COMMITTMENT AND TRUST

SOME PROBLEMS WITH DOUBT

     Some years ago, in a discussion that I had with my physician, I had said," yes, I realize continuing like that could mean an early death, but that's all right, I'm ready for death. For years, I preached that 'the next life is where we recieved our Christian reward ."

My doctor, who was an older physician, was known as a Christian. And he pretty much lived that way. He would also come out with the truth in any conversation, almost to the point of being abrupt. So I was somewhat surprised by his response to my statement.

He looked at me in a sidewise glance. "Yes, that's what we say, but deep down, we all have some doubt."

     Naturally, we may experience doubt occasionally. But, I believe, that's like experiencing temptation. It comes and it goes. I'm certainly no judge of this doctor . Perhaps, he only expressed some passing doubt.

     However, as I thought about his conversation and my own belief, uncertainty would certainly influence my own commitment. Personally, my desire had long ago focused on trusting and committing my life in Jesus Christ and following Him. This hasn't always been successful in following Him, because I often fail.  Obviously, there is a point of time when the rubber meets the road.  I
        In this life, just like the annual season, you will physically decay and grow old and die.  There is much to be said about the Fall season. In the Fall, there is the full mature growth of life--beautiful colors happens--you see some of the fruit of your labor, but now the very colors are the result of decay--the decisions have been made and there is no beginning again, and eventually this very colorful fall eventually ends.  Some winter seasons are hard and some not.
        However, what follows winter's dark cold season is the glorious Spring with its burst of life.
        Some ignore the fact of this hard season and do this in various ways, but that season will happen.  We used to prepare for the cold winter by going out and cutting wood for the warm fire.  Gathering fuel-wood for our fire was preparing for this hard season. So how do we gather fuel for this hard cold season today?  While some still gather wood most are saved from this labor by someone doing it for us, and we simply turn up the thermostat.
         Leaving the seasons analogy--the last season--usually the hard cold season is our death. It will happen!  But there is hope--just like preparing for the cold winter we need to prepare for it. How?
         This is not dependant on my goodness!  Praise the Lord my salvatiton is not based on my  failures or my successes.  "Not by works of righteousness which I have done, but according to His  mercy He saves us....that being justified by His grace according to the hope of eternal life." Titus 3:5-7 .  "God so loved the world(us) that He sent His Son to die for us...." John 3:16
        It's like that hymn: "What more can He say than that which He has said...." There is no other place to go--that's the truth.J
        You do need to turn on the heat--turn up the thermostat--accept God's love offering--accept Jesus Christ as your Savior.

DEALING WITH DOUBTS AND BELIEFs, AND COMMITTMENT

      The Gospels tell us the Jesus' first followers, including the apostles, certainly had doubt and disbelief.

The Gospels have a good account of this. In the 16th chapter, Mark tells us: "Mary Magdalene... went and reported to those who had been with Him while they were mourning and weeping. And when they heard that, He was alive, and had been seen by her, they refused to believe it." Verses 9 – 11

Luke 24:10-11, "Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James, also the other women with them were telling these things to the apostles. And these words appeared to them it's nonsense, and they would not believe them."

      John puts it this way,   "But Thomas one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore were saying to him,' We had seen the Lord!' But he said to them,' Unless I shall see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side I will not believe." John 20:24-25

     How did Jesus Christ deal with the doubt that came to His followers?

John 20:26-31, "And after eight days again His disciples were inside, and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shot, and stood in their midst, and said,'Peace be with you. Then He said to Thomas,' Reach here your finger, and see My hand; and reach here your hand, and put it into My side; and be not unbelieving, but believing.'   Thomas answered and said to Him,' My Lord and my God!'  Jesus said to him,' Because you have seen me, have you believe?  Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believe.'" Many other signs therefore Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book: but these things have been written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name."

"After that He appeared to more than 500 brother at one time, most of whom remain (are still alive) until now, but some have fallen asleep: then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles...." 1 Corinthians 15:6-7

      In the case of the Apostle Paul, over three years had passed, and Jesus Christ makes this other extraordinary, very dramatic, appearance.
    The apostle Paul, then called Saul, was a dedicated opponent of Christianity. At the time of his conversion to following Christ, he was on his way to a major city on a foreign country to root out the followers of Christ and bring them back to Jerusalem for execution. All of his life he had been raised his strict Jew and follower of Judaism. He knew that Christianity had to be false. After all, Christianity's founder, who hung on across, had to be cursed, according to their law (Deuteronomy 21: 22-23).
     Nothing less than the risen Jesus Christ confronting Saul face to face would have changed his mind so radically. And that's exactly what happened. Totally convinced and committed, this man
went  out with a radically changed message.

    Paul speaks about Jesus appearing to him.  He's says he was "...trying to destroy the church persecuting it and he was advancing and Judaism beyond many of his contemporaries and countrymen. He was extremely zealous of his ancestral tradition. But when He who had set me apart... Called the through His grace was pleased to reveal His Son and me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles."

Obviously, Jesus Christ, in his appearing, changed everything. This was true in the lives of his apostles and followers. As the Gospels testify, news that Jesus appeared to her resurrected could not be true, in fact, , Luke 24:11 tells us, when the women "... Told these things I to the apostles. And their words seem to them  as idle tales and they believed them not." The New American Standard Version translates this even stronger: "these words appeared to them as nonsense, and they would not believe them."
    

      In other appearances, Luke 24:36-44 "period.. While they were telling these things, He Himself stood in their midst. But they were startled in frightened and thought that they were seeing a spirit. And He said to them,' Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your  hearts? See My hands  and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and say, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.' And when He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. And while he still could not believe it or joy and were marveling, He said to them,' Have you anything here to eat?'
And they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish; and He took it and ate in their sight. Now He said to them,' These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and Prophets and the Psalms must be filled."

       I don't mean that Jesus Christ is going to make an appearance before you to get you to believe. But there is  empirical evidence that we need to appreciate.

    Jesus Christ gave the church – you and I as the "called out" believers a commission to tell others and make disciples." (Matthew 28:19-20).  "You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be  My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth." (Acts 1:8).

    I believe, empirical evidence, does influence our belief and in our commitment.  Obviously we must thoroughly check out evidence that we present, but I belive, we often dismiss some things from  hearsay and without study. Have you really studied the shroud of Turin?  Is there any medical evidence on the resurrection?  Science for many of the other things that have happened in science or space? 

WHAT'S THE BIG RUSH??

WHAT’S THE BIG RUSH??
HOW ABOUT A LITTLE TRANSPARENCY TOO!

Earlier this year, 12 HOURS TO REVIEW A 1,073 PAGE STIMULUS BILL–COSTING THE AMERICAN TAXPAYER $787 BILLION. The 1, 428 PAGE CAP AND TRADE BILL COSTING A COOL $846 BILLION HAS THE LONGEST TIME–16.5 HOURS.

“ A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you're talking real money"? (or anything very close to that?)” “Scoop” Jackson (Dem. of Wash.) or Evertt Dirkson (Rep. of Ill.)

NOW THE 1000+ PAGE HEALTHCARE REFORM LOOMS OVER AMERICA
--And 12 hours to read it??

Congress (in fact 359 members of Congress) wanted a 72-hour review period for an agriculture appropriations bill, why not the same for all bills. With all the thousands of protests about this major reform of healthcare, how dare the U.S. Congress rush this one through. Not only should there be more time–the taxpayers who are going to pay for this should also read it.
AND THAT’S POSSIBLE WITH THE INTERNET AVAILABLE.
ISN’T THIS COUNTRY STILL A GOVERNMENT OF THE PEOPLE AND BY THE PEOPLE??

The Wall Street Journal recently had this article::
“Polls show overwhelming agreement outside the Beltway that it's more important for Congress to get health-care reform done right than done quickly. A Polling Company survey conducted last month found 95% agreeing that members of Congress shouldn't vote on any bill they haven't read in full. … It's time for Congress to change its ways. Haste can make for more than waste and lead to populist outrage that often takes on a life of its own. That happened after this year's stimulus bill included the infamous provision authorizing executives of bailed-out AIG to get retroactive bonuses. (“Congress needs a 72-hour waiting period,” by John Fund, Sept. 26)”

Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.) and Rep. Brian Baird (D-Wash.) launched a petition to bring H. Res. 554 up for a vote, which would ensure that the public, press, and members of Congress have at least 72 hours to read and understand bills in the House.

“If the 72-hour rule is good enough for the agriculture appropriations bill, then what stops my colleagues from signing the petition to give the public time to review all bills, like major healthcare reform?” Walden said. “This is about one thing: the public’s right to know. It’s time to change how Washington works.”

Evertt Dirkson,, as Scoop Jackson, had a lot to say about "spending" bills::

"One time in the House of Representatives [a colleague] told me a story about a proposition that a teacher put to a boy. He said, ‘Johnny, a cat fell in a well 100 feet deep. Suppose that cat climbed up 1 foot and then fell back 2 feet. How long would it take the cat to get out of the well?'

"Johnny worked assiduously with his slate and slate pencil for quite a while, and then when the teacher came down and said, ‘How are you getting along?' Johnny said, ‘Teacher, if you give me another slate and a couple of slate pencils, I am pretty sure that in the next 30 minutes I can land that cat in hell.'

Somehow I have the feeling that’s exactly where this administration is taking us.
SLOW DOWN–LET US AT LEAST READ THE BILL!

KOINONIKOS

Daniel 10

Saturday, the chief of staff for Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the second enrichment plant "will become operational soon"
"God willing this new plant will become operational soon and make the enemy blind," Mohammad Mohammadi Golpayegani was quoted as saying by the semi-official Fars news agency.
.Israel says the disclosure that Iran is building a second nuclear enrichment facility proves it "wants to equip itself with nuclear weapons". Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Israel wanted to see an "unequivocal" Western response to the development. According to BBC
"You don't want a messianic apocalyptic cult controlling atomic bombs,” Prime Minister [Binyamin] Netanyahu said, underscoring the concern he has for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and Iran.
“When the wide-eyed believer gets hold of the reins of power and the weapons of mass death, then the entire world should start worrying. That is what is happening in Iran."
In a recent interview with The Atlantic, Netanyahu said “Western civilization” will have failed if Iran is allowed to develop nuclear weapons.

With a country that is less than 100 miles wide in some places, Netanyahu must be stressed out. What would a nuclear strike do–maybe a dirty nuclear bomb?

Vice President Joe Biden issued a high-level warning to the Israeli government, saying it would be "ill-advised" to carry out a military strike against Iranian nuclear sites.


Should we be concerned about this?
Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, head of U.S. forces in the Middle East, at a recent meeting of senators, warned that the Israeli government may react. They may be "so threatened by the prospect of an Iranian nuclear weapon that it would take preemptive military action to derail or delay it.”

Israel, widely held to be the only nuclear power in the Middle East, has also refused to rule out the possibility of attacking Iran's nuclear facilities.
Israel has never officially admitted having nuclear weapons, but is widely recognized to possess at least 75 warheads.

Also speaking on Saturday, UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband told the BBC that the UK was "100% committed" to finding a diplomatic solution to the Iran issue, but refused to rule out military action altogether.

Well good luck on stopping the Iranian bomb, but I really think that the world is going to have a nuclearized Middle East. The Obama Administration is not going to stop them, and they will prevent the Israel from stopping them so it’s going to happen. What happens then.
Nostradamus is often quoted, I would like to quote a prophet that predates him by at least a thousand years.
Daniel writes of Jerusalem:
"Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times.
"And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, And till the end of the war desolations are determined DANIEL 9:26-27

And he said to me, "O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for I have now been sent to you." While he was speaking this word to me, I stood trembling.
Then he said to me, "Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words.
But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia.
14 Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come."
DANIEL 10:11-14 (NKJV)

KOINONIKOS

Obamacare

What’s the latest on Obama’s Health Care Program?
The people seem to have let the politicians know how they felt by the
“Town Hall Meetings”–Oh oh maybe I shouldn’t bring that up–somebody might snitch on me!
Well go ahead! It looks like we’re gonna get it anyway!
No doubt you have all watched this on T.V. –at least Fox News T.V. This little item was from Fox.

“A provision in President Obama's health care reform bill encourages "end-of- life" counseling for seniors -- sparking euthanasia fears among some of the legislation's critics and leading others to believe that the White House is looking to save money by pressuring insurers to provide less coverage to seniors.
The provision, tucked deep within the House bill, would provide Medicare coverage for an end-of-life consultation every five years, and more frequent sessions if a person is suffering a life-threatening disease.”
FOX News' Wendell Goler and FOXNews.com's Stephen Clark contributed to this report.

Just to show you I’m not too biased in my news reading I picked this up by DAVID ESPO, AP Special Correspondent.

“WASHINGTON – The nation's drugmakers stand ready to spend $150 million to help President Barack Obama overhaul health care this fall, according to numerous officials, a staggering sum that could dwarf attempts to derail his chief domestic priority.
The White House and allies in Congress are well aware of the effort by Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, a somewhat surprising political alliance, given the industry's recent history of siding with Republicans and the Democrats' disdain for special interests....
Numerous people with knowledge of PhRMA's plans said they had been told it would likely reach $150 million and perhaps $200 million. They spoke on condition of anonymity, saying they were not authorized to divulge details.”

KOINONIKOS

ISRAELI MOVES

JERUSALEM --
"’There is nothing unusual about the navy being in those waters _ they often train there,’ said Shlomo Brom, a former Israeli general and a security expert at the Institute for National Security Studies.”

What was the former Israeli general speaking about so causally?

According an article in Newsmax’s Newsfront, “Two of Israel's Saar class missile boats crossed through the Suez Canal and into the Red Sea, Israeli defense officials said. Speaking on condition of anonymity because the move was not officially publicized, they said it was connected to ‘the navy's recent activities around the Red Sea.’"

Of interest was what that recent activity was. Whatever other ships were involved, one was an Israeli Dolphin class submarine. One had moved to the Red Sea..Egyptian officials said, a move that appeared to be a new signal to Iran that Israel's reach could quickly extend to its archenemy's backyard.
The Dolphin sub can carry a bigger threat. Some foreign media say, these subs not only have the ability to sink shipping, but they can fire nuclear-tipped cruise missiles. These subs allow Israel to launch nuclear weapons from afar even if the country itself is suffering a nuclear attack. So they serve as Israel's deterrent "second-strike" capability,

About the Israeli moves: "What is unusual, though, is that this information was made public,” Brom said. “ I believe it was likely leaked on purpose in order to signal to Iran that Israel has the capability of reaching them,".

KOINONIKOS

THEOCRATIC DICTATORSHIP SAYS; “PROTESTS MUST STOP”

U.K’s. The Guardian says:“Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says protests must stop.”
On the other hand, Washington Post’s Columnist Charles Krauthammer brings out: “Millions of Iranians take to the streets to defy a theocratic dictatorship...a self-declared enemy of America and the tolerance and liberties it represents. The demonstrators are fighting on their own, but they await just a word that America is on their side.”

The Guardian reveals some Iranian’s thoughts: “The most clear, straight speech I have ever heard from Seyed Ali Khamenei [the supreme leader]: he backs Ahmadinejad...definitely not going to annul the election, and now annulment is what we really want....I don't think people will do the same....Tomorrow is very important for Iran to see whether people dare to come out or not. If they come out, it's a clear no to the supreme leader”

The Guardian had a rather balanced presentation with another Iranian–a housewife’s thoughts: “Our great supreme leader, Khamenei, has always had the first voice in this country....It's finished. Nothing will happen by tomorrow. The supreme leader has accepted the results and has already called it divine, so we need to obey it, it's our religious responsibility to obey what our leader says.”

But yet another Iranian professional says this: “They have always tried to find an excuse to crack down on people. This time they had no excuse as the United States and the Europe were keeping silent and were not even condemning the vote fraud....they have no other excuse to put pressure on people other than accusing foreigners of meddling in our affairs...some analysts have criticised the west for not reacting enough...it's ridiculous that Khamenei is accusing the US or the UK for meddling in our affairs.”

I appreciate the Guardian for putting these quotes out there. Ahmadinejad, with his impending nuclear bombs, is the obviously threat to America or Israel, but apparently the real threat, and power propping Ahmadinejad, up is this great supreme leader, Khamenei, .

So what is Obama doing? Is he going to bow down to this Theocratic dictator?

OBAMA DID NOTHING TO HELP !! WHICH REALLY MEANT PROPPING UP AHMADINEJAD.

KOINONIKOS

WATCH ISRAEL

TEHRAN -- WORST VIOLENCE IN DECADE

The violence is the worst seen in Tehran in 10 years.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the winner of Iran's presidential poll.

“The sky was thick with black smoke. Police attacked the crowd with sticks and maybe teargas.
Riot police used batons and tear gas against backers of Mir Hossein Mousavi...,” as one BBC reporter, John Simpson put it:
“Thousands of opposition supporters have clashed with police...”

Mousavi, who called the results a "charade.” has also claimed victory, as his supporters said the election had been stolen and vowed to appeal for a re-run.” But observers say this would have little chance of success.

So what does all this mean?

Israel is running out of options. Ahmadinejad will very likely continue its efforts at making a bomb. And this will tighten the tension like a violin string.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has been pressured by Obama into accepting the creation of a Palestinian state. And naturally Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas rejected the plan.

In fact, Mr Abbas's spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah said: "Netanyahu's remarks have sabotaged all initiatives, paralysed all efforts being made and challenges the Palestinian, Arab and American positions," Reuters news agency reported.

Netanyahu won’t go much further.

KOINONIKOS