Month: June 2019

Preparing to Travel

Posted on by Karyn Jeffrey

While I write this post I am in the midst of preparing to travel. Beloved Spouse and I are taking a road trip to see our Granddaughter dance “on pointe” in a grand end-of-year production of The Wizard of Oz. We will stay and help with family projects and enjoy the exuberance of the Ballet Girl’s four brothers, two dogs and 19 chickens. What a fun week it will be! Then our trip will take us to a family celebration of a great nephew’s recent marriage. The gathering of family we rarely see will no doubt be a joyful time.

Preparing for this travel has me making lists to ensure that all of what should be in our travel bags, in the camper’s kitchen, what should be prepared for Mother and the house left behind is fully thought out. This planning for the immediate future is important. What shoes will be needed for the ballet performance and the wedding party? What attire is appropriate for helping wrangle children and chickens and assist with yard and house projects for a week? What details about food in the freezer and notes reminding about yard maintenance should be made for short-term memory-challenged Mother?

Do you know where you will spend eternity?

This puts me in mind of all our lives. We should be preparing for our biggest trip of all. The destination will determine what we do to ready ourselves. So what is your eternal destination? Heaven? Hell? Those are the only two choices for every human being.

Destination: Heaven

If you intend to spend eternity in the presence of the Almighty and Holy God, you must prepare on His terms. First you must have your “ticket” and “passport.” There is only one way to Heaven. Because we are all sinners and separated from our Creator, we may only approach Him if we bow in humility and repentance before Him. He has provided a way for us to live with Him forever, but the “ticket” isn’t automatic. If you know and believe that Jesus– God enrobed in flesh– came to earth, lived as a true man, died under the wrath of the Father in place of us for our sins, was buried and is now raised to life, you may have eternal life in Heaven with Him.  This is the only valid “ticket” to the presence of God and Heaven.

Once you have your “ticket” your preparations will be an ongoing process. But don’t worry. The Spirit of God who lives in the one who embraces Jesus will be sure that soul will be clothed appropriately. You will have the robes of Christ’s righteousness and the shoes of peace. (Philippians 3:9, Ephesians 6:15)

You won’t have to worry about food or drink. Jesus declares and provides Himself as Living Water and the Bread of Life. (John 4:13-14; 6:35)

The trip may be rough. There are likely going to be some tumultuous times and difficult places on the “road.” Your route may take you past perilous ravines that threaten your faith in God. But He is watching over you and calling you onward to Heaven’s gates.  You may think you’ve taken wrong turns and are alone in a deserted place. But God is there and Jesus has promised never to leave or forsake you. (Hebrews 13:5) And just like He promised the thief on the cross in their dying hour, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”(Luke 23:43) Jesus will see you all the way to Heaven.

Destination: Hell

If, however, you decide to go to Hell, don’t worry about taking Jesus’s claims seriously. He says, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” (John 14:6). You can just go into eternity on your own. No problem. You–your own self– is the goal, right? “I’ll do it MY way.” No need for this “Jesus is the only way” idea.

That way you don’t have to worry about a thing. No God, no light, no comfort. Just yourself for eternity. (That equals pure misery for eternity, I think.)

There isn’t much to pack since you came into the world naked and will leave it naked. (Job 1:21) “Nah,” you say. “God will let me into heaven. I’ve been pretty good. He’s a God of Love, isn’t He?” But be reminded, that there is only one Way to Heaven: Jesus. All your good works will stay right here. Utterly useless as a way to get through the “Pearly Gates.” God does not grade on the curve. He has a definite requirement for entry into heaven that is non-negotiable. Believe in Jesus, be born again and enter Heaven, or ignore God’s offer of salvation and inhabit Hell for eternity.

Maybe you’ve talked yourself into thinking about eternity later. If that is the case, my advice would be to work hard now to get great clothing and accumulate lots of “cool” possessions and spend every moment of your life relishing them. You need to be sure you have every delight and comfort you can possibly gather. Enjoy them as much as you can. One caution, though.  Be prepared to leave for Hell at any moment. God is the One who decided the day your birth and He is the one who has set the day of your death. Remember His warning to the rich man who was deciding to pull down his barns and build bigger, better ones: “But God said to Him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you’ and now who will own what you have prepared?” (Luke 12:20) Meanwhile, just drift on a river of hedonistic pleasures. Don’t worry about eternity.  It will get here soon enough. Or more likely sooner than you expect.

Prepare to travel! Know your destination! I’m praying you will be sensible and talk with God about your eternal destination. Only He can affect where you go. On your own, you are bound for Hell. If you turn to Him His grace will give you eternal life– in Heaven.

QUESTION: What preparations are you making for your eternal destiny?

And Then There is June

Posted on by Karyn Jeffrey

We live in a fallen world besieged by sin and ugliness. Putrid and wicked offenses to mind, heart, and senses threaten to overwhelm. And then there is June. That splendid month that parades her splendor with wild abandon. All the darkness of sin flies before the Light of the World.

Where I live the languorous days of summer stretch early and late. The birds sing before dawn and don’t stop until deep into the dusk. The elm tree sweeps its green swirl of petticoats in the wind. The peonies and iris suffuse the air with fragrance that catches and intrigues me. It is so tantalizing that I want to breathe in deeply — and keep breathing in forever so as not to lose the sublime joy of their perfumes.

Wandering through the dappled light of our backyard the marvels of God’s creation sing from every shrub and plant. The purity of the daisy, the delicacy of the delphinium, the buxom peony’s voluptuous spilling over the wired support all declare the Creator’s awe-inspiring glory.

Our garden sings of its Creator! What a joyful song!

June seems like the one time of year that our hearts threaten to burst with an irrepressible bubbling inner joy. The lavish display of God’s glory to be seen in our own yards and parks are but a small part of His glorious universe. Consider the pleasure of gazing at a full moon on a summer night. The air is cool, the breeze is gentle and the world is silent. But the works of God produce a majestic symphony for the heart that will listen.

I love to gaze at the night sky and remember anew how great is our God.

Rejoice with me and savor the month of June. Turn your heart to the One who made this expansive peek into the coming glories of Heaven.

Praise the LORD! I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart….Great are the works of the LORD: they are studied by all who delight in them. Splendid and majestic is His work and His righteousness endures forever.   Psalm 111:1-3

QUESTION: What in God’s creation causes you to pause and praise Him?

Envelope Inspiration: A Stamp Starts It All

Posted on by Karyn Jeffrey

Today I have created a decorated envelope that draws its inspiration from a stamp. With a season of events that need decorated envelopes to carry the greetings, I’ve been using the opportunity to work at my art and make memorable greetings. “Decorated Envelopes” for a friend who has had surgery, a cousin who is having a birthday and a great niece who is graduating from college—what a fun way to play in my studio! The stamp, and sometimes the commercially made card design itself, inspire my envelopes. Watch this short video to see one “happen.”

Decorated Envelopes ready to send

I’m using gouache paint which is an opaque watercolor. The stamp I am inspired by is one you can get from the US Post Office. If it isn’t available at your PO, go online to  https://store.usps.com/store/results/stamps/_/N-9y93lv     You can order stamps and they are delivered right to your mailbox. How cool is that?

Hope you enjoy the video.  Now, I’m off to shower and prepare for a graduation celebration.

https://youtu.be/VZQ2uV-w424

Question: What stamp can inspire you to create a decorated envelope for someone special in your life?

The Source of Evil

Posted on by Karyn Jeffrey

A few nights ago Beloved Spouse and Dear Mother and I shared dinner with some close and dear friends. Our conversation ranged over many things. Then, the question was raised,

“If God is sovereign, where did evil come from? Give me Scripture to prove whatever you say.”

This tough question comes just as I am beginning to read a book called None Greater: The Undomesticated Attributes of God, by Matthew Barrett. (Baker Books ISBN -10:0801098742  ISBN-13:978-0801098741)

What an interesting confluence of ideas and questions! The conversation and the book started me thinking and here is what I believe might be the answer to the question and the connection to the book. (Just a note: I haven’t finished None Greater and so am not ready to give it my hearty approval, but so far, it bodes becoming one of my favs right up there with Knowing God by J.I. Packer. (ISBN- 10:083081650X    ISBN-13: 978-0830816507) This one is SO wonderful. I urge you to read it!)

DEFINING GOD

Barrett posits that we “modern” Christians tend to look at God’s attributes from a human-ward angle. He says we look at God

“in a very experiential way: love is a common human experience, so God must be a God of love, mercy is a commendable virtue, so God must be a God of mercy; and so on. Thinking about God was always from the bottom up—that is, from my experience to who God is. But with the help of Augustine and Anselm, that approach now seed dangerous, always flirting with the possibility of creating a God in our own image, always defining God’s attributes according to our own limitations. What was so different about the God of Augustine and Anselm was that they first though of God as one who is not like us. They started from the top (God) and then worked their way down (to humanity). They moved from the Creator to the creature. And this approach seemed far more aligned with the way the biblical authors approached God. As David says, “For with you is the fountain of life; in your light do we see light” (Ps. 36:9).       Matthew Barrett, None Greater, p. 8-11

Barrett proceeds to unpack our understanding of God and His attributes by laying the foundation that “God is someone that whom none greater can be conceived.” He goes on to show that God must be the most perfect Being. Every attribute which we ascribe to God is gathered into penultimate perfection. So there is absolutely nothing greater or “more” than God. His immensity in every aspect is incomprehensible to us. We are barely able to describe or line out any aspect of Him in even the most rudimentary way, let alone to exhaustion.

THE ALMIGHTY AS CREATOR OF EVIL

So if we confess that God is indeed the Supreme Being, we will have to wrestle with the question posed by my friend.

“If God is sovereign, where did evil come from? Give me Scripture to prove whatever you say.”

I’ve dragged my memory for Scripture that would answer. My trusty concordance yielded some very interesting passages. Let me try to put them into a coherent case for my still nebulous opinion that God is the Creator of evil.

I am beginning to say this because I believe to the core of my being two things: 1) that Barrett (along with Anselm, Augustine and Aquinas) is right:

“[God] is, without qualification, without reservation, the Supreme being, the fullness of Being itself.”    None Greater, p. 54.

And 2) that God is the only source of all things–there is nothing outside of Him. If that is so, we may not say that “God is not the author of evil. He only permits it.” To say that is a logical fallacy. To posit that evil arose from some other place leaves that glaring question that brings the very essence of God into question. So the assertion stands: God created evil. God uses evil to accomplish His purposes. God will do away with evil at the end of the ages.

But we are outraged at the idea that God created evil. I believe our outrage stems from our finitude.

What are your limits? What are you capable of?

We simply cannot conceive of a Being so utterly “Other,” so utterly beyond our comprehension that He is able to be perfect, pure, and holy and yet be the author of the heinousness of evil. But Scripture tells us that God, the vast and inscrutable Other, in His complete perfection does create and use evil. His very “vastness” and being so far beyond our comprehension makes it possible to say that He has created and uses evil. But how? I don’t know. And why? I don’t know. As I dug through my concordance I found Scripture that seems to answer the “why”. The “how” is not ever likely to be comprehensible to me.

SCRIPTURE SHOWS GOD AS CREATOR OF EVIL

Beginning in Genesis 2:9 we hear that God created the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Obviously evil must have existed before the Creation and before the Fall. Nothing exists that He did not create.

“For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. Colossians 1:16

I ask you, what does all mean?

What does the word “all” include? Exclude?

In 1 Samuel 16:14 the story of King Saul proceeds with the sad but stunning statement that “the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD terrorized him.”

The prophet Jeremiah speaks on behalf of the Holy One, “I am bringing disaster on this people… because they have not listened to My word, and as for My law, they have rejected it also.” (Jeremiah 6:19) Jeremiah speaks for the Divine Potter (there’s a vivid picture of God’s sovereignty!) and declares on His behalf to His rebellious people, “Behold, I am fashioning calamity against you and devising a plan against you…” (Jer. 18:11) God is the One who will bring down, destroy and deliver calamity as He sees fit—to judge sin for both time and eternity.

Amos the prophet asks in Amos 3:6 “If calamity occurs in a city has not the LORD done it?”

“Hold on”, you say. “The Bible says “God’s eyes are too holy to approve (look on) evil.” Yes, it says that in Habakkuk 1:13, but let’s look at that statement in context. Go back to verse 6 in chapter 1 and see that God, speaking through the prophet Habakkuk, describes the Chaldeans (a powerful pagan nation) as a tool He is raising up. They are “fierce”, “imperious”, “dreaded and feared” enemies that “swoop down to devour” and “they come for violence”. With no break or equivocation, Habakkuk says “You, O LORD, have appointed them to judge and You, O Rock, have established them to correct. Your eyes are too pure to approve evil and You cannot look on wickedness with favor.”  The people of God have been wicked and rebelliously turned from God so He is warning them of His impending judgement of them. He cannot and will not look on evil in His people. However, He will use evil to deal with His people. The evil that He brings on them will humble them in repentance to their knees before Him. He will use evil to root out the evil of their (and our) rebellion.

The story of Job with the catastrophes, tragedies and sufferings that befall him are all a result of God, the Almighty One, giving satan permission to use evil against His beloved Job. Satan does not stand separate and co-equal to God. He is a created being as incapable of ex nihilo (out of nothing) creation as any angel or human. Satan did not invent or create evil. Humans did not invent or create evil. God, in His incomprehensible power, His unfathomable plan, and His inscrutable wisdom, has created evil and uses it as His tool. He is working all things for good for those He loves. (Romans 8:28)

How does evil do that? I don’t know. But I do know that God is the Creator of all things. “For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for him.” Colossians 1:16

CONCLUSION

I say that God, the Holy One, has created evil I say He uses it according to His sovereign purposes. I make this assertion with great trembling. I do not want to call good evil or evil good (Isaiah 5:20-25). There is divine woe pronounced on any who are “wise in their own eyes.” So if I am wrong, and I easily could be, I pray, “LORD, have mercy and forgive me for Jesus’ sake. Turn my eyes deeper into Your Word to see Your truth.”

QUESTION: What do you think about where evil comes from? Do you think your view of God has any influence on your opinion?