Senior Sprinter 

   Julia Hawkins in November set a record for the 100-meter sprint in her age category with a time of 1:02.

   That may not sound impressive, but consider that she is 105 years old. In 2017 - for women over 100 in Louisiana - she ran 100 meters in 39.62. 

   Hawkins competed in senior games in her 80s as a cyclist, but "retired" when she could no longer find competitors her age.

Pray for Pam

   Thursday night Mrs. Donut received a call from her long-ago college sorority sister who was driving to Denver. Pam was one of hundreds of folks fleeing the fires burning in Colorado, where hurricane force winds turns a few sparks into a wipe-out of a couple communities near Boulder, CO. 

   As of Friday evening, we don't know if her home and her daughter's home were spared. 

And the Tornadoes 

   While that was happening, last night, our daughter and husband were returning north after visiting us this week. As we watched fires burning on the weather channel, we saw tornado watches in middle Georgia, right where the "kids" were headed.

   They were within 30 miles of Cordele along I-75 and were watching lightning movement as they drove, but managed to slip by without trouble. 

   So that's how 2021 says "sayonara" to the USA. 

   Our timing is a little off due to company taking over our visitor side, where the den and computer is, but we'll get back on schedule.

   Happy New Year!

            Jimmy

Hanson: Collapse of Woke Appeal 

3 of 3

   "After 10 months of wokeism, polls show that voters don't like open borders. They disapprove of illegal immigration while supporting legal immigrants. They worry about crime and drugs. They don't want the unvetted and unvaccinated flowing across open borders.

   "People want cheaper, not pricier gas. They prefer U.S. energy self-sufficiency. Why, with cup in hand, go begging to Saudi Arabia and Russia to pump more supposedly Satanic oil?

   "People like police and they hate crime. Even the rich among the woke are now scared - some of whom sowed the wind of decriminalization and are themselves reaping the whirlwind of crime. 

   "Most voters care less about our color, but far more about our character. They think a meritocracy, not quotas and tribal chauvinism, explains the exceptional American standard of life.

   "They despise inflation as much as recession, and fear they may now get both. 

   "Freedom loving individuals don't like cancel culture, ostracism, iconoclasm and commissars. They prefer free speech and treasure the Bill of Rights. 

   "In just 10 months, the left got what it wanted. And the people are becoming not just sick of what has followed, but disgusted. They are terrified that the left isn't just failing, but also wrecking the country and them along with it.

   "Of the collapse of the woke appeal, perhaps we could say, 'It couldn't happen to a nicer bunch of zealots.'"

#

Hanson: Old Liberal Democrats in Hiding 

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   "Monetary theorists assured us that printing money would 'spread the wealth' and devalue the cash of undeserving capitalists. Printing more cash, they believed, would help the needy who unfairly had too little.

   "Inflation would be a good thing, they hoped, a sign of a newly empowered and robust consumer class long denied 'equity.'

   "COVID was virtually over. President Biden assured us that Trump had killed more than 350,000 Americans with his lax health policies. Biden would soberly vaccinate us all, claiming the vaccine's efficacy as his own. 

   "He predicted victory by the Fourth of July. The Delta variant was still then just a rumor from abroad.

   "The border would be opened - and stay open. No more walls. As citizens of the world, the left welcomed 2 million immigrants without audit or vaccinations during a pandemic.

   "As the woke drove terrified old liberal Democrats into hiding, all the old wisdom about human nature vanished. Forget that criminals hurt the poor the most. Discard the quaint idea of Martin Luther King Jr. that our character, not our color, determines who we are. Ignore the idea that inflation eats away at the wages of the working class.

   "We could always assume the lockdowns and shutdowns that made Amazon, Target, Walmart and other conglomerates hundreds of billions in profit while the mom-and-pop small businesses went broke. 

   "So, what did the people conclude 10 months out from the woke getting their wishes?" 

Tomorrow: What the polls reveal

Is Woke a Yoke, or a Joke? 

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   Over the next three days Views provides excerpts from a fascinating column by Victor Davis Hanson regarding the Woke movement. On Friday we'll return to our faith-based offerings.

Hanson, of the Hoover Institution, is a commentator on contemporary politics and a military historian. See        what he thinks about our nation's future.    

   "The 'woke' movement was giddy after January 20. The left controlled both houses of Congress. Joe Biden was drafted as the veneer of 1980s Democratic normality to ram through an otherwise hard-left agenda.

   "All major cultural, financial, economic, entertainment and media institutions played roles in seeing then-President Donald Trump not just defeated, but impeached, twice. 

   "So, academia, corporate boardrooms, Hollywood, the media, the Pentagon, professional sports teams, Silicon Valley and Wall Street all boarded the woke train. All boasted of ferreting out 'white rage' and hiring legions of 'diversity, equity and inclusion' czars. 

"Critical race theory would be mainstreamed to excise racism 

and discrimination by embracing racism and discrimination. 

   "Crime was to be seen as a construct created by the elite to protect their own privilege, prerogatives and property. Shoplifting, looting and street thuggery were just part of living in a normal city. 

   "'Social justice warriors' could replace defunded police. Gone would be most bail, incarceration, mandatory jail time, stop and frisk, and broken-windows deterrent policies.

   "Green agendas would fundamentally transform America, putting a stop to man-made 'climate change.' So, lots of oil and gas leases were either cancelled or their fees vastly increased. 

   "Pipelines were stopped. Gas and oil companies were warned that everything from lack of financing to new regulations would soon put them out of business. The golden age of wind and batteries was upon us."

Tomorrow: Spread the wealth; open the border

Jesus, the Jewish Martyr? 

   Marvin Olasky, who must read another book every day of his life, reviews four more in WORLD magazine.

   We focus on Healing the Schism, by Jennifer Rosner. She writes concerning relations between Christians and Jews.

   Rosner quotes Jacob Neusner - how Nazism, Communism and secularism attacked both Christian and Jewish ideals. So..."we cannot find it surprising that the first post-Christian century (the 1900s) also marked the last century of Judaism in most of Europe." 

   Olasky says "Those ideologies harmed both the physical and spiritual descendants of Abraham. The wonderful Jewish painter Marc Chagall said, 'For me, Christ has always symbolized the true type of Jewish martyr.'" 

   Rosner wrote, "Through Christ, the door is opened for gentiles to enter into covenant relationship with Israel's God - without becoming Jewish."

   Olasky, born Jewish, adds, "It's a tragedy that many Jews believe faithfulness to God of Israel requires saying no to the most famous Jew ever." 

   He quotes Rosner: "To the extent that Jews seek to follow and honor God while remaining indifferent to their Messiah and his mission, their understanding of and ability to fulfill their own redemptive vocation will always be limited."

   Olasky says, "Christians should push back against attempts to minimize the Jewishness of Jesus, and Jews should recognize that God's covenant with Israel was always intended to expand outward to include all nations."

   "Now in God's providence," he says, "some Jews such as myself profess faith in Christ and can be bridges between the two peoples."

~ ~ ~

December 28-30: Victor Hanson's insights on 2021

       Jimmy

Joy to the World 

   Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song. Let the sea resound and all that is in it, the world, and all who live in it. Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy...

   For he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples with equity.

   Not exactly a Christmas carol, for this excerpt from Psalm 98 was the basis for Isaac Watts' text, celebrating the return of the Lord to judge the world. 

   We can sing this at Christmas, for the Lord is involved with his people, beginning at the stable in Bethlehem. Each Christmas we look back and praise God for the glorious gift of His Son. 

   But we also look forward to His return, when God will bring a righteous conclusion to all things. Judgment will not be joyful for unbelievers. Isaac Watts had in mind those who are waiting for salvation.  

   Then we will begin to fully enjoy "the wonders of His love." 

Joy to the world! The Lord is come;

Let earth receive her King;

Let every heart prepare Him room.

And heav'n and nature sing.

Was the Night Really Silent? 

   Many of us have seen The Sound of Music more than once. The setting was Salzburg, Austria.

   In 1818, a Catholic priest and his organist, in that same region, high in the Austrian Alps, often talked about hymns. When their organ broke down just before Christmas, they urgently needed a hymn the congregation could sing without the organ. 

   Joseph Mohr the priest penned the words, and organist Franz Gruber wrote the music. It might have been one and done, had the organ repairman not shared it with others a few days later.

   When I was a young, we spent one Christmas 90 miles away with Grandma and my uncle and family. On Christmas eve we attended a midnight service at their Lutheran (Catholic-light) church. 

   I still remember feeling emotional when the congregation sang - with pipe-organ accompaniment - Silent Night, Holy Night.

   Well, the night was not so silent when awesome angels appeared in the sky, announcing the birth and singing alleluia. Then all was silent again, until excited shepherds - nobodies in the culture - began telling all of Bethlehem Who they had seen in the stable. 

   Stanzas 1 and 3

Silent night, holy night,

All is calm, all is bright

Round yon virgin mother and Child.

Holy Infant so tender and mild,

Sleep in heavenly peace,

Sleep in heavenly peace.

Silent night, holy night,

Son of God, love's pure light.

Radiant beams from Thy holy face,

With the dawn of redeeming grace,

Jesus, Lord at Thy birth,

Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth.

  

 The Best of Six Thousand? 

   Charles Wesley wrote over six thousand hymn texts, but Hark! the Herald Angels Sing may be his best...according to commentaries in our "One Year Book of Hymns."

   This carol is filled with scriptural ideas that could be explored for weeks. The last three lines focus on why Jesus came: 

Born that man no more may die,

Born to raise the sons of earth,

Born to give them second birth.

   The first stanza:

Hark! the herald angels sing,

"Glory to the newborn King;

Peace on earth, and mercy mild,

God and sinners reconciled!"

Joyful, all ye nations rise,

Join the triumph of the skies;

With th' angelic host proclaim,

"Christ is born in Bethlehem!"

They Heard; They saw; They Told 

   When they had seen him, they spread the word 

concerning what had been told them about this child,

 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.  

But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 

The shepherds returned glorifying and praising God for all the things 

they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Luke 2:17-20

Angels We Have Heard on High

   This French carol recalls the shepherds' story - angels singing, Mary and Joseph in Bethlehem, and adoration of the baby, Jesus.

Angels we have  heard on high

Sweetly singing o'er the plains.

And the mountains in reply

Echoing their joyous strains. 

 Gloria in excelsis Deo. (Glory to God in the highest) 

   Perhaps our Christmas season starts and ends with the manger scene. We might forget to praise him - Glory to God in the highest. We can follow the lowly shepherds' example, giving highest glory to our Redeemer God...as if we heard the good news for the first time. 

The First Noel

   Have you sung about the first Noel, like us without knowing what noel means? 

   Noel is a French word that comes from a Latin word meaning "birth," or from another Latin word meaning "new." Here, it can refer to the Christmas season, or the good news that Jesus Christ has come. 

The first Noel, the angel did say,

Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay; 

In fields where they lay keeping their sheep,

On a cold winter's night that was so deep.

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel,

Born is the king of Israel. 

   The last stanza crosses the boundaries of time. We join with medieval Christians to praise our Lord, who bought us all with his blood.

Then let us all with one accord

Sing praises to our heav'nly Lord,

That has made heav'n and earth of naught,

And with his blood mankind has bought. 

   Jesus came to us in a most primitive way, born at night in a cold, smelly stable, and he the law giver gave up his body in a most painful way, on a cross designed for criminals. 

An angel of the Lord appeared to them, 

and the glory of the Lord shone around them, 

and they were terrified. But the angel said to them,

"Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people.  

Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord."

Luke 2:9-10

You Did Leave Your Throne  

   Emily Elliott in the 19th century was concerned for those who were sick. She, a poet, was sickly herself. She wrote a hymn for children, to teach them about Jesus' birth. Each stanza has a contrast with the word but.

              We provide a few lines, in today's language:

You did leave your throne and your kingly crown...

But in Bethlehem there was found no room.

     Heaven's arches rang when the angels sang...

     But of lowly birth did you come to earth.

The foxes found rest, and the birds their nest...

But your couch was the sod, O Son of God, in the deserts of Galilee.

     You came O Lord with the living Word...

     But with mocking scorn and with crown of thorns, they took you to Calvary.

               And finally,

Let your voice call me home, saying "Yet there is room at My side for you." 

My heart shall rejoice, Lord Jesus, when you come and call for me! 

He was in the world, and though the world was made through him,

the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own,

but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those

who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.

John 1:10-12

From Heaven Above To Earth I Come

   In the 1500s reformer Martin Luther wrote a Christmas hymn for his little son, Hans. He wrote it to communicate to him the life-transforming message of Christ. 

   God communicated to us all by sending his Son that first Christmas night, announcing the birth through angels singing to the lowest class of people - shepherds watching their flocks. 

   The wise were bypassed; they would not understand. But even children can grasp the meaning: God became a human being to reveal his loving and gracious character to us all.

The first two stanzas of Luther's hymn, as translated:

From heaven above to earth I come

To bear good news to every home:

Glad tidings of great joy I bring,

Whereof I now will say and sing.

To you this night is born a child

Of Mary, chosen mother mild;

This little child, of lowly birth,

Shall be the joy of all the earth.

The kingdom breaks into this world...

When you are in conflict with someone, but seek reconciliation and forgiveness.

When you give sacrificially to someone hungry or homeless.

When an addict is willing to stop hiding, seek help and partner with God.

When a workaholic parent decides to love and care for the children.

Every time you love, include, encourage, speak truth, serve the poor.

The kingdom of God broke into this world 

when Jesus was born and laid in a manger.

From that tiny beachhead grew a toehold in Jerusalem.

Then it spread to Judea, Samaria, Athens and Rome.

On to England, to underground churches in China, to inner-city Detroit.

Maybe one day a beachhead formed in your life.

It doesn't matter if you don't fully understand.

Someone from the other side has come.

He wants to keep breaking into this world, through you.

He will even live within you, if you permit.

   These are the final words in John Ortberg's book, 

   GOD IS CLOSER THAN YOU THINK.

   We hope you enjoyed our selections from the book.

           

           Jimmy

Authentic Passion  

Where do you experience authentic passion?

Maybe when you see people who suffer from poverty,

or illiteracy or abuse in families.

Maybe you know people with deep emotional hurts,

or children with no homes, or marriages falling apart. 

Most of us want to experience the feelings of God's presence,

a deeper sense of peace and assurance,

a stronger surge of joy, or clearer guidance.

Ironically, none of these feelings are necessary

for us to become agents of God's presence for others.

All that is necessary is a single intent:

"Lord, where do you want to use me?"

- John Ortberg

Tomorrow: final thoughts

Zechariah's Song 

His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:

Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,

because he has come and has redeemed his people.

He has raised up a horn of salvation for us

in the house of his servant David.

And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;

for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him.

to give his people the knowledge of salvation

through the forgiveness of sins,

because of the tender mercy of our God,

by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven

to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death,

to guide our feet into the path of peace.

Luke 1:67-69; 76-79

Challenging Traditions 

   "Does this mean anything to you?" Charles and John Wesley seemed to ask the Anglicans of their time. 

   In the 1700s Christians sang songs from Scripture. But the Wesleys questioned whether the biblical story of long ago had any bearing on in people's lives. 

   They urged believers to meet Christ personally and to include him in all parts of their lives - even hymn singing. 

   Yours truly can relate. Grew up in church. Sang the hymns. Did these and other traditions find their way into my heart?

   Charles Wesley wrote 18 Christmas songs, going beyond Scripture alone. He alluded to prophecies of Christ, and personal application.

   He wrote that Christ is not only the "desire of every nation," but he is the "joy of every longing heart." He is not only the child born with the "government upon his shoulders" (Isaiah 9:6), he is "born to reign in us for ever."

Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus

Come thou long-expected Jesus,

Born to set people free;

From our fears and sins release us,

Le us find our rest in Thee. 

Israel's strength and consolation,

Hope of all the earth Thou art;

Dear desire of every nation,

Joy of every longing heart. 

Born Thy people to deliver,

Born a child and yet a king,

Born to reign in us forever,

Now Thy gracious kingdom bring.

By Thine own eternal spirit

Rule in all our hearts alone;

By Thine all sufficient merit,

Raise us to Thy glorious throne.

But Galilee? 

   About 700 B.C. the prophet Isaiah was writing in the southern kingdom of Judah when it was being threatened by the northern kingdom, Israel. God promised that he would bring the Assyrians to defeat unfaithful Israel. 

   Even so, Isaiah opens chapter 9 with a promise to honor Galilee - the people walking in darkness - in the northern kingdom. 

   Two centuries ago John Morison wrote a Christmas hymn little known today, but he captured Isaiah's prophecy. In part...

The people that in darkness sat

A glorious light have seen;

     For unto to us a child is born,

     To us a son is given,

          And on his shoulders ever rests

          All power on earth and heaven.

               His name shall be the Prince of Peace

               Forevermore adored,

                    The Wonderful, the Counselor,

                    The great and mighty Lord. 

                         On judgment and on justice based,

                         His reign shall have no end.

   For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and the government will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace.

      - Isaiah 9:6-7    NASB 

   Yes, Jesus was born in Bethlehem, but his ministry mostly centered around the Sea of Galilee ... a place of cultural darkness, despised by the upper class in Jerusalem. God does things His way.  

Reality of God's Presence

Jesus came as "Jacob's ladder,"

reaching down to your life and mine.

Death on the cross was essential.

Overall, his mission brings the reality of

his presence and power to all who desire.

He tells us to pray...

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven. 

Many people think our job is to

get our final destination taken care of,

then tread water until we're done here.

But Jesus wants "up there to come down here..."

to make things "down here the way they are up there."

God doesn't reveal himself just to make us happy.

He wants us to be conduits to others.

GOD IS CLOSER THAN YOU THINK       

Final excerpts from

John Ortberg next weekend

Here and Now

The good news Jesus brought is simply:

God has invaded our backyard and makes his

presence and power available to whoever wants him.

The time has come, Jesus says.

The tragic truth is that many people take a pass on 

"Life with God, Here and Now"

for a gospel that doesn't kick in until after death.

Where in the New Testament does Jesus say,

I'm giving you the minimal requirements to get into heaven?

His gospel includes more than a gift of grace.

The promise is fulfilled in the unifying theme of Scripture: 

Immanuel, God with us. 

Jesus said, Whoever loves me will obey my teaching.

My Father will love him and we will come to him and make our home with him.

- John Ortberg

Isaiah Called Him Immanuel 

Mary Named Him Jesus

Who's right?

   In the 1600s Paul Gerhardt wrote a Christmas hymn:

Immanuel, to Thee we sing, 

Thou Prince of life, almighty King;

That Thou, expected ages past,

Didst come to visit us at last.

   Isaiah in chapter 7 prophesied that a virgin would bear a child and call him Immanuel, which means "God with us." Mary named her baby, Jesus, as the angel Gabriel instructed her. 

   In those times a name wasn't just what you were called, but who you were. A man named Joseph was known as Barnabas, "Encourager." 

   Since the beginning of the world, all creation has waited for Christ (Messiah) to come (into the world he created). 

For Thee, since first the world was made,

Men's hearts have waited, watched and prayed;

Prophets and patriarchs, year by year,

Have longed to see Thy light appear. 

All glory worship, thanks and praise,

That Thou art come in these our days! 

Thou heavenly Guest, expected long,

We hail Thee with a joyful song. 

As translated from German

 

God is Watching; Someone is Writing  

   We shouldn't be too surprised at the organized smash-and-grab activities in American cities. 

   About 715 B.C., the prophet Hosea wrote, They practice deceit, thieves break into houses, bandits rob in the streets. Chapter 7, verse 1. 

   Remember what Solomon observed: There is nothing new under the sun. 

   People will do what people do, whether good or bad. 

   We're supposed to be a nation of law and order. There may be more law and order when our protected elite class suffers the same results of their policies as the rest of us. 

   Ancient times and our times, God is watching. But they do not realize that I remember all their evil deeds. Their sins engulf them; they are always before me. Hosea 7:2.

   The prophet also mentions lies, adultery, drunkenness, arrogance, deception, rebellion and insolent words...all part of the culture God wanted to forgive and restore. 

   We can't fix society, but we can call upon the Lord, as he guides us through Hosea and other Spirit-filled authors of the Bible. 

   Our "books" are being written. And the book of life. They will be opened. Some for rewards. Some for judgment. Revelation 20:11-15. 

          Jimmy 

   

Questions for the Season

1. How many generations from Abraham to David, from David to the exile in Babylon, and from the exile to the Messiah? (all the same number)

10   14   17   20

2. Who prophesied, The virgin will be with child...'God with us?' 

Matthew   Isaiah   David   Ezekiel 

3. When King Herod asked the priests where the Messiah was to be born, who did they quote?

Daniel   Micah   Zechariah   Jeremiah   

4. Which of these gifts did the wise men not present to the child?

incense   honey   gold   myrrh

5. Where did Mary and Joseph take the baby to escape Herod's threat?

Edom   Egypt   Eden   Ekron

6. Joseph was from the line of...

Daniel   David   Dorcus   Darius

7. Angels brought good news to...

Sadducees   shepherds   saints   servants

8. On the 8th day, in the temple, Simeon, moved by the Holy Spirit, took the baby in his arms and prayed... a light for revelation to the...

shepherds   Gentiles   priests   kings

and for glory to your people...

Ishmael   Israel   Bethlehem   Nazareth    

       Jimmy 

If you chose the second answer every time, perfect!

       

On Earth, Peace

   We're approaching that time of year, when we read about angels lighting up the night sky, singing...

Glory to God in the highest,

and on earth peace to men

on whom his favor rests.

   Will we enjoy peace in 2022? Never mind China and Russia. Will we have peace here in the homeland?

   Marvin Olasky says we need an Anti-Civil War political party. "The U.S. far left is  offensive, but if we react to it instead of developing Biblical alternatives - grace rather than hate - we may be as culpable in bringing on civil war." 

   He believes, "It is important for Christians to remember that the political spectrum in not a straight line. It's more like a horseshoe, with the ends bending toward each other."

   "A few issues - abortion is the most prominent - do not lend themselves to compromise. We can pray that the Supreme Court will allow states to decide, and that compassionate services will save lives."

   It was 80 years ago today that Japan's sneak attack on Pearl Harbor overshadowed Christmas, followed by four years of world war. 

   Today's America is quite different than we were in 1941. On whom does God's favor rest?   

           Jimmy

Every human being lived in temporary housing.

Until one day...

Until a man who looked like all others made a breathtaking claim.

He said he came from the other side.

He said no one has to be alone anymore. 

No one has to live in fear. 

He said a new kind of life is available to anyone who wants it.

He brought it to give us a mission.

He said anyone who enters this life will join him

in becoming carriers of the good news.

This new kind of life is not just in the future.

It is here.

It is now.

It is life changing.

GOD IS CLOSER THAN YOU THINK     

 

God is a God of gratuitous goodness.

He is uncontrollably generous.

He is irrationally loving.

He is good for no reason at all.

He just loves to give. 

God delights in animals that are of no apparent use.

Nothing on earth is his equal.

He revels in the least strategic creature. 

God is really telling Job:

I'm worth it. Follow me. Don't give up. 

Your pain won't last forever.

I am worth getting close to.

- John Ortberg

Celebrating Freedom  

   Despite all their trials... 

400 years under Egyptian rule, a 40-year exodus that could have taken weeks, good and not-so-good kings, troubles within and without, Assyrians, Babylonians, eviction by Romans in A.D. 70, the Holocaust  

...Jewish people have something to celebrate, their own 4th of July moment.

   Hanukkah (pronounced kha-nu-kah) is an eight-day remembrance of the time (about 167 B.C.) Antiochus IV surrendered his hold on the Beautiful Land and his intention to force Jews to adopt Greek culture and beliefs. Judah Maccabeus and his volunteers wore out the tyrant. He took his army back to Syria, the Seleucid Empire. 

Good riddance! 

   The fact that most of the New Testament was written in Greek is evidence of the success Antiochus IV had, while it lasted.  

   Jews recovered Jerusalem and rededicated the second temple. They had enough olive oil to light the temple menorah for a day. But the flame burned for eight days, until new oil could be ceremonially ready for use. 

   That was long ago, and the nation was again lost for a very long time. 

   From that "miracle" came the annual Festival of Lights. You've seen menorahs, with four holders on each side of the center - the shamash or "attendant." One additional lamp is lit each nightfall, the eighth being (December 5 this year). 

   Jews have menorahs in homes and synagogues. Menorahs now are seen in city halls, legislative buildings, malls and parks around the world. 

   The fact that Jewish people clung to their identity for some 2,000 years - while other dispossessed people never recovered - tells us much about God and his plans. 

   We just wonder why they don't light candles in memory of their fight for national sovereignty in 1948. Or maybe they do. 😄 One day the world will know that 1948 is far more significant, and that Messiah is the King of kings!        

            Jimmy 

'History' of the Future 

Daniel chapter 11

   God tells Daniel (exiled in Babylon) about future, numerous kings who will be opposed to Greece, and some to each other. 

   Then there will be a mighty king. This would be Alexander the Great, who conquered the middle East, 336-323 B.C. At his death, the empire would be broken up and parceled out to the four winds of heaven (v. 11:4)...his four generals, each intent on conquest of his own.

   War and plundering were the rule in those centuries.

   Generations of leaders named Ptolemy, Antiochus and Seleucus were prominent. Antiochus III took control of the Beautiful Land, Palestine, in 197 B.C. (Daniel 11:16) 

   After another 10 years he had one victory to his credit, and two defeats. He died attempting to plunder a pagan temple at the head of the Persian Gulf, modern day Iran.

A Contemptible Person 

   Enter a contemptable person (v. 11:21), Antiochus IV Epiphanes, in power 175-164 B.C. God informs Daniel that this will be a man of intrigue and deceit, and will achieve what neither his fathers nor his forefathers did. He will distribute plunder and wealth among his followers. He will plot the overthrow of fortresses (vv. 23-24). 

   Antiochus IV was not royalty. He was the horn that started small (Daniel 8:9), and took the throne that belonged to his nephew. He attacked wealthy cities in times of peace, becoming rich. 

   Antiochus IV, convinced that Greek culture and language were superior to any other, hated the Jews. Their lives involved faith. About 168 B.C. he invaded Egypt for the second time, but was rebuffed by the Romans.  

Tomorrow: God slips another bad guy into the Antiochus account

Don't miss it

      Jimmy 

 

More psalms were devoted to complaining 

than any other single category.

Maybe this is good news for us.

You crushed us and made us a haunt for jackals.

Awake, O Lord! Why do you sleep? 

Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever.

Why do you hide your face and forget our misery and oppression?

How long, O Lord, how long?

Old Testament scholar Ellen Davis wrote that

in the ancient world, complaint prayers are 

without parallel in other religions. 

Others made requests, offered worship, cursed their enemies.

Only Israel prayed their complaints.

Only Israel believed that God cares that we are in pain,

and can be expected to do something about it. 

When we are passionately honest with God,

when we are not indulging in self-pity, 

when we hope that God can be trusted,

our hearts make resting in his presence possible again. 

GOD IS CLOSER THAN YOU THINK

For more information, read about Job's complaints

and especially the Lord's answer.

  

 Where is God when everything is going well?

The same place he is when it's not going well.

Pain doesn't mean God is absent.

Years ago, John Ortberg, Ph.D., clinical psychology,

surveyed thousands of people.

The number one reason they gave for spiritual growth was pain.

The big difference between us and God, he writes, 

is that God doesn't think he is us. In pain, we get that clearly.

Don't miss Sunday's follow-up.

Purpose or Chance?  

   Are we God's purposeful design, or complicated creatures that somehow evolved out of something that somehow evolved out of something that somehow evolved out of...?

   In a WORLD magazine article, STANDING ON GENESIS, Rachel Aldrich explains, "The Bible shows that God made the universe and life with purpose." 

   "Darwinism is purposeless. The Bible opens with a statement of intention: 'In the beginning, God created...' The Bible also says, 'I Praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.'" (Psalm 139:14) 

   "Darwinism speculates (scientists cannot 'know') that some cells survived; others did not. The Bible (written over 15 centuries) speaks of the goodness of a loving Creator, his world being 'very good.'"

   "Careful balances in biology, physics and more allow life to exist. Not random chance." 

   "The intelligent design community's existence contradicts the notion that science equals evolution," she writes. "You don't to have a commitment to Christianity (or any other religion) to recognize that the world didn't spring from blind selection."

   "Paul wrote, 'For his invisible attributes, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world.'" (Romans 1:20)

~ ~ ~

It's far more than an intellectual debate.

Every human life is eternal.

Belief leads to eternal salvation. Disbelief leads to eternal doom.

It is impossible for human eyes and other systems to have evolved. 

God knocks on our front door. (Rev. 3:20) But we must hear and open it.

 Jimmy

Someone Said...  

God who does not violate

our wills has a thousand

  ways to move upon them.

How often the great interests

of society are sacrificed

to the vanity, to the conceit,

and to the obstinacy of individuals.

   Christians are to live - not as judge and jury of our neighbors - but as believing all things (1 Corinthians 13:7) regarding their potential. The Lord is not finished with my neighbor any more than he is finished with me. 

   Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters (Luke 11:23) says the Lord, the only qualified Judge.

Too Easily Pleased

American culture says that real life requires the gratification of our desires.

Distorted spirituality says real life requires the elimination of our desires,

Buddhism, for example.

Jesus says that real life requires the transformation of our desires.

If you are thirsty - unsatisfied desires - "come to me."

Desire itself is an invitation to seek God's presence.

C.S. Lewis wrote,

"Indeed, if we consider the staggering nature of the rewards 

promised in the Gospels, it would seem that 

our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak.

 We are far too easily pleased."

- John Ortberg

GOD IS CLOSER THAN YOU THINK

Conducting

14 years working in a Westinghouse transformer plant

taught me a few things about invisible electricity.

Alternating current never leaves the power plant.

A generator generates pressure in electrons.

A "power" transformer increases the voltage along copper lines.

Near the customers, "step-down" transformers gradually

reduce voltage, as current increases.

The "electrons" you use tomorrow will be the same you used today.

From start to finish, voltage and current is "conducted." 

Little did I know then that I can be a conductor.

I say, "As you wish," and the invisible Lord does as he pleases.

Unlike electricity, there is no "charge."

2,000 years ago people wouldn't have understood,

so Scripture says, (invisible) "streams of living water will flow from within."

The Holy Spirit is the generator, the power, and also a conductor.

Does He dwell in you?

His Dream; Our Knowledge, conclusion

Iron and Clay

   Nebuchadnezzar - dictator that he was - fell prostrate before Daniel, the Hebrew exile. He was swept off his feet. 

   The young man had miraculously described his awesome dream. The king promoted Daniel in his royal court. And he made his three friends rulers over the entire province, along with the "wise men" he had nearly executed. 

   In Daniel 4, see the king's "humble" letter to the world, concluding, Now, I ... praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble. 

   Do we believers - knowing the rest of the story - praise and exalt and glorify our Lord and Savior?

   The head of gold represented the Neo-Babylonian empire (605-539 B.C.). From there came astrology. 

   The chest and arms would be the Medo-Persian empire of Cyrus (539 B.C.). From there came ethics.

   The belly and thighs represented the empire of Alexander the Great (330 B.C.). From the Greeks came art and philosophy.

   The legs and feet would be the Roman empire, law and peace-by-military strength (about 67 B.C.). Rome (iron) subdued the known world (including reestablished Israel) as no previous empire had done. 

   Get ready: Our commentary says feet and toes "probably represent nationalistic states in the area of the Roman empire since it fell." More accurately - dissolved into a continuing rise and fall of strong and brittle states.  

   Did the USA adopt the values of the above four empires, paying lip service to God? 

   In the last chapters of Revelation read how our age concludes, followed by the rule of the Rock (Messiah), then the "powder" of the universe blown away, and finally the new heaven and earth.

   World philosophy and values must be completely destroyed before Christ's kingdom (the fifth) is established. Don't love your possessions too much.

  

A Dream for All, part 2

   The Babylonian who swallowed up his known world was king, judge and jury. And he was furious with his wise men, ordering their execution - no defense attorney required.

   Daniel was a young Jewish exile, himself on the proverbial chopping block. God had revealed to him the meaning of the king's dream. Daniel praised the Lord in some 80 words, as translated into English. Daniel 2.

   The commander took Daniel before the king to reveal the vision. He first assured the king that this wasn't his wisdom, but, there is a God in heaven. 

   Daniel described an enormous, dazzling, awesome statue of a man in the dream. It's head was pure gold, its chest and arms, silver, and its belly and thighs, bronze. (Note the descending values.)  

   Finally, there were legs of iron mixed with baked clay. 

   A supernatural rock struck the feet and the entire statue broke into pieces. It became chaff, which the wind blew away, while the rock filled the whole earth. 

   The king's jaw must have dropped as Daniel described his dream. 

   Now, the interpretation. You, O king, are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory. You are that head of gold. 

   The king responded with a big sigh of relief, and felt proud. You think? 

   After you another kingdom will rise, inferior to yours. (More pride.) Next, a third kingdom will rule over the whole earth. Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron. 

   Just as you saw the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom. ...this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle...and will not remain united... 

   Then Daniel revealed what we all need to know. The God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed... It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. This is the meaning of the vision of the rock... 

Tomorrow: Bringing it home

A Dream for the Ages  

   Is the USA mentioned in the Bible? Of course not. Are we connected to Biblical prophecy? Hmmm. Could be, and it would explain some present-day issues. 

   In 605 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar somehow had the power to form a pagan kingdom in Babylon, where modern Iraq lies. He took no guff from anyone. We'll just refer to "the king" so we don't have to type his name again. 

   The king had lots of officials, like U.S. presidents, along with magicians, enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers...referred to as "wise men." After all, when you have a number of gods, you need wise men to interpret.

   Babylon crushed surrounding civilizations, last of all, Judah. 

   They took back to Babylon numerous Jewish survivors considered useful, we guess. One of them was a young man named Daniel, and three of his close friends. They were trained to serve in the kingdom. 

   But Daniel, unwilling to defile himself with pagan ways, even at the risk of death, found help in avoiding the rules. He was the true wise man. He and his friends were taught knowledge and understanding, and Daniel was able to interpret dreams (we assume - a gift from God). Daniel chapter 1. 

   In Daniel 2, the king had a dream that troubled him greatly. 

   The next morning, he assembled his wise men, demanding interpretation, and if they couldn't do it, they would be "cut to pieces." Daniel etc. were not with them, but because they served in the same "department," they were at risk also.

   Astrologers told the king no one on earth can do what he asks. No king has ever asked such a thing from any magician or enchanter or astrologer. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods.

   Can you see the king's face getting red? An order of execution went out.

   Daniel spoke to the commander of the king's guard with wisdom and tact. With his help he asked the king for time, went to his house to pray, and that night God revealed the mystery in a vision. 

Tomorrow: Get it right, or die

Walk in the Joy of Your Salvation

   Therefore, with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. And in that day you will say: 'Praise the Lord, call upon his name; declare his deeds among the peoples; make mention that his Name is exalted.'  - Isaiah 12:3-4 

   Through God's grace, goodness, tender mercies and everlasting hope, we have been given a happy heart. His love brought us our salvation, and it is only in his salvation that we are assured of living happily ever after.

   Dayspring.com

Lessons from 2,000 Years Ago

   Numerous American churches have closed, or are treading water. Maybe we should see what made the first church so dynamic.

* They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching.

* And to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 

* Everyone one was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 

* All the believers were together and had everything in common. !  

* Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 

* Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. 

* They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. 

* And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

! This wasn't communism, not a dictatorship of elites ruling the poor masses.

Some equality, yes, but voluntary love and concern for others.

     Acts 2:42-47

Thy will be done

or

My will be done.

From one moment to the next, we make choices.

What will I do next? How will I treat him, or her?

What will I do with this money?

Where will I allow this temptation to lead me? 

The heart that learns to say,

"As you wish"

opens itself to the Power of the universe.

It does not matter the task, great or small,

or if we are famous or obscure. 

- John Ortberg   

               

"The Gulf Stream can pass through a straw,

if the straw aligns itself with the Gulf Stream."

   - Anne Lamott