Here is the recipe from Robin's aunt, that we talked about on our garden video on growing beets.
Spiced Beets
4 cans of beets, or 8 cups of fresh beets from the garden. Cooked and diced.
3/4 cup of vinegar
2/3 cup sugar
2T pickling spice Put in a bit of cheesecloth or a tea ball works well. Don't want the spice just floating free.
Drain beets, boil the juice and ingredients 20 minutes. If using fresh beets, add a cup of water. Remove the spice. and cook for another 10min. The remove from heat. and cool. Enjoy
Ray Province
The Celtic Ozarkian
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Sunday, May 31, 2009
A Social Gospel for the Internet
I spend a lot of time working and playing on the Internet. Social media sites have given us all a brand new way to connect with one another. One of the great joys of my life is being able to find old friends on sites like Facebook, MySpace, Plaxo, and others. It has become part of my community of friends and family. The fact that I have not personally meet everyone I was chatted with on the Internet means nothing. As people begin to adopt more software like Skype, we will see even more of one another.
As a Christian, I believe I have a responsibility to share my faith in all things. This would logically include my interactions over the Internet. There are far too many people abusing this electronic form of community. Good role models need to be available. I know that my friends from other faith traditions share this view. I would content we all have a social mandate to share the love of God in our interactions on the Internet.
In today’s times, there are at least two distinct philosophies on how we go about “sharing the Good News” in any setting. On the one hand, we have what I like to call the “methodology of the mouth.” We share personal convictions about being Christians, and we ask others to consider doing the same. We ask others to become Christians through the acceptance of Jesus’ role in cosmic history. This role is very evangelical in nature.
On the other hand, we also share our love of God in what I like to call a “social gospel.” It refers to our actions, and our beliefs working hand in hand with one another. This type of philosophy says that our actions must match what comes out of our mouth. It ways that Jesus did more than show people a way to salvation.
These two philosophies are not mutually exclusive. Indeed, they should work in consort with one another. It is simply a way to help one understand where the emphasis is often placed. It is like putting a magnifying lens on a small flow, so you can see it better.
Here are some things we can all do to better share a social gospel across our blogosphere:
1. We can remember that God created this world, and we have been left in charge of its care. Until we know exactly when God plans on coming back, we have been asked to be the world’s caretakers.
2. We can remember that God came to redeem our world, and we have been asked to continue that path of redemption in our actions and words.
3. We can joyfully accept the blessings of community, sexuality, marriage, and the family. In our current times, I believe we need a broad definition of family: we all need to raise our neighbors children by example. We need to be careful what we share on the Internet, what we forward in emails, etc. You never know where that will end up.
4. We can commit ourselves to the rights of men, women, children, youth, young adults, the aging, and people with disabilities; to improvement of the quality of life; and to the rights and dignity of all persons. We can participate in the on going discussions of these topics in our favorite blogs, chat rooms, new pages, etc. We can blog about them, write articles on them, make videos about them, etc.
5. We can be an advocate the right and duty of persons to work for the glory of God and the good of themselves and others and in the protection of their welfare in so doing; in the rights to property as a trust from God, collective bargaining, and responsible consumption; and in the elimination of economic and social distress.
6. We can use the Internet to promote peace throughout the world, to the rule of justice and law among nations, and to individual freedom for all people of the world.
Ray Province
Ray Province is a retired minister and IT programmer in the healthcare industry. He writes about issues effecting life in the Ozarks at The Celtic Ozarkian. You can reach him at contactus@celticozarkian.com or @celticozarkian on Twitter
As a Christian, I believe I have a responsibility to share my faith in all things. This would logically include my interactions over the Internet. There are far too many people abusing this electronic form of community. Good role models need to be available. I know that my friends from other faith traditions share this view. I would content we all have a social mandate to share the love of God in our interactions on the Internet.
In today’s times, there are at least two distinct philosophies on how we go about “sharing the Good News” in any setting. On the one hand, we have what I like to call the “methodology of the mouth.” We share personal convictions about being Christians, and we ask others to consider doing the same. We ask others to become Christians through the acceptance of Jesus’ role in cosmic history. This role is very evangelical in nature.
On the other hand, we also share our love of God in what I like to call a “social gospel.” It refers to our actions, and our beliefs working hand in hand with one another. This type of philosophy says that our actions must match what comes out of our mouth. It ways that Jesus did more than show people a way to salvation.
These two philosophies are not mutually exclusive. Indeed, they should work in consort with one another. It is simply a way to help one understand where the emphasis is often placed. It is like putting a magnifying lens on a small flow, so you can see it better.
Here are some things we can all do to better share a social gospel across our blogosphere:
1. We can remember that God created this world, and we have been left in charge of its care. Until we know exactly when God plans on coming back, we have been asked to be the world’s caretakers.
2. We can remember that God came to redeem our world, and we have been asked to continue that path of redemption in our actions and words.
3. We can joyfully accept the blessings of community, sexuality, marriage, and the family. In our current times, I believe we need a broad definition of family: we all need to raise our neighbors children by example. We need to be careful what we share on the Internet, what we forward in emails, etc. You never know where that will end up.
4. We can commit ourselves to the rights of men, women, children, youth, young adults, the aging, and people with disabilities; to improvement of the quality of life; and to the rights and dignity of all persons. We can participate in the on going discussions of these topics in our favorite blogs, chat rooms, new pages, etc. We can blog about them, write articles on them, make videos about them, etc.
5. We can be an advocate the right and duty of persons to work for the glory of God and the good of themselves and others and in the protection of their welfare in so doing; in the rights to property as a trust from God, collective bargaining, and responsible consumption; and in the elimination of economic and social distress.
6. We can use the Internet to promote peace throughout the world, to the rule of justice and law among nations, and to individual freedom for all people of the world.
Ray Province
Ray Province is a retired minister and IT programmer in the healthcare industry. He writes about issues effecting life in the Ozarks at The Celtic Ozarkian. You can reach him at contactus@celticozarkian.com or @celticozarkian on Twitter
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Easter Morning
It is Easter morning, and we find ourselves waiting for Jesus. We always celebrate the fact that Jesus of Nazareth “rose from the grave” in a bodily resurrection on this date. This has become the tradition.
I suspect, though, the the disciples were doing the same thing on the first Easter morning that we are doing now: waiting on something to happen. It is in the “waiting”, I believe, that we can find a great lesson about Easter morning. Let us consider how it is we wait upon Jesus.
We may wait like the disciples waited. Jesus was dead, and the disciples were in fear for there own lives. Despite the fact that Jesus had taught them of his inevitable death and coming again, they simply missed the point. I am not sure anyone was truly expecting Jesus to come again. We was laid to rest, and the women would come on the first Easter morning to finish preparing his body. Mary is even astonished at his coming, as she becomes the first to see him. Maybe be come today like Mary and the disciples: astonished at the story.
We may wait like little children. I can remember growing up in a Methodist Church. It was full of people dressed to the hilt. The place smelt like Easter lillies, and was dressed in purple. It was what we had always done, but still did not make complete sense. Even the songs took some time to learn. I can remember singing an old hymn with the words, “up from the grave he arose, with a bunch of dirt between his toes!” On some level, it was easier to remember, and made more sense. Maybe we come today like kids, not quite understanding the message.
We may come today like Thomas Thomas “the Doubter” may be the way we come to Easter morning. I would not call Thomas a doubter as much as I would call him a scientific sceptic. The biblical passage about Thomas says it all: Thomas wanted proof! Wanted something he could see with his eyes, or touch with his hand. Maybe we come today wanted some kind of scientific evidence. Only only issue here is that there is none. You can almost find more evidence to the contrary, via the many conspiracy theories that evolved through the years. Here are just a few: Jesus did not die, but was snuck out of town, Mary went to the wrong tomb, the gardener moved Jesus, the disciples moved Jesus because they needed him to appear as if he had risen! Get the idea?
In all these ways, we can come to the Easter morning we celebrate today. I have no doubt I will sit next to people who will bring all these perspectives to what we celebrate today. These are very normal perspectives.
Our Issue Is that there is only one way to come to Easter. Whether by accident or intent, Easter can only be celebrated through the eyes of faith. We cannot use our best powers of reason, observation, intuition and get ourselves back to God. Rather, we must come in the eyes of faith to how God has been revealed in the resurrection.
We are confronted with the stories of faith, and asked to accept them. This is not blind foolishness, though. We are asked to believe in faith as God’s spirit makes it become real for us. Just as there is no real value to the Bible without a living God behind it, there is also no Resurrection without the power of the living God that made it happen. God expects us to come to Easter on God’s terms!
There are many things in life I believe in that I cannot prove. There are many things I accept that I do not completely understand. So, today, I come to Easter morning through the eyes of faith, to allow God to speak to me on God’s terms. I have never been disappointed.
Happy Easter
Ray Province
Ray Province is a retires minister and owner of The Celtic Ozarkian and This is Life in the Ozarks, which chronicle life in the Ozarks. He is an IT programmer by trade, and also freelances in website development, SEO, and social bookmarking strategies for internet marketers. You can contact Ray at contactus@celticozarkian.com or @celticozarkian on Twitter.
I suspect, though, the the disciples were doing the same thing on the first Easter morning that we are doing now: waiting on something to happen. It is in the “waiting”, I believe, that we can find a great lesson about Easter morning. Let us consider how it is we wait upon Jesus.
We may wait like the disciples waited. Jesus was dead, and the disciples were in fear for there own lives. Despite the fact that Jesus had taught them of his inevitable death and coming again, they simply missed the point. I am not sure anyone was truly expecting Jesus to come again. We was laid to rest, and the women would come on the first Easter morning to finish preparing his body. Mary is even astonished at his coming, as she becomes the first to see him. Maybe be come today like Mary and the disciples: astonished at the story.
We may wait like little children. I can remember growing up in a Methodist Church. It was full of people dressed to the hilt. The place smelt like Easter lillies, and was dressed in purple. It was what we had always done, but still did not make complete sense. Even the songs took some time to learn. I can remember singing an old hymn with the words, “up from the grave he arose, with a bunch of dirt between his toes!” On some level, it was easier to remember, and made more sense. Maybe we come today like kids, not quite understanding the message.
We may come today like Thomas Thomas “the Doubter” may be the way we come to Easter morning. I would not call Thomas a doubter as much as I would call him a scientific sceptic. The biblical passage about Thomas says it all: Thomas wanted proof! Wanted something he could see with his eyes, or touch with his hand. Maybe we come today wanted some kind of scientific evidence. Only only issue here is that there is none. You can almost find more evidence to the contrary, via the many conspiracy theories that evolved through the years. Here are just a few: Jesus did not die, but was snuck out of town, Mary went to the wrong tomb, the gardener moved Jesus, the disciples moved Jesus because they needed him to appear as if he had risen! Get the idea?
In all these ways, we can come to the Easter morning we celebrate today. I have no doubt I will sit next to people who will bring all these perspectives to what we celebrate today. These are very normal perspectives.
Our Issue Is that there is only one way to come to Easter. Whether by accident or intent, Easter can only be celebrated through the eyes of faith. We cannot use our best powers of reason, observation, intuition and get ourselves back to God. Rather, we must come in the eyes of faith to how God has been revealed in the resurrection.
We are confronted with the stories of faith, and asked to accept them. This is not blind foolishness, though. We are asked to believe in faith as God’s spirit makes it become real for us. Just as there is no real value to the Bible without a living God behind it, there is also no Resurrection without the power of the living God that made it happen. God expects us to come to Easter on God’s terms!
There are many things in life I believe in that I cannot prove. There are many things I accept that I do not completely understand. So, today, I come to Easter morning through the eyes of faith, to allow God to speak to me on God’s terms. I have never been disappointed.
Happy Easter
Ray Province
Ray Province is a retires minister and owner of The Celtic Ozarkian and This is Life in the Ozarks, which chronicle life in the Ozarks. He is an IT programmer by trade, and also freelances in website development, SEO, and social bookmarking strategies for internet marketers. You can contact Ray at contactus@celticozarkian.com or @celticozarkian on Twitter.
Beta Blend Salad
Here is a salad for those of you looking to get some more beta-carotene in your diet. This important nutrient is typically lacking in the diet of Americans this time of year, as it is hard to get quality vegetables all winter. Hope you like it!!!
The Salad:
1 large golden beet
8 long fingerling carrots
1 yellow tomato
1 bag of spinach
4 leaves of purple or flowering kale (what you can find)
4 leaves from the dandelions in your yard!
The Hillbilly Touch is in the Dressing!
1 pkg of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing made.
2/3 cup of cashews
2 cloves of garlic (1 if you are a wimp!)
1/8 tsp of Greek Seasoning Salt
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp of fresh thyme
1/2 tsp of fresh oregano
You can arrange the salad as you like. Add the additional ingredients to the Hidden Valley Ranch dressing, and you are ready to go!
The Salad:
1 large golden beet
8 long fingerling carrots
1 yellow tomato
1 bag of spinach
4 leaves of purple or flowering kale (what you can find)
4 leaves from the dandelions in your yard!
The Hillbilly Touch is in the Dressing!
1 pkg of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing made.
2/3 cup of cashews
2 cloves of garlic (1 if you are a wimp!)
1/8 tsp of Greek Seasoning Salt
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp of fresh thyme
1/2 tsp of fresh oregano
You can arrange the salad as you like. Add the additional ingredients to the Hidden Valley Ranch dressing, and you are ready to go!
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Human Suffering
I recently taught a Sunday School Class on the topic of human suffering. Just like people that have lived for thousands of years, we still find ourselves perplexed by the reality of human suffering.
We find ourselves perplexed because of the classic contradiction of ideas that Leibniz call "the theodicy." I put the concept together this way: 1) We all taught that God is all knowing, loving, powerful, etc. 2) We find ourselves in a world of suffering. No matter what one's answer might be, this is the classic formulation of the answer.
Here are some of the classical answers to the question: 1) God is not all powerful, and does not have the ability to stop all suffering, 2)God is not all loving, 3)God uses suffering as a way to punish us for wrong doing, 3) a kind of theory of atonement, i.e. we must make up for our sins---and if we do not we are punished. None of these make anyone feel particularly good.
This is always made the most sense to me: 1)we have the freedom to choose, 2)God lets us "wrestle' with our proverbial "demons", even to the point of tragedy, 3) the world operates by a series of "physical laws' which cannot be changed all the time, 4)this life is not the fulfillment of my "existence; there is more to come.
So, I do blame humanity for the Holocaust. We could have done more to stop it. I do not blame God for the hurricane that destroys my home. That same hurricane is cooling global water tempuratures. I do blame myself for the bad choices I make. Finally, I deal with much suffering in this way: I have a choice not only to "act" correctly, but I have a choice to control how I think and feel about the bad that happens to me.
I invite you to comment with your thoughts.
Ray Province
Ray Province is a retired minister and owner of The Celtic Ozarkian, a website that chronicles life in the Ozarks. He is an IT Programer by trade, and freelances in SEO, website developments, social bookmarking, and blogging on things he loves.
We find ourselves perplexed because of the classic contradiction of ideas that Leibniz call "the theodicy." I put the concept together this way: 1) We all taught that God is all knowing, loving, powerful, etc. 2) We find ourselves in a world of suffering. No matter what one's answer might be, this is the classic formulation of the answer.
Here are some of the classical answers to the question: 1) God is not all powerful, and does not have the ability to stop all suffering, 2)God is not all loving, 3)God uses suffering as a way to punish us for wrong doing, 3) a kind of theory of atonement, i.e. we must make up for our sins---and if we do not we are punished. None of these make anyone feel particularly good.
This is always made the most sense to me: 1)we have the freedom to choose, 2)God lets us "wrestle' with our proverbial "demons", even to the point of tragedy, 3) the world operates by a series of "physical laws' which cannot be changed all the time, 4)this life is not the fulfillment of my "existence; there is more to come.
So, I do blame humanity for the Holocaust. We could have done more to stop it. I do not blame God for the hurricane that destroys my home. That same hurricane is cooling global water tempuratures. I do blame myself for the bad choices I make. Finally, I deal with much suffering in this way: I have a choice not only to "act" correctly, but I have a choice to control how I think and feel about the bad that happens to me.
I invite you to comment with your thoughts.
Ray Province
Ray Province is a retired minister and owner of The Celtic Ozarkian, a website that chronicles life in the Ozarks. He is an IT Programer by trade, and freelances in SEO, website developments, social bookmarking, and blogging on things he loves.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Did Paul Found the Christian Movement?
I ran across an article recently on the apostle Paul. In short, the article contended that Paul may have had a bigger influence on the Christian movement than Jesus of Nazareth. Needless to say, the article got my attention.
This type of thinking about the role of Paul in early Christianity is not new. I have seen the same argument from Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and others from the so-called “enlightenment era.” I can even remember sitting in a philosophy class in college studying the same argument from a German philosopher named Nietzsche. If you are so inclined, do a Google search on the “historical Jesus” or “historical Jesus movement” and check out what they have to say on the matter.
There are several issues, which have been “branded’ to Paul, that help to keep this age old argument alive: the so-called anti female, anti marriage, anti gay, and anti Semitic movements. Almost all literature I have ever seen from someone with this sort of political slant will fall back on the teachings attributed to Paul for “biblical’ support of the cause. A second issue that has lasted through the years is the concept of “predestination.” This issue, steeped in the Pauline tradition, asks “how free will do I have to accept or reject God?” A third issues centers around the idea of human beings coming into the world as “sinners” from the get go. The original sin of Adam and Eve has left a mark on us all, and continues down through the ages via our progeny. Finally, the fact that Paul never spent time with Jesus continues to be a point of debate. As one might recall, Paul meets a glorified Jesus on the road to Damascus.
I think it is fair to say, based on the accounts we have, that Paul and the original twelve disciples did not get along well. I am not sure I would have trusted the sincerity of Paul conversion either! The stories from the book of Acts inform us that a “peaceful co-existence’ finally comes to fruition between the original twelve and Paul. This may be part of the reason that Paul becomes the missionary to the Gentiles. To me, this issue can be overplayed. If we do not wish to look to Paul for the answer on why the good news came to the Gentiles, we need only look as far as the folks with which Jesus interacted and ministered.
If you look at the writings left to us about early Christianity, you have to take Paul into account. There are 13 letters in the New Testament attributed to Paul (though most scholars today would tell you only 7 are Paul’s). We have none from the hand of Jesus himself. There is just a lot of stuff missing. Even Paul makes mention of other works that have not survived the test of time.
Given that, the letters of Paul are as close to Jesus as anything we have. The work in our canon of Scripture gives us the best look at the life and ministry of Jesus we have. I also try to remember that, like any good movement, thought and beliefs evolve over time. The early writings of Paul are very close to the stories told about Jesus in the gospels. I am not surprised that time allowed for fuller thinking, even in an educated Paul (take a look at Romans for instance.)
Like it or not, the gospel took root quicker in the outlands, in the Diaspora. The early Jesus movement took on a life of its own. To me, every person who help spread the news in this critical point in history is just as responsible for the shape of Christianity today. I would even contend that all of us in the 21st Century are doing the same thing. I think I’ll keep a spot in my heart for Paul, and pray the history remembers me as well.
Ray and Robin Province are the owners of The Celtic Ozarkian website, dedicated to issues surrounding life in the Ozarks. You can find us at: http://ping.fm/W0mRn or http://ping.fm/Js7VE
Ray is a retired minister who is currently an IT programmer in the healthcare industry, and freelances in SEO and website development. Robin is a semi retired ICU nurse who now works in coding and compliance in the healthcare industry. She is the co-owner of http://ping.fm/SdbiZ
This type of thinking about the role of Paul in early Christianity is not new. I have seen the same argument from Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and others from the so-called “enlightenment era.” I can even remember sitting in a philosophy class in college studying the same argument from a German philosopher named Nietzsche. If you are so inclined, do a Google search on the “historical Jesus” or “historical Jesus movement” and check out what they have to say on the matter.
There are several issues, which have been “branded’ to Paul, that help to keep this age old argument alive: the so-called anti female, anti marriage, anti gay, and anti Semitic movements. Almost all literature I have ever seen from someone with this sort of political slant will fall back on the teachings attributed to Paul for “biblical’ support of the cause. A second issue that has lasted through the years is the concept of “predestination.” This issue, steeped in the Pauline tradition, asks “how free will do I have to accept or reject God?” A third issues centers around the idea of human beings coming into the world as “sinners” from the get go. The original sin of Adam and Eve has left a mark on us all, and continues down through the ages via our progeny. Finally, the fact that Paul never spent time with Jesus continues to be a point of debate. As one might recall, Paul meets a glorified Jesus on the road to Damascus.
I think it is fair to say, based on the accounts we have, that Paul and the original twelve disciples did not get along well. I am not sure I would have trusted the sincerity of Paul conversion either! The stories from the book of Acts inform us that a “peaceful co-existence’ finally comes to fruition between the original twelve and Paul. This may be part of the reason that Paul becomes the missionary to the Gentiles. To me, this issue can be overplayed. If we do not wish to look to Paul for the answer on why the good news came to the Gentiles, we need only look as far as the folks with which Jesus interacted and ministered.
If you look at the writings left to us about early Christianity, you have to take Paul into account. There are 13 letters in the New Testament attributed to Paul (though most scholars today would tell you only 7 are Paul’s). We have none from the hand of Jesus himself. There is just a lot of stuff missing. Even Paul makes mention of other works that have not survived the test of time.
Given that, the letters of Paul are as close to Jesus as anything we have. The work in our canon of Scripture gives us the best look at the life and ministry of Jesus we have. I also try to remember that, like any good movement, thought and beliefs evolve over time. The early writings of Paul are very close to the stories told about Jesus in the gospels. I am not surprised that time allowed for fuller thinking, even in an educated Paul (take a look at Romans for instance.)
Like it or not, the gospel took root quicker in the outlands, in the Diaspora. The early Jesus movement took on a life of its own. To me, every person who help spread the news in this critical point in history is just as responsible for the shape of Christianity today. I would even contend that all of us in the 21st Century are doing the same thing. I think I’ll keep a spot in my heart for Paul, and pray the history remembers me as well.
Ray and Robin Province are the owners of The Celtic Ozarkian website, dedicated to issues surrounding life in the Ozarks. You can find us at: http://ping.fm/W0mRn or http://ping.fm/Js7VE
Ray is a retired minister who is currently an IT programmer in the healthcare industry, and freelances in SEO and website development. Robin is a semi retired ICU nurse who now works in coding and compliance in the healthcare industry. She is the co-owner of http://ping.fm/SdbiZ
Monday, March 2, 2009
How To Spend A Day With God
I wanted to share some information on how to spend a day with God. It is a plan for more than just a time of prayer. It is an attitude that can allow you to have quiet moments with God throughout the day. Here it is:
1. Thanksgiving
Begin with thanksgiving. Psalm 100:4 tells us, "Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise." Thank Him for His patience and forgiveness. Thank Him for the privilege of coming into His presence. Thank Him for what He has done in and through your life in the last year. Take time to list what God has done for you. Be specific. Think through every area of your life.
2. Confession
Ask God to search your heart. Psalm 139: 23,24 Confess any sins the Holy Spirit reveals. Psalm 19:12 Remember the certainty of forgiveness. 1 John 1:9 Make certain you are walking and praying in the Spirit. Ephesians 5:15-20
3. Praise
Become still before the Lord. Psalm 46:10 Consider who God is. Psalm 103 Praise Him for His attributes. Psalm 145 Rejoice in your fellowship with Him and that He delights in you. Proverbs 15:8 Read passages of Scripture and pray them back to God. Psalms 146 - 150 Sing to the Lord.
4. Intercession
Pray your way around the world with unhurried, detailed intercession for others. Ask God to reveal the world to you from His point of view as you read Psalm 33. Begin with your non-Christians, friends, relatives, neighbors and others the Lord puts on your heart. Pray that the people who have never heard about Jesus would have an opportunity to hear and understand the gospel. 2 Peter 3:9 Pray for those in authority - federal/national, provincial/state and municipal/county government leaders.1 Timothy 2:1,2 Pray for Christians ,using Paul's prayers in Philippians 1:9-11, Colossians 1:9-12, Ephesians 1 :16-19. "By intercessory prayer we can hold off Satan from other lives and give the Holy Ghost a chance with them. No wonder Jesus put such tremendous emphasis on prayer!" - Oswald Chambers
5. Personal Life Evaluation
Ask for understanding as you read an entire book of the Bible. Record insights God gives you. Ask God what He thinks of your life. Wait. Listen for His answer. Evaluate the use of the time, talent, treasure, education and experience God has entrusted to you. Are they glorifying to God? Do you need to change what you are doing? Discuss with the Lord your joys, your sorrows and decisions you are facing. Find promises and directives in the Bible which you can record.
"The greatest answer to prayer is that I am brought into a perfect understanding with God, and that alters my view of actual things." - Oswald Chambers
6. Concluding Your Day With God
Praise and thank God for the fellowship you had today. Schedule the next "Day with the Lord" in your appointment book.Share with someone about your day.
Ray and Robin Province are the owners of The Celtic Ozarkian website, dedicated to issues surrounding life in the Ozarks. You can find us at: http://www.celticozarkian.com.
Ray is currently an IT programmer in the healthcare industry, and freelances in SEO and website development. Robin is a semi retired ICU nurse who now works in coding and compliance in the healthcare industry.
1. Thanksgiving
Begin with thanksgiving. Psalm 100:4 tells us, "Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise." Thank Him for His patience and forgiveness. Thank Him for the privilege of coming into His presence. Thank Him for what He has done in and through your life in the last year. Take time to list what God has done for you. Be specific. Think through every area of your life.
2. Confession
Ask God to search your heart. Psalm 139: 23,24 Confess any sins the Holy Spirit reveals. Psalm 19:12 Remember the certainty of forgiveness. 1 John 1:9 Make certain you are walking and praying in the Spirit. Ephesians 5:15-20
3. Praise
Become still before the Lord. Psalm 46:10 Consider who God is. Psalm 103 Praise Him for His attributes. Psalm 145 Rejoice in your fellowship with Him and that He delights in you. Proverbs 15:8 Read passages of Scripture and pray them back to God. Psalms 146 - 150 Sing to the Lord.
4. Intercession
Pray your way around the world with unhurried, detailed intercession for others. Ask God to reveal the world to you from His point of view as you read Psalm 33. Begin with your non-Christians, friends, relatives, neighbors and others the Lord puts on your heart. Pray that the people who have never heard about Jesus would have an opportunity to hear and understand the gospel. 2 Peter 3:9 Pray for those in authority - federal/national, provincial/state and municipal/county government leaders.1 Timothy 2:1,2 Pray for Christians ,using Paul's prayers in Philippians 1:9-11, Colossians 1:9-12, Ephesians 1 :16-19. "By intercessory prayer we can hold off Satan from other lives and give the Holy Ghost a chance with them. No wonder Jesus put such tremendous emphasis on prayer!" - Oswald Chambers
5. Personal Life Evaluation
Ask for understanding as you read an entire book of the Bible. Record insights God gives you. Ask God what He thinks of your life. Wait. Listen for His answer. Evaluate the use of the time, talent, treasure, education and experience God has entrusted to you. Are they glorifying to God? Do you need to change what you are doing? Discuss with the Lord your joys, your sorrows and decisions you are facing. Find promises and directives in the Bible which you can record.
"The greatest answer to prayer is that I am brought into a perfect understanding with God, and that alters my view of actual things." - Oswald Chambers
6. Concluding Your Day With God
Praise and thank God for the fellowship you had today. Schedule the next "Day with the Lord" in your appointment book.Share with someone about your day.
Ray and Robin Province are the owners of The Celtic Ozarkian website, dedicated to issues surrounding life in the Ozarks. You can find us at: http://www.celticozarkian.com.
Ray is currently an IT programmer in the healthcare industry, and freelances in SEO and website development. Robin is a semi retired ICU nurse who now works in coding and compliance in the healthcare industry.
Monday, January 19, 2009
The Garden of Eden: The Doubting Thomas Theory
I have spent a considerable bit of time preparing a Sunday School lesson this week on the Garden of Eden. My inspiration comes from two sources: 1)The recent collector's edition, "Secrets of the Bible", from U.S. News & World Report, and 2) the even better book by Eric H. Cline, "From Eden to Exile." I do not intend to regurgitate them. Rather, they form the basis of this article. If you want to check them out, please do so. There are no "hyperlinks" here to follow!
There has been considerable effort placed into the task of trying to "locate" the Garden of Eden. There are many theories that can take one on a grand journey from the Nile River in Egypt, through Arabia, southern Turkey, Iran, and yes Iraq. On a wild ride, one could even come to Jackson County Missouri, not far from my beloved home in the Ozarks! Being Celtic in background, I personally would have placed the garden in Ireland!
As far as location goes, I have been quite fine approximating the location of the Garden somewhere along the path of what has been called "the fertile crescent." Cline makes some good argument to me for postulating the location there. Early archaeological evidence has shown us that this was one of the first places on earth to: domesticate animals, plants grain crops, develop towns and cities. Personally, I would also add the development of fermented beverages to the list, lest we allow the Egyptians all the credit!
At the end of the articles and book, we are left we the same question: "where is it?" As the old television commercial used to say, "the world may never know!" We simply cannot pin down the actual location of the garden with any certainty. Anyone surprised?
Why do we need to know "for sure?" It has nothing to do with "story" of the garden. Like many oral traditions, including modern ones, the story is a blend of myth and fact, pseudo evidence, that aims at making a point. In this case, we are to learn lessons about trust, relationships, truth telling, and the like. There is a lesson about "the sinful nature of humanity" here as well. We all have to face our Jungian "dark side." How did we get so sinful? Has God truly condemned us? These type of questions are the "meat and potatoes" of the story. I am not at all surprised that one can find parallels to the story in cultures all around the fertile crescent.
To need to "know for sure" that the garden existed is part of what I call a "doubting Thomas theory" to theological understanding and true biblical faith. It is as though we have this need to prove to the world that Christianity was right! Considering the fact that even Jesus did not convince everyone of his purpose, one may be in for long ride---trying to prove to the world the "truth' of the Bible, or the stories contained there in.
What is truth? Who is right? I am not qualified to answer that question. I can find enough source of truth, for me, in the what the ancient stories of the Garden of Eden are attempting to teach. One can learn much from history. After all, humanity has been making history for a very long time.
slainte,
Ray Province
Ray Province is a retired minister and owner of the The Celtic Ozarkian website. He writes on issues related to life in the Ozarks. He resides in Fair Grove, Missouri-the heart of the Ozarks. He is currently a IT programer in the healthcare industry.
There has been considerable effort placed into the task of trying to "locate" the Garden of Eden. There are many theories that can take one on a grand journey from the Nile River in Egypt, through Arabia, southern Turkey, Iran, and yes Iraq. On a wild ride, one could even come to Jackson County Missouri, not far from my beloved home in the Ozarks! Being Celtic in background, I personally would have placed the garden in Ireland!
As far as location goes, I have been quite fine approximating the location of the Garden somewhere along the path of what has been called "the fertile crescent." Cline makes some good argument to me for postulating the location there. Early archaeological evidence has shown us that this was one of the first places on earth to: domesticate animals, plants grain crops, develop towns and cities. Personally, I would also add the development of fermented beverages to the list, lest we allow the Egyptians all the credit!
At the end of the articles and book, we are left we the same question: "where is it?" As the old television commercial used to say, "the world may never know!" We simply cannot pin down the actual location of the garden with any certainty. Anyone surprised?
Why do we need to know "for sure?" It has nothing to do with "story" of the garden. Like many oral traditions, including modern ones, the story is a blend of myth and fact, pseudo evidence, that aims at making a point. In this case, we are to learn lessons about trust, relationships, truth telling, and the like. There is a lesson about "the sinful nature of humanity" here as well. We all have to face our Jungian "dark side." How did we get so sinful? Has God truly condemned us? These type of questions are the "meat and potatoes" of the story. I am not at all surprised that one can find parallels to the story in cultures all around the fertile crescent.
To need to "know for sure" that the garden existed is part of what I call a "doubting Thomas theory" to theological understanding and true biblical faith. It is as though we have this need to prove to the world that Christianity was right! Considering the fact that even Jesus did not convince everyone of his purpose, one may be in for long ride---trying to prove to the world the "truth' of the Bible, or the stories contained there in.
What is truth? Who is right? I am not qualified to answer that question. I can find enough source of truth, for me, in the what the ancient stories of the Garden of Eden are attempting to teach. One can learn much from history. After all, humanity has been making history for a very long time.
slainte,
Ray Province
Ray Province is a retired minister and owner of the The Celtic Ozarkian website. He writes on issues related to life in the Ozarks. He resides in Fair Grove, Missouri-the heart of the Ozarks. He is currently a IT programer in the healthcare industry.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Surviving the Food Budget
We wanted to share some ideas that can help beat the cost of groceries these days. I am not sure what you are seeing in your area, but lower gas prices have not helped the grocery bill any. The rising cost of food, blamed on the cost of transportation, was not changed. So, we have to be as smart as the food industry.
Grocery stores all over the Ozarks run specials on meat that will soon be out of date. It helps the grocery store contain their costs, and gives the buyer a good deal. How’s that for a new Celtic tradition? We see this all over Springfield, Missouri. I am sure you will see it in your neck of the woods.
Make a list of what you need for staples. Then add what you may need to make a meal of the sale meat. If we find chicken on sale, we have a plan on what meals to make from it. We do the same with pork and beef. It takes an extra minute or so, but it is worth it.
Consider adding in some meatless dinners. We like to do eggs and toast for dinner, once in a while. It is not very Irish, but it is very hillbilly! I suspect there are others that would join me in eating breakfast for dinner. Grilled cheese and tomato soup is another perennial favorite at the Province home.
Use coupons. They save money, if you shop with them wisely. In some stores, like our Walgreen Drug, you can get extra discount on the coupons.
Watch the grocery ads in your area. We recently needed some hamburger for a pot of chili, and had a range of $1.69 to $3.29 for the same 75/25 burger. Not a bad trade off, considering we routinely shop at both stores that represented the spectrum of price.
Look for discount days at your grocery store. One of our favorite stores offers 10% off the whole bill on Tuesdays for Senior Citizens.
According to some recent statistics I read, from the USDA, the average family with teenage children spent $602.80 per month on groceries, on average. I don’t know about you, but I want to keep all that I can. If this will not work, I want to get all I can for the money!
Slainte,
Ray Province
Ray and Robin Province are the owners of The Celtic Ozarkian website, dedicated to issues surrounding life in the Ozarks. You can find us at: http://www.celticozarkian.com.
Ray is currently an IT programmer in the healthcare industry, and freelances in SEO and website development. Robin is a semi retired ICU nurse who now works in coding and compliance in the healthcare industry.
Grocery stores all over the Ozarks run specials on meat that will soon be out of date. It helps the grocery store contain their costs, and gives the buyer a good deal. How’s that for a new Celtic tradition? We see this all over Springfield, Missouri. I am sure you will see it in your neck of the woods.
Make a list of what you need for staples. Then add what you may need to make a meal of the sale meat. If we find chicken on sale, we have a plan on what meals to make from it. We do the same with pork and beef. It takes an extra minute or so, but it is worth it.
Consider adding in some meatless dinners. We like to do eggs and toast for dinner, once in a while. It is not very Irish, but it is very hillbilly! I suspect there are others that would join me in eating breakfast for dinner. Grilled cheese and tomato soup is another perennial favorite at the Province home.
Use coupons. They save money, if you shop with them wisely. In some stores, like our Walgreen Drug, you can get extra discount on the coupons.
Watch the grocery ads in your area. We recently needed some hamburger for a pot of chili, and had a range of $1.69 to $3.29 for the same 75/25 burger. Not a bad trade off, considering we routinely shop at both stores that represented the spectrum of price.
Look for discount days at your grocery store. One of our favorite stores offers 10% off the whole bill on Tuesdays for Senior Citizens.
According to some recent statistics I read, from the USDA, the average family with teenage children spent $602.80 per month on groceries, on average. I don’t know about you, but I want to keep all that I can. If this will not work, I want to get all I can for the money!
Slainte,
Ray Province
Ray and Robin Province are the owners of The Celtic Ozarkian website, dedicated to issues surrounding life in the Ozarks. You can find us at: http://www.celticozarkian.com.
Ray is currently an IT programmer in the healthcare industry, and freelances in SEO and website development. Robin is a semi retired ICU nurse who now works in coding and compliance in the healthcare industry.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
What Do We Know About the Bible?
I was spending time this a.m. preparing a new Sunday School lesson, and thought this might make a good blog for discussion. What do we know about the Bible? It is fair to say that opinions and attitudes about the Bible have changed dramatically in my life time (the last 50 yrs., oh my!) Yet, belief in the Bible as "God's Word" remains very strong. Why?
1. Part of the answer to these questions comes from recent finds in the world of ancient literature. From the findings of the scrolls at Qumran through the great finds in Iran and and Iraq, we now have new information about the ancient Middle East. Further, those texts are starting to be translated--leaving us new "food for thought."
Biblical archeology has also been hard at work. We know much more about ancient cities, encampments, old battle grounds etc. Many of these finds help us understand that there are many historical places "that are actually there in all point of fact!"
Our attitudes about the Bible have also changed. As I went to seminary years back now, we were wrestling with "JEPD", the "death of God movement," "biblical, critical interpretation of the Bible", etc. One of my favorite seminary memories came from a day when a student asked my old New Testament professor why Paul was so hard on women, asking them to be quiet and subservient. She quoted the now infamous text in the book of I Timothy as proof of point. My professor's response: "Paul didn't write Timothy!" That was the end of the discussion. It was much later when she found out that he held women in high esteem! We just wanted to get on with the lecture!
2. So, how was the Bible created? Unfortunatetly, we will never know the full answer to this, because we don't own some original, ancient text called "The Bible." In actuality, the Bible is made up of a serious of "books" or "texts" that span thousands of years of ancient history. To make matters worse, we do not have original copies of any of these texts either! Budding archeologist unite! The quest continues!
We also depend on the "traditional interpretations" of the Bible for help to understand them. These stories and texts on "how to interpret" the Bible are critical to meaning. Modern scholarship tried to strip the old interpretive messages away, in order to find greater meaning. Hence, a new problem was created! Once stipped of any traditional meaning, the Bible became a "scrap quilt' of little pieces of text that shared little in the way of meaning. There was no great secret to "the meaning" that was found in Biblical, critical disection. The tradition came hand in hand with the texts!
3. So, who wrote the Bible? The answer is simple: a lot of people! Having said that, we ought to take note of some other points: most the so-called "authors" of the Bible were illiterate, and would have required help to write anything down. In addition, ancient cultures did not abide by our idea of "ownership." We copyright everything. Ancient cultures would attribute "authorship" to the main characters of a story! Whether or not a biblical character actually penned a story is irrelevant, from their standpoint! Finally, it also seems apparent to me that these ancient books contain actual, remembered "sayings" of the characters! So, that was another reason ancient cultures could have attributed "authorship" of a text to it's main character! "Who wrote it" is, at the end of the analysis, a rather hollow question to ask of any book in the Bible. The meaning is much more critical to understanding.
4. What does all this mean? Again, we are confronted by the "mystery' of Scripture in the asking of the question! Meaning is in the eye of the beholder! However, this is true only to a point!
Modern scholarship cannot, with any final authority, tell us what is "divine" or "not divine." That role cannot, and will never, belong to the field of modern academic research on the Bible. This role is left to the reader.
From the point of faith, we can also realize that the true authority and meaning of the Bible comes from a living God that reveals truth in the words written down. I don't intend to offend my brothers and sisters in the "biblical inerrancy" camp! Even if God dictated every word of Scripture to those who penned the words, it does not mean the reader would "get the message right!" Indeed, the Bible is full of stories of people who "just didn't get it!" You have to have a God behind Scripture, revealing truth, to help it make sense! No sense of modern scholarship can take this away either!
We also need the traditions of biblical interpretation to remain. We need these stories and lesson to help us make sense of the Bible. They are a package deal! To divorce tradition from Scripture is to risk being lead down paths best left untraveled.
That's what I need to "know" about the Bible.
slainte,
Ray Province
The Celtic Ozarkian
www.celticozarkian.com
1. Part of the answer to these questions comes from recent finds in the world of ancient literature. From the findings of the scrolls at Qumran through the great finds in Iran and and Iraq, we now have new information about the ancient Middle East. Further, those texts are starting to be translated--leaving us new "food for thought."
Biblical archeology has also been hard at work. We know much more about ancient cities, encampments, old battle grounds etc. Many of these finds help us understand that there are many historical places "that are actually there in all point of fact!"
Our attitudes about the Bible have also changed. As I went to seminary years back now, we were wrestling with "JEPD", the "death of God movement," "biblical, critical interpretation of the Bible", etc. One of my favorite seminary memories came from a day when a student asked my old New Testament professor why Paul was so hard on women, asking them to be quiet and subservient. She quoted the now infamous text in the book of I Timothy as proof of point. My professor's response: "Paul didn't write Timothy!" That was the end of the discussion. It was much later when she found out that he held women in high esteem! We just wanted to get on with the lecture!
2. So, how was the Bible created? Unfortunatetly, we will never know the full answer to this, because we don't own some original, ancient text called "The Bible." In actuality, the Bible is made up of a serious of "books" or "texts" that span thousands of years of ancient history. To make matters worse, we do not have original copies of any of these texts either! Budding archeologist unite! The quest continues!
We also depend on the "traditional interpretations" of the Bible for help to understand them. These stories and texts on "how to interpret" the Bible are critical to meaning. Modern scholarship tried to strip the old interpretive messages away, in order to find greater meaning. Hence, a new problem was created! Once stipped of any traditional meaning, the Bible became a "scrap quilt' of little pieces of text that shared little in the way of meaning. There was no great secret to "the meaning" that was found in Biblical, critical disection. The tradition came hand in hand with the texts!
3. So, who wrote the Bible? The answer is simple: a lot of people! Having said that, we ought to take note of some other points: most the so-called "authors" of the Bible were illiterate, and would have required help to write anything down. In addition, ancient cultures did not abide by our idea of "ownership." We copyright everything. Ancient cultures would attribute "authorship" to the main characters of a story! Whether or not a biblical character actually penned a story is irrelevant, from their standpoint! Finally, it also seems apparent to me that these ancient books contain actual, remembered "sayings" of the characters! So, that was another reason ancient cultures could have attributed "authorship" of a text to it's main character! "Who wrote it" is, at the end of the analysis, a rather hollow question to ask of any book in the Bible. The meaning is much more critical to understanding.
4. What does all this mean? Again, we are confronted by the "mystery' of Scripture in the asking of the question! Meaning is in the eye of the beholder! However, this is true only to a point!
Modern scholarship cannot, with any final authority, tell us what is "divine" or "not divine." That role cannot, and will never, belong to the field of modern academic research on the Bible. This role is left to the reader.
From the point of faith, we can also realize that the true authority and meaning of the Bible comes from a living God that reveals truth in the words written down. I don't intend to offend my brothers and sisters in the "biblical inerrancy" camp! Even if God dictated every word of Scripture to those who penned the words, it does not mean the reader would "get the message right!" Indeed, the Bible is full of stories of people who "just didn't get it!" You have to have a God behind Scripture, revealing truth, to help it make sense! No sense of modern scholarship can take this away either!
We also need the traditions of biblical interpretation to remain. We need these stories and lesson to help us make sense of the Bible. They are a package deal! To divorce tradition from Scripture is to risk being lead down paths best left untraveled.
That's what I need to "know" about the Bible.
slainte,
Ray Province
The Celtic Ozarkian
www.celticozarkian.com
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