Tag: star trek

Resistance is Futile

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Resistance is Futile

DSC_5964 The Borg, an alien species both cybernetic and organic,bent on the path to perfection assimilating species by going from one world to the next. This wasn’t done through peaceful means, more like universal destructive domination. You see the Devil isn’t to dissimilar then the Borg. While the Borg want perfection and are willing to gain it at all cost, the Devil wants total domination over all. The Borg use the tagline Resistance is Futile, meaning no amount of resisting will matter, the Borg will defeat any enemy and assimilate every race to add it’s biological and technological distinctiveness to their own. The Devil tries everything he can to draw us away from God. He tries to get the world to assimilate to his will. Like the villain Zod from superman, “Kneel before Satan” is what the Devil wants.

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As the world’s viewpoint has evolved, changed, we have become more open minded to horrible things, horrible ideals. Once upon a time it was unthinkable to divorce unless there was provocation. In ancient days a woman having an affair was punishable by death. A man could also be punished. Today, people marry and divorce like eating a piece of candy. People have a casual relationship with lies, and being faithful. Gang’s are on the rise, war within our own society is rising. There is rioting, looting, crime, and so much hate that this world is

Revelation 20:10 “And the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.” We know that in our case resistance is not futile. The Devil will try to fight and draw you away, but the truth is you have a choice. You have a choice to be apart of the resistance against the Devils attempt to take over and trying to achieve absolute power. Revelations 20:1-3 “Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended.” We know how the war will end, and we know that we have a choice. While the Devil will whisper in our ears and tempt us down a dark path, we must remain vigilant and continue to fight because we can. While Captain Picard is talking about his fight with the Borg and has his own personal vendetta against them, he made this speech, “We’ve made too many compromises already, too many retreats. They invade our space, and we fall back. They assimilate entire worlds, and we fall back. Not again! The line must be drawn here! This far, no further! And I will make them PAY for what they’ve done!” Don’t retreat over and over again. Stand your ground against the Devil and never stop.

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In the days of Rome, the Romans would invade new territory and would largely stay out of the inner workings of the new locations. The Romans would stay out of the affairs of the people unless it directly affected matters of state. The crucifixion of Christ was due to the Pharisees drawing false charges against Jesus. They gathers people by bribing them to come before Pilate and forcing the leader of the Romans in the city to choose death for Christ. Pilate wanted to stay out of the affair, but public uprising was a real threat to his power. Based on the decision of the people and only the people he allowed the people to choose death, and to kill Jesus instead of a known murderer and thief Barbarus. The Samarians however would invade countries and they would force assimilation of the new territory. They would force the women to marry Samaritan men and thus forcing compliance to change beliefs, and the children would be raised as a Samaritan child. Resistance is not futile however when it comes to our fight against the devil. We can resist, and we have our Savior to help us do that.

No matter how bad the odds look or how bad a situation may seem, God can get us through any hardships. Deuteronomy 20:1 “Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended.” Make sure you always stand tall, and be ready for anything. Resistance is not futile and you can always fight back, for as long as you draw breath, there’s always hope.

 

 

 

 

No Guts No Glory

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No Guts No Glory

Without risk there is no reward. Without storms there is no rainbow. Without winter there is no spring. Without the ability to scorch the fire there is no forging of steel. In order to build muscle you must work out, that process isn’t easy, it can be time consuming and painful. What about love? How do we move forward when we suffer that kind of loss of our spouse or family? In our lives we will loose people. It’s not a question of if, but when. Recently I was watching an episode of The Flash and I heard this quote, “You can either embrace the change and move forward, or fight it and get left behind” (The Flash) As much as change can be hard and even devastating at times, we must either embrace the fire, or allow it to consume us. When we suffer a loss of a job or a loss of a loved one, when plans change and we get hurt, we can only put one step in front of the other and allow the natural order to prevail. “Part of being human is learning how to deal with the unexpected… to risk new experiences, even when they don’t fit into your preconceptions.” (Geordi La Forge)

 When we try to understand the world, we must first understand and come to grips that the world is a much larger place we could ever know. We must understand that God is big and we are small. We must understand that the world is far greater in both directions we could ever see. When we look at our world, when we figure out life and that nothing happens without action. We cannot just sit by and pray things get better. We must learn to put boots on the ground. Ecclesiastes 11:4-6 “He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap. As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything. In the morning sow your seed, and at evening withhold not your hand, for you do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike will be good.” We must learn to get our hands dirty. The plants will not grow with just prayer alone, we must dig, and sow. Prayer that the roots take, and that water comes from the heavens. When I was in Iraq I often prayed that we would find the guy we were looking for, that being said we had to be the ones out looking. We need to take this into our lives. Ecclesiastes 9:7-14 “7 Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart, for God has already approved what you do.8 Let your garments be always white. Let not oil be lacking on your head. 9 Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain[a] life that he has given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun. 10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might,[b] for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going. 11 Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to those with knowledge, but time and chance happen to them all. 12 For man does not know his time. Like fish that are taken in an evil net, and like birds that are caught in a snare, so the children of man are snared at an evil time, when it suddenly falls upon them.” We must learn to take what we have in our lives and appreciate it. How often do we take for granted what we have? The grass isn’t greener on the other side. We saw what happened when the Devil tempted Eve to see what the grass was like on the other side only to find themselves removed from Eden.

The world we know has evils in it and we must watch for the snares that can trap us and prevent us from moving forward. Those snares may wound us and try to utterly destroy us, but when we are watching the world around us, and if we are paying attention, the traps might be revealed as more obvious. When the end comes for us all we will look back on our life and we will go over every good and bad decision we’ve ever made. When we get to the point of our own death it’s too late to consider our actions. We must try to better ourselves and work towards an end to every situation that would be pleasing to God. We won’t always succeed, and we will falter and make mistakes, but being a good Christian means owning up to them, and trying to make them right. It takes guts to stand up in front of others in the wake of our failings and admit to being wrong or falling short. To right our wrongs takes action, the true act of repentance. We must learn to embrace the now in order to ready ourselves for tomorrow. Just because tomorrow may not fit with what we want, or what we think we should have. Don’t allow our preconceived ideals blind us from reality. Sometimes people are mean and cruel, and sometimes they hurt us. It doesn’t always feel like a blessing, but in the end, it might turn out that way. Have patience to deal with the knocks and make sure your hands get dirty, and make sure your boots are on the ground, but never forget to pray. Praying is still always the best course.

Remember to always weigh your possibilities, and if the ends justify the means and they fall within biblical principles, anything worthwhile having is worth the effort to get there. If the juice is worth the squeeze then if you want the juice, start squeezing.

Kobayashi Maru

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Kobayashi Maru

The Kobayashi Maru is a training program for cadets in the Star Trek Universe during the time of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. The exercise in the words of Spock “The purpose is to experience fear, fear in the face of certain death, to accept that fear, and maintain control of oneself and one’s crew. This is the quality expected in every Starfleet captain.” The test at the heart is a no win scenario. The program adapts to every action and counter action leaving their no hope to save the ship, or your own. Thankfully when it comes to our souls we don’t have to worry about that, our eternal souls are safe and sound, as long as we play nice with others, and play by the rules.

Once we were a lost people, scattered, wandering aimlessly through life. Waiting for the day we would be free and united. This is of course what the people felt about 2000 years ago. When Jesus comes into the picture the people of the world couldn’t and didn’t understand the true nature of His presence, or power. Being a cleansed, innocent, sacrificial lamb He took the place of our sins and freed us from our eternal chains of bondage. I hear it all the time people say, “I just can’t win.” But the truth is, we already have. We’ve been given by the Grace of God the power to overcome those chains and we can if we choose rise up and be with our Father when the time is right. The problems we face are that of the world, but the world cannot take what has been given to us freely, not that we’ve earned it, nor do we deserve it.

As I was watching the season finale of Arrow (Spoiler Alert) Oliver decides not to kill Adrian Chase. He decided not to be a killer and find a better way. Earlier in the seasons Oliver would kill when he felt it was absolutely necessary and would deal with the consequences. By the end of Season 5 that notion was starting to go away and we see him start to change. Even when it seemed the Green Arrow was in a no win situation after working the problem he found another way.

Life sometimes feels like a never-ending battle to just stay afloat. We often say we had no other choice, and the truth is that’s probably not true. There are probably other options just ones we haven’t thought about.

 Luke 20:22-23 “Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or not?” 23 But he perceived their craftiness, and said to them,” This the chief priests believed to be the answer to their prayers, finally a way to trap Jesus in his own version of the Kobayashi Maru. If Jesus says simply yes, the Jewish people who resent being under Roman law could turn on him. If Jesus says No the governor would be notified, and he would be accused of sedition and rebellion. Instead of answering the way the priests thought he would, Jesus answered in a way that beat their no win scenario they cleverly crafted. Luke 20:24-25 “Show me a denarius.[b] Whose likeness and inscription does it have?” They said, “Caesar’s.” 25 He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” The crowds were in aww hearing Jesus actually admit to give to Caesars what was his. This won both sides of the fence, all except the high priests of course.

You can’t always be politically correct in today’s world. Sometime in the future you will say something that will offend someone else. It doesn’t matter how careful you are, or how Godly you perceive yourself to be, the nature of being a Christian is enough to offend some. The point is to not walk on eggshells every day, it’s to make sure you are loving one another, and being there to help others, not to drag down. “Some men just like to watch the world burn.” Alfred This being the case all we can do is make sure we are living in the waters of Christ and have faith that our path be made clear by the Lord. You may be placed in horrible positions of choice in your lives, but the key to success is to think about what God would have you do in each tough situation. Since we never walk alone there’s always another way.

Just as Cadet Kirk reprogrammed the test to make it winnable, Christ changed the rules to explain his viewpoint on the priests so called laws. By the nature of Christ’s death the rules were changed. Paying the bill for us so we could get into the long awaited club of heaven we now have the golden ticket, the washing of our sins and the everlasting love that so long as we follow Christ whole-heartedly we too shall enter the eternal paradise.

In our walk with Christ we will be put to the test, we may walk through the fire, we may have to endure many hardships, but remember when you follow Christ the old self dies. The stripping away of everything you’re not and leaving behind what you truly are. Have faith in that walk, and have faith that whatever you may be going through there’s a reason. Believe in those reasons and embrace them, think of them as a puzzle and an adventure to solve and make it through. As a man I love swords, I love a great many things about swords, but I realize to truly make a sword it needs to be heated, pounded, cooled, and repeating that process over and over the sword begins to take shape. Today’s test forge us for tomorrows battles.

 

 

Driving In The Dark

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Driving In The Dark

0445 hours, the road is dark, there’s no one driving, no one except me. The time between the stars and the sun has come. The headlights brighten the road, but just out of the beams are the things that creep in the dark. I can see raccoons, deer, skunk, fox, rabbits, and squirrels often on my early morning drive. Do we live our lives driving in the dark? Do we follow the barely lit road never knowing the next curve ahead, never seeing the dangers that lurk just beyond the headlights? Life in the fast lane, the lines go by as a blur. We’re blinded by the darkness. John 1:5  “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

 Some people think it’s hard to find God. Some people think the “rules” are to much to ask for. Every time I hear people say that being a Christian requires to much I always think of the quote from Scotty in Trek 2009 “The notion of transwarp beaming is like trying to hit a bullet with a smaller bullet whilst wearing a blindfold, riding a horse.” Really people, it’s not that difficult. There are 12 rules. That’s it. Doesn’t see so hard if you think about it like that. How many laws are there in the country that we have to obey? No one complains about having to uphold those laws, but the laws of the Bible are to many? Proverbs 4:19 “The way of the wicked is like darkness; They do not know over what they stumble.” No matter the road you’re on, no matter how far you’ve traveled in the darkness Jesus promised to shine the light on all the world and rid the world of darkness for all those who follow him. Isaiah 42:16 “I will lead the blind by a way they do not know, In paths they do not know I will guide them I will make darkness into light before them And rugged places into plains These are the things I will do, And I will not leave them undone.”

 We love the world, we love the sin, the gluttony, the sex, the drugs and booze, we as humans gravitate to sin. We as a people have become consumed with sin in our every day life we see it no matter where we turn. Sin has a particular hold on us, and it’s only with the power of Christ can we overcome it, move past it, fight back. John 3:19 “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.” Sin isn’t easy to fight back against, but when we lean on Christ it’s bearable. The light ahead of us gives us the one thing we didn’t have before Christ, and that’s hope. Christ’s blood gave us hope. The eternal storm we were promised has not been washed away, instead we still endure the storms of this world, but we now have that lighthouse to guide our ships by. Don’t let your ship get tossed in the waves, find the guiding light and push through the waves, the rain, the clap of the thunder, the dangers of lightning. Luke 1:79 “to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

 We don’t need to drive in the darkness. We only need to seek out the light and the darkness will fade away. No longer do we suffer forever, we have been given Hope. Finding hope isn’t has hard as people think it is. Finding hope is one step away, one selfless release, and pure surrender. Surrender unto the Lord and ye shall be rewarded. Where are you men and women of courage, it’s time to be courageous and surrender and fall to your knees with lifted hands.

 

 

 

 

Intruder Alert

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Intruder Alert

Asleep at night you are somewhere else. The quiet is loud in the middle of the night and a sound creek loudly nearby. You wake and you grab the only weapon you can find. You round the first corner bow drawn arrow at the ready. You pie the corner just like you were taught. You know the house. You hear a creak down the hall and as you’re accustomed to the low light you can see with very little radiance. The shadow of someone dances off the wall, you let the arrow go and it thuds as it penetrates the wall. The intruder stops dead in their tracks. You quickly load another arrow and draw. ‘Move and I’ll fire’ you yell. The intruder ducks back into the room. You back away from view. If they have a gun you won’t outshoot it. ‘I’ve called the cops’ you yell at the thief. The thief shoots a few times hitting the wall and you can hear the intruder running towards the door. You let them go, and then you call the cops. (A fictional story, events never happened)

It’s a horrible feeling thinking someone is in your house, or has been in your home. One of my favorite shows Star Trek The Next Generation often had the all-familiar intruder alert signal that would sound throughout the ship. How we know when an intruder is near, our gut, our senses, our memories. A few months ago I walked into my home and put my stuff down, loved on my dogs, and then I realized something was wrong. Something had been moved. Red solo cups were on my oven. My heart sank. Who’s been in the house? I started to franticly search my house. Who would break in here, on my birthday never the less! As I became the detective I found several things that had been moved or tampered with. I found a mess in the bathroom that we won’t discuss, and I found items from my freezer had been consumed. I quickly learned whom it was by the physical evidence left behind. The reason no forced entry was found was because there wasn’t any. An agreement was made and broken. The feeling of betrayal and violation was overwhelming. Why would someone do this, I asked myself. One lesson I’d learn that night of my birthday was the Devil doesn’t care about boundaries, the Devil will break through, and break in, anyway He can.

The Devil wants you to fail. He wants to show God that his children will hate and forsake him. The Devil will come in and as long as we are watchful be an unwelcomed intruder. 1 Peter 5:8 “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” We sadly listen to the Demon sometimes. We fall for his tricks, and we allow ourselves to be tempted. Genesis 3:1 “Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” Satan skulks around taking shape after shape to lure you away from safety. Job 1:7 “7 The LORD said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Satan answered the LORD, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.” He tempted Jesus after 40 days in the desert. The truest form of resistance is scripture. Learn it, and use it often. Luke 4:12 “12 Jesus answered, “It is said: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test. 13 When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.”

 Sometimes however we open the door for the Devil to come in and have tea with us. We allow the Devil to come in, to rummage through your things, get to know your family, and make Himself right at home. We don’t always see the Devil in disguise. We don’t always realize that the actions we take are exactly what the Devil wants us to make. When we invite the Devil in and we start to destroy everything around us, it’s amazing we don’t see it when everyone else does. The blinders the Devil throws on us are powerful. We as spectators can only hope that sooner rather than later, the people we love who’ve fallen victim to the Devils attacks come to their senses and realize their vessels been hijacked. Don’t lower your shields and never drop your guard when the Devil is prowling around. Make sure you are aware when the Devil starts to target you. Try and recognize the warning signs. In the words of one of my fictional hero’s, “Red Alert, Shields Up!” Captain Picard

 

 

The Lost Toy

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The Lost Toy

The toy was new and shiny. The girl who first got this toy love it, treasured it, played with it and kept it for many years. The toy felt loved and needed. The toy noticed over the years it was played with a little less as time continued on. The toy would sit on the shelf longer, until eventually the toy couldn’t remember the last time it had even been touched. The toy felt sad wondering what happened. Why didn’t she come around anymore, why didn’t she play with me anymore. The toy felt horrible just sitting on the shelf gathering dust. The amount of time the toy spent alone went on with no attention was incalculable.

Lonely and alone the toy began to feel nothing. The emptiness the toy felt drifted from emptiness to darkness, and eventually nothing at all. Years would go by and the toy motionless now covered with years of dust the memory of being loved was now almost a dream. Had it actually happened, had the toy actually been played with ever, or was it all just an illusion? The toy wrestled with itself for a long time about its purpose, it’s self worth. The questions would plague the poor forgotten little toy for another few years.

One day the toy found itself in a box, the box was in a car. Where am I going the toy asked? What’s going on the toy said afraid of knowing the truth. The box was taken from the car and placed in the intake room of the local thrift store. There the box lay and the toy waited in the darkness. The toy didn’t wait too long before the light shined through and soon the toy was picked up by a nice older lady. She cleaned the toy up, got the years of dust off and the toy was placed on a shelf right out in front.

It wasn’t more then a day or so before the toy was found by a nice little girl. She picked it up and hugged it close. She begged her mom for it and finally her mom acquiesced. The little girl quickly fell in love with the toy. The toy felt new, revived, and full of joy. Finally the toy thought a fresh life, a new life. It was great to be loved again. The toy no longer felt worthless, the toy no longer felt alone and abandoned. Why didn’t the first little girl want me anymore the toy thought. What happens when this girl doesn’t want me anymore? Will I be abandoned by this girl too? Quickly the toy felt sad. The girl played with the toy every day, yet the toy wasn’t ever satisfied with its new life. Sad and guarded the toy remained.

The girl still loved the toy very much even after several more years. The toy never felt as happy as it once did. Once hurt, once betrayed, once left for dead and forgotten the toy never fully recovered. It enjoyed the time with the little girl. The toy was carried through elementary, kept up and cleaned, adored through the time in high school, and even brought onto college. The toy held on waiting still for day the girl would leave it. The day however never came. The girl loved the toy so much that one day the toy was passed on to the girl’s daughter. The toys care was continued through the daughter. A long happy life the toy should have had.

When we don’t let go of our past what is to be done with you? Proverbs 17:22 “A merry heart doeth good [like] a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.” We must learn to let go of our pain, never to hold onto the anger and fear it leaves behind. The pain will never leave completely, but the scars on our hearts can be used as a reminder not of the pain, but that of survival. No matter the good and bad we face we must understand that our story isn’t done being written. We mustn’t pretend to know and understand the workings of God behind the curtain. Romans 12:12 “Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;” We must always rejoice in the grief and the bliss we feel because in all times the God of all watches over us and all we care about. John 16:22 “And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.” Even though the now might feel forever, the now might feel crushing, we must always remember God will never leave us nor forsake us. If someone decides to leave you, or abandon you, do not put your faith in other people. Put your faith in Christ only. Your self worth must never rely on others. Your happiness should be with God and God only. It is in God that today’s suffering can be removed, and more importantly the suffering of this life when it’s time will pass away. The love of Christ and his perfect Passover sacrifice ensured for us to be able to live a Holy Happy life in eternity. No one can take that from you. Not a parent, not a wife, or husband, not your children, no one but Satan can take away your joy, and Satan can only take away what you allow to be taken. Do not allow Satan to tempt you or pull you away from love. Trust in your Lord the giver of all, and trust that when one love falls away, open your heart to love again. Nothing happens without purpose or reason. I’m sure at some point we’ve all felt alone and lost, forgotten, abandoned by those whom we’ve loved the most. Don’t let your heart be hardened by the decision of another. Don’t let yourself be drawn into the lies of Satan that no one will ever love you as much, want you as much, or give you as much pleasure in your life. Do not find meaning in the hands of others. Satan wants you to doubt yourself, He wants you to question your worth. Once those thoughts take hold there’s no telling how much damage the Devil can do. You are special because God says you are. Praise God because if someone doesn’t want you, know God does, and it’s that person’s loss. For each Yin there is a Yang. For each Bonny there is a Clide. For each Romeo there is a Juliet. When Satan starts to gain ground fall back on one of the greatest fictional characters of all time. Captain Picard. “We’ve made too many compromises already to many retreats. They invade our space and we fall back, they assimilate entire worlds and we fall back. Not again, the line must be drawn here, this far, no farther.” Give the Devil an inch, he’ll take a mile. Don’t fall for the tempters tricks and deceptions. Have faith that God may allow someone to walk away from your life, but in God’s time His will, will be done. We must love ourselves and when we show God what we can handle,  only then when we show God we are worthy of such gifts, when it’s the right time, God will grant us our desires, when and if it’s for our good. Don’t let heartache hold you back from living. Don’t let anything hold you back from living and loving for God!

Breaking Beyond The Past

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Breaking Beyond The Past

A little boy grows up without a father. He’s different then other kids. He has a lot on his plate at a young age but manages to find a way to suppress it. As the kid grows up he suffers much and every day it feels as if the weight of the world is pressing onto his shoulders. What if that past was no longer the weights they once were?

A friend told me recently that a day will come when I can’t let the pain of the past dictate my future any longer. It’s ironic how many times I’ve seen something about someone’s past controlling them today. In my favorite show Arrow the main character Oliver Queen found out some disturbing information about his father. The main antagonist tries to drudge up the past and prove the past not only defines us, but also forces us to repeat the sins of our forbears. Later in an episode of The Flash, Barry Allen’s memories are wiped. He is found to be a happier guy because the pain and suffering of his past no longer haunt him. Joe his foster dad said something along the lines of, without his 28 years of experience he isn’t the same person. In the words of Captain Kirk “Damn it Bones, you’re a doctor. You know that pain and guilt can’t be taken away with the wave of a magic wand. They’re the things we carry with us, the things that make us who we are. If we lose them, we lose ourselves. [to Sybok] I don’t want my pain taken away! I need my pain!” One thing I’ve learned is when you see those kinds of things they aren’t coincidental; they are the little things God puts into our path to help guide us. What does it mean to truly put the past behind you? What do we do when we have to push that pain and darkness behind us?

The darkness within our lives is just as important as the light. We cannot be who we are without the joys and pains in our lives. We cannot be who we are without both because it’s the trials we go through that teach us the most about who we are. Sometimes a tragic event can freeze us in time. Breaking out of that gelatin can be a struggle. Much like quick sand the more we struggle to get out the deeper into despair we sink. So what does it take to drastically alter a persons mindset? More often I’ve found it takes a drastic event to plunge us into despair and something drastic to bring us out. When the world seems at odds with us what gives us the hope and strength to keep moving forward. For me a major life altering event occurred and at the same time I had a come to Jesus moment. Romans 8:17-18 “17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. 18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” We suffer today because we are told we would. Knowing we are going to suffer on this world, doesn’t mean it’s easy to bare. 2 Corinthians 1:5-6 “5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.”

We often search for a higher understanding when we hit our lowest. The key to happiness is to search for that understanding even when things are good also. Ecclesiastes 7:14 “In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also hath set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him.” It doesn’t matter who are parents are, or who they aren’t. It doesn’t matter what horrible things our pasts represent or the horrors in our nightmares, what matters is what we choose to do with our tomorrow. We can choose today to let the past go, and make our tomorrow a wonderful new you. There’s no time like the present to drop the weights off your shoulders and let go of those chains that hold you back. That doesn’t mean that your past won’t always be with you, it just means you won’t let the past dictate terms for your future. In your life you may have encountered people who were naysayers, told you you’d never make it, told you you weren’t good enough, smart enough, pretty enough, and in every way taught you were weren’t enough. This is a lie and it doesn’t matter who says it, it’s the Devil speaking. Psalm 139:13-16 “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”

 We may loose our Canary, but in time, perhaps a new one will take up the mantel of the mask. Lovers can become enemies and friends can become nothing. Strangers can become friends, and unlikely acquaintances can save our lives. In God all things are possible, and all things are possible in time if it’s Gods will. Never forget to pray before every decision and in all things give God the glory.

Set Sail

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Set Sail

When the wind is right and the waters are up for change, that’s when it’s time to raise your sail and head off for new horizons. With your compass to the ready let the winds take and guide you. Change can be a great thing filled with new adventure. It can be hard to expect good things when the change is unexpected. How do we know what star to sail by? How do we know when it’s time to set forth the sail and let the wind guide you? When life changes and it doesn’t feel like home anymore, when you feel like the wind has turned against you and your fighting the head wind, it’s time to set a new course. John 3:8 “The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” It is that Holy Spirit that can guide you in the changing of the winds. The foundation to which we must forge our faith, our temperament, our adventures must be set in stone of the Father. Matthew 7:25 “And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock.”

No matter where the winds take us hold your foundation, know where your northern star is and no matter the pleasant wind, or the winds of storms, you will always find your way. Let God guide you and have faith to sail into the horizon and the wind of God shall take you where you’re supposed to go. Have faith in your own faith, have faith in God and with the wind at your back you will be taken to where you need to go.

It can be a scary thing to venture out on your own, alone. Imagine the first of the Apollo mission that set ‘sail’ for the moon. With every adventure there are set backs. Apollo 1 had the fire on the launch pad. Apollo 13 had an O2 canister explode on route to the moon. The Challenger exploded just after launch, and the Columbia exploded in reentry, all of these tragedies could have changed our space program, we could have canceled the space program but it didn’t. We didn’t let the winds of resistance slow us down, so we cannot tuck tail and run when things get hard for us either. The NX-01 Enterprise in the Star Trek Universe was the first warp 5 ship in the fleet and was making history with every light year. Don’t let fear force you to alter course. Batten down the hatches and hold on to the rail when things get rocky. We may not always be prepared for everything that comes, but overcome and adapt. Keep the faith and keep your heading.

The Reflecting Pool

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The Reflecting Pool

In our walk with Christ we should be seen as a Christian by what we say and do. Our actions for Christ should speak loudly as the kind of person we aught to be. When we look into the reflection pool we should see Christ looking back at us. Although the reflection of Christ in us will never be without its ripples, we can try to do the best we can. 1 Corinthians 13:12 “12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.” As back in the days the New Testament was written, mirrors weren’t what we think of today. They were polished steel so the reflection was a poor distortion of truth. What Paul was saying in this passage was he is a reflection of Christ, but in no means perfect. Proverbs 27:19 ”As in water face reflects face, So the heart of man reflects man.” Our reflections of Christ will never be perfect, but it’s important to see when someone is going through the motions of Christ, or if they truly live it. As it states in Proverbs, you cannot judge a man by what you see on his face, you must see in their heart the true intentions.

If you are going to be a disciple of Christ, you must learn to show from the heart, and not just on the surface. ‘Don’t try to be a great man. Just be a man, and let history make its own judgments.” Zefram Cochrane It may sound like rhetorical nonsense, but the fact is, great men are often not truly seen for the good they’ve done till after they are gone. Live your life in Christ and try every day to be as close to His reflection as we can get.

Just because it’s old doesn’t mean it’s broke

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Just because it’s old doesn’t mean it’s broke

Isaiah 54:17 “17 No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, And their righteousness is from Me,” Says the Lord.”

The arrow is one of the oldest ways to hunt yet we still use it today. A projectile (bullet) has hardly changed at all in nearly 200 years. The guns themselves, though they look different, the ergonomics have made things more comfortable, haven’t changed in functionality. The Brownings .50 cal machine gun, didn’t go through any changes till just recently. For so long the gun didn’t have any alterations despite being as old as it was.

Luke 5:36-39 “36 He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it on an old garment. If he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old. 37 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. 38 But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. 39 And no one after drinking old wine desires new, for he says, ‘The old is good.” Jesus isn’t saying that new things aren’t good, what he’s saying is just because it’s old doesn’t mean it doesn’t have value.

Where do we find our valued items? Do we discard the things we have that we stop using; do we discard things even if they can be fixed? Do we place value in things of old?

Many in our society today feel that Christianity, or religion in general is an antiquated idea, that has survived far longer then it should have or needed to. Many feel that religion though once held a valid purpose no longer holds the same function of the days when forward thinking was considered witchcraft.

It’s amazing; recently Nintendo released the NES classic. This is a system that’s based on 25-year-old tech, but we still love it today. No matter how old our faith goes, it has survived the passage of time. Faith springs eternal. Faith James 1:5-8 “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all [men] liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. 8 A double minded man [is] unstable in all his ways.”

 In Star Trek TNG ‘Relics’ Scotty is found alive and well by the crew of the Enterprise 1701 D. As he struggles to find his place on a ship nearly 75 years into the future he and La Forge quickly realize that just because something’s old, doesn’t mean it can’t be useful.

Scotty: Maybe so. But when they can build ships like your Enterprise, who’d want to pilot an old bucket like this?

Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge: I don’t know. If this ship were operational, I bet she’d run circles around the Enterprise at impulse speeds. Just because something’s old doesn’t mean you throw it away.

 Before you pass judgment on something old, remember, look beneath the surface, dig round a little, you never know what kind of treasures might still exist. As for Christianity, well the biggest treasure of all, eternal salvation.