Can’t Believe it’s Spring Already

The past four months of my inactivity on JonahzSong was unplanned. As the winter holiday schedule became hectic–kids and wife home, things to do, places to go, people to see, et cetera–I thought, “I’ll start back up on January First.” That day came quickly. . . and went. Then February and March and finally I aimed for April First, which didn’t happen either. Oh, well. . .

One thing I did do is to start back on a regiment of exercise. Mostly I’ve been riding a stationary, recumbent bicycle, which I’ve enjoyed. It’s different than a normal, upright bike. My legs got immediately back in the groove–muscle memory built from years of bicycle riding and touring. A lot of folks at the gym listen to music while they ride or run. I started listening to podcasts. I found a great one from Israel National Radio that is a talk show, Life Lessons with Judy Simon. She researches a subject, then thoroughly introduces it prior to bringing in people to interview.

The other thing I’ve been up to is a lot more reading. In addition to the Bible and various commentaries, I’ve read a lot more fiction. Detective novels and science fiction. Some good, some very good, some excellent. And I’ve spent some time with a story I began a few years ago. It’s still not finished, but I have a better understanding of where it’s going. Guide Gold tells the story of a man that discovers his wife really doesn’t know him at all. The deeper theme is one of failure and redemption.

Hummmmm. Failure and redemption. That’s the theme of all our lives, isn’t it? Yesterday we were suppose to be celebrating the only real redemption there is: redemption from death as demonstrated by the resurrection of Y’shuaJesus.

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” And they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home marveling at what had happened.

Luke 24:1-12

Here’s what Matthew Henry wrote about Luke 24:1-12: “See the affection and respect the women showed to Christ, after he was dead and buried. Observe their surprise when they found the stone rolled away, and the grave empty. Christians often perplex themselves about that with which they should comfort and encourage themselves. They look rather to find their Master in his grave- clothes, than angels in their shining garments. The angels assure them that he is risen from the dead; is risen by his own power. These angels from heaven bring not any new gospel, but remind the women of Christ’s words, and teach them how to apply them. We may wonder that these disciples, who believed Jesus to be the Son of God and the true Messiah, who had been so often told that he must die, and rise again, and then enter into his glory, who had seen him more than once raise the dead, yet should be so backward to believe his raising himself. But all our mistakes in religion spring from ignorance or forgetfulness of the words Christ has spoken. Peter now ran to the sepulchre, who so lately ran from his Master. He was amazed. There are many things puzzling and perplexing to us, which would be plain and profitable, if we rightly understood the words of Christ.”

We fail. We fail in our lives simply because we forget. Muscles don’t forget, but they do get out of use. My muscles didn’t forget how they work the pedals of a bike using my ankles to add spin. They were out of practice, though, which is why a daily workout is necessary to maintain their optimum abilities. It’s like that with our life in Messiah. While listening to what others have to say is nice, we can be led astray too easily in these days of deceptive practices within the Church. We need daily a refresher, a reminder of the Lord’s Words.

From the five books of Moshe (Moses) to the writings of the minor and major prophets, and of the disciples themselves, we are shown how to listen to and how to live at peace with G-d. It is through the the scriptures that we come to understand our place in Y’shuaJesus. We must, as Matthew Henry put it, “rightly understand the words of Christ.” Then we avoid the pitfalls of misunderstandings, we stay out of petty disagreements, we see snares before being caught up in them. It’s the Words in Red, the Words of Y’shuaJesus, and it’s the whole of the Bible that we delve into, with prayerful consideration, from which we will grow and live gainfully in Messiah.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

Noah: Preacher of Righteousness or Survivalist/Doomsday Prepper

A recent post on From the Lighthouse talks of a new movie Noah:
“A new Hollywood epic on the life of Noah has stirred controversy among Christians, Jews and others who have pre-screened the film, as they state that the movie largely leaves out one important foundation: the Bible.

“Noah is the brainchild of producer Darren Aronofsky, who says that he has wanted to make a film about Noah and the ark since his childhood. With a $125 million budget, the film is said to be more of an edgy action epic that depicts a man who fights off his enemies as he prepares for a coming apocalypse, rather than a story of a “preacher of righteousness” who calls the world to repentance from sin.

“Russell Crowe, known for his roles in Gladiator, A Beautiful Mind and Robin Hood stars as Noah in the film, and Anthony Hopkins, known for his roles in Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal and The Legends of the Fall appears as grandfather Methuselah, who provides advice to Noah.

“Man corrupted this world and filled it with violence, so he must be destroyed,” Methuselah explains to Noah, who has a dream of “death by water.”

The remainder of the article is available on the Christian News Network website.

Okay, so here’s the thing: I’ve looked at the trailer and frankly it’s appealing to me as movies go. But then I like apocalyptic movies. I sorta think they’re glimpses of possible realities.

The movie critic complains the movie producer Darren Aronofsky didn’t use the Bible in the story. Well, Mr. Aronofsky used the idea of a man named Noah and a flood that destroys wicked people. Hummmmmmmm! So a movie is made as a fictional account of a Biblical person and a Biblical event and that account isn’t what the author of the article seems to think it should be. That’s the problem with the movie; it doesn’t fit the idea the critic has of Noah. As I understand it, the author says that Noah was a preacher of righteousness. This seems to me to mean that the critic wants Noah to stand around preaching the Gospel of Righteousness to a people who were only doing evil because they were uninformed of the truth. The critic seems to think there is something inherently wrong with preparing for the flood. Wait. Am I missing something here. Wasn’t Noah instructed to build an ark? What part of building an ark to house his family is Noah doing that isn’t preparing for a coming disaster of epic proportions?

In the trailer, we see Noah facing angry hordes that want nothing more than to take the boat, even if they swamp it trying. After all, the hordes don’t just stand around and say, “Oh, we’ve been bad. We deserve to drown.” Why is that so controversial? Oh, sure, the Bible didn’t go into great specifics about the flash mob at Noah’s boat as the rain came pouring down. Here the foundation for the epic flood, from the Bible:

When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose. Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.” The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown. The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the LORD was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. So the LORD said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.” But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD. These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God. And Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with violence. And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make yourself an ark of gopher wood. Make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and out with pitch. This is how you are to make it: the length of the ark 300 cubits, its breadth 50 cubits, and its height 30 cubits. Make a roof for the ark, and finish it to a cubit above, and set the door of the ark in its side. Make it with lower, second, and third decks. For behold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life under heaven. Everything that is on the earth shall die. But I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ark to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female. Of the birds according to their kinds, and of the animals according to their kinds, of every creeping thing of the ground, according to its kind, two of every sort shall come in to you to keep them alive. Also take with you every sort of food that is eaten, and store it up. It shall serve as food for you and for them.” Noah did this; he did all that God commanded him.

Genesis chapter six

The idea that Noah was a preacher of righteousness comes from the Apostle Peter when he wrote: “. . .”if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly. . .” 2Peter 2:5.

The movie critic spoke of people critical of the movie wanting it to be more scriptural, and the movie has been assailed as not being a Christian movie. Okay. Was Sound of Music a Christian movie? Look, just because a movie gives a fictional account Noah, why does it have to have the approval of Christians? And even if some producer said he wanted Christian input and approval, to whom would he go? There is no single Christian church on Earth at this time. Had Mr. Aronofsky said he was making a scriptural account of Noah, perhaps he’d ask for assistance from a major Christian denomination in America. Perhaps it would be the same denomination that approves of marriage between two men or marriage between two women, or practicing homosexuals as church leaders.

I think the controversy comes from our “feel good” world of the Twenty-First Century. We are led to belief that G-d wants nothing more than for us to feel good about ourselves. As such, we must see G-d in our “feel good” image. G-d is put into a box, contained. We perceive of Him as a peacenik without the flowers in His hair. In this case, I think the movie critics wants Noah to preach Peace and Love and throw flowers to that poor, misunderstood mass of humanity.

Other critics of the movie say it’s just another environmental-disaster movie that is part of a whole agenda that wants the mass of humanity to be scared of the way the Earth has been treated, and that the Earth is somehow trying to overthrow its caretaker, namely humans. In this light, Hollywood is supporting the propaganda of the “Green Movement.” This theme isn’t brought out in the trailer, that I can see.

The reality of Noah is far different. Noah found favor with G-d when G-d saw only a fallen humankind. As such, G-d decided to give humanity another chance, wiping the slate clean. In wiping the slate, a whole bunch of wicked people went down kicking and screaming in a flood of water. If only CNN had been around to document the Flood, we’d see if the wicked hordes attacked the ark or not.

Mr. Aronofsky’s account of Noah is as good as anyone’s account. It’s a story. We live in a secular world with lots of stories. So as long as Mr. Aronofsky doesn’t say it is the Word of the Lord, then it’s just another secular movie depicting a lot of blood shed centered on the theme of survival.

That said, there is one movie that is either out or coming out that I do think is over the edge. It is a movie about Abraham storming an army that surrounds his nephew Lot, and rescuing him. Now that one got it all wrong. And that might have crossed the line from just secular movie-making to deception. There are lines. I don’t see the story of Noah crossing over that line to deception. Then again, I’ve only seen the trailer. Maybe the actual movie does so. Most likely I’ll see it when it’s shown on television, then I’ll know.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

When my children were little. . .

. . . they were soooooooo cute. Sure, they’re cute now, but there’s just something about old photos and such of my children when they were two and three and four years old. I have some videos that were made of two of my kids fifteen years ago. They were shot using a video cam on Hi8 tape. I’m converting the videos to MP4 format and storing them to an external hard disk. Eventually, the idea is to take short sections, like highlights, and make a movie that can be burned to DVD.

So I set up a folding table in the music room/study of our home, and lined equipment up along it for the process. I’m sitting here now, with my MacBook Air, while the video camera plays to the MacBookPro, which is converting a Christmas eve video from 2001 to an mp4 file. And those two kids are just adorable, in there one-piece pajamas and colorful socks. My boy would have been five, my daughter a few days short of four. They’re playing together on the living room floor of the home we lived in while in Ann Arbor, Michigan. They’re talking to one another, playing so nicely. In the next scene they’re helping clean things up as we all get ready for bed.

Not don’t get me wrong, these two are still adorable as high schoolers. Well, maybe not adorable. Perhaps good looking, well-mannered. My boy is on the varsity wrestling team, my daughter plays for the State Champion Girls Basketball team. They do well in school. They have friends; they go out once and a while. They’re quickly becoming adults. But occasionally, like all siblings I suppose, they argue with each other, they don’t always pick up their things, and just don’t always cooperate. They’re not babies anymore. They don’t look at me with awe anymore. They don’t hang upon every word. They’re experienced in the things relative to the high school world. In defense of them, they are growing up. No longer are they dry sponges awaiting water that I pour. They think for themselves, have their own particular taste in clothing and music. They’re becoming there own persons.

But clearly in our relationship to our Heavenly Father, we are to remain like we were when we were children. We are to be in awe of Him. We are to hang upon every word. We are to develop and grow in Him, and in Him alone. Our taste is to be His taste. We are to emulate the model He provided for us when He came from Heaven to Earth. We are each unique, sure. We are each our own persons, within the boundaries of G-d’s Will for us, yes. But we don’t “know everything,” so we accept His way in our lives.

If we are not little children to the Father we have in Heaven, then we must be converted and become one.

‘I assure you,’ Y’shuaJesus said, ‘unless you are converted and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.’

Matthew 18:3

Matthew Henry put it this way: “Children, when very young, do not desire authority, do not regard outward distinctions, are free from malice, are teachable, and willingly dependent on their parents. It is true that they soon begin to show other dispositions, and other ideas are taught them at an early age; but these are marks of childhood, and render them proper emblems of the lowly minds of true Christians. Surely we need to be daily renewed in the spirit of our minds, that we may become simple and humble, as little children, and willing to be the least of all. Let us daily study this subject, and examine our own spirits.”

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

‘Tis the Season. . . (Or is it?)

Thanksgiving had not yet come and stores were already playing Christmas music while displays were changed. Red ribbons and green garnish added to shelves along with tinsel and pine branches. And now that Thanksgiving is over, there is a flurry of activity and more music. SirusXM satellite radio will devote several channels exclusively to Christmas music. Regular stations will emphasize Christmas music. It won’t be long before all the restaurants will play Christmas music, some too loudly. And the advertisements all include the Christmas theme. From the posters in the windows to radio and television ads, we are inundated with the message that we must BUY, BUY, BUY if we are to have a jolly old Christmas.

Well-meaning Christians try there best to include something about Y’shuaJesus among their own decorations. So we find Nativity scenes with Santa Claus and raindeer and elves and other mythical creatures celebrating. Occasionally I see a sticker plastered on a car that proclaims, “Jesus is the Reason for the Season.” Well-meaning, but to me so misled, so utterly wrong. For these are the same Christians that teach their children about Santa Claus, and in a few months will teach them about the Easter Bunny. Then one day those kids will find out the truth, there’s neither a Santa nor is there a Bunny who lays eggs. Will they conclude then that there’s no Jesus either?

It’s all just plain wrong. And it makes me sad. It makes me feel badly. It’s all such perversion. It reminds me of people selling stuff the the Temple of the Lord our G-d in Jerusalem around two thousand years ago. And I’m reminded of what Y’shuaJesus did there.

When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. 15 So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. 16 To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!” 17 His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”

John 2:13-17 (NIV)

This Christmas season is suppose to commemorate the birth of the Messiah, yet it is not even the time of the year that Y’shuaJesus was born. Christmas is celebrated at the Winter Solstice, a very Pagan holiday. And it was the Roman Catholic Church, the only church at the time, that selected and promoted this Christmas thing. It all begins with a lie and becomes a commercial venture. If Christmas were a truly Christian Celebration, then why would non-Christians join in the celebration? Do non-Believers take communion with Believers? Do non-believers sing with Believers the worship songs to the Lord?

And besides, when we were instructed to remember Y’shuaJesus, we were to remember that He is the bread of our lives, and His blood was shed for us and for our salvation . . .

Y’shuaJesus is not a baby laying in a manger. Y’shuaJesus is LORD.

Second Coming Jesus 22 (Photo credit: Waiting For The Word)

And I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And having turned, I saw seven golden lampstands; and in the middle of the lampstands one like the Son of Man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His breast with a golden girdle. And His head and His hair were white like wool, like snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire; and His feet were like burnished bronze, when it had been caused to glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters. And in His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword; and His face was like the sun shining in its strength. And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as a dead man. And He laid His right hand upon me, saying, ‘Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.

(Revelation 1:12-18).

When we see Y’shuaJesus, we aren’t asking any questions–like one of the women in that CNN program about women returning from the dead. If we don’t fall at his feet like dead men and women, we at the least will sit mouths dropped in awe. For Y’shuaJesus, born in a cradle, is King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and at His coming:

Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Philippians 2:9,11

Everyone will acknowledge Y’shuaJesus as Lord.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

A Life’s Mission

Those CNN stories of women who “died” and “returned” all seemed to have the idea of a life mission, whether it was a commitment to find one or continue one. So I was thinking. Many years ago, a member of the church group in which I ministered said he was waiting for a sign to begin his ministry, his mission. I think I was a bit harsh, not as pastoral as I’d once been, when I suggested that the Bible provided the all that we needed to hop to it, to go. I recall saying that he was like a pilot awaiting landing instructions from a small field that had no particular flight control center but relied upon written protocol. This fellow was awaiting a word, yet Y’shuaJesus, I’d said, already provided the word:

Then He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation.

Mark 16:15

As I write this, I think about how I’d responded in a way that wasn’t characteristic of me. I described it as a bit harsh, not as pastoral. . . There are time when I revert to a pastoral way with people. But just as often I find myself just speaking out what I find in me to say. Things change. Our calling doesn’t but perhaps what changes is the way we approach our calling, or how we perform.

This subtle change is exemplified a friend who ministered in a church that utilized the five-fold ministry of Apostle, Pastor, Prophet, Evangelist, and Teacher–an Apostolic Church similar to the one founded during or after the Welsh Revival in 1904-05, in Pen-y-groes, Wales. My friend had served in a position of Prophet, as it suited his personality. But the Apostle of the church was reassigning him to a pastoral ministry, which my friend found quite a challenge. My friend, however, agreed that it was necessary for his Christian growth, and good for the Church as well. The difference, I believe was in the way in which he was to relate to those to whom he was called to minister. He wasn’t just speaking the word of G-d, as when he was a prophet. Now my friend would speak to word, yes, but often in a different manner, staying around to pick up the pieces. He was also called, now, to comfort people going though hard times, struggling to stay afloat amid life’s drama.

Here’s the thing, I’m not so sure we have one specific destined task that we’re to complete in our sojourn upon Earth. We are all strangers in a strange land. We all relate to one another in some way. Perhaps our mission is very broad: to relate to each other in a righteous, Messiah-centered manner. At times this may mean we are to be good listener and ask appropriate questions that allow the other person to find his or her direction to Y’shuaJesus. There are other times I know that we are to be like a stone that sharpens a knife by grinding off rough edges.

Perhaps, then, our “mission” is our relationship to Messiah extended into our relationships with those around us–each day, every day.

Lord lead us into Your Truth. Lord extend Yourself through us. Lord let us lead others to You. AMEN.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine . . .

Letting go; Moving on

Last night, on a CNN program my wife watched, several people told of their experiences with death. One individual was sent back to finish her work, to finish the mission she’d been sent to Earth to complete, she said. She’d spoken to Y’shuaJesus. He sent her back, though she didn’t want to go. Another woman, dying of cancer with only a few hours to live, was visited by relatives that had died, and told to forget all that she’d been through, let it go, and complete the mission for which she’d been sent to Earth. In this particular case, she stated that she’d allowed the cancer to eat at her and that her body immediately healed itself once she came to some resolution about herself. There were other people, with other stories.

My wife asked me if I believed the stories. I said something like the people thought they’d experienced the events, but that I though it was more of a dream, an intense dream, that felt real. Even in the moment in which a heart stops beating, the brain is still alive. Why not continue dreaming. Then if the heart is revived, the person recalls the dream and thinks it happened.

That is my explanation.

One thing that rings true that one of these women said: we must forgive ourselves of our past sins. Y’shuaJesus died that we be forgiven. We are made new, so why not let go of the past mistakes, the past sins, and move on with our lives. If ever an enemy wished to defeat us, then that enemy would constantly remind us that we are sinners, we will always be sinners. Okay, so that enemy may be half right. We are sinners. But aren’t we also saved? We are saved by the mercy of G-d, through Y’shuaJesus. The enemy will fail to remind us of that part.

Brothers, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead

Phillipians 3:13

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

Persecuted for Messiah

The other day, a woman asked me what book that was on the dash of my truck. It’s in a book cover that says “This Book is Illegal. . .” I said, “The Bible.” She shook her head. “Really! The Bible is illegal in some countries?”

“Yes,” I said, “it is. Not only is the Bible illegal, but sharing the Gospel message is also. Not only that, but simply holding “church” is illegal in many countries.” She continued to shake her head as if to say, it’s hard to believe.

Is it hard to believe? If you haven’t visited www.persecution.com, the web home of Voice of the Martyrs, you’ve most likely not encountered stories of persecution against Christians. The mainstream media doesn’t tell the tale of faithful Christians attempting to fulfill the mandate given us by our Lord Y’shuaJesus just before he ascended into Heaven.

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.

Matthew 28:19,20

And it isn’t only evangelists and pastors that are persecuted, by the government and others: Too many children are injured or murdered each year. Take Weng Goodluck, for instance: (from Voice of the Martyrs bulletin)

“Weng Goodluck Tshua was three weeks old in March 2010 when Fulani Muslims attacked his village of Dogo Nahawa and slaughtered 501 Christians. All nine members of his family, including his father and mother, were killed. He was rescued from his burning house, but not before the fire had consumed his feet. As Weng has grown over the past few years, he has been unable to run around or even walk. But a VOM prosthetics team is helping change that.

“After studying his feet, the prosthetics team fashioned special shoes for both of his misshapen limbs. They returned several months later with specially fitted shoes that can be adjusted as three-year-old Weng continues to grow. Each shoe is made of three layers. As Weng grows, the inner layers can be removed as needed, to allow more room in the shoes. The team plans to provide new shoes for Weng before he grows out of the final layer of these shoes.

“This week VOM received new video of Weng, proudly walking around in is new, custom-made shoes. You can support blessings like this one to Weng and help provide for other Christians in need of medical care due to persecution by giving to support VOMedical.”

You can see the video of Weng Goodluck here.

Pray for the persecuted Church. They pray for us. And someday, we may be the ones suffering so intently simply for our choice of believing and following the Lord Y’shuaJesus.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

October

It seems I’ve skipped most of the month of October. It began with the representatives of Americans who wanted their voices heard about the way the Government is spending the people’s money. Lake of enough votes to actually pass a budget left my wife out of work for the first three weeks of the month.

So as the time flew by, my wife spent a lot of time in a corner of our house dedicated to her only real hobby, art. The passed five or so years she’s been gathering up photos, both old and new, and sorting through them, and preparing to build family scrapbooks. It’s really impossible to say exactly what I really did. I piddled around in the shop, did some things around the house that needed to be done.

One thing that we did, during the “furlough” is to go out for lunch together, at a few favorite places as well as trying out a few new ones. We discovered Mambo Jambo cafe, located near an old favorite lunch place. We ended up at Mambo when we arrived at that old favorite late, and confronted a crowd awaiting seats. It was so worth being late, and giving Mambo a try.

Mambo Jambo is subtitled A Nuevo Latino Seafood Cafe. Entering, we were greeted warmly, and lead to a booth or table, our choice, in one of two dining rooms. We chose a booth. Splitting the cafe provided a more intimate experience. The decor is earthly, using lots of dark wood and black iron. My wife had a margarita, while I choose the Dos X beer on tap. My wife commented that her drink was exceptional, with a generous amount of tequila. We both ordered fish tacos. They were served with several sauces, each a marvel. I had the “signiture” salad, that included strawberries, walnuts, and goat cheese. Delicious. My wife had a Greek salad, and loved the delicate, yet spicy dressing. Not only was the food excellent, but the presentation was striking. Everything from having a carafe of water on the table to the plates and bowls that the food was served on made a delight upon which the eyes feasted.

Presentation. It’s an old concept, really. I first read of it in relation to food in a Chinese cook book. It seems to me, that presentation is as persuasive as fragrance when it comes to the enjoyment that one may take from the simple act of eating a meal.

I am reminded of a verse in my morning reading of Revelation:

Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.

Revelation 19:9

And when I think of The Feast, I think of what we call the Last Supper. I think of how Y’shuaJesus presented Himself. He said we should break bread and drink wine and do so in remembrance of Him. The Body and The Blood. A true presentation.

How do I translate this into Christian Living for the Twenty-First Century? Simple! We are more than the money we give to ministries, we are ministers to those with whom we come into contact. We are living Bibles to people we meet each day. We are a meal to tantalize the senses of the unsaved. We are the Body of Messiah.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

Mission

Michael Connelly’s character, Detective Harry Bosch, continues to develop throughout the series, especially his mission. Early on in the series, Bosch says, “Everyone counts, or no one counts.” His investigations into the truth are important regardless if the murder victim is someone well known politically or socially, or an unknown street person. Bosch’s own life’s story comes into play here: his own mother, a woman of the night, was brutally murdered, the killer never found. Bosch’s life, then, becomes a crusade for truth that often pits him against people who’d just as well let the truth slide, covering up the death. Bosch’s clashes with superiors cause him to be suspended on occasion, and even be demoted in his position.

As Bosch’s character develops we learn different views of his mission. For instance, we learn that he is becoming a voice for the dead, the murdered, he investigates. Always present is that Bosch is constantly on the edge as he looks deeply into what he terms the abyss where the monsters of our society abide. There is danger in chasing monsters, for it is all to easily to become a monster while deluding himself that he is speaking for the murdered. So Bosch must maintain a high standard in his operating practices. The humanity of Bosch the hero is revealed when he breaks the rules, so to speak, and causes damage to himself as well as others. In one instance he is responsible for the death of a man simply by using that man’s name to get information he wanted but knew he was not authorized to obtain.

Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.

John 18:37

While the Character of Detective Harry Bosch does not believe in G-d, he does have one thing in common with those who do: his search for truth; his desire to truth be made known; and his battle against evil. For isn’t that precisely what our general mission is in our life here on Earth? Are we not to search diligently for truth? Are we not to make known that truth? Are we not constantly in a battle against evil?

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

The Murder Book

Michael Connelly writes crime thrillers. The desire to write was born while attending the University of Florida. He studied journalism and creative writing. After working on several newspapers in Florida, on the crime beat, he moved to Los Angeles to cover crime for the LA Times. After three years there, his first novel was published, Black Echo. It introduced the character Harry Bosch, who would become a main character in a series of books. There are now twenty books in that series.

In the first book of the series, the main character, Harry Bosch, is already a homicide detective with the Los Angeles Police Department, with many years on the job. We learn Bosch’s background early on in the series: Born in 1950 in Los Angeles to Marjorie Phillips Lowe, Bosch was named Hieronymus Bosch after the 15th century Dutch artist and nicknamed “Harry.” He became an orphan at 11 when his mother, a prostitute, was murdered. He grew up living in a youth hall and foster homes. He joined the army and did two tours in Vietnam. Harry returned to Los Angeles and joined the LAPD in 1972. He became a detective after five years in patrol.

One of the key pieces of an investigation, we learn from Connelly’s Detective Bosch, is the Murder Book. It is a complete record of one particular investigation. We learn that not only does the book contain interviews with witnesses, records of evidence discovered, and reports from scientific analysis, but it contains comments by the detectives. These comments are invaluable, according to Connelly’s character Bosch, as they show the detectives’ minds, tie the evidence together, and give direction to the investigation.

In one of the novels, Connelly’s character Bosch describes going through a particular murder book from a four-year-old unsolved case. He goes over and over the book letting the facts and analysis of the case soak into him. Bosch tells us that the key to any case lies within the details of the Murder Book and doesn’t readily just pop out. He says that the more familiar he is with the book, the easier new pieces of the investigation will fit together. The end result is a moment in which he, the investigator, understands the significance of various details in the book and is able to come to a conclusion about the case.

It occurs to me that this is exactly what we as Followers of Y’shuaJesus do when we read and reread the Bible on a daily basis. I know for myself there are days in which I simply read a book. Yesterday I read Obadiah. It’s not a long book. I wasn’t “studying” it, looking for anything particular. I was just reading. But like Bosch’s Murder Book, the more I read, the more familiar various pieces of the whole work of G-d become to me. It seems to me that throughout my daily life, I’m confronted with new situations. The more familiar I am with the situations and the lessons gleaned from the Bible, the better I am at handling the situations encountered daily.

For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the LORD, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.

Esra 7:10
Additionally, there is something that changes within me the more I engage with the Bible. It’s no accident that it is called the Living Word. For the Bible, to those whose names are written in the Book of Life, is food that we consume and digest and it becomes part of us. Now that doesn’t mean I’m done. For every day is a day in which I know I am a work in progress. The Lord is our Potter, making us into the person we are to become. And one day, Thank You Lord Y’shua, we will feast with Him at the Great Supper of the Lamb.

In the meantime, we are here and one of our missions is to absorb the Word of G-d so, as the Ezra put it, do the Word and teach it.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .