angry with the wickedness of the worldly people but, He is more upset and angry with those people who say that God is the Father and Jesus is His only Son and then go on their merry way and live as they please.

Those of you who “name the Name of Jesus” as Savior and Lord, you are the ones whom God is asking to turn from “your wicked ways”. If you think you are OK, then you’re not looking at God enough. The more you know Him, the more you see yourself, and it ain’t pretty.

Romans 12:1 I urge you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God that you present yourselves as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to God which is your reasonable and spiritual service of worship.

Walk with God,
Ron
reskewsquad@blogspot.com

2009-05-17T22:33:00.000-07:00

Open My Eyes Lord

Music has always been a part of my life. I don’t just listen, I think. Two songs of my past hold the key, “Open the eyes of my heart Lord”; and “Open my eyes Lord”.

Open the eyes of my heart Lord, Open the eyes of my heart, I want to see You, I want to see You.

“Open my eyes Lord, I want to see Jesus, to reach out and touch Him and say that I love Him”.

Are we even looking to see Jesus better? Are we seeing, knowing and growing into the image of Christ? Are we seeing and sensing the unseen world that is as real as what we see?

My text for this message is 2 Kings 6. Elisha had been given the “mantel” of the Prophet of Elijah. As per usual, Israel was at war, this time it was Syria. Elisha had prophesied against the King of Syria, the King didn’t like it. The King was going to attack Israel and the Prophet. Great fear had overtaken most of Israel. But, Elisha, the man of God, knew his God.

2 Kings 6:15-17 Now when the servant of the man of God (Elisha) had risen early and gone out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was circling the city. And his servant said to him, “Alas my master! What shall we do?” So Elisha answered him and said, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them”. Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see”. And the Lord opened the servant’s eyes and he saw: and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. (Bold for emphasis).

Have you ever asked the Lord to open your eyes in this manner? Have you even thought of such a question? Is your “vision” limited to only what your physical eyes see? Have you ever had a dream, so real, that you knew God was speaking to you? Are you comfortable going to church on Sunday and as you leave thinking, “I’ve done my duty this week”? Do you go to church and as you walk through the doors a magic wand scans you and you put on that “happy face” that says I’m doing fine, no problems here? When in reality, your life is falling apart. And when you leave, that wand scans you again and now you can go back to the way things were.

My questions are a part of a reality check and seeing what is true about life on this planet. Do you ever pray, “Open the eyes of my heart Lord”? Do you ever pray, “Let me see Jesus”?

Do you, as Elisha, see beyond the physical world into the spiritual world? Remember, only one third of the angels fell and follow Lucifer, Satan, the Devil. So, that leaves two thirds that are servants of the Most High God. I am not talking about angels, per say, or in specifics in this writing. My message is for you and what you see and or what you are looking for. Do you see the world as it really is or do you see it as you want it to be? Polly Anna or Rose Colored Glasses will not show you reality. Knowing Jesus, studying the Bible, and having someone to bounce your thoughts off of will help.

Do you “see” what I’m saying? Do you think christianly? I write and few respond. A fellow traveler asked me just yesterday, “Are your writings changing the lives of those to whom you send them.”? I had to tell him, “I don’t know”. Do I make sense? Do you “blow me off as a nut”? Does anything I say touch your heart? Does anything I say, change your way or challenge your way of thinking?

Hebrews 11:1-2 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it men of old gained approval. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.

Open the eyes of my heart Lord!

Following the Shepherd,
Ron
reskew@aol.com

2009-05-16T00:08:00.000-07:00

On Eagle’s Wings

Isaiah 40:28-30 Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the Lord, the creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable, He gives strength to the weary, and to him who lacks might He increases power. Though youths grow weary and tired, and vigorous young men stumble badly, yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary.

As I have written this passage, I sit and think; “What more can I say”? Of course the answer is, “Nothing”. This is God’s word; it stands alone and speaks for itself. But… with that word written on my heart, I must unwrap and un-package the nuances of it.

First of all, do we understand that God is the Creator? We and this world are not just “random chance” happenings. We were created in His image, to worship Him and for His purposes. Do we understand that He does not grow weary or tired? On the other hand, I grow weary and tired because I am not God. Yet, He gives strength to the weary… me. The “normal male” has strength and vigor, yet because of the limitations of that manhood, he will become both weary and tired. That’s why we have to sleep, that’s why we have to eat. God does not do either and we loose our strength, we stumble.

We have just had a Mini-Marathon (13.1 miles) in Indianapolis, Indiana, setting off the month of May and the Indianapolis 500 Race. Though people train for the event some will stumble because of lack nutrition or lack of water. Others may stumble because of unevenness of the road.

On our spiritual journey, we will also stumble and grow weary. There will be something in the road that will make us detour or make us slow down or take us off our pace. Then we will have to refocus and get our pace back in order to continue our race. Maybe we stubbed our toe and will continue the race, but in pain. We may grow weary because we see others going around us, bettering their position. We may grow weary because we have not trained well enough. Maybe the weather is hotter than we would like and the heat is taking energy and nutrition out of us faster than we expected.

That’s where the second part starts. Yet those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength. There will be times in your spiritual journey when you need to wait. And for most that have been running well, you will have difficulty. The phrase will be on your tongue over and over again, “But I… but I… but I”. But I was doing so well… but I was doing Your will… but I thought….

Maybe you stumbled; maybe you didn’t take in proper nutrition, God’s Word. May it wasn’t even something “you did”. But, it is a time to refocus, rethink, reconnect and recommit. And for sure, it is a time to wait upon the Lord.

Because He wants you to “mount up on wings like eagles”, and that brings me to part three. What does that mean? Back to my nature stories; most of the time when you see nature stories about eagles, you see them perched on a branch of a tall tree or soaring in the sky. Sometimes you see them swooping down on a lake to catch a fish and then fly off somewhere to eat their dinner.

When they are sitting in a tree or their nest, what are they waiting for? Or, for what are they waiting? I think God has created them with a sense that few other birds have. I think that is a sense of “being”; knowing who they are, knowing why they were created and knowing their purpose. That may be a stretch for some to grasp, because we are told that animals don’t sense of feel or think, they just have instincts. But I think there is a lot we don’t know. They don’t have big ears sticking up on the sides of their heads, yet I’m sure they have ears. To spot a fish swimming in a lake from a hundred feet in the air and then maintain that vision until it has the fish in its talon’s, is also an amazing fete. Waiting on a branch of a large tree is for the air current to be right. A few flaps of the wings and the eagle can soar for hours. Why? Because he waited for the wind to be right, then the natural design of the wings will carry aloft a large bird.

Another aspect of the eagle’s wings is that at a point in their development, the feathers will regenerate. At this point, the eagle can not fly. The old feathers fall out and the new ones grow in, but they are not fully developed or mature. So the eagle has to wait.

Does this bird think highly of itself for all the great and wonderful things it can accomplish? No. As one of God’s creatures it simple does what it is designed to do. It is designed to make people look and wonder, to look and wonder… what makes this bird so majestic? What makes this bird so regal? And conversely, what about the sparrow, seemingly one of God’s simple birds, what makes it so special? They both point us to Him, both are mentioned in scripture and God takes care of them both. God uses both in His great plan.

The analogy is this; our waiting is for the purpose of the Spirit of God to be the One who lifts us up. The word for spirit is wind. When God’s Spirit lifts us, we will not struggle, but soar on His wings, His wind. But… we must wait. The analogy may goes like this; You have been do exactly what the Lord has been asking, and now for no apparent reason, you find yourself, as it were, sitting with nothing to do. You wait, you pray, you read, you study, yet nothing happens. Has the Lord forgotten me? Am I being punished? Am I done? The last thing us humans want to do is wait… but we must. We must wait for His Spirit to uplift us and energize us.

Following the Shepherd,
Ron
May 6, 2009

2009-05-10T13:57:00.000-07:00

Elvis Has Left The Building

The phrase, “Elvis has left the building” was two fold in nature.

One reason was for his safety. If you are old enough to remember how popular Elvis was, then you will recall the fans (girls and women) swooning at his concerts. Then you saw the film footage about how he was guarded and could barely make it to the “limo” with all his clothes on.

I think the second reason was that those “loving fans” would want him to continue to sing and perform all night. He would do “curtain call” after “curtain call”, after “curtain call”. So the promoters had to come up with something that would let those loving fans know it was time to go home.

I guess, that’s what it’s like to be a star, everyone wanting a piece of you. There is no time for you. You can’t go out into the public without being mobbed. You can’t have a peaceful dinner with friends without being mauled by someone or several someone’s, wanting your autograph. You can never be yourself; you always have to be that person everyone expects you to be. I see actors, male and female, in movies and think they are “that type of person”. Then I see them being interviewed by a reporter or a talk show host and they come across as a jerk. In many ways, I think it would be a sad life, and that is why so many stars become addicts. That is not where I’m going with this writing.

If you have received other writings from me, you know I am going somewhere with this… don’t you? Should I drag out the suspense longer or get right to my point?

OK… OK… I’ll get to my point….

Do we hold up our Pastors and our worship leaders to the realms of “Rock Stars”? Do we continue to applaud for “one more song”? Do we put our pastors on a pedestal as someone above the norm? I know they should the men of integrity and intelligence, but I mean in a rock star fashion? I think not. Do we clamor for one more point in his sermon? Do we applaud him at the end of his message? Or are we giving thanks for a message delivered by God Himself?

Now, to the point of all points for this writing.

An analogy: Elvis has left the building.
The Holy Spirit has left the building.

The question has been asked for decades, If the Holy Spirit were to leave your gathering, would you know it?

Just because we feel good after being together for a couple of hours, how is that different from going to a basketball or football game and yelling and screaming for three or four hours?

How do you know you have met with God? Do you tell yourself, “I can’t wait to get back next week to feel good again”? Do you have to come back to get another “high”, just to make it through the next week? Does feeling good mean the Holy Spirit was there?

Have you ever asked a person why they attend a certain church? Have you ever asked a person who goes to church, what the Pastor is teaching? Have you ever asked a person what type of music they have? Can “said” person tell you more about the music than the Pastor’s sermon?

How would you measure that person’s ability to sense the Holy Spirit in themselves or the local church?

The Holy Spirit is a co-equal part of the Trinity. We hear sermons on the Father in many forms and fashions. We are always being directed to Jesus via the Sermon on the Mount, or at Christmas or Easter, but what about the Holy Spirit? Has He left the building? Has He left your building, your body, your life?

In John chapters 16 and 17, Jesus tells us that He is going to send us a Comforter, One just like Him. He will lead us into truth, righteousness and judgment to come. How’s your relationship with the Holy spirit?

Grace and Peace to you in the power of the Holy Spirit,
Ron

2009-05-05T18:42:00.000-07:00

The Court of the Honorable Judge of the

Here and Now, the Here and After, and the
Hear say, of Hear say, of Hear say of Heresy.
Is now in Session, all rise!!!
(The Judge walks in)

Court is now in session, you may be seated.

During this session we will determine the future of several people.
Each story has its own unique challenges, so you will need to pay close
attention to the details, in order that you may render a sound judgment to
each case. You will need to evaluate even the smallest details.

We have three people in various stages of life, who think they have been
“misunderstood”, or don’t understand why they are in the position they are
in. Before we get started, it behooves me to help you better understand the term and the concept of Compassion.

From Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, Fifth Edition, compassion is defined
this way: Sorrow or pity excited by the distress or misfortune of another;
sympathy, mercy.

Looking further we see that it is a compound word, signifying that more can
be learned.

Com: A prefix from the Latin preposition cum signifying with or together; in conjunction with.

Passion: An enduring inflicted pain, tortures or the like; the suffering of Christ.

When we think of “passion” we usually think of a good feeling or a deep
interest or even love. These don’t appear until the sixth definition.

“THEREFORE”, the conclusion we must come to, in rendering our
judgments today, is that, compassion is a togetherness with a person who is
going through deep pain.

Let’s look at the first case!

A man in his late 30’s early 40’s, he has become an investment broker and
Has been making a very nice living, for 10-15 years. He has had a few problems with some of his clients, but has managed to work them out. He has assured them that “their money is safe with him”.

He send statements out on a regular basis informing the clients of the
progress of their accounts. Along with the statements and “pie charts”
indicating the investment analysis of each portion of their portfolio.
Then… one of his clients dies, unexpectedly. The clients widow decides she
needs some cash out of the in the investments to pay for the funeral and other related medical expenses. The young man is trapped! There is no money, there are no investments, there are no funds with which to pay the woman, or any other client for that matter. He is caught “red
handed”, and that is why he is in my court today. The decision is yours, “Oh men of the Jury”. Does he deserve compassion or not? Guilty or not guilty? Write down your answer.

Our next case is a young woman.

As a little girl she would play with her dolls and have those “make believe”
tea parties with special invited guests, which only she could see. She had been daddy’s little girl” and could wrap him around her finger. By her early teens she has grown out of playing with dolls. Now her fancy had turned to boys. By the time she was 16, she had started drinking and had thoughts of using other drugs to get a better high. Now she’s 30, looking like she’s 50. Drugs have taken their toll and to support her drug habit, she’s turned to prostitution. Last week she was arrested for prostitution and possession of drugs. She sits in jail right now awaiting her sentencing. What is your verdict, guilty or not guilty? Does she deserve compassion? Write down your answer.

Our final case before us today is a little boy

He has no real crime, but we are unsure as to what to do with him. He comes from a lower middle class family where the father is an alcoholic and sometimes violent. His mother works to help provide for the for the families financial needs. So there is no one home after school to watch the little boy. There are also two older siblings.

What would be your recommendations for the court? Foster care or leave
him in the home? Render your verdict, compassion or no, leave him in the home or send him into the “foster care” system.

You may be saying to yourself, what do these stories have to do with
compassion? God looks down from heaven every day and sees this same kind of stuff going on.

What were your emotions doing as you heard these stories? Did you reflect on your own lives or the lives of your children? Did your life parallel any of these stories?

The Bible tells us that, “there is nothing hidden from God”.

In Jonah 4:2, it says, “You (God) are gracious and compassionate, slow to
anger and abounding in loving kindness”.

In Matthew 9: 36 it says, “And seeing the multitudes He (Jesus) felt
compassion for them, because they were distressed and cast down like sheep
without a Shepherd”.

Remember our definition of compassion?

Com- with

Passion- affliction and torture

In the book of Genesis, God shows his patience, long suffering and
compassion, over and over and over.

Adam and Eve: If you eat the forbidden fruit you shall surely die.
They ate it and immediately they died spiritually and eventually they died
physically. If they would have eaten form the tree of life in that condition they would have lived forever condemned, forever separated form God.
God had compassion on them sacrificing an animal to cover their nakedness
And removing them from the garden so they couldn’t eat from the tree of
Life was a very compassionate thing to do.

Noah and the Ark: God waited 120 years for Noah to get the ark built and
then, only saved 8 people and animals and birds by pairs. Clean animals in
7’s and unclean in 2’s. The people had time to repent and the Lord would have had compassion on them.

Moses and the children of Israel: Wandering in the desert for 40 years. God
could have killed them all on the first day, but he chose compassion,
remember… affliction and torture with…. God chose to suffer along with His people

What was Jesus response to His people? At one point the looked out over Jerusalem and said, “Oh Jerusalem, Jerusalem, and he wept”.

Compassion!!!

Jerusalem had been suffering under the Romans for many, many years.
Jesus knew their pain, He knew their sorrows.

Now we are learning about Compassion. Who in your life needs your compassion? Who needs you to enter into their pain and suffering?

What really happened to these three people?

Let’s start with the Broker who bilked many people out of their investments and savings. He was sentenced to 15 years in jail and required to sell his assets and repay his clients. While in jail, he heard about Jesus and His saving grace and His compassion for mankind, resulting in his salvation.

The young woman had just taken a large hit of her favorite drug and went into convulsions while in the back of the police car. She was rushed to the hospital where the ER team pumped her stomach and gave her an anti- serum. Before she passed out she cried out, “God, don’t let me die”. He heard that cry and if you would see her in church today you would never expect that her past was what it was.

The little boy is writing this to you. From the time of that incident in my life God has shown compassion over and over again. Life was never easy with an alcoholic father and a mean one at that, but God’s grace and compassion went beyond the tears and abuse to heal, even to the point of forgiving my father.

What does this compassion look like? It looks like the nail pierced hands on the Cross. Jesus was so interested in you and me that He gave Himself up to death, even death on the Cross. He took upon Himself the sufferings of mankind, with suffering, to release your suffering. You need to ask Him to take them. You have to call upon the Name of the Lord, Jesus. Then turn away from what has controlled for so long. Turn and Follow the Shepherd. No matter where you’ve been or what you have done, God’s grace, mercy and compassion will wash it all away. You can become a new person in Him. Look at me.

Ron Eskew
reskew@aol.com

2009-05-04T06:14:00.000-07:00

Detox

Detox is a short form of detoxify, which means… to remove a poison from.

We hear it used in the context of people who are addicted to drugs or alcohol when they are attempting to quit. In more serious cases, we hear of “withdrawal” associated with that event.

Detox is a process where the person will want to stop the addiction and possibly go into a treatment center to be helped and monitored during the withdrawal. They will be in the process of ridding their bodies and minds of the toxin or poison.

Health guru’s have now looked at the “normal” human and their “normal” life styles and said that “normal” people need to detox every now and then. They are saying that in everyday life the body takes in toxins that are poisonous and need to be removed. The lungs and smoking are main targets, and I don’t need to talk to you about that because you are bombarded with ads to quit and the “whys”. Their next target is the colon. I must say that I agree with them… most of the time. They are even developing products that will help you do this very thing.

Of course, most of you know that I am going somewhere with this topic. So, here it is….

If the body needs detoxifying, do you think the soul and spirit need detoxifying? My answer is a resounding, “yes”. Then you may ask, “How do I do that”? And I say, “I think it would look something like this….”

There are things we call spiritual disciplines, prayer, fasting, meditation, solitude and worship. The Bible tells us, “when you pray” (not if you pray), and then goes on to tell us a facet of prayer and what it means to us in our walk with the Lord. In the same manner the Bible says, “when you fast, don’t put on a long face”; or for meditation, “when you meditate”,
Psalm 119 is replete with the word meditate of meditation. Now to the “how do I do it’s”.

I look at it like this…. Basic fasting is for the purpose of detoxifying the body for spiritual purposes. A person would go without food for a period of time in order to focus on God. For those on medication, check with your doctor for recommendations. Most might do a one day fast, while some can only do a one meal fast. Start somewhere and work up the next time. Drinking water, a lot of water, will flush the system of toxins, usually one or two gallons a day. A one day fast will help, but two to three days will accomplish more. Again, check with your doctor if you have certain medical problems and are on medications. When you feel the urge to eat, it is time to pray more and focus on the Lord even stronger. Some may need to do it on a day when you can be alone, not at work; while others will be able to work and fast. But remember that the purpose is for spiritual reasons; you want to hear from God.

Another aspect of detoxifying is a hot bath or shower, as hot as you can stand it. The hot water opens your pores and allows the bodily toxins to be released. As you bathe or shower, this is the time for prayer and meditation, asking God to “open your pores and open your eyes to Him”; take away the toxins that are hindering you in your life. Pour out your heart to Him, tell Him “where it hurts”. Remember, He weeps with those who weep. I won’t make a list for you that’s between you and the Lord. Stay as long as it takes for what the Lord wants to do. Pour out your heart to Him, let Him cleanse you, let Him wash you, let Him purify you. End with a cold shower, this closes the pores. Spiritually, it “seals the deal”. It says, Yes Lord!

Love to all,
Following the Shepherd,
Ron
May 2, 2009

2009-05-02T02:39:00.000-07:00

Swimming Upstream

Saturday morning at about 7:00 a. m., a group of men meet in an old barn to discuss poetry, past history and current events. These men range in age from mid twenties to mid sixties. It’s like the “Dead Poet’s Society”. What do you believe? What has spurned your thinking this week? How’s your life going?

This meeting has been taking place every Saturday for seven or eight years. The group’s size has varied from near fifty to only four. It’s not always the same group of guys. There is normally a core of about five or six and the rest vary to an average of now ten guys. No, it’s not a secret society; it’s a group of guys from the church I attend. We discuss the Bible and other current books in light of today’s thinking in order to challenge each other to “keep the faith” and “walk the walk”. This writing comes as the result of Saturday, April 25, 2009.

I want you to think about that often seen animal adventure scene where the salmon are swimming and fighting to get “upstream” to lay their eggs. Think of the one particular scene where they are trying to jump the dam. You see the salmon jump and fall back, jump and fall back, jump and fall back. It seems like an eternity before one salmon makes it over the top of the dam to continue his journey to the spawning ground. You keep watching and you find yourself silently encouraging them to keep going, you’ll make it. Once over the top the struggle doesn’t end. The current of the river is just as strong above the dam as below. Can you imagine the determination and energy it takes to continually work at jumping the dam until you make it over the top; just to find out the struggle is not over?

In light of my Christian faith and current events of the day, I see the struggle to fight the fight of and for the faith and continue to swim against the stream.
Society and government are so different than when I was a boy that the tenacity of the journey is increasingly more difficult. What does it take in today’s society that makes you continue to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord Jesus? Do you know what you believe about the Bible, about God, about Jesus? What is your “worldview”? What set of “rules and guidelines” do you use to fashion and guide your life? Or do those rules and beliefs change as society changes it perspective? This leads me back to a previous writing about “Lines and Dots”. If you have not received that writing, let me know and I will send it along.

Now back to swimming upstream. If you have asked Jesus to be your Savior, you’ve finally “jumped the dam” but, your journey and struggle is not over. The current is still flowing “down stream” and you still have to exert energy and effort to continue your journey, to fulfill you mission. You see… the salmon when he gets past the dam in on a mission to get further up stream to lay its eggs in a more calm part of the river. And as most of you know… the calm part of and river is where the water is deep.

Here’s where the discussion yesterday went deep. How much effort did the salmon have to exert to swing “upstream”? It’s efforts had to be more than the current was flowing “downstream”. How much more? Would it be fifty percent more than the current flowing downstream? Could it just be twenty-five percent against the current? Could the salmon get by with just one fifth effort of the downstream force?

What about your (and my) Christian life? As we see the forces of society flowing in the wrong direction, against God’s laws, how hard do we have to swim upstream? It’s even sad to think that we’ve gotten to this point that we have to swim at all. If you swim at fifty percent you will be going upstream, but at a very slow rate. If you only swim at the twenty-five percent rate it will take you longer to get where you want to be. My thinking is that if you are swimming and less than twenty-five percent, soon you will only be maintaining your position in the river, you will not be moving “upstream”. And as society grows more cynical and devious you won’t even be able to maintain your place in the river. That means you will be pointed in the right direction, but you will be moving downstream. You will be loosing ground.

What is God’s will and God’s plan for your life? Is it just struggling to maintain or does He want you to succeed in your mission? I think He wants you to fight the fight and overcome the dams in your life and to swim as hard as you can to make a difference in your own life and in the life of others. I think He wants you and me in the spawning ground, in the deep places with Him. Do you have a group of people who are discussing the deep questions of life and the Bible? Others who struggle with you and for you to help you over the dams in your life?

Following the Shepherd,
Ron

2009-04-29T18:54:00.000-07:00

The Road

These are a few phrases that many have uttered over the years, some will be familiar and some may not, depending upon how old you are.

“The road less traveled”, “On the road again”, “The long and winding road”, “King of the road”. And I’m sure you may have made up a few of your own.

As I have had opportunity to travel the country, I have often said, “I should stop there some day and look around”. I keep driving by places of interest saying those same words, or just wondering when I will have time to stop and look around.

Some of my thoughts and writings will overlap from time to time, so please bear with me. A classic Country song was titled, “The Class of ‘57”. It was done by the Statler Brothers and the basis of the song was that when we graduated high school, we thought we had arrived and the world had been waiting for us to arrive. But as time went on things just seemed to be the “same old same old”. Friends were married and divorced, the guy who was voted most likely to succeed got hooked on drugs, some worked in the factory, some became bank vice-presidents. And others seemed to have a very “ordinary life”. A few, if any, became famous for one thing or another, but for the most part, life kind of swallowed us up, we became middle class.

Let me say, there’s nothing wrong with being middle class. But, also let me say or ask, “What happened to those dreams”? Did stuff get in the way? Did we get hooked on something that stole our lives away? Did we get hurt by someone that changed our way of thinking? Did we get hardened by this cruel viciousness of life?

Don’t you wish you could have a “do over” a “mulligan” (for you golfers), like I described in Playing Games, “at the end it all goes back in the box”. The next time you play, you start out at even and build your way up. All the players have the same amount and the even opportunities to “roll the dice”, “shuffle the deck and deal the cards”, and “spin the spinner to advance”. Like the “box games”, there are rules to follow and believe me, some play by the rules more than others. They will read you the rules every 15 minutes, while others will try to break the rules every 15 minutes.

Then you have the “rules for the road”. You drive on this side and I drive on the other. Red is for stop and green is for go. Speed limits vary as to location, city, suburbia, country, highway or interstate, but rules are rules no matter where you find them.

So why do we get so uptight about the thoughts of absolutes? Jump off any 20 story building in normal clothing and you go down, it’s called gravity. If you stay out in the sun too long, you get sun burned. The North Pole is always cold and near the equator is always hot. Even though medicine is not an exact science, doctors use the accuracy of technology and what has worked to diagnose patients and treat them. Remember Bill Cosby’s, “Why Is There Air”, air is an absolute. If you mix the molecules in any other form, you don’t have air. I could give pages and pages of things you would agree with that they have to be constant or absolute for your life to continue to exist, so I say there are absolutes.

Then why is it so hard to admit to spiritual absolutes? You say, “All religions lead to God”. There is a religion that states, “You can have more than one wife”. The Bible says, “One man, one woman until death”. Which is right? One religion says, “You need to stop, face their holy land, and pray three times a day”. The Bible says, “(of God) I hear your inner most thoughts”. Which is right? Most religions say that Jesus was a good man or even a prophet; others say He was an angel. The Bible says, “You are My Son, My Only Son”, again speaking from God’s perspective. Which is right?

My text is John 14:6 Jesus says, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, no one comes to the Father (GOD) but through Me”. Sounds pretty narrow doesn’t it? Sounds almost absolute, doesn’t it?

Matthew 7:13, 14 Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is broad that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter it. For the gate is small, and the road is narrow that leads to life, and few are those who find it.

This Matthew passage goes along with my writing called “Lines and Dots”, if you didn’t receive it let me know and I will send it along. If all roads lead to God why do so many reject Jesus’ statement? In essence they are saying that all roads lead to God, except Jesus. Did you know that Jesus is the most controversial person in all of history? As you saw in Matthew, the road is narrow that leads to life, and few are they who find it.
There will be scores more of people in hell than will be in heaven, maybe 100 to one, or even more.

Remember the phrase, “Well, everyone is doing it”! And the response was, “Well, if everyone jumped off a cliff, would you jump too”? That’s what it will be like in making a decision not to explore the claims of Jesus more seriously for yourself.

Believe it or not you are on a spiritual journey; that too is an absolute. I’m going back to music again; a song entitled Sacred Journey by the group First Call goes like this:

Wide awake at three a. m., when I hear the whistle blow,
Watchin’ all the cars go by, where does everybody go?
Every road, every stream, You are there my Lord.
Heavens mystery, how You are here with me,
On this sacred journey.

Open the gates of your heart (on this sacred journey)
Let the light into the dark (on this sacred journey)
He’ll meet you right where you are.

Spillin’ thoughts across the page, morning sun is sneakin’ in,
Say a little prayer for me, as another day begins,

Strength to strength life goes on, room to room, dark till dawn
You are there my Lord, Heavens mystery,
How You are here with me, on this sacred journey.

The message is in the words, the passion is in the music.

Are you awake in the middle of the night? He may be calling you to search for Him. Do you wonder about all the cars (people) rushing here and there, why some drive so fast and reckless. He is here, do you see Him? Every sunrise, every step of life, He is waiting for you to call His Name, Heaven’s Mystery. One step and you can be on a “Sacred Journey”.

Recommended reading:

More Than a Carpenter by Josh McDowell… small book, easy read, told as a story.

Evidence That Demands a Verdict and More Evidence That Demands a Verdict by Josh McDowell… Full text book and reference book

The Case For Christ by Lee Strobel… medium read

And of course the Bible… start with Genesis and read Chapter 1 then go to the New Testament and read the Gospel of John Chapter 1. Go back to Genesis and read Chapters 1,2,3 and then go back to the gospel of John and read Chapters 1,2,3. Finish the Gospel of John and then start the Gospel of Matthew. Please read at you own timing and speed even if it is one chapter a day. Remember to always ask God to reveal Himself to you.

Maybe you should pull off the road you are on and at the next rest stop and get refreshed. Another familiar phrase is, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step”.

If you need more help or encouragement, email me.

Thanks for letting me bend your ear,
Following the Shepherd,
Ron
reskew@aol.com

April 6th 2009

2009-04-29T02:30:00.001-07:00

Lines and Dots
December 4th, 2008

And when I looked, I saw a stage where four men stood. There were three canvases, two men stood before one canvas and the other two men had a canvas of their own.

The man on the left, with a single canvas, was drawing vertical lines. Most were straight lines of varying widths, but a few were curved or squiggly.

The man on the right with a single canvas was drawing, what seemed to be random dots and each dot had a number beside it.

The two men in the middle stood before the same canvas. This canvas was displayed by lines and rows of dots from edge to edge and top to bottom.

Nothing seemed to make sense. There was no artistic beauty or value to any of the canvases, white canvas with black lines or dots on them. I pondered the canvases for what seemed to be hours. As the men stood before their canvases they seemed to be waiting for further instructions. My pondering brought me to a dead end.

Finally, I asked the man who stood before the canvas with the lines on it, “Sir, does your canvas have a purpose? I’m sorry but I just don’t understand your picture.”

He said, “Lines are being drawn around the earth. Some lines are wide and some narrow, some are wavy and some are slightly curved or bent.”

“Sir”, I continued, “but why are the lines different?”

The man said, “Do you see the line in the middle?”

“I can see a line in the middle that is very narrow and is actually hard to see because it is so thin”.

“That thin line is God’s standard; it is His way and His truth. The other lines around on the left and on the right are man’s “ways” his “truths”. Some lines are wide and some are narrow, those are how man has chosen to live and the laws he has set for himself. Even though they are straight, they are very broad compared to God’s. The curved lines are the abominations against God’s law. The sharper the curves the more radical man has become.

As I looked at the canvas again I saw more of the reality of what the man was saying.

I then asked the other single man standing before his canvas, “Sir, what does your canvas mean, it is so random. It doesn’t seem to make sense like the one with the lines?”

As he began to speak he began to connect the dots. “My canvas has a picture on it. Each dot has a number by it and when you start at one and connect that dot to the dot which had the number two by it and then three and then four, by the time you have connected all the dots and returned to the number one dot, you have a complete picture.”

He continued to connect the dots and as he did, I began to see some things that looked familiar. When he had finished, it was a magnificent line picture which needed no color to enhance its beauty.

At that same time the two men, before on canvas of vertical dots and horizontal dots, began to connect the dots on their canvas. Each in turn would connect one dot to another on the vertical or horizontal axis. This process went on for hours and then something happened. One of the men boxed in a square and put his initial in the square, “J”. That set off a random set of connections and as the boxes were completed a “J” was put in the box.
What I now recognized as, the opponent in this game began to make his boxed connections, was the one with the most boxes, win’s the game.

As if my thoughts were being read by the man, who had marked the “J” in his box, he turned and gave me a stern look and without words, I sensed within myself, his words, “This is no “game”.

I had thought I was having a dream and it seemed to be like “The Price Is Right” and I had three doors to open and I could choose one of them. Only I was standing before three canvases, each profound and each prophetic. Then I realized that the two men before the lines and picture dots were angels. Then I realized the one man before the canvas who were connecting the dots and marking with a “J” was Jesus. The other man was marking with an “S” was Satan.
Then I truly understood that this was no “game”.

The war is on, lines are being drawn, the dots are being connected, and the souls of men are in the offing. Are you following the thin line of God’s way and God’s truth, or are you trying to bend the line to fit your life or lifestyle?
Are you broadening the line to make yourself feel better?

The man, standing before the canvas, connecting the dots with numbers was connecting in coordination with the men connecting the squares. As the J was initialed, the man would connect dots with a marker of a brilliant, shinning gold. When the man initialing with the S connected the squares, the man would connect dots with a black marker.

The world is being divided and has always been divided by good and evil. Jesus is calling out a people for Himself. At the same time Satan is blinding the eyes of many, many people, unfortunately, too many.

The black connected dots are those who seek power or money, or both. They seek to control people through terror, through intimidation, even through giving them money. A few will control the many.

The golden connections are those who have found hope and peace in Jesus. Their connections are just as important as the others. They will need to use their connections to move through the years known as “end times”. As the “dark side” controls more and more and life and religion, mainly the Jewish and Christian faiths, the “church will need to go underground and take care of each other. The worship will be closed and quiet. The mainline churches will continue to have services, under the control of the government. Meaning, you can say this and you can’t say that, “alas” Germany 1930’s.

As Francis Schaeffer said, “How should we then live?” What will be our course of living in the years to come? How will we prepare ourselves and those the Lord entrusts to us?

If an angel were to connect the dots of your life would we see a beautiful picture that needed no color to enhance its beauty?

Your life can be a beautiful picture when you begin to live God’s way and live God’s truth. All you have to do is say something like this, “God, if You are there and You can make me into a beautiful picture, go ahead and do it. I’m tired of my life the way it is, take it and make it into Your beautiful picture.

Following the Shepherd,
Your Friend in Christ,
Ron Eskew
reskew@aol.com