jon mark music

sooo, this week i’ve been stuck on a passage…mainly due to my LAC K of time reading…but also because of the thought contained in just two verses…i’m reading in second timothy chapter two…i come to this little analogy of utensils and what they are used for and even why that is…check it out…

²⁰ In a wealthy home some utensils are made of gold and silver, and some are made of wood and clay. The expensive utensils are used for special occasions, and the cheap ones are for everyday use. ²¹ If you keep yourself pure, you will be a special utensil for honorable use. Your life will be clean, and you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work.

that’s nothing earth shattering really…especially with thanksgiving coming up…i can remember my grandma or my great aunt always having the big wooden box of silverware each year…polished to perfection of course…it was only brought out for the big holiday gatherings when the whole family was there…i get the point…

i guess the thing that is sticking out to me the most is that there is only ONE requirement given to be…

a special utensil…

if you keep yourself pure…that’s it…that’s the only instruction or requirement given…sounds simple enough right??? i mean there is only ONE step…and now that i’m a parent and have the great pleasure of putting together toys and children’s furniture…ONE step instructions are my kind of instructions!!!

but it’s really not that simple is it…there are sooo many aspects to the concept of being pure…in heart…in mind…in actions…in motives…and of course that one that will come to the mind of most reading this…being sexually pure…it really isn’t a set of ONE step instructions after all…

however it is still something that every follower of Christ should be striving for…every day we should be asking God to show us the areas of our lives that need some purifying…we should be allowing him to purify us…we should be seeking the help of other brothers and sisters in Christ…we should…

but do we??? do i???

i really don’t want to be one of  the cheap ones…i pray that you don’t either…sooo i ask you to seek God today and ask Him what areas in your life need His purifying…then allow Him to do just that…to make you…

a special utensil…

sooo, it’s that time of year again…everyone dresses up in some sort of costume and begs for candy…i must say it’s just quite annoying to me…especially when you have so many LAZY parents that drive from house to house as opposed to walking with their kids…i saw quite a bit of that last night!!!

but that’s not the point of this post…so i’m moving on…

in addition to the costumes…some various places will invite you spend money and walk through their “haunted” house, cornfield, or woods…and i’ve done that once or twice in my life…it can be quite the adrenaline rush!!!

but then there are religious organizations that do this as well…they get your adrenaline flowing…manipulate your emotions just a bit…and then they play the trump card…they try to…

scare the HELL out of you?!?

they present the Gospel…they tell you how Christ died for you and give you the opportunity to make Him your Savior…that way you will get to spend eternity in heaven…right!?!

i’ll be honest and say that this leaves a real akward taste in my mouth…i’m not so sure that i agree with the concept…but that’s just me…i mean i was even a part of a ministry team in college, where this was a BIG deal each year…SCAREMARE…and churches would bring their teens from all over…thousands would come through…it was insane!!!

but, it just doesn’t sit right with me…i think that is because we are called to make “disciples”…not just to get people to make a one time decision…not to mention that they are doing so while their emotions and mind have just been severely manipulated…but again, that’s just me…

sooo, i would be interested in hearing from you…what is your take on this…is it something that religious organizations should be taking part in…is it a tool for ministry???

can they really…

scare the HELL out of you?!?

sooo this morning i was reminded of something that i do…without really paying much attention…

i have this “thing” that i do every time i get a  cup of BEAN…i have to line things up…i line up the logo on the java jacket with the logo on the cup…then i line up the lid as well and make sure the hole i’m drinking from is directly above the center of the logos below…

odd…strange…maybe quirky!?!

my question is…what is it that you do…maybe on a daily basis…that is…

odd…strange…maybe quirky!?!