NCarolinian

For some, death is considered the absolute end, for others death is the turning of the page to the next chapter of existence. Comments like "what you do now, here on earth, echoes in eternity" does not reverberate with  those who consider death as the End Game.  People who do not accept the notion of an eternal afterlife only have memories of the individuals they cared about until death comes calling for them. For the ones that do not see a hereafter, unless your deeds were well-known and/or documented either as helpful to mankind or harmful - you will not be remembered. The world has the full spectrum of care on being remembered, but one certainty is clear - actions and words go a long way in showing someone's true character and belief in their immortality or lack thereof. I think purpose alludes many in this world because somewhere along the journey the person believed a lie about self-worth, not measuring up and not being loved. But where shame and defeatism attempt to...

I can't tell you how many times, as I grew up well before the Bluetooth Cellphone Age, that I saw someone on a corner somewhere talking to themselves. I could usually tell if they were homeless, poor, frustrated or just trying to talk something out. Now, discerning if someone is actually speaking to another person with a Bluetooth earpiece in their ear or going through a challenging time without one is difficult. That imagery is one picture meant to portray the Christian's constant communication with The Lord. Ever heard the term - motor mouth - used to describe someone? This is a person who put nicely is a constant communicator. Put another way - never stops speaking. Said one more way - will not shut-up and you wonder if they will ever take a breath to do anything else. This kind of person is out of balance. Last time I checked, humans have two ears and one mouth, but this type of person tries to make-up for that fact with a river of words. Two-way listening and speaking is i...

When you and I look into the “Mirror of Life” as Christians, is the reflection we see the total image of Jesus? Allow me to save you the trouble – no. In addition, no believer is ever going to be perfect at his or her Christ-likeness. The believer’s right-standing with God is secured through Christ, but the likeness of Christ for Christians will always need improvement. Therefore, the eternal challenge issued once individuals accept Christ as Savior is to develop as God’s Image Bearers. I recently watched a program on Netflix called "The Crown" – a series about the life of England's Queen Elizabeth. Something that the Holy Spirit taught me through this series was the importance of the Christian's representation of and reflection on King Jesus in everything he or she does every day. There were many people that were associated with Queen Elizabeth. She had friends. She had acquaintances. She had employees. She had servants. She had fellow leaders of the country (Par...

I would venture to say that many people are scared of responsibility. We especially avoid responsibility of others. We would gladly take credit if our stewardship of another person was successful, but if it fails we look to blame it on anything but ourselves. So, proper management of people, places and things takes a serious hit. Early on in the Genesis account we read about Cain sassing back to God about his brother Abel, declaring –  "I don't know. Am I my brother's keeper?" (Genesis 4:9) However, humanity and especially Christians should be stewards of each other. Stewardship requires an Owner that has delegated authority, oversight, protection and management obligations of something or someone. God owns everything. When God created the human being, the man was alone in kind of creatures . God walked with Adam and spoke with him. Through Adam, stewardship of Eden and Earth with its animals and his naming them thereof was his honored duty before The Fall. An o...