Month: April 2013

  • No More Hurting People

    Many of you have seen this picture of Martin Richard, the 8 year old boy who was killed at the Boston Marathon when a bomb exploded next to him. This was taken during his first communion. This young child had no idea that in such a short amount of time, he would be meeting Jesus face to face. The story is sad. No one wants to see a child get brutally murdered. We want to see children grow and become adults and become something greater than what the previous generation has to offer. If you ask me though, Martin was already great.

    If I could see through the eyes of a child again… It’s like Jesus said, “I assure you that if you do not turn your lives around and become like this little child, you will not enter the kingdom of Heaven.” Children not only understand, but they believe the simplest concepts. Peace. You can not proclaim peace with a sword in hand. Jesus even condemns the idea. It’s so simple, a child can understand it. No more hurting people.

    And then there is these two. Two adult men who created a horrific act. The man on the left is proof of Jesus’ own words, “Those who live by the sword will die by the sword.” The one on the right, is still so young. You would think, why would such a bright young man throw it all away to hurt people? Both of these young men were incredibly misguided, and by ruining the lives of others, they ruined their own lives. The cause they believed they were promoting became a cause that many people fear.

    When people see these two, they see hatred. They see evil. They see terror. That’s not how God wants us to see them though. God wants us to see these men as lost sheep; people he loves dearly and searches for night and day to bring them home. Dzhokhar, the young man on the right, is still alive. It’s not too late to view this person as a person created in the image of God.
    A Christian man who is a friend of mine on facebook said of Dzokhar, “We got’im. I hope we hang this kid from the statue of Liberty.”
    I don’t know how any Christan person can enjoy such an image. A death is a death. A murder is a murder. Killing those in God’s image is like crucifying Jesus again.
    Christians, try not to let your emotions control the better of you. Bless those who curse you and do good to those who wish you harm. This is the way of Christ. This is the way of peace. Choose to love, not to hate and we all will see that we are getting closer and closer to a world where there is “no more hurting people”. God’s kingdom is a kingdom of peace. Remember, Jesus did say, “Blessed are those who make peace because they will be called God’s children”, just like Martin.

  • When Prayer Works

    On Friday, my wife and I received word that one of our good friend’s dad had suffered an aneurism in his heart. He went to the hospital for having pains resembling that of a kidney stone. By the time he got to the hospital, his complexion was completely gray. Upon inspection, they discovered that his aorta had burst. They care-flighted him to a better hospital where they would keep him at closer inspection. Surgeons repaired the damage to his aorta. Absolutely nothing else was wrong with his heart. It was then discovered that he was still losing blood, so they prepared him for a second surgery where they repaired a leak that was overlooked. He also needed a blood transfusion. The doctors told the family that most people wouldn’t have even made the flight to the hospital, let alone two surgeries to repair his aorta. He’s been sedated this entire time, but briefly woke up for a short period of time. Much too weak to talk, he wrote on a piece of paper, “God is good”.

    I am positive that he is alive because he was covered in prayer.

    God is indeed good.

     

  • Cute Story

    I was going to write a highly theological post today but after reading my dad’s facebook status, I was inspired otherwise.

    My Dad was driving his truck with my five year old sister in the back. They pulled into a drive through, and in front of them was an Amish man complete with horses and a buggy. Dad looked at my sister and said, “Look who’s in front of us!” (speaking of the horses). My sister laughed and said, “What’s that coyboy doing!?”

    Haha…

    That was too cute not to share! Enjoy!

  • The Kingdom

    I was talking to somebody recently about the Kingdom of God. He is a bit skeptical about an eternity of living for a number of reasons, but his main one was: What could we do with ourselves for all eternity?

    I think, for someone who does not share the same hope that I do, this is a very legitimate question. One day, you are bound to see all there is to see and do all there is to do. What could you do with yourself for such a never ending period of time?

    I explained to him that, first, I don’t know much, and second, it is the Christian’s joy to be with our creator. To us, there is nothing more pleasing that the world has to offer… But more importantly, we are promised a new Heaven and a new Earth. The old will pass away, and God will do what God does best;

    Creating and recreating.

    And we will do what we were created to do;

    Respond to God’s creation.

    With an eternal Creator comes eternal possibilities for creation: Color’s we’ve never seen… Fruit we’ve never tasted… Music we’ve never heard… Feelings we’ve never felt before… Flowers we’ve never smelled before… and it doesn’t stop there. It goes on for an eternity… and the God who never ceases to surprise us will never let us down because we are meant for this eternity with our Creator.

    But here is the most important message of all… We don’t need to look into the future. We can help mend the brokenness of our creation now because we are just like God, our Creator. We recreate. This is why we have artists, doctors, scientists, pastors, mechanics, technicians, performers… The list can go on forever. Whatever it is you do, do it to the best of your ability not for the sake of money, not for the sake of boredom. Do it for the sake of the Kingdom of God… because God wants you for an eternal purpose.