"...a time to weep and a time to laugh ..."

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose ..."  (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

Jesus wept ...

Of course, that verse in the Bible was surrounded by a description of something that certainly was not a laughing matter.  Yes, there is a time to weep and a time to laugh.

God actually has gifted us with emotions, and a mind to be able to discern the 'times' when each emotion is appropriate and useful. And emotions are primarily meant to be shared, and useful to others also. 

It is not considered appropriate to laugh as someone else is crying at a funeral. Instead, we reach out to that person, and in a way share their feelings ...or at least, show them that we care.

So, why does it say, in the Book of Jeremiah, Chapter 17, that "...the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?"??

There appears to be a set of emotions that we ourselves express, or keep inside ...though, in either case, we own them.  And there is a set of emotions that is not for ourselves that we have for others ...called empathy and compassion. Ultimately, it is best if we allow God to be within our lives, as He develops within us a growing number of learned emotions ...if we invite Him to be in charge of the 'control center' of our emotions.

In absolute contrast, absorbed in wickedness, one seems to somehow exist beyond that capability ...even beyond crying selfishly, not saying that crying for your present sad condition is selfish, but the kind of selfishness that is thoroughly unsatisfied until it's more fully achieved or when certain advantages over others bring the only truly satisfying emotions.

If I follow a king, that does not make me a king ...anymore than following a donkey makes me a donkey.

But, if I follow the King of Kings, though no person can fill His shoes, nor match His steps ...I can follow while looking up.  In contrast, if I follow a donkey, I should perhaps look down to see where I step.

What of His followers??

It is difficult, and perhaps futile to discuss His followers without first mentioning Him.

He asked the disciples who walked with Him, and followed Him, "Who do you say that I am?"

One answered, "You are the Messiah!"

They who walked with Him, obviously knew He existed.  Today, we often label people much like we do cattle.  Like we live on the 4-L Ranch, and this is our brand of Jesus:

1. Legend
2. Lunatic
3. Liar
4. Lord

(I think I first saw this description in a book by C.S. Lewis.)

• There are those who say they don't believe in God. They say the Bible is just an elaborate collection of stories ...some very interesting and creative, but not that different from other legends.
• There are those who feel that if there was a man named, Jesus ...that there were no deliberate lies, just a bit of grandiose lunacy.
• There are those who somehow try to dismiss everything not as a matter of innocence or mistaken identity ...but, a very organized effort to concoct lies.
• Then there is ...me.  I'm not alone, though neither do I feel numbers matter, and actually it doesn't matter if I'm alone. The circumstances tend not to matter.  I believe that Jesus is precisely who I read, in the Bible, that He said He is ...my Lord and Savior.  Not only mine to claim, as there is a shared partnership of brothers and sisters, in a spiritual sense, with that claim.

1) If you believe the first 'L' ...then perhaps you group me with those who believe in Heffalumps, unicorns, aliens from outer space, Cyclops, or Rumpelstiltskin. But, on a more serious note, not discounting all those who say they've seen legitimate flying saucers, most cultures have their own version of how the universe was formed ...and many share the concept of a cosmic egg, like the Orphic Egg, which cracked open and formed the universe.  And they think those of us who believe in Creation by God are too unrealistic.  I will not say which one is more cracked ...nor will I fault who was cooking up the idea of the egg, and likely dropped the frying pan to cause the big bang..

I merely am saying I believe in the Bible, and I believe that when Jesus returns, He will reign on earth for a thousand years. A force will then gather against the saints and the beloved city ...to no avail. And I admit, it seems much less threatening to think of gradual 'climate change' than to think of the upcoming judgment and a lake of fire. Maybe that's why we changed from calling it global warming ...to merely climate change.

2) Those who feel it was a mere case of someone needing to be Institutionalized so they could get psychiatric help ...well, I worked with teenagers and also later with incarcerated adults, some of which graduated from the former to the latter, and I have an opinion on that. For those who sincerely seek help, the success rate depends heavily upon the person's ability to to overcome the denial stage ...it's commonly said, that dealing with denial is half the battle. Anyone who doesn't deny Jesus should know He won the full battle in behalf of us. Call me insane ...call me what you may, it doesn't matter so much what you call me, as it does why you call me the things you may. But, what does matter is that you call Jesus ...Lord.

And don't just trust my blog on this one ...entries into the Book of Life are of utmost importance, not the entries here!

3) What can be said of a liar??  What is the advantage?  There are some religions that claim a few similar beliefs, enough to kind of copycat certain things, though being drastically different on other points ...and even adding rewards provided in heaven.  Other religions focus more on personal attainment, either through depravity or trained concentration.

There are those who try to empty themselves of all outside interference ...focusing the best they can on nothing.  I've never personally tried this for fear it could be dangerous. If I emptied my mind, I may just end up a bit disappointed, seeing that as not much different than my usual state ...or perhaps an even greater fear would be chancing I'd perhaps get trapped in that state of nothingness, and be forever destined to only communicate on the level of your average daily Twitter loyalist.

The disciples faced stoning, imprisonment, and crucifixion ...not the desired advantage for your average opportunist nor is it a great motivational tool for continuing to lie or to convince ourselves to stick to our story. And the disciples weren't merely wanting to die to gain position in heaven ...they wanted you to be able to get to heaven too.

4) Why do so many of us call Him our Savior & our Lord?? I wish I had the time to tell each and every one of you ...all that I believe, and be able to answer all the question you may have. Of course, I don't have all the answers ...but, I do enjoy looking for them in the Bible, and am thrilled if you do it with me.       

So, what is true ...as it stands, who benefits from the truth and who benefits from a lie??

Building the horrific machine that would come to be known as the Nazis, of World War II, they attempted to reform the model of the church.  They sought to manipulate the people into believing that the Old Testament of the Bible was exactly that ...old, and in need of revision.  Some did not feel revision was enough, and more of a division was necessary, stating it was of entirely no use at all.  

And what of the New Testament??

They felt if they mentioned Jesus, it was not to be in the context of His death on the cross to cover our sins. Jesus was depicted as not that much unlike He is in many corners of our society today ...only focusing on the good of government, in looking out for our needs like Jesus had. Therefore, Jesus would be in favor of saving our planet, but not in the context of an atonement of our sins to benefit those individuals on our planet. 

In a nutshell, the outcry is to save the planet, not the people. If we imagine an impersonal past, and then group all our emotions into a future which desperately depends upon us ...we somehow take the attention away from how desperately spiritually desolate we are today.  And it seems too much like that cosmic eggshell idea that they hatched, yet perhaps each day resembling more a nutshell.

Eventually, the Nazis saw a need to do some real grass roots ground work ...and dealt directly with the youth, replacing praying with preying. They played upon the frustrations, doubts, and sense of loss of direction ...and they had them celebrate by burning books.

I don't really know how that would play out today.  I don't know how much resistance they would get if they decided to burn books.  But, I do know that it doesn't really matter that much ...as what is happening presently is much more effective.

Many bookstores are closing and going out of business.  The fact is, some people do still read, but the vast majority of them only regurgitate ...and it is not often of much substance in the first place.  It's like rapidly chewing bubble gum, then after a time spitting it out ...then popping another piece in our mouth. It's good on one level that people are communicating, and perhaps considering each other 'friends' ...after all, we've been a quite serious nation, and quite seriously depressed at times, leading the charge for a quite negative view on life.  

But, there is a place for seriousness, and also for reliable references.  

Life perhaps can stand to be a little more lighthearted at times ...as this time was when my wife told my Dad she'd bake him a Green Bay cake if the Lions didn't win in the play-offs.

Yes, it's good to keep in touch, and connect with people, but there is a certain thing to be said about living where we are at ...and it just does not seem like we should not be attentive to those around us, while we live on the iPhone or Tweet away our lives. Instead of the internet, it could be referred to as the internest, where we too often nest so long that, who knows, perhaps one day we will hatch a new cosmic egg ...or nut.

Of course, taking some time to yourself is good ...and reading is a good pastime. But, knowledge obtained from reading is not just good, without some discernment.  You can read the words of Fred Rogers, or the stuff that Saul Alinsky spews forth. You can read your children Winnie the Pooh, and send them to bed with a hug ...or let them join you in watching Hannibal Lecter, so they can't sleep.  Yes, it's very important what we read, watch, and listen to.  I miss the day when the PTA would stand up for what they believed to be healthy.  How many of us today even know what those letters P-T-A stand for??

Romans 1:28, states, "And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient ..."   (Or maybe today ...a bit too convenient.)

2 Thessalonians 2:10-11, states, " ...because they received not the love of the truth, that they may be saved ...and for this cause God shall send them a strong delusion, that they should believe a lie ..."

There is a saying that states, "He who laughs last, laughs best!" God does not consider any of this a laughing matter. God does not look to a last laugh. And we should not press on carelessly, and thoughtlessly ...to our last chance.

The very difficult position that Abraham Lincoln found himself in during the dreadful Civil War, led one person to ask him a question that perhaps was not too well thought out.  But, Abe perhaps had thought it out many times in his head, feeling there was no good solution to the problem. Yet, when asked if he felt God was on the side of the North, Abe carefully answered, as not to divide a nation, nor minimize the gravity of decisions with which they were faced, "Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God's side ..."

We know God is loving ...and we know God is forgiving, and obviously, the truth of that is on the 'side' of our concerns.  But, if we look to God ...what are His concerns??

The Bible says that our Lord, God, " ...is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance."

As 2nd Thessalonians spoke of those who did not receive (or accept) "THE LOVE OF THE TRUTH, that they may be saved" ...of course, they are saved through the love of Jesus.  Yet, that also includes the TRUTH.

And as it was 2 Peter 3:9, which spoke of God's desire that none would  perish, the very next verse states, "But the day of the Lord will come  as a thief in the night ..."

Then the next verse asks, " ...what manner of persons ought we be ..."

It seems clear that we should not be in a delusion, nor thinking as the world often thinks ...with a reprobate mind.  We should not look to our own portrait of Jesus, but to the very essence of who He is ...described in the only place I know of, as a testimony of His life. 

Yes, the Bible ...not to assume ourselves as editors, picking and choosing what we believe should be there, and what shouldn't.

It is all there ...for all of us.