Meat for the Hungry

“Any of you ready for a “Puritan Christmas”?” Andreas Köstenberger asked, in his blog, “A Puritan Christmas”. [1] Sure, I thought. But, how did the Puritan’s celebrate Christmas? Continuing to read, I was surprised to discover the Puritans did not celebrate Christmas. In fact, in Scotland, from 1580 through 1660, the Puritan’s controlled Parliament actually outlawed Christmas. When the Pilgrims immigrated to the New World, they did the same. Christmas, they had decided, was a pagan corruption of the true birth of our Savior, believing the word holiday, a combination of two words – holy and day – implied one day more holy than the next. “They for whom all days are holy can have no holiday,” [2] became their condescending response to Christmas, “…nicknaming it "Foolstide" and banning their flock from any celebration of it throughout the 17th and 18th centuries.” [3] Nevertheless, they may have a point. Consider our western traditions. Even the word, C h r i s t ...

“Oh, give THANKS to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.” [1] Recently, I’ve come to realize I’ve lived a somewhat sheltered life with regards to T h a n k s g i v i n g . Oh, I’ve learned of our nation’s history and read some of the pilgrim’s writings, yet my research, until now, has been from the settler’s point of view. Quite by accident, I came across an article from the website:  http://Indians.org . The author, Thomas A. Ferguson, called our white, European American idea of the first T h a n k s g i v i n g a view “…based on the mythological concept and approach Western minds have when dealing with the various Native Populations.” [2] He paints an extremely condescending and contemptuous picture of the Pilgrims assuring us the Native American does not view this holiday with the same love and fervor we do.

Concern. Angst. Apprehension. Anxiety. Trepidation. Fear. Worry. Sweltering heat; pounding heart; cramping pain in her throat and chest. Feeling as if crushed by a boulder, she gasps for air with lungs that just won’t fill. Lips parched and cracked. Desperate for water. Fleeing. Frightened; yet trudging on. A spring of water in the distance.  If I can make it to the spring, maybe, just maybe. Ever feel like this? What? Isn’t this is a physical scenario? True. However, anxiety, worry, fear, etc. can cause this type of emotional experience.

Recently I was privileged to watch a pre-release video of “man on the street” interviews entitled, The Atheist Delusion , by Evangelist, Ray Comfort. Then, last week I heard an intriguing comment on the Moody Radio program, In the Market with Janet Parshall. Her “man on the street” interviews, created to segue into the next portion of her show, caught my attention. In one of the interviews a woman made this statement:  “We don’t need religion to know right from wrong or to treat people the way you want to be treated.” Pondering this remark caused me to ask why. Why do all humans have an innate understanding of right and wrong and desire to be treated fairly? From where did it come? And how do humans measure right from wrong? What standard do we use? And from where did we get that standard? I mean, we have a conscience, but what would have caused a conscience to develop if we are only evolved and not created? Clearly, the atheist and scoffer have no answers. Yet in arrog...

Do you like mysteries?  I do to a point. As long as the mystery is solved with a happy ending, I enjoy the investigation, search, and resolution. But, without a happy ending, I’m disturbed. This is one reason why TV season finales sometimes make me crazy. The word mystery , according to the online dictionary, means something that is difficult or impossible to understand or explain. It can also be a novel, play, or movie dealing with a puzzling crime, especially a murder. Obviously, television dramas are the latter. But, in just living we come upon mysteries – things we can’t explain. Some feel compelled to investigate because they need answers – to find each puzzle piece, assemble them, and solve the mystery . Then we are satisfied and settled. Still, because of this desire within us to know the complete story, doesn’t it intrigue you when God speaks in the New Testament about a m y s t e r y kept s e c r e t since the world began?

www.freebibleimages.org "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey. [1] This week commenced with what we know as Palm Sunday, Jesus’s  triumphal  entry into Jerusalem. As He rode into the city on the back of a donkey, fulfilling Zachariah’s prophesy, some euphoric townsmen spread their cloaks on the road while others waved palm branches, hailing Him as Messiah, the Prince. When the indignant Pharisees asked Jesus to quiet his disciples He replied, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.” [2] Why? Because, this was the day – the day set forth by Almighty God through the angel Gabriel, concluding the second division of Daniel, the prophet’s seventy weeks. [3] Yet, Palm Sunday also begins a most solemn time for those who believe. Triumph turned quickly to contempt. ...