NCarolinian

The best way I can put into words what I am feeling and thinking right now is - I am grateful for the humanity of God.  Scripture says in John 4:24 that -  God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth. However, Father God has manifested Himself through His Word via a Burning Bush to Moses and pillars of cloud/fire to a future nation.  He sent His Word in flesh and we named Him Jesus or Yeshua. Then later when Jesus ascended back to His Father, the Holy Spirit was sent to dwell within believers for comfort and to lead them into all truth.  Although I am impressed with all the times God graciously chose to awe us with a manifestation of His presence, I am particularly drawn to and thankful for the human expression of God - Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Jesus is Son of God (Divine Title) and Son of Man (Human Title).  I see both of these sides of His life or titles to His personage being played out in His journey as I read The Gospels ( Matt...

When I was younger and living with my parents growing up there were different ways I would be awakened to get each day started.  Some days mom might come in my room and give me a kiss and gently stir me and say, "Chad, it is time to get up."  Other times she would whistle a tune or sing a song as a kind of walking human alarm clock that we could not get to.  My brother and I had to get up to calm her singing down a little. However, there was one way that my mom, dad, and grandma (dad's mom lived with us) woke me up that I wanted to focus on here.  They would come to the door of my bedroom and as I was in "Deep Six" sleep or sound sleep, they would call my name out into the room - "Chad".  Their voice was not too loud or harsh, it just filled the room and commanded my consciousness to alertness.  Sometimes I just opened my eyes to prove to them I was awake. Sometimes I kept my eyes shut and responded, "Yes, I'm awake."  Other times I wou...

The "Neutral Strip" When Texas sought to enter the Union in 1845 as a slave state, federal law in the United States, based on the Missouri Compromise, prohibited slavery North of 36°30' parallel north. Under the Compromise of 1850, Texas surrendered its lands north of 36°30' latitude. The 170-mile strip of land, a "neutral strip", was left with no state or territorial ownership from 1850 until 1890. It was officially called the "Public Land Strip" and was commonly referred to as "No Man's Land."[5][6] The Compromise of 1850 also established the eastern boundary of New Mexico Territory at the 103rd meridian, thus setting the western boundary of the strip. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 set the southern border of Kansas Territory as the 37th parallel. This became the northern boundary of No Man's Land. When Kansas joined the Union in 1861, the western part of Kansas Territory was assigned to Colorado Territory, but did not chan...

It is my desire that Hebrews 12:15 is fulfilled to the best of my ability (teaching at least) -  See to it that no one misses the grace of God  and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. - Hebrews 12:15 When I bless my wife Tanya with a Happy (unexpected, undeserved gift) the both of us benefit. I benefit because, coming from an unconditional angle, I experience her elation at the surprise gift. She benefits from the gift itself and my caring enough to bless her with a Happy .  My premise for giving was I love her and my result was the joy that flooded her soul. God has given us the ultimate Happy . The Scriptures call it and Him - Grace.  Max Lucado challenges us to get a grasp on what God's Grace really means by saying, "We talk as though we know what grace means. Grace! The bank gives us a grace period. The seedy politician falls from grace. Musicians speak of a grace note. We use the word for hospitals, baby girls, kings and p...

I am reminded that when we, as Christians, witness to unbelievers, although it is helpful to have a knowledge-base like a doctorate in Theology or a degree in Christian History, we don't have to have these in order to share Christ and/or our personal testimony with others.  The Twelve Disciples and early Christians did not have formal classes to attend and learn the material needed to successfully win friends and influence people to the point of conversion for Christ.  What they did have was life as their task master and the Holy Spirit of Christ as their Comforter and Leader into all truth. I can only imagine the cultural and societal response to such a one-minded belief - that this Jesus of Nazareth was not only the Savior of the Jews, but Savior of the world and only through faith in Him, His sacrifice and resurrection can all humanity be reconciled to God. "...the fact that the Christian faith was so new and so different from the pagan religions of the Roman Emp...

My Christian Hockey Analogy : All of us on the ice begin with the inclination of disobeying the rules and cheating the system.  Most of us don't even care about The Game we just want to skate around doing our own thing whether it hurts other players/people on the ice or not.  The Good News is we have all been saved from eternity in the Penalty Box!  Our actions on the ice deserve the Penalty Box forever, but there is a Skater that has played The Game perfectly and allowed the underhandedness of the system/game to place Him in the Penalty Box. This Skater overcame all the penalties and came out of the Penalty Box by the 3rd Period proving His right-standing, victory, and grace for all who lace'm up and skate. I say it like this because some people lace-up but they do not skate.  Some people just do the minimum and accept Christ as their Savior (lace-up), but then do not exercise their faith (skate) so that they grow and mature in The Spirit. The gift this Skater...

A week ago today, February 25, 2014, at 5:15 a.m. I lost my mother-n-law.......for a while.  She did pass away, but because of Christ's victory over death, hell, and the grave - and His promise of seeing her again ( 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 ) I have Hope. Audrey's life and her passing have reinforced in a gigantic way in my journey what life is all about - relationships. There are certain relationships I can only begin to tell you how deeply meaningful they are to me.  Every time I am around these certain individuals like my wife, my mom, my dad, my brother, and a handful of friends - I can feel the tightness of joy around my heart until it is released by a joke, hug, or shared experience. Through Audrey's life and passing I have been challenged to value even more these relationships and any that might develop into these kind. However, there is a relationship, I can hear Audrey instructing, that needs continual cultivating - a relationship with Christ Jesus, The Creato...

2 Corinthians 2:15 For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. 2 Corinthians 2:15 is the only place in Scripture that identifies Believers as "the aroma of Christ" .  In fact, that is the only place the word aroma is found in the New Testament.   For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.   However, the word aroma is very plentiful in the Old Testament ( Exodus 29:18, 25, 41; Leviticus 1:9, 13, 17, 2:2, 9, 12, 3:5, 16, 4:31, 6:15, 21, 8:28, 17:6, 23:13, 18; Numbers 15:3, 7, 10, 13, 14, 24 - not exhaustive). In the Old Testament, aroma is linked with a phrase/sentence that is found repeated many times concerning the Jewish sacrifices - "It is a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to the LORD." There are particular foods, animals, and animal parts that were required for different "offerings" . However, no matter...