And when these things begin to come to pass,
then look up, and lift up your heads;
for your redemption draweth nigh.
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March 20, 2008:Traditions | Just a few more weary days and then... I'll fly away... And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh. |
| December 29, 2007:New Year's 2008 | ||
| November 3, 2007:How To Be Successful in Christian Ministry | ||
| October 23, 2007:Salmon |
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| New Year's 2008 William H. Haller |
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The past few years, I have tried to post a special Christmas message. I'm a bit slow this year, so I'm going to call it a New Year's message instead, even though some of it has a Christmas theme. A portion of it is a rerun from last year's Christmas message, since I think those thoughts are still valid for 2008.
In wondering about what to say during this, or any Christmas season, I have come up with the following. We are encouraged to "Put Christ back into Christmas" or to "Take the X out of Xmas". That's generally considered a noble thought and is a good starting point. I think God would rather not be bottled up into a single day. Let's put Christ back into our personal and our family life every day of the year and not just remember Him on Christmas, Easter, or if He's really lucky on Sunday mornings as well. The Christmas season celebrates the birth of Our King, after all, regardless of His actual date of birth. Try putting Him in charge for a while and see if you aren't better off for it at the end of 2008, at least measured in what will be meted out as eternal rewards.
The time left on earth will prove to be short for many around you. Your time may be short as well, whether you know it or not. Make a decision today to start living as a Christian should live. Don't put off till tomorrow and miss the opportunities God is giving you to share Christ's sacrifice with someone today. Start making a difference in your home or with your relatives, co-workers, fellow students, neighbors and church.
If you don't have a church home, the Christmas season is a good time to start attending. Churches put their best foot forward on big Christian holidays. Even if you are reading this after Christmas, don't wait till the next Christian holiday to find a church home.
Pray about where you should go. Open up the phone book to the church listings. Do a web search. Find out what the denominations believe and why. Pray some more. See what the churches themselves believe and why. Let the Spirit of God speak to you about the churches you read about or drive by and let Him direct your path to where you need to be.
What a church and denomination teach needs to line up with what the Bible says. Most Christian churches and denominations have a core set of similar beliefs, but many denominations leave out parts of the Bible that they aren't comfortable with. Try to find a denomination and church that believes and teaches the Bible cover to cover, and practices all the Biblical principles from the New Testament, without omitting any inconvenient bits. There are many reasons why people pick one particular church over another. Put doctrine near the top of the list. It's more important than many other reasons people worry over.
If you've taken the time to pray and listen and then follow through, you will probably feel right at home where you end up. If you neither prayed nor listened and made your own choice, but the Spirit is saying that this is the wrong place, then go back to step one and try again. Don't give up until God has you where He wants you. Even if you aren't a Christian and have never prayed, just talk to God and listen for the answer. He won't let you down. You're important to Him!
I would urge everyone to take the time to read their Bibles next year. If you need a change, pick a different translation than you're used to. If you have kids, take the time to read the Bible to them this year. Depending on their ages, they may not get much out of some sections, but at least they will have heard God's Word once in their lives. If you don't have time, unplug your TV. You'll have more time to spare.
There are many schedules out there that will take you through the Bible in a year. We're going to try one that mixes up some Old Testament and New Testament each day. It takes you through the Old Testament once and the New Testament twice in one year. The time commitment isn't that large if you are a relatively decent reader. Some statistics say it only takes about 70 to 90 hours (or about 3 days total - the low end works about to about 11.5 minutes per day). Give it a try. You can read that 300 page novel in a week - you can tackle the Bible.
If you're not a Christian or have never read God's instruction manual and are wondering about how to determine whether the denomination you attend or are thinking of attending are lining up with the Bible, read Acts, 1st and 2nd Corinthians, James, and of course the Gospels. That will separate the wheat from the chaff pretty fast.
If you have been in church a long time, ask what God wants you to do for Him this year, and try to make it happen. It may not be easy--
God uses whoever He has available to Him to do His work. Too often, the young gung-ho Christians are recruited to do things they aren't ready to do, simply because the older Christians feel they have done enough over the years and can't be bothered anymore. It's time to start working for Him in some capacity, regardless of your age or the amount of time you've been a Christian. If you're a young Christian, it may include devoting more time to learning. If you're an older Christian, it may include passing your knowledge along to the next generation. Think of all He did for you. Can you do less?
When you think of Utah, your first thought is likely to be, "That's where the Mormons are". Well, this year my prayer for Wyoming is that Christians will become as well known here. By the end of the year, I hope that when people think of Wyoming, their first thought will be, "That's where the Christians are." Just to be clear, I hope they are thinking of Christians at their best and not at their worst!
Now, we all know there are Mormons scattered around the world, just as there are Christians scattered around the world. I'm not saying Wyoming will have an exclusive market on them. But I pray that our state will be a place where Christianity shines. I pray that denominations in our small, poorly populated state, will decide to put aside their differences and work together with a Christian instead of a competitive spirit to change this big state for the better and to show Christ's love toward each other and the world, every single day! God will tell you what to do in each community.
I pray that the denominations that are struggling for membership will read the New Testament again and listen to what God says is missing in their lives and churches so that all denominations in Wyoming will have a much closer set of doctrinal beliefs and the Christian church experience will be more uniform in each. That isn't to say I would want all churches to be cookie cutter identical places to be. Each should have its own blend of worship that the people are comfortable with and may stress outreaches to particular groups of people. But God should be free to work in each church and in each church member in the way He wants according to New Testament principles without hindrance or restriction. If that doesn't happen, then we won't achieve the goal of being known as a Christian state because it is the Holy Spirit that equips us to witness in power. He needs to be free to help direct our efforts and provide the power through the Gifts of the Spirit to set Christianity apart from all other religions.
Wyoming is a very dry state. It's no surprise our population is so small. We've been in physical as well as spiritual drought for many years. I pray that this year, both will be broken. I'm not asking for huge unsustainable rushes of precipitation that cause more problems than they solve. I live on the mountain foothills, and don't relish huge drifts at all! I am asking for steady growth and refreshment in our physical and spiritual water supplies in season and out of season for the year to come. Fill up both the physical and spiritual reservoirs so they are spilling water over their overflows for a change. We also pray for an even flow out of season to reduce the fire load danger that much of the West faces with wet winters and dry summers. There is a spiritual parallel there as well.
If you're from Wyoming, or currently live in Wyoming and would like to join in praying for our State, drop a line on the feedback form. If there's enough responses, I'll update a count periodically so we all feel a little more together in our efforts. Please include the town you're in and your denomination!
Pray for the educators of our children. Pray for their Sunday School and school system teachers. Help them to get back to teaching basics well - in both Sunday School and the school environment. There has been so much diversity that nothing is getting taught well or actually learned. Pray that particularly in a church environment God will raise up guardians of the truth that will not be afraid to speak out when they hear things that are wrong. Don't let any untruth go unchallenged.
I would urge you to pray for your government and all its branches, and for every military and civil servant. Pray that they will do right in God's sight over the course of the coming year. God's sight doesn't always line up with man's sight, but let them all have a banner year of doing well. Pray that everyone who is elected will take their oaths of office seriously, particularly those taking an oath to support and uphold the Constitution of the United States. It's a fine old document.
...Political plug follows...
I'm personally hoping that Ron Paul does very well. I'd rather have a president in office who brings years of experience from the U.S. House of Representatives than what the others offer (even if they are accredited ministers). It is up to the government to govern. It is up to the church to lead in spiritual matters. Christ said to render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to render to God the things that are God's.
I know that I don't have the standing of the other big Christian groups who are endorsing other big names, and I don't claim to have any special word from God about this, but I'm tired of the status quo. I suspect that the other candidates will be counted among the recent crop who give lip service to the Christians for votes and then ignore the principles Christians stand for when it comes to governing. I'm tired of politics as usual. Don't be looking back in four years wondering why the country has moved further downhill spiritually if you elect someone who isn't living up to what Christ expects of His leaders now.
Ron Paul has a record of consistent Congressional work in defending the constitution against all encroachments. The federal government has made great strides in making state issues their own in order to keep growing bigger. It has grown far beyond the limits the original authors intended. Ron Paul has done his best to reign in the size of government and keep it within its originally specified bounds. Adherence to the principles our forefathers stood for is in short supply in government today. Spending is out of control. Voting for "Dr. No", as Ron Paul is nicknamed in the House would be a great step in remedying some of these problems. One "No" vote in the House doesn't mean as much as a "No" vote from the Oval Office.
I'm tired of picking the lesser of two evils. While nobody can predict how presidency will change any man, Ron Paul starts off with a really good constitutional regard for the office. There's been too much seeing what special interests (whether based in government or industry) can sneak through Congress in the last years. It's time for a house cleaning, and the other candidates from either party are just going to be more of the same.
...Political plug ends...
...Mar. 17, 2008 addendum begins...
Well, not too many people listened to my plea, so let's recap what has happened...
What's the point of this addendum. There is one political candidate who has been against the whole principle of the Federal Reserve Board all along. Ron Paul. He didn't get enough votes to be nominated. Republicans would rather have someone who wants to keep on fighting in Iraq for 100 years than someone who wants to stick to constitutional principles and keep our noses out of other countries, letting the U.S. Congress really be the ones to declare war. Sigh.
There's still time. Write in Ron Paul for President, regardless of your political party, in the elections to come.
...Mar. 17, 2008 addendum ends...
Back up your presidential selection with changes in Congress. Find out who has been abusing the constitution, hasn't been doing much of anything at all, or has been generating pork like hogs were an endangered species and vote them out of office. Enact your own term limits. Wyoming almost got a different Representative elected in the last election. Sadly, the family issues that almost half of us recognized as being her problem in the last election cycle have come back to haunt us full time while she's been in office as she has got the worst voting record in the House.
Pick a representative that votes for what is right and doesn't just vote the party line. Believe it or not, the party you belong to (including my party) isn't always right! If your Representative or Senator just votes along with his or her party, they could be replaced with a robot and be just as effective.
The very best president can only sign or veto the legislation that Congress sends. If Congress continues to shirk its duties and continues to send up pork laden budget measures while littering must pass bills with unrelated material in the hopes of getting something that would stink on its own passed, then we will continue to decline as a nation. Support line item vetoes for the executive branch if Congress can't bring discipline to itself.
There are two ways to tackle the deficit. The first is by raising taxes. The other is by cutting spending. Nobody wants to do either one so the deficit grows and grows. It's going to take combined Congressional and Presidential action to fix the nation's problems. Pray about and then follow through with the right votes to help make this happen. Most importantly - get out and vote!
Have a great 2008!
