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Wednesday, April 08, 2015

WOYWW: The Ancient Paths

 My table is rather small,
and it's always filled up with things 
I have to sweep away when I paint or draw.
Today is no different.
My sister Tina returned from Japan with a motley collection
of washi tapes for me.
I decided I better start using washi tapes 
for anything and everything!

 Started with wrapping up an old bottle. 1/100
Ha ha! #100daysproject  #The100DayProject on IG

"Why are you weeping?" John 20:13
After reading the four Gospels' accounts of the resurrection story, I find it a little hard to put it all together in one cohesive story.
But that is not surprising considering how sometimes there are so many versions of one story depending on who is telling it. What is different about the Gospel story is that women are the primary witnesses. During those times, woman could not even appear in court as credible witnesses, so if the Gospel story was just made up, as some believe, the writers would never have used women as witnesses.

In the 20th chapter of John, after Mary Magdalene had gone early to the tomb while it was still dark, and had seen that the stone had been rolled away, she ran quickly to Simon Peter and to John to tell them. Perhaps they hesitated, but they went. After seeing for themselves, that what she said was true, they went back to their homes. Isn't that strange? They did not try to investigate, they did not look for any signs around the tomb, they did not look for anyone to ask. They just left. They were still in their "fear" mode. They had assumptions about what happened, and did not want to interfere. Jesus, their leader was dead, they did not want to be connected to Him any longer.
But Mary, Mary wanted answers. She stayed. She did not want to leave until she had some clue to what happened. Aren't women like that? We can't let go. We like to solve things, until we sometimes become busybodies!!! But this time, Mary gets her reward. Jesus appears and asks why she is crying. And then she recognizes Him and she is filled with joy!

 Let us not be afraid to cry. Pope Francis said that sometimes tears are the lenses we need to see Jesus. Recalling the story of Mary Magdalene, the Pope said, “let us ask the Lord to give us the grace of tears — it’s a beautiful grace” — and ask for the grace “to be able to say with our lives, ‘I have seen the Lord,’ not because he appeared to me, but because I saw him with my heart.” Christian witness, he said, can be summarized as: “I live this way because I’ve seen the Lord.” (Homily about Forgiveness, April 2 at the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae)

"Were not our hearts burning inside us as He talked to us on the road and explained Scriptures to us?" Luke 24:32

If we could choose to be a participant at any of the bible stories, this would be one of my choices.  It is amazing to me that Jesus chooses to teach these two disciples, "interpreting for them EVERY passage of Scripture which referred to Him, beginning with Moses and all the prophets" (v.27).  

Who were these men? Were they important?  Were they going to be mighty evangelists? Were they going to write one of the Gospels?  We know that one of them is named Cleopas, and from early writings, a historian noted that Cleopas was a brother of Joseph, husband of Mary.  But there is nothing more. And nothing at all about the second man.  To me, the significant thing is that they were ordinary men. People like you and me.  They were leaving Jerusalem. Why?  Perhaps because it was too "hot " there for the disciples.  But Jesus joined them on their journey, and after He walked and talked with them, after He broke bread with them, they recognized Him, and they WENT BACK to Jerusalem.  


 It's a pity that they did not record anything of what Jesus said. It would have been fascinating, I am sure.  But I think we are supposed to go on a treasure hunt for those Scriptures that would point to Jesus.  If we do, our hearts will burn as well!  If it was all written down, it would just be ho hum, another lecture.  And Jesus did say something about not giving pearls to swine.  If we really seek, we will find.  We will find the treasures hidden in the Bible.  If we go through the journey from Genesis to the stories in the New Testament, we will find what Jesus thought was important for the two disciples to know. In Jeremiah 6:16, we can read: "This is what the Lord says: " Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls."  Yes, if we travel the ancient paths, we will walk with Jesus, talk with Him, and break bread with Him. Our eyes will be opened, and we will really know Him.  I think that is what Jesus wants for all of us!



Joining the lovely Julia Dunnit for a 
peek at desks and projects!
 
I find a lot of inspiration
visiting my friends here:

Blessings!
Patsy

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Monday, April 06, 2015

Inspire Me Monday: Claim Your Inheritance!

 "Lord, You alone are my inheritance, and my cup of blessing!" Psalm 16:5
There is literally billions of dollars of unclaimed money and property, stocks, insurance policies, and jewelry in safety deposit boxes around the world. Many people don't even know they are entitled to that money or property. I saw this TV show where they tried to contact people who had some money they knew nothing about. Depending on how much the money was, the reactions of the recipients were hilarious!
 Have we claimed our inheritance as children of God? It is worth much more than anything this world can offer! And it's not something we inherit only when we die. Christ gave us something of incredible value when He died on the cross for us, and it has our name on it! Our eternal life in God, starts in the here and now. The fullness of life we can have as His children is available to us, if we do our best to obey God, to be faithful. "Blessed are those who hear the word of God and obey it." Luke 11:28
 The angel said, "Do not be so surprised, You are looking for Jesus, the Nazarene, who was crucified. He is not here! He has been raised from the dead." Mark 16:6

The belief in the empty tomb, that Jesus rose from the dead is indispensable to being a Christian. If we don't believe that, we might as well not be a Christian. Very early on Sunday morning, the women went to the tomb, fully expecting to use the burial spices they had brought to put on Jesus' body. But instead they found that the stone had been rolled away. It was a very large stone, very heavy, and they discussed this puzzle for a while. When they went in, an angel greeted them and told them that Jesus had gone ahead to Galilee. "You will see him there, just as He told you!"

You can imagine how frightened and bewildered these women were. They were already in such a mix of emotions at what had happened to their beloved Jesus, and now this! Even the men dared not visit the tomb until the women told the implausible story of the empty tomb. They were all so afraid for their life, that this is proof that the story of the empty tomb is true. Why would timid, frightened people become suddenly so brave and committed, ready to face opposition from the powerful Roman leaders ?
"German theologian David Strauss first advanced a theory nobody has been able to refute since 1835. A person in Jesus' pathetic condition would never have inspired his disciples to go out and proclaim that He is Lord of Life who triumphed over the grave. They wouldn't have started a worldwide movement based on the hope that they too would have a resurrection body like His." (p. 271, Case for Christ by Lee Strobel)

Theologian Gerald Collins said: "In a profound sense, Christianity without the resurrection is not simply Christianity without its final chapter. It is not Christianity at all." The resurrection is the very basis, the very heart, the rock of our Christian faith. 

We celebrate that Jesus is risen, He is risen indeed!!!

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Friday, April 03, 2015

PPF: Prophet, Priest & Princess

 "Shall I not drink the cup the Father gave me?" John 18:11
"Are you not also among the disciples of this man?" the woman servant asked Peter. John 18:17
I cannot decide which verse to think about. Both speak to me eloquently. The first one tells me how in following Jesus, we too should go after God's will no matter the difficulty and sacrifice. The second verse shows that even if we desire to follow Jesus, even if we know Him intimately like Peter, there will be times that we will betray Him and say, "No I do not know Him!"

 The important thing is not to despair like Judas, but to repent, continue to drink of the cup, knowing that God will do what we can't. We need to always remember the scene in Mark 16:7, when the women could not find Jesus' body and the angel said, "He is risen. Go tell the disciples AND PETER that He is going to Galilee."
When we fail, we should never, never lose hope. God never gives up on us!

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me..." Luke 4:18
When we were baptized into God's family, and in the Holy Spirit, we were anointed with oil, and made one with Christ. We can say as He did in the temple, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; therefore He has anointed me. He has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives, recovery of sight to the blind and release to prisoners, to announce a year of favor from the Lord."
Have we taken this mission given to us seriously? Just like the apostles, we too are sent. The word apostle is from the Classical Greek word 'apóstolos' meaning 'one who is sent away'. We all share in Christ's threefold mission as priest, prophet and king.

As prophet, we are supposed to reveal God and speak to others about Him. We are His witnesses. As priest, we can intercede for others! We are mediators, a bridge between God and man.
As King, or princess, as I prefer, we are given authority over a territory. Jesus came to announce the Kingdom of God, so that God can reign in our hearts. Just as Jesus exercised His Kingship by serving, we too should have servant hearts.
Lord, as we come to the end of Lent, may we find renewed strength and power to serve You and remember that we share in Your threefold mission. Amen!

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Wednesday, April 01, 2015

WOYWW: That One is Me!

My work desk is a mess because I just went on a vacation,
and need to clean it up!
We went to one of the most beautiful places on earth-
My husband's hometown, Coron, Palawan, Philippines.
I am sure you would rather see a picture of this
rather than my desk!!!

This is the famous Kayangan Lake.
To see this view, you have to climb as high as 7 storeys of steps!!!
I made it!!!!
But there are many more views even more beautiful than this,
if you are willing to go farther.

 "Surely it is not I, Rabbi?" Matthew 26:25
In this version of Judas's betrayal, Judas stands out from the rest of the disciples of Jesus. During the Passover supper, Jesus said, " One of you is about to betray me." The disciples were naturally distressed by this pronouncement and one by one asked, "Surely it is not I, Lord?"

 When Judas spoke, he asked, "Surely it is not I, RABBI?" Judas saw Jesus as a teacher, just another teacher of the Torah. Maybe a charismatic one, but just a teacher. Most of the world sees Jesus as a teacher. The world claims Him as someone who was wise, who spoke with authority, someone who was good. But God? Lord? No way!

As we journey towards Good Friday and Easter Sunday, we need to confront our own beliefs about Jesus. Rabbi or Lord? We will see the answer in the way we live our life.

 "One of you will betray me!" John 13:21
How inconceivable is it that Judas, a man who had walked with Jesus, listened to Him, took care of his money, saw miracles, could betray Jesus for a measly 30 pieces of silver? 30 pieces was the cost of a slave! Would it have been more understandable if it was 3000 pieces or 3 million pieces of silver?
Like all of us, Judas Iscariot had preconceptions about Jesus. He probably thought Jesus would be the promised King of the Jews, who would save them from the oppression of the Romans. He followed Jesus maybe because he saw how popular Jesus was, and he believed he could profit from this as evidenced by the passage in John 12:6. "He was a thief who was in charge of the disciples' funds, and he often took some for his own use." Judas' heart was obviously calloused, self-serving. He was blinded by his selfishness from seeing who Jesus really was!

We too can be like Judas. When we fail to see Christ in others, we can easily betray them. When we have expectations about what a husband or child or neighbor should be and should do, and they fail to live up to those expectations, we can easily rationalize our own lack of love, compassion and service. I often judge people and get irritated with their inadequacies. I often forget to see others as God sees them. I often forget the Christ within each one of us. Yes, one of us betrays Christ, and that one is me!



Joining the lovely Julia Dunnit for a 
peek at desks and projects!
 
I find a lot of inspiration
visiting my friends here:

Blessings!
Patsy

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