short/sweet

I really recommend that everyone get and view the DVD of The Book of Matthew, by The Visual Bible. It is the whole book of Matthew in the NIV--and nothing but that. I have been very moved by the portrayal of Jesus, his laughter and tears and anger and playfulness, as played by Bruce Marchiano.

After that, get "In the Footsteps of Jesus", by Bruce Marchiano. It is his spiritual autobiography and story of the making of the film.

Not every character is equally well-played, but I love the guys who play Peter and Judas.

By the way, here are some things Jesus reminded me of today as I was thinking about his life. One of Jesus's best friends, John, wrote this when he got a glimpse of Jesus during the Revelation.

"When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead.

Then he placed his right hand on me and said:

"Do not be afraid.

I am the First and the Last.

I am the Living One;

I was dead,

and behold

I am alive for ever and ever!

And I hold the keys of death and hades."

"I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give this testimony for the churches.

I am the Root and the Offspring of David,

and the Bright Morning Star."

The Spirit and the bride say,"Come!"

And let him who hears say, "Come!"

Whoever is thirsty, let him come;

and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift

of the water of life.

He who testifies to these things says,

"Yes, I am coming soon."

Amen.

Come Lord Jesus.

The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people.

Amen.

Have an awesome day!

Unwavering

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful." Hebrews 10:23 NKJV

"And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching." Hebrews 10:24-25 NIV

A few days ago I heard a news report out of Florida, following the terrible tornadoes there. A lady who survived having her house swept away all around her said these words:

"I don't know how I made. I just hid my closet and prayed and prayed."

This is a person who placed her hope in praying to something or someone she hoped would save her life. Her hope was fulfilled. Do you suppose that she is now holding onto this object of her hope without wavering? Is she still praying everyday about everything--is prayer her constant habit now as she holds fast to her hope?

I don't know her whole story. I hope that she has placed her faith in the God that she can know, even to the point of reading what He thinks about her in a book like the Bible. I hope that she has an unwavering faith based on concrete facts that she reviews and explores daily. I hope she hangs out with others who are doing the same.

That is the only way I know to have an unwavering hope. I need a steady stream of information about the object of my hope to stabilize and strengthen my faith. I need to read the Bible, study it, memorize and meditate upon it.

I need to hear the stories of others who are doing the same. I need to hear about their successes and failures and wrestle together with them about the meaning of our faith and how it works in real life.

If I stop doing these things, my faith begins to waver. There are forces all around me that pressure me to give up my faith or stop acting upon it. There are thousands of messages a day, directed at me, that are meant to get between me and what I know is true. When I am under this pressure I may compartmentalize my faith so that I only act upon it when it is convenient. Or I may stop acting upon it altogether. I need both what I can do for myself and what others can contribute to help me overcome this pressure.

It is worthwile to stop every once in a while and take a look at the people who are contributing to our experience of life. It is important to choose carefully who is affecting our views and decisions. My fellow believers may be a sorry lot, failing to live up to what they say they believe, but at least they are on the same road I want to travel. We can help each other along, and sometimes what we say to each other is absolutely amazing and life-changing. This is because the object of our mutual hope is Awesome.

This passage in Hebrews is a call to community. "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope. Let us consider how we may spur one another on...Let us not give up meeting together...but let us encourage one another..."

I am amazed at how quickly we give up meeting together instead of prayerfully spurring one another on to do better. How quickly we fall into criticism instead of encouragement and how willingly we leave the company of the only other people who understand, at least a little bit, what we are trying to do in this life. Now wonder we waver in our hope--we give up the visible life of Christ in our community and wander off alone to try and find Him where He can't be seen, out there in the world somewhere.

It is better to be with other believers and work through our mutual struggles. It is better to learn how to love and encourage by practicing with each other than to hide at home, practicing in front of a mirror because other people tick us off. How real is a faith that can't stand the heat of relationships with other believers? How can such a faith stand against the heat of temptation and sin that rushes at us out in the world?

I have never met a fellow believer who did not have an amazing story to tell eventually. I have never met one that I couldn't learn to love. Even the ones who fall and continue in sin, who irritate me and believe wierd ideas--they all belong to my family. I learn by their mistakes sometimes, but I always learn from them.

I don't want to stand in front of Jesus someday and explain how I just couldn't be with His family, how they all were wierd and annoying and sang the wrong songs. That wouldn't tell Him anything new about His family, but it would sure tell Him a lot about me. I don't think I want to see the pain that would arise in His eyes, hearing how much I despised the ones He loves. It is better to get over it here and now so that when we stand together before Him someday, we will all have done the best we can to love, encourage and spur each other on to good deeds.

Here are some words to remember today:

hold fast

consider

meet together

encourage

My prayer is that we will all get over ourselves and learn how to love....especially me!