The Next Chapter

This time of year many families are celebrating with graduates who have successfully completed high school or university. There is a wonderful sense of accomplishment for both the student and the families as a significant milestone has been achieved.

Schools are important. They work with the parents to teach youth to be productive and responsible members of society. However, there is something being unquestioningly taught that can undermine our children’s belief in the existence of God.

Today the theory of evolution is pervasive in our society. Where Christianity is forbidden to be taught, evolution can and must be taught. Parents need resources to help their children avoid falling into unquestioningly believing the godless theory of evolution.

This week Canada and the United States celebrated important national holidays. For Canada, July 1 is Canada Day, which celebrates the anniversary of the 1867 enactment of the British North America Act (also called the Constitution Act f 1862). This is a day that is frequently called “Canada’s birthday.”

July 4 is Independence Day, a federal holiday in the United States that commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Again, it signifies the official birth of that nation.

The eyes of millions of people have been on the FIFA World Cup. Some have taken time off from work to be able to watch all the games. There have been exciting plays in many of the matches to keep the fans interested.

The Bible has much to say about athletes. We, as Christians, are told to run the race. Scriptures refer to boxing as well. Sports can teach many lessons including endurance, fair play and teamwork.

Earlier in some of the games, there was talk of players faking injuries. However, this week there was a more significant incident as Uruguay’s Luis Suarez appeared to bite Italy’s Giorgio Chiellini. After the incident, Suarez held his mouth as if he was hurt when he accidentally bumped the other player. A few minutes later, Uruguay scored a goal and Italy was no longer a contender for the World Cup.

Did you ever want to be able to juggle? Have you ever admired a juggler? Most of us have tried juggling at one time or another. Some have even been able to become fairly proficient at it, but most of us haven’t been willing to put in sufficient practice to be able to do so.

Even so, we find ourselves constantly juggling our schedules with work, family and other commitments. No wonder so many find themselves burning out. It seems impossible to do everything that we need to do in a given day. Finding the proper balance between all the things we have to do and want to do is difficult. In fact, we tend to take on extra duties because it is hard to say “no.”

The Feast of Pentecost

The Feast of Pentecost is nearly here for this year- June 8. This is the third of seven Holy Days of the Bible that are observed annually. These Holy Days were established with a view of the harvest seasons of the Middle East (Leviticus:23:9-16[9]And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,[10]Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest:[11]And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.[12]And ye shall offer that day when ye wave the sheaf an he lamb without blemish of the first year for a burnt offering unto the LORD.[13]And the meat offering thereof shall be two tenth deals of fine flour mingled with oil, an offering made by fire unto the LORD for a sweet savour: and the drink offering thereof shall be of wine, the fourth part of an hin.[14]And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor green ears, until the selfsame day that ye have brought an offering unto your God: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.[15]And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete:[16]Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the LORD.; Exodus:23:14-16[14]Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.[15]Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:)[16]And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.).

This particular festival is the anniversary of the giving of the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai. But, Pentecost is also the anniversary of the giving of God’s Spirit as described in Acts 2. So, on this important festival, we humans were not only given the law but given the potential to understand the spiritual intent of God’s law and the capacity to apply it through the power of the Holy Spirit.

There is increasing concern over the growing trend for teenage boys to access pornography online. The non-profit organization MediaSmarts recently conducted a survey of students in all provinces and territories that included questions about sexuality. Around forty per cent of the boys admitting to looking at pornography online. About one-third of them said they did so daily while another third said they did so at least once a week.

This trend is especially alarming when these young people are developing their ideas of what is normal and appropriate behaviour in relationships. Of course, the concepts they acquire at this age are likely to continue for a lifetime.

If you have been following the Daily Bible Reading schedule, you will have been covering the very difficult trials that Job went through. He lost family, wealth and then, finally, his own health. It is hard to imagine anyone living through as many calamities as he did.

His friends tried to advise him and even seemed to blame him for his trials – thinking he had done something to warrant them. To make matters worse, Job’s wife, instead of being supportive, suggested that he should just curse God for his hardships and get it over with.

This week, Canada mourns the death of one of its literary giants. Farley Mowat died on May 6 – a few days short of his 93^rd birthday.

He was known for his many stories that were somewhat autobiographical and endorsing  environmental concerns. Some accused him of exaggerating the facts and he acknowledged that his writing style was somewhere between fact and fiction. One thing is for sure – he often inspired passionate debate and controversy and got people talking about nature.

This week was sobering as I visited a lady from our church in hospital as she had only a few hours to live. Of course, the family was devastated by the news. Then, just a few days later, the family found themselves having to attend a funeral and burial.

Life, even a long life, transpires ever so quickly. We are never really prepared to let go of a loved one. When that loved one is a parent, it seems that our own mortality becomes much more real. When it is a child, a parent wonders why it couldn’t have been him or her. Whether the person who dies is young or old and whether the death is sudden or long in coming, the result is always a shock and creates great sadness for family and friends.

This week is the week of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. An increasing number of Christians are observing this festival as they follow the example of Jesus Christ. We first see this special occasion being observed when the children of Israel departed from Egypt and had to do so speedily, giving no time for their bread dough to become leavened.

Are the Biblical festivals listed in Leviticus 23 still applicable today? We can see several Scriptures in the New Testament showing Christians continuing to observe this festival. Paul uses the symbols of unleavened bread observance to get across to the Corinthian church that they were sinning.