Musings From A Rolling Eyed Turtle

If you had an important message to share, who would you share it with to insure that the message gets out?   The political leaders? The religious leaders? The rich? The powerful? To those with the greatest influence? The people who have access to modes of communication? Just my impressions, but it seems to me that: If you sent it to the political leaders, they might use it for political gain. If you sent it to the religious leaders, they might filter it to reflect their views. If you sent it to the rich, they might leverage it for financial gain. If you sent it the powerful, they might use it to further consolidate their power. If you sent it to those with the greatest influence, they might use it advance their agenda. If you sent it to those who have access to modes of communication, they might shape it fit their optics. The message was this:  And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for al...

The definitions are somewhat simple and straightforward: Become –   to come, change, or grow to be, to come into being. Dwell - to live or stay as a permanent resident; reside, to live or continue in a given condition or state. But the meanings of the words, in context, are so far beyond simple that they border on the incomprehensible: The Word became flesh.  The infinite, glorious, eternal Word became robed in flesh.  And not only that, but the flesh came into being in the womb of a virgin! The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.  The infinite, glorious, eternal King left His royal heavenly dwelling place and came to live among those whom He created!  And the response to such incredibly profound and almost incomprehensible events is not so very stellar: “The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.” (John 1:5) “He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him....

Sometimes just swapping out a letter in a word and replacing it with another can create a literary adventure… Take the word “ponder”.  The meaning of ponder is to weigh in the mind, to think about, reflect upon.  Swap out the “P” and replace it with a “W” and you get “wonder”.  The meaning of wonder is a feeling of surprise mingled with admiration, caused by something beautiful, unexpected, unfamiliar, or inexplicable . The literary adventure can get even more intriguing when you combine the original word with the new word.  In this case, you ponder the wonder.  That is, you weigh in the mind, think about and reflect upon a feeling of surprise mingled with admiration, caused by something beautiful, unexpected, unfamiliar or inexplicable! Just in case you need something on which to ponder the wonder, I’ll give you some clues: Prophesies made centuries earlier and fulfilled in every way; A baby placed in a manger; News of this baby first delivered to ...

I’m not sure about the context of the verse but it sure seems to represent one of humanity’s deepest cries of despair since mankind first walked the earth. “I hoped for good but evil came…” “I hoped for light but darkness came…” Those words are from the book of Job, chapter 30 and verse 26.  While these words were written several thousand years ago, they seem timely for us today as it appears now, more than ever, that evil is permeating our world and darkness is enveloping it. Is there hope?  Can good hold back the onslaught of evil?  Can light dispel the darkness? The short answer is that God knows. The long answer is that only God knows. While we don’t know what God knows, we do know the following about us as individuals: “And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.”  (I Peter 5:10) “And I am sure of this, that he ...

In my last post, I wrote about the importance of looking for those who fear God as we consider who should be in positions of leadership and influence. However, it doesn’t just stop with them; it also applies to me and to you!  God looks for those who fear Him and there are benefits and blessings when we fear God.  And we all greatly benefit when people in positions of leadership and influence fear God. But what does it mean to fear God? It means having a deep respect and awe for God’s power and authority.  It is to give him complete reverence and to honor him as the God of great glory, majesty, purity and power.  Yet it could probably be argued that fearing God is a lost art.   The common meaning of that phrase “a lost art” is “ something that people do that has been forgotten or is not done very often anymore.”  Yep, that probably applies to fearing God! Also, when I think of the word fear, the word that goes with it in my mind is trembling...

It used to be that a “God fearing man or woman” was respected in our nation.  In addition, a God fearing individual was often seen as being needed in a position of leadership or influence.  Not only does that seem to be out of vogue these days, but it seems now there’s a preference for people who hate God and everything about Him. Is fearing God just some old quaint tradition?  Was it handed down to us by that Judeo-Christian heritage that now seems to be so despised and is being discarded?  Has fearing God become not only unneeded but also undesirable?  The short answer to those questions is that what we once looked for is something that God has always looked for and continues to look for: “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul,” (Deut 10:12) “Then those who feared the Lord talked with each ...

I wouldn’t use the word “stability” to describe the days we are in.  And I certainly wouldn’t use it to describe how I’ve been feeling for most of 2020.  But, I would say that I’ve wished for it, hoped for it and prayed for it. For the record, stability is defined as a firmness in position or a continuance without change.  I find that I often look for stability in routines or schedules or the familiar.  Such can help at times but the events and circumstances we are going through these days have shredded my human efforts to find and maintain stability. But in spite of the instability of our circumstances, there is a stability that we can enter into.  It’s a stability that comes from God: “My flesh and my heart may grow weak, but God always protects my heart and gives me stability .”  (Ps 73:26) “ He is your constant source of stability ; he abundantly provides safety and great wisdom;  he gives all this to those who fear him.” (Isa 33:6) The o...