Now I know many of us are caught up with the election and the primary next week. But I think we need to step back and reevaluate our hearts as Christians. I have heard many things in the last few months that would shame many of us if they were replayed. I’m as guilty as the rest in not stating some of my concerns and convictions in a more loving way.
We as Christians have a duty to our family, our friends, and our church to encourage and edify one another; Lift one another up and build each other with a firm biblical backing at every trial that may arise.
“Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another.” Romans 14:19
In 1 Thessalonians 5:11 it also states, “Therefore comfort each other and edify one another just as you also are doing.”
Matthew Henry’s commentary on 1 Thessalonians 5:11 states, “As Christians are lively stones built up together a spiritual house, they should endeavour to promote the good of the whole church by promoting the work of grace in one another. And it is the duty of every one of us to study that which is for the edification of those with whom we converse, to please all men for their real profit. We should communicate our knowledge and experiences one to another. We should join in prayer and praise one with another. We should set a good example one before another. And it is the duty of those especially who live in the same vicinity and family thus to comfort and edify one another.”
I have seen “clicks” where you have to fit in with one or another. At times it’s because one friend disagrees with another. This leaves the rest to divide their allegiances to one side or the other. At the moment I have seen “factions” happening between the Mitt Romney constituents, the Ron Paul fans and even Hucklebee supporters.
Discussing a topic we disagree on is fine as long as we do all things with loving-kindness, knowing when to back off or when to change the subject. Friendships are delicate and at times it can be like walking a tightrope. Particularly when fierce storms come that knock us off balance and could potentially destroy friendships if we’re not careful.
Yes, I have put my friendship with all on the line and stated the facts as I see them. I do enjoy hearing the views of both sides and evaluating them. But we must be careful not to look down on someone because of their political preferences. Some people I have only known for only a short time and I didn’t feel that I was “close” enough as a friend to share my thoughts or concerns. In this I see I was wrong. A friend should always share their concerns no matter how “close” of a friend they are.
Well, I have shared my concerns on this “prickly” matter. If I have stated things too strongly I’m sorry, but I have never been able to water things down without washing the point of the message out with it. Let us consider each other above ourselves and remember to bear our convictions with grace, mercy, and love.
Surely, God’s decision will reign in the end. If we get an ungodly harsh ruler it will be for judgment and if God brings a Godly man to rule our nation it will be as a blessing to His people and to America. Whether a Saul or David we can stand fast in His Sovereign will.
So may we prayerfully vote our convictions, think biblically in all our actions, and love our friends and family fervently with the perfect and forgiving love of Jesus.
Here is a quote or two that might interest you.
“The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’” - Ronald Reagan –
Sir Philip Sidney said on his death bed on October 17th 1586, “…But, above all things, govern your will and affections by the will and word of your Creator; in me beholding the end of this world with all her vanities.”
Sir Philip Sidney said on his death bed on October 17th 1586, “…But, above all things, govern your will and affections by the will and word of your Creator; in me beholding the end of this world with all her vanities.”
The Result of Legal Plunder
This is from a book I am reading called "The Law" By Frederic Bastiat
He was a Frenchman in 1840's/50's. Some of what he says sounds a lot like problems we have in America today. Here is a part of the book that is quite eye-opening.
The Results of Legal Plunder / Frederic Bastiat (The Law)
‘It is impossible to introduce into society a greater change and a greater evil than this: the conversion of the law into an instrument of plunder.
What are the consequences of such a perversion? I would require volumes to describe them all. Thus we must content ourselves with pointing out the most striking.
In the first place, it erases from everyone’s conscience the distinction between justice and injustice.
No society can exist unless the laws are respected to a certain degree. The safest way to make laws respected is to make them respectable. When law and morality contradict each other, the citizen has the cruel alternative of either losing his moral sense of losing his respect for the law. These two evils are of equal consequence, and it would be difficult for a person to choose between them.
The nature of law is to maintain justice. This is so much the case that, in the minds of the people, law and justice are one and the same thing. There is in all of us a strong disposition to believe that anything lawful is also legitimate. This belief is so widespread that many persons have erroneously held that things are “just” because law makes them so. Thus, in order to make plunder appear just and sacred to many consciences, it is only necessary for the law to decree and sanction it. Slavery, restrictions, and monopoly find defenders not only among those who profit from them but also among those who suffer from them.’
He was a Frenchman in 1840's/50's. Some of what he says sounds a lot like problems we have in America today. Here is a part of the book that is quite eye-opening.
The Results of Legal Plunder / Frederic Bastiat (The Law)
‘It is impossible to introduce into society a greater change and a greater evil than this: the conversion of the law into an instrument of plunder.
What are the consequences of such a perversion? I would require volumes to describe them all. Thus we must content ourselves with pointing out the most striking.
In the first place, it erases from everyone’s conscience the distinction between justice and injustice.
No society can exist unless the laws are respected to a certain degree. The safest way to make laws respected is to make them respectable. When law and morality contradict each other, the citizen has the cruel alternative of either losing his moral sense of losing his respect for the law. These two evils are of equal consequence, and it would be difficult for a person to choose between them.
The nature of law is to maintain justice. This is so much the case that, in the minds of the people, law and justice are one and the same thing. There is in all of us a strong disposition to believe that anything lawful is also legitimate. This belief is so widespread that many persons have erroneously held that things are “just” because law makes them so. Thus, in order to make plunder appear just and sacred to many consciences, it is only necessary for the law to decree and sanction it. Slavery, restrictions, and monopoly find defenders not only among those who profit from them but also among those who suffer from them.’
Thai Chicken Salad
Servings: 8 or 2 hungry guys
Dressing:
1 jar Creamy Poppy Seed Dressing (Marie Calendar’s)
2 cloves of garlic
1 1-inch piece fresh ginger root (no more!)
Salad:
1 pkg. (6oz.) fresh baby spinach leaves
1 pkg. (12oz.) broccoli slaw mix
1 medium cucumber
1 sm. Red bell pepper
Chicken Mixture
1 lb. Skinless boneless chicken breast halves
½ fresh basil leaves
½ cup peanuts
Mix dressing and use garlic-press for garlic and ginger. Then mix together salad ingredients in a large bowl and refrigerate.
For chicken mixture, cut chicken in strips and stir-fry over medium-high heat. When chicken is no longer pink remove from heat and add basil, peanuts, and ½ cup of dressing to coat. Let sit in refrigerator for 15-30 min. for best flavor.
To serve: Toss salad with remaining dressing and chicken mixture. Serve immediately or chilled first in refrigerate until thoroughly chilled. Serve with some spinach bread or sourdough with butter.
Please send me any recipes that your family enjoys! Just post it in my comment box!
The Reply To Gray's Elegy
Before you read this I wanted to explain who this man was. He was a teacher who discovered a why to teach geography to children by doing rhymes and poetry.
We have been researching our heritage from Ireland to peasant-day and through that research we found Needham Bryan Cobb. Not long after we found a book that he had writen on the geology of North Carolina! At the end of which contained a few poems of his Christian faith! I hope you enjoy this one.
Reply To Gray’s Elegy
By Needham Bryan Cobb
Shelby, N.C., August 29, 1871
The Unseen Rose – The Hidden Gem
Thoughts suggested by reading the following lines in “Gray’s Elegy in a Country Churchyard:”
“Full many a gem of purest ray serene
The dark unfathomed caves of the ocean bear,
Full many a flower is born to blush unseen,
And waste its sweetness on the desert air.”
No Flower on earth “is born to blush unseen,
And waste its sweetness on the desert air,”
No ocean “gem of purest ray serene”
Is planted in the deep to perish there.
The eye of Man may ne’er behold that gem
“The dark unfathomed caves of ocean bear,”
His keenest sense ne’er note the sweet perfume
That rose distills upon the desert air.
Still not one sparkle of that gem is lost;
And not one breath of fragrance from the rose,
For round about them are a countless host
Who in their splendor revel or repose.
Those “dark unfathomed caves” of ocean’s deep
Are not so dark as poets sometimes write;
There myriads, moving, mingling monsters creep,
And doubtless to them all that gem is bright.
With the caverns of the grains of sand
That lie around that desert rose’s feet,
A thousand living things, fed by God’s hand,
Find joyous homes. To them that rose is sweet.
But still, if not a creature wandered where
That rose is blooming, or that gem is laid,
The great Creator, God, who placed them there,
Would take delight in works His hands have made.
Think not thy worth and work are all unknown,
Because no partial penman paint thy praise.
Man my not see nor mind; but God will own
Thy worth and work, thy thoughts and words and ways.
The desert rose, though never seen by man,
Is nurtured with a care divinely good.
The ocean gem, though ‘neath the rolling main,
Is ever brilliant in the eyes of God.
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