So on Mother's Day 2008, I would just like to pass on a great big thank-you to my own mother and to my mother-in-law for the many sacrifices that these women made in order to raise both me and my husband. You are both very special women.
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Mother's Day (2008)
Sunday, May 11, 2008 is Mother's Day, a day celebrated in many countries of the world. Although the day has become highly commercial - it is apparently the day that the largest number of people eat out - it is still an important day in the lives of most people in which to honor mothers, grandmothers, step-mothers, mothers-in-law and various other women who have made a major impact on their life.
Friday, May 9, 2008
The Purpose of Justice
What do you think the purpose of our justice system is? Is the intent to punish criminals or to rehabilitate them?
In the early 1970's, Susan Lefevre was arrested in Detroit for selling drugs to an undercover police officer. Although it was her first offence she was sentenced to 10-20 years in prison. At the end of her first year in custody, Susan escaped with the help of her grandfather, and disappeared for over thirty years.
On April 24, 2008, Susan was finally arrested again. She is now living in San Diego using the name Marie Walsh, she has been married for 23 years and has 3 children. She is apparently a model citizen.
Should Susan/Marie now have to complete the 9-19 years remaining on her original sentence plus possibly an additional sentence for the escape charge? The answer depends on whether or not we feel that justice is punitive or rehabilitative. If it is punitive then she must return to prison. If it is rehabilitative, then she has already been rehabilitated and probation is probably adequate.
In the early 1970's, Susan Lefevre was arrested in Detroit for selling drugs to an undercover police officer. Although it was her first offence she was sentenced to 10-20 years in prison. At the end of her first year in custody, Susan escaped with the help of her grandfather, and disappeared for over thirty years.
On April 24, 2008, Susan was finally arrested again. She is now living in San Diego using the name Marie Walsh, she has been married for 23 years and has 3 children. She is apparently a model citizen.
Should Susan/Marie now have to complete the 9-19 years remaining on her original sentence plus possibly an additional sentence for the escape charge? The answer depends on whether or not we feel that justice is punitive or rehabilitative. If it is punitive then she must return to prison. If it is rehabilitative, then she has already been rehabilitated and probation is probably adequate.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Friends
Almost everyone has heard the story by now of how Canadian, Brenda Martin, spent almost two hellish years in a Mexican prison and how the Canadian officials hemmed and hawed about assisting in her release. Almost everyone has also heard of her friend, Debra Tielman, who moved Heaven and Earth to get her friend back home. Has any one really considered the heroic lengths that Debra went to help the friend she hadn't talked to in 15 years and whom she hadn't seen in 32 years? Would any of us have gone to those lengths. Or would we merely have shaken our heads and said "That's terrible. I wish I could help." and then gone on with our own lives? I believe that God put Debra in Brenda's life "for such a time as this."
Brenda Martin is quoted as saying about Debra:
"She has been a godsend," Martin said Monday. "She has been as steadfast and true as any friend you could ever ask for. She gave me hope that I would get out of prison when I had nothing to believe in."
"I think what I have is conviction," Tieleman said. "I believe in what I am telling the public and I try to tell them in a straightforward way so they will understand."
Apparently, as the story goes, Debra looked at her fingernails one day and thought of her old friend, Brenda.
"Red fingernail polish has always reminded me of Brenda Martin, because when we were girls, I was a nail-biter and Brenda had gorgeous nails that she always painted red."
"I didn't know if Brenda was still married or what her last name would be, so I Googled her mom's last name and found one of your stories," Martin said.
She was talking about a newspaper story about how Brenda was in prison in Mexico accused of money laundering for her former employer's pyramid scheme.
The two girls met in grade nine when Debra's family moved to Trenton Ontario. Debra moved to Kitchener-Waterloo a few years later, Brenda followed and the two teens shared an apartment. They drifted apart over the years and lost touch.
Debra is now 52 years old, has two daughters and one grandson and owns her own business. But she put all of that on hold to come to the aid of her friend and run the campaign to free Brenda Martin.
When she realized Martin had been found guilty, she shouted, "This is justice in Mexico?" and rushed, crying, from the courtroom.
"I was devastated," Tieleman said. "I wanted it to be over for Brenda, but have to admit I also wanted it to be over for me. I wanted my life back."
"I was devastated," Tieleman said. "I wanted it to be over for Brenda, but have to admit I also wanted it to be over for me. I wanted my life back."
On Thursday, Tieleman stood in the cold, driving rain at the Kitchener airport hoping for a glimpse of her friend as she stepped off a Canadair jet.
The government had pulled off what Tieleman called the fastest prisoner transfer in Canadian history.
The government had pulled off what Tieleman called the fastest prisoner transfer in Canadian history.
"I have learned about what ordinary Canadians can make happen. We are pretty laid back, but when we have convictions, we are an incredible force to be reckoned with."
John 15:13
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Geese Gone Astray
I managed to get a picture of these two geese who are living in the Inner-City, far from their natural habitat! They have even been spotted hanging out in crack-alley. Someone ought to tell them that you are known by the company you keep. Geese normally prefer wetlands, so what they are doing in this locale is any ones guess. They have been here for at least a couple of weeks. Possibly one is injured and couldn't fly any further. Perhaps they are just taking a break before moving further north. In any case they are obviously adventurous types to be hanging out in an area that is so far out of the norm. 
Eric Grohe's Fabulous 3-d Murals
A friend sent me the following e-mail featuring the wonderful 3-d artwork of Eric Grohe. His work is so lifelike that you can hardly believe that it is done with paint. He truly has a God given talent that needs to be seen to be believed. At the end of this post I have included a link to his web page where you can read more about the artist and see more samples of his work.
Liberty Remembers: Before ...
After ...
How to dress up a drab Shopping Mall - Niagara , NY
After. .
Indoor Murals - Miller Brewery . . . Hallway Before - Miller Fermenting Rooms
After Photos - Past meets Present in the Miller Brewery Fermenting Rooms - hooks, clipboards and aprons were added to the surface of the murals to enhance the illusion . . . You're looking at flat walls!
Liberty Remembers: Before ...
After ...How to dress up a drab Shopping Mall - Niagara , NY
After. .
Indoor Murals - Miller Brewery . . . Hallway Before - Miller Fermenting Rooms
After Photos - Past meets Present in the Miller Brewery Fermenting Rooms - hooks, clipboards and aprons were added to the surface of the murals to enhance the illusion . . . You're looking at flat walls!
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Secure In Your Salvation
Many people, sadly enough, do not feel secure about their salvation. If you base your salvation upon works rather than faith you can never be quite sure. How do you know for sure that your good works do indeed outweigh your bad deeds? How can you be certain that you are actually using the same scales that God is using to determine your worthiness? It is frightening to think that the criteria we are using may not be at all the same criteria that God is using.
Matthew 5:20-28
For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:
But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.
Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;
Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.
Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.
Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
The following sermon was written by a good friend of mine, Tom Chambers. I believe it explains very clearly how you really can be certain of your place in eternity.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Death has a wonderful way of showing us what is truly important in our lives. Most often when we think of death we think of those we will leave behind or of those who have gone on ahead of us. In reality Death wipes the slate clean of all the things that are of secondary importance and leaves us with the one thing that is left...our eternal destiny. As believers in God, we have two options: eternity with God or eternal separation from God...that's it. All the things we thought were important are now out of reach.
As Christians we claim our faith in Christ's promise of eternal life. Having accepted His gift of salvation not by our actions or good deeds or anything we have done but because we have professed Him as our savior. Nothing more.
I am not aware of a Christian who has not at some point in their walk posed concerns about their eternal salvation. Every so often when I think about my own walk with Jesus I am reminded of my sinful humanity. I become painfully aware that no matter how hard I try to break free from my sinful past I cannot stop sinning. God cannot and will not accept sin. When we ponder this truth, we can lose heart and doubt our eternal salvation. If God cannot and will not accept sin, how then can we be truly saved and have assurance of salvation? Clearly the confusion and doubt that ensues was not in Jesus' plan for our lives. It is important to remember that as Christians this doubt is not something we need to ponder.
Salvation is so complex and yet so simple. Amid this confusion we read Paul’s words telling us we are all sinners in Rom 3:23 and later telling us in Rom 8:1 that we are no longer under condemnation. So which is it? The short answer is “both”.
The Apostle John is credited with writing the three letters that bears his name. I want to focus in on the first one. It is a short letter that was written close to the end of the first century (around 95 A.D.) and bears a few unusual features.
First, it has no customary greetings associated with letter writing – the author bulldozes directly into a discourse that echoes the first chapter of John’s gospel.
Secondly, there is no audience identified. This letter is directed at Christian believers though none are identified by name or region, but it is clear that the recipients were well acquainted with the author.
It appears that this letter was written in extreme haste - conspicuous because of it's lack of these customary greetings. False teachers who were causing a crisis of faith amongst the Christians. Some of the claims and false teachings forwarded by these individuals were causing many to doubt their salvation. John urgently counteracts these false teaching by reminding them of what they already know. In fact, John uses the word “know” over thirty times in this letter. He also wanted to reaffirm their confidence and remind them of the source of their salvation.
I want to focus on the fifth chapter of this letter in which John lays out the assurance of salvation for his readers. John lays it out in two parts:
In the first two verses John speaks of the testimony of God. What is that testimony? In short God testifies that Jesus is divine, that he is the Christ. The Holy Spirit testifies with the water and the blood, that, according to the law, no charge could be brought against a man unless it could be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If we accept men's testimonies then we surely had better accept God's testimony.
I am reading out of the NIV. (read 1 Jn 5:10-15)
vs 10: Anyone who believes in the Son of God has this testimony his heart. Anyone who does not believe God has made Him out to be a liar, because he has not believed the testimony God has given about His Son.
Vs 11: And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
Vs 12: He who has the Son has life: he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
Vs 13: I write theses things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life,
In vs 10:
-the word 'believe' means to commit to and have trust in. This word in Greek means more than just to acknowledge His existence, but to place, commit trust in Him. This belief and trust is a confidence that He will do what He says He will.
-The testimony in his HEART. The testimony is a witness of evidence seated in the core of your being. It is something you “know” in your very core. It represents a “gut” feeling.
Vs 11:
-Eternal of course means perpetual. Eternity is a strange word. It's concept is a word used to describe a time-frame that is beyond time. This is life outside of time. The term forever really doesn't do it justice. God has given us perpetual life which is in His Son and clearly we must have the Son to have this eternal life.
Vs 12:
-One of the defining features of the apostle John's writings are his use of contrasting ideas. This letter is full of contrasts and this one really hits the nail on the head. This concept is black and white...it's A or B, yes or no. There is no 'maybe' involved. It requires a commitment from the listener or reader.
Vs 13:
-John now limits his audience only to those who have already believed in the name of the Son of God. It means those of you who believe that Jesus is the Son of God can KNOW you are saved just because you have believed. The apostle John covers two things:
1. Believe God; and
2. Believe in Jesus as the Son of God.
That's it.
Either Jesus is accepted as the Son of God and you have salvation, or He is rejected which means that God is not believed. To not believe God is to reject Him altogether.
But in the text John is writing to believers who have believed God and accepted Jesus.
We have accepted the Son of God, therefore we have eternal life.
Now we can move to the second part; this is what we can do with the assurance of salvation:
Let's look at the next two verses.
(Read vs 14 – 15)
vs 14: This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.
Vs 15: And if we know that He hears us – whatever we ask – we know that we have what we asked of Him.
Vs 14:
-The word confidence means frankness or bluntness...”the bottom line”. Because we have the eternal life through Jesus sacrificial death and resurrection we now have the freedom to ask for anything with the provision that it falls within His will. But note, God will not bend to our will, but we must bend to His will.
Vs 15:
-Note the present tense of the word 'HAVE'. This word tells us that since God hears our requests (which are in accordance with His will) we can be confident they are granted. This is the floor plan of an effective prayer life! The assurance of God's salvation leads us naturally into furthering His kingdom.
What does this all mean? It means that you can KNOW you are saved. The only reason you might doubt your salvation is because the enemy is throwing lies at you to neutralize your action as a believing Christian. If you doubt your salvation, the focus of your prayer life is focused upon you and the fear for yourself rather than focused on God and furthering of God's kingdom. Inward versus outward.
If you are concerned about your future with God then you are experiencing the Holy Spirit's nudge. This is that “gut feeling” we read about in verse 10. Your spirit is responding to the calling of the Holy Spirit!
John also wrote about this just a chapter or two earlier. Let's go to 1 Jn 3:19.
(Read 1 Jn 3:19-24)
vs. 19: This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set out hearts at rest in his presence...
vs 20: whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and He knows everything.
vs 21: Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God...
vs 22: and receive from Him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him.
Vs 23: And this is His command: to believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as He commanded us.
Vs 24: Those who obey His commands live in Him, and He in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit He gave us.
In short, if you are concerned about your spiritual destiny and walk with God, then I would say you are in good shape. Those whose eternal destiny is in question are those who don't know Jesus as their savior and perhaps don't care. We as Christians need to have a healthy dose of reverent fear of God. If we have that assurance of faith then we can experience the joy that the apostle Paul speaks of in Philippians. If you have accepted Jesus as your savior you needn't ever concern yourself with doubts regarding your salvation ever again.
Matthew 5:20-28
For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:
But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.
Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;
Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.
Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.
Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
The following sermon was written by a good friend of mine, Tom Chambers. I believe it explains very clearly how you really can be certain of your place in eternity.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Death has a wonderful way of showing us what is truly important in our lives. Most often when we think of death we think of those we will leave behind or of those who have gone on ahead of us. In reality Death wipes the slate clean of all the things that are of secondary importance and leaves us with the one thing that is left...our eternal destiny. As believers in God, we have two options: eternity with God or eternal separation from God...that's it. All the things we thought were important are now out of reach.
As Christians we claim our faith in Christ's promise of eternal life. Having accepted His gift of salvation not by our actions or good deeds or anything we have done but because we have professed Him as our savior. Nothing more.
I am not aware of a Christian who has not at some point in their walk posed concerns about their eternal salvation. Every so often when I think about my own walk with Jesus I am reminded of my sinful humanity. I become painfully aware that no matter how hard I try to break free from my sinful past I cannot stop sinning. God cannot and will not accept sin. When we ponder this truth, we can lose heart and doubt our eternal salvation. If God cannot and will not accept sin, how then can we be truly saved and have assurance of salvation? Clearly the confusion and doubt that ensues was not in Jesus' plan for our lives. It is important to remember that as Christians this doubt is not something we need to ponder.
Salvation is so complex and yet so simple. Amid this confusion we read Paul’s words telling us we are all sinners in Rom 3:23 and later telling us in Rom 8:1 that we are no longer under condemnation. So which is it? The short answer is “both”.
The Apostle John is credited with writing the three letters that bears his name. I want to focus in on the first one. It is a short letter that was written close to the end of the first century (around 95 A.D.) and bears a few unusual features.
First, it has no customary greetings associated with letter writing – the author bulldozes directly into a discourse that echoes the first chapter of John’s gospel.
Secondly, there is no audience identified. This letter is directed at Christian believers though none are identified by name or region, but it is clear that the recipients were well acquainted with the author.
It appears that this letter was written in extreme haste - conspicuous because of it's lack of these customary greetings. False teachers who were causing a crisis of faith amongst the Christians. Some of the claims and false teachings forwarded by these individuals were causing many to doubt their salvation. John urgently counteracts these false teaching by reminding them of what they already know. In fact, John uses the word “know” over thirty times in this letter. He also wanted to reaffirm their confidence and remind them of the source of their salvation.
I want to focus on the fifth chapter of this letter in which John lays out the assurance of salvation for his readers. John lays it out in two parts:
In the first two verses John speaks of the testimony of God. What is that testimony? In short God testifies that Jesus is divine, that he is the Christ. The Holy Spirit testifies with the water and the blood, that, according to the law, no charge could be brought against a man unless it could be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If we accept men's testimonies then we surely had better accept God's testimony.
I am reading out of the NIV. (read 1 Jn 5:10-15)
vs 10: Anyone who believes in the Son of God has this testimony his heart. Anyone who does not believe God has made Him out to be a liar, because he has not believed the testimony God has given about His Son.
Vs 11: And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
Vs 12: He who has the Son has life: he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
Vs 13: I write theses things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life,
In vs 10:
-the word 'believe' means to commit to and have trust in. This word in Greek means more than just to acknowledge His existence, but to place, commit trust in Him. This belief and trust is a confidence that He will do what He says He will.
-The testimony in his HEART. The testimony is a witness of evidence seated in the core of your being. It is something you “know” in your very core. It represents a “gut” feeling.
Vs 11:
-Eternal of course means perpetual. Eternity is a strange word. It's concept is a word used to describe a time-frame that is beyond time. This is life outside of time. The term forever really doesn't do it justice. God has given us perpetual life which is in His Son and clearly we must have the Son to have this eternal life.
Vs 12:
-One of the defining features of the apostle John's writings are his use of contrasting ideas. This letter is full of contrasts and this one really hits the nail on the head. This concept is black and white...it's A or B, yes or no. There is no 'maybe' involved. It requires a commitment from the listener or reader.
Vs 13:
-John now limits his audience only to those who have already believed in the name of the Son of God. It means those of you who believe that Jesus is the Son of God can KNOW you are saved just because you have believed. The apostle John covers two things:
1. Believe God; and
2. Believe in Jesus as the Son of God.
That's it.
Either Jesus is accepted as the Son of God and you have salvation, or He is rejected which means that God is not believed. To not believe God is to reject Him altogether.
But in the text John is writing to believers who have believed God and accepted Jesus.
We have accepted the Son of God, therefore we have eternal life.
Now we can move to the second part; this is what we can do with the assurance of salvation:
Let's look at the next two verses.
(Read vs 14 – 15)
vs 14: This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.
Vs 15: And if we know that He hears us – whatever we ask – we know that we have what we asked of Him.
Vs 14:
-The word confidence means frankness or bluntness...”the bottom line”. Because we have the eternal life through Jesus sacrificial death and resurrection we now have the freedom to ask for anything with the provision that it falls within His will. But note, God will not bend to our will, but we must bend to His will.
Vs 15:
-Note the present tense of the word 'HAVE'. This word tells us that since God hears our requests (which are in accordance with His will) we can be confident they are granted. This is the floor plan of an effective prayer life! The assurance of God's salvation leads us naturally into furthering His kingdom.
What does this all mean? It means that you can KNOW you are saved. The only reason you might doubt your salvation is because the enemy is throwing lies at you to neutralize your action as a believing Christian. If you doubt your salvation, the focus of your prayer life is focused upon you and the fear for yourself rather than focused on God and furthering of God's kingdom. Inward versus outward.
If you are concerned about your future with God then you are experiencing the Holy Spirit's nudge. This is that “gut feeling” we read about in verse 10. Your spirit is responding to the calling of the Holy Spirit!
John also wrote about this just a chapter or two earlier. Let's go to 1 Jn 3:19.
(Read 1 Jn 3:19-24)
vs. 19: This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set out hearts at rest in his presence...
vs 20: whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and He knows everything.
vs 21: Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God...
vs 22: and receive from Him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him.
Vs 23: And this is His command: to believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as He commanded us.
Vs 24: Those who obey His commands live in Him, and He in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit He gave us.
In short, if you are concerned about your spiritual destiny and walk with God, then I would say you are in good shape. Those whose eternal destiny is in question are those who don't know Jesus as their savior and perhaps don't care. We as Christians need to have a healthy dose of reverent fear of God. If we have that assurance of faith then we can experience the joy that the apostle Paul speaks of in Philippians. If you have accepted Jesus as your savior you needn't ever concern yourself with doubts regarding your salvation ever again.
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