December

I liked this when I read it; it seems to offer optimism in the face of true conditions, which started in November and increasingly affects many of us during December; perhaps you also will like it. If you do, please share it with others who may be depressed from the early dark of both morning and night. Remember, Winter begins December 21st and the days will begin to slowly lengthen once again. There often is a light at the end of the tunnel, and a time to smile once more. A dreary month of weeping. Of cloud and fog and rain, Is sorrowful December, And all the winds complain. For trees are bare and flowers are gone, And birds have hushed all song, And days are short and sunless, And nights are dark and long. But let us wait in patience, The days are swift to go, And even sorrow does not stay Long on the earth below; Some days must be for weeping, But God and heaven remain, And after nights of darkness The sun will shine again. - Marianne Farmingham (From an old manuscript) Thanks for visiting. - Bob Phil 1:21

God, Youth, and You

Satan may have done more to destroy this generation of young people then any generation in history. He is so fearful of what the Lord can do through this new generation that he has arranged for humanity to kill millions upon millions – one-third- of them before birth. Those babies that make it to birth Satan tries to abuse, brainwash, debilitate, and enslave through dysfunctional families, cults like secular humanism, substance abuse, and sexual promiscuity saturating all forms of media. Pay attention to the youth that say “no.” Satan’s major effort is to keep our young people from knowing God’s love and believing in Him. Those who survived the devil’s onslaught are those who give their lives totally to Jesus; by the Holy Spirit of love they will be the one’s to renew the face of the earth. For too many years, I have been alarmed, noticing first-hand while visiting home after home, the way children were being raised. Parents generally lost their own faith and belief in God (even when their parents did pass their faith along to them, the secular world was more attractive),consequently raised their offspring’s without faith. This terrible situation has existed for at least 50 years. Man’s most important thing in life is to know and love God with all of one’s mind, strength and soul…instead God was, and is, placed in the “back” of things in one’s life. That is a precarious state for the human soul to be in. Consider this: God said: “Before I formed thee in the bowels of thy mother, I knew thee, and before thou camest forth out of the womb, I sanctified thee and made thee a prophet unto the nations.” And Jeremias said, “Lord God, behold, I cannot speak, for I am a child. And the Lord said to me: Say not: I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee: and whatsoever I shall command thee, thou shalt speak….” Jer 1:5-7. (Note to remember: God does not change, He is the same today as yesterday, and will be the same tomorrow. Man is the one that changes; man is fickle, seeking transitory “stuff” and conditions that will have an end. Now, with that out of the way, please continue …) “This is what was spoken through the prophet Joel: “And it shall come to pass in the last days, says the Lord, that I will pour forth my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams….” Acts 2:17. Why, you may ask, is this important now. Dear reader, the more knowledgeable, i.e. learned, among us know and say that according to Scripture we are in the last days. That is not to say that the end is imminent, on the contrary, we also know that according to St. Peter, a blink of God’s eye is as a thousand years. However, being aware of this does not take away the conditions found in God’s Holy Book. Jesus told us that the time is known but to God, Jesus also said, “Be ready, as you know not the hour.” “Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and such we are….” I Jn 3:1ff The preceding quotation supports my recently being made aware through writings that God’s Spirit is being poured out on mankind. A new Pentecost has been taking place in recent time. For those of you that do not know the meaning of Pentecost: For Christians it commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles. It is the harvest-feast of Christ, since on that day Christ’s Apostles, through the power of the Holy Spirit, lost their fear, went forth and preached courageously, baptized thousands – a great harvest of souls for the early Church. Since the time the WWJD craze swept the Christian community, around the globe, not so long ago as you should have forgotten, it was a reminder to many people that we should have the heart and mind of Jesus. From that time good seed flourished among the youth that understood the message, “What would Jesus do?” and matured further into WDJD – What did Jesus do?” Understanding this more important question depends our salvation. Understanding WDJD is vital as described in 1 Corinthians 15: 3-4ff. The claim that the Lord is raising up young people in a special way to renew the face of the earth, empowering new Jeremias’ “to root up and pull down, to waste and to destroy, and to build and to plant” (Jer 1:10), is a joy of real satisfaction for years of yearning for the good of our youth’s accounting. A new era is in the making. For our young to acknowledge their true God and, with His guidance, begin the healing peoples everywhere need to return to Him, has much to do about our salvation. These young “Jeremias” are not too young by God’s standards. St. Paul wrote to Timothy: “We must tell our young people: ‘Let no man despise thy youth, but be an example to the faithful in speech, in conduct, in charity, in faith, in chastity’” 1 Tim 4: 12. We all need prayers; from their birth, our young need our prayers, as they grow, they need our encouragement. As adults and parents, it is no less our duty to know and understand our God and do our duty to fulfill our natural, instinctive obligation to Him and His Commandments. God created everyone you know and meet. No one was made by anyone else. Your eternal salvation and the disposition of your soul depend on your willingness to know Who is in charge of your life and how you ought to live. God is Pure Love, God is merciful, God is patient, God knows whether you know right from wrong. He sees all and knows all. With God, nothing is impossible. Believe it! You were sent from heaven to your mother’s womb. He placed you on earth to do a certain something. You must find out what that is; we often need to commune with God to find out. There is no one quite like you. You are one of a kind. God wants to welcome you home when He calls you to return. As you reside temporarily on this planet, you have total freedom to decide and choose the destination of your soul. Your Judgment will be between Him and you alone. A major determining factor will be by the way in which we live, and whether or not we abide in Him. We cannot ignore the truth of God’s desires, we cannot ignore God and expect Him to allow us to enter Paradise and be with Him. It does not work that way. Earth is where you prove your worthiness. God sent His only Begotten-Son, Jesus, to earth where He not only taught, guided and suffered dearly for us, but established His one Church, (placing imperfect men in charge) so all would have a “House of prayer,” a holy place to adore, praise Him and commune with Him. His purpose has not changed; man alone complicates matters by going his own way, as if Jesus did not know what He was doing. Jesus prayed, “that they be one, as we, Father, are one.” What are your thoughts about that? Today it is as if the tables were turned; where parents are suppose to train and teach the youth, it appears that the young people will be the one’s within the home and among their peers to do the teaching, stepping up to the plate after a serious lapse of many years. This must be recognized and nurtured wherever and whenever possible. God’s will be done. Love and humility must be the guiding lights for our salvation unto Him Who made us. Our young have organized themselves into Christian Youth Groups. Encourage this and carefully listen to their words. Parents, neighbors and associates could find enlightenment by their discussions, activities as individuals, and as a group. Remember, too that “actions speak louder than words.” Many years ago, in retrospect, when it was the “thing” to discover and teach oneself right from wrong (which was really normal, and neither complicated nor difficult), and after all my teen years as a wonderer and adventurer, I responded to my inner “tug” toward God. I always tried to do what was right at the time - admittedly, with some human frailty. In time and in sporadic moments on my own, I learned more and more about why I am here among my fellow human beings, called brothers and sisters. One of many streams of personal learning came by way of living subjects of The Christophers News Notes. The term “Christopher” comes from the Greek word “Christophoros” which means “Christ-bearer.” The Christopher motto, since 1945, is famous the world over, “It is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness." (www.christophers.org) (If you will consider this article to be from a Christ-bearer I would be humbly pleased.) The meaning of Christ-bearer is mightily important. It sums up our objective as children of God encouraging individual initiative in taking into the mainstream of life the truths that can bring lasting peace. Peace to our country, to our families, to us, and to the world – truths that naturally are “there” in our hearts, minds and souls, and have come down to us through 2000 years of Christianity and Jesus; in addition, there are those truths kept alive by the Jews alone for ages before the birth of God’s Son, Jesus. Parents and Guardians With respect to the youth around you, it is imperative that you show genuine interest in their interests. You either have the respect of your sons, daughters, grandchildren, etc., or you do not. You naturally want their respect. Know this: That by your love they know you. Make Jesus, the Son of God, your Guide, let Him come into your heart then your mind will take on thoughts worthy of Him; then your demeanor will speak for you, perhaps in ways unfamiliar to you. If you are at a loss about it all, ask (the Lord in prayer of your own words), and it shall be given to you; seek (the Truth) and you shall find; knock (on helpful doors if need be and doors) shall be opened to you. As a parent, guardian, grandparent, or another charged with guiding the young entrusted to your care, you are responsible for, not only your soul, but also the souls of those around you; you are a messenger – a Christ-bearer; honest and true, you are. Normally I would say to you to blow the dust of your Bible, open it and discover what you have been missing. But I will not recommend that just now. Sometime small steps are best before taking strides. Rather, begin by wanting to know God. You cannot love Him when you do not know Him. Set your mind on reading good, sound literature about the religion’s who, what, why. There are volumes of good books available for you to read, but avoid them – for now. Just be brave and stop by the literature rack in the Church, usually in the entryway. Look over what is available. Help yourself to what interests you or piques your interest. Choose judiciously so as not to be overwhelmed. Above all, you must understand God’s commandments, especially the First. Then everything that is supposed to be will makes sense. Life takes on meaning or new meaning – you comprehend life, God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, those in your life’s space, your neighbors; you acknowledge the existence of heaven, hell, just as you accept a rainbow, true, false, black and white, right and wrong, the reality of imperfection in all people. All fit; peace and happiness sets in your heart and mind without deceiving yourself. Another fact that cannot be disputed is that we walk this way but once. What I have just described are powerful truths! They are likely matters that have been subordinated for other things in your life, or been allowed to slide out of your heart and mind altogether. Know that, as you continue to walk the face of the earth, our patient and merciful God desires your return to Him in Paradise in due time. Everyone, I repeat, everyone, regardless of what they temporarily call themselves, feel or experience the tug of righteousness and God in them, and makes a conscious decision about how to respond. That is God’s way. He allows you total freedom to do as you will. He also provides ways to heal errors made as He, above all, knows human nature. You must ask, seek, find. Jesus assured us that He would always provide help from on high. The more we act as His messenger the more we can say with Christ as He spoke to Pilate: “This is why I was born, and why I have come into the world, to bear witness to the Truth. Everyone who is of the Truth hears my voice” Jn 18:37. For the young and not so young, it is more prudent to walk with God than without Him and find yourself in the alternative to heaven. The more you learn, the more you come to realize that you are in this world but not of it. You are God’s creation and come from God’s Kingdom and should care for your soul in such a way as to want to return. Lastly, the expression “all the time in the world” is without meaning. “You never know.” †