Miscellaneous thoughts (under construction)

1. Every generation has a new technology or new technologies that their parents didn't grow up with.  My grandparents (born in the 1880s and 1890s) did not grow up with cars but had to raise children with cars.  My parents (born in the 1920s) didn't grow up with television but had to raise children with television.  We didn't grow up with computers, internet, and cell phones, but raised (and are raising) our children with these technologies.
2. The Bible is like a coral reef deep beneath the ocean surface.  In order to experience its beauty and to discover its treasures, you have to go out in a boat, put on scuba gear, and dive in.  This all takes time. It is a slow process.  This is in contrast to skiing, in which you are pulled across the water at high speed. You skim over the surface and are completely unaware of the rich beauty that is unseen in the frothy wake of the ski boat.
3.  The slower we went the better the stories got.
4.  Learn to be a child and a learner.  "Do you know Jesus?"  "What do you think determines who goes to heaven and who doesn't?"  If I were desiring to become a Muslim, I'd ask baby questions of every Muslim looking person I see.
5. Just like tools, technologies and media all are extensions of our bodies, senses or minds, so are the people in our lives. And so the laws of media apply to them too.
a. What are they an extension of?  My wife is an extension of my feet and mind when she goes to Lowes for me.
b. What is replaced or obsolesces?  My ability to know where I'm going when I am driving decreases significantly when Sue is in the car.
6.  I like cooking and baking using other peoples thoughts as ingredients.
7.  You will vomit it and it will come out your nose.  Excess always brings the opposite of what you think you are going to get from "a little bit more".  The Israelites were tired of manna and complained and grumbled.  God said, Ok, you want meat, I'll give you meat. So they had meat until they threw up.  This illustrates that a bowl of ice cream is a joy, eating an entire 5-gallon bucket of it will make you sick.  A thousand dollar bonus would be a joy to anyone, so why wouldn't winning $100 million in the lottery be better?  A thousand dollars has the aroma of blessing and joy and a bit of freedom.  However, $100 million would be a curse and prison for most.  This is the testimony of most lottery winners. The poison is in the dose.
8.  The famous picture of the young woman / old woman illustrates that the same information can be perceived differently by different people.  For years I read the Bible as primarily a book to help me figure out how to be a better person, a book about God's standards, and a book to show me how ugly and inadequate I am.  Every time I read the phrase "the encouragement of the scriptures" I grimaced. I only saw the old woman.  When I came to see the young woman (the "new" woman?) I saw the Bible as a book about God and his love for people, his desire for others to experience his excellencies and his glories, and a book about how amazing Jesus is.  It is the same book, but a different book.
9.  A three year old plays on the floor of the attorney's office.  The will is being read.  He is bored listening to the reading of his fabulous wealth because he doesn't understand it.  If I'm bored with God and the Bible, it is not because of lack of content, depth, and wonder.
10.  There are definite milestones in growth in Christ that are "either / or". However, much (most?) of the growth process is just that, a process.
11.  What words do we use to describe experience?
a. Engaging, interesting, boring
b. Stimulating
c. Peaceful
d. Emotions
12.  In beauty, the woman must decide what to reveal and what to conceal.
13.  Books to read: James Mertin - The Humor of Jesus
14.  Our lives are guided by the questions we are asking.  Our questions reflect what our hearts are looking for, and what you seek, you will find.
15.  When you are you young you have answers.  When you are old, you have questions.
16.  Jesus - the closer you get to him, the more you understand how far away you are.
17.  We must teach Bible knowledge and verse memory so that when we ae need to know where things are, it is easy.
18.  Because of self-love, we want to display our personalities (i.e., our hearts, minds, emotions - who we are), but these only get in the way of the display of the spirit.  It is the spirit that gives life. The goal is to display the spirit - both the spirit and the Spirit. See Watchman Nee - The Release of the Spirit.
19.  What is not of faith is sin.  This verse has eluded me for years.  However, mid-13c., faith, feith, fei, fai "faithfulness to a trust or promise; loyalty to a person; honesty, truthfulness," if we think of faith as loyalty and allegiance, then this verse is perfectly clear.
20.  ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: Luke 18:11.  This is the essence of pride. I am not fat, stupid, gaudy, an idiot.  Other people are not as wise, intelligent, insightful, attractive, witty, talented, wealthy, responsible, gifted, strong, crafty or good as I am.
21.  Technologies are like sharp sticks.  When you lean on them they will pierce your hand.  My granddaughter has a "hot bear" -  a microwavable cuddle toy.  The great thing about it is that my daughter can microwave it so that it is warm for her.  The bad thing is that my daughter has to get up in the middle of the night to warm it for her because my granddaughter has to have a warm bear. (4/20/19)
22. Confession of sin.  Why do we confess our sins? I feel bad enough about myself; why would I go to church.  The goal of our instruction is love.  He who is forgiven much loves much.  The sun is 93,000,000 miles away from earth.  Mt. Everest is about 5.5 miles. At the top, congrats you are 1/17,000,000th closer.  God gives nature word pictures. If God is the sun, our best efforts cannot get us close.  Mother Theresa, Billy Graham, Apostle Paul at best 1/17,000,000th more righteous than you. The goal of confession is to see that great love that Jesus would condescend to miserable sinners like. us.
Sometimes confession on Sunday morning - "I'm going to give you two minutes to clean up the 100 acre toxic waste dump that is your life." We need specific areas.
Two things - The goal is to show the love of Christ.  The wrong response is to try to clean up ourselves.  The correct response to put on the Lord Jesus.  Put on his righteousness.  The doctine of total depravity is a gloriously freeing truth.  It forces me to give up trying to establish my own righteousness. I am the elephant man - clean me up and i'm still repulsive.  I am a pig.  Clean me up and I'm still a pig.  I have to clothe myself in the righteousness of Jesus.  I have to put away, throw away, abhor myself (Pilgrim's Progress) for trying to establish my own righteousness.  When I take off the Lord Jesus, then the devil has me. I really have no righteousness.  When I came to realize this sweet truth, I had been striving for 20 years. Trying to please God in my own merit.  Try harder Christianity.  When I read Luther, who told me that I can never look at myself for righteousness, but that I had to put on the Lord Jesus.  It was like I had been climbing a sheer face for years. Tired, bruised, thirsty hungry hopeless.  I get to a short, flat area climb up and there's a helicopter.

Further you are the further you have to go. The mountains are 5 miles, 50 miles, 500 miles.

The newlywed husband asks his new bride.  "Do I have to kiss you every day?  Do I have to think about you all the time?  Do I have to delight in only you and bring you gifts?"  She smiles and replies, "Yes, but not that kind of have to."

If the Beatles were resurrected and came to your town for a concert, you would "have to" go.
If Clemson plays in the national championship game, there are many people who have to be there.