March 2013 – Page 2

Student suspended for NOT stomping on Jesus

Posted on March 25, 2013 by elizabethprata

Florida Atlantic Univ. student claims he was suspended for not stomping on Jesus
A student at Florida Atlantic University has charged that his professor in intercultural communications class told the whole class to write the name JESUS in bold letters on a piece of paper, then drop the papers and stomp all over them. The alleged incident happened three weeks ago on the Davie, Florida campus of FAU, according to WPEC-TV. (Scroll down for the video.) Junior Ryan Rotela, a devout Mormon, is the student making the charge. “Anytime you stomp on something it shows that you believe that something has no value,” he told the South Florida CBS affiliate. “So if you were to stomp on the word Jesus, it says that the word has no value.” Some students stomped; others, including Rotela, didn’t. He said he told the instructor, Deandre Poole, that the assignment offended his religious convictions. Two days later, the junior alleges, he went to an FAU school official to express his unease with the assignment. The result? Rotela has been suspended from the class. An FAU official defended the decision, telling WPEC that the Jesus-stomping was part of a classroom exercise from a textbook: “Intercultural Communication: A Contextual Approach, 5th Edition.”

When’s the Allah-stomping class? Hmmm?

Later, the College apologized. They are not going to use this exercise anymore. The exercise really is from the textbook. The manual reads:

“This exercise is a bit sensitive, but really drives home the point that even though symbols are arbitrary, they take on very strong and emotional meanings. Have the students write the name JESUS in big letters on a piece of paper. Ask the students to stand up and put the paper on the floor in front of them with the name facing up. Ask the students to think about it for a moment. After a brief period of silence, instruct them to step on the paper. Most will hesitate. Ask why they can’t step on the paper. Discuss the importance of symbols in culture.”

There’s just one thing, though. Jesus is not a symbol. He is GOD. he is real, walked the earth as a man, and rose again to reign over our lives from His throne in heaven. He isn’t a symbol like a stop sign is a symbol. he is not a symbol like an alphabet letter is a symbol. Calling this “a bit sensitive” understates things. And would the textbook ‘dare’ to use Allah’s name instead? Of course not.

Luke 21:17 says, “and you will be hated by all because of My name.” The name of Jesus evokes anger, disdain, and hatred.

“They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me.” (John 15:21)

cross, horizontal cross, jewelry, merchandise, sideways cross

The latest Christian fad- Is wearing a sideways (horizontal) cross good, or bad?

Posted on March 24, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

Kelly Ripa has one. Taylor Jacobson, Rachel Zoe’s assistant has one. Jessica Biel wears it too. Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens, Jennifer Lopez, Kourtney Kardashian, Jillian Michaels…all sport one. (And if you know who those people are, more power to you.) It has been described as “wildly popular”, “the hottest trend,” “totally cute”, and the “in fashion.” What is it? The sideways cross necklace.

Any time there is innovation related to anything in Christianity, we perk up. Our first question should be “What does it mean?” Why do we ask this first? We must be reverent–

“Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe,” (Hebrews 12:28)

“And from the throne came a voice saying, “Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, small and great.” (Revelation 19:5).

Fads are nothing new. They affect Christianity just as they affect the world. Most often, fads are related to doctrine, movements, or worldwide phenomena in the ecclesiology department, affecting preaching. As Phil Johnson says of fads,

“In the past two decades we have seen a relentless parade of phony miraculous phenomena, and literally millions of Christians have jumped on this bandwagon, running from one charismatic fad to another, desperately trying to get in on the latest display of divine power.”

But there are Christian merchandising fads, too. Love Dare diaries from Fireproof, Courageous Decree, WWJD bracelets, prayer blankets… fads, fads, fads. As Phil Johnson asked in 2005 of the merchandising fads, “Shall we sell our birthright for a mess of faddage?“

“So why has the recent culture of American evangelicalism—a movement supposedly based on a commitment to timeless truths—been so susceptible to fads? Why are evangelical churches so keen to jump on every bandwagon? Why do our people so eagerly rush to buy the latest book, CD, or cheap bit of knockoff merchandise concocted by the marketing geniuses who have taken over the Christian publishing industry?”

Some of the beginner-level fads have seemed harmless enough—evangelical kitsch like Kinkade paintings, Precious Moments® collectibles, singing songbooks, moralizing vegetables, bumper stickers, Naugahyde® Bible covers, and whatnot. Such fads themselves, taken individually, may not seem worth complaining about at all. But collectively, they have created an appetite for “the ugly and the superficial.” They have spawned more and more fads. Somewhere along the line, evangelicals got the notion that all the fads were good, because the relentless parade of bandwagons gave the illusion that evangelicals were gaining significant influence and visibility. No bandwagon was too weird to get in the parade. And the bigger, the better.

Johnson goes on to say that somewhere along the line bandwagons become Trojan horses. I recommend Pastor Johnson’s essay in its entirety. He sure can write. (His retirement from blogging left a huge hole! Wah!)

Is it bad to wear a sideways necklace? I’d written a few days ago about hair, clothes and jewelry, here: “Adorned in Christ, how should we dress for Holy Week?” In that essay I’d mentioned, ” 1 Timothy 2:9 says “likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire,” and went through the historical reasons for that admonition and the one in 1 Peter 3:3.

So we ask again, is it bad or wrong to wear a sideways cross necklace? is it respectable apparel?

I looked for a definitive interpretation of the horizontal cross, and though a definitive one was lacking, I found the following in most places I looked:

One interpretation holds that wearing the cross sideways means that “humanity is positioned right in the middle of heaven and hell. This makes it a neutral symbol.”

This seems like an innocuous and even a pleasant notion. But, no, there is no neutrality. There is no middle road. In fact this is an insidious teaching that is contrary to what the bible teaches. Either you believe and you’re saved as a son of God, or you do not believe and you are condemned already as a child of hell. (John 3:18, Matthew 23:15, Hebrews 3:19). Humanity is already in either heaven or hell.

Another interpretation holds that: “Because of this meaning, some people say that wearing a sideways cross necklace means that you are aware of your place in this existence; And that you are grounded here on earth.”

Again this is contrary to what the bible teaches. Christians who believe by faith in the Gospel have a home in heaven. This earth is not our home. (Hebrews 13:14). We are not to love the world or anything in the world. (1 John 2:15). If you are a Christian wearing a sideways necklace to show you are grounded here on earth, either you have a flawed idea of what Christianity is or you have no clue about the glory that awaits.

“There are also people who believe that the sideways orientation of a necklace symbolizes Jesus Christ carrying the cross, this is one of my favorite interpretations.”

But He is not still carrying the cross. He died and rose again from an upright cross, declaring that it is finished. (John 19:30). That trumps the Savior’s carrying of it.

“It has also been based on the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The horizontal orientation of the necklace connotes that Jesus Christ has actually risen and that the cross has already been laid down to signify that humanity has been saved.”

This is also a false notion. It sounds Christian-y but it is actually untrue. First, He didn’t lay down the cross. And nether are we commanded to lay it down, we are to take it up (Mark 8:34).

Secondly, humanity has not been saved, only those who are in Christ are saved. For the unsaved billions, a sideways cross would be a futile symbol. What about them?

No, more to the point, if you’re going to symbolize things, ‘Lay down your arms” means it is being dispensed with. It is over. Done. Fighting is stopped. You accede, acquiesce, quit, surrender.

Yet Christians are called to pick up our cross, not lay it down. (Luke 9:23). We are called to arm ourselves and fight, taking up the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:13). Wearing a sideways, laying down cross seems antithetical to what we are called to do in scripture.

And how many times are we called to stand? We are not standing in our own strength, either, but stand in Jesus. (Romans 14:4). His cross is still standing! Why would we ever signal that we are laying down our Christianity?

If you are not all that into symbolical interpretations of these things, and just want to wear a horizontal cross without all the hoo-haa, then before wearing sideways cross jewelry, ask yourself these questions:

Does it make you, the wearer, consumed with how the jewelry makes you look? (1 Peter 3:3).

It’s trendy, but should we join hands with the world and monkey with the 2000 year old symbol of our faith just to be “in”?

Would you be offended if your church laid the cross at the church altar on its side?

Is it a silent statement against Christianity, a jewelry wearer’s rebellion?

Is it making a commodity out of the Gospel by monkeying with its traditionality for the sake of fashion and money? Remember, Nadab and Abihu innovated a sacrificial service, and were killed for it. (Leviticus 10:1-2). Not that I am saying you will be killed by God if you wear a sideways cross, certainly, but is innovation proper? God gave us our faith, the holy bible, and its symbols. The most important one is the cross. God didn’t have Jesus die on a guillotine, or by the sword. He died on a cross, and that was for a specific, holy, perfect reason. Do you really want to innovate that, when God set it forth in perfection in the first place?

If there is this much confusion about its meaning, can it be good?

Does it exalt Jesus? Or bring confusion to the symbol and its universally understood meaning for the past 2000 years?

Are you succumbing to a merchandising fad? “That is the culture the evangelical movement deliberately created when it accepted the notion that religion is something to be peddled and sold to consumers like a commodity. That was a major philosophical shift that created an environment where unspiritual and unscrupulous men could easily make merchandise of the gospel.” ~Phil Johnson

The bible says that there will be fads and they come on the backs of greedy teachers bringing false words- “And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.” (2 Peter 2:3).

Here is the most compelling reason not to wear a sideways cross!

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up,”

John 3:14, Numbers 21:9

israel, jews, Obama, prophecy, turkey, zechariah

Israel PM brother-in-law says Obama is an anti-Semite

Posted on March 24, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

I happen to agree with Israel Prime Minister Netanyahu’s brother-in-law. Here is news today regarding Obama in Israel-

Netanyahu’s Brother-In-Law Says Obama Is An Anti-Semite, Hates Israel
“In the midst of trying to ease tensions following one of the worst diplomatic rifts between the US and Israel in recent memory, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was forced to distance himself from his brother-in-law Wednesday after he accused US President Barack Obama of being an anti-Semite during a radio interview. “It’s not that Obama doesn’t like Bibi,” Hagai Ben-Artzi said during the interview, according to Haaretz. “He doesn’t like the nation of Israel.” Ben-Artzi attributed Obama’s alleged anti-Semitism to his long association with Rev. Jeremiah Wright, whose views Obama came to disavow during his presidential campaign in 2008. “When there is an anti-Semitic president in the United States, it is a test for us and we have to say: We will not concede. We are a nation dating back 4,000 years, and you in a year or two will be long forgotten. Who will remember you? But Jerusalem will dwell on forever,” Ben Artzi said.”

Netanyahu immediately distanced himself from his brother-in-law and rejected his opinion.

However, as with anyone, anywhere, check to see that what they say and what they do match up. Obama’s behavior over the last 4 years as president toward Israel’s prime minister has not been one of love or even regard, but of barely disguised disdain.

Last September, Reuters reported, In an unusual snub, Obama to avoid meeting Netanyahu

In 2010 the UK Telegraph reported, “Obama snubbed Netanyahu for dinner with Michelle and the girls, Israelis claim“
“Benjamin Netanyahu was left to stew in a White House meeting room for over an hour after President Barack Obama abruptly walked out of tense talks to have supper with his family, it emerged on Thursday.”

In January 2013, an American columnist with close ties to the White House described Obama’s disdain for Netanyahu.

This is not how you treat your ONLY ally in a harsh and hostile part of the world, not if you have regard and respect for its people nation to nation, that is.

Obama seems to be getting some props for “brokering” a rapprochement between Israel and Turkey. Their relations had broken down after Turkey violated (allegedly) a marine blockade by Israel and Israel shot several Turkish officers in the sea scuffle. Diplomatic relations had been called off since late 2010-early 2011, with only one phone call by Netanyahu to Turkey to offer help after Turkey’s earthquake. Turkey said no thanks.

The Japan Times explains, “Israel and Turkey were once close allies. Relations began to decline after Erdogan, whose party has roots in Turkey’s Islamist movement, became prime minister in 2003. Erdogan has embarked on a campaign to make Turkey a regional powerhouse in an attempt to become the leading voice in the Muslim world but has in the process distanced the country from Israel.”

However, despite those ambitions, at least for today, the two nations appeared to ‘bury the hatchet’ as Japan Times said. Haaretz reports, “In November 2012, Israel and Turkey resumed talks on ending the crisis in relations between the two countries. On March 22, 2013, Netanyahu made the phone call to Erdogan, apologizing over the deaths of the nine Turkish citizens in the flotilla incident. The normalization agreed by both countries included the return of the Turkish ambassador to Tel Aviv and the Israeli ambassador to Ankara.”

Some say that it is good that diplomatic tensions have eased between the two nations. The region is aflame with Syria’s civil war and refugees streaming into Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon. Israel could use Turkey’s help with the situation and vice versa. Others say it is not a good idea, Israel looked weak to bow to Turkey after all this time and lowered morale of the soldiers. His apology created a firestorm at home. And after all, biblically, Turkey will attack Israel in the Gog-Magog war. (Ezekiel 38:6). If they form warm relations now, it won’t last.

At the end of Obama’s trip to Israel, he stopped to tour the ancient rose-red city of Petra in nearby Jordan. Petra means rock, and it is located in the region of Bozrah, which means sheepfold. It is the place where the Jews will flee to when they see the abomination of desolation. (Matthew 24:16). How do we know this?

Daniel 11:41 declares that Jordan is the only place that will escape the domination of the antichrist in the last days. The Jews at that time will flee over the mountains as per Matthew 24:16 and as Revelation 12:14 says, they will cross the desert. Geologically, the only mountains and desert is toward the southwest, over the Jordan river and into Edom. Isaiah 63:1 shows the Lord Jesus coming from Bozrah with blood stained robes, indicating one of His stops before He lands on the Mount of Olives (Zechariah 14:4) will be to save the Jews hiding there.

To see a person such as Obama who has such a strong antichrist spirit (1 John 4:3 and also here) standing in such a prophetically wonderful and important place for the Jews, and he who hates Israel so much…it is a jarring juxtaposition.

As far as Netanyahu’s brother-in-law goes, I am in total agreement. Obama by his behavior and by his placement here at this time in America, seems to have severe disdain for the nation of Israel. But that is no more or no less than the rest of the world, which seems to be hurtling toward fulfillment of the following prophecy:

“On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it.” (Zechariah 12:3)

Zechariah has much to say about the coming times. There is an incredible amount of last days prophecy throughout Zechariah’s book, including parallels with Revelation. As Pastor Steve Hadley says, pound for pound, Zechariah has it almost over even Daniel in terms of prophecy. If you would like to listen to a preacher preach through this book, verse by verse, I’d recommend Steve Hadley at Harvest Family Fellowship, here.

Always keep your eyes on the Lord through His word. What He is doing is amazing. We look at the news in wonder but the real wonder comes when we read His valuable and precious word, and see what He has planned. Did you ever stop to think that it is amazing in itself that He even tells us what He plans to do? He is God after all. He doesn’t have to. Just reading the bible is a miracle for us, because it is the place where His holiness and perfection and love is revealed. If your bible is dusty, brush it off and open it up. There are many wonders awaiting you there.

history channel, parable, the bible

"A Parable: History Channel Does a Reagan Documentary"

Posted on March 23, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

A reader of this blog who corresponds occasionally, has started his own blog. He is young, eager, and loves the Lord. He is learning. It is a pleasure to see what the Lord can do with a willing heart.

The young man sent me this essay he’d written as an email, that he turned into a blog post, that he sent to me to link to or post it in its entirety myself, if I wanted to. I want to.

The Lord is alive and well in His body, growing us, sanctifying us, comforting us, delivering wisdom and discernment to us. We are all stripes, young and old, energetically vital or world-weary and plodding, male and female, singles and marrieds, parents and childless. What unites us is the Lord, who by no merit of our own, elected us to His saving grace and brought us to His bosom. We’re many facets of a single prism, and the light pouring out from it is Jesus.

Please take a moment to read his essay. And if you ever have time, go on over to his blog to offer some guidance, encouragement or just to read what comes from the Lord’s work in His young people. I really liked the essay about today’s praise music, called “The Wretched Podcast“.

—————————-
Begin contributed essay “A Parable: History Channel Does a Reagan Documentary“

Imagine that I’m a movie producer.

I really love president Ronald Reagan. I want to honor his contribution to American politics and to the world by filming a dramatic documentary featuring him. It’s going to cover his personal life, his journey to the White House, the events of his presidency, and finally end with his death and funeral.

So I set about doing research so that I’ll do my best job representing Reagan as who he was. First, I need to consult historical experts. I decide to ask the governments of Russia and Iran for their historical analysis of his contributions. Furthermore, I interview Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama, for their insight into the presidency. I go to other famous documentary filmmakers such as Michael Moore and Oliver Stone to see what I can learn from them. Naturally, I consult with Matt Damon, Ricky Gervais and George Clooney, whom I might consider inviting to play a key acting role in the film.

Now that I’m ready to film, I decide that the best location would be Johannesburg, South Africa. I film exclusively there. While there, one of our crew members gets shot in the butt, since South Africa has the world’s highest violent crime rate–2,000 per 100,000. We interpret this as a miraculous occasion, since Reagan was also shot by someone but survived.

While filming, we present Reagan as a transgendered Japanese orphan growing up in a cardboard-and-sheet-metal “house” in the slums outside the city. He was forced to become a member of an underground boxing ring to earn money to feed his family. One day he meets the King of France, Genghis Khan, who takes him back to Brazil in his rocket ship to be his personal servant. Reagan grows and learns to maneuver through Brazilian politics, and eventually becomes a successful leader of a drug cartel. This is how he eventually gets to America. Reagan then becomes elected to the White House, and while president, invades Russia and nukes Iran. Minor details, it’s called artistic license. Get over it. Eventually Reagan leaves the white house and dies by getting shot by a Tea Party maniac wielding an AR-15 while he was attending a pro-Obama rally during the 2012 election campaign.

Wait, wait, wait, you say. You’ve got all the details wrong. This isn’t the real Reagan. Sure, he was president of the US, but all the facts are wrong. Who he is, where he came from, what he did and why he did it. Everything is changed in your movie.

But my supporters respond by saying, well, shouldn’t you be happy that at least someone had the nerve to do a documentary about Reagan in the first place? Think of all the people that could become Republicans as a result!

It’s like that with History Channel’s The Bible. It’s the Bible in name only, but all the details are wrong. Which Jesus do you follow? The one who came to “change the world,” or the one who came to SAVE the world?

———————end essay———————

See? Pretty good huh?! The Lord uses all His children.

“Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.” But the Lord said to me,

“Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’;
for to all to whom I send you, you shall go,
and whatever I command you, you shall speak.
8 Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you,
declares the Lord.” (Jeremiah 1:6-7).

“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.” (1 Timothy 4:12)

bolide, fireball, meteors, signs in the sky

Are there more meteors?

Posted on March 23, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

Wow, there are a lot of meteors, bolides, and comets crossing the skies these days.

A meteor crossed the skies of the United States last night and was seen from New England to Florida.
“East Coast residents were buzzing on social media sites and elsewhere Friday night after a brief but bright flash of light streaked across the early-evening sky –in what experts say was almost certainly a meteor coming down. Bill Cooke of NASA’s Meteoroid Environmental Office said the flash appears to be “a single meteor event.” He said it “looks to be a fireball that moved roughly toward the southeast, going on visual reports.” “Judging from the brightness, we’re dealing with something as bright as the full moon,” Cooke said. “The thing is probably a yard across. We basically have (had) a boulder enter the atmosphere over the northeast.” He noted that the meteor was widely seen, with more than 350 reports on the website of the American Meteor Society (AMS) alone.”

The end time through eyes of a child

Posted on March 23, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

I work with five-year-old children for my job. It’s with kindergarteners at a public elementary school. I love children and I contend that I have the best job in the world.

Sometimes it’s a little disheartening, though. I just want the best for every kid, and some kids never get the best. Enough said.

The Lord is THE most sensitive about children. He spoke much about them and this is recorded in the bible. We know one of the most famous verses about children:

“Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.” (Psalm 127:3-5)

“When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.” (John 16:21). Therefore you can guess what the Lord thinks of abortion…just sayin’.

“Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers.” (Proverbs 17:6)

Look at the scene here in Mark 9:35-37-

“And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and taking him in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.”’

Not just what He said but the scene. Picture it in your mind. Jesus had been teaching The Twelve all day and then they came to the house at Capernaum where they stayed. He continued teaching. And to illustrate His point, “He took a child”. So I ask, what child? Where did the child come from? Luke 9:47 says the child “was by His side.” Usually didn’t the children remain outside the adults’ purview, especially when important matters were being discussed? Yet Jesus hadn’t dismissed the child when He continued teaching the Twelve inside the house.

The idea there was that children are weak, powerless and innocent. You come to the Kingdom like that, with no achievements, no portfolio of awards, nothing to commend one’s self. Like a child.

Susannah Wesley, the mother of John and Charles Wesley, raised seventeen children and had these words to say about raising children: “The parent who studies to subdue [self–will] in his child works together with God in the renewing and saving a soul. The parent who indulges it does the devil’s work, makes religion impracticable, salvation unattainable, and does all that in him lies to damn his child, soul and body forever” (cited in The Journal of John Wesley [Chicago: Moody, n.d.], p. 106).

In other words, children are important to Jesus.

I follow a guy on twitter who tweets from Syria. As you know, the situation there is one of chaos, strife, hunger and war. The rebellion against Dictator Bashar al Assad has been going on for two years and there is much shelling in all areas of the nation, including Damascus (Isaiah 17:1) and Aleppo, one of the largest cities in Syria. The gentleman posted the following last night:

A young child who looks to be about age 12 is interviewed after a rocket barrage had destroyed his neighborhood in Aleppo. The set of his chin, struggling mightily to not cry, the dignity and the cut-to-the-heart question of “Why”, brought tears to my eyes.

I post this not to depress you but that though we are mindful of the times, let’s also be mindful of the people. Especially the children. When we in America say ‘man up’ to a young kid usually we mean get along without your cell phone for half a day. ‘Man up’ for this boy means pulling out dismembered cousins from the rubble of their home and telling his father he is not injured so as to spare him further worry.

Please be in prayer for the people of Syria, and all children around the world who are experiencing unimaginable hardship, who don’t know Christ and don’t understand why this is happening.

Reporter: “Tell us what happened.”
Boy: We were sleeping. It was about 10 pm. At a point we heard a sound coming from above and we said get out of here. I screamed to the people to help me but those were the people who needed help. We entered and pulled out my brothers, cousins. 40 have gone. My grandfather’s family members have gone. The missile fell on their home, and there was a leg and there was a…what can I say to you? My grandmother was in 4 pieces, my aunt “flew away” because we have not found her. We don’t know. I just want to know, why is he shelling us? For the law of the powerful over the weak? Only for that?”

He goes on to say that though he was injured, he did not want to tell his father, who was having enough trouble with the situation. Throughout, he manfully tries not to cry.

Gabriele Galimberti photographed children around the world with their toys. That’s it. Accompanying each photo is a very short bio. That’s it. And though the photo is simple and the text is short, these photos are powerful in their storytelling.

Arafa and Aisha are twins. They sleep in the same bed, have the same clothes, go to school together and share the same toys. They live in a two-room house in which both of the rooms are bedrooms, and the kitchen and restroom are outside. The big photo above the closet is a portrait of the formal president of Zanzibar.

Bethsaida was born in Port-au-Prince where she has always lived in a house with her family since, almost 2 years ago, a big earthquake destroyed it. Her parents are both deaf and dumb but fortunately she’s not. Now they live in a camp site out of the city. The camp was built from an American NGO which works with deaf and dumbs, so in the camps almost 90% of the people can’t hear and talk. All the toys that Bethsaida has are donated from the NGO. She wants to be a hairdresser and loves combing her doll to practice, but unfortunately her brother has cut off half of the hair of the doll.

Chiwa lives in a small hut with her mother, father and sister. They don’t have electricity and running water. Chiwa used to help her mother to carry water at home from the river. In the village there are other 50 children (more or less) and they always plays all together outside. Chiwa has just 3 toys that some volunteers of a NGO gave to her when she was born. Her favourite is the dinosaurus because she says that he can protect her from the dangerous animals.

Tangwizi was born in a Masai village in the south of Kenya in a small hut made of dung and straw. His bed is made of a few rags on the ground. He always plays outside with all the other children of the village but every night he sleeps together with his unique toy: a little pelouche monkey.

Kalesi loves to cook for her dolls using her small cook tools and the mud from the garden. She has an older brother which goes to school every morning and she love to pretend to go to school too. She puts small toys and some paper in her back pack (the one from transformers is her favourite one) and she goes in the garden where there is a small table that she uses as a school desk.

Niko was born in a small town in the mountains of Alaska in the Kenai peninsula. His father is a fisherman and his mother is a teacher. Niko loves to play with Legos and similar games. He built a small Lego spaceship and likes to imagine he’s bringing little men up to space.

There are many more photos at the link. They are wonderful.

The end time is a time when mature Christians pray and sing and anticipate with joy the coming of the Lord to remove us from this earth and bring us to glory before the Tribulation. Often, this attitude is mocked by others who call us escapists, or weaklings. Aside from being the wrong attitude to have (because every Christian should want to be with the Lord more than cling to the sinful world and the things in it) I say that why wouldn’t we want the rapture to come…if that means that all the children will finally be safe??

Though the bible does not specifically address the issue of children being taken in the rapture, I believe it is consistent with the implicit verses in the bible, and consistent with the character of God’s mercy to take the children and babies in the rapture. GotQuestions thinks so as well.

O, come, Lord Jesus, remove us, and the children from the world. Its sinful effects are so towering and so devastating, and wear the most on those least powerful or able to comprehend.

clothes for church

Adorned in Christ, how should we dress for Holy Week?

Posted on March 22, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

I have a quandary. I never know how much or how little to dress up for church.

With Palm Sunday and Easter coming up, I’m thinking about it more than ever.

By nature, I like simple clothing, no makeup and little to no jewelry. However, for church, I like to make an effort to dress distinctively. It is a different day than the work-a-day weekdays, and errands-busy Saturday. It is the Lord’s Day. I want to look my best to show God His value to me.

However, the verse in 1 Timothy 2:9 says

“likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire,”

First, I need to discover what this means in context. Is there a historical reason for this? We know that the richer people of the times wore purple. (Acts 16:14, Luke 16:19). It was the most expensive kind of garment because it was the most expensive kind of dye. It had to be processed from tiny mollusks. Wearing purple in those days was a deliberate statement of “I’m rich,” rather than a personal choice of “I like purple.” Do we do that today? Make clothing purchases that deliberately show our wealth and status, rather than having been purchased simply because it was a nice garment?

“Tyrian Purple,” the purple dye of the ancients mentioned in texts dating back to about 1600 B.C., was produced from the mucus of the hypobranchial gland of various species of marine mollusks, notably Murex. It took some 12,000 shellfish to extract 1.5 grams of the pure dye.” (source History, Shellfish, Royalty, and the Color Purple)

As for other adornments, the women used to treat their hair with fine curls and interweave jewels or pearls into them. The hair of a Roman woman or lady was dressed in plaited braids and worn at the back of the head as shown.

Roman women also wore headdresses especially if they had an important position in society. The image below shows the headdresses worn by Roman empresses.

Ladies would interweave jewels, pearls, or gold into their hair in complicated patterns-

Source

Barnes Notes:

That women adorn themselves – The apostle by the use of the word “adorn” (κοσμεῖν kosmein), shows that he is not opposed to ornament or adorning, provided it be of the right kind. The world, as God has made it, is full of beauty, and he has shown in each flower that he is not opposed to true ornament. There are multitudes of things which, so far as we can see, appear to be designed for mere ornament, or are made merely because they are beautiful. Religion does not forbid true adorning. It differs from the world only on the question what “is” true ornament.

Hmmm. So true. God loves beauty. Barnes continues:

“Not with broidered hair – Margin, “plaited.” Females in the East pay much more attention to the hair than is commonly done with us. It is plaited with great care, and arranged in various forms, according to the prevailing fashion, and often ornamented with spangles or with silver wire or tissue interwoven; see the notes on Isaiah 3:24. The sense here is, that Christian females are not to imitate those of the world in their careful attention to the ornaments of the head. It cannot be supposed that the mere braiding of the hair is forbidden, but only that careful attention to the manner of doing it, and to the ornaments usually worn in it, which characterized worldly females.”

OK, so the message seems to be ‘don’t go overboard.’ I can understand that. At some point, a lengthy bout in front of the mirror will begin to transfer attraction for the self instead of the One who is being dressed for. More Barnes:

Any external decoration which occupies the mind more than the virtues of the heart, and which engrosses the time and attention more, we may be certain is wrong. The apparel should be such as not to attract attention. It is a poor ambition to decorate a dying body with gold and pearls. It should not be forgotten that the body thus adorned will soon need other habiliments, and will occupy a position where gold and pearls would be a mockery. When the heart is right; when there is true and supreme love for religion, it is usually not difficult to regulate the subject of dress.

That is why Peter says,
“Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear” (1 Peter 3:3)

For the holy days, Palm Sunday and Easter, and all the Sabbath days, I think we should dress in clothes that match the occasion and the place. We should never dress like the world. Of course we understand that means not so casually and also not so formally that we are rarified dandies, but modestly and separate from how the world dresses.

I have church clothes but they aren’t all that fancy. My personal tastes and my personal finances do not allow for finery such as I used to wear in the days when I was flush but unsaved. I’ve sold much of my jewelry to pay the bills and what I do still have I rarely wear. I just feel funny about putting it all on. I certainly don’t wear clothes that show my body immodestly. But I am sure that there are some who think I don’t dress up enough.

If I wear finery and my jewelry, am I consumed with how it makes me look? Am I trying to be an object of attention rather than blending in so that Jesus would stand out in the church service more than the flash of my jewelry? Or should I wear it so that I am dressing for my groom on a holy day that is separate from the days I dress for work, my boss, and my peers?

I think the happy medium is to dress in a way that doesn’t cause anyone to stumble, that is modest, and reflects Jesus in my heart rather than adorning an empty shell. This goes for men, too. He knows the heart. Christ is the adornment. I loved what Barnes said above, “It is a poor ambition to decorate a dying body with gold and pearls. It should not be forgotten that the body thus adorned will soon need other habiliments, and will occupy a position where gold and pearls would be a mockery.”

Dress for Holy week with Him in mind. As GotQuestions advises,

“We would all benefit from a “spiritual bath” to confess and get rid of sin before we go to church. This is making ourselves pure. For some people, clean is their “best.” For others, their heart tells them that wearing their best is showing God His value to them. For still others, there needs to be a caution that their best isn’t merely showing off.

It is always the heart God is looking at, rather than the exterior. However, what we wear to worship our holy, pure God may be an indication of where our hearts are. If you have never considered it before, ask yourself, “Does it matter to me how I look when I am going to worship the King of Kings and Lord of Lords? More importantly, does it matter to Him?” We must all be the judge of that for ourselves. It’s a personal choice, keeping in mind that having a proper attitude toward God Himself is important preparation for worship at church.

bible miniseries, exploitation, history channel, merchandise, roma downey

First the Bible Miniseries – and now the Bible Miniseries Computer Game

Posted on March 22, 2013 by elizabethprata

Timothy Dalrymple has the story at Patheos:

The Bible Miniseries – the Computer Game
March 21, 2013 By Timothy Dalrymple
“Brent Dusing is the founder and CEO of Lightside Games, which seeks to make computer games (so far they’ve mostly been Facebook-based games) that involve players in the stories of the Bible. Their Journey of Moses and Journey of Jesus have both been phenomenally successful. Now they’ve partnered with the History Channel’s Bible miniseries to create a hidden-object game — called Light the Way — that families can enjoy alongside the miniseries.”

After a lengthier introduction which I only pasted a portion of above, Mr Dalrymple entered a Q&A session with the game’s developer, of which I excerpt below:

Tell me how this partnership with The History Channel series came about?

“We knew some people involved with the Bible miniseries and began a discussion with them. Then I met Mark Burnett and Roma Downey and I was struck by their genuine love of God and their passion for making a great product. Lightside was established on the principal [sic] of making games that are fun, high quality, and biblically authentic. We’re really excited to be working with Mark and everyone else on this partnership.”

As for passion in making a product of Jesus and the Bible, the actual bible predicts this day would come-

“And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.” (2 Peter 2:3- KJV)

“And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.” (2 Peter 2:3 ESV).

What was it like to Mark Burnett and Roma Downey?

“There was an event organized by Focus on the Family. I was really struck by their genuine passion for the love of God. I spent a few minutes talking with Roma, and she’s really been working hard to make the film resonate God’s love.”

And here we see the leaven spreading throughout he loaf. Focus on the Family has for years been a conservative, biblical program. However, something went awry when the folks behind the program entered into a partnership with the History Channel people. The actual bible says,

“Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? ” (2 Corinthians 6:14-16a) .

And as Paul says, false teachings spread like gangrene-

“But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene.” (2 Timothy 2:16-17).

The Interview between Dalrymple and the Bible Game developer continues-

Can you explain the concept of a hidden object game?

“I think the best metaphor is Where’s Waldo? If you remember those books, you’d look for where he’s hiding. What we’ve done is we’ve taken the scenes from the Bible series, and there are hidden objects inside of them. The faster you find the objects, and the fewer mistakes you make, the higher your score is. The images are presented in order, and of course there’s a narrator; in the beginning of the story it’s Daniel, and later Mary Magdalene. So they narrate the story for the player, and as the player gets the story they walk through the major events of the Bible and explain the thoughts and emotions and feelings of these real people who were going through God’s work in their lives.”

How can they tell what the bible people were thinking and feeling?? The bible says they cannot, it is only speculation and myths.

“As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith. ” (1 Timothy 3-4).

I hope that we have reverence for the awesome and holy God that is our Savior Jesus. More than in a video game.

I use the scriptures to show the true-life examples of what is occurring. When the bible says do not be unequally yoked, this is what it means: a Christian, well-regarded organization and a bunch of pagans mixing light and darkness. When the bible says that partnership will yield gangrene, myths, and speculations, this is what results:

Fear the LORD!

“Who will not fear you, O Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.” (Revelation 15:4).

anger, peacefulness, poor witness

Woman booted from Athens restaurant, calls manager a ‘Muslim’

Posted on March 21, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

I live in Northeast Georgia, near the city of Athens. My local newspaper is the Athens Banner Herald. Yesterday while on lunch break, I read the paper online. I came across this article. And upon reading it, I became quite dismayed.

Woman booted from Athens restaurant, calls manager a ‘Muslim’
A 68-year-old Athens woman caused a disturbance at an Oconee County restaurant Tuesday when authorities said the woman became irate at the food price and didn’t want to deal with a manager who appeared to be “Muslim.”

Oh, my. That is sad behavior… Then in the next sentence, we read this:

A deputy was dispatched to Ryan’s off Epps Bridge Parkway about noon when the woman, who was in the restaurant with a church group, complained about the price of the buffet.

She’s with a church group? Oh, my my. Here is the rest of the article:

When the manager spoke to the woman, she complained about his speech, telling the 43-year-old man that if he wanted to live in this country he needs “to speak clear English,” according to the report. When the manager asked her to leave, she became upset and a deputy was summoned. The deputy told the woman to leave and she did, but complained the deputy was taking the manager’s side because he was a Muslim.

“What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?” (James 4:1)

I want to speak to this issue, but I don’t want to speak about this woman, specifically. I don’t have all the facts. I don’t know why she behaved that way. Maybe she was on a different medication that day and had a reaction to it. Maybe she had just received devastating news. Maybe she was coming down with Norovirus. Maybe she lost a loved one in the 9/11 attacks or in the Middle East to one of the wars and has let grief gain a foothold of bitterness that satan is exploiting. I don’t know.“A man of wrath stirs up strife, and one given to anger causes much transgression.” (Proverbs 29:22).

What I do want to speak to is a Christian’s behavior in general. The bible has a lot to say about our behavior in the world. We are supposed to show the people that we are separate from the world, in it but not of it. (Colossians 3:5). It is our outward behavior that shows the distinction. If we behave with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; we are demonstrating the fruits of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23). In 1 Corinthians 6:11 Paul explains that a saved person used to behave a certain way, but now we’re “washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

We’re told, “because it is written, Be ye holy, for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:16). As Barnes’ Notes explains, “It is a great truth, that people everywhere will imitate the God whom they worship. They will form their character in accordance with his. They will regard what he does as right. They will attempt to rise no higher in virtue than the God whom they adore, and they will practice freely what he is supposed to do or approve.”

And you know the many verses about not being quarrelsome, such as this one from Titus 3:2- “of no one to speak evil, not to be quarrelsome — gentle, showing all meekness to all men,”

1 Peter 3:4 says that a gentle spirit is precious to God.

What is in us, comes out. Now, we don’t “live the Gospel.” The Gospel is Good News, and that is something we speak. But the Gospel is supposed to change us after justification occurs, we become sanctified and consecrated, a separate people different from the world. The unbelieving world hates the cross, it is an offense to them and a foolishness (1 Corinthians 1:23). They wait in depraved skepticism for us to mess up.

Of course it didn’t take long for the pagans to chime in with comments on the article. There are already over 100 comments. Comments like these litter the discussion forum:

“didn’t want to deal with a manager who appeared to be “Muslim.” And she was with her church group? Not exactly christian of her.”
“On the contrary, sounds typically Christian to me.”
“No, not very Christian of her…but certainly VERY religious of her.”
“You just can’t make this stuff up”
“Gotta love the “church group” out there representing Christianity and Christ like love and tolerance. He should have just thrown her a** right out the door!”

Such behavior is not only gleeful for the pagans, but dispiriting to the Christians, too

“How true. I am a Christian, but, find it difficult to be in most churches these days. People like this woman is why.”
“Same here. I give up on the people but I never give up on my faith.”

Paul had his hands full with the Corinthians. Imagine planting a church where there never had been a church. Where people never had generations of being softened to the Gospel. Where the Christian commandments were the exact opposite of that life demanded in those days (love, charity, respect for life, submission to masters and governments…)

Being human, we are going to mess up. The gibbering demons have a field day each time we do. So what we need to do is try with all our mind, heart, strength and soul to limit the times we mess up so that our witness of Godly character isn’t tarnished. The key is not to give up on the people. I actually feel bad for that lady. Who could expect that your moment of weakness and tantrum was going to end up in the newspaper, archived forever, and commented on by hundreds of people? Her sin simply found her out, while others of us haven’t been found out …yet. (Above, The Resurrection, by Pericle Fazzini, in Vatican’s Paul VI Audience Hall)

So let’s straighten up a bit, remember we are on stage and the audience is the world. Moreover, even if only one person, or no one, sees our tantrum, the One seated in the SkyBox sees all our hissy fits. I wonder, we besmirch His name, does He cringe? Does He furrow His brow? Does He write it down in His book?

I guess what I’m trying to say is “Be a Christian”, the kind the world does not expect but the kind the bible urges us to be:

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.” (Philippians 4:8-9)

ban straight marriage, gay, green street, lbgtq, methodist

Methodist church bans straight marriage. Really.

Posted on March 20, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

Seen at the Reformation 21 site posted by Carl Trueman, his link leads us to this church’s website, where they dared to take a stand. I say ‘dared’ because the stand they took is against God. Doing that never ends well. (Genesis 3:23, Exodus 11:5, Leviticus 10:1, Jude 1:7…)

Public Statement on Marriage, Standing in Solidarity with LGBTQ members.
On the matter of same-sex marriage, Green Street UMC sees injustice in the legal position of state government and the theological position of our denomination. North Carolina prohibits same-sex marriage and all the rights and privileges marriage brings. The Leadership Council has asked that their ministers join others who refuse to sign any State marriage licenses until this right is granted to same- sex couples. Because the United Methodist Church prohibits its pastors from conducting same- sex weddings, excluding gay and lesbian couples from the holy sacrament of marriage, the Leadership Council has asked the pastor to refrain from conducting wedding ceremonies in our sanctuary for straight couples, until the denomination lifts its ban for same-sex couples.

LBGTQ stands for Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning. (like God made it unclear what sex you are). One thing should become abundantly clear. It is not the UMC which prohibited performing gay marriages, it is God who prohibited that. The object of their ire is misplaced, and indeed, their ire is misplaced, too.

God has ordered the sexes, and there are two of them. He proclaimed marriage between one and the other. (Genesis 2:24). He has condemned homosexual activity of all kinds. (1 Corinthians 6:9; 1 Timothy 1:10). The sexual activity he has authorized is within marriage between a man and a woman. The bible condemns all sexual immorality. (Acts 15:20; 1 Corinthians 5:1; 6:13, 18; 7:2; 10:8; 2 Corinthians 12:21; Galatians 5:19; Ephesians 5:3; Colossians 3:5; 1 Thessalonians 4:3; Hebrews 13:4; Jude 7).

Choosing to reject all that means that Jesus will judge him on the last day.

“The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day.” (John 12:47).

Rejecting Jesus also means rejecting His plain word and His statutes, and there is always a consequence to that. Nabab and Abihu found that out the hard way. (Leviticus 10:2). So did Korah. (Numbers 16). I know that people don’t “like” that answer, but it is the answer.

While we shake our heads in amazement that the plain words of the bible are continually twisted and rejected, we can still continue to pray for our churches and Christian leaders. The blindness that is staining the hearts of people can be lifted by the gracious work of the Holy Spirit. Please be a part of that work in praying to Him who can heal all wounds, including spiritual wounds of faltering minds and hearts.