The woman was in declining health. By the time her sister got there, she had passed away. There was no time left to say good-bye; no time left to say I love you, I forgive you … will you forgive me? When life ends, we no longer have such opportunities. Life is dynamic and full of conflicts. And it is while we still live that we are able to resolve them.

There is no pain harder to bear than when we are hurt by a loved one. Perhaps it is the deep pain that makes us want to never see that person again. I remember as a small child being so angry that my mother had sent me to my room as punishment that I cried out, “I hope I die! Then you’ll be sorry!” Thinking about it now, it’s laughable, but at that time, in my childish emotion, I was willing to forever end any relationship with my mother.

It’s that kind of anger we feel when we’re hurt by family or friends. When we’re young, we get over it faster. Normally, emotions like anger are short-lived. We forget and forgive. Eventually, we learn to function in society by being polite, respectful and using self-control. But even as adults, we remain vulnerable to our loved ones. They are supposed to love and respect us, and we them. But if they are careless, they can hurt us (or we them) deeper than the meanest stranger.

When that happens, it is not uncommon for one (or both) to disown the other. “I never want to see you again” becomes, in effect, a mantra of death. There is no resolution, no healing — just permanent separation. Perhaps, if we are willing to admit it, there is a small part of us that thinks someday the other person will come to us and apologize. Then we’ll forgive them, but not until then. That, of course, is the child within us, refusing to let our emotions decrease over time.

Unfortunately, as adults, our pride will not often let us back down, once we’ve already said something we regret. So we put it out of our minds, and before we realize it, the years have come and gone. Eventually, we reach the day when the physical death of a loved one is only a cruel echo of the death of the relationship that ended long ago. And though we may feel guilt, expiation seems impossible. We are torn, wanting to be forgiven by the dead.

There is a reason for this. In Matthew 5:22, Jesus warned, “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother* will be liable to judgment…” (ESV). The asterisk indicates a note that says some manuscripts have the added phrase, “without cause”. But as most of us insist there is just cause for our anger, this does little to clarify the meaning. Defining anger is of critical importance, because if nothing more than a passing emotion is a sin equal to murder, then we are all no better than murderers.

In my opinion, The Complete Jewish Bible (CJB) nails the meaning of this verse. It says, “But I tell you that anyone who nurses anger against his brother will be subject to judgement…”, clearly pointing out this kind of anger is not a passing emotion, but a sustained attitude, similar to hatred. I can be angry with my wife for a short while, but in the long run, because I love her I don’t nurse my anger. I let it go. The Bible gives us instruction in this.

Psalm 4:5(4) (CJB) reads, “You can be angry, but do not sin! Think about this as you lie in bed, and calm down.” Again, this translation nails it because it admits that the emotion of anger is a normal thing that we can learn to deal with by thinking about it and calming down. We do not need to feel guilty for experiencing moments of anger. But we are held accountable for hurtful actions our sustained anger can motivate. And beyond being accountable to those we hurt, we are even more accountable to God.

This brings me to the heart of my message. The death of a loved one has left someone in despair. They feel a sense of guilt that can’t be forgiven. I am utterly amazed at how in times of their greatest need, many so-called believers resign themselves to the spiritual paralysis of depression or regret, not believing they can find resolution and healing — afraid to seek out the very one who could help them. To them I am saying you still — always — can turn to God.

Turn to God. It was not God who let you down. Chances are, though, it may have been religion that made you go your own way — a church, a pastor, someone who stirred up division. But he loves you just as much as always. He knows you and wants to comfort you. He isn’t malevolent, just looking for the chance to knock you down. There is a reason they say as long as there is life, there is hope. It ain’t over ’til it’s over. God patiently waits. When death strikes near us, we need to reach out to God. We need to take his hand because he is bigger, stronger and greater than death. We need to turn to God.

Because of Christ’s death on the cross, believers are not condemned for their sins. But when we do sin, we need to make a clean breast of it (1 John 1:9). We all make mistakes. God just wants us to acknowledge our sin, and then turn away from it. He doesn’t want us to continue living in sinful patterns, but to learn to live righteously. That’s called growing in grace. That’s the opposite of a life characterized by sinfulness.

Galatians 5:19-26 compares acts of the sinful nature to living in the Spirit, saying in verse 21, “…those who live like this [sinners] will not inherit the kingdom of God.” This means selling out to their sin, continuing to practice it, rather than turning it over to God. 1 John:3:9 (NIV) says it this way: “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God.”  If you feel that twinge of guilt, turn to God. He won’t condemn you.

In the midst of death and sorrow
God provides a new tomorrow.
Be not burdened down with sin,
Find new life and joy with him.

Last night, as I guessed, there was no big expose on Obama, as one of those forwards from a “reliable source” warned. What with the play offs and American Idol, who would have been watching? Don’t hold your breath for one, either. What can be known about the misadventures of Obama is out there for all to see. Yet it’s mainly ignored. There is not going to be a dramatic rescue of our nation. Don’t expect the cavalry to come charging in to save the day.

And as bad as I think Obama is, he, alone is not the problem. The American People are the problem. We, the unwashed masses, need to raise up our heads and demand the leadership we deserve. The Democrats have been hard at work making changes they believe in. And I don’t know what the Republicans have been doing… nothing that makes them seem any different than the Democrats. They’re both strong on globalism and weak on issues of national sovereignty. They both have allowed the constitution to be eroded, misinterpreted and ignored.

What I’ve been ignoring are the almost two dozen Republican Presidential debates, because to me they’re irrelevant. But out of curiosity, I watched the beginning of the one in South Carolina. I was immediately aware of the glitzy, show biz way the candidates were being presented. Where was the gravity? Where was the dignity? Where was the presence of authentic leadership? It wasn’t there. It was all phony hoopla. Gingrich started things off by blasting the media for bringing his past marital problems into a Presidential debate. Everyone seemed to love it. He knows how to use the media. With Gingrich, it’s all playing the game. For an article on how Gingrich uses the media, see:

http://harndenblog.dailymail.co.uk/2012/01/newt-gingrichs-big-slobbering-mutual-love-affair-with-the-elite-media.html

Beyond that, the liberal journalist who asked the questions (Why should that be done by a journalist? Aren’t the politicians answerable to American voters? Shouldn’t ALL the questions be asked by the voters?) I noticed almost every question this journalist asked was about what kind of government programs would they offer to change things. Although some of the candidates gave answers which implied they were opposed to new government programs, none of them actually came out and said that that is how liberals try to solve problems: come up with more programs that cost more money. But that doesn’t represent conservative thought. Conservatism believes in smaller government, which means reducing programs. Conservatives believe that the government can help citizens by getting out of the way: less regulation, less taxation. Republicans are failing to represent true conservatism to the voters.

It’s not that Gingrich is a RINO. He’s a Republican alright. He’s just not a conservative. He’s part of the status quo. He is an opportunist who is willing to play ball with the leftists. The one thing he is good at (public speaking) tends to make people ignore his record. If americans vote for Gingrich, we’ll simply have more of the same, the only exception being you might like what the President says (like “Drill here. Drill now.” — remember that? Nothing happened. But people sure liked his blah blah blah.) Remember last election? McCain was another guy who went along to get along. Candidates like McCain and Gingrich belong to the power brokers. They are part and parcel of the internationalist, elitist, big government proponents who have no vision to recapture the American dream and reverse the damage that big government has done.

A side note on the primary system: States with early primaries vote on a relatively large slate of candidates. Along the way, candidates drop out for lack of funds and the slate of candidates dwindles. Perhaps you were disappointed when your early favorite dropped out. It is intrinsically unfair to the voters in states with later primaries. Only the earlier primaries have a real choice. The later ones get stuck with fewer choices. This, of course, is the product of the political party system. There’s nothing in the constitution that says it has to be done that way. Nor is there anything in the constitution that says you either have to vote for a Republican or a Democrat. You do have other options.

The prevailing attitude among Republicans seems to be, “Anyone but Obama.” And then they think everything will be better. But I can remember an equally irresponsible attitude during the last Presidential election campaign. Remember the bumper sticker, “Anyone but Hillary”? The truth is, “Anyone” is always the wrong choice. It takes more than the leadership of “Anyone” to move this nation away from the brink of disaster. Our President needs to be a Somebody who believes in Something.

If we are to keep this republic, as Ben Franklin challenged, the American People must assert their power, by voting honestly — that means true to your conscience. If you are depending upon the strength of your political party which is not representing your values, then you are already “wasting” your vote. The Republican Party by and large has abandoned conservatism and nationalism. They don’t represent you. Why not try voting for candidates who genuinely believe in conservative values? Please consider the Constitution Party. Your future depends on it.

Today the opening lyrics strike me with a singular sadness:

Words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup.
They slither wildly as they slip away across the universe.

Sadness, because when we consider the news media, words do indeed flow out like endless rain. And yet, the world remains unmoved. Words are products of awareness. But the public acts as if they are stoned on drugs, preferring to live in a dream, rather than facing the cold water of reality. Words that might otherwise help waken them, just slither wildly and slip away.

Exhausted from dealing with years of disinformation, I now try to avoid the news. But because my wife reads our local paper, she brought this to my attention. On page 5 of our local paper was an article reprinted from the New York Times about an 8,000 man army, supported by South Sudanese living abroad, who wiped out an entire town because they were of the wrong “ethnicity”. The United Nations had 3,000 “combat ready peacekeepers” who did not intervene to protect the town because, “they were vastly outnumbered and could have easily been wiped out.”

From the Jeffery Gettleman article,

The raiders had even broadcast their massacre plans in advance. “We have decided to invade Murleland and wipe out the entire tribe on the face of the Earth.”

Also from the article,

Gai Bol Thong, a Nuer refugee in Seattle who helped write the militia’s statement, said he had led an effort to cobble together about $45,000 from South Sudanese living abroad for the warrior’s food and medicine from South Sudanese living abroad. (sic) “We mean what we say,” he said. “We kill everybody. We are tired of them.” (He later scaled back and said he meant they would kill Murle warriors, not civilians).

Of course that flies in the face of the fact that they killed everyone — men, women and children. In all fairness, I am not really informed about the ethnic problems in South Sudan. According to the Nuer, the Murle have also been guilty of killing civilians and kidnapping children too. I am not in a position to say one tribe is more to blame than another in their ethnic disputes.

But what about this guy living in Seattle — Gai Bol Thong? Is what he did legal? Is Homeland Security’s Nana Napolitano the least bit concerned about him? Will she drag her cyber spies away from their stake outs on conservative journalists long enough to bring him to justice?

What deeply saddens me is that the intention to massacre these people was broadcast in advance. Despite that fact, the United Nations Peacekeeping force was totally useless, and as a result, an entire tribe was “wiped off the face of the Earth”.

That, in itself is troubling enough, in light of the popularly assumed concept of “the international community” and looking to the United Nations as some sort of power for “the greater good”. What really hurts is that Americans aren’t supposed to consider African problems all that important (unless, of course, our oil supply is threatened).

The story of the massacre of hundreds (perhaps thousands) appeared on page 5 of our local rag. But the really important story, the one that got the front page head lines, was “Marine video sparks outrage”. What’s really important for the United States is shouting out to the world how morally offensive we are, and bowing and scraping to the likes of the Taliban, a more brutal enemy you will not find.

There it is in a nutshell. The United Nations is inept. People the world over are being cruelly slaughtered, but a case is being made against the United States military, particularly its most feared Marines, to justify in the minds of the mindless that military cuts will save us. The media is complicit in shouting out what they want us to hear and mumbling what they want us to miss, so we won’t pay attention or do anything to prevent the cancerous spread of tyrannical powers gradually killing the body politic. And the unwashed masses just sit there singing, “Nothing’s gonna change my world”.

[When I originally posted this, I was unaware that "Tomato Adventure" was the name of a video game, the name of another blog, and who knows what else. My post is in no way intended to refer to any other "intellectual" property so named. With the addition of "My" to the title, "My Tomato Adventure" is just that -- my own personal thing. I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.]

I thought I’d write about my recently concluded experience with tomatoes. It’s probably more in line with what people want to read about. There doesn’t seem to be much popular interest in boring stuff like politics and religion. Frankly, I wouldn’t be surprised if my readership soars as a result of this article. But don’t get your hopes up. This is only a mood I’m in. I don’t intend to change my blog.

I am, for the moment, sick and tired of politics. How any rational person can think the Republicans offer any substantial solution to the myriad problems facing our nation is beyond me. To me, we’re on the slippery slope. Too many immature, irresponsible, self-obsessed Americans want their every perceived need taken care of by the government, without any concern for the burden placed on the taxpayers.

“From each according to his ability; to each according to his need” may sound wonderfully idealistic to many Americans, but that particular form of “sharing” is communism. It is fundamentally unrealistic, unfair and confiscatory. Simultaneously rewarding the less productive while discouraging the more productive, all forms of socialism stifle productivity and creativity. This isn’t just a theory. History has shown it to be true. And now we see it happening in our own country right now.

Anyway, not very many people seem to be interested in things that affect their freedom. They take it for granted, and don’t understand they’ll lose it for lack of vigilance. But if people don’t want to read about, think about or learn about how they can help to preserve their own freedom, then so be it. Off we go, then, to my tomato adventure.

Last year for Christmas (2010) my daughter gave me one of those Topsy Turvy planters. We had a long, cold, rainy winter and spring came a bit late. It wasn’t until April that I got around to putting my Topsy Turvy planter to use. We live in an upstairs apartment and our covered deck, which more or less faces north, is flanked by redwood trees on the left and liquid ambers on the right, filtering out most of the sunlight. Our only option was to hang the planter on the landing outside our front door, which has a south-eastern exposure. Our next door neighbor pointed out that the corner nearest her end of the landing got the most sunlight, so that’s where I decided to hang it.

The instructions in the box said that tomatoes need at least six hours of direct sunlight a day. So I was happy to discover the plant would get just about that, from the time the Sun peeked over the roof of the building next door, until it passed beyond the eaves of our own building.

The instructions also said to get the very best quality potting mix… which supposedly comes from Canada. Lower quality potting soils have too many big chunks of wood, not providing tender roots with much to latch onto and not holding water well. At the nursery, I read the labels on the stacks of various potting soils, looking for something like “made in Canada” or “good for tomatoes”. Not seeing either, I asked one of the employees, who assured me their store brand was good for tomatoes.

The small bags held less than the instructions called for, and the large bags held way more than I needed, so I bought two small bags, which was still way more than I needed. As it turned out, the volume held by my planter was substantially less than the instructions had indicated. The illustrations in the instructions also showed a larger (longer) planter than mine, giving me the impression that mine was the new, improved (downsized) version.

Anyway, back to the nursery. I thought it would be a simple matter, buying a tomato seedling. Not so. They had rows of tables with just about every variety of tomato you could think of — varieties I never heard of, and knew nothing about. I had the impression that Topsy Turvy tomatoes would tend to be small because most of their photos featured cherry tomatoes. But since I didn’t want small tomatoes, I got a Beefsteak seedling.

I thought I was being very clever when I made a soil scoop out of an empty plastic soda bottle, cutting it into shape with a pair of scissors. But my enthusiasm flagged when I began trying to insert the root ball through the hole in the bottom of the planter. According to the instructions, it was just a matter of carefully holding the base of the stem with one hand, and guiding it through the hole, while holding the slotted foam disk (which secures the plant) with your other hand, and wedging the stem into the slot.

The only problem was the root ball wouldn’t go through the hole. As I tried to gently push it through, pieces of soil kept falling off the root ball. It was a few moments before I realized the fundamental problem. The hole in the bottom of the planter was round, while the root ball of the tomato plant was square. How diabolical, I thought. I set the planter aside for a moment, and focused on the root ball, carefully trying to sculpt it into a round form without destroying the roots. I stopped when I felt I was losing too much of the soil around the roots.

Once again, holding the plant in my left hand (which was starting to cramp up), I picked up the foam disk in my right hand, reaching down through the top of the planter, in expectation of slipping the disk around the stem. Once again, the root ball would not go through the hole. It still was too big. Sensing that something had to give, I pushed harder, this time with a twisting motion, shaving down the diameter of the root ball, even as it began to fall apart. By the time it actually went through the hole, I had no idea of how much of the roots were still viable. I was just glad to finally be able to push the stem into the slot in the disk, so I could rest my hands.

I had temporarily hung the planter on a long wire, which I was able to shorten, once the planter was filled with potting mix and the battered seedling had received its first watering. At last I hauled the Topsy Turvy planter up into place. This was on April 15. I really didn’t expect the plant to survive. I didn’t even take a picture of the poor thing. I was already anticipating having to empty out the planter and start all over again, next time finding a nursery that sold seedlings in round containers. But I was pleasantly surprised the next day to find the plant looking great. It didn’t wilt, the leaves didn’t turn yellow. It thrived.  Here’s what it looked like after three weeks.

That was the same day I noticed my dill weed had sprouted. If you look real hard, you’ll see the tiny sprout in the top, sunlit portion of the pot. Real hard.

Anyway, back to the tomatoes. The instructions said it was impossible to over water the plant because excess water would drain out the holes in the bottom of the planter. The instructions also said to water very, very slowly because potting soil (particularly dry) didn’t hold water well. Also, the instructions said to use any good tomato plant food (fertilizer) and follow the instructions on the package. So far, my little tomato plant flourished.

And, oh yes, let me not forget the dill sprouts. The seeds were free inside boxes of Triscuits. I couldn’t see wasting them.

I couldn’t find any more photos of the dill, but they grew to be about three feet tall and I tried using fresh dill in several recipes. Plus, they went to seed, so I dried and kept the seeds and I can plant dill again, if I’ve a mind to. But hey, I’m supposed to be telling you about the tomatoes, so let’s get back to them.

By June, the vine had begun to blossom and I was surprised at the size and strength of the branches as they climbed upward, almost reaching the top of the planter.

The vine continued to grow and the blossoms began to turn into tiny new tomatoes. But I noticed they were developing very slowly and the leaves seemed to lose their vitality. They were no longer a deep green, but looked dull and ‘pale’. I rechecked the instructions on the package of Miracle-Gro tomato plant food that I had been using, and discovered I had been under-feeding it by a huge margin. Once I had corrected my feeding error, the plant perked up almost immediately and resumed its healthy growth.

But as my tomatoes grew, I noticed many of them had blackish bottoms. I found out from the internet that this condition is called blossom end rot. It is caused by the insufficient absorption of calcium, which can result from calcium poor soil, watering irregularly or drought conditions. Although my tomato plant only got about six hours of direct sunlight a day, we had had some extremely hot days when the vine had wilted. I had then over-watered it, thinking that’s what it needed. After all, the instructions said it couldn’t be over-watered.

I tried different ways of adding calcium to the soil, including dissolving crushed Tums in water, which gets kind of gooey. But the method I settled on was using my coffee grinder to grind up dried egg shells into a fine powder, mixing it in a blender with water and pouring the resultant ‘milk’ into the plant soil. That, along with watering a little bit twice a day, instead of a lot, once a day, cured the blossom end rot problem. I lost thirteen tomatoes to that malady.

But it wasn’t until August that the first tomatoes began to ripen, and my heart swelled with pride.

 I picked the tomatoes as they ripened, and we began to reap the benefits of growing our own. For the next two months we didn’t need to buy tomatoes at the grocery store.  The vine continued to grow and become laden with fruit.

In the view below, the right branch eventually grew to be over six feet long. We had all the tomatoes we wanted. We gave a few away, but I must confess we ate most of them. I even used them for spaghetti sauce. They varied in size from as small as one and a half inches across to as large as three and a quarter inches across. Most of them were in the two and a quarter to two and a half inch range.

Fall came, the weather cooled, and as the angle of the Sun in the sky lowered, my tomatoes got less and less sunshine. By November, they were only getting about four hours of direct sunlight a day. But the vine was still loaded with developing fruit. It was taking longer for the water to soak into the planter, and when I tried digging at the soil to aerate it, I noticed it was matted with small roots. The planter, made of pliable material, didn’t budge when I tried to squeeze it. It was very firm. So, I figured the plant was root bound, which amazed me, as it was still growing and producing new blossoms.

When overnight temperatures dipped below freezing a couple of times, I covered the plant with an old sheet, which protected all but two low-hanging tomatoes which looked burned. I assume it was frost bite. So, I thought I’d pick them all green and let them ripen off the vine, since two green tomatoes which had earlier been knocked off the vine eventually turned red after I brought them inside.

After I picked these, pictured above, there were still a whole lot of small tomatoes remaining on the vine. I thought about picking them too, but I didn’t think they would ever ripen. And although we’ve enjoyed fried green tomatoes, I prefer them ripe, so I left the small ones on the vine.

I should have read about ripening tomatoes off the vine because I just let these guys sit on our kitchen table. Some of them ripened and we ate them, but we lost almost half of them because they dried up and wrinkled from lack of humidity. I learned later that you need to ripen tomatoes (along with a banana) in a closed bag or box. If the humidity is too high, they can mold and rot; too low, and they dry out.

Finally, a few days before Christmas, I picked the last of the tomatoes. I was surprised to find there were still several tiny tomatoes developing, no bigger than a pencil eraser. This was amazing to me, since neither the temperature nor sunlight were conducive to growing them.

As I was tossing the last of the tomato vine and planter into the dumpster, I was curious about the roots. So I cut the planter open, and indeed, it was root bound. I was impressed that despite this fact, the plant had produced so many tomatoes. Not counting spoiled tomatoes (blossom end rot, etc.) I lost count after I had harvested over one hundred tomatoes.

All in all, my tomato adventure was worth while. It wasn’t “easy”. It was labor intensive, in that I had to water it daily. And I was continually having to learn more about growing tomatoes as various problems arose. But the end product was enjoyable and worth the effort.

Most of all, my “little” tomato vine was a perfect illustration of John 15:1-10. Jesus said he is the true vine, God the father is the real Gardener (the part I played) and believers are branches in the vine. Our job as branches is to produce fruit. But too often, we act as if we are the Gardener, when we really need to leave that up to God.

Producing fruit, according to this passage from John, is simply the result of remaining in Christ, remaining as a part of the vine — which means loving and obeying the Lord…just that. We need to leave the heavy lifting and our daily care up to the Gardener.

After Word: This evening (January 19) I cut up the last of our tomatoes and put them in the salad (Yum!). Now we have to go back to eating store-bought tomatoes.

A lot of folks make resolutions to do things like lose weight or get into shape, only to feel guilty when they fail, especially when they made a big deal about it and everybody was expecting to see results. Then they swear off making any more new year’s resolution ever again. Well, you don’t have to be embarrassed. Just don’t tell anyone what your new year’s resolution is. And when people ask, just smile and say, “It’s a secret.”

Have you had enough of the Republicans and Democrats? They promise solutions but keep creating more problems. And it always costs you and me in decreased freedom and increased taxation. And all we do is keep re-electing more Republicans and Democrats. Things just keep going from bad to worse. My suggestion? If enough voters reject the two major political parties, the balance of power could return to the people, where it belongs. Resolve this year not to vote for anyone with an R or a D after their name.

You can change your party registration if you want, but bottom line, you don’t have to tell anyone. Just make it your new year’s resolution to vote for third party candidates. Nobody needs to know, until after the votes are counted. America needs politicians who represent the people, not the party line. Add your vote to the growing number of citizens who are realizing how their political parties have betrayed their core beliefs, and are turning to other political parties.You can read an article citing statistics on this trend at:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/story/2011-12-22/voters-political-parties/52171688/1

You see, for the longest time, the two major political parties have kept a strangle hold on the freedoms of Americans. They have shared in the burgeoning growth of government size and government spending. They have both shared in the trend of greater central control (a Socialist and/or Communist trait) at the expense of reduced local and State control, which violates the Constitution. They have both shared in focusing on global issues at the expense of national issues. They have both shared in bringing the United States of America to the brink of financial and cultural ruin. The whole world used to either look up to us or fear us. Now, most other countries laugh at us or are ashamed for us.

By pointing their political pinkies at each other, the Republicans and Democrats have kept you convinced that it’s the other political party that’s to blame; only the other political party is evil; only the other political party is the enemy. While I recognize that there are a few decent Republicans and Democrats, who are concerned for our nation in general, their parties do not give them free reign to represent their own constituents. Rather, they are dictated to by party leadership on what exactly they are to do. If they fight against the short leash policy of the party, they are called “mavericks” and cut off from all opportunities such as committee chairmanships. The only way to get ahead is to play ball, so they end up representing their party first, then the people — usually only at election time.

Make your new year’s resolution to vote for a third party candidate — anyone but a Democrat or Republican! Nothing would perk up government more than to have a Congress without either a Democrat or Republican majority. It would really shake things up if the third largest political party (the Constitution Party) won a majority. Try to imagine the government actually being held to the standards of the Constitution. Now that would be different! If enough so-called “third party” candidates are elected, it’ll keep the political process honest. If you think multiple parties would cause gridlock, how can it possibly be any worse than the two-way stalemate we have now? Power politics need to be done away with. In stead, government needs to represent the will of the people, which has been ignored for far too long.

Vote for third party candidates and congress will look more like America. We are a nation of diverse people, but we should be a nation first, not an international region under the auspices of the United Nations. We deserve to have a government that represents us, not the international community. We need a government who cares first for our nation, and makes treaties and laws that benefit us first. Both the major political parties are hand in glove with internationalism. That means a loss of nationalism, a loss of sovereignty, a loss of freedom and a loss of any meaning for words like “citizen” or “constitutional rights”.

The only hope for returning to the constitutional republic envisioned by our founders is to give the power back to the people. Right now, only third parties honestly represent American interests. The two major parties have shamelessly let freedom down. They have created what amounts to an oligarchy who rules without recourse to voters. They have allowed activist judges to nullify the democratic process and encouraged and allowed the news media to be bought and controlled by influential political powers.

Will you share in taking back our freedom by refusing to vote either D or R in 2012? In your heart of hearts, resolve to vote for third party candidates. Wouldn’t it be refreshing if the Republicans and Democrats got so few votes that they became “third parties”? I believe that might even make them honest, too. “Power to the People.” … a radical motto in it’s time. But it sure is what we need now.

Make that resolution.

When I call my response to Christmas ambivalent, I mean I feel two equally different things. I feel happy but sad; filled but empty; inspired but let down. This year I’ve decided when anyone asks me, “Are you ready for Christmas?” to just say no. I’m sure what they really mean is, “Are all your Christmas preparations done?” But the Christmas that is prepared for is everything involving the secular celebration: buying a tree, buying gifts, mailing cards, putting up decorations, preparing traditional meals and special sweet treats, planning parties and family get-togethers. Sure, one may imbue these activities with spiritual meaning, but they don’t have to be, and often aren’t. All of these preparations can be done and enjoyed by anyone, without a single reference to Jesus. All that is required is the ability to enjoy family and friends. Matthew 5:46-47 says that even pagans do that.

“Getting ready” for Christmas is an important aspect for many people because it reflects the energy, anticipation and attitudes associated with the dinners, parties and get-togethers. Though these Christmas activities are ostensibly planned as a “celebration”, the focal point of who is being celebrated often is lost in the maze of natural gregariousness. I participate minimally in these types of preparations, because I’m not particularly gregarious. I’ll roast a turkey because we enjoy eating a turkey, but that’s not Christmas to me. When I was a kid I liked the food and the candy and the presents, but the ever-present bickering and resentment between my parents gave Christmas a kind of phony pall, as if it allowed them to continue being hurtful and nasty the rest of the year as long as they were nice on Christmas. It was never something I wanted to get ready for.

Another aspect of getting ready for Christmas are the concerts and stage productions done by communities, civic organizations, churches and schools. Anyone who’s been in one of these productions knows it takes a lot of work to prepare for. But these productions are usually done with a message in mind. Sometimes it’s only a silly, secular message. But most of the time, a reference to the birth of Christ is included. Similarly, church leaders do many things to prepare for Christmas services. It is that type of preparation — preparing to worship – that seems important to me. But when someone asks, “Are you ready for Christmas?” that’s not what they’re talking about.

For me, Christmas is all about Jesus. All the rest is fluff, meaning you don’t need Jesus to decorate or give gifts or enjoy family and friends. If you’re human, you can do that all on your own…  and lots of people do. I don’t need most of the Christmas traditions. First off, the date is all wrong. We all know that, yet continue without change because it’s tradition. The fact that we took the date December 25 from a pagan celebration of the birthday of a Roman god doesn’t seem to matter to most people because “It’s tradition”. But a Christmas that’s only about Jesus doesn’t need that kind of tradition.

What is the significance of baby Jesus? What is so important about Christmas being his birthday? It’s very traditional, very common to celebrate the birthday of baby Jesus, but why? What’s the point? It isn’t just a religious tradition. It’s the fact that the birth of Jesus was the fulfillment of Bible prophecies. That simple but powerful fact too often gets lost in the shuffle of everything else Christmas. The fulfillment of Biblical prophecy isn’t just an excuse for a religious celebration. It’s proof of who Jesus is: the Jewish Messiah. Of course, we call him the Christ, which is from the word the Greeks use, which means Messiah.

And why is Biblical prophecy important? Why does it matter what the Old Testament says? I’ve heard a lot of Christians say they don’t bother reading the Old Testament because Jesus fulfilled the old and now all we need is the new. If that were true, then why did the writers of the New Testament constantly refer to OT passages, and even quote some? (There are well over 500 citations listed in The Jewish New Testament, by David Stern.) And why did Jesus himself quote from the OT? And why were the Bereans called noble because they examined the teachings of Paul against the Jewish (OT) Scriptures? If the Jewish Scripture (Torah & Tanakh) can be so easily set aside, then the prophecies they contain should just as easily be set aside, and Christians should not care whether the birth of Jesus fulfilled prophecies or not. But it does matter because God doesn’t change. The God of the Jews is the God of Christians.

God was revealing himself to the Jews in the Torah and Tanakh. That is why the genealogies of Jesus appear in the New Testament. It was important to show to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah. Remember, Jesus came first for the Jews (Romans 1:16; Jeremiah 2:3). Even though the first “Christians” were Jews, and the earliest church was predominantly Jewish, Jesus as Messiah was rejected by Judaism, the well-established, tradition-laden religion. Eventually the church evinced less and less Jewishness and became increasingly influenced by Greek thought. Hence, we call him Jesus Christ, forgetting who he really is.

Here are the basic prophecies fulfilled by the birth of Jesus, which we celebrate at Christmas:

The Messiah will be a descendent of David and heir to his throne.
(2 Samuel 7:12-13; Isaiah 9:6, 11:1-5; Jeremiah 23:5)

The Messiah will be the Son of God.
(Psalm 2:7; Proverbs 30:4)

The Messiah will be born in Bethlehem in Judah.
(Micah 5:2)

The Messiah will be born of a virgin.
(Isaiah 7:14)

The Hebrew word ‘almah in Isaiah 7:14 means “young woman”, and in the Tanakh always “a young woman of unsullied reputation”, which is why the Jewish translators of the Septuagint, the Greek version of the Tanakh prepared 200 years before Yeshua’s [Jesus'] birth, rendered this word into Greek as parthenos, “virgin”; this is the word used at Mattityahu [Matthew] 1:23.

(note 56 from page xxvii of the Jewish New Testament)

There is another prophecy, not specifically about Christ’s birth, but intimately involved with the proclamation of Christ: the Messiah would be preceded by someone who would announce him (Isaiah 40:3-5; Malachi 3:1). He is commonly called John the Baptist because he baptized people. But he was really a Jew. The first chapter of Luke tells the story of the angel Gabriel announcing the forthcoming birth of John to Zechariah. That in itself was a miracle because Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth were both old. When John was born, Zechariah worshipped God and praised him (Luke 1:67-79).

We also read in the first chapter of Luke how the angel Gabriel came to Mary and told her she would give birth to the Son of God (verses 26-38). Then, beginning in verse 39 we are told that Mary visited the home of Zechariah and Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby (John) leaped in her womb, and she was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she confirmed Gabriel’s announcement, saying, “Blessed are you among women and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored that the mother of my LORD should come to me?” Elizabeth was referring to the just-conceived Jesus as her LORD! And in verses 46-55 Mary also worshiped and praised God for her part in his miracle.

It is important to consider that Mary’s friends and neighbors may not have believed any part of the story about Gabriel. Many of them likely considered Mary’s pregnancy to be morally offensive. She became pregnant during their betrothal period, which was considered a sin. Joseph had every right to break off their engagement, due to the negative social stigma of her pregnancy. But God’s grace covered this potential difficulty, too. We read about it in Matthew 1:18-25. Again, an angel of the Lord came to Joseph in a dream and said, “…do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit… he will save his people from their sins.” As far as we know from Scripture, Joseph didn’t say much. He was a quiet man, whose obedience glorified the LORD, as nothing else could.

As these examples show, angels announced many of the prophecies about the birth of Christ as they were about to be fulfilled. And these announcements always produced worship and praise for God. Following this pattern, in Luke 2:11 it was to poor shepherds — not to religious or political leaders, but to simple, common people — that the Angel of the LORD said, “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” Then in verses 13 and 14, “Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.’”

The birth of Christ is the ultimate story of humble beginnings. Throughout the story, two factors are constant: The presence of Holy God and the “commonness” of the people involved — an extraordinary combination. When Jesus was probably 2 years old King Herod heard about his miraculous birth from wise men from the east. There were no “three kings”. Later, the number three rose to popular use because of the three types of gifts that these wise men gave the Christ child: gold, frankincense and myrrh. The men who came to Jerusalem were looking for the “king of the Jews”, so they went to where the temple was. But they were unaware of how much the religious leaders and Herod felt their own power threatened by the emergence of the Messiah. The “wise men” were sincere and pious but also naive.

These men (We do not know how many they were.) were Magi, a name used by the Babylonians (Chaldeans), Medes, Persians, and others, to describe wise men, teachers, priests, physicians, astrologers, seers, interpreters of dreams, augers, soothsayers, sorcerers etc. (taken from www.blueletterbible.org). This particular group had been following a star. Matthew 2:2 b says, “We saw his star in the east, and have come to worship him.” Verse 7 says the star appeared at an exact time. It is unlikely that these men were Jews, nevertheless, something about this star was a sign to them of the birth of the Messiah. And that was important to them.

Apparently, the star they saw was associated with the fulfillment of some prophecy of their own. Scripture does not explain this, but since these men were among the most educated of their people, they may have come across some copy of a Hebrew prophecy. Matthew 2:11 tells us these men found the house (not a stable) where Jesus was with his mother and “they bowed down and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and incense and myrrh.” Why these three kinds of gifts? Some have said the gold represents his kingship, the incense represents his divinity and the myrrh represents his sacrificial death. But to a poor family living in a dirt poor town, these gifts were God’s provision for his Son’s family.

In any case, the story of the Magi also fits the pattern of prophecy, announcement, praise and worship. That is what Christmas is all about. Good news of great joy. Thank you, LORD. May God be praised!

While there are many good reasons to acknowledge the virtues of systematic theology, it must be remembered that theology is the formal, intellectual structure of our faith — a structure created by human scholarship. Regardless of the giftedness of the minds of the scholars who have passed on their theological wisdom, regardless of the greatness of their own faith or inspiration, theology is not the ultimate authority for our faith.

The fact that theology is secondary to Scripture is borne out by the theological  differences between various denominations. I have no desire to defend any denominational position, so I do not rely on theological authority. Defending denominational theology is like using someone else’s understanding of Scripture as your authority. My authority is the Bible and how I understand God’s revelation to me, personally. Christ, himself, is the ultimate authority for my faith, and if my understanding needs correction, his word will suffice (2 Timothy 3:16).

Each believer has the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16). This means that as we read the Bible, his Holy Spirit is teaching us (John 14:26). When a Christian reads the Bible, it’s not the same as reading a text-book, which conveys the writer’s knowledge through language, by means of the reader’s intellect. For a believer, reading the Bible is as much a spiritual exercise as it is an intellectual one because God is using it to reveal his truth to us by his Spirit.

With that in mind, I will again try to point out the fallacy of looking at faith as one thing and works as another thing. While on the natural, human level, it is possible to have some “faith” without “works,” in Christ, no such separation exists. In fact, even James, the author of the phrase, “faith without works”, describes such faith as “dead”. Death is the end of a thing. Dead means it has ceased to exist. It is no more. Dead faith is faith that does not exist.

There cannot be two faiths — one that produces works and one that is dead. There is only one faith (Ephesians 4:5). Dead faith isn’t faith at all. So there can be no separation between true Christian faith and the works it produces.

“Now, wait a minute!”, I can hear the prisoners of theology saying. “James said, ‘Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works’ (James 2:18)”. “And anyway, in verse 24 he says, we’re ‘justified by works and not by faith alone.’”

This response makes two assumptions: 1.) that the phrase “not by faith alone” means it’s possible for someone to have authentic faith in Christ without ever allowing that faith to be expressed in works – in effect nullifying James’ earlier statement that such a “faith” was dead; and 2.) that the works of faith can be seen (shown) and thereby used to demonstrate or prove one’s faith. Since basic logic disproves the first assumption, I will focus on the second one.

Proving One’s Faith

There is the notion that if a person is “producing good works” that such good works are evident to all. We can look at Parson Jones and see for ourselves that he is a great man of faith. It’s obvious. “Look at all the good things he does. Then look at Dora Doolittle. We never see her doing any good works. She hardly says anything at all. You never see her pitching in and helping out. Oh, she says she’s a believer, but she doesn’t convince  me.”

I had a pastor once who regularly challenged the congregation to prove their faith to him. His point was that anyone can claim to be a Christian, but authentic faith is expressed in actions, not just words. There is a real danger here. If we need to “prove” our faith at all, we need to prove it to the LORD — no one else. The danger in thinking we must prove our faith to one another is in placing human beings on God’s throne. He alone is our judge (James 4:12).

When I Corinthians 5:12 says, “Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge?”, it is specifically referring to judging sin, not faith. Scripture is clear that the church is to identify sin and disassociate itself from it. But proving one’s faith is not the same. Scripture is equally clear that we should do our good works in secret, not to be seen by others (Matthew 6:4, 6 & 18). Whenever we get caught up in trying to prove our faith to one another, we become slaves to religious performance, beholden to the standards of a church or denomination and subject to the authority and hierarchy of that group’s leadership. Our focus has turned from faith to religion; from being a “new creature” in Christ to something we do on the outside for the approval of others.

Works vs Fruit

The discussion of faith and works includes a mental image of a laborer whose efforts have produced good things, which can be seen by all. But this is only a partial image, and misleading. If it were completely accurate, then faith wouldn’t have to include the Holy Spirit working through us. Neither the work of faith nor the fruit of faith is about us. It’s about Emmanuel (God in us).

In Colossians 1:10 Paul prayed that the faithful in Christ be “bearing fruit in every good work”. This indicates that bearing fruit is differentiated from good works, in that Paul’s prayer implies the possibility that a good work may not bear fruit. That’s why he prays it will. We are reminded from 1 Corinthians 3:5, “the Lord has assigned to each his task.” But verse 7 says, “neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.” Yet even though these workers are not “anything”, verse 8 tells us “each will be rewarded according to his own labor”.

Our “labor” (or “work”) is our obedience. First, God assigns tasks. Later He will reward us for our labors. Why? Will our reward be for the fruit we produce? No. Only God makes things grow. This is a well-established concept from the Old Testament. Just this morning I was reading in Hosea 14:5-8 where an obedient Israel is described as a beautiful olive tree, shooting down its roots, fragrant and blossoming and branching out. But that section ends with the LORD saying, “…your fruitfulness comes from me”.

I realize there are two different metaphors here: the metaphor of farmers planting crops that produce fruit and the metaphor of a tree that produces fruit. That is why I said the mental image of the laborer is only partial. The important link between the two metaphors is that the farmers were obedient in applying themselves to their assigned tasks, and the olive tree (Israel) was obedient, in that it turned from idolatry to worship the one true God. The workers in the first case are described as nothing. They didn’t produce the crop. God did. And yet God will reward them for their labor. The fruitfulness of the olive tree came from God, who rewarded it by allowing it to flourish.

John 15:1-8 gives us yet another metaphor: “I am the true vine and my father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” Verse 4 says, “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.” Believers are parts of the vine. The true Vine being Jesus, we are in the vine. We are in Jesus. Remaining in jesus is a way of describing our faith. What work are we doing as part of the vine? The answer is: being in the vine. True faith and works are not separate from each other.

In this metaphor, we are not the gardener, God is. How can part of a vine “work”? It just sits there, connected to the other parts, being part of the vine. That’s the whole point. Since Jesus is the vine, he wants us to remain in him, as part of the vine. He doesn’t want us to be or do anything else. He wants us to remain in Christ. John 15:10 says, “If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love,” which is echoed in 1 John 5:3: “This is love for God: to obey his commands.” Loving God is obeying God, which is our work of faith.

Finally, for those who can’t get past the idea that faith is more than words, it’s what you do that matters — I couldn’t agree more! All I’m saying is that no human being has the right (or ability) to judge what other person is doing, in terms of faith. We can’t know what works others do in secret. And that’s good, otherwise faith wouldn’t be supernatural. It would be social or political. Even pastors, who often think they have a particularly advantageous view of their congregation’s faith, don’t know every prayer that’s prayed. And when we hear of answers to prayer, who should get the glory? Those who prayed? Who but God knows about gifts given in secret? And then who should get the glory? Those who gave?

Just keep obeying the LORD’s commands. Just continue loving God with all your heart. Remain in Christ. He will remain in you (John 15:4). He will pick you up when you stumble. He will remind you when you fall. He will forgive you when you ask (1 John 1:9). Faith isn’t about you. It’s about him.

I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice! And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue! — Barry Goldwater, 1964

I enjoy watching old movies, what you might call “classics”, from the 30s, 40′s and 50s. Films from those decades reflect the cultural values that were formative to the development of my own attitudes and world view. I feel comfortably as if I belong to the intended audience for those old classics. Most movies today are designed for a significantly different audience — an audience with different sets of values and expectations, different points of view and even different ways of processing information.

In fact, the art of telling a story has changed so much in movie-making in the last 50 years that watching a new movie now is like trying to understand the dreck that passes for junk art or conceptual art in modern museums. The beauty is not in this beholder’s eye. But even worse, beauty is no longer an ideal that artists even strive to express.

“Whatever works” is the new credo in art, which is pretty much meaningless, since what works for one person or group, won’t work for another. I was taught in school that art is an intimate communication between artist and audience. The more universal that connection, the greater the art and the greater the artist. But today art is a great divider. Artists only appeal to their small group of homeys. They don’t care about anyone else. Art today isn’t really about communicating or connecting. It’s more about making a statement and to hell with the popular response.

But during WWII, film makers were primarily concerned with universally impacting general audiences. This has been called “propaganda” by a generation critical of that era, but the mainstream view of that period of time was agreeable to the message that we’re all in this together, so we should work together and fight to win. I think that’s a message of social cohesion that fosters confidence, exactly what WWII audiences wanted and what society at large needed at that time. Propaganda, to my way of thinking, doesn’t undergird values that are already there, but rather manipulates people into believing something that goes counter to their own self interests and needs.

During Thanksgiving week, I found a British film on Netflix from 1943 called “The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp”. It was pretty long (2 hrs, 43 minutes) but Netflix’s description piqued my curiosity: “A blustery but dedicated soldier reflects on his 40 years of service in the British Army, and how the passing years have altered the nature of war.” Both the “nature of war” and the idea of a 40 year span of change appealed to me, so my wife and I watched it.

In a scene toward the end of film, a radio broadcast of the General’s speech is cancelled because it included a statement which undermined the War Department’s efforts to generate a strong, anti-German public opinion. The General had emphasized British civility and fair play as something that differentiated the Brits from the Germans. Because of his sentiment, he was forced to retire, being perceived as weak.

Returning to his home, the General (Clive) has a conversation with his friend of 40 years (Theo), himself a former German officer and now an expatriate, living in England. Clive is upset because he feels the knowledge he’s amassed during his long career is going to waste. The following lines are highlights from that scene:

Theo – “It is a different knowledge they need now, Clive. The enemy’s different, so you have to be different, too.”

Clive – “Are you mad? I know what war is.”

Theo – “I don’t agree. I read your broadcast up to the point where you describe the collapse of France. You commented on Nazi methods for fighting — bombing refugees, machine gunning hospitals, life boats, light ships, baled-out pilots and so on –  by saying you despised them, that you would be ashamed to fight on their side, and that you’d sooner accept defeat than victory, if it could only be won by those methods.”

Clive – “So I would!”

Theo – “Clive, if you would let yourself be defeated by them just because you fail to hit back the same way they hit at you, there won’t be any methods but Nazi methods. If you preach the rules of the game while they use every foul and filthy trick against you… They’ll laugh at you. They think you’re weak, decadent… You’ve been educated to be a gentleman and a sportsman in peace and in war, but Clive, dear old Clive, this is not a gentlemen’s war. This time you are fighting for your very existence, against the most devilish idea ever created by a human brain: Naziism. And if you lose, there won’t be a return match next year. Perhaps not even for a hundred years.”  

This film was made during WWII, 68 years ago. Back then, the Brits had realized in order to beat the enemy, they had to do so mercilessly. They had realized that you can’t fight a sportsmanlike war when your enemies refuse to follow the same rules. They had realized that the only way to win a war against an enemy who will stop at nothing to destroy you is to unequivocally crush them into submission. And American entry into that war was the last time Congress made a declaration of war, formally committing the nation to that effort.

What must be remembered is that we won that war. Since then, we’ve fought lots of wars, first in Korea, then in Viet Nam and so on. We’re still fighting wars — none of which we’ve won; none of which were declared by the Congress, as prescribed by the Constitution. All of these wars were entered into by Presidential decree. Rather than declaring those wars, Congress funded them without owning the responsibility of the decision to go to war.

Besides being unconstitutional, this cavalier approach to waging war has other weaknesses: 1.) When Congress doesn’t declare war, the people never “own” it. Rather than being a national effort, it becomes a government effort, separate from the people; 2.) The military becomes a political weapon and war becomes a political act; 3.) In an effort to win general support for war, rules of engagement are written to be “fair” and “respectful” to the enemy, in effect turning the military into a police force trying to fight a “nice” war; 4.) Because of this, these political wars are unwinnable, and we no longer win wars.

What’s the best thing for our country now, and what can we anticipate in the elections of 2012? Don’t you want leaders who will keep us out of political wars that cost so much in terms of loss of human life and economic vitality, yet don’t seem to accomplish any more than making both allies and enemies hate us more? Don’t you want leaders who will only lead us into war if that is unquestionably the will of the people? And don’t you want the rest of the world to do everything possible to avoid going to war with us because they know if they do, it will be suicide for them?

There is great wisdom in Teddy Roosevelt’s, “Speak softly and carry a big stick.” But the big stick is only half of the picture. If we don’t speak softly, then carrying a big stick is nothing more than being a bully (no pun intended). I don’t think America should act like a bully or be perceived as a bully. I’d like the entire world to see us as a gentle giant as long as we are treated with respect, but a feared enemy to anyone who threatens us. We should  stay out of the affairs of other nations and only use our “big stick” when we absolutely need to, when the American people agree and when Congress is willing to declare war. Then, and only then, should we go to war with the intent to totally destroy the enemy.

New York, 3 October 1789
By the President of the United States of America, a Proclamation.

Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor– and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness.

Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be– That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks–for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a Nation–for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his Providence which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war–for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed–for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted–for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions– to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually–to render our national government a blessing to all the people, by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed–to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shewn kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord–To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the encrease of science among them and us–and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.

Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of October in the year of our Lord 1789.

G. Washington

Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law? Jesus answered, “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind (understanding). This is the first and greatest commandment.” — Matthew 22:36-38

Let’s stop right there. The first and greatest commandment is to love God. How many religious people can honestly say they love God? It seems to me that religion or religious behavior is often used in place of love, because what we lack in dedication and commitment to loving God, we try to make up for in how others see us. When others see us, they don’t know whether we are just ‘acting’ or if our actions are the expression of our love for God. But God does. “The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7b)

The first and greatest commandment has three parts: love the LORD your God with

• all your heart

• all your soul, and

• all your mind (understanding)

Some may feel this is hyperbole, that it just means to really, really love God. When it comes to understanding the meaning of love in this Scripture, many hold to a very simple model, dependent upon their own experiences. Even though the word we translate from the Greek as love (agape) differentiates our love of God from other kinds of love (such as brotherly or erotic), the three expressions of love in this first and greatest commandment challenge our grasp of pure, godly love.

The first part of this commandment is the easiest to understand. Loving with our heart is our most natural way of loving. Most of us pretty much get that part. Next, I presume that many believers don’t separate the soul from the heart when they think of love. The song, ‘Heart And Soul’ comes to mind: “Heart and soul, I fell in love with you heart and soul …”. But in the Bible, these words have a deeper meaning. “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12, ESV). Notice that the thoughts and intentions of the heart are listed separately from soul and spirit.

So, when we consider the idea of loving the LORD God with all one’s soul, we begin to see a much broader, deeper, bigger meaning for love. If the heart represents the very core of one’s being, and the soul represents the totality of one’s life, then the love of God should permeate every aspect of one’s existence. That’s a really big concept to try to wrap your brain around.

This brings us back to the hyperbole conclusion, that if we can’t figure out the difference between heart and soul, we should just really, really love God as best as we can. And I suppose there’s nothing wrong with that. Deuteronomy 6:5 says, “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” It doesn’t say anything about the mind or understanding. But Jesus did. And because Christians celebrate his new covenant, perhaps we should look into this matter of loving the LORD our God with our minds, too.

How we think establishes our attitudes and perceptions. Our thinking patterns define how we see ourselves and the world. If our thoughts aren’t turned toward God, it puts a barrier between us and his designs for us, and makes it difficult for him to direct our Christian walk. I want to say impossible, but nothing is impossible with God (Matthew 19:26; Mark 19:27). Most of our thinking is either task-oriented or self-satisfying: what to wear, what to buy, scheduling, planning, problem-solving, etc. I don’t think that’s quite what the LORD had in mind when he said to love him with one’s mind. The kind of thinking God had in mind when he gave us this commandment is to think about him, his revelations to us (Scripture) and how we relate to him. This kind of thinking is called meditation. And yet there are many who don’t even know what meditation is.

Meditation in the Biblical sense is nothing like the practice of mystical or eastern religions. There is no posture to assume, no mantra to chant, no lighting of candles or incense, no trance-like states. Frankly, that may be why more Christians don’t spend time meditating. They are afraid of becoming cultic. But meditation in the Biblical sense is nothing more than thinking, and if you are thinking about Scripture, it’s hard to go wrong. If you have a thought you are unsure of, ask a pastor, or someone who is grounded in the Word. Your questions will bring answers which will help you think about the LORD and love him with your mind.

My dictionary uses words like reflect, ponder and contemplate to define meditate. Meditation simply means to think something through; ask your own questions; turn it over and around in your mind, just as you would turn an object you were examining in your hands. Anybody can do this. You don’t have to be a genius. You just have to be willing to take the time to focus your thoughts on God. Psalm 119 provides a model for training our minds to think about Scripture. The following verses specifically reference meditation:

15    I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways.
23    your servant will meditate on your decrees
27    Let me understand the teaching of your precepts; then I will meditate on your
wonders.
48    I lift up my hands to your commands, which I love, and I meditate on your decrees.
78    … I will meditate on your precepts.
97    Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long.
99    I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on your statutes.
148  My eyes stay open through the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your
promises.

Psalm 119:48 is particularly  poignant. The psalmist not only loved God, he even loved God’s commands. He had come to understand that God loves us and uses Scripture to draw us to him and mold us to be like him. We love because God first loved us (1 John 4:19). Again, this kind of love goes way beyond the natural kinds of love (Greek: eros, philia & storge).

This brings us to John. He said some interesting things about love. In John 14:15 he recorded Jesus as saying, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.” (See also 14:23; 14:24; and 15:10). Later, in 1 John 5:3, he wrote, “This is love for God: to obey his commands.” It must be reiterated that the love John wrote about, the love Jesus spoke of, is not a sappy feeling. It’s not romantic or idealistic. It’s very real. It has everything to do with a decision we make to obey God; a choice, an act of will, an ongoing commitment and relationship we have with him.

This most certainly is not the same as scrupulously obeying religious requirements. Remember the legalist Pharisees. Jesus said our righteousness would have to surpass theirs in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 5:20). But the LORD is our righteousness (Jeremiah 23:6; 33:16) and God is love (1 John 4:8). Don’t feel guilty because you aren’t perfect. Focus on him, not yourself. If God’s law (Torah) is written in your heart, then obedience to God’s commands isn’t a matter of following rules or conventions. It’s about being led by the Spirit of God. He leads (commands), and we follow (obey). The more you meditate on the Word, the clearer this becomes.

Fix these words of mine in your hearts and mind. — Deuteronomy 11:18

… you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. — 2 Corinthians 3:3, ESV

Being a Christian isn’t just being religious, adhering to lists that say, “Thou shall” or “Thou shalt not”. We should never be on ‘automatic’, doing practiced routines without thought. Our actions should not be limited to formal outward behaviors, but personal and individual expressions of our love for God. That doesn’t mean we have to be super-human. God doesn’t expect us to do anything he didn’t create us to do. We all can’t be heroes or leaders or someone everyone notices. But we all can obey the LORD. We all can love the LORD. We all can think about the LORD.

If you are confused about how to love God with all your heart, your soul and your mind, try thinking more. If the idea of loving God with all your heart and soul seems idealistic, daunting or beyond your grasp, just pick up your Bible, read it, and then meditate on what you’ve read. Make a habit of it and God will use that time to speak to you as only he can. Sometimes it will put a question in your mind that only you need to ask and only you need to answer. A question like that might open you to a meaningful conversation with another believer, or steer you into a particular Bible study or cause you to seek the LORD in prayer for insight that only he can give. It all starts by thinking about God.

You can learn to love God more just by thinking about him more. And no matter how rebellious we’ve been, whenever we turn back to him and start loving him and obeying his Spirit, he’s always ready to spend time with us. Taking time to think about the things of God and meditate on his Word is always a choice we can make. Every day we spend a lot of time thinking. We think about the work we have to do. We think about our friends and loved ones. We think about ourselves, how we look, the food we eat, the cars we drive, the clothes we wear. We think about our favorite teams and celebrities, songs, games and activities. We think about our likes and dislikes, our hopes and dreams, and even our fears and dreads. We all choose what we think about, whether we are aware of our choices or not. If you wish to love God more, just consider your choices.