A Woman Vice-President?

I'm hearing a lot of talk about John McCain picking Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate. Most of what I have heard seems positive, but I have heard some sharp critics to his choice also. Of course, prior to the Democratic National Convention, there was much talk about Hillary Clinton being the Democratic nominee for President, and then a possible pick for Vice-President with Barak Obama. In the process, other women were rumored to having been considered, but none made any real news as a serious candidate.

As a Christian, how do you feel about a woman President or Vice-President?

I observe through the Old Testament that almost every leader was a man. There were at least two times when God couldn't find a man who would stand up to the job, so a woman took the helm and did quite well.

In the New Testament, we see women in prominent roles more than once. Philip had four daughters that prophesied (Acts 21:9). That is virtually the same as a preacher, which is a positition of leadership. Lydia had a church meeting in her house (Acts 16:40). Although she may not have been the leader, she obviously played a significant role in the church's leadership.

The comments about Aquilla and Priscilla imply that she played a major part in teaching the Gospel. There are other situations where women played significant roles in the church and community.

Paul makes it clear, in I Timothy, that a woman is not to be an Elder (Biship, Overseer) in a church. He declares that an elder must be the "husband of one wife" (I Timothy 3:2) which rules out a woman in that position. He does mention women as "deaconesses" a little later in the same chapter, but the top leadership in a church is expected to be of masculine gender.

So how does that apply to our national government? What does that have to do with a woman Vice-President, or possibly, President.

There are women in top leadership in many companies across the United States and around the world. Several states have had a woman governor at one time or another. I can think of some churches that are more controlled by the women than by any men (including those who are supposed to be in leadership). I have known of women who are preachers, and quite good at it.

Is it possible that a woman could be in subjection to her husband as he is the head of the home and she could still be the President, CEO or hold some other major office in a company or government? It is being done in many places. Other countries in the world have been run at one time or other by a woman. So why could a woman not possibly be President of the United States?

I personally prefer male leadership, but if a woman comes along who is better qualified for the job, then I could see God putting her in a place of leadership and her being capable of being a good leader. I would be more concerned about her values than her gender. Does she honor God as God? Does she respect the teachings of the Bible? Is she committed to running the company or this nation according to God's absolute moral code of ethics? Those are the things that I think are most important, than whether she is a man or woman.

Restraint of Power

I was speaking to a Bible study group earlier today about the Passionate, Personal, and Powerful relationship that the Apostles had with Jesus and how we can build that same relationship through the Getting To Know Jesus Bible study lessons.

I recalled that when I was in college working on my Master's degree, one of the professors pointed out that God's greatest attribute is not His POWER, but His restraint of power. It became a very important point for me to remember as I continued to build my life in Him.

As we learn more about Jesus, we tend to grow closer to Him. This gives us power over temptation and sin. We gain the power to restrain the power to sin. We trade the power to sin, and the entrapment and consequences that it brings, for the freedom and hope that we have because Jesus Christ is living in us.

I pray that you will also build the power of Jesus in your life to overcome the temptations to sin and enjoy greater freedom in your walk with Him.

Worshipping People over Worshipping God

The Democratic Convention is now going on and many people are ascribing worth and value to Barak Obama. I'm not suggesting that they are placing him of greater value that God (although some most definitely are). But they are giving him recognition and a worth that may be more than he deserves.

Sadly, way to many of us, including Christians, ascribe worth to a human simply because they are a celebrity, athlete, politician or of some position that suggests a position of honor. While it is definitely appropriate to show respect and even recognize a person's accomplishments, we sometimes need to check our boundaries. At what point are we placing the worship of this person beyond what they really deserve? Don't worry, next week there will be many doing the same thing to John McCain.

My desire is that, while we recognize and appreciate people who have won gold medals in the Olympics, hold a high political office, have gained notariety in the entertainment or sports fields, we will not allow our admiration and recognition of their achievements to overshadow what Jesus did for us on the cross.

No one in the history of the world has done as much for all of mankind than what Jesus did when He paid the penalty for all of the wrongs that you and I have committed. No one is as worthy as worship as God, the Father, who accepted Jesus's death and offers forgiveness to all who will confess their belief that Jesus died for them and will seek to follow Him with their lives.

No sports figure, celebrity, national leader or businessman has done as much to impact the world as Jesus Christ. No government has as much power as Christianity does to change people's lives and control their behavior. No government has ever been able to silence Christianity either.

While we recognize those who have accomplished great things among us, let us never allow our appreciation of a person, sports team or anything else to take greater priority in our lives than the worship of Jesus Christ.

He love you soooooo much that He died for your sins too.

Thank You, Lord, for saving my soul!

Passionate about Jesus

We generally respect and even appreciate someone who is sincerely passionate about a cause. Although we may not always agree with them, we generally do respect them, unless their view is extreme and harmful to general mankind.

An positive example is the passion more and more Christians are getting for standing up for our faith in Jesus Christ. It is exciting to see Christians getting involved in community and shool issues to prevent those who promote evil from having free reign with their agendas. It takes guts, courage, conviction, and often the ability to get your views out in a clear and articulate manner to gain the respect of those around you. But when someone does stand up for Christ and Christian values against the tide, we admire them and are encouraged to follow, assist, support or become more like their example.

A negative example will be someone who is radically criticizing another person, putting them or an issue down without any balance or real thought about what they are saying. When someone engages in bashing (watch the coming elections), we tend to dismiss that person as a radical who does not have a real understanding of the situation. Unfortunately, I have done this on occasion in the past and I have to often witnessed other Christians engaging in similar behavior.

As Christians, we need to get serious about our relationship with Jesus. We need to tell the world what we stand for and why in a way that they will respect and consider our views. We can do that with passion without bashing, getting extremely emotional or radical in our comments.

The Apostles were passionate about Jesus. That is why we look up to them. Some of us have caught on and are likewise not backing down when the world says or does something that is a violation of what the Bible teaches. Some of us are even going into places where we can confront those who promote evil, engage them in intelligent debate and expose thier sinful agendas.

I pray that you will learn about Jesus in such a way that you will grow more passionate in your relationship with Him.

Recognizing Commitment and Hard Work

A couple of days ago, I commented on Michael Phelps setting 7 Olympic records and winning a record 8 gold medals. Although my point was correct, I should have given Michael more credit for the years of training, commitment and effort he put in.

What Michael has accomplished is phenomenal. I never intended to take that away from him, but here I want to commend him for it. He found something that he does well, enjoys doing and can use as a springboard to other great achievements in life. Whether he becomes a professional swimming coach, athletic coach, businessman or entrepreneur or whatever, he will do well because he understands the importance of finding your dream, working on it, believing in it even when you seem to be failing and not quiting.

The difference between a person who succeeds and one who fails is that the one who succeeds never quits. Zig Ziglar says that everything is worth doing wrong until you get it right. Michael didn't get eight gold medals four years ago when he first tried in the Olympics. So he went home, did some sizeable body and strength building, practiced harder and tried again. His name will go down with Mark Spitz and many others who have achieved because they didn't quit.

What's that to you? Everyone reading this blog has a dream. Some feel so defeated, or say it's too late, that you won't even try to achieve it. Some may try a little bit but not be willing to work hard enough to gain the reward. A few may get a lucky break and walk right into their dream. Some will find a new dream that is better suited to them than what they had sought before.

I will make one more truthful and very important statement. If your dream doesn't honor Jesus Christ directly or indirectly, it will matter little in what really matters in life.

I pray that you already realize the dream in you that God has given you. I pray that God will direct your path and that you will perservere to achieve the success that He desires for you and that you desire and deserve (by this world's standards). Most of all, keep doing it for Jesus.

Freedom of Religion - Not any more!

Our nation was founded on Christian principles. Our founding fathers cited that without a respect for God and the Bible, our government will fail. On that basis, they added the First Amendment to the Constitution.

The First Amendment says: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

Most Americans understand that Christianity is what has made the United States a great nation. If God is taken out of our nation, our freedoms will soon evolve into anarchy and chaos.

So what are these judges who are violating the First Amendment by telling medical doctors that they have to perform a proceedure that violates their strongly heald religious belief. Since when do these judges think they are God and that they have the right to tell these doctors what they can or cannot believe and practice?

If I were those doctors, I would immediately quit my practice and move to somewhere where I could continue to believe without some godless jurist telling me what I can or cannot believe.

As Christians, we are now being persecuted in the one nation that was founded "Under God". What should we do about this?
1. PRAY
2. Tell other Christians
3. PRAY
4. Write, phone, fax and email our legislators to stop this violation of our Christian beliefs
5. PRAY
6. Insist that our government give priority recognition to the rights of Christianity to make this a better nation.
7. PRAY

What are you going to do about this judicial violation of Christian teachings?

Evaluation of Rick Warren's Campaign Forum interview of Barak Obama and John McCain

Did you watch the campaign forum hosted by Pastor Rick Warren at Saddleback Church last Saturday? He asked Barak Obama and John McCain identicle questions in separate back-to-back interviews so we could see who they are, how they think and how they would lead our country.

I was very pleased with the civility under which the event was held. Barak Obama won the toss and got to be interviewed first while John McCain was contained in a "silent" room. After one hour, the two traded places and John McCain was asked the same questions. By doing this, they were not talking over each other, accusing each other or trying to tear one another down. They simply answered the questions aske them by Pastor Rick.

In watching the event, I felt that Barak danced around in answering a lot of the questions. Although he came out strongly for his faith in Jesus Christ, he skirted around issues that are of extreme importance to Christian voters. He tried to pretend he was pro-life, yet he confirmed his support for abortions. Other questions, he would qualify his answers. This isn't necessarily wrong, except that it appeared to me that he was trying to play both sides of the issue and not really take a stand for anything.

John's answers to the same questions were quick, sometimes only one or two words. He was strong in what he said and the only question he didn't give a direct and definitive answer to was the one which defined who was "rich".

Overall, those who watched got to see the different mind sets and personalities of the candidates. I'll leave it to the pollsters and the general election in November to determine the winner. However, I would much rather see this kind of campaigning than the "debates" or attack ads and negative campaigning that goes on the rest of the time.

May God bless our nation and give us a leader that understands right from wrong, respects God as the ultimate governing leader and will carry out Biblical principles in the governing of this nation!

Eight Gold Medals in One Olympics!

Michael Phelps is a young man of whom we can be very proud. He broke Mark Spitz's record by winning eight gold medals in one Olympic competition. The seventh one was most amazing (and the only one where he didn't set a new world record).

While Michael worked hard and perservered to become a better swimmer, and while he has achieved a very strong and significant place in history, sports, swimming, olympics and this world, it isn't the most important point of his life.

The one thing I haven't heard Michael talk about, but is far more important than all of the swim records that he will ever earn is his relationship with Jesus Christ. I don't want to take away from his accomplishments. I just checked Wikopedia and his official web site and was amazed at what he has accomplished. However, if Michael doesn't know Jesus Christ as his personal Savior, his accomplishments will disappear.

If, on the other hand, Michael does have a relationship with Jesus and is simply choosing to keep it low key, that is up to him. What matters is that his relationship with Jesus will last far longer than these records, the medals, even his life on this earth.

How about you? What is your relationship with Jesus? What are you doing to get to know Him and learn about His plan for your life?

Tolerance is Not One Way

I was thinking this morning about how there is so much talk about tolerance, especially of people who are living in immoral lifestyles and trying to tell us that we must allow them to openly recruit others into their immorality.

Isn't "tolerance" a two-way street? If you want me to tolerate you, shouldn't you likewise be willing to tolerate me? Yet, all of the press is that we must tolerate their immorality, but nothing is being said about tolerating our morality. In fact, we are being ostracized and even censored because we hold to a standard that says that sex outside of marriage is wrong.

Jesus never told us to tolerate anyone or any behavior. The Bible clearly states that we are to hate sin (but love the sinner). That means that when we stand up and speak out against immorality, we aren't against the people who do this, but only against what they do.

I am glad to see Christian organizations that are standing up to the ACLU and like organizations and proving that Christians have rights and are worthy of respect (and tolerance).

While we are on the subject, lets compare tolerance of Christians to tolerance of those who advocate immoral behavior.

Christians teach love, respect of others, obedience of the law. Christians teach that marriage is between one man and one woman and a lifetime relationship. God created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve.

Homosexuals are the number one perpetrators of pedophelia - the sexual violation of children against their will. Homosexuals spread sexually transmitted diseases. AIDS was initially introduced through homosexual activity. Open homosexuals are trying to destroy the institution of marriage and family in an attempt to free themselves from the guilt of thier immorality.

In the work place, homosexuals can be as good a worker as anyone else (except around children). If they were to keep thier behavior private (where it has been from the beginning of time), there would be a lot less problems. But since they want to tell me that I must tolerate them trying to teach my children and grand children to do what they do, I must likewise speak up and demand that the tolerate me telling them that they are engaged in immoral behavior and must not recruit anyone that I know into their self-destructive behavior.

God is the ultimate law giver. As Creator and Judge, He is the only one really qualified to determine what is right and what is wrong. If God says that marriage is between one man and one woman and sex is to be kept within the marriage relationship, then we are not to violate or try to disregard His standards.

We must work for ways to engage those who do not respect God's authority and help them to see that He has their best interests in mind.

I praise God for loving me and forgiving me of my past wrong deeds. He is willing to forgive you to if you will believe in Jesus as His Son and your Lord and Savior.

Dangers of Being a Celibrity

I just read that Victoria Olsteen was found not guilty of abusing a flight attendant several years ago. I am glad to hear this and trust that the courts sorted out and got to the truth in the matter. I'm sure Joel and Victoria are glad to put that whole thing behind them and go on doing what God has called and gifted them to do.

While I believe the courts did the right thing, this entire situation advises me and admonishes anyone of public recognition of who we are in God's grand scheme of things.

I do not know the details, but I do know that, because of the initial incident, Joel and Victoria left that flight and had to make other travel arrangements. This had to be very embarrasing to them as they are public figures and this is not how they would prefer to be seen in the public eye. Whether Victoria over reacted or was unprofessional in her behaivor is something only God can really determine.

I have seen situations over my years where other Christian public figures have been in situations that caused embarrassment, shame and a less than Christ-like image on the Church. Dr. Robert Schuller was in an embarrassing power struggle on an airplane about a decade ago. He later did acknowledge some degree of personal responsibility.

We can recall Jim Baker, Jimmy Swaggert, Jim Jones, David Karesh and others who have engaged in things that were less than how God has called us to live. Two of these have repented and been restored. Two took a group of people with them to their deaths. Either way, the name of Christ and the image of Christianity was tarnished in the public eye.

While on the one hand, we must realize that all Christians are still human beings with needs, faults and short-comings, we must also struggle with our personal lives to see that we live in accordance with God's Word and do not do anything that would bring shame on or discredit the teachings of the Bible and what Jesus did on the Cross for our sins.

The best part of all of this is that those who acknowledge their sin can be forgiven. God even extends His grace on Christian leaders who are well known. He can forgive them and He can forgive you and me when we slip in our public Christian walk.

I pray that you will realize the Power of Jesus Christ in you via the Holy Spirit to recognize tempatation and refrain from sin. That is the greatest power we could ask for and it is a powerful witness to others around us who are still learning to use that strength or waiting to discover salvation in Jesus so they can refrain from sin's trap as well.

God bless you and keep walking with Jesus.

Illegal isn't legal

You know, I'm having a bit of a problem with government officials and citizens that seem to think the illegal is okay (as long as you don't get caught). I just can't imagine that being right. I know Jesus would not approve of such an attitude.

Illegal is sin and wrong is still wrong whether you get caught or not. Wrong is still wrong, even if others are doing something worse. Wrong is still wrong, even if you can justify it because of some circumstance. No matter how you try to spin it, illegal is always illegal.

So what is our government doing not standing up against people who enter our country illegally? Why isn't our government not doing more to discipline, prosecute and punish government leaders who engage in illegal campaign fund raising, taking bribes, having sex with people to whom they are not married?

Is there an attitude that if I don't stand against this illegal function, I'll be be able to overlook or justify my own illegal behavior?

The solution is to put God back where He belongs, as God, loving Father, full of grace and mercy, yet exacting punishment on those who are unrepentant. When we make God who He is in our lives, we can find forgiveness for our past, power to stop the wrong behavior in our present and eternal life because we believe the Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins.

Meanwhile, it is extremely important that all who believe in God should stand up for what the Bible teaches. We must speak out against sin and get rid of any sinful behavior in our own lives. God has given us the power to resist temptation and refrain from sin. Lets do it His way and see how much better we can make this world.

McCain, Obama and Rick Warren

I've been loosely watching the election talk and wondering what the outcome is going to be. This Saturday, August 16th, Rick Warren, a very successful and world recognized pastor at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, is going to talk to each of the candidates back to back (but not together) for an hour each. He says he will be seeking to probe into their character and what kind of leader they will be as opposed to trying to expose their political philosophies.

I wonder what questions Jesus would ask Barack and John if He were to conduct the interview. Maybe that should be a question on the www.gettingtoknowjesus.org Discussion Forum.

1. I think Jesus would want to know what they believe about God and about Him. Do they recognize God as the supreme creator, power, law-giver? Or is God something other than that to them?

2. What do you believe about God? Is He a divine all powerful deity that we should respect and obey or a lesser power that should be allowed to influence us, but not have absolute control and authority, especially in regards to national and local government?

3. How do they see their job as President of the United States in regards to their beliefs about God?

4. What role will God and the Bible play in governing, making laws and legislating the affairs of the nation?

5. How do you see the authority of the Constitution in our government? i.e. Should we uphold it as written by the early American fathers or should we ignore it for today’s expediency or should we modify it to make it relevant to today’s culture?

6. Regarding the First Amendment, do you believe the government should have any business in regulating the church? Should the church be allowed to influence government? If so, what should its roll be?

I couldn't begin to imagine Obama's or McCain's answers to these questions and I have no idea what questions Pastor Rick Warren is going to ask. However, these would be some questions that I think would be worthy of asking.

What Gives Me the Greatest Joy!

I consider that I have a very special past. I was born and raised going to church by parents who did their best to model Christian behavior before me. I have been involved in preaching or some sort of volunteer ministry all of my adult life.

I discovered a deep feeling of significance when teaching an adult Bible study class several years ago. I had forgotten the joy of preaching that I had enjoyed back during my years in preaching ministry. I realized that my gift is teaching adults. My favorite topic is the Bible. More specifically, I enjoy the New Testament and especially the life and teachings of Jesus Christ.

I have considered that it has been a special privilege that God would call and allow me to write the Getting To Know Jesus Bible study lessons. Now I watch with anticipation as these lessons get into the hands of more and more people. Lives are being changed as people are developing a more passionate, personal and powerful relationship with Jesus Christ.

Heavenly Father, thank you for allowing me to serve You in the ways You have allowed. I pray that I may be able to touch and influence many others to follow You more in thier life as they are influenced by what You have called and gifted me to do for Your Kingdom. Bless all who read this post as they grow in getting to know Jesus.

A day of hope

I'm feeling hopeful today. I have done all I know to help you and others find the Getting To Know Jesus website and to encourage you to download the free Getting To Know Jesus Bible Study Volume 01. Now it is even more in God's hands.

I know that I need help in order to make this ministry successful. It is a God-sized ministry and I can't do all I need to do on my own. I am very thankful for those who have come along side and assisted in various ways. Some have donated money, many have donated services. Some have done work and are hoping that I'll eventually be able to pay them.

I have printed out about four pages of Scriptures that I read frequently to help me keep focused on the fact that God is in control. I pray in Jesus' name, trust and believe the promises, seek His guidance and direction and remember what He has done in the past. It helps me not loose hope in the midst of this stuff.

I pray that you will find a closer walk with God as you are Getting To Know Jesus.

It's All About Jesus

This is an opportunity to talk about all of the wonderful things that Jesus has done in our lives. We are here to worship Him.

We welcome observations about the life and teachings of Jesus from Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. I will share how He has touched my life and the lives of others I know.

Negative, hateful or disparaging remarks are not allowed here. Any such comments will be deleted.

Okay, let's start getting to know Jesus!

May God bless you as we launch on a new adventure growing closer to the Son of God who died on the cross for our sins.