Reveration Blog
3/29/2013 Unwilling to GratifyMeditation
Mark 15:15—Then, willing to gratify the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. And after having Jesus flogged, he handed Him over to be crucified. 1/28/2013 Treasure HuntingIt was a bittersweet day. Although I earned my Expert Infantryman Badge (EIB) at Fort Benning, Georgia as a Second Lieutenant, I lost my West Point ring in the process. I have always thought it would be great to rent a metal detector and go searching for that lost treasure. The problem is, many decades later, I have no idea even what area to search!
12/6/2012 Bourbon St.Last week I stayed at the Crown Astor in New Orleans for a military conference. On Friday night I got almost no sleep. On the fifth floor near my room was a group of visiting university students. Evidently, the guys partnered with girls to drink and engage in loud and vulgar revelry. It saddened me to think how many parents don’t care or have no idea what their children are doing.
7/26/2012 GlueThe earliest known discovery of humans using an adhesive is linked to spear stone flakes glued to wood with birch-bark-tar found in central Italy. In Sibudu Cavein South Africa humans used compound glues from plant gum and red ochrethousands of years ago. Similarly six thousand-year-old ceramics show evidence of adhesives made from horse teeth. Native Americans of the eastern United States used a combination of spruce gum and fat to create waterproof seams in their birch bark canoes.[1]
1/14/2012 0 Comments Getting AwayMatthew 14:13—When Jesus heard about it, He withdrew from there by boat to a remote place to be alone. When the crowds heard this, they followed Him on foot from the towns.
1/1/2012 GenealogyMeditation
Matthew 1:1—The historical record of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham. Whenever I come to a section of Scripture that is a genealogy or a long list of names, my tendency is to quickly skim through it and move on. After all, why spend time reading a list of names? This year for my daily quiet time I decided to read through Scripture and include the study notes in my Holman Study Bible. I was quite blessed by what I learned about Matthew 1:1-17 which is the genealogy of Jesus Christ. 12/21/2011 0 Comments Kelcy's RescueMarvin Alan Klegman was an eleven-year old Jewish boy who lived in a small two-bedroom home in Tacoma, Washington with his mom and dad, and his younger brother Kerry. Marvin was a motivated Cub Scout and honor roll student. At Lowell Elementary School he served as a crossing-guard. Marvin also worked as a paperboy. He won a Schwinn bicycle in a citywide contest by selling the most Tacoma News Tribune newspaper subscriptions.
7/2/2011 WeddingOur garage is full of boxes and items that we will transport to Champoeg State Park. The weather forecast for Sunday is 72 degrees and cloudy—almost perfect! The kitchen is stacked with boxes of food, prepared and unprepared. Brenda, Kathleen’s sister, spent countless hours ironing tablecloths, dresses, shirts, etc. Orange and purple flower arrangements dance in their splendid array. Bridesmaids are making signs. Kathleen’s friends of countless weddings, veterans familiar in how these things go, are cooking, planning and helping us with all the logistical challenges (and I thought military exercises were complicated).
4/24/2011 Empty TombLike most Christians, we went to church this Easter Sunday. The pastor gave a message from John 20. His sermon was thoughtful and true to the Word but I left feeling something profound was missing.
10/30/2010 0 Comments LovemicChip and Dan Heath wrote a terrific book called Switch, subtitled, How to Change Things When Change is Hard. If you are a leader or a worker in an organization undergoing change, this is necessary read. Chip and Dan make a point that self-control is an exhaustible resource. They share an experiment that proves the point. Researchers divided college students into two groups and placed them in a room with two bowls: one contained chocolate and chocolate-chip cookies while the other contained radishes. One group could only eat the cookies; the other group could only eat the radishes. The researchers then left the room to induce temptation. Fortunately, all the participants followed the rules. Next each group received a series of unsolvable puzzles. The group that ate the chocolate spent nineteen minutes on the task making 34 attempts to solve the challenge. The radish eaters gave up after only eight minutes and 19 solution attempts. Why did this latter group quit so quickly? They used up self-control by not eating the chocolate!
10/24/2010 JupiterScientist Palmer Bailey, “the stars and rocks guy” airs a heavenly radio segment each week called The Northern Sky. In a fresh broadcast he shared that the planet Venus, after the Moon, is the brightest natural object in the night sky and is referred to as the “evening star.” Normally we see it in the southwest. However, as Palmer tells us, recently the brightest star in the sky has not been Venus but rather Jupiter. Once every thirteen months the earth passes Jupiter in its slower, larger orbit an event called “opposition” because Jupiter appears in the eastern sky exactly the opposite direction from the setting sun.
11/22/2008 Assurance of SalvationPerhaps one of our most unstated worries is that we might not get into heaven. Does this thought trouble you? I suspect the reason many Christians hesitate to talk about this is for fear of being thought less spiritual or identified as a doubting Thomas. Yet, before Christ came to earth, during His life in Israel and following His resurrection, people’s apprehension towards the afterlife has always been a real and meaningful dread. Read what Paul wrote to the Galatians in the verses of meditation below:
8/12/2008 0 Comments SlappedJoan did everything they asked her. She studied the courses her managers recommended she take. She volunteered for the hard jobs and endured great stress because her leaders believed in her. She won awards for her speaking skills and was recognized by her peers as a superior performer with dynamic people skills. Besides loyalty to her organization, Joan invested much personal time and resources to make the company’s work environment better. When it finally came time for a new human resources manager to be hired, she was sure the company would promote her to the position. But Joan didn’t know that one of the applicants was the owner’s niece.
7/17/2008 0 Comments Standing in GloryMeditation
Jude 24,25—Now to Him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of His glory, blameless and with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now, and forever. Amen. 6/18/2008 0 Comments IronmanOn the plane from Atlanta to Portland, I sat next to a salesman and a lawyer. We had a great time sharing stories, food and funny video clips during our five hour flight. Matt shared with us that he was headed to Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho to compete in the Ironman competition. On Sunday, his goal is to swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles and run 26.2 miles in 12 hours! We pumped him with questions and he shared his training regimen, thrills and spills in past competitions. And then he told us the secret to his perseverance.
3/21/2008 0 Comments Service III was driving behind a Metro bus on my way north on Interstate 5. On the back of it a neon sign flashed, Not in Service. The thought crossed my mind, “I wonder how many times I have communicated Not in Service to God or to people.”
4/12/2007 PropitiatorHe takes from the right hand of God the scroll, uniquely worthy to open its seals. Twenty-four elders fall down in reverence before Him while heaven’s halls reverberate with a new song sung in His honor. He was slaughtered yet He lives. Not only does He accomplish something no other person or god could, He extends the reality of God’s love to a world desperately intent on going its own way. This Hero is Christ Jesus and He is our Propitiator.
3/23/2007 0 Comments VodouAndre flew from Benin to join our First Cause team in Kenya. He is wonderful man who served for many years as a pastor before obeying God’s call to venture out in evangelism and a more open-ended ministry. Andre serves as the spiritual advisor to his nation’s president, a God-fearing leader. As such, God is using him to influence many important officials in his country. We were very blessed by Andre’s humility, contagious love for God, and the enthusiasm with which he embraced our disciple maker training.
12/7/2006 0 Comments FilledImagine you were stranded in a desert for a week eventually exhausting all supplies. Around the wadi comes a camel-striding stranger who sees your plight and says, “Here, let me help you.” He then pulls out a canteen and hands it to you. Grateful, you place the container on your lips and wait for life-renewing water. But the canteen is empty. “What kind of cruel joke is this!” you ask. The stranger smiles and says, “Ah, it is not the liquid but the thought of liquid that is sufficient.”
5/19/2006 0 Comments ContinueLacrosse is a rapidly growing sport in our community. Last year was the first year of its inception in Tigard for 6ththrough 8thgraders. Stephen got involved and is playing again this year. I’m enjoying helping coach his team. I’m quite amazed at how quickly the boys have advanced in their skills. And I’ve made a not so surprising observation. Those players who carry their sticks around constantly and work on throwing the ball and catching it against any available wall or with other teammates, are far more proficient than those who only pick up their sticks when required.
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Photo from Rachel Maxey Miles