Sunday Devotion - Not Common or Unclean

I want to be an encouragement to people, and I really hope this blog will be that to someone. The blog title "An Unclouded Day" and the theme song all point to a happier time, encouraging us to keep on keeping on!

Today is Easter Sunday, and the resurrection is the perfect picture of this weeks devotion.

The text is from Acts chapter 10 where Peter sees a vision in Joppa, then travels to Caesarea to see Cornelius

(Acts 10:9-15)
9 On the morrow, as they went on their journey, and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour:
10 And he became very hungry, and would have eaten: but while they made ready, he fell into a trance,
11 And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth:
12 Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.
13 And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.
14 But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean.
15 And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.

Golden Nugget #3

The central message of The Bible in one verse.

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
(Ephesians 2:8)

All three of those points: Saved through Grace, not of ourselves, and the Gift of God....are repeated over and over again in The Bible. God loves us, and God alone saves us!

Life brings us to unpleasant places sometimes, places we desperately want out of ... isn't it nice to know that God cares about our plight, and that God himself has provided eternal security for us?

We must pray always for those who still thumb their noses at Gods glorious gift, and for ourselves that we never stop caring for peoples situations and their souls.

Friday Music - The Coloring Song

Minority Status next?

I came across a great opinion piece by David Brody on the CBN News website worth passing along. And it echos my thoughts almost exactly!

The issue being discussed is the level of public acceptance of Christians dropping to below that of homosexuals. If true, it is the first time since the first century that Christians would be thought of so lowly.

The tables have been turned. Evangelicals are now the ugly stepchild. In our American culture today, you can easily make the argument that it is harder to stand for biblical truth than it is to be a supporter of gay marriage in today's society. CBN News Blog

The decline of prestige suffered by the Christians isn't the only reason for this reversal of approval ratings, there has been a significant rise in the social acceptance of the homosexual identity over the same time period.

Witness to a Witness - The First and The Last

In a friendly debate I'm having with a Jehovah's Witness co-worker, I've noticed a few trends in the way he responds to my points.

1) He never writes to me in his own words, instead he gives me an article someone else wrote.

2) He'll totally ignore and sidestep the verses I point out, instead he'll change the subject and point out a completely different verse as if the one I pointed out didn’t exist!

This disturbs me because it's obvious the Watchtower just dictates to him what to say, what not to say, and *dare I say* possibly dictates what he believes.

Even though they have a fine looking website with their translation of The Bible on it, how much actual Bible reading do they promote? Is he completely unaware of what the whole of The Bible says?

It's important, nay - it's absolutely vital, that we take the whole of The Bible, in context, rightly divided, into account for doctrine instead of just a few verses. It’s the most important rule we should follow to avoid heretical doctrine.

The verses I want to highlight for this weeks installment are some of the verses my friend has ignored in our debate. I wonder if you can guess why the Watchtower might not want him discussing them?

What's your sign?

Playing God

When I was young, I used to read about certain scientific advances in comic books and science fiction books, such as miniature wireless phones, bionics and computers. They either aided the good guy, or made the bad guy that much more evil.

Such things as stealth technology, fiber-optics, and microwave popcorn weren't even considered because they were so far fetched! But now they have all become reality.

Advances in technology, whether in fiction or actual news, have always been greeted by suspicion by those espousing moral ethics. What could man do with such power? What could go wrong?

The issue is coming up again as the work on the human genome project is producing results. Now the ability to genetically engineer your unborn child is available. Now we must ask moral questions.

Just 16 years ago, the concept of genetic perfection was the stuff of Hollywood movies like "Gattaca." Fast forward to just over a month ago, however, and experts were busy debating over whether genetically engineered babies should be prohibited in a session hosted in New York City by Intelligence Squared U.S. The Christian Post

A Lively Hope

Many times when we wake up in the morning we don't feel particularly lively. Other times, when we are reading The Bible, we don't feel particularly lively. And when we think about a chore, task, or job we have to do....we definitely don't feel particularly lively!

There seems to be a certain lethargy affecting us humans that we always need to strive against, we need always to be generating enthusiasm or energy in ourselves. Some of us drink a lot of coffee, others tea, some take vitamins, while others need to nap often.

If you believe in Jesus Christ, have The Holy Spirit, and look forward to your resurrection body and being with Jesus in Heaven for all eternity - then you should have "a lively hope" while we go through our day that is in comparison to the drag of no hope unbelievers have as they trudge along to their end.

Golden Nugget #2

This weeks Golden Nugget is probably the single most recognizable verse in The New Testament, if not the whole Bible. It's one of the foundational verses of Biblical Christianity and it's one of the most commonly used verses when witnessing or evangelizing.

For years, during televised American football games, there was always at least one fan holding up a sign with this verse noted on it. It was impossible to think of the audience of an American football game without at least one "John 3:16" sign!

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
(John 3:16)

Jesus Is My Friend

This weeks song is an addictive, toe-tapping, silly love song about Jesus performed by Sonseed. It has a weird mixture of musical elements and it works! It's the kind of song that sticks in your mind for days at a time!

I love this song!

You may love it also after you listen to it, and you might start singing it in the check-out line at the grocery store!

Affirm what?

Rob Bell is at it again! The former Pastor of a Mars Hill Bible Church was in hot water last time for writing a book in which he questioned the existence of hell, a very real place according to The Bible.

Now he's in hot water again for saying:

I am for marriage. I am for fidelity. I am for love, whether it’s a man and woman, a woman and a woman, a man and a man. I think the ship has sailed and I think the church needs — I think this is the world we are living in and we need to affirm people wherever they are. -Rob Bell
via Christian Research Network

I've read this kind of statement before so it looked pretty harmless, until I started thinking about the word affirm.

af·firm
[uh-furm]
verb (used with object)
1. to state or assert positively; maintain as true: to affirm one's loyalty to one's country; He affirmed that all was well.
2. to confirm or ratify: The appellate court affirmed the judgment of the lower court.
3. to assert solemnly: He affirmed his innocence.
4. to express agreement with or commitment to; uphold; support: to affirm human rights.

I don't know why, but I think it's odd that these definitions all basically say that "to affirm" something - you are agreeing with the decision of others regarding it's merits. You are agreeing with the opinion someone else has stated. Since Rob Bell was in San Fransisco when this interview took place, he is saying he believes in the views of homosexuality that the citizens of San Fransisco have ... Isn't he supposed to be a Pastor?

In regards to homosexuality, gay marriage, and gay clergy: The Bible could not be more clear! God tells us that this type of behavior is what happens when a society turns away from him. And Pastors, no matter what denomination should be "affirming" Gods truth!

Witness To A Witness

So, you're sitting on the couch with your wife after dinner, relaxing and enjoying your evening when suddenly there's a knock on the door.

When you open the door you are greeted by two nicely dressed people with big smiles, offering you material on their beliefs and wanting to talk about them with you!

They identify themselves as "Jehovah's Witnesses", which are Members of The Watchtower Bible & Tract Society, and you freeze because you are at a loss for words in knowing how to respond to their claims.

Or perhaps you have a talkative co-worker who is a Jehovah's Witness, and is vocal about his beliefs, so the two of you engage in an ongoing friendly debate, and you need to know how to respond to his claims.

Life Begins when...

In a recent Round-table Discussion Group the question was asked of the Ministerial Panel, at what point does life begin.

The Baptist Preacher spoke first and said "At conception, of course!".

The Presbyterian Minister said "No, no, it's certainly begins at birth".

The Catholic Priest tried to buffer the obvious argument point and suggested "Perhaps you're both wrong, and it's a compromise in that the fetus is not functional with a heartbeat until the third month".

They had to prod the Jewish Rabbi for his answer, and he finally leaned forward to his mike and spoke softly "All of my friends here are wrong. Life begins when the last child leaves home, and the dog they left behind dies!!!".

via Christians Unite

Dominos Pizza Wins Court Case

Since the new health plan was signed into law, there have been several attempts at having the courts invalidate the law for one reason or another. And all of those attempts have failed to achieve their goal, until this case - Monaghan & Domino's vs. Sebelius & HHS.

Notably, judge Lawrence Zatkoff decided that Monaghan was likely to succeed on the basis of both his First Amendment and Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) claims, a ruling that other courts have been unwilling or hesitant to make.

The government has argued that the contraceptive mandate does not substantially burden a for-profit business owner's freedom of religion, denying that a corporation has the same rights as its owner even if the corporation is closely held. Courts have been wary of weighing in on this—until recently.
(Christianity Today)

Joy

(This is a message I gave at a few nursing homes on a couple different days during the fall of 2012. - RB)

Greetings everyone!

We’re happy to be here again, it fills us with great joy to be here and to be with you all! Seeing your beautiful faces and sharing good news with you and singing songs of praise to God...it truly is a joy!

Outside today, right now, there are people driving by, or working nearby, or even some of you, who aren't feeling any joy at all. Some are feeling bad about relationship problems, money problems, health problems, transportation or mobility difficulties, difficulties in taking care of themselves or providing for the needs of their kids, difficulties of all kinds. It can be a really hard life sometimes and often it isn’t much fun.

Some people end up with more difficulties than other's and they just do their best without complaining. Other people, who have had a pretty smooth life for a long time, when they all of the sudden hit some turbulence they are convinced life is totally not fair, and complain loudly about it!

From dealing with our own problems, dealing with the problems of others, being surrounded by complainers, and maybe being one ourselves from time to time, to being bombarded by a steady diet of bad news on the t.v., radio and newspapers - it's seems like just piling on bad news on top of bad news on top of bad news on top of bad news!

It doesn’t seem like a very joyful life with all that goin on does it? It can all be a bit too much!

Well that’s why we enjoy being here with you so much, because not only do we get to share the true joy of the good news of the Gospel with you, but we get excited and are joyful that we are allowed to play music and sing with you, it's good therapy for us to have fun like this after a long week of work or school studies.

Music Friday

This weeks song is a beautiful song performed by Sovereign Grace. I perform on this on mandolin with a trio in church about once a year with two guys who sing and play guitar. It's works well in a church service because of it's mood and message, and it's enjoyable to play because it's a really great song!

I hope you enjoy it and are encouraged that heaven awaits us after our days here are through!

New Pope is elected

Yesterday the Catholic Church announced the election of a new Pope, a Jesuit from Argentina named Jorge Mario Bergoglio. Cardinal Bergoglio assumed the position of the Bishop of Rome, following the retirement of Pope Benedict XVI, and took the Papal name of Francis. News reports are saying that his election is the first time an Argentinian has been elected, and it's the first time that a Jesuit has been elected.

I'm not a Catholic but I do recognize that most of the world sees the Catholic church as being "normal". And the Jesuits have been a religious order officially since 1540, so they are viewed as being a "normal" Catholic group by most people. I find it really "abnormal" though, that the Papal Conclave elected a Jesuit to be the Bishop of Rome.

Throughout history, the Jesuits have had a, shall we say, difficult time being seen as warm and fuzzy, despite whatever reputation benefits they have received from their founding of many great universities. But, from their years of harassing the protestant movement by convicting and executing their leaders, to meddling in the affairs of countries, to the proliferation of Liberation Theology, they have had a mixed approval rating even among Catholics.

Golden Nugget #1

There are first times for everything, and the types of posts that will appear on this blog will all have their first appearances. This category, Gold Nuggets, is one of them, and this post is it's first appearance.

This post category will run with some sort of frequency and be numbered sequentially. They will be a cross between a devotional and a verse-of-the-day, consisting of a verse and an optional commentary. The "option" being if I have something profound to say about it, or if I should just let the verse appear without commentary so your mind is free of my influence.

The frequency of the posts in this category is going to be similar to all the categories, no set frequency other than what I feel like I'm being led to do.

Please feel free to comment in this category, it will be inspirational to see how God's word makes it's impact in peoples lives.

Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.
(Genesis 3:21)

She had a name?

(In case anyone would be tempted to believe that this web site would be nothing but boring and dry theology stuff, I hope this post disabuses you of that notion from the very beginning! - RB)

A preacher, who shall we say was "humor impaired," attended a conference to help encourage and better equip pastors for their ministry. Among the speakers were many well known and dynamic speakers.

One such boldly approached the pulpit and, gathering the entire crowd's attention, said, "The best years of my life were spent in the arms of a woman that wasn't my wife!" The crowd was shocked! He followed up by saying, "And that woman was my mother!" - The crowd burst into laughter and delivered the rest of his talk, which went over quite well.

The next week, the pastor decided he'd give this humor thing a try, and use that joke in his sermon. As he surely approached the pulpit that sunny Sunday, he tried to rehearse the joke in his head. It suddenly seemed a bit foggy to him.

Getting to the microphone he said loudly, "The greatest years of my life were spent in the arms of another woman that was not my wife!" The congregation inhaled half the air in the room. After standing there for almost 10 seconds in the stunned silence, trying to recall the second half of the joke, the pastor finally blurted out, "...and I can't remember who she was!"

via Christians Unite

What's in a name?

(For the honor of being the introduction post of this inconspicuous and soon to be obscure blog, I have selected one of the first sermonettes I preached for our nursing home outreach ministry. It is not remarkable in any way to merit it's selection, but simply the fact that it's subject matter is that of "names".

In regards to the name of this blog, it was selected because of a few perspectives I have from where I sit.

I live in Seattle where it is cloudy most of the year, so looking forward to a sunny day, and enjoying it when the sun does come out, are good metaphors for our hope of eternity with Jesus and appreciating the blessings he showers on us while we are in this world.

I pray that this blog is a blessing to all that visit, that all will get inspiration to keep our eyes on Jesus during the periods of time when the clouds roll into our lives and the weather is stormy. - RB)

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When we were born, or just before we were born, our parents had to make the first of many decisions affecting our lives. And that was the decision of what to name us. Some of us have what we would call normal names, like John or Mark or Ruth or Mary. And some of us have rather odd names. In fact, the name of my distant uncle from Norway is really Odd. I’m serious – his named is spelled o-d-d. Its pronounced “ode”, but when you read it, it spells the word “odd”.

Every time he comes to the United States to visit, people always say “that’s an odd name”…and he just says "Uff Da!"