Numbers 13:3-15 New Living Translation Bible says, "So Moses did as the Lord commanded him. He sent out twelve men, all tribal leaders of Israel, from their camp in the wilderness of Paran. These were the tribes and the names of their leaders:
Tribe Leader
Reuben Shammua son of Zaccur
Simeon Shaphat son of Hori
Judah Caleb son of Jephunneh
Issachar Igal son of Joseph
Ephraim Hoshea son of Nun
Benjamin Palti son of Raphu
Zebulun Gaddiel son of Sodi
Manasseh son of Joseph Gaddi son of Susi
Dan Ammiel son of Gemalli
Asher Sethur son of Michael
Naphtali Nahbi son of Vophsi
Gad Geuel son of Maki
A Chinese proverb says, "To plug the ears while stealing the bell;" it means "to deceive oneself." It is a deception to believe that God favors people based on race, ethnicity or some physical characteristic. God is no respecter of persons. Benjamin Banneker, an African-American inventor, surveyor, mathematician and astronomer during a time when African-American slavery was legal in the United States, said, "The color of the skin is in no way connected with strength of the mind or intellectual powers." Romans 2:28-29 Complete Jewish Bible says, "For the real Jew is not merely Jewish outwardly: true circumcision is not only external and physical. On the contrary, the real Jew is one inwardly; and true circumcision is of the heart, spiritual not literal; so that his praise comes not from other people but from God."
Shammua, Shaphat, Igal, Palti, Gaddiel, Gaddi, Ammiel, Sethur, Nahbi and Geuel were deceived. They believed in the inferiority of the Jews to the Canaanites. Numbers 13:31-33 Amplified Bible says, "But his fellow scouts said, We are not able to go up against the people [of Canaan], for they are stronger than we are. So they brought the Israelites an evil report of the land which they had scouted out, saying, The land through which we went to spy it out is a land that devours its inhabitants. And all the people that we saw in it are men of great stature. There we saw the Nephilim [or giants], the sons of Anak, who come from the giants; and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight."
The people of God are reyes y reinas (kings and queens.) Jesus Christ is El Rey de Reyes (The King of Kings.) While Jesus died for us when we were sinners, God doesn't view us as sinners anymore. When God looks at us, He sees Jesus Christ, the Sinless One, the Perfect One. Low self-esteem is a sin. Not doing what God tells us to do is a sin even if it seems impossible.
Jesus died a horrible death on a Friday more than 2,000, years ago and got up from the dead on a Sunday, not so we would live in fear, low self-esteem, hatred or without unity among believers.
The people of God are called to do greater things than Jesus Christ did in His earthly ministry. Jesus Christ says in John 14:11-12 Complete Jewish Bible, "Trust me, that I am united with the Father, and the Father united with me. But if you can’t, then trust because of the works themselves. Yes, indeed! I tell you that whoever trusts in me will also do the works I do! Indeed, he will do greater ones, because I am going to the Father."
What are some trust issues you have seen in the Church?
Showing posts with label Spanish. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spanish. Show all posts
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Friday, March 29, 2013
La Familia
What would you do for love? Would you go to prison? Calvin Fairbank and Delia Webster were teachers and abolitionists who helped Lewis Hayden, Hayden's wife, Harriet, and the Hayden's son escape from slavery.
The Hayden's made it safely from Kentucky to Ohio then to Canada. Fairbank and Webster were arrested and charged with slave stealing. Galatians 5:13-14 Amplified Bible says, "For you, brethren, were [indeed] called to freedom; only [do not let your] freedom be an incentive to your flesh and an opportunity or excuse [for selfishness], but through love you should serve one another. For the whole Law [concerning human relationships] is complied with in the one precept, You shall love your neighbor as [you do] yourself."
Calvin Fairbank, who was also a minister, agreed to plead guilty if Delia Webster was allowed to go free. Webster was freed. Fairbank was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Black people look different from white people. The Haydens, Fairbank and Webster prove difference can be dynamic instead of a reason for hatred and abuse.
Rafael, my son who has autism, and I live in Virginia which is a state next to the state of Maryland. Even though slavery has been abolished in the United States, and Rafael, I and other African Americans enjoy our freedom, racial problems still exist in America along with conflict among all kinds of people. In Frederick, Maryland, a young man, Robert Ethan Saylor, was killed in a movie theater in January 2013 because people didn't understand someone with Down Syndrome.
God made each person different. No two people not even twins and other multiples have the same finger prints, eye prints or scent. God made us different on purpose. God even made some people with disabilities. Exodus 4:11 Contemporary English Version Bible says, "But the Lord answered, “Who makes people able to speak or makes them deaf or unable to speak? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Don’t you know that I am the one who does these things?"
Yellow (huang) was a color reserved for the Chinese Emperor and members of the imperial family. The emperor had to grant permission for other people to wear it.
Partiality puts up barriers to treating people right. James, a brother of Jesus Christ and an apostle, writes in the book of James Complete Jewish Bible, "My brothers, practice the faith of our Lord Yeshua, the glorious Messiah, without showing favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your synagogue wearing gold rings and fancy clothes, and also a poor man comes in dressed in rags. If you show more respect to the man wearing the fancy clothes and say to him, “Have this good seat here,” while to the poor man you say, “You, stand over there,” or, “Sit down on the floor by my feet,” then aren’t you creating distinctions among yourselves, and haven’t you made yourselves into judges with evil motives?"
Welcome and accept whoever wants to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord and to join la familia de Dios (the family of God) this Good Friday or any other day. La familia helps each other.
Lewis Hayden raised $650.00 which through a chain of other players helped free Calvin Fairbank from prison within four years.
The Hayden's made it safely from Kentucky to Ohio then to Canada. Fairbank and Webster were arrested and charged with slave stealing. Galatians 5:13-14 Amplified Bible says, "For you, brethren, were [indeed] called to freedom; only [do not let your] freedom be an incentive to your flesh and an opportunity or excuse [for selfishness], but through love you should serve one another. For the whole Law [concerning human relationships] is complied with in the one precept, You shall love your neighbor as [you do] yourself."
Calvin Fairbank, who was also a minister, agreed to plead guilty if Delia Webster was allowed to go free. Webster was freed. Fairbank was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Black people look different from white people. The Haydens, Fairbank and Webster prove difference can be dynamic instead of a reason for hatred and abuse.
Rafael, my son who has autism, and I live in Virginia which is a state next to the state of Maryland. Even though slavery has been abolished in the United States, and Rafael, I and other African Americans enjoy our freedom, racial problems still exist in America along with conflict among all kinds of people. In Frederick, Maryland, a young man, Robert Ethan Saylor, was killed in a movie theater in January 2013 because people didn't understand someone with Down Syndrome.
God made each person different. No two people not even twins and other multiples have the same finger prints, eye prints or scent. God made us different on purpose. God even made some people with disabilities. Exodus 4:11 Contemporary English Version Bible says, "But the Lord answered, “Who makes people able to speak or makes them deaf or unable to speak? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Don’t you know that I am the one who does these things?"
Yellow (huang) was a color reserved for the Chinese Emperor and members of the imperial family. The emperor had to grant permission for other people to wear it.
Partiality puts up barriers to treating people right. James, a brother of Jesus Christ and an apostle, writes in the book of James Complete Jewish Bible, "My brothers, practice the faith of our Lord Yeshua, the glorious Messiah, without showing favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your synagogue wearing gold rings and fancy clothes, and also a poor man comes in dressed in rags. If you show more respect to the man wearing the fancy clothes and say to him, “Have this good seat here,” while to the poor man you say, “You, stand over there,” or, “Sit down on the floor by my feet,” then aren’t you creating distinctions among yourselves, and haven’t you made yourselves into judges with evil motives?"
Welcome and accept whoever wants to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord and to join la familia de Dios (the family of God) this Good Friday or any other day. La familia helps each other.
Lewis Hayden raised $650.00 which through a chain of other players helped free Calvin Fairbank from prison within four years.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Sinners and Still Valuable
Out on an errand for her mother Elsie, a young teenager, was gang raped in the lobby of her grandmother's apartment building in the Czech Republic. The damage from the rape caused a doctor to diagnose that Elsie would never bear children, but she did.
Parenthood didn't bring the pleasure it should have. Elsie lost one child to social services, and she married a man not for love but to help her financially support her daughter, Sylvia. Her husband was unholy and helped to trap Elsie in a life of legal prostitution in the Netherlands.
A bad beginning in life does not guarantee a bad ending.
In the midst of prostitution love found Elsie. A taxi driver, who was a former criminal, called a favor and some friends to secure Elsie's freedom from her pimp. Then he married her for love.
More love found Elsie in Sylvia's school yard. A woman introduced Elsie to Scarlet Cord, who eventually helped Elsie to apply to school and introduced Elsie to the true, living and loving God.
Elsie's story is from Naomi Zacharias' book The Scent of Water Grace For Every Kind of Broken. Naomi Zacharias is the director of Wellspring International. Scarlet Cord is one of the projects Wellspring International supports.
Today is a day to receive and to give love. Today is Maundy Thursday. Joe Carter, editor for The Gospel Coalition, in his March 25, 2013, article "9 Things You Should Know About Holy Week," writes, "Maundy Thursday is the day before Good Friday. The term "Maundy" is derived from the Latin word mandatum (commandment). The term refers to the commandment given by Jesus at the Last Supper: "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another." (John 13:34)."
Did Elsie get to have a wedding with her taxi driver? Red (hong) is the color of celebration at weddings and birthdays in China. I hope she had una boda maravillosa (a wonderful wedding).
Some people may think that Elsie doesn't deserve love because she was a prostitute. Sojourner Truth was a slave who became a servant of Jesus Christ. Truth said, "You say women need to be helped into carriages and lifted over ditches. Nobody's ever helped me into a carriage or over a mud puddle. And ain't I a woman?"
Female and male we are all sinners and still valuable to God. Romans 5:7-8 Amplified Bible says, "Now it is an extraordinary thing for one to give his life even for an upright man, though perhaps for a noble and lovable and generous benefactor someone might even dare to die. But God shows and clearly proves His [own] love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) died for us."
The Apostle John writes in 1 John 4:11 Complete Jewish Bible, "Beloved friends, if this is how God loved us, we likewise ought to love one another."
Please share stories of disciples loving others the way Jesus loves us.
Parenthood didn't bring the pleasure it should have. Elsie lost one child to social services, and she married a man not for love but to help her financially support her daughter, Sylvia. Her husband was unholy and helped to trap Elsie in a life of legal prostitution in the Netherlands.
A bad beginning in life does not guarantee a bad ending.
In the midst of prostitution love found Elsie. A taxi driver, who was a former criminal, called a favor and some friends to secure Elsie's freedom from her pimp. Then he married her for love.
More love found Elsie in Sylvia's school yard. A woman introduced Elsie to Scarlet Cord, who eventually helped Elsie to apply to school and introduced Elsie to the true, living and loving God.
Elsie's story is from Naomi Zacharias' book The Scent of Water Grace For Every Kind of Broken. Naomi Zacharias is the director of Wellspring International. Scarlet Cord is one of the projects Wellspring International supports.
Today is a day to receive and to give love. Today is Maundy Thursday. Joe Carter, editor for The Gospel Coalition, in his March 25, 2013, article "9 Things You Should Know About Holy Week," writes, "Maundy Thursday is the day before Good Friday. The term "Maundy" is derived from the Latin word mandatum (commandment). The term refers to the commandment given by Jesus at the Last Supper: "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another." (John 13:34)."
Did Elsie get to have a wedding with her taxi driver? Red (hong) is the color of celebration at weddings and birthdays in China. I hope she had una boda maravillosa (a wonderful wedding).
Some people may think that Elsie doesn't deserve love because she was a prostitute. Sojourner Truth was a slave who became a servant of Jesus Christ. Truth said, "You say women need to be helped into carriages and lifted over ditches. Nobody's ever helped me into a carriage or over a mud puddle. And ain't I a woman?"
Female and male we are all sinners and still valuable to God. Romans 5:7-8 Amplified Bible says, "Now it is an extraordinary thing for one to give his life even for an upright man, though perhaps for a noble and lovable and generous benefactor someone might even dare to die. But God shows and clearly proves His [own] love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) died for us."
The Apostle John writes in 1 John 4:11 Complete Jewish Bible, "Beloved friends, if this is how God loved us, we likewise ought to love one another."
Please share stories of disciples loving others the way Jesus loves us.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Money and Marriage
"When Joe, 64, a computer professional in Massachusetts, married for the first time, he was 31 and very in love.
"She was attracted to me because I had structure; I was attracted to her because she was a lot of fun," said Joe.
He had noticed some financial red flags while they were dating: She always carried a credit card balance and liked buying expensive gifts for people. Still, he said, he wasn't fazed: "I never thought about it, because it wasn't my problem."
After they married, though, his new wife's spending habits became Joe's problem.
"She could drain a checking account in no time," he recalled. Joe describes himself as an avid saver, and his and his wife's financial differences became the cause of bad fights. "I couldn't stand being broke all the time and really struggling to pay the bills, and she didn't like the restriction of me saying we can't afford this," he said. 'We kind of drove each other into corners. She became more irresponsible and I became more rigid." Joe and his wife divorced after three years, largely because of financial differences," writes Stacey Vanek Smith in the March 26, 2013 The New York Times article "Money Talk Before Marriage A Tip You Can't Disparage."
Judas Iscariot divorced Jesus Christ in about three years also, and money seems to have played a major role. Judas, one of Jesus' original 12 apostles, didn't approve of Jesus' money management methods. In the Bible book of Matthew chapter 26 after a woman pours an alabaster flask of very expensive perfume on Jesus' head, Judas divorces Jesus.
"An archaic and infrequently used name for the Wednesday before Easter is "Spy Wednesday", named for Judas' becoming a spy for the Sanhedrin," writes Joe Carter, editor for The Gospel Coalition, in his March 25, 2013, article "9 Things You Should Know About Holy Week." For 30 pieces of silver Judas tells the Sanhedrin where to capture Jesus. Once Jesus is captured, later in the week on Friday Jesus is crucified. On Sunday, Jesus rose from the dead, having paid the sin debt for each person who will receive Him into their life for eternity.
The Chinese invented paper money which they originally called "flying money" because it was so light and easily flew out of people's hand. The generosity of Jesus frustrated and disappointed Judas. Money seemed to fly out of Jesus' hand. Judas wanted enough on hand for his desires, including theft.
An African proverb says, "Work is good, provided you do not forget to live." Jesus sees money as a tool to live well and to do good. Jesus says in Luke 16:9 Amplified Bible, "And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous mammon (deceitful riches, money, possessions), so that when it fails, they [those you have favored] may receive and welcome you into the everlasting habitations (dwellings)."
The more money possessed, the more responsibility to do good. The Complete Jewish Bible says in 1 Timothy 6:17-19, "As for those who do have riches in this present world, charge them not to be proud and not to let their hopes rest on the uncertainties of riches but to rest their hopes on God, who richly provides us with all things for our enjoyment. Charge them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, to be generous and ready to share. In this way they will treasure up for themselves a good foundation for the future, so that they may lay hold of the real life."
Conflict over differences in the management of money and sex are among the top reasons husbands and wives do not have un matrimonio de pasión y sorpresa and some end up seeking un divorcio. Instead of allowing differences to divide, why not ask God to help you find a way to diversity in unity? God the Son Jesus Christ and God the Father are different and unified. Jesus Christ prayed for believers in John 17:21 English Standard Version Bible, "That they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me."
What are some ways Jesus Christ has brought diversity in unity to your marriage or your singleness?
"She was attracted to me because I had structure; I was attracted to her because she was a lot of fun," said Joe.
He had noticed some financial red flags while they were dating: She always carried a credit card balance and liked buying expensive gifts for people. Still, he said, he wasn't fazed: "I never thought about it, because it wasn't my problem."
After they married, though, his new wife's spending habits became Joe's problem.
"She could drain a checking account in no time," he recalled. Joe describes himself as an avid saver, and his and his wife's financial differences became the cause of bad fights. "I couldn't stand being broke all the time and really struggling to pay the bills, and she didn't like the restriction of me saying we can't afford this," he said. 'We kind of drove each other into corners. She became more irresponsible and I became more rigid." Joe and his wife divorced after three years, largely because of financial differences," writes Stacey Vanek Smith in the March 26, 2013 The New York Times article "Money Talk Before Marriage A Tip You Can't Disparage."
Judas Iscariot divorced Jesus Christ in about three years also, and money seems to have played a major role. Judas, one of Jesus' original 12 apostles, didn't approve of Jesus' money management methods. In the Bible book of Matthew chapter 26 after a woman pours an alabaster flask of very expensive perfume on Jesus' head, Judas divorces Jesus.
"An archaic and infrequently used name for the Wednesday before Easter is "Spy Wednesday", named for Judas' becoming a spy for the Sanhedrin," writes Joe Carter, editor for The Gospel Coalition, in his March 25, 2013, article "9 Things You Should Know About Holy Week." For 30 pieces of silver Judas tells the Sanhedrin where to capture Jesus. Once Jesus is captured, later in the week on Friday Jesus is crucified. On Sunday, Jesus rose from the dead, having paid the sin debt for each person who will receive Him into their life for eternity.
The Chinese invented paper money which they originally called "flying money" because it was so light and easily flew out of people's hand. The generosity of Jesus frustrated and disappointed Judas. Money seemed to fly out of Jesus' hand. Judas wanted enough on hand for his desires, including theft.
An African proverb says, "Work is good, provided you do not forget to live." Jesus sees money as a tool to live well and to do good. Jesus says in Luke 16:9 Amplified Bible, "And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous mammon (deceitful riches, money, possessions), so that when it fails, they [those you have favored] may receive and welcome you into the everlasting habitations (dwellings)."
The more money possessed, the more responsibility to do good. The Complete Jewish Bible says in 1 Timothy 6:17-19, "As for those who do have riches in this present world, charge them not to be proud and not to let their hopes rest on the uncertainties of riches but to rest their hopes on God, who richly provides us with all things for our enjoyment. Charge them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, to be generous and ready to share. In this way they will treasure up for themselves a good foundation for the future, so that they may lay hold of the real life."
Conflict over differences in the management of money and sex are among the top reasons husbands and wives do not have un matrimonio de pasión y sorpresa and some end up seeking un divorcio. Instead of allowing differences to divide, why not ask God to help you find a way to diversity in unity? God the Son Jesus Christ and God the Father are different and unified. Jesus Christ prayed for believers in John 17:21 English Standard Version Bible, "That they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me."
What are some ways Jesus Christ has brought diversity in unity to your marriage or your singleness?
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Beautiful Butts
More than 1.3 billion people live in China, the world's most populous nation. Most belong to the Han ethnic group. The rest belong to more than 50 ethnic groups. Likewise a variety of sexual practices exists.
A firm, full butt may inspire a spouse to squeeze and to kiss it. Some husbands and wives may also enjoy licking between the butt cheeks, inserting their tongue or finger into their spouses butt hole, using anal toys and/or anal intercourse.
Not all spouses enjoy the sexuality of the butt. Just because a husband or wife does not want to participate in a certain sexual activity does not mean he or she is sexually repressed or rejecting his or her spouse. Don't try to force a spouse to participate in sexual activity that is contrary to his or her faith. Romans 14:23 Amplified Bible says, "But the man who has doubts (misgivings, an uneasy conscience) about eating, and then eats [perhaps because of you], stands condemned [before God], because he is not true to his convictions and he does not act from faith. For whatever does not originate and proceed from faith is sin [whatever is done without a conviction of its approval by God is sinful]."
Exalta a la roca de nuestra salvación. Charla con Jesús. (Exalt the rock of our salvation. Chat with Jesus.) Ask God to change your spouse's mind about certain sexual practices.
Even when having spousal sex arguments, "You can have peace in the middle of a storm when you know joy is coming in the morning time" (song "God's Up To Something Good" from the album Next Now by Hart Ramsey & The NCC Family Choir featuring John P. Kee and Ms. Ty Scott.)
Conflict can be creative. Patricia Bath, MD, pioneered the worldwide discipline of community ophthalmology, a volunteer-based program to bring necessary eye care to under served populations, co-founded the American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness and secured four patents in the United States. Many of Bath's accomplishments came out of conflict.
What joy and accomplishment has come from sexual conflict?
May your marriage have jiu (long life.)
A firm, full butt may inspire a spouse to squeeze and to kiss it. Some husbands and wives may also enjoy licking between the butt cheeks, inserting their tongue or finger into their spouses butt hole, using anal toys and/or anal intercourse.
Not all spouses enjoy the sexuality of the butt. Just because a husband or wife does not want to participate in a certain sexual activity does not mean he or she is sexually repressed or rejecting his or her spouse. Don't try to force a spouse to participate in sexual activity that is contrary to his or her faith. Romans 14:23 Amplified Bible says, "But the man who has doubts (misgivings, an uneasy conscience) about eating, and then eats [perhaps because of you], stands condemned [before God], because he is not true to his convictions and he does not act from faith. For whatever does not originate and proceed from faith is sin [whatever is done without a conviction of its approval by God is sinful]."
Exalta a la roca de nuestra salvación. Charla con Jesús. (Exalt the rock of our salvation. Chat with Jesus.) Ask God to change your spouse's mind about certain sexual practices.
Even when having spousal sex arguments, "You can have peace in the middle of a storm when you know joy is coming in the morning time" (song "God's Up To Something Good" from the album Next Now by Hart Ramsey & The NCC Family Choir featuring John P. Kee and Ms. Ty Scott.)
Conflict can be creative. Patricia Bath, MD, pioneered the worldwide discipline of community ophthalmology, a volunteer-based program to bring necessary eye care to under served populations, co-founded the American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness and secured four patents in the United States. Many of Bath's accomplishments came out of conflict.
What joy and accomplishment has come from sexual conflict?
May your marriage have jiu (long life.)
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