Category: Christianity

For a long time and even now people have been living with The Law. Not by The Law, but with it next to them, not knowing what is it. What The Law really means for their life. The Law is like a technical book that comes with us. When you buy a vacuum cleaner they give you a technical book. You have to read it and use your new vacuum cleaner obeying the specifications listed in the technical book. The same is with us. We have this technical book. If we want to function well, we have to do as it asks us to.

When Adam and Eve ate from the Tree-of-Knowledge-of-Good-and-Evil they died in terms of innocence. They were no more innocent. They came to know what is good and what is wrong. And like this they became to know the bitterness of sin. God never intended us to feel bad about anything, so He made us pure. But, because He is a loving Father, God gave us the right to choose. He lifted us on a huge cliff, God gave us a magnificent power – the free will. Then the man saw left and right, saw what is good and what is bad with their full meaning. Before the man knew that he has the power to choose, that there is wrong and there is good, but he knew just what follows the good, and not the bitter taste of sin.

By the time of Noah, we see a transformation in the human kind. We have 2 states:
A. total innocence that knows nothing more than being good
B. total sinner that knows nothing more than being bad
In all this time until Noah we see a decaying of the human race. God decides to give the humans another chance, starting all over again with people that really loved Him. God gave common sense another chance to prove itself. He let the thing inside us, that came to birth by the time Adam and Eve ate the fruit, show that it has really the power to turn us to Him. When God saw once again that the humans turned back to sin with much speed, He decided to use another tactic. So, God choose a had of people and called them His. This was the Judaic people. But, also them didn’t bring a happy smile on God’s face all the time. Then God gave to His people the law, even if we all had by that time the common sense in us, our conscience.

It is like we buy the vacuum cleaner but in the first place they don’t give us the technical book, because they supposed that because we know how to use the vacuum cleaner we will use it in a good way. But we keep coming with the device back because it is broken. It gets repaired and so on. But one time we are given the technical book: “Here you are! It seems that even if you know how to use the vacuum cleaner, you forget sometimes. So here is the technical book. Read it over and over again. Your conscience is not enough it seems. Read it, apply it, read it again, write it on your hart, write it in your mind over and over again.

^1-5 Dear friend, do what I tell you; treasure my careful instructions. Do what I say and you’ll live well. My teaching is as precious as your eyesight—guard it! Write it out on the back of your hands; etch it on the chambers of your heart. Talk to Wisdom as to a sister. Treat Insight as your companion. They’ll be with you to fend off the Temptress — that smooth-talking, honey-tongued Seductress. Proverbs 7:1-5

But, it seems, that this didn’t work either because the wickedness of man.

God gave us one more chance through His Son. God planned so Jesus would die for us. This implies that the man would change from inside out. It is a total different way of transforming. But before this God send someone to prepare the path of His Son. And here John appears in the scene. Take some time and read what John said to the people that came to him…

^7-9 When crowds of people came out for baptism because it was the popular thing to do, John exploded: “Brood of snakes! What do you think you’re doing slithering down here to the river? Do you think a little water on your snake skins is going to deflect God’s judgment? It’s your life that must change, not your skin. And don’t think you can pull rank by claiming Abraham as ‘father.’ Being a child of Abraham is neither here nor there—children of Abraham are a dime a dozen. God can make children from stones if he wants. What counts is your life. Is it green and blossoming? Because if it’s deadwood, it goes on the fire.”
¹⁰ The crowd asked him, “Then what are we supposed to do?”
¹¹ “If you have two coats, give one away,” he said. “Do the same with your food.”
¹² Tax men also came to be baptized and said, “Teacher, what should we do?”
¹³ He told them, “No more extortion—collect only what is required by law.”
¹⁴ Soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?”
He told them, “No shakedowns, no blackmail—and be content with your rations.” Luke 3:7-14

From now on, God’s new plan for us starts. A whole new perspective appears in front of our eyes.

The transitions of mankind were tough and we sadden God. He has no other backup plan for us. God gave for us what He had most precious – His Son. Jesus Christ died for me and you, so that we would really get transformed from within.

Today I found out how to make real wise choices, how to take the right wise decision. I would like to share it with you.

So, here are the steps:

• Initial steps
  1. admit that you have not enough experience, so not enough wisdom
  2. seek the one that has the most experience, the oldest person alive – I found that person, he is my God
  3. ask that person to share His experience with you, to give you from His wisdom
• Application steps
  1. listen the problem, look at it, observe
  2. find the key point, make a summary
  3. put in extreme situation the people involved, the environment – take it to the limit – make it much tough
  4. see how the above react in extremes
  5. be patient, do not haste, take time to observe the reactions
  6. based on the reactions and the wisdom given in the initial steps take the wise decision

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Continue reading The Process of Wise Choices

Many of us want to look good in front of others. I want to be beloved by the people around us. Don’t you desire the same thing? I bet you do! We want NOW to be pleasant to the ones that see us. And more than this we want the people to make us feel better. We want to be appreciated. How can we achieve this?

There are 2 ways that lead to success. To be loved by the people, they should know about you. If nobody knows you, how should they appreciate you? You have be in the position where you can be seen. But is it that important to be seen? This is to the popular way. It consists in promises, great words, throwing the bait and get the fish. It is the path where you promise things, but you never actually fulfill them. Then you have to do what you said to promise another thing. And so on, and on and on. But the wickedness has short legs. Most definitely, it would work for you from the start. People like to be given something and more than that to live with the dream. But on long term, if a dream is feed only with other dreams, and no facts, it will die.

So what is the alternative? If unfulfilled promises do not really work on a long term, than what does? The key element is to be righteously. What does it mean to be righteous? Let’s look at some examples, of people that worked to be this way.

I know a good history book. It tells us real stories from the beginning of the men kind. It even tells the future, not only the past. One of the first man that the Bible states as a righteous man was Noah (Genesis 6:9). It says that in order to be righteous, you have to be blameless. You have to live your life in the fear of God. This is not the fear that you’ll get strike down by a lightning. But it consists in accepting that there is someone greater than all. God is love, He is good, the Lord means only good things for His creation. So, the fear of God means that you know how He is and you want to resemble with Him, to be like Him. You would want the things that characterize God to distinguish you as well. So, be blameless!

I just asked from you something impossible. You can not be blameless by your own strength. Our life seems to be a continuous struggle. But, we can have help. We can have help from above if we really want it and seek it. I have to do my best while doing it together with my God. How can I do that? How can you achieve that? Let’s look further on the Good Book. In Genesis 15:6 we see Abram. It says that Abram was credited as righteous by God. Wow! But how was that possible? If we read the first part of the verse we see that Abram believed in God. That’s it! Believing is an act of will and faith. You can chose to believe or not, to have faith or not.

So how does this work? To see the path let’s look at the following bible passage: ³The God of Israel spoke, the Rock of Israel said to me, When one rules over men righteously, ruling in the fear of God, ⁴He dawns on them like the morning light when the sun rises on a cloudless morning, when the tender grass springs out of the earth through clear shining after rain.2 Samuel 23:3-4

What is the secret of being beloved by the people? It is to do the will of God. This means to be righteous, and all you do to be done in fear of God. For that, you have to choose to believe in Him, to accept God to rule your life and guide you. Because alone, you will not succeed. He will do the rest. Trust in the Lord!

What about NOW? Well, that meas that you have to trust your life in the Lord now. The effect will not be seen today and neither tomorrow. But when it will be seen it will last for eternity.

Bible passage

(1) I love the Lord, because He has heard [and now hears] my voice and my supplications. (2) Because He has inclined His ear to me, therefore will I call upon Him as long as I live. (3) The cords and sorrows of death were around me, and the terrors of Sheol (the place of the dead) had laid hold of me; I suffered anguish and grief (trouble and sorrow). (4) Then called I upon the name of the Lord: O Lord, I beseech You, save my life and deliver me! (5) Gracious is the Lord, and [rigidly] righteous; yes, our God is merciful. (6) The Lord preserves the simple; I was brought low, and He helped and saved me. (7) Return to your rest, O my soul, for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you. (8) For You have delivered my life from death, my eyes from tears, and my feet from stumbling and falling. (9) I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living. (10) I believed (trusted in, relied on, and clung to my God), and therefore have I spoken [even when I said], I am greatly afflicted. Psalm 116:1-10

My thoughts

It happens to me to lack joy, to be happy, to forget to smile. But, today, I was reminded once again why should I be happy and thankful to my Lord.

So why should I love my God and be thankful to Him?

• He listens to my voice, He’s not indifferent,
• He listens to my requests, and He can change His mind about stuff,
• He is merciful, righteous and gracious,
• He preserves the simple, the people with no wickedness, so I pray that I could be like that,
• He helped and saved me,
• He dealt bountifully with me…
  • saving my soul from death,
  • my eyes from tears,
  • and my feet from stumbling and falling.

Therefore, I shall:

• lift up the cup of salvation and deliverance,
• call on the name of the Lord,
• pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all His people.

Bible passage

(1) There happened to be there a base and contemptible fellow named Sheba son of Bichri, a Benjamite. He blew a trumpet and said, We have no portion in David and no inheritance in the son of Jesse! Every man to his tents, O Israel! (2) So all the men of Israel withdrew from David and followed Sheba son of Bichri; but the men of Judah stayed faithfully with their king, from the Jordan to Jerusalem. 2 Samuel 20:1-2

(15) And they came and besieged Sheba in Abel of Beth-maacah, and they cast up a siege mound against the city, and it stood against the rampart; and all the men with Joab battered and undermined the wall to make it fall. (16) Then a wise woman of the city cried, Hear, hear! Say to Joab, Come here so I can speak to you. (17) And when he came near her, the woman said, Are you Joab? He answered, I am. Then she said to him, Hear the words of your handmaid. He answered, I am listening. (18) Then she said, People used to say, Let them but ask counsel at Abel, and so they settled the matter. (19) I am one of the peaceable and faithful in Israel. You seek to destroy a city which is a mother in Israel. Why will you swallow up the inheritance of the Lord? (20) Joab answered, Far be it, far be it from me that I should swallow up or destroy! (21) That is not true. But a man of the hill country of Ephraim, Sheba son of Bichri, has lifted up his hand against King David. Deliver him only, and I will depart from the city. And the woman said, Behold, his head shall be thrown to you over the wall. (22) Then the woman in her wisdom went to all the people. And they cut off the head of Sheba son of Bichri and cast it down to Joab. So he blew the trumpet, and they retired from the city, every man to his own home. And Joab returned to Jerusalem to the king. 2 Samuel 20:15-22

My thoughts

The people from the Sheba in Abel of Beth had a really big problem. They were all going to die because of this one man that was in their walled city. They were saved by this wise woman. She understood that they have to cast out the evil from among themselves, so they should live.

Nowadays we live in a strange community. It seems that nothing goes right. The non-rightness people prosper and all the other suffer. But actually all of us have issues with our correctness.

Each of us are like that walled city. So we could really live we have to give up on the bad things. We have to accept God as He is, and let Him cleanse us. If we want to live our life to the full, we have to accept Him, as God says I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows). John 10:10

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