Pain, Gift or Curse? by John.

I've lived a long time, and I've experienced a normal amount of pain I suppose, but I've not experienced nearly as much pain as WW II soldiers who were prisoners of war, nor the pain the Jews suffered at that time. I think no normal person looks forward to suffering. I'm becoming more familiar with pain now, and as much as we don't like it, I think we should consider it a gift from God. As a simple illustration, can you imagine breaking an ankle and walking around on it without pain? It would probably result in death very quickly.

Pain is God's gift to help us stay healthy. Early in our lives we stop doing most of the things that cause pain. One of the things I did as my children grew was swat them on the rear end when they reached for something on the hot stove. Thankfully that helped avoid the much worse perhaps life threatening burns.

With pain, God also gave us myriads of plants that relieve the suffering at least to some degree. One of the plants in the USA used in the early days of this country for toothaches is the Aralia Spinosa, or Devil's Walking Stick. Another was Slippery Elm used to help medicines easier to swallow. Many plants are still used today in a more purified form. I've used Digoxin for my heart for many years. I it comes from Digitalis plants.

These are just a few of God's gifts to spare us too much pain, and there are so many, many more! I can't remember thanking God for the pain I've had, can you? But I have thanked him for the medicines that have kept me in relatively good health for so long.

One of my good friends requested prayer for a co-laborer today, and I've already been praying for both of them. I certainly believe God answers our prayers and heals us of our sicknesses. I think He usually does it with a quiet touch, but I also believe doctors are a gift to the whole human race. I wrote my friend immediately saying much of what I'm saying here, but a little more.

I am wondering if our Father allows illness so that we will personally turn to Him for help, and if in turning to Him, we also ask others to join us in prayer for healing. In I Thessalonians 5:17, Paul urged the Christians there to pray without ceasing and to give thanks in everything.

These are just some thoughts about our daily life here in this world where we are being prepared for the glory of heaven. I believe our gifts far outrank our needs, and I agree with Paul that we need to pray and give thanks constantly... I think I will stop and give thanks for everything God has given me including pain, medicines and doctors who know how to use those medicines.

Jesus; by John.

A Note To the Reader:

I intend this to be a simple account of my own observation and resulting belief concerning Jesus. I don't intend it to be a dogmatic, or theological presentation, but rather a report of my lifetime experience with the Lord.

I knew little of Jesus when I became a Christian. I attended Sunday School and Worship almost from birth throughout my life of 80 plus years. I learned the Bible stories and heard impressive preaching. None of that made me a Christian. I became a Christian when a man who became a dear friend and brother pressed upon me the fact that Jesus came into this world to save people. I knew that included me. Before that I thought it impossible for Jesus to pay any attention to me at all. I may have been close to considering Him an ideal rather than a person.

Weeks passed as my friend and I talked. Rather suddenly, I became aware that Jesus was really a person who cared for everyone, and for me personally at that moment. That became vitally important. Heaven and hell had been to me like Valhalla, or the top of Mount Olympus with its pantheon of gods and goddesses. Now, I was flooded with the truth that what the Bible says is true including heaven and hell, and all that it says about Jesus is true. I began to read the Bible with a great thirst for knowledge about everything spiritual, and as I discovered truths, I also discovered I could not keep them to myself. I began to share them with everyone around me. That's the reason for what I'm doing right now. There is so much being said that I find to be unbiblical. I invite you to see for yourself if this is Biblical, or not.

Jesus is God, and as far as I can ascertain, He has always been with God the Father. I see our earthly father/son relationship to be of a similar nature. My own father was always in charge, but we were always equals in everything other than wisdom, knowledge and chain of command. My father always shared as much knowledge with me as he could. Jesus referred to His Father as teaching and instructing Him, and also said He was always obedient to His Father. I don't intend to leave out the Holy Spirit, but all I plan to say is that God's Holy Spirit always present, came to represent and act for Jesus among men. He seals us, teaches and leads us when we allow Him to do God's will in our lives.

Before the incarnation, Jesus was there with the Father in creating all that was created. I think He probably worked directly with mankind during those millennia, but I am not comfortable in stating that as fact. I am aware that heavenly messengers visited people on varied occasions, and if we stick with John's use of "the Word" then almost every time God spoke, the speaker was Jesus.

People have always believed that God, or gods, were behind the scenes observing the activities of mankind. Greek mythology is full of that belief as was Judaism of the day. Not everything in pagan religion is bad. It falls far short of Christianity, but I suspect God used it, and curbed it, to accomplish His will. How much their existence changed the history of mankind is debatable at most. Personally, I believe Romans 8:28 expresses it well: "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." This indicates we are free, and God does not cause everything, but uses everything for His children's good, and His work is always perfectly good.

I believe God exists in three personalities, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and I believe the three are not three, but one God. Beyond that, my experience is that God is perfect love and perfect power. He rules everything with a loving touch that always accomplishes His will. That means being apart from God is the worst position in this world, and to accept Jesus as Savior and Lord of our lives is absolutely the best

The Certainty of Hope Spans Time; by John

The Certainty of Hope Spans Time

Many words in every language mean a variety of things according to the need they fill. For instance the English word "hope" expresses something good that can, or may, happen in the future. In a sense, it always expresses a desire. "I hope to make a trip to Disney Land before the kids grow up!" is an example. But sometimes as Christians we speak of "the blessed hope." That speaks of something that we believe will certainly happen because God has promised it in the Bible. We may also use it to express a negative idea, "I hope that never happens." Hope can be used to express regret. For instance, a person may say, "I hoped my business would be financially sound by now, but it isn't."

In the Greek New Testament of the Bible "hope" is always quite strong. When it was written, their use of hope expressed an absolute belief of a future event happening. The only unsure thing in their hope was the element of time. They weren't sure about the exact year, day and hour.

Today, we generally express our faith with positive statements such as, "I remember when I put my trust in Jesus, and He saved me. I know my home is in heaven with Him!" The "know" in that sentence expresses our Biblical hope. It hasn't happened yet, but we are certain everything God has promised will occur according to His schedule. And yes, we believe God has a schedule. How absolute, or flexible it is, we certainly do not know.

Some people resent Christians saying such things, but those same people may say, "I'm going to visit Italy this summer, or something like that." They can't be sure they will live through the day, much less until some future date. A good friend and I were talking one day after he visited the dentist. He said matter-of-factly, "The technician told me I brushed my teeth too hard. She said I would lose them before I died if I didn't brush them a little more gently." His eyes were fixed on mine, and I saw the pain there. It was ironic. He had cancer, and he lived only a few more weeks. He was well aware his time was almost gone, but the technician didn't have a clue about his condition. Most of us don't have much more than a clue about what the future holds, that is, unless we have hope in Christ.

A fragment of a song just came to mind. It says something like, "I don't know about the future, but I know Who holds the future in His hands."

I'm the one who knows that he has a limited future now. I have acute myeloid leukemia and I'm 83 years old. It would be extremely painful and probably quite useless to treat the disease at this point. I've chosen palliative treatment. That means the medical community will try to keep me comfortable as long as I live. My friends tell me I can't give up, and I have to tell them that I am not. I am living in hope that the future holds a far more wonderful life than I've already had on this beautiful earth where God placed us. Eternity is my hope with all the wonderful things God has promised. I'm looking forward to meeting two sisters and a brother who left this earth before I was born, and of course, my parents and older brother who was like a father to me a lot of the time.

The Hebrew Bible contains a number of different words we translate to English with our word, "hope." They express a far greater range of meaning, mood and feeling than our one word can carry. Tikvah refers literally to a cord as an attachment, and carries the meaning of an expected happening longed for. Miqveh refers to perhaps an oasis, or a pool of water, but it is used to express confidence that it will be there where they expect it. Yahchal refers basically to waiting, and that's a big part of hope. We must be patient for our Lord works on His Own time table, and it is always correct and filled with His love.

These are just some of the expressions of hope. There are more if you would like to study them. As for me, I am trying to live one day at a time emjoying my family and friends and the time God is allowing me here, but my hope is for a future with far less limitation than I now have. There is no real freedom or safe haven on earth. Both are ours when we turn our lives over to the Lord. That is my hope.


John A. House, July 17, 2011