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Showing posts from May, 2012

"There Will Be Blood"

When we often think about history we see the events and people through a romantic lens. We polish out the gore of wars and focus on the sparkling mail of the noble knight and imagine that battles are as pure and tame as the Olympic Games. If there was blood, it was a mere sprinkle and those who fell beneath the blade collapsed ominously with a halo. The image of corpses dismembered and a river of blood is not something we want to think about. We want the sparkle, the opulence and the pomp. When reality surfaces we avert our eyes and deny that such horror could have ever been. There is nothing wrong with romanticizing history and depicting the Arthurs and Beowulfs of old in a radiant light. However, It is important to remember that the engagements between armies on the fields of Sterling , Hattin, and Malta weren't beautiful. The reality of what a knight experienced is not something most would be willing to publish. We are dazzled by his mail, his curly hair and his chivalrous...

Matrimony and Monasticism

"In the Beginning God created the heavens and the Earth. On the Sixth Day, he created man. Even though Adam walked and talked with God, he was lonely and could not find a suitable mate out of all creation. God took pity on Adam and created Woman and Adam named her Eve." (Genesis 1-3). Since Eden , Mankind has always needed a companion. Despite being in the perpetual presence of the Almighty, we human beings need each other. We are like a trinity, like the Creator. We need connection to the One God, and to another human being (typically a person of the opposite sex). After Elohim created mankind, he have two edicts: "Be fruitful and multiply and subdue (put to order) the earth."(Genesis 1:28). Hence forth we were meant to find our significant other and rule with them over a part of the planet (like an apartment in New York or a farm in Ohio ). Scripture is filled with the connection between man and woman, there are love stories, break ups, and lots of romant...

The Wilderness

Henry David Thoreau is known for his sentiments on the importance of surrounding oneself with nature. He claims in his book Walden, that we must live "deliberately," and embrace nature. I've been thinking in particular about the seventeenth chapter of Walden, where he describes the various mediums or places man can meet nature. Thoreau mentions the wilderness. He says, "we must be refreshed by the sight of inexhaustible vigor, vast and Titanic features, the sea coast with its wrecks, the wilderness with its living and decaying trees.."(Walden Ch. 17). The wilderness stands out to me because of It's Biblical implications. The Wilderness has been a significant place throughout the Scriptures. It is where Jesus Christ was tested by the devil (Matt 4 and Luke 4), where King David sough refuge from Saul, and where the Children of Israel after the Exodus had to wander for forty years. Too often the focus is on the actions of the people who had to endure the...

The True Treasure

Disclaimer : The following is from David Wilkerson's World Challenge Pulpit Series: The Costliness of Possessing Christ. I did not pen any of the words below. Christ is the treasure chest in the field. In him, I have found all that I'll ever need. To me, that means the following: No more trying to find purpose in ministry. No more looking for fulfillment in people. No more need to build something for God or be a success or feel useful. No more searching for ways to please people. No more trying to think or reason my way out of difficulties. I have found what I'm looking for. My treasure , my pearl, is Christ. And all the Owner asks of me is, "David, let me adopt you. I love you, and I have already signed the papers with my own Son's blood. You are now a joint heir with him of all I possess." I'm still in the process of selling everything I have. I'm still giving the Father my time, thoughts, will, and plans. Yet I know I...