God, A Giver.

God loves, God gives.

Think of it. God, because of His tremendous love gave and continues to give.

In the beginning He gave by creating an atmosphere that would be conducive to meaningful relationships

He gave us significance by allowing us to call a spot in this universe home, and by choosing to walk with us.

He gave us time, a new invention that could be invested or squandered.

He gave us beauty, in the universe, the earth and in each other.

He gave us opportunity to live with purpose.

He gave us choice so that we could love.

He gave us a real fight so that the victory could be extremely sweet.

God gave us His Word.

God gave us a host of examples in life to follow and to avoid.

He gave us His son, who would come and give and give and give until He had nothing more He could give.

He gave us an example of what absolute power and authority looks like and how it should be used.

He gave meaning to every breath, to every life, to every death.

He gives us hope, in that while we were sinners He died for us.

He gives us significance and security that we could never find anywhere or in anyone else.

God gives rest to the weary, strength to the weak and power to the powerless.

God gives wisdom and understanding.

God made us in His image. God is a "giver". As I get older I understand that the most precious moments in life are not found in getting of a gift but in giving a gift. As a child there was the excitement of being loved and opening a gift that was picked especially for me, but, as I age, it becomes about giving....giving myself, my time, my talents, thoughts and prayers to those I love.
This Christmas I encourage you to pause and consider what God has given you and to dedicate yourself to imitating Him this season and in the years to come for there will be a time where the life on earth that He has given, He will take. He will then give again. He will give those who have accepted His gift, eternal life and a sinless eternity. For those who have been faithful He will give rewards. For those who have rejected His gift, He will give eternal hell.

In the beginning God.....In the end, God....

It is amazing that God decided to give so that we might participate with Him in abundant life.

We wish you a wonderful Christmas celebration.






Daniel 1:9 And God gave Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the chief of the eunuchs,

Daniel 1:17
17 As for these four youths, God gave them learning and skill in all literature and wisdom, and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.

John 1:12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,

John 3:16 “ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.


1 Corinthians 3:6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.

2 Corinthians 5:18-21 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

2 Timothy 1:7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self- control.


1 John 5:11-12 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

Ephesians 5:2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.


2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.

Galatians 1:3-5 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.



Dave Wager davewager.com

Keeping It Simple

Sometimes I think we make the simple complicated.  It seems that whenever I want to enjoy a hot dog, there is always someone around to tell me a plethora of reasons why I will be suffering if I eat that hot dog. I guess my simple mind is thinking of being hungry and trying to fight starvation, rather than the ramifications of non- organic beef, chicken, and pork.

Perhaps, at times, to know more than one needs to know is good. If the hot dog, long- term, is actually detrimental to my health, I would be wise to listen to the argument. However, for me, if I trusted the person and they were not a competing brands hot dog salesman, a simple warning could suffice, and more than that becomes information overload.

I often see Christians in the marketplace complicating the simple. We so often want to argue points, quote Scripture, and give history lessons, when the one we are talking to may not be interested in such enormous amounts of information.

For example, in this election year, we will hear much about the issues on all sides of the aisle. Abortion will be, no doubt, a topic of discussion. We will have groups gather and walk with sandwich boards down city streets with pictures of dismembered fetuses in hopes to educate. Others will debate the very idea of life, and when it starts, and who is in charge of caring for those who cannot care for themselves.  The labels pro-life and pro-choice will be assigned to candidates, campaigners, and citizens.

In reality, the issue is not really pro-choice or pro-life; it is whether or not we are pro-God or pro-self.  Abortion is not a problem; it is a symptom of a Godless, self-centered society. The problem is our ignorance of God and our choice to not include Him or obey Him, for if we did include and/obey Him, there would be no need for abortion. There would be no need, because we would only be sexually active in marriage, and we would be faithful to our spouse, so any baby who is conceived would be conceived in the context of a loving environment that would allow it the best chance possible to succeed. All babies would be born to moms and dads (man and woman) who would be intentionally loving God and others and be committed to the ideals of the family that God has set forth.

The abortion symptom has gotten too complicated, with too many pictures, and not enough talk about the problem that arises when we have no absolute, no God, and no authority.

That brings us to another symptom (problem). That symptom would be those who think that there is no God to answer to, and who think that this world and universe came into existence by itself as a matter of chance. Christians are busy filling their heads with many details as to how one might convince others of the reality of God. We take apologetic courses, evangelistic courses, family life seminars, and go to youth conferences.  We fill our time with experts in service, and doctrine, and debate. Yet, in the end, we change nobody’s mind, and the facts become idle trivia that someone one day puts on cards for a Bible trivia game (as if there was trivia in the Bible).

If we are to convince an unbelieving world that there is a God, we need to live our lives as if there is one. Our life could be the apologetic. That would keep it simple.  If we wanted to evangelize, we could just be genuinely excited about God’s grace and mercy, and live as if we are excited about it. (Here in Packer country, I am not sure we need to give anyone a course on Packer Evangelization; it kind of happens automatically.) Really, if we know all the arguments, and can debate the experts, but live as if God is not real, or His Word is not authoritative, then we really have nothing to say.

We could try to take a course on evolution versus the Big Bang theory, and come up with a thousand irrefutable facts that prove God’s existence.  Or, we could use the simple to answer the profound, because when you have truth on your side, too many words usually cloud what you are trying to say.

For example, many people get embroiled in a debate over the actual age of the earth. Some say the rocks are a million years old, and some say they cannot be that old because of a young earth. All I really know is that the Bible tells us that God created the earth in six days. He meant what He said. Not only that, the age of the earth is not important. Since God created a mature earth, He created things with age. I have no idea what age he created Adam or Eve, but they were mature. The trees were mature, as they had fruit on them, so, whatever age a mature fruit tree was/is, they were at least that old at creation. Likewise the mountains and bottom of the sea, I assume, were created with age and looked that age. So, when a non-believer tells me they found a rock that is a billion years old, I say, “Wow!” (I respond that way not because I think the earth is a billion years old.  It is not that old; it is a young earth. Check out the Bible.) I respond that way because, for all I know, that rock does nothing to support or decrease the idea of a young earth, and I think about how amazing God is to be able to create something with age. Sometimes, the answers are simple.

More simple answers?

Some scientists may say that the universe started with a big bang.  What they are saying is that it started.  Hey! We’re on the same page here. That was simple.  The word start I understand, and if there was a big noise when God created it, I do not know, but there could have been.

To live in a place that has no beginning and no end demands that we do not have a today. We have a today because there was a yesterday. In a timeless place there is no way to measure time. That was simple.

Either the universe is eternal and there is no time, or there is something outside of the universe that is eternal and has no time. Science is rather clear that the universe is in time and space. Therefore, it leads to a conclusion that that there has to be a cause outside of the universe, outside of time and space, and therefore, by definition, has no beginning. That was simple.

(Some of these examples were taken from the book entitled I Don’t Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist by Norman Geisler.)

In a world that is messed up in the idea of marriage, I can live as a husband who would love his wife as Christ loved the church. If I die to myself, my marriage will be fine. That was simple.

Christianity is really about God, not about me. That is simple.

Satan makes things quite complicated, and needs to do so in order to confuse us. He came to Eve in the garden and complicated the simple commands that God gave her. She actually thought she was doing something good when she eventually disobeyed God, because the simple clear message given to her by God was clouded up in Satanic rhetoric.

I can make things very complex by making things about me, about how I think, about how I feel, and about how I want the world to be. Or, I can come to God and discover what He has done, and allow the science, math, and other academic disciplines to broaden my appreciation for how big He is.

This world is not about my rational thought, or my position, or my comfort, ease, or pride. It is about God. My money is not about me, my position, my comfort, or ease; it is about God. My time is not about me…..You get the idea.

God is God, and I am Dave. I need to live that way. That is plain and simple.

Dave Wager davewager.com

Alcohol…Friend or Foe

According to Time magazine (October 31, 2011), the United States spends $224 billion a year to cover the cost of excessive drinking in the U.S.  According to About.com, on October 25, 2011, we have spent approximately one trillion dollars fighting the war in Iraq. The war started March 20, 2003, which means that at the writing of this article, we have been fighting there for about 8½ years (which I will round off to 9 years to make the math easier).

If these figures are accurate, while we have spent approximately 1 trillion dollars fighting this war, we have spent twice as much cleaning up the messes left by the excessive use of alcohol (over 2 trillion dollars).

On 9/11 about 3,000 innocent people died. In Iraq, there were/are 4,481 who were killed, and 32, 195 who were seriously wounded. (Total number killed: 7,481) In that same period we lost between 711,000 and 900,000 lives to alcohol abuse (depending on whose statistics you look at). (One source lists 79,000 (cdc.gov/alcohol); another lists 100,000.)

According to, http://www.greenfacts.org/en/alcohol/l-2/01-number-people-affected.htm, there are 2 billion people worldwide who consume alcoholic drinks, and over 76 million are affected by some abuse, or, as they label it, disorder. According to this article, approximately 1.8 million deaths a year are attributed to be directly caused by alcohol.  A recent report suggests that women who drink just two drinks a week increase their chances of breast cancer by 15%.

For some reason we have banned smoking commercials from television, but the beer industry is thriving and making us all believe that drinking is normal, good for relationships, and expected in certain situations.  But, as in all evil that is trying to normalize in a culture, it is not enough that the evil be normal, the old normal needs to become evil.

Seldom does the church challenge culture.  In fact, often the church breaks down and imitates culture. The church today, instead of leading the charge against something so devastating,  embraces the right and freedom to drink. The church often acts as if this Christianity thing is just about Heaven and Hell, and has little to do with a transformed life from the empty Godlessness we used to possess. Alcohol destroys lives through addiction, death, financial ruin, and lost potential. Alcohol destroys good thinking and promotes stinking thinking. And yet, with all the negatives, it is still used to celebrate special occasions? How absurd. This type of thinking can only be initiated by Satan, for all those who celebrate their marriage or special milestone by hosting a drink are holding a substance that will bite them and destroy them if given the opportunity.

The church has its ways of silencing its critics, for they often make the idea of criticizing the church on the same level of criticizing God Himself, which might be true if the church were acting like the church should act, and in the case of the church actually being the true church, or bride of Christ.

The attacks usually have to do with legalism, freedom, or judgment issues. If you do not drink, you are legalistic, or you do not understand the freedom we have in Christ. If you condemn others for drinking, you are judgmental. (It’s as if the statistics show something to be proud of.)  Perhaps, but perhaps not.

I don’t drink because I think it is evil. The statistics given indicate that alcohol is something very dangerous, not something productive and positive. I make no points with God for not drinking, and have no more of a favored status. (I guess that takes it out of the legalistic realm.) I do not drink because alcohol destroys the lives with which we are entrusted. It causes one to not think clearly, and can easily lead to actions one regrets. I do not drink because I do not want to support an industry that I believe destroys everything good about life and is fueled by lies and deception.

I do not drink because it is addictive, and I am one who can easily be addicted to things. I do not drink because I love my wife and children and do not want to do something that would intentionally destroy them. I do not drink because I want young men to be able to follow me in all things, and be stronger because of it. I do not drink because it makes our nation and world a worse place to live.

I also believe that the Scriptures are full of warnings about having our minds clouded or controlled by anything other than the Spirit of God. The term “sober-minded” can be twisted to mean anything you want it to mean, but it means sober-minded--to abstain from wine. I believe that I should be ready to show my world who God is at all times, to be ready to give an answer at all times, and to live in a way that honors my Heavenly Father. I do not believe I can drink and accomplish that.

From my reading, it seems that as little as .02 alcohol affects our thinking and response time, which is really the alcoholic content from one drink. Those Christians who drink, in some ways, are the new legalists, for they need to decide how much is too much and they need to play that game each time they drink. They can add that game to the how much is too much when eating, sleeping, dating, etc. They can throw in rules about how much is too much when it comes to movies and other entertainment.

As for me, I can keep it simple. No alcohol, 100% purity, and when watching or listening to entertainment, Philippians 4:8 can be my guide:
⁸ Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Philippians 4:8 (ESV)
When that is my guide, then the next verse is applicable without regret.

⁹ What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you. Philippians 4:9 (ESV)

We have a problem in this nation and the problem is us. Facts have little power to sway us. Logic plays a minor role. We see what we want to see. God is strangely looking more like me than me looking like Him, and the church seems to blend in rather than being salt and light.

It is what it is and always has been. Too bad; it really could be different.

I just heard on the news last night that 14,000 people died in one year due to overdoses of pain medication. When I compare that to the war in Iraq……(I will spare you the discourse….)

Proverbs 23:29–35 (ESV)

²⁹  Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaining? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes? ³⁰  Those who tarry long over wine; those who go to try mixed wine. ³¹  Do not look at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup and goes down smoothly. ³²  In the end it bites like a serpent and stings like an adder. ³³  Your eyes will see strange things, and your heart utter perverse things. ³⁴  You will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea, like one who lies on the top of a mast. ³⁵  “They struck me,” you will say, “but I was not hurt; they beat me, but I did not feel it. When shall I awake? I must have another drink.”

 How can alcohol be blamed for 100,000 deaths each year?

  5% of all deaths from diseases of the circulatory system are attributed to alcohol.

  15% of all deaths from diseases of the respiratory system are attributed to alcohol.

  30% of all deaths from accidents caused by fire and flames are attributed to alcohol.

  30% of all accidental drownings are attributed to alcohol.

  30% of all suicides are attributed to alcohol.

  40% of all deaths due to accidental falls are attributed to alcohol.

  45% of all deaths in automobile accidents are attributed to alcohol.

  60% of all homicides are attributed to alcohol.
(Sources: NIDA Report, the Scientific American and Addiction Research Foundation of Ontario.) Also see Alcohol Consumption and Mortality, Alcohol poisoning deaths, CDC report,

 


Dave Wager davewager.com

The State of the Church in America

Sometimes we have a hard time understanding what we mean when we say church. To some, it is an institution that has been put in place for their personal benefit. To others, it is a place to visit, to be religious on Christmas and Easter, before attending family gatherings and celebrations. Still others use the church as a crutch for whatever ails them.

The church in America has become somewhat impotent, yet the reasons for such a slippage into meaninglessness seem to be a mystery. To most, church attendance is not that important, and we have made it legalistic to be required to attend. In fact, a football game, a late night party, or a summer cottage can take the place of going to church, and we have no guilt, shame, or remorse for our actions.

Some might look at this problem as that of the individual, and there is some merit to assigning the problem to the people. Certainly, the church has become something we do instead of who we are. It has become something we give to, rather than something we live for. It has become something we need, rather than something we want. It has become about us, our tastes, our desires, and our personal importance.  It has become a place where we can gather with our friends, sort of like the old television program, Cheers, without the bar.

Others might see the problem as belonging to the church in that it has become irrelevant, out of touch, or a waste of time. Some see a leaderless democracy that yielded to the loudest voice, while others have issues with music, worship, programs, and lighting.

Perhaps the problem lies in society where we have now gotten so used to multiple voices and inputs that the church has become just another voice, another input.

It would be arrogant of me to believe that I understand all of the reasons for decades of decline, but it would be foolish of me to believe that the church is in good shape and has met the challenges of our nation and culture in a way that would honor our Lord.

For starters, one needs to understand the difference between a church as individuals and the institution of the church. The institution has little meaning, and when we assign it great meaning, then we devalue the individual. As the institution side of the church increases, the individuals become more and more expendable, and less and less important. The institution grows and the individual shrinks. Soon there is little to support the enormous “structure” we have put into place, and it quickly fades into oblivion.

If we view the church as a body, the body of Christ, and not a structure, it is a group of individuals. (This is not to say that we do not need structure, as we do.)  These individuals are entrusted with the Great Commission, and Satan is doing battle against them today. This group of individuals is light in darkness, salt in a decaying world, and hope to the hopeless. In the process of life, they get beat up and trampled on by the forces of evil, and often need to escape in order to renew their strength, purpose, and power though something we call “fellowship.” This fellowship is sweet and a place that soldiers, real soldiers, would not give up for a football game, a party, or a cabin in the woods. This fellowship is so important that they would rather die than live without it, They would rather fight than quit, and they would rearrange their lives to see it happen.

Perhaps that is problem number one in the church. Perhaps, in its attempt to reach the lost, control the government, and clean the environment, they have lost focus on the idea of being a resalination plant. Perhaps the church has become about those who cannot have true fellowship, and has thereby lost its importance. Perhaps the church has lost the idea of being salt and light, and now works at blending light and darkness, giving it a strange hue of grey that makes people more depressed than excited.

Maybe there is just a lack of leadership in the church today. Since most churches seem to be for the people, by the people, and of the people, the leadership is often hamstrung in its effort to lead. There needs to be endless committees, endless discussions, and political efforts put forth, rather than having leadership that has spent their time on their knees and who are ready to teach, lead, and challenge the real body to take on the world in which they live.

It could be that the church has just messed up the basics. In 2 Timothy 4, young Timothy is told to preach the Word. Then he is told to reprove, rebuke, and exhort with patience. It seems to be clear that this would be a good thing for the modern pastors to embrace. Some certainly preach the Word, but do it is a haphazard way. Some only reprove, some only rebuke, and some only exhort. Few seem to do all three, which is evident by the fact that  57% of those who say they are born again Evangelicals think that there is more than one way to heaven. (There is not....John 14:6.)

Maybe the church is in its current state because the church has begun to trust the gift rather than the giver, or has manipulated its people to reward the rich and powerful with positions of power and authority, because they are rich and powerful. Maybe we have lost the idea of the institution holding people accountable, to being a shepherd of the sheep, and a watchman on the wall.

Perhaps, due to the plethora of words in our culture, the church has just added to the pile and the abundance and has caused them all to be somewhat irrelevant because they all come from the same power base--our self, and our understanding, and our personal benefit.

Whatever the reason, the church today is not what it could be, and does not seem to be desiring to be all it could be. The answer lies in individuals who walk intimately with God and begin to identify those around them doing the same, and who begin to regularly meet in order to hear the Word, reprove, rebuke, and exhort each other.  Perhaps we need the leadership in the church to lead and to quit worrying about the political fallout. Perhaps we need to make the church about God again, and not about us.

The church, the real church, is the bride of Christ, not a brick and mortar structure. It is important to Him. It should be important to us, so if it is not, we need to take time to figure out why, and to start to readjust our lives to reflect what is really important.

Rod Dreher, in the Dallas Morning News, wrote the following: "But it should be remembered that a religion that makes no demands on people other than that they follow their bliss and be nice to everybody else is a religion that has no power to change minds and hearts. It will not inspire people to heroic deeds of self-sacrifice for the greater good, nor is it likely to endure."

Maybe it is time to have a new reformation. Maybe it starts with me.

 



Dave Wager davewager.com

Obama's Own Words

Dave Wager davewager.com

We Want It To Be True

So often we desire something so badly that we make it true. In fact, we might even say, “Well, it is true to me,” or “It is true for this person or that person,” and watch the people we are talking to nod their heads in agreement.

In reality, the people we are with should be nodding their heads in disgust.

It is typical of mankind to want to make up truth. In the Christian world we often hear people talk about God leading them, when in reality, they are leading God by their wishes and desires. They so want something to happen or be true that they assign the "God's will " tag to it to silence their critics.

We often craft the stories we tell to our friends about ourselves and our lives so that the image we want to portray is clear.

Oprah, who grew up Baptist, once declared that Jesus Christ could not be the only way to heaven. Rob Bell, who cannot fathom the idea that Ghandi would be in hell, has decided that eternal punishment is not consistent with what his wishes would be, and what his God would do, so he has declared a new doctrine, a purgatory doctrine of sorts. Radical Muslims believed that running airplanes into buildings would be an act that satisfied Allah and give them great standing in the next life. Senior Digambar monks wear no clothes. They do not consider themselves to be nude — they are “wearing the environment.” In the practice of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a living person, acting as proxy, is baptized by immersion on behalf of a deceased person of the same gender. The baptism ritual is as follows: after calling the living proxy by name, the person performing the baptism says, “Having been commissioned of Jesus Christ, I baptize you for and in behalf of [full name of deceased person], who is dead, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” The Jedi Church believes that there is one all-powerful force that binds all things in the universe together. The Jedi religion is something innate inside every one of us. The Jedi Church believes that our sense of morality is innate. So they promote that you quiet your mind and listen to the force within you!

Woodism is a pop-culture-based religion created in 1996 by Reverend Steve Galindo. They follow the late cult director, Edward D. Wood Jr., and they look to him as a savior. At The Church of Ed Wood they use Ed and his films to inject spirituality into those who get little fulfillment from more mainstream religions like Christianity. By looking at his films and his life, they learn to lead happy, positive lives. They strive for acceptance of others and of the self.

One individual responded as follows when asked about religious beliefs: "One person's folly is someone else's truth. In many respects, any thing which is based on faith alone is just plain illogical whether it involves Xenu, Snakes, Fairies , Reverend Moon or a Virgin birth."

One person's folly is another's truth? I would think that this is using the word "truth" loosely.

We people are goofy when we decide what is true, rather than discovering truth. It is strange to think that my logic is the measure of all things true. It is obvious to anyone who ever took a debate class that rhetoric does not equal truth. It is obvious that those who intimidate are not always right, and that intimidation in and of itself has nothing to do with truth.

Today in America we are a people, a sheep, following whatever sounds good to us or whatever makes sense to us. Mostly, we follow whatever makes our lives easier or affirms us the most. We have opportunity to listen to many pontificates for hour upon hour, and have become followers of Oprah, Glenn Beck, Bill O'Reilly, Rob Bell, or Joel Olsteen.

What happened to those who followed Christ? Where are they?

Truth is. It needs discovering, not making up. It will win in the end no matter how much it takes a beating during the middle of the game. Truth will stand, and all who break the truth today will be broken by it tomorrow.

I am not claiming that I know all truth. I am stating that there is a truth that will be evident, and it will not be dependent upon a common vote, a smooth talking Oprah or Rob Bell.

The Scriptures tell us that Satan is a liar and the father of lies. Deceptions are lies in a terminal state, for when we hit that level of belief, we have little hope.

Here is what we all know for sure.

Somehow, the earth and universe came into existence.
Somehow, we, personally, came into existence.
At some point, we all will die.

Since even the most moronic person who ever lived and the most brilliant would agree on these three points, we can at least begin a dialogue.

Somehow, there was born an earth, sky, and universe. Once again, if logic was the only game in town, we could conclude some things from the existence of the earth, sky, water, etc.

For example, the very computer that I am typing these thoughts on is something that also exists. I need not prove its existence to anyone, for the fact that I am typing on it and looking at it proves my case of its existence.

I, too, need not prove that the earth, sky, water, rocks, animals, or humans exist. They do, and all would agree to that.

I would also be safe in assuming that the computer on which I am writing this document was designed by someone, manufactured or made by someone or some process that was put in place by the designer, and eventually was created to fulfill the purpose for which it was designed.

Now, I do not need to know the designer, or like the designer, or agree with the designer to make any of my assumptions true. In fact, I could believe what I want, but my belief does not make anything true or false, and may indeed cause me to do some very foolish things with what was designed.

For example, I could decide that the designer did not know as much as I did about his design and purpose, so I would discover other uses for this computer that, I believe, would be better than the designer's plans. I could use the computer for a doorstop, and it could work perfectly for this purpose. In fact, it may be the best doorstop ever.

As foolish as it may be, I could eventually order computers for my entire company, and ask my employees to use them as doorstops because they work so well at holding the doors open. In this strange thinking I have indeed acknowledged and purchased something that was designed and manufactured, yet my shortsightedness has minimized the computer’s potential.

The universe, earth, and we, ourselves, were obviously designed. To think other than that puts one in the "moronic" category. If we were designed, we were designed with purpose, and we would be achieving that purpose or wasting it.

It is easier to never realize our potential. It is easier, much easier, to never be plugged in and used as a doorstop. Who’s to judge as to whether that not be a noble purpose?

I would say the same thing about the second universal observation. It seems quite obvious to all that the human body was planned out. There is very little random involved in the physical life we have. Our bodies seem to operate at a specific temperature, needs certain nutrients, need oxygen, need water, etc. We can believe anything we want to about temperature, nutrients, oxygen, and water, but the fact of the matter is that we need these things in order to sustain the life we have. Things are what they are and they work the way they were meant to work.

For example, we burn calories in order to have energy and keep warm. If we eat too many calories, we store the energy in the form of fat. If we eat too little, we stay skinny and could be lethargic. We can believe whatever we want to about weight loss and fitness, but the fact remains, calories in, calories out is what causes excess or not enough weight.

Man is intricately made. Therefore man has a creator, and since we have a creator, we have a purpose. As we ignore that purpose, we get caught up in being human door- stops, thinking that we do that well. We begin to think of ways that we could live to give us significance and security, and find neither in that we are looking for them in all the wrong places. Without a creator, it makes no sense. Without a purpose, we live for whatever is in front of us, and it becomes our purpose. We eventually begin to believe our personally written press clippings, and surround ourselves with those who would agree and applaud us.

This is interesting, at best.

The final universal fact that we agree on is the fact that all who are living will die. This is not hard to prove, and we as people learn this at a very young age. The fact of this matter makes this life, at best, a temporary place in our history. We come into existence one day, and if we make it out of the womb, we live x amount of years before dying and having our bodies turn back into clay. The human body that I give so much attention to today will be worm food tomorrow.

We all know this. We do not like it or dwell on it, because to us, this life thing is the only certainty we have, so we think.

In reality, death is more certain than life. Think about it. I cannot tell you for sure that I will be here the rest of this day, or tomorrow, or a year from now. But, I can, with certainty, tell you that I will die. It seems for me to live as if what is uncertain is certain, and what is certain as uncertain, is foolishness.

If this universe and our world in our universe had a designer, then it has a purpose. If my life had a designer, then I, too, have a purpose. If one day this wonderful body and brain I have will cease to function and become worm food, then either that is my purpose, or there is a greater and grander scheme at work in the universe.

I think it is much more logical to believe in a designer and in specific purposes rather than random design and purposeless existence.

If there is a designer and a purpose, then I would be wise to discover it, and not make it up according to my own desires and understandings. If there is a truth, it is not for those who are most eloquent, but for those who are most diligent.

Significance and security will never be found by those who seek them. Instead, they will be found by those who seek God, for if you would seek Him with all your heart, your mind, and your soul, you will find Him, and He will give you, as a gift of living in the context of your creation, the gift of significance and security.

The fool says in his heart there is no God....or no hell....or no truth....

Why have we elevated fools to such a status that allows them to influence our make- believe truth?

Dave Wager davewager.com

Christ's Death Is For Our Life

1 Peter 2:24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.

Jesus, the creator and sustainer of all life, of all things gave himself so that we might escape hell? No. So that we might have a sugar daddy in the sky? No. So that we might have fellowship in a local church? No. So that we might have hope for the future? No.

Sometimes we get things mixed up because we want to mix it up. This verse is often quoted but seldom applied. We love the idea of God dying for us, that makes us feel very special as it should. But we forget as to why He died, the reason that is stated in this verse.

He died so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.

His death was not just about saving us in our death it was and is about life. Life now, life abundantly, life that gives meaning. We have no life without His death, His death is meaningless if it has no effect on our lives, today.

Titus 2:11-13
11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,

The grace of God that brings us salvation is about training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives.

Those who portray Christianity as something that is good for the future while ignoring the present are deceived. Our salvation has three aspects to it. We are indeed freed from the penalty of our sins because of the death of Jesus but we can certainly look forward to a glorious future. The saving from our sins and the secure future are worth celebrating, but we are also saved today, right now , from the present power of sin in our lives and we need to live that way.

The benefits of being a Christian are benefits that are ours now, not someday. Our fellowship with God is now. Our love for our fellow man is now. Our lives have meaning, our deaths have purpose and our eternity is secured.

God's grace is not about an arrangement to avoid hell, although this is indeed wonderful, it is about loving God today, in public and allowing Him to use us to show the world who He is.

He, Himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that se might die to sin....that we might live to righteousness.

This is not legalism, this is freedom. This is not being judgmental to other lifestyles, this is being obedient to the one and only God. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Did yo ever wonder why God was never described as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Esau?

Perhaps Esau never really got it. Perhaps Esau allowed the present to be so important it destroyed what could have been. Perhaps Esau viewed God as one he needed for his future but not for today.

Jesus died on a cross, a cruel and agonizing death so that you and I might....die to sin and live to righteousness.



Dave Wager davewager.com