Thursday, October 30, 2014
How to Fix the 2015 Milwaukee Brewers
If I were GM, and I'm not (as seen by the fact that they exercised their option on Yovanni Gallardo), here is what I would do to make a championship team. The philosophy is opposite Doug Melvin's. He assembles the best possible lineup of starters and everyday players using up most of the budget and then piecemeals the bullpen with scrap heap players. What you can see from this year's playoffs is that the bullpen needs to be the priority. Here's what I would have done and it is already shot with the signing of Yo.
2014 salary $104 million
Don't sign
Ramirez $10-14 million
Yovanni $11.25 million
Weeks $11 million
Estrada $3.3 million
KRod $3.3 million
Reynolds/Overbay $3.5 million
Gorzellany $2.8 million
Duke $1 million
$48 million saved. Now I don't know how much of Parra's and Broxton's salaries were figured in to that $104 million but I figure you have to take away $11 million of that $48 million which leaves you $37 million to spend. Use that to get 3 of these guys on the FA market
Andrew Miller, Pat Neshek, Darren O'Day, Sergio Romo, Joakim Soria, Huston Street, Koji Uehara
Maybe you can't get 3. Then get 2 and sign Duke and KRod. Imagine the bullpen you would have with 2 of those guys and Broxton and Jeffress. Games would be over after 6. (Have you seen the Cubs bullpen? I'm worried!)
The rest of the lineup would be like this - SP Peralta, Lohse, Garza, Fiers, ? Smith, Nelson, Wagner, Jungman, Thornburg
1B - Braun/ Clark
2B Gennett / Velez
SS Segura / Arcia
3B Rogers
LF Davis/ Parra
CF Gomez/Shaefer
RF Parra/ Braun
C Lucroy/ Maldonado
Yes we would be weaker at 3B but lets face it - Ramirez doesn't cover much ground at 3rd and is a log jam on the bases. He doesn't even slide anymore and is always hurt. And our starters would be less deep but who knows, someone might step up. And our bullpen would be grade A.
But nevermind. We signed Yo so it is 81-81 for us
Kid's Video Devotion - What RU Going 2B when you grow up?
1 Watch the following Doug video
2. Doug Trivia
Who bought a boat with the earnings he made at career day last year?
What was Skeeter's suggested career?
3. What did Doug want to be when he grew up? What was he good at and enjoyed doing? What kind of emotions did project manager evoke in Doug? What was the one thing he liked about being a corporate executive?
4. Why was Chalky a good choice to be Doug's replacement? What do you think of the advice "Decide, Direct, Delegate"?
5. What do you want to be when you grow up?
What do you think God wants you to be?
Why do you think those 2 are different?
6. Read Jeremiah 29:11 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=jeremiah+29%3A11&version=NIV Does God intend for you to be miserable?
7.Read Nehemiah 3. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Nehemiah+3&version=NIV List 6 professions in this passage that helped build the wall.
8. Read Exodus 36:1,2. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus+36%3A1-2&version=NIV What God given ability was used to serve the Lord in this passage?
9.Read Acts 18:2,3. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=acts+18%3A2-3&version=NIV What was the apostle Paul's profession?
10. Summarize what lesson this devotion is trying to teach you.
Note to parents/teachers
a lot of people think that there are two possible futures for them - a fun one and the Holy One that God intends for them to do. Nothing could be further from the truth. God gives us all interests, abilities and passions that are uniquely ours and the trick is to find a future using those in order to glorify God and hopefully serve people. If we find that, we will enjoy our work. Too many people get stuck in a career which, like Doug's, offered dreams of riches but unfortunately didn't excite him nor was it in his giftedness. Throughout the Bible we see that holy gifted saints had professions that weren't what people would call" full time Christian service "but in effect they used them in their full time Christian service. You don't have to "go into the ministry" to be in the ministry although that certainly is a worthy calling ,too.
“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
― Howard Thurman
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Retirement
13 Do everything you can to help Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their way and see that they have everything they need. 14 Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order to provide for urgent needs and not live unproductive lives. Titus 3:13,14
As I get older, and look older, or maybe it's just because I am delivering grandchildren for people who I delivered, many people ask when I am going to retire. It is a reasonable question. After all, the house is paid for, the kids are all self-supporting, colleges and med school and seminary bills are all paid, and we have zero debt. In fact the retirement fund is pretty good. Why not just enjoy the rest of my life?
Well, the obvious answer is that I am enjoying my life. I love delivering babies. I was sharing with someone the other day that with Halloween coming up, it is often like a homecoming for me where kids come to my door and I get to see all the children I've delivered and how they are growing up. It is fun!
A new reason for not retiring came in the mail the other day and is reinforced in the above passage in Titus. The letter from Social Security says that if I retire at 62 I get $1900 dollars a month but if I wait till 65 I get $3900 a month. Now that isn't much but combined with our assets and retirement funds we would be OK. But let's say we tithed on $3900 a month - $390 a month to the Lord. I know we are not supposed to let the right hand know what the left hand is giving, etc. but as Paul would say, "let me be foolish for a second" (and because very few people read my blogs anyway), we currently give over 15 times that amount to ministries like our local church, Young life, rescue ministries, Honduras orphanages, gay restitution ministry, prostitute restoration ministries, jail ministries, hunger funds, Compassion Int., missionaries in multiple areas, and the list goes on. So what I would essentially be doing if I retired would be to say to the down-trodden, " the $1000 I used to give you, I am now going to use to go visit Yosemite". I just heard an interesting message by Louie Giglio on what happens when we die, and he compares the difference between our earthly bodies and our heavenly bodies to the difference between the old earth and the new earth. It just makes much more sense to wait to see the new earth for free for all eternity than to use God's resources on ourselves to the detriment of the needy to see a fallen creation.
You see, retirement - to go and spend your hard earned money on self, and to quit making income to bless others is a severe blow to these ministries and contrary to what the Bible says. There are multiple other reasons not to retire given in the Bible and this blog wasn't meant to be a treatise on the subject. It was just meant to present one new reason I hadn't thought of before.
As I get older, and look older, or maybe it's just because I am delivering grandchildren for people who I delivered, many people ask when I am going to retire. It is a reasonable question. After all, the house is paid for, the kids are all self-supporting, colleges and med school and seminary bills are all paid, and we have zero debt. In fact the retirement fund is pretty good. Why not just enjoy the rest of my life?
Well, the obvious answer is that I am enjoying my life. I love delivering babies. I was sharing with someone the other day that with Halloween coming up, it is often like a homecoming for me where kids come to my door and I get to see all the children I've delivered and how they are growing up. It is fun!
A new reason for not retiring came in the mail the other day and is reinforced in the above passage in Titus. The letter from Social Security says that if I retire at 62 I get $1900 dollars a month but if I wait till 65 I get $3900 a month. Now that isn't much but combined with our assets and retirement funds we would be OK. But let's say we tithed on $3900 a month - $390 a month to the Lord. I know we are not supposed to let the right hand know what the left hand is giving, etc. but as Paul would say, "let me be foolish for a second" (and because very few people read my blogs anyway), we currently give over 15 times that amount to ministries like our local church, Young life, rescue ministries, Honduras orphanages, gay restitution ministry, prostitute restoration ministries, jail ministries, hunger funds, Compassion Int., missionaries in multiple areas, and the list goes on. So what I would essentially be doing if I retired would be to say to the down-trodden, " the $1000 I used to give you, I am now going to use to go visit Yosemite". I just heard an interesting message by Louie Giglio on what happens when we die, and he compares the difference between our earthly bodies and our heavenly bodies to the difference between the old earth and the new earth. It just makes much more sense to wait to see the new earth for free for all eternity than to use God's resources on ourselves to the detriment of the needy to see a fallen creation.
You see, retirement - to go and spend your hard earned money on self, and to quit making income to bless others is a severe blow to these ministries and contrary to what the Bible says. There are multiple other reasons not to retire given in the Bible and this blog wasn't meant to be a treatise on the subject. It was just meant to present one new reason I hadn't thought of before.
Monday, October 27, 2014
Ragamuffin Review - The Story of Rich Mullins
Ragamuffin Review - The Story of Rich Mullins
I don't normally review movies. In fact the only movies I review are ones that keep me awake at night pondering them and writing about them is a catharsis of sorts. This won't be an in depth review but just some random thoughts.
First of all, you need to watch the closing credits to get a real feeling for who Rich Mullins was. They include live footage of him interacting during a concert. You can see his boyish charm, the twinkle in his eyes, his winsome personality. I saw him in multiple venues and he was always very endearing. I never knew of his inner demons, I just knew he was bizarre. The actor that portrayed him was dark, brooding, angry. In fact, 1 hour and 45 minutes into the movie I said to my wife, who had long since quit watching because they didn't play Step by Step, "I wonder when he becomes likable?" He never did. I can't imagine why anyone would ever go to his concert but we ate up the real Rich Mullins concerts. They were fun!
Second, I'm always bothered by the deconstruction of Christian icons. Couldn't we just remember him for his great music rather than remember him now for smoking, alcoholism, anger issues, unkindness to friends, and daddy issues. The movie focused on these 90% of the time and left me disliking him, not so much because he was flawed because we all are, but because he spoke out against the hypocrisy of the church, the recording industry, etc. and yet he was the biggest hypocrite of all. He would have probably justified it by saying, "The difference is I know I'm a hypocrite. therefore I am a free Ragamuffin" which would sound superior to or on a higher plane than us but actually was just non victorious living given spiritualeeze by an often defeated Ragamuffin mentor.
Anyway, I wish I hadn't seen it because I will never listen to his music again with the same joy but now with a sense of sadness and despair. Sorry, that's just how it affected me.
5 Minute Devotions to Give Using Object Lessons - Firehelmet
5 Minute Devotions to Give Using Object Lessons - Firehelmet
Get a toy firehelmet at Firehouse Subs or at some toy store. Put it on and say," Someone gave me this fire helmet and I'm so excited because I'm a fireman now. I wanted to be one since I was a little kid... What? I see some puzzled looks." Allow responses. Most of them will be "Just because you put on a helmet doesn't make you a fireman". Ask, "Why not, what would make me a fireman?" Responses would be "you sign up", "you study", "you train", "you hang out with firemen", and "you fight fires"!
You know, you are right. Just wearing this toy helmet makes me no more a fireman than sleeping in a garage makes me a car- just like going to Chick-Fil-A makes me a chicken sandwich. The same is true for being a Christian. A lot of people think that going to Church makes them a Christian. They put on the Church clothes, the Godliness façade, and think they are checking God's boxes for entry to Heaven, even if it is only Christmas and Easter.
So how do you become a Christian? First is sign up. What do I mean by that? You have to admit you aren't a child of God, but you want to be. Tell Him. If you admit you are a sinner and you want to be admitted to His family, confess your sins to Him and ask for His forgiveness which He gives freely through the death of His son on the cross (John 3:16)
Second, study and train and fellowship. He gave you His instruction manual on how to get to know Him and live a life pleasing to Him. Read the Bible. Go to Church. Join a Bible study. Memorize scripture. Did you know that's what Paul did for a few years before he became the apostle who changed the world.
Third - fight fires. Real Christians love the poor, they serve the less fortunate. They share the gospel boldly. James 1:22 says "Be doers of the word, not hearers only deceiving yourself" What are they deceiving themselves of? If you aren't behaving like a Christian, then you aren't one. In Matt 7 and Luke 13 people come to Jesus when He shuts the door to them to Heaven and say, "Wait a second, didn't we hang out with you? We know you... and He will say "depart from me you evildoers I don't know who you are."
I know this is hardcore but you know that there are a lot of phonies out there. Do you want to be one of them? Come join us putting out hells fires!
Sunday, October 19, 2014
Names of God 7. Jehovah Rapha
Names of God 7. Jehovah Rapha
As a bit of review lets look at the previous 6 names through the eyes of Moses. Moses met Elohim at the burning bush. Elohim is the triune all-powerful creator of the universe who is so holy, to be in His presence is to die. The mystery wasn't that the bush didn't burn up but rather that Moses didn't. He told Moses to take off his shoes because he was standing on holy ground. Elohim then went on to become the eternal God who communicates with man and promised to be with Moses and that name is YHWH or Jehovah the great I Am. Jehovah said "I have seen the hardships of my people" revealing Himself as El Roi, the God who sees. Moses was about to learn a hard lesson because even though he knew Elohim and had entered into a relationship with Him through Yahweh, He needed to reveal Himself as Adonai or Lord to Moses. God wouldn't take excuses from Moses on why Moses was the wrong man for the job. Finally Moses said "No, Lord" which is an oxymoron and Moses went anyway because you can't be in a relationship with God without Him being master. Jehovah Jireh had already provided a helper for him - Aaron was long on his way well before the meeting at the bush. Jehovah Jireh, our provider, provided His name, three neat convincing miracles, and 10 plagues with a Passover Lamb which eventually provide for all of us. Not only that but all the Egyptians and Pharoah regarded Moses as a god, God provided a great cover for him! When they were released God led them like a shepherd, Jehovah Rohi, protecting, feeding, restoring them, leading them in paths of righteousness, even though they were prone to wander, helpless, stupid, yet somehow valuable to Him. And where did He lead them? We see in Exodus 15
Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. 23 When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah.) 24 So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What are we to drink?”
25 Then Moses cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a piece of wood. He threw it into the water, and the water became fit to drink.
There the Lord issued a ruling and instruction for them and put them to the test. 26 He said, “If you listen carefully to the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you.” (Jehovah Rapha)
27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there near the water.
He reveals Himself as the God who restores back to normal. Don't you think when God led them through the desert for 3 days that He knew He was leading them to undrinkable water? Of course He did. And Jehovah Jireh was going to provide some wood to throw in it to make it potable. What was His purpose for this? We can only guess but I think it was to reveal more of Himself to them - a new name. The God who can take the bitterness of your old life and restore you back to the way you should have been. Jehovah rapha - the God who heals.
Lets look at some aspects of our healer. In the context of this Exodus passage we see a preventative medicine aspect of our healer; to prevent the disease from ever happening. It's like Zantac or Pepcid; I tell my patients that this isn't to treat heartburn, it is to prevent it from ever happening. If you have heartburn, it is too late for this. Before sin, mankind had only one rule - don't eat from the tree. Now the world had become a very dangerous place and God had to give them a bunch more rules to prevent things like the diseases that they saw in Egypt. They are still valid principles today as seen by studies that show that people who attend church every week live an average of 7 years longer. They are 50% less likely to die from heart attacks, 56% less likely to die from Emphysema, 74% less likely to die from cirrhosis, and 53% less likely to commit suicide. They are also seen to recover faster from surgery. This confirms Prov. 10:27 "The fear of the Lord adds length to life," Why would this be?
1. Prevention of spread of disease- the Bible, long before anyone knew about germs, gave the Israelites principles to keep epidemics away
- Leprosy; Lev. 13:46 tells them that they needed to live outside camp and yell "unclean" when anyone came close. Obviously they shouldn't be in an airplane or cruise ship (recent Ebola scare)
- Dead bodies; Num.5:23, Num. 19:11 whoever touches a dead body would be off limits for 7 days. They were to leave their job and spend an entire week in the surrounding desert
- Hand washing. Semmelweis, a doctor in Austria in the 1840s saw a number of maternity patients dying postpartum. He proposed that doctors, after performing autopsies would wash their hands consistent with the principles found in Numbers 19 - running water, long time, with soap, and vigorous scrubbing. He found that this cured the problem but the medical field scorned and mocked him until years after his death he was declared to be a prophet before his time
- Sanitation - Duet. 23:12,13 says take an instrument, go outside of camp, bury your excrement in a hole and cover it. How many plagues could have been averted with these simple instructions.
2. Lifestyles
- alcoholism and drug addiction- The Bible forbids drunkenness and being controlled or mastered by anything. How many violent deaths, MVA's, liver diseases, domestic violence and divorces could be stopped if we just listen to what the Bible says
- obesity - Prov.23:21 and many other verses discuss gluttony as being a sin. Obesity leads to hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, endometrial cancer, premature death
- promiscuity - cervical cancer, 44 different STDs, blindness, Hepatitis C, HIV, abortion all related to disobeying God's command for monogamy.
- smoking - violates the principles of treating our body as the temple of the Holy Ghost not to mention wasting God's money. You only need to try to get health insurance if you smoke to know how detrimental to your health smoking is
- dietary - Lev. 7:22 warns about eating fat. The list of clean and unclean animals warned them which were hazardous to their health. The recent pandemics of AIDS and Ebola have unclean animal carriers of chimpanzees/monkeys, and fruit bats respectively.
3. Emotions - stress and anxiety
The Bible says in Phil. 4:6 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. " What does stress cause? Psychosomatic illnesses. Illnesses that are real and physical but caused by the psyche. Here is a non-comprehensive list of some of the illnesses.
stomach and intestine disorders
ulcerative colitis
irritable bowel syndrome
problems swallowing
high blood pressure
abnormal heartbeat
angina, heart attacks
strokes
irregular periods, infertility
headaches, migraines
seizures
panic attacks
tremors
suicide
chronic fatigue syndrome
hives
asthma
common cold
dermatitis
anorexia
cancer
- anger; increases blood pressure, strokes, heart attacks. If anger is unresolved and buried beneath the surface it leads to depression. Jehovah Rapha can heal you of your anxiety and anger and replace it with the fruit of the spirit - Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Self-control
Not only is He a healer in the fact that He prevents our illnesses, but if we do get sick He can heal those too? Will He? That is totally up to Him. If your sickness is for His glory and plan, then you won't be healed. If it would glorify Him you will be healed. John 9:1-3 says
"As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him."
In Jeremiah 26, Jeremiah gets spared while Uriah gets executed. Peter gets rescued from prison by an angel and John the Baptist doesn't. How many Christians were eaten by lions and we just read of Daniel being spared. Paul heals people on Malta but can't heal himself, Epaphroditus or Trophimus. So we are commanded to pray in James 5 and call the elders to pray and anoint you with oil and then God will do what he intends.
The ultimate healing is the healing that lasts forever, the salvation of your soul. This enables you to say, like Paul in Phil. 1
" 21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! 23 I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; 24 but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body"
When I go on these medical mission trips, we give people 50 blood pressure pills which will be gone in a couple months. However, if you can lead them to the Lord they will live forever.
Here are a few songs that come to mind
As a bit of review lets look at the previous 6 names through the eyes of Moses. Moses met Elohim at the burning bush. Elohim is the triune all-powerful creator of the universe who is so holy, to be in His presence is to die. The mystery wasn't that the bush didn't burn up but rather that Moses didn't. He told Moses to take off his shoes because he was standing on holy ground. Elohim then went on to become the eternal God who communicates with man and promised to be with Moses and that name is YHWH or Jehovah the great I Am. Jehovah said "I have seen the hardships of my people" revealing Himself as El Roi, the God who sees. Moses was about to learn a hard lesson because even though he knew Elohim and had entered into a relationship with Him through Yahweh, He needed to reveal Himself as Adonai or Lord to Moses. God wouldn't take excuses from Moses on why Moses was the wrong man for the job. Finally Moses said "No, Lord" which is an oxymoron and Moses went anyway because you can't be in a relationship with God without Him being master. Jehovah Jireh had already provided a helper for him - Aaron was long on his way well before the meeting at the bush. Jehovah Jireh, our provider, provided His name, three neat convincing miracles, and 10 plagues with a Passover Lamb which eventually provide for all of us. Not only that but all the Egyptians and Pharoah regarded Moses as a god, God provided a great cover for him! When they were released God led them like a shepherd, Jehovah Rohi, protecting, feeding, restoring them, leading them in paths of righteousness, even though they were prone to wander, helpless, stupid, yet somehow valuable to Him. And where did He lead them? We see in Exodus 15
Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. 23 When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah.) 24 So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What are we to drink?”
25 Then Moses cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a piece of wood. He threw it into the water, and the water became fit to drink.
There the Lord issued a ruling and instruction for them and put them to the test. 26 He said, “If you listen carefully to the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you.” (Jehovah Rapha)
27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there near the water.
He reveals Himself as the God who restores back to normal. Don't you think when God led them through the desert for 3 days that He knew He was leading them to undrinkable water? Of course He did. And Jehovah Jireh was going to provide some wood to throw in it to make it potable. What was His purpose for this? We can only guess but I think it was to reveal more of Himself to them - a new name. The God who can take the bitterness of your old life and restore you back to the way you should have been. Jehovah rapha - the God who heals.
Lets look at some aspects of our healer. In the context of this Exodus passage we see a preventative medicine aspect of our healer; to prevent the disease from ever happening. It's like Zantac or Pepcid; I tell my patients that this isn't to treat heartburn, it is to prevent it from ever happening. If you have heartburn, it is too late for this. Before sin, mankind had only one rule - don't eat from the tree. Now the world had become a very dangerous place and God had to give them a bunch more rules to prevent things like the diseases that they saw in Egypt. They are still valid principles today as seen by studies that show that people who attend church every week live an average of 7 years longer. They are 50% less likely to die from heart attacks, 56% less likely to die from Emphysema, 74% less likely to die from cirrhosis, and 53% less likely to commit suicide. They are also seen to recover faster from surgery. This confirms Prov. 10:27 "The fear of the Lord adds length to life," Why would this be?
1. Prevention of spread of disease- the Bible, long before anyone knew about germs, gave the Israelites principles to keep epidemics away
- Leprosy; Lev. 13:46 tells them that they needed to live outside camp and yell "unclean" when anyone came close. Obviously they shouldn't be in an airplane or cruise ship (recent Ebola scare)
- Dead bodies; Num.5:23, Num. 19:11 whoever touches a dead body would be off limits for 7 days. They were to leave their job and spend an entire week in the surrounding desert
- Hand washing. Semmelweis, a doctor in Austria in the 1840s saw a number of maternity patients dying postpartum. He proposed that doctors, after performing autopsies would wash their hands consistent with the principles found in Numbers 19 - running water, long time, with soap, and vigorous scrubbing. He found that this cured the problem but the medical field scorned and mocked him until years after his death he was declared to be a prophet before his time
- Sanitation - Duet. 23:12,13 says take an instrument, go outside of camp, bury your excrement in a hole and cover it. How many plagues could have been averted with these simple instructions.
2. Lifestyles
- alcoholism and drug addiction- The Bible forbids drunkenness and being controlled or mastered by anything. How many violent deaths, MVA's, liver diseases, domestic violence and divorces could be stopped if we just listen to what the Bible says
- obesity - Prov.23:21 and many other verses discuss gluttony as being a sin. Obesity leads to hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, endometrial cancer, premature death
- promiscuity - cervical cancer, 44 different STDs, blindness, Hepatitis C, HIV, abortion all related to disobeying God's command for monogamy.
- smoking - violates the principles of treating our body as the temple of the Holy Ghost not to mention wasting God's money. You only need to try to get health insurance if you smoke to know how detrimental to your health smoking is
- dietary - Lev. 7:22 warns about eating fat. The list of clean and unclean animals warned them which were hazardous to their health. The recent pandemics of AIDS and Ebola have unclean animal carriers of chimpanzees/monkeys, and fruit bats respectively.
3. Emotions - stress and anxiety
The Bible says in Phil. 4:6 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. " What does stress cause? Psychosomatic illnesses. Illnesses that are real and physical but caused by the psyche. Here is a non-comprehensive list of some of the illnesses.
stomach and intestine disorders
ulcerative colitis
irritable bowel syndrome
problems swallowing
high blood pressure
abnormal heartbeat
angina, heart attacks
strokes
irregular periods, infertility
headaches, migraines
seizures
panic attacks
tremors
suicide
chronic fatigue syndrome
hives
asthma
common cold
dermatitis
anorexia
cancer
- anger; increases blood pressure, strokes, heart attacks. If anger is unresolved and buried beneath the surface it leads to depression. Jehovah Rapha can heal you of your anxiety and anger and replace it with the fruit of the spirit - Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Self-control
Not only is He a healer in the fact that He prevents our illnesses, but if we do get sick He can heal those too? Will He? That is totally up to Him. If your sickness is for His glory and plan, then you won't be healed. If it would glorify Him you will be healed. John 9:1-3 says
"As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him."
In Jeremiah 26, Jeremiah gets spared while Uriah gets executed. Peter gets rescued from prison by an angel and John the Baptist doesn't. How many Christians were eaten by lions and we just read of Daniel being spared. Paul heals people on Malta but can't heal himself, Epaphroditus or Trophimus. So we are commanded to pray in James 5 and call the elders to pray and anoint you with oil and then God will do what he intends.
The ultimate healing is the healing that lasts forever, the salvation of your soul. This enables you to say, like Paul in Phil. 1
" 21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! 23 I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; 24 but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body"
When I go on these medical mission trips, we give people 50 blood pressure pills which will be gone in a couple months. However, if you can lead them to the Lord they will live forever.
Here are a few songs that come to mind
Tuesday, October 14, 2014
Frozen Pizza Playoff Brackets - the west
After visiting the local grocery store the other day and seeing the oodles of frozen pizzas, I had the bright idea to try all these in an NCAA bracket way and find the champion. I realize everyone has different tastes - that must be why so many can survive. I also realize if history repeats itself, the one I choose is probably the most likely to be discontinued. But here goes. Here are my first four.
Red Baron wins the southwest regional!! On to the Northwest next week.
The winner of the Northwest regional is California Pizza Kitchen and the winner of the west is California Pizza Kitchen! Next blog will be Mtn. Time Zone.
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