I'm Mad as Heck & You Should be Too!

This video shows that George Bush tried to warn Congress in 2002 that this economic crisis was coming, if something was not done. But congress refused to listen, along with Barney Franks.

This video says it all.

Also that the liberal AMERICAN media did not want this video on You Tube, so they had Time Warner threaten a law suit (proprietary rights) if it was not taken off.
This link is of the same video but is routed through Canada . Everyone in America needs to see this!

Follow up to the Christmas Lie

I spoke to my brother not long after posting the blog 'The Great Lie of Christmas'. He informed me that he has never led his kids to believe there is a Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny or Santa Clause… and they are none the worse for the wear. They get just as many gifts as any other child and enjoy the experience as well as any child can. With one main difference! They have a crystal clear picture of what Christmas and Easter represent, and know that teeth falling out are part of growing, and cause for celebration within the family. They are young children who are just becoming of school age and when adults ask them; “what is Santa bringing you for Christmas?” There response is almost comical for some one of such a tender age. Their reply is something like; “There’s no Santa Clause, my parents by me presents. Christmas is Jesus’ Birthday. Santa has nothing to do with it!”

Wouldn’t it be great if every child in America could get the last part of that answer right?

But how can they? When instead if being in the world we have allowed them to become a part with it? The Bible tells us to be separate from those that live in this world 2 Corinthians 6:16-18. We are in the world but we are not to be part of the world system.

I think we have failed in this area when it comes to Easter and Christmas. These are two of the holiest of days we have as Christians. Yet they are polluted with the trappings of this world. The main reason we as Christians celebrate either of these days has to do with Jesus…yet He takes second place in most households behind Santa and the Easter bunny. And the traditions of both Easter and Christmas have trappings in pagan theology.

Here are two excerpts from The Restored Church of God.
This is a web site that investigates the origins of our Holidays.

The first is an excerpt surrounding Christmas, from: The Origins of Christmas

According to Langer’s Encyclopedia of World History, (article “Santa”), “Santa” was a common name for Nimrod throughout Asia Minor. This was also the same fire god who came down the chimneys of the ancient pagans and the same fire god to whom infants were burned and eaten in human sacrifice among those who were once God’s people.

Today Santa Claus comes from “Saint Nicholas.” Washington Irving, in 1809, is responsible for remaking the original old, stern bishop of this same name into the new “jolly St. Nick” in his Knickerbocker History of New York. (Most of the rest of America’s Christmas traditions are even more recent than this.) “Old Nick” has long been recognized as a term for the devil.

In Revelation 2:6 and 15, we read about a “doctrine of the Nicolaitanes,” which Christ twice tells His Church “[He] hates.” Let’s analyze the word Nicolaitane. It means “follower of Nicholas.” Nikos means “conqueror, destroyer.” Laos means, “people.” Nicolaitanes, then, are people who follow the conqueror or destroyer—Nimrod.

This is an excerpt about Easter, from: The Origins of Easter

Does the following sound familiar?—Spring is in the air! Flowers and bunnies decorate the home. Father helps the children paint beautiful designs on eggs dyed in various colors. These eggs, which will later be hidden and searched for, are placed into lovely, seasonal baskets. The wonderful aroma of the hot cross buns mother is baking in the oven waft through the house. Forty days of abstaining from special foods will finally end the next day. The whole family picks out their Sunday best to wear to the next morning’s sunrise worship service to celebrate the savior’s resurrection and the renewal of life. Everyone looks forward to a succulent ham with all the trimmings. It will be a thrilling day. After all, it is one of the most important religious holidays of the year.

Easter, right? No! This is a description of an ancient Babylonian family—2,000 years before Christ—honoring the resurrection of their god, Tammuz, who was brought back from the underworld by his mother/wife, Ishtar (after whom the festival was named). As Ishtar was actually pronounced “Easter” in most Semitic dialects, it could be said that the event portrayed here is, in a sense, Easter. Of course, the occasion could easily have been a Phrygian family honoring Attis and Cybele, or perhaps a Phoenician family worshipping Adonis and Astarte. Also fitting the description well would be a heretic Israelite family honoring the Canaanite Baal and Ashtoreth. Or this depiction could just as easily represent any number of other immoral, pagan fertility celebrations of death and resurrection—including the modern Easter celebration as it has come to us through the Anglo-Saxon fertility rites of the goddess Eostre or Ostara. These are all the same festivals, separated only by time and culture.

We may have changed these original pagan reasons for the season to flow around Jesus… but as Christians I think we need to take a lot closer look at the symbolism behind most of the traditions we allow to inhabit what we accept to be the holiest of holidays for us.

God gave the Israelites a multitude of days and seasons to celebrate their separation from the world unto Him-self. I am not advocating we return to Jewish tradition…

But I am an advocate for taking the two holidays we have as Americans to celebrate Jesus’ Birth, Death and Resurrection and making them 'Holy Days', to teach our children what an awesome God we celebrate. With out introducing pagan ritual or institutionalized commercialism to water it down and make it something less than what it is.

Let us be salt and light to a lost world… let us be wholly, Holy unto God… and teach our children by word and deed to be the same.

I encourage you to read in their entirety The Origins of Christmas and The Origins of Easter. There is much more there than the two small excerpts that I pulled out. It is an eye opener to the perversion we have allowed to infiltrate the days of celebration that we have earmarked for the Awesome God that we serve.

The Great lie of Christmas!

I am struggling with something this year. In part because of what is coming and in part because of what has come to pass.

I remember growing up and believing in the age old story of Santa Clause up until the time I could count. Then I started doing the math. In just one city the amount of time it would take Santa to distribute all of his gifts to a million plus kids would take more time than the night provided, not including travel time… then there were other cities that he was going to have to visit and he wasn’t even able to finish the first… that was the end of my childhood fantasy. And looking back I don’t remember any hard feelings or animosity towards my parents.

But I will never forget when we told my middle child ‘James’ about Santa. He was starting to figure it out just like I did… but he kept believing us because we told him it was true. Actually we were kidding ourselves by disguising the lie with; “When you stop believing in Santa your parents have to buy the gifts.” We thought this half truth would somehow make it all better. I’ll never forget, when the truth finally came out he looked at us and angrily said; “You lied to me… and you’ve been lying to me!” He was extremely upset… and the whole thing came back up again the next Christmas when we had to perpetuate the lie for his brother. If you ask him, to this day he will tell you he did not like the revelation that his parents would deceive him about such a thing for so long, but now he is a full blown participant in the deception. He plays along and keeps the story (the lie) alive for his brother… but at what cost. His brother is a smart kid, and I am sure he has done the math… he certainly is old enough to be able to figure it out by now, heck he might have even Googled it… but he continues to believe in spite of what his friends say or any other evidence to the contrary. Why? Because his parents whom he trusts implicitly have told him it is true. And what will be Zachary’s reaction this time. He does believe us no matter what we say, because we are his parents. For him that is good enough, but when he finds out we lied, will he say to himself… “If they lied about Santa maybe they lied about Jesus”! It was certainly something that came up with James… for months afterwards he would preface things with; “Is this true or did you lie about it too?” I really think we lost something in James that day… and I am fearful of the same innocence that will die in Zachary when the truth is told to him.

Why do we do this?

Have we not already polluted with commercialism one of the most Holiest of days we have as a Christian? The rest of the world is so consumed by consumerism that hardly anyone really even knows the true meaning of Christmas anyway! They all think that Santa has more to do with Christmas than Jesus does! And whose fault is that?

And not to be a Grinch… but the whole gift giving thing is way out of control. If you can’t or don’t you are less than American… and what about all the families that are devastated by the economy this year and Santa didn’t show up at their trailer in the Appalachian hills or the back roads of Georgia and any number of other places… what do they tell their kids? “I’m sorry honey Santa only brings gifts to people who have enough money to not need them!” or “Your not special enough because were too poor to make a difference!” The whole gift exchange and Santa thing is compounded in the poor.

Our entire countries economy hinges around how much we as consumers spend on the gifts we give.

If you really think about what it has become… I believe that we as Christians would be ashamed of what we have done to Christmas if we could see how Jesus would really want us to celebrate His Birthday.

I don’t know what the answer is… but I do know it is time to tell my youngest the truth. And that leaves me with where I began. How will he receive the news that his parents and every authority figure in his life has been lying to him since he was born… and just like his older brother so many years ago… what will he think of us then?

You tell me why we do this… or better yet, tell me what God would say about turning His son’s birthday into a fairytale gift exchange program for the privileged and affluent of society that alienates those near and dear to His heart… the poor.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Years Ago!

I can hear what you don’t say
I know we’ve so far to go
We are stuck here in this crossroads
This year will be like none before

When,
I think of all the years gone by
I dream of long ago
When Perry Como sang White Christmas
And Rudolf really had a bright red nose
I wish I could give you something different
I wish that I could give you more
I wish that on this Christmas
It would be as Years ago.

This time it’s not so simple
Life’s seasons have changed us so.
I wish that things were different
Christmas was simpler years ago

When,
I think of all the years gone by
I dream of long ago
Yuletide carolers they sang of Christmas
And Santa road razors down hills of snow
I wish I could give you something different
I wish that I could give you more
I wish that on this Christmas
It would be as Years ago.

The times that are between us
Can’t change how I love you so
Somehow we’ll make this Christmas
As special as the ones before

When,
I think of you this Christmas
And how I Love you so
I pray God will bridge the seasons
So Christmas feels like years ago.

© James Fuller 2006

Joseph: Father, Stepfather

As a father and a stepfather I can appreciate the dynamics that come from a blended family. But I can not even begin to fathom the challenge that Joseph faced with raising Jesus and his siblings.
He had the unique position of receiving Jesus just as he would one of his own. But He also had the clear message delivered by an angel that Mary’s pregnancy was intentional and he was to take Mary as his wife and raise Jesus, Gods son.

But how do you raise God?

Jesus was the oldest to his half brothers and therefore in a position above them… but how did they view him? We know that eventually Jude and James if not all of them accepted him for who he was. But what was it like growing up? For sure the gifts of the Magi gave his family a position of financial security and Joseph’s profession was more than likely lucrative, but what of the family dynamics… With the beginning of Jesus’ life and all that surrounded it, I am certain there was a higher expectation from him than from his siblings. And can you imagine the evidence of God in their household? Did Jesus ever carry on two way conversations with God as a child?

I can hear Mary now; “James have you seen Jesus?” Yeah mom’ he’s upstairs in the closet talking to God again!” Or, one of his brothers badgering him; “Sure you got an A on the test… you always get the answers right… you never get anything wrong!” I can imagine if I was one of Jesus’ brothers making an attempt to frame him just so I could see him get into trouble… Or, “darn it Jesus will you quit reading my mind… MOM Jesus is reading my mind again, will you make him to STOP!!!” What would it be like being the parent or brother of Jesus when he could read your every thought or intent?

And what was it like for Joseph being a father to them all? We know that he died at some point before Jesus started his ministry… but he was certainly in Jesus’ life until he was at least twelve and probably into his teenage years. How on earth do you raise the Son of God… the Messiah whom Joseph’s entire race had been waiting for since the days of Abraham. And how do you do life with your neighbors or the people on your street… “Yeah that’s my son Jesus on the Deans list, he graduated Magna-cum-lade… say by the way; did you know that my son is the Messiah?”

And did Mary and Joseph ever know beforehand of Gods intention to sacrifice Jesus in such a brutal way? What a thing to contemplate. Mary would eventually see it take place… what a horrible way to watch your child die. It is bad enough to lose a child… but to see them brutalized (without cause) in the most barbaric form of punishment ever devised, I shudder to think of how I would accept watching one of my own die in such a fashion.

And do you ever wonder if Jesus visited Mary during his time on earth after his death?

There is so much of Jesus’ early life that is shrouded in mystery. We are left to conjecture and speculation and none of it really matters… He met the letter of the law as it relates to fulfilling prophecy and that’s what counts. But one thing is for sure… He did have a childhood and it was probably interesting to say the least. And it sure is fun to think about what it would have been like to be his best friend or a classmate or a next door neighbor and contemplate the ‘what if’s’ that come to mind when thinking about what it was like to grow up with Jesus.

A Fathers Christmas

Day 7, the home stretch

Well I guess my week long semi bachelor life comes to an end sometime tomorrow. I am truly glad that my family is coming home.

As much as I enjoy time alone… I enjoy being a father and husband more. Sure it is filled with heartbreak and strife… but it is also filled with moments of pride and joy that can be experienced no other way. I know that I could never have come close to understanding the unconditional love God has for me, without first experiencing the unconditional love I have for my children. I know that I would have been less of a man without the anvil of accountability to my wife that shapes my life. And especially during this time of year, even through all the commercialization and perversion Christmas has experienced through the years, there is no better way to experience it than through the innocent eyes of your children.

I am thankful that God saw enough in me, to gift me with a loving wife and children to care for. And I pray that in these dark days I walk worthy of the trust He has placed in me.

My fervent prayer is when my children look back on me as their father that I will be remembered as a beacon of light who pointed the way to Jesus. That my shortcomings as a man and the mistakes I have made as a father will be proof that they too can be men and women of God instead of reasons why they shouldn’t.

If they get nothing else right in this world, I pray more than anything that they get their relationship with Jesus right. All that my life has been and all that God has offered me will mean nothing if I have failed in this. I pray that God uses me in mighty ways to reach others for Christ… and I pray that it began with those He gave me to raise.

No other success and no other failure would mean more to me than this.

A lot like Jesus. Jesus, a lot like you?

Day 6, one more day to go!

I miss my kids… well my wife to, but my wife will be the same when she gets back, kids change and grow so fast… have you ever noticed how much it seems they have grown when you haven’t seen them for a while. The time we have with them is so short. I try to spend as much time with them while they still want Dad hanging around. I know it won’t be long until they will be saying "What I'd really like, Dad, is to borrow the car keys see you later, can I have them please?" And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon”… you know the rest. Growing up, I swore that when I had kids I would never epitomize that song.

Having my own kids makes me wonder what Jesus was like as a kid.

Did he have a normal childhood?

No doubt Joseph and Mary raised him differently. Remember that they both were visited by an angel who made it very clear Jesus’ purpose for coming to the world. And I am certain that from his earliest memories he was indoctrinated with that sense of purpose. There is not clearer evidence of this than when his parents went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover and Jesus was left behind. He was only twelve years old and when he was discovered amazing the temple teachers with his understanding, and when his parents questioned him he gave evidence of his sense of purpose, by his response to them.

Luke 2:49"Why were you searching for me?" he asked. "Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?"

But when he was a baby or a toddler or even a small child…

Did he ever dirty his diaper and have to be changed, or was he potty trained from the get go? Did he ever go through the terrible two’s? Did he ever throw a temper tantrum in the check out line in the grocery store as a child? Did he have a crush on the girl next door or in school? Or did the girl next door have a crush on him. Did he play sports, did he fall down and skin his knee. Did he ever bang his thumb with a hammer when dad was teaching him how to be a carpenter? Or did he teach his dad how to be a better carpenter? Did he have to be taught anything or did he teach those around him? How much of him was God and how much was man. I know he was all man… but when did he realize he was also God? When did he know how it would all end? Was it a weight he carried his whole life, or a revelation that came from the desert experience preceding his ministry? Did he ever doubt himself? Did he know for sure that it was all as it was… or did he have to have the same faith we need in order to accept and believe who he was, and then live without any concrete evidence that he really was who he thought he was? Was there a time when all the memories of heaven came flooding into his mind… when he made the angels, when he made the earth, when he made us? Or did he have to live with the possibility that it was not as he believed because God required him to experience the same faith He required of us:

Hebrews 11:1Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

Did he have to be certain of that which he could not see… or did he see it? The Bible says he experienced all that we experience… does that include doubt?

Or did he come out of the womb a walking, talking fully knowledgeable God who never experienced a normal childhood and lived a somber Holy life of piety waiting until the day he would die for us?

We all have this vision of a wise and all knowing Jesus, and he was. But did it start out that way, or did he have to have faith before he saw it that way? I bet he also had a sense of humor and laughed and told jokes and burped and farted and all the other things that make up life as a human. I bet he struggle with rejection and mean people. They had bullies then as they do now and he was probably a victim of one or more in school, especially if he was different… and I'm sure he was different. But I bet he was the same as us too. He got his feelings hurt, he got sore throats and ear infections and tummy aches, and when he got cut he bled… just like you and me. Whether that cut was an emotional cut to his heart or a physical cut to his body…

I bet Jesus was a lot more like us than we like to think… not the same as us (he was perfect and we are not)… but I bet he was a lot like us! I bet he had good friends and bad friends and girls that had crushes on him and girls he had a crush on and kids that teased him and times when he felt sad and alone and needed his mommy and times when he just wanted to sit in his dads lap and snuggle…

Yeah, I think Jesus was a lot more like us than most of us would like to believe... and I believe there also came a time when in faith He also knew he was God.

Introspection

Day 5, Home Alone

How many of us have built and keep up walls that are so high that those closest to us don’t have a clue who we are?

I heard a song by Brandon Heath a few minutes ago that I am very fond of, “I’m not who I was”. To me the song seems to be about a past relationship that ended and sometime afterwards he was reflecting back on who he is now and who he was then and wishing his ex could see him now.

For some reason, maybe it is the time away from my wife or the distance or something entirely different… I don’t know, but the song brought on a melancholy feeling. I am still in a relationship, but the person I live with doesn’t see me now. The person I am and the person I was when the relationship began are two entirely different people. But because of the walls I built or maybe because my wife just refuses to see me any other way, I find myself wishing the same thing that Brandon sings about. I wrote a post several months back; ( A History of violence ) that probably fits me and the struggle I have with the way those who have known me for a long time see me. The past is a hard thing to shake. And the defenses that end up being built to keep sanity in your life become impregnable walls of solitude. And because I am a frail, fallible human I still make mistakes that end up keeping the old picture of me alive in the minds of those near me and therefore the walls of defense continue to stand strong.

Like the song implies… I wish my wife could see me now, I wish I could be ‘me’ around her. I wish we could ride through life together in the same boat! But things have become so twisted and entangled between circumstance, bad choices and a history that can not be escaped… sometimes I don’t hold much hope for it.

This probably isn’t the right place to vent this… but maybe there are others who live in the same boat as I do and maybe it’s nice to know that there are others who struggle with these same things… or maybe I just want to vent…

…or maybe this is what 5 days away from your family turns you into!

One Just Like You!

Home alone, Day 4.

My kids are 1500 miles away and right now I wish I could fold time and space to reach out to them. My wife left our 17 year old daughter in charge of my two boys while her and my in-laws attended a Christmas party… and the fighting has begun!

Did your parents ever tell you; “be careful how you act or God will give you a child just like you”?

Well my parents did… and now I am living out that prediction. I somehow thought I would do it better. It is hard to not to point the finger inward and say: “You could have done better”! Mostly because no matter how good you do it there is always a way you could have done it better. Hindsight makes this painfully clear. I blame myself when my children make wrong choices. I wish there was a way I could deposit all of the experiences from so many wrong choices in my life as well as the pain of their outcome into my children’s head so that they would not repeat my mistakes. I want so much for them to have the best of everything life can bring… as does any parent. But as parents we are only 50% of the equation. The response our children have to us and their environment can only be influenced by us for so long. We can only control their world for a little while. Thankfully mine are still young enough that I can take away their freedom to continue making mistakes and do my best to alter their course before it’s too late. But what if they don’t change… what if they just bide their time until they pop out from under your thumb? What do you do? What if after pouring all of your love and life into them they still reject right for wrong, good for bad, God for selfish desire? What then?

Truthfully, I was way worse than most children. SHHHHhhhhhh… don’t let them hear that! Yet, I survived to make it here. In the process I know I wore out a whole host of Gods angels trying to keep up with me. In all seriousness, my parents and many of my parent’s friends did not expect me to live past twenty, and by all rights I shouldn’t have. There are not many things one can think of as it relates to danger or trouble that I was not completely immersed in. So if I made it maybe they can too. They certainly have a better start than I did. But the world has changed since we were kids, and that’s what worries me most. The world I grew up in was a Disney movie compared the X rated life we live today.

Ultimately it is between them and God. All we can do is train them in the way they should go and leave the rest to our Father in heaven.

And when they are old (hopefully) they will not depart from it.

Does Baptism Save?

Day 3 Home Alone...

and I feel like the kid in the car seat!

I had a long day. It started at 7:00 AM and ended just a few minutes ago at almost 10:PM.

I would have forgone posting because I am so tired, but I read something in my devotions this morning that stayed with me.

It surrounds baptism. I firmly believe that it is something we must do as a believer. It is commanded for us to do and it should be done. But, I don't think that our salvation is contingent upon it. Let me pose a question to emphasize what I mean. If you tripped and fell on way to the baptismal and died after making your confession of faith where do you go... Heaven or Hell? A good Baptist would tell you it depended upon which way you fell! But I don’t believe that is the case. Most people use Acts 2:38 to make a case against this statement.

Acts 2:38
Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

When Peter made this statement you need to consider how he used the word ‘FOR’. As in; “for the forgiveness of your sins”. It is not a ‘FOR’ that implies ‘so that’ it is a FOR that is saying ‘because of’. Just as you make the statement; “we weep for joy”. We weep because we have joy, just like we are baptized because our sins are forgiven. There is a host of similar verses we could use to make the case… but I want to focus on what I read this morning.

In 1 Corinthians the first Chapter Paul is discussing the dissention that is occurring in the church. They were fighting amongst each other about who they followed and who was the better one to follow. Some were claiming to follow Paul, some Apollos, some Peter and some the Messiah. Paul was making the statement that He was thankful that no one could go around saying that they were baptized by him, presumably so they would not have even more bragging rights. He names off two people and one family in the list of people that he had baptized.

Doesn’t that strike you as strange? Here is a man who had started more than just a few churches and preached how many countless sermons… and at the end of all the alter calls had baptized only a handful of people. I am sure he was convinced of the necessity of baptism… but in the respect of obedience, not salvation. If he felt it was something required for salvation don’t you think he would have placed more emphasis on it as an immediate requirement?

I am spent… so I will leave the rest for you to ponder… let me know your thoughts.

Jim

Pinto vs. Ferrari

Home Alone Day 2:

Well, my wife and children are about half way to Florida… my kids have sent me several text messages and made a few phone calls to inform me of their progress. One text message in particular from my youngest son (he’s nine) just tore at my heart. I sent him a message that said; “I missed him” and he replied that he missed me too, but that he will always be in my heart and that he would never leave me… I sent back that he was making me cry tears of happiness and he replied with; “Be strong dad, I did not mean to make you cry”. He is the sweetest little guy in the world, as are all of my children.

I woke up to about five inches of snow in the driveway, which kind of puts a damper on any prospects for work today. If this weather keeps up it will really make me regret not to have gone with my family. There is a fair amount of busy work that I can do, but I was planning on doing this in the evenings instead of when I can be out during the day… Although this may be God’s way of telling me to take the time to do what I have intended, and spend some extended alone time with Him.

I miss the closeness to Him that it seemed I had just a few years ago. I have heard it said that if you don’t feel close to God anymore, He’s not the one who moved. I know haven’t moved, but I have allowed the cares of this world to invade the time I have with Him. I often feel isolated from Him. It’s as if I have been placed alone in a pressure cooker with an ever increasing amount of heat and pressure being applied to either make me stronger or continue rising until it breaks me. Each time I feel like I am at the end of what I can withstand, this little voice says… “Stop it! You know that you’re no where near the end of your rope.” God has continually demonstrated His faithfulness to His word, by being in just the right place at just the right time to rescue me from disaster. I have been on the stove so long that I can’t even begin to tell you when it was that I didn’t feel the weight of circumstance hanging over me. I often get this crazy feeling that I am destined for this. Not because of something I have done wrong… but because He is shaping me to be His voice of clarity in these last days. A voice that can speak not from what I have been told but what I have learned first hand. To boldly proclaim to others His Faithfulness to us in meeting our needs during these days of a crumbling economy and disaster that is sweeping our world. I often wonder and sometimes feel that we really are the last generation. That, WE will be the ones to see the world disintegrate into chaos and be the ones to see on a global scale what was prophesied come to pass.

Revelation 6:6:Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, "A quart of wheat for a day's wages, and three quarts of barley for a day's wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!"

I know He is there… I know He loves me… and I know that what ever I am going through has been filtered through His loving hands to serve His purpose. So I don’t worry. I didn’t say that I like it… I said; “I don’t worry”. When you have walked long enough in the desert it sure gives you an appreciation for what Paul was saying in Philippians:

Philippians 1:21-26:
For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me.

It isn’t hard to begin hating this life in comparison to what we hope for.

In a song by: Shawn McDonald the song ‘Gravity’ contains these lyrics in the last verse.

I want to fly
Into the sky
Turn my back on this WHOLE world AND
Leave it all behind
This place is not my home
It's got nothing for me
Only leaves me with emptiness
And tears in my eyes

I think that sums up the whole of how I feel.

Jesus told us it was going to be hard… and for some it will be harder than for others. I gave up all that I am for Him a long time ago… I had thrown my life away and it was Jesus who decided to bring me back from the edge of the cliff. Now, I am here for Him and Him alone. I will do as He asks for as long as He asks, with all of my heart. And at the risk of sounding fatalistic (which I am not) I am ready to go home when He is ready to take me.

If we really believe what He has told us about heaven…then we all would have the same feelings, and to say otherwise shows that you don’t believe Him.

The Christian walk is like having two cars. The one you drive everyday is an old beater 1971 Ford Pinto. The one that you can’t drive yet is a brand new Ferrari Enzo that is waiting for you in the garage. If you really believed the Enzo was in the garage you would be counting down the days until you could swap the Pinto for the Ferrari. But if you weren’t quite so sure the Enzo existed then you would be far more inclined to hang on the Pinto for as long as you can. As for me, I am ready to begin racing up and down the streets of heaven in my new Ferrari as soon as God lets me. You can keep driving the Pinto and calling me crazy or fatalistic for wanting to make the trade, it doesn’t matter to me, I know what is waiting after this and what we have here pales in comparison to the reality of what we hope for.

But for now, I’ll keep driving my Pinto through desert with no A/C and windows that don’t roll down, until the day it quits running or he lets me trade up for a better running Pinto.

Remember: when you are in the desert, it is God who applies the pressure to squeeze out the moisture needed to quench the thirst of those He has placed around us.

Home Alone!

I am FREE… at least for the next week. And until I succumb to feelings of isolation and the longing for the embrace of my wife and children, I will enjoy it.

They left just a few minutes ago to go visit my in-laws in Florida for Christmas and to let the grandkids feel like Christmas break was more than just a few days off from school. I would have gone… but I have way too many obligations at work and… well to put it bluntly my in-laws would have preferred a different son-in-law. Don’t get me wrong they are great people and very gracious. They love their daughter and my children like there is no tomorrow, and they always make me feel welcome. But, behind it all, I know that deep down inside they really don’t like me and my presence is more tolerated than welcome.

Now that the house is mine for a week, I can crank up the stereo, and when I want to turn on the TV, the remote will be right where I left it and the house won’t be a disaster when I come home. I can drink right out of the milk jug and eat my dinner in the same pot I cooked it in. Not to mention that I can catch up on some work and other obligations without feeling the guilt of being home in time for supper… but, who am I kidding, I miss them even as I write this, and I pray that God sends a battalion of angels to protect them while they travel and that He brings them home in the same condition they left in.

But aside from the trivial aspects of being alone for a week, it will also allow for some extended one on one time with Jesus. It has been a tough couple of years, and the economy in the last few months has not made it look in easier and I've got a lot of pleading and tears to shed while I am with Him. I don’t get many times where I will be alone long enough to let the pent up emotions run free and still have time for my puffy reddened eyes to recover before another pair of innocent eyes gaze into mine and ask; “Daddy what’s wrong?”.

It’s not like there is anything wrong… not while God is in control. But I sure would like an easier hill to climb and time alone with Him will hopefully give me better insight on why things are like they are and what the heck I can do to make them better. And if at the end of the week I still have this row to hoe then so be it, He has His reasons and that’s good enough for me.

But while I have this week, I would ask that anyone who would read this would take a minute to pray for me and my family. Pray for me that I can get some clarity… and pray for my family that they would have an awesome time and be delivered home safely.

Thanks and God Bless.

Jim

Does He ever say my name?

We all strive for significance. Some seek significance through fame or position and others achieve significance as a professional athlete or by becoming rich. But the position you achieve in each and every one of these ways is fleeting at best. There are countless washed up actors, singers and athletes that at one time or another were on top of the world. Some one recently sent me a list of famous entrepreneurs, some were steel and coal magnets and financial managers like Charles Schwab, many on the list were highly recognizable names… it listed the achievements that had brought them a tremendous amount of significance. But each and every one of them died a penniless has-been.

Proverbs 23:5 Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.

There is only one person that we should try to impress… but He is not a person and He does not live here… and nothing we will ever do will really impress Him. But it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try. This brings me to my original thought. Does He or did He ever say my name? It seems like an absurd thought, but when I was taking communion tonight it kind of floated through my mind… what if Jesus thought of me specifically… ‘Jim Fuller’, while He was dying on the cross. What if something I would do or have done in my life would have caused Him to smile as He died, to have given Him some form of comfort in thinking… as much as I do this for the world… I do it for Jim Fuller. Or maybe now while He reigns in heaven, He is having a discussion with one of His angels and He says to him; “did you see my servant Jim Fuller”!

I am a realist and I don’t really think that I am significant in any way like I am describing… but wouldn’t it be nice if we could be… but, can we? Even if it is in some small way! Can we do something so extraordinary… so significant that Jesus will rise from His throne to watch us.
The bible describes Jesus as seated at the right hand of God. But after Stephen made his speech to the Sanhedrin and they were preparing to stone him, Stephen said;

Acts 7:55-56 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. "Look," he said, "I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God."

Jesus actually stood up to receive Stephen. I can just see Jesus rising from His throne, and with angels all around Him saying to those present; “look at my servant Stephen as he comes to us”… but what about you and me? Can we ever hear; “look at my servant (insert your name)”. Can we ever do something so significant, so wonderful, that we garner God Almighty’s attention?

Do you ever think about this?

Do you try?

Do you even care?

It is the only significance that matters. To have Jesus peer down from heaven to look upon you and be proud of you. To have God almighty speak your name as He did Jobs. To matter to Him, in an up close and personal way. To have your name, be on His lips and His mind.

Job 1:8 Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil."

Do you ever try and do anything to please God in such a way? When it is all said and done, the only thing that will matter… the only thing that will remain, are the moments you lived for Him in this way.

I pray that before I meet Him that I too can accomplish something that pleases God in such a way as this… to hear Him say as I come home; “well done thou good and faithful servant”!

Blackest Darkness

2 Peter 2:13,18 They will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done… These men are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them.


WOW, what a thought! As if the mental image of Hell wasn’t bad enough in and of it-self… God has set aside a place of “Blackest Darkness” for the worst of us.



Luke 12:46-48
The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.
"That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.


The human fleshly side of me takes satisfaction in the thought of a darker place of torment. I want retribution for Satan and his minions that have come against me, and there are more than a few people in my life that I would like to see on the roster for one of these places.

Don’t get me wrong… I don’t ever dwell on the wrongs in my life. I don’t hold grudges or have a problem with forgiveness. If that is a gift the Holy Spirit gives us, then it is one that is assigned to me, (although it may be more a product of memory than saintly aspiration). I have taken to heart what God said…


Romans 12:19 Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord.


However, I must admit that there is comfort in knowing that God has ascribed varying degrees of torment for those that have evaded a fitting punishment for the things they have done here on earth. I cringe when I hear of the light sentences given to rapist’s and child molesters, or those that have gotten off scot free because of some kind of technicality.

And then occasionally we see the adage “what comes around goes around” come to life when someone like OJ Simpson gets what he deserves after previously escaping from what he justly deserved.

It’s nice to see that God sometimes sets things straight while we are still here to see it.

The Despisers Watch

I began this walk at His call.
And just as he did 2000 years ago,
the Despiser watches and laughs.
Despair sits at my door, and I weep.
Ruin haunts my life and I hide.
Loss clouds my memories, and I try to forget.
The hope of a new tomorrow fades with each setting sun.
Those that are shackled to my existence ask WHY and I sit in silence.

Yet will I persevere!

The path before me is not of my choosing;
therefore I have not an answer to why… because I am given none.
I only know that I am told to wait,
for what I am unsure, but waiting is all I can do until I know to do otherwise.
He has His reasons, and I know He has a plan.
Of this I am certain.
I don't have to know what it is because He is the one that knows best.
So in obedience I wait, and when it is time... in obedience I will act.

And when I do, just as he did 2000 years ago the despiser will be consumed by his folly in the light of Gods glory and the plan He is bringing to fruition.

He never said it would be easy…
He only said it would be worth it.

And I believe Him!

Dark quiet season

What good is Your word; if I can't hear you speak?
Why give me Your light, if I can't see the way?
What use is Your sign, if I can't find its meaning?
I am hopelessly lost in this dark quiet season.

The Dark is so deep
I can't see the signs,
confusion and madness
that cloud up my mind,
In riotous silence,
in sounds so bright,
this dark quiet season
is piloting my life.

How can I journey where there's no where to travel?
How can I climb where there's no where to fall?
How can I try if I can't find the reason?
You have made me to live in this dark quiet season.

The Dark is so deep
I can't see the signs,
confusion and madness
that cloud up my mind,
In riotous silence,
in sounds so bright,
this dark quiet season
is piloting my life.

Your silence is deafening, I can't hear you speak
My darkness so bright, my eyes only weep
I’ll wait in this season no rescue in sight.
Until Jesus is here to show me his light.

The Dark is so deep
I can't see the signs,
confusion and madness
that cloud up my mind,
In riotous silence,
in sounds so bright,
this dark quiet season
is piloting my life.

In riotous silence,
in sounds so bright,
in this dark quiet season
Jesus is piloting my life.

© James Fuller 2006

Listen to the song here:
http://www.soundclick.com/util/getplayer.m3u?id=5246854&q=hi

Learning to Walk

Recently I was reflecting on the similarities that seem to depict my walk with Jesus and the correlation it shares with the way we raise our kids.

I don’t know if it really reflects a strictly scriptural view, but it seems to be a good analogy to paint what I have experienced.

When I first began my walk with God, He was visible every where and in everything that I could see. If I had a question or needed reassurance…BAM! He was Johnny on the spot answering my questions and meeting my need in ways that would be considered miraculous. But as I have walked further down the road with Him it has changed dramatically. He is more real and still very much in my life, more so than when my walk first began and the communion I share with Him is much, much deeper. But, my experiences stretch me a lot farther than they previously did and it seems that He demands that I face more of my life in a rawer form. I still experience His protection and intervention as described in the Bible… but what I have to go through seems less filtered and tests my limits of endurance… and from this I grow!

If you think about how children come into our lives it is much the same. When they are first born they are virtually attached to us at the hip. We are there to meet their every need and demand without hesitation and they are never out of our site, even for a second. As they grow stronger we begin to test their limits and encourage independence. When they first begin to walk we guide them by holding their hands and walking with them gradually letting go and then encouraging them to walk to us on their own, but always there to catch them when they fall. And we still rarely if ever let them out of our sight. As they continue to grow we allow them to experience more and more independence, even to the point of letting them make mistakes or fail, but we are still always there to catch them when they fall… and from this they grow! Then finally our children become adults… no matter how old and how mature they become, we still see them as our children… and still we're always there when they need us, and always there to catch them when they fall…just like our heavenly father does for us.

Well maybe not ‘just like” He does, but we do our best.