Nov 3
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ckschleg added a link contribution Christians Cannot Sit Idly By!SInce March 2003, 4200 US soldiers have died in Iraq - there are websites, protests & campaigns to end teh war, Yet, twice that number of people are dying every day in an AIDS pandemic. And the world crosses the road and passes this tragedy by. Worse, the Body of Christ often allows this to continue unabated. ARE YOU OKAY WITH THIS? Follow this link and be forever changed Read more »
Aug 21
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ckschleg added a text contribution Look Who's Back, Shady's BackNo, Eminem doesn't make a return into scriptures. But, a different, more menacing darkness stands at the ready to return. Jesus has just been tempted three times, beat it 3 times, and the Devil departs. "For a time." The Devil went to the top of the Christian food chain, to Jesus himself, and when he lost this battle, only departed with the intent to come back. From our position a lot lower on the food chain, we have no business thinking we can dodge darkness. The Devil is an e… Read more »
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ckschleg added a text contribution Look Who's Back, Shady's BackNo, Eminem doesn't make a return into scriptures. But, a different, more menacing darkness stands at the ready to return. Jesus has just been tempted three times, beat it 3 times, and the Devil departs. "For a time." The Devil went to the top of the Christian food chain, to Jesus himself, and when he lost this battle, only departed with the intent to come back. From our position a lot lower on the food chain, we have no business thinking we can dodge darkness. The Devil is an e… Read more »
Aug 17
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ckschleg added a text contribution Listen Up! Yo! JtB is in the HeezyJohn teh Baptist (JtB) arrives at an appointed time, and as expected, people fall into line for what they likely see as yet another spiritual fad. I'm sure the going line of reasoning was, "better to buy in and experience "buyer's remorse" later than miss out." And this is how you know God is at work - JtB sees it as it is and calls out the smugness of the people getting a little baptismal insurance with hsi remark about thinking you have it made b/c Abraham is you… Read more »
Aug 15
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ckschleg added a text contribution Peripheral Players, God's Big-Time PerformeersIn this chapter, the one that presents "the Christmas Story," and reveals the Messiah as baby and tweener, I am drawn to the peripheral players: the shepherds, Simeon, Anna, and the old guys in the temple. The Shepherds are an amazing bunch. Upon hearing things about teh Messiah, they jumped right onto their donkeys and made haste for Bethlehem, not once, according to the text, stopping to question the (1) the Messiah had arrived, and (2) the idea an angel had spoken to them, common,… Read more »
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ckschleg added a text contribution When God Speaks, Do as He SaysNot a pinch of the flab beside the biceps, nor a question about what had been in the wine skins or the dinner earlier in the evening. Instead, the first thing the shepherds did was to conspire to head straight to Bethlehem. When God talks to us, and I believe He does in his own mysterious way, why is it that we go through so many paces, and hem and haw our way until we either give in and go at it half-heartedly or deny His call altogether? Oh that I might do as I am told, and react like these… Read more »
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ckschleg added a text contribution From Humility Comes GreatnessJesus' first bed was a trough! I may live in a small house and earn a sub-median wage for my town, but that doesn't preclude me from achieving greatness. There may not be room for me in certain circles of workplace peer groups, and I my be relegated to an outer ring wherever I go, but I can still be great. Jesus' birth and his story is one for and about a common man, just like me, who, by his divinity achieved greatness, and glorified God. I'm no messiah, not in the remote… Read more »
Aug 13
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ckschleg added a text contribution Mary's Song Rocks!My Catholic friends have always had a thing for Mary. They have icons around the house, they pray to her as an intercessor, and they even guard her statue at church. I've always been puzzled by this worship, what a bevvy of folks might label heresy (sp?) and sinful idolatry. But, upon reading this I gott aadmit, Mary rocked! Think about this, now. Here was ateenage girl waiting to be married, discovering she was going to becoem pregnant well befroe it was cool for her to have belly-full o… Read more »
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ckschleg added a text contribution Listen, or else!Okay, I know God isn't a machine functioning as the result of our inputs, but there are consequences for not listening to God. Zechariah was silenced, literally, for his doubting God's angel Gabriel. Similarly, I find myself "silent" in the shadows of my sin or my unwillingness to maintain an obedient, thoughtful relationship with God. In contrast, when i am investing time not only in reading the word and prayer, but actually listening, or being attuned to what I hear God s… Read more »
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ckschleg added a text contribution Why John the Baptist did what he didKeeping in line with the observation that Luke is reminding us what happened so that we, like Theophilus, might be reaffirmed and built up in our faith, I remember being told about JtB "preparing the way" (even remember the Godspell song by the same name - wow! if that doesn't clarify me as a digital immigrant, i don't know what will :0); however, i hadn't sen the middl eof this verse. John was sent to turn us dads to our children. Perhaps a figure of speech to men lead… Read more »
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ckschleg added a text contribution A good place for reaffirmation (Lk 1:3-4)Luke states here that he's writing to Theophilus, someone who has had their share of biblical instruction (so the text implies), but still needs to be reminded of teh certainty of the story of Jesus Christ Read more »