Shalom Aleichem...
Reflections is a weekly Christian Teaching Ministry. Each week we will talk about the Bible and lessons we can put to use in our daily life. We will try to, on a weekly basis, provide to you stories, thoughts, and just easy ways to live your life on a straight path.
THIS WEEK'S TEACHING....February 15th, 2021
HAPPY VALENTINES DAY:)
In Hard Times, God plots for your Victory:
Over the past year, our world has been turned upside down and of course, some of us have struggled with what God is going to do about our situations....So here is my Biblical response to COVID 19...
Hard times are real for everyone regardless of who we are or where we are. Difficult situations are not new to any generation. And hard times can come as a result of our own sin, natural catastrophe, economic disorder or an environmental syndrome. But there is no sure connection between our suffering and God’s displeasure with us.
Psalm 34:19 says, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all.” The Bible never promises that believers will escape affliction in this life. Acts 14:22 says that, “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.”
But the hard times that we may be experiencing today, is quite unprecedented. But in one way or another it has happened somewhere with someone irrespective of society, in every human generation. You see the book of Eccl.1: 9 says, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”
Every difficult time that you will ever encounter in life has been common to man in some capacity if not in its similarity. Some people witnessing the situation around us today are asking…: are these the last days? Is the Rapture going to happen soon? Is Jesus coming back anytime now?
Well let me tell you this: if these are the last days in its precision or even if we have to wait much longer for Jesus to return, we the children of God are still going to be safe in the hands of God - either way! There is nothing that can put us in a serious disposition.
But God speaks to us through His timeless Word about not allowing any hard time to break us down, or to cause us to quit, or give up and lose hope. Instead, God wants us to learn the principles out of that situation that will make us harder than our hard time.
I want to address those principles in this teaching. In our “Hard times, God plots for our victory".
These are unparalleled times that we live. People are not supposed to leave their country to go to another country; you find businesses shutting down, people are not supposed to gather in more numbers… these can be very scary and worrisome.
But in the final analysis of our life, all these present events that we are going through can be eventually beneficial.
So this is not the time to lose hope because of the negative circumstances we see around. Don’t abandon your goals because of the disappointments or fear that this pandemic has caused. Terry and I are still planning our Disneyland trip in May:)
Maybe today it’s the requirement of money, or the lack of emotional and physical support that’s bothering you. But we will never have a good reason to quit upon GOD who is still on the throne and is aware of what is happening.
Whatever we may be lacking today, it’s not new under the sun. It is as old as humanity, as Ecclesiastes says. We must bear this in mind that there is no such thing as a pain-free life; and the earlier we understand that pain is inevitable in this sinful world, the happier we will be. It is impossible to live a painless life in a world that is affected by sin.
We go through all kinds of pain. Dennis Prager talks about four kinds of pain: emotional pain, family pain, financial pain and physical pain. Pain is inevitable in anybody’s life.
Years back, the generation that faced the great depression in 1930s, the generation that faced both the World Wars, the generation that faced the Spanish Flu in 1918 did not expect to see a painless life; but eventually they were a happy generation than compared to the modern generation of today. A pain-free life is an illusion; it could be an Ethiopian dream, but still it is a deceptive delusion.
You see when you expect a painless life, you will be in pain. You must understand that evil is real and operational and so pain is a reality. But listen to what Paul says in 2 Cor.2:14: “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him.” Because of this verse we can declare to ourselves that we are winners over every adversity and over every current suffering!
You see difficult situation can either make us morally weak or it can develop a stronger faith to be thankful, to be joyful, to be humble and know that God is still on the throne working in His wisdom even when he allows pain and suffering and challenges in our lifetime.
Remember that Israel had a tendency to look forward and consider only the negative circumstances. For example: they saw the Red Sea ahead of them and the Egyptians chasing them and they blamed Moses; they saw the giants in Canaan and called themselves grasshoppers. That is a negative tendency to challenges in life.
No matter how big the problems we face today under present situations, GOD is saying to us right now that our problems are going to look like grasshoppers if we have a giant-faith in Him. 1 John 4:4 says, “the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”
If you are facing a hard time right now, and you have done all that you are supposed to do, don’t lose confidence and consider negative circumstances. Because God says in Ps 91:14, “Because he loves me, "I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.” (Ps 91:14)
Stay holy, study the Bible and GOD will vindicate you and will without fail turn your difficult situation around - to favour you. Romans 8:28, “in all things God works for the good of those who love him.”
As a born again child of GOD, stay in God’s purpose for your life and you will defeat every negative circumstance that will ever come your way. Don’t give up! Do what Abraham did when all natural hope failed him to have children as God had promised him. Romans 4:19-21, “Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead- Yet he did not waver regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God- being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.”
Abraham ignored the negative circumstances and simply held on to what GOD promised him, knowing that God is able to fulfil His promises. Abraham trusted God and His Word and defeated the hard times of barrenness.
So ‘how can we get rid of our hard times and live a normal life?’ - the Bible is the manual that GOD has given to help us know how to approach and relate with Him, and solve our problems. Our situation may be very hard, but it is not impossible to fix. Luke 1:37 says, “For nothing is impossible with God.”
In other words, your hard times are not impossible for GOD to handle or turn around. Believe this! This is the first step to defeat your hard times.
It’s only the devil who will tell us that our situation is beyond repair. It is a lie! Either way if these are the last days in its precision or if we have to wait much longer for Jesus to return, we are still going to be in safe hands! Psalm 91:1 says, “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High, will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” No problem of life is stronger than God’s solution. No hard time is higher than God’s comfort. No challenge is superior to God’s deliverance. Our God is the Most High God!
You see when two opposing powers meet; the lesser power must bow down to the higher – sooner or later. (Philippians 2:9).
Your hard times are not new or strange. Even the disciples of Jesus also had similar hard times as we have. But its amazing that JESUS did not give them material hope but He said to them, seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. (Mt. 6:33) What he meant to say is, “Realign your priorities even during hard times; and everything else in your life will start working normally. That’s the second step.
The Psalmist says in 57:1 “Be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge.” We have to esteem God’s protection as being superior to any other protection. And when we do this God will honor our faith and He will be merciful. Plead for God’s value as the source of your only hope. And then we will see His unwavering commitment to his own glory by engaging His heart for our protection and joy.
In Psalm 143:11 we read, “For your namesake, O LORD, preserve my life! In your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble.”
Pardon and blessing come to those who look away from their own value to the value of God’s name. It is God’s righteousness to stand by His name. So when we come to Him pleading the worth of his name, he helps us; its good to call out to him in this way: “For your namesake oh Lord – pardon me, protect me, preserve me, bless me, use me, anoint me, give me peace…”
We would be wasting our time in trying to do or think something else during these days. Mary gave a simple instruction to those servants at the Wedding at Cana, she said to them “whatever HE tells you to do, do it!” (John 2:5). This is the master key to succeed even when we face hard times.
And God encourages us: “Don’t give up.” To give up and to quit is not who you are meant to be as a child of God. Proverbs 12:13, “The wicked is snared by the transgression of his lips: but the just shall come out of trouble.”
In hard times, God plots for your victory and you will reveal His grace. So...
1. Believe that your hard times are not impossible for God to handle.
2. Realign your priorities even during hard times.
3. It is God’s righteousness to stand by His name. So call out to him and His name.
Take courage, you were born to live with God forever.
HAPPY VALENTINES DAY:)
In Hard Times, God plots for your Victory:
Over the past year, our world has been turned upside down and of course, some of us have struggled with what God is going to do about our situations....So here is my Biblical response to COVID 19...
Hard times are real for everyone regardless of who we are or where we are. Difficult situations are not new to any generation. And hard times can come as a result of our own sin, natural catastrophe, economic disorder or an environmental syndrome. But there is no sure connection between our suffering and God’s displeasure with us.
Psalm 34:19 says, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all.” The Bible never promises that believers will escape affliction in this life. Acts 14:22 says that, “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.”
But the hard times that we may be experiencing today, is quite unprecedented. But in one way or another it has happened somewhere with someone irrespective of society, in every human generation. You see the book of Eccl.1: 9 says, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”
Every difficult time that you will ever encounter in life has been common to man in some capacity if not in its similarity. Some people witnessing the situation around us today are asking…: are these the last days? Is the Rapture going to happen soon? Is Jesus coming back anytime now?
Well let me tell you this: if these are the last days in its precision or even if we have to wait much longer for Jesus to return, we the children of God are still going to be safe in the hands of God - either way! There is nothing that can put us in a serious disposition.
But God speaks to us through His timeless Word about not allowing any hard time to break us down, or to cause us to quit, or give up and lose hope. Instead, God wants us to learn the principles out of that situation that will make us harder than our hard time.
I want to address those principles in this teaching. In our “Hard times, God plots for our victory".
These are unparalleled times that we live. People are not supposed to leave their country to go to another country; you find businesses shutting down, people are not supposed to gather in more numbers… these can be very scary and worrisome.
But in the final analysis of our life, all these present events that we are going through can be eventually beneficial.
So this is not the time to lose hope because of the negative circumstances we see around. Don’t abandon your goals because of the disappointments or fear that this pandemic has caused. Terry and I are still planning our Disneyland trip in May:)
Maybe today it’s the requirement of money, or the lack of emotional and physical support that’s bothering you. But we will never have a good reason to quit upon GOD who is still on the throne and is aware of what is happening.
Whatever we may be lacking today, it’s not new under the sun. It is as old as humanity, as Ecclesiastes says. We must bear this in mind that there is no such thing as a pain-free life; and the earlier we understand that pain is inevitable in this sinful world, the happier we will be. It is impossible to live a painless life in a world that is affected by sin.
We go through all kinds of pain. Dennis Prager talks about four kinds of pain: emotional pain, family pain, financial pain and physical pain. Pain is inevitable in anybody’s life.
Years back, the generation that faced the great depression in 1930s, the generation that faced both the World Wars, the generation that faced the Spanish Flu in 1918 did not expect to see a painless life; but eventually they were a happy generation than compared to the modern generation of today. A pain-free life is an illusion; it could be an Ethiopian dream, but still it is a deceptive delusion.
You see when you expect a painless life, you will be in pain. You must understand that evil is real and operational and so pain is a reality. But listen to what Paul says in 2 Cor.2:14: “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him.” Because of this verse we can declare to ourselves that we are winners over every adversity and over every current suffering!
You see difficult situation can either make us morally weak or it can develop a stronger faith to be thankful, to be joyful, to be humble and know that God is still on the throne working in His wisdom even when he allows pain and suffering and challenges in our lifetime.
Remember that Israel had a tendency to look forward and consider only the negative circumstances. For example: they saw the Red Sea ahead of them and the Egyptians chasing them and they blamed Moses; they saw the giants in Canaan and called themselves grasshoppers. That is a negative tendency to challenges in life.
No matter how big the problems we face today under present situations, GOD is saying to us right now that our problems are going to look like grasshoppers if we have a giant-faith in Him. 1 John 4:4 says, “the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”
If you are facing a hard time right now, and you have done all that you are supposed to do, don’t lose confidence and consider negative circumstances. Because God says in Ps 91:14, “Because he loves me, "I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.” (Ps 91:14)
Stay holy, study the Bible and GOD will vindicate you and will without fail turn your difficult situation around - to favour you. Romans 8:28, “in all things God works for the good of those who love him.”
As a born again child of GOD, stay in God’s purpose for your life and you will defeat every negative circumstance that will ever come your way. Don’t give up! Do what Abraham did when all natural hope failed him to have children as God had promised him. Romans 4:19-21, “Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead- Yet he did not waver regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God- being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.”
Abraham ignored the negative circumstances and simply held on to what GOD promised him, knowing that God is able to fulfil His promises. Abraham trusted God and His Word and defeated the hard times of barrenness.
So ‘how can we get rid of our hard times and live a normal life?’ - the Bible is the manual that GOD has given to help us know how to approach and relate with Him, and solve our problems. Our situation may be very hard, but it is not impossible to fix. Luke 1:37 says, “For nothing is impossible with God.”
In other words, your hard times are not impossible for GOD to handle or turn around. Believe this! This is the first step to defeat your hard times.
It’s only the devil who will tell us that our situation is beyond repair. It is a lie! Either way if these are the last days in its precision or if we have to wait much longer for Jesus to return, we are still going to be in safe hands! Psalm 91:1 says, “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High, will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” No problem of life is stronger than God’s solution. No hard time is higher than God’s comfort. No challenge is superior to God’s deliverance. Our God is the Most High God!
You see when two opposing powers meet; the lesser power must bow down to the higher – sooner or later. (Philippians 2:9).
Your hard times are not new or strange. Even the disciples of Jesus also had similar hard times as we have. But its amazing that JESUS did not give them material hope but He said to them, seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. (Mt. 6:33) What he meant to say is, “Realign your priorities even during hard times; and everything else in your life will start working normally. That’s the second step.
The Psalmist says in 57:1 “Be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge.” We have to esteem God’s protection as being superior to any other protection. And when we do this God will honor our faith and He will be merciful. Plead for God’s value as the source of your only hope. And then we will see His unwavering commitment to his own glory by engaging His heart for our protection and joy.
In Psalm 143:11 we read, “For your namesake, O LORD, preserve my life! In your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble.”
Pardon and blessing come to those who look away from their own value to the value of God’s name. It is God’s righteousness to stand by His name. So when we come to Him pleading the worth of his name, he helps us; its good to call out to him in this way: “For your namesake oh Lord – pardon me, protect me, preserve me, bless me, use me, anoint me, give me peace…”
We would be wasting our time in trying to do or think something else during these days. Mary gave a simple instruction to those servants at the Wedding at Cana, she said to them “whatever HE tells you to do, do it!” (John 2:5). This is the master key to succeed even when we face hard times.
And God encourages us: “Don’t give up.” To give up and to quit is not who you are meant to be as a child of God. Proverbs 12:13, “The wicked is snared by the transgression of his lips: but the just shall come out of trouble.”
In hard times, God plots for your victory and you will reveal His grace. So...
1. Believe that your hard times are not impossible for God to handle.
2. Realign your priorities even during hard times.
3. It is God’s righteousness to stand by His name. So call out to him and His name.
Take courage, you were born to live with God forever.
DID YOU EVER WONDER???
Family Man
1. Children are not pets.
2. The life they actually live and the life you perceive them to be living is not the same life.
3. Don't take what your children do too personally.
4. Don't keep score cards on them - a short memory is useful.
5. Dirt and mess are a breeding ground for well-being.
6. Stay out of their rooms after puberty.
7. Don't worry that they never listen to you; worry that they are always watching you.
8. Learn from them; they have much to teach you.
9. Love them long; let them go early.
Finally. You will never really know what kind of parent you were or if you did it right or wrong. Never. And you will worry about this and them as long as you live. But when your children have children and you watch them do what they do, you will have part of an answer.
BOOKS OF THE BIBLE...A TEACHING
As we continue our look at the religions of the world, focusing on the cults in the church, we look at.....Christian Science and Scientology...
Once again, we’ll look at different faith systems with similar names in one chapter, since sometimes these also are confused with each other.
The Church of Christ, Scientist is the official name of a movement (founded in 1879 by Mary Baker Eddy) commonly referred to as Christian Science. The name is well known through the Christian Science Monitor, a respected newspaper, and through Christian Science Reading Rooms in major cities around the U.S. and in other countries.
Christian Scientists claim to be one of Christianity’s denominations, with a faith based on the Bible. Indeed, their literature and official website contain frequent scriptural quotations, usually from the King James Version. Their interpretations, however, and their answers to ultimate questions, show a belief system substantially different from orthodox Christianity of any branch or denomination.
Christian Science tenets are based on the teachings and writings of Mary Baker Eddy (1821–1910), who dealt with many illnesses during her childhood and early adult life, and spent much time and energy seeking and trying cures. In 1862, she met and was treated by Phineas Parkhurst Quimby, whose “Science of Man” theory promoted a concept of mental healing. She claimed healing by his approach and began to write of her studies and experiences.
In 1875, Eddy published Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, which remains the basis of Christian Science belief. In 1879, she founded the Church of Christ, Scientist in Boston, later called the Mother Church, which is the Christian Science headquarters to this day. She also composed a number of additional works before her death.
In opposition to the Christian view of the material universe as God’s real creation, Eddy taught that the material world is illusory. Only spirit is real, true, and infinite. While this sounds similar to monistic Hinduism, there is no evidence Eddy had any contact with Hindu thinking. Her beliefs also bear some resemblance to Greek dualism, in which matter is evil and spirit is good and pure. (Jainism holds this same view, independently of ancient philosophy.)
Combining this view with an emphasis on healing, Christian Science understands illness as errant belief in the reality of the physical. Prayer and focusing on right belief are keys to health and well-being. On the Christian Science website, a member shares the following testimony about how he dealt with an injury suffered in a baseball game: “On the way (I was able to drive) I prayed for myself, which is what I normally do in these types of situations. I asserted that my true being was spiritual, not material, and that I existed in God, where no accident had ever occurred. I knew that all physical evidence to the contrary was just the suggestion of the carnal mind that I possessed a material body and was therefore vulnerable to injury” (http://christianscience.com/prayer-and-health/inspiration/publications/the-christian-science-journal/card-carrying-christian-scientist [04-18-12]).
Christian Science uses the words God, Life, Love, and Truth more or less interchangeably. As God is spirit, God is everything that is good and perfect. It also differentiates between the human Jesus and Christ, who is the spiritual power of God. Jesus was mortal and, since the material isn’t real, merely an idea. But his life showed us Christ, the “divine idea of God.”
Humanity’s relationship with God also hints at monism. While not overtly saying humans actually are God, an oft-used Christian Science saying is “I am the place where God shines through, for God and I are one, not two.”
In addition to the Mother Church, First Church of Christ, Scientist in Boston, there are branch churches across the U.S. and in approximately seventy other countries. Services include hymns and prayers, but there is no sermon. Christian Scientists refer to Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures and the Bible as their “pastor.” Elected lay readers read portions from Eddy’s writings and the Bible. These readings are the same worldwide, following a schedule determined by Mother Church leadership. Although there is no clergy in the usual sense, Christian Science practitioners are trained to teach Christian Science doctrine and help people pray for physical healing.
Scientology, widely known for the celebrities among its members, was started by L. Ron Hubbard (1911–1986) in 1955. A moderately successful science-fiction author, Hubbard said, in 1949, “Writing for a penny a word is ridiculous. If a man really wants to make a million dollars, the best way would be to start his own religion.” Using his 1950 bestseller Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health as a foundation, that’s exactly what he did.
Scientology combines pop psychology and an eclectic mix of theology into one system. It teaches that human beings were once thetans, godlike creatures who gave up their powers to enter MEST (matter, energy, space, time). Scientology’s goal is to help humans recover the power of deity that lies hidden within them. The method is the removal of engrams, which reside below the conscious level in the reactive side of the brain and are the result of traumatic past experiences. When all engrams are removed, a person becomes a Clear. Scientology offers a number of courses to assist people in becoming Clears. Advanced courses guide Clears to become OTs, or Operating Thetans. The entire process of becoming a Clear and achieving all nine OT stages can cost over a hundred thousand dollars.
Scientology is polytheistic and, along with embracing reincarnation, is casual with regard to other religions. Hubbard said that “neither Lord Buddha nor Jesus Christ were OTs according to evidence. They were just a shade above Clear” (Certainty magazine [5:10]). From its headquarters in southern California, Scientology recently has tried to remarket itself as a science rather than a religion.
In 1989, the head of the U.S. Consulate in Mombasa, Kenya, contracted malaria. As a member of the Church of Christ, Scientist, she refused medical treatment. When the consul’s condition deteriorated to where she was incapacitated and nearly comatose, the U.S. government hospitalized her, started treatment, and she began to recover. Then her sister (also a follower of Christian Science) arrived, insisted treatment be stopped, and removed the consul from the hospital. She died two days later.
HAVE A SAFE AND BLESSED WEEK:)
Ho'omaikaʻi ka Pua iā kākou