Be completely humble and gentle, be patient, bearing with one another in love.
-- Ephesians 4:2 NIV
A scripture to wrap up totally what we are to be like in Christ comes from
1 Corinthians 13:1-3
If I speak with the tongues of men and
of Angels, but I do not have love, I have
become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.
If I have the gift of prophesy,
and know all mysteries and all
knowledge; and if I have all faith,
So as to remove mountains,
But I do not have love, I am nothing.
And if I give all my possessions to
feed the poor, and if I surrender my
body to be burned, but do not have love,
it profits me nothing.
Monday, September 07, 2009
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Love Dare
Lord, open my eyes that I may see truth and my ears to hear truth.
Open my heart to receive it by faith.
Renew my mind to keep it in hope.
Surrender my will that I may live it with love.
Remind me that I am responsible when I hear it.
Help me desire to obey what You say through it.
Transform my life that I may know it.
Burden my heart that I may share it.
Speak now, Lord.
Give me a passion to know and follow Your will.
Nothing more. Nothing less. Nothing else.
Love Dare! Fireproof Your Marriage!
Open my heart to receive it by faith.
Renew my mind to keep it in hope.
Surrender my will that I may live it with love.
Remind me that I am responsible when I hear it.
Help me desire to obey what You say through it.
Transform my life that I may know it.
Burden my heart that I may share it.
Speak now, Lord.
Give me a passion to know and follow Your will.
Nothing more. Nothing less. Nothing else.
Love Dare! Fireproof Your Marriage!
Sunday, June 07, 2009
Jesus
This has been a week to remember! God has been doing some great things in my life. I have seen myself mature in ways that I could not have believed only a few months, or even a few weeks ago. God told me to patch up some burned down roads that were created between me and some family members of mine and now I feel so complete! We are now family again and I had to grow spiritually in order to make this happened. It was a step of faith. God told me that they would never apologize to me, which was what I wanted, for what they had done but it was up to me to do allow Him to bring things back together. God is so good! Thank you Jesus for seeing more in me than I see in myself. I am nothing without Jesus. I can now rest in the knowledge that I have made a step in the right direction. God has much in store for me. This obstacle was blocking a blessing that God wanted to give to me. My stubbornness and allowing Satan to taint my thoughts clouded my perspective. Well, Jesus has given me perspective and now I am listening to Him and I can not wait for what He is going to do through me! Praises to His name!
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Focus, commitment to practice His Word, being a joy to those around me.
In John 13:35, God shows us how we are to have love for each other. It is supposed to be how people distinguish us as Christ's disciples. It is the root and ground of our existence (Ephesians 3:17-21), meant to be expressed with passion and fervency (I Peter 4:8) It is a quality that we are to "abound" in more and more (I Thessalonians 3:12), always getting better at it, becoming increasingly defined by it. Now, let us look into these scriptures and see what God is saying.
John 13:35, "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." The distinguishing mark of discipleship is not programs or signs, wonders or eloquence or ecclesiastical power, but Christ's love in us that allows us to love one another. This does not mean these men were to become a self-centered, ingrown clique. That may be caused by sentimentality, but not by Christ's love shared among His people. The world will always confront Christ and have to deal with Him if His people love one another as He has loved them.
Now, Ephesians 3:17-21, "That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, Ephesians 3:18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; Ephesians 3:19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Ephesians 3:20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Ephesians 3:21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen." "That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith" (Ephesians 3:17) is Paul's second petition. And this is the lodestar of Paul's theology—that a person may be "in Christ" and thus live in the Spirit and in the power of the living Lord who indwells.
In I Peter 4:8,"And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. " This fervent love for one another should be a top priority of Christian lifestyle. Verse 1Peter 4:8 says that our love should be "above all things." We cannot afford to let it slip or slide. This love must flow without ceasing. The faucet of love should never be turned off or even partially restrained. It should be flowing at full strength. This is the will of God for us.
How many problems which take place in our lives, in our families, in our churches, and in our communities could be easily resolved if Christians kept their love for God and each other at full strength. "There is nothing love cannot face; there is no limit to its faith, its hope, and its endurance" (1Corinthians 13:7, NEB).
I Thessalonians 3:12, " And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you:..." Paul is not willing that such love be contained within the Christian community. It is to abound to one another "and to all" How easy it is for us in our groups and in our relationships to become exclusively involved in our own concerns and interests. This is the point where group life stagnates. Again and again, we are discovering that groups need to find avenues of service to others to sustain their vitality. The principle of self-giving love applies to groups as well as to individuals. Abounding love has no borders.
In Proverbs 16:1-33, "Pro 16:1 The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, are from the LORD. Pro 16:2 All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but the LORD weigheth the spirits. Pro 16:3 Commit thy works to the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established. Pro 16:4 The LORD hath made all things for himself: yes, even the wicked for the day of evil. Pro 16:5 Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished. Pro 16:6 By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil. Pro 16:7 When a man's ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him. Pro 16:8 Better is a little with righteousness, than great revenues without right. Pro 16:9 A man's heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps. Pro 16:10 A divine sentence is in the lips of the king: his mouth transgresseth not in judgment. Pro 16:11 A just weight and balance are the LORD'S: all the weights of the bag are his work. Pro 16:12 It is an abomination to kings to commit wickedness: for the throne is established by righteousness. Pro 16:13 Righteous lips are the delight of kings; and they love him that speaketh right. Pro 16:14 The wrath of a king is as messengers of death: but a wise man will pacify it. Pro 16:15 In the light of a king's countenance is life; and his favor is as a cloud of the latter rain. Pro 16:16 How much better is it to get wisdom than gold? and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver?
Pro 16:17 The highway of the upright is to depart from evil: he that keepeth his way preserveth his soul. Pro 16:18 Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Pro 16:19 Better it is to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud. Pro 16:20 He that handleth a matter wisely shall find good: and whoever trusteth in the LORD, happy is he. Pro 16:21 The wise in heart shall be called prudent: and the sweetness of the lips increaseth learning. Pro 16:22 Understanding is a well-spring of life to him that hath it: but the instruction of fools is folly. Pro 16:23 The heart of the wise teacheth his mouth, and addeth learning to his lips. Pro 16:24 Pleasant words are as a honey-comb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones. Pro 16:25 There is a way that seemeth right to a man, but the end of it is the ways of death. Pro 16:26 He that laboreth laboreth for himself; for his mouth craveth it of him. Pro 16:27 An ungodly man diggeth up evil: and in his lips there is as a burning fire. Pro 16:28 A froward man soweth strife: and a whisperer separateth chief friends. Pro 16:29 A violent man enticeth his neighbor, and leadeth him into the way that is not good.Pro 16:30 He shutteth his eyes to devise froward things: moving his lips he bringeth evil to pass. Pro 16:31 The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness. Pro 16:32 He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit, than he that taketh a city. Pro 16:33 The lot is cast into the lap: but the whole disposing of it is from the LORD." From the beginning God's people have lived under the authority of the King and the kings. Dual authority we recognize—divine sovereignty and human government. Dual authority but not equal authority. The students in Proverbs needed to mark that difference. They were confronted regularly, as budding leaders, with the competence and caprice of monarchs. During Judah's heyday they watched the pendulum swing from righteous kings to foolish ones, from rulers who trusted God to those who tested Him. When the Babylonians crushed Jerusalem under Nebuchadnezzar in 586 B.C., Judah's king was dragged off to the banks of the Euphrates, and the political authority was vested in a foreign governor. The Persians, after 539 B.C., maintained the same system but with more class and less cruelty. Throughout this entire period, the time when the proverbs were part of the curriculum for training government administrators, the young officials had to be submissive to the central authority that regulated their labors. Apparently, they found the teachers' maxims were applicable in almost any political context.
Happily, necessarily, the sages, as true members of the covenant community, had incorporated in the collections a whole set of sayings that dealt with the authority that outranked royal rights. Side by side with proverbs that taught respect and regard for the earthly sovereign were those that focused on the power and glory of the heavenly Sovereign. The checks and balances were thus in place for the leaders of a people that for almost all the time from the Babylonian Exile to the establishment of the modern state of Israel in 1948 has lived in the tension between God and Caesar, the tension of which Jesus spoke so plainly when He gave His prescription for dealing with dual authority (Mark 12:13-17; Matthew 22:15-22; Luke 20:19-26). Proverbs 16 more than any other section of the book brings together the two types of sayings—those that describe proper royal behavior and correct comportment of the ones who serve the kings and those that depict the King of kings, always to be reckoned with in His ultimate authority and hegemony in human affairs. Israel's young leaders, like all who wield authority in any place or time, lived under the eyes of their Lord and before the face of their king. How they did so is the subject of this chapter.
Dependence on God
What has bubbled under the surface of this collection of Solomonic sayings beginning at Proverbs 10:1 has now erupted with the prominence and power of Yellowstone's Old Faithful geyser. All along we have been noting that the key assumption of Proverbs is that wisdom is discoverable and teachable because Yahweh has built order and purpose into the creation. The sages' task is to discover it, frame it in memorable words, and set it before their pupils. But much of the time until chapter 16, the divine presence has been implicit, except in those places that call on the hearers to do their living in fear of Him. The necessity and the meaning of that fear become clearer here than ever before. Fearing God is necessary because His sovereign presence hovers over all of life to determine the success or failure of human plans and programs. Fearing God is meaningful because those who do so can count on His care in any circumstance they meet. "The Lord's eyes" is a shorthand way to express the dependability of His presence and the versatility of His care. That presence and that care, according to our catalog of the proverbs.
John 13:35, "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." The distinguishing mark of discipleship is not programs or signs, wonders or eloquence or ecclesiastical power, but Christ's love in us that allows us to love one another. This does not mean these men were to become a self-centered, ingrown clique. That may be caused by sentimentality, but not by Christ's love shared among His people. The world will always confront Christ and have to deal with Him if His people love one another as He has loved them.
Now, Ephesians 3:17-21, "That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, Ephesians 3:18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; Ephesians 3:19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Ephesians 3:20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Ephesians 3:21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen." "That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith" (Ephesians 3:17) is Paul's second petition. And this is the lodestar of Paul's theology—that a person may be "in Christ" and thus live in the Spirit and in the power of the living Lord who indwells.
In I Peter 4:8,"And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. " This fervent love for one another should be a top priority of Christian lifestyle. Verse 1Peter 4:8 says that our love should be "above all things." We cannot afford to let it slip or slide. This love must flow without ceasing. The faucet of love should never be turned off or even partially restrained. It should be flowing at full strength. This is the will of God for us.
How many problems which take place in our lives, in our families, in our churches, and in our communities could be easily resolved if Christians kept their love for God and each other at full strength. "There is nothing love cannot face; there is no limit to its faith, its hope, and its endurance" (1Corinthians 13:7, NEB).
I Thessalonians 3:12, " And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you:..." Paul is not willing that such love be contained within the Christian community. It is to abound to one another "and to all" How easy it is for us in our groups and in our relationships to become exclusively involved in our own concerns and interests. This is the point where group life stagnates. Again and again, we are discovering that groups need to find avenues of service to others to sustain their vitality. The principle of self-giving love applies to groups as well as to individuals. Abounding love has no borders.
In Proverbs 16:1-33, "Pro 16:1 The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, are from the LORD. Pro 16:2 All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but the LORD weigheth the spirits. Pro 16:3 Commit thy works to the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established. Pro 16:4 The LORD hath made all things for himself: yes, even the wicked for the day of evil. Pro 16:5 Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished. Pro 16:6 By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil. Pro 16:7 When a man's ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him. Pro 16:8 Better is a little with righteousness, than great revenues without right. Pro 16:9 A man's heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps. Pro 16:10 A divine sentence is in the lips of the king: his mouth transgresseth not in judgment. Pro 16:11 A just weight and balance are the LORD'S: all the weights of the bag are his work. Pro 16:12 It is an abomination to kings to commit wickedness: for the throne is established by righteousness. Pro 16:13 Righteous lips are the delight of kings; and they love him that speaketh right. Pro 16:14 The wrath of a king is as messengers of death: but a wise man will pacify it. Pro 16:15 In the light of a king's countenance is life; and his favor is as a cloud of the latter rain. Pro 16:16 How much better is it to get wisdom than gold? and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver?
Pro 16:17 The highway of the upright is to depart from evil: he that keepeth his way preserveth his soul. Pro 16:18 Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Pro 16:19 Better it is to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud. Pro 16:20 He that handleth a matter wisely shall find good: and whoever trusteth in the LORD, happy is he. Pro 16:21 The wise in heart shall be called prudent: and the sweetness of the lips increaseth learning. Pro 16:22 Understanding is a well-spring of life to him that hath it: but the instruction of fools is folly. Pro 16:23 The heart of the wise teacheth his mouth, and addeth learning to his lips. Pro 16:24 Pleasant words are as a honey-comb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones. Pro 16:25 There is a way that seemeth right to a man, but the end of it is the ways of death. Pro 16:26 He that laboreth laboreth for himself; for his mouth craveth it of him. Pro 16:27 An ungodly man diggeth up evil: and in his lips there is as a burning fire. Pro 16:28 A froward man soweth strife: and a whisperer separateth chief friends. Pro 16:29 A violent man enticeth his neighbor, and leadeth him into the way that is not good.Pro 16:30 He shutteth his eyes to devise froward things: moving his lips he bringeth evil to pass. Pro 16:31 The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness. Pro 16:32 He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit, than he that taketh a city. Pro 16:33 The lot is cast into the lap: but the whole disposing of it is from the LORD." From the beginning God's people have lived under the authority of the King and the kings. Dual authority we recognize—divine sovereignty and human government. Dual authority but not equal authority. The students in Proverbs needed to mark that difference. They were confronted regularly, as budding leaders, with the competence and caprice of monarchs. During Judah's heyday they watched the pendulum swing from righteous kings to foolish ones, from rulers who trusted God to those who tested Him. When the Babylonians crushed Jerusalem under Nebuchadnezzar in 586 B.C., Judah's king was dragged off to the banks of the Euphrates, and the political authority was vested in a foreign governor. The Persians, after 539 B.C., maintained the same system but with more class and less cruelty. Throughout this entire period, the time when the proverbs were part of the curriculum for training government administrators, the young officials had to be submissive to the central authority that regulated their labors. Apparently, they found the teachers' maxims were applicable in almost any political context.
Happily, necessarily, the sages, as true members of the covenant community, had incorporated in the collections a whole set of sayings that dealt with the authority that outranked royal rights. Side by side with proverbs that taught respect and regard for the earthly sovereign were those that focused on the power and glory of the heavenly Sovereign. The checks and balances were thus in place for the leaders of a people that for almost all the time from the Babylonian Exile to the establishment of the modern state of Israel in 1948 has lived in the tension between God and Caesar, the tension of which Jesus spoke so plainly when He gave His prescription for dealing with dual authority (Mark 12:13-17; Matthew 22:15-22; Luke 20:19-26). Proverbs 16 more than any other section of the book brings together the two types of sayings—those that describe proper royal behavior and correct comportment of the ones who serve the kings and those that depict the King of kings, always to be reckoned with in His ultimate authority and hegemony in human affairs. Israel's young leaders, like all who wield authority in any place or time, lived under the eyes of their Lord and before the face of their king. How they did so is the subject of this chapter.
Dependence on God
What has bubbled under the surface of this collection of Solomonic sayings beginning at Proverbs 10:1 has now erupted with the prominence and power of Yellowstone's Old Faithful geyser. All along we have been noting that the key assumption of Proverbs is that wisdom is discoverable and teachable because Yahweh has built order and purpose into the creation. The sages' task is to discover it, frame it in memorable words, and set it before their pupils. But much of the time until chapter 16, the divine presence has been implicit, except in those places that call on the hearers to do their living in fear of Him. The necessity and the meaning of that fear become clearer here than ever before. Fearing God is necessary because His sovereign presence hovers over all of life to determine the success or failure of human plans and programs. Fearing God is meaningful because those who do so can count on His care in any circumstance they meet. "The Lord's eyes" is a shorthand way to express the dependability of His presence and the versatility of His care. That presence and that care, according to our catalog of the proverbs.
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
Well, James had to perform some major changes to have my blog site added to the webring for Elmstreet. I never thought that upgrading the site would cause so many problems. Thanks James for the extra effort!
Pour mes amis francophones ...
Eh bien, James a dû effectuer des changements majeurs sur mon blog ajouté à la webring pour Elmstreet. Je n'avais jamais pensé que l'amélioration du site de causer tant de problèmes. Merci James pour l'effort supplémentaire!
Pour mes amis francophones ...
Eh bien, James a dû effectuer des changements majeurs sur mon blog ajouté à la webring pour Elmstreet. Je n'avais jamais pensé que l'amélioration du site de causer tant de problèmes. Merci James pour l'effort supplémentaire!
Mother's Day
Mother's Day is a special day in the Stowers' house hold. All of my kids are really pumped up about doing something special for Mom. Anita is a fantastic mother. She is very loving, nurturing, she always think of everyone else before she thinks of herself and she takes pride in the fact that she always provide us with very nutritious meals (Italian-Portuguese ancestry I guess). I have been able to impress her in the past, but this year will be difficult since we have given her just about everything that she wants...other than the convertible, two seater, BMW that she wants when all of the kids are out of the house! I am thankful to God that Anita and I have both of our mothers around to celebrate Mother's Day with this year. I pray that my grandmother lives to see July so she will be 92 and then we can pray to God she makes it until she is 100. It would be nice to have a big celebration with everyone at our house. I have to think on this one. It is possible. I have to put the cats in another room of the house since my mother does not like cats. It should be interesting no matter what we do since I pray that all of my plans will go through without any problems! Arrivederci a tutti i miei amici (Good bye to all of my friends)!
Saturday, January 03, 2009
Changements en 2009!
J'ai un nouveau projet. Ce projet est d'assister à des spectacles qui sont connus pour être une femme montre. J'essaie toujours de comprendre la confusion qui existe dans les femmes de ma maison. Je suis quelque peu préoccupé parce que je suis en train de regarder "Lipstick Jungle" et je l'apprécie! Wow, c'est effrayant! J'ai vu deux spectacles d'aujourd'hui. Ils ont été Elizabethtown et Spanglish. J'ai compris et j'ai bien aimé regarder les spectacles. C'est drôle parce que je n'ai jamais apprécié ces types de spectacles, plus tôt dans ma vie. Je ne comprends toujours pas les difficultés que rencontrent les femmes dans la vie de chaque jour. Mais je vais rester ferme que je vais en apprendre plus sur les femmes afin que je puisse être un meilleur mari et père. Notre monde n'a pas fait suffisamment de modifications pour être pleinement compris les besoins des femmes. Il semble y avoir beaucoup de doubles normes. Les femmes ont besoin de soins adaptés aux besoins et aux spécificités de leur anatomie. Nous avons beaucoup à apprendre des femmes et des États-Unis ont plus à apprendre. Je crains que je ne sais pas où ce voyage me prendra, mais je vous tiendrai informé. Ciao!
Now for my English speaking friends ( Je suis désolé Elodie, Benjamin, Mathilde, Julien, Jean-Pierre and Marie-Laure)
I have a new project. This project is to watch shows that are known to be a chic flicks. I always try to understand the confusion that exists with me and the women of my house. I am somewhat concerned now because I am watching "Lipstick Jungle" and I like it! Wow, it's frightening! I saw two shows today. They were Elizabethtown and Spanglish. I understand and I enjoyed watching the shows. It's funny because I never appreciated these types of shows earlier in my life. I still do not understand the difficulties faced by women in daily life. But I stand firm that I will learn more about my women that I may be a better husband and father. Our world has not made enough changes to be fully understood the needs of women. There seems to be a lot of double standards. Women need care tailored to their needs and specifications of their anatomy. We have much to learn from women and the United States have more to learn. I fear that I do not know where this journey will take me, but I will keep you informed.
Now for my English speaking friends ( Je suis désolé Elodie, Benjamin, Mathilde, Julien, Jean-Pierre and Marie-Laure)
I have a new project. This project is to watch shows that are known to be a chic flicks. I always try to understand the confusion that exists with me and the women of my house. I am somewhat concerned now because I am watching "Lipstick Jungle" and I like it! Wow, it's frightening! I saw two shows today. They were Elizabethtown and Spanglish. I understand and I enjoyed watching the shows. It's funny because I never appreciated these types of shows earlier in my life. I still do not understand the difficulties faced by women in daily life. But I stand firm that I will learn more about my women that I may be a better husband and father. Our world has not made enough changes to be fully understood the needs of women. There seems to be a lot of double standards. Women need care tailored to their needs and specifications of their anatomy. We have much to learn from women and the United States have more to learn. I fear that I do not know where this journey will take me, but I will keep you informed.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)