Month: October 2015

About once a year, when we lived in Azerbaijan, we would take the kids out to the Mud Volcanoes. The Mud Volcanoes are not really lava-flowing volcanoes. They are shaped like small cones and exude muck-like substances forming something more like large mud puddles. It was incredibly fun to go out and play in them for a day but we’d be covered and caked in a layer of mud by the afternoon. The biggest danger was getting stuck. People could easily lose a rubber boot or pair of shoes. It was possible to sink fairly deep. There are days in life that feel like being at the mud volcanoes – only it’s not so fun. The feeling is more like being in sinking sand and you aren’t sure that anyone will come and rescue you. It’s easy to allow fear and despair to grow as everything becomes weighed down. It’s in those times we need to remember that Jesus is called our rock and fortress. He’s not called our mud volcano. Jesus is there to give us strength and support – to be the firm foundation beneath our feet. American gospel singer and song writer Dottie Rambo sang about where she would go in times of trouble: I go to the Rock for my salvation I go to the stone that the builders rejected I run to the mountain and the mountain stands by me When the earth all around me is sinking sand On Christ, the Solid Rock, I stand When I need a shelter, when I need a friend, I go to the Rock Maybe today is one of those days when you need a shelter and a friend. Go to the Rock; go to the one who is our foundation. Go to Jesus. “There is no one holy like the LORD, Indeed, there is no one besides You, Nor is there any rock like our God”. (1 Samuel 2:2)

If you are a fan of the Back To The Future movie franchise, then you know that today is a very important date. In the second installment of the series, our hero, Marty McFly, uses his time machine to travel thirty years into the future to October 21, 2015. There he discovers a very futuristic, dark and confusing world. It was a movie with an unbelievable story but it was lots of fun to watch. Now that the actual October 21, 2015 has arrived, people around the world are taking a look at some of the predictions that were made in the movie. There is general disappointment that actual hover boards don’t exist. Shoe laces still don’t tie themselves and cars don’t run on garbage. On the other hand, we do have finger print technology, cashless payments, drones and wearable software. Movies about the future are difficult to make since no one can actually predict what things will be like. Of course, that doesn’t stop people from studying trends and technology to try and figure out what might happen. It’s not an exact science and the future is never quite what is expected. I remember when those Back to the Future movies came out. I can’t believe it has really been thirty years. What will the world be like in another thirty years? Who knows? There are plenty of gloomy forecasts about the environment. Other people are optimistic about scientific advances and technology. I imagine there will be a mixture of positive and negative. The one thing I am sure about is that Jesus is coming back. He promised and he keeps his word. I don’t know if he will return this week, in the next thirty years or three hundred years from now. When he left his disciples, angels appeared and said “This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” (Acts 1:11) Jesus broke into our world the first time as a newborn baby. He will come again as the King of Kings. As Christians, we are to be prepared and ready at any moment for Christ to return and eternity to begin. That’s the only thing I know for sure about the future. Who knows: this could be the day!

With an IQ higher than Albert Einstein, eight-year-old Jacob Barnett started attending Indiana University. He is studying advanced astrophysics and working on expanding the theory of relativity. Jacob isn’t the only youngster to show off his genius. At 13, Sufiah Yusof from Malaysia was accepted at Oxford in mathematics. Kathleen Holtz started attending California State University when she was ten. At 15 she began law school and became the youngest lawyer in the US by age 18. By age two, William Sidis had taught himself to read. Within a couple of years he was fluent in eight languages. He wrote four original works of his own by the age of seven. Childhood prodigies or geniuses make for fascinating stories. It’s tempting to look at certain individuals and covet their abilities. We all wonder what it would be like to have such innate talent. It’s dangerous to compare ourselves with someone else’s intellect, beauty, musical ability, athletic aptitude, or giftedness. God has created each of us differently. No one has your DNA, which means the people in crime labs can find you if you do something wrong. No one smells like you, which means hound dogs can follow your scent. No one has your voice, which means a computer can recognise your speech out of 7 billion others. We are all uniquely made and gifted. God isn’t asking you to be as smart as a child prodigy. Nor is he measuring your worth by how gifted other people are. He just wants you to be a good steward of who you are – to use whatever he has given you to glorify him. Just be you. “The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life.” (Job 33:4)

The police in New Hampshire are resorting to strange tactics to catch people using their cell phones while driving. The use of cell phones when driving is dangerous and illegal in many places. In fact, some studies indicate that using your phone while driving can be more dangerous than driving drunk. Everyone agrees that texting while driving is the most dangerous of all. Recently, the New Hampshire police placed uncover cops at various intersections to watch for people using cell phones or other electronic devices while driving. Michelle Tetreault got a ticket because, while waiting at a stop light, her daughter asked for the phone in order to take a picture. Now here’s the interesting part for me. The undercover cop was standing at the intersection with a sign around his neck. He was dressed as a doomsday prophet and his message read, “Repent, for the end is near.” You have to give high marks to the police for creative disguises. The 14-year-old daughter wanted a picture because she didn’t know the meaning of the word ‘repent’. Given our impression at times that America is a Christian country, how is it possible that a 14-year-old doesn’t know the word ‘repent’? It’s not part of our vocabulary anymore either inside or outside the church. We don’t like the word; we don’t like the idea. Many people find it to be a negative term stirring up ideas of an angry God. It’s unfortunate that we have lost the meaning of that rich word. In Greek, it simply means ‘to turn around.’ In the New Testament, it came to mean a change of heart and direction. It also picked up the idea of regret or remorse for one’s sins. So the idea of repenting is about changing one’s heart, having remorse over sin and turning to God. It’s not something we should fear but rather willingly embrace. It was John the Baptist who preached, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 3:2) Notice he didn’t say “the end is near.” For those who repent, it’s the beginning. It’s the start of something new: entering the Kingdom. It’s God’s call for people to come and join with him in his Kingdom. Repentance is part of the gospel – the good news. Let’s make sure people know that.