In pursuit of truth- a poem

I wrote this poem a few years ago when i left the religion of my family and began attending christian church. I thought some of you would relate.

Rob Bell - The Trinity in Genesis

Since we are still in Genesis, I thought I'd post another video I found in which Rob Bell discusses some aspects of Genesis 1 that I thought you all might find interesting.

The Truman Show

As every Tuesday, we've got "The Christian Club" in Rockwell, where we met with some teenagers (christians or not) and we talk about Jesus, see some videos, movies, whatever... it's just a different way to hang out with them and let them know more about Jesus in our "day-by-day".
Today David brought the movie "The Truman Show", we watched some parts of it (like a half an hour) and then we talked about it... This movie is about a life of a man who doesn't know that he is living in a constructed reality show (living in a perfect life), televised 24/7 to millions of people.
I just thought that maybe it would be a great topic to share here too... because sometimes we wanna pretend like everything is perfect, putting a mask in our faces, smiling, hiding ourselves... but inside, we wanna shout, cry, run away 'cause we feel like we have no more strength for anything else, or we're just sad because of some troubles we might have. The thing is that we don't realize that we're causing damage to ourselves, to our own hearts. I remember this in my life, some years ago, wearing a mask everyday, everywhere (at church too) thinking that it would be better to pretend like everything is perfect because "we are christians and christians have no problems". How much time do you think I survive with this mask??? Well, not much... God taught me to live in Him, in His Truth, trust in Him, live in a transparent life with my family, friends, at church, and first of all, with myself... (He knows us better than we do; we are not lying to Him, we are lying to ourselves.)
So, that was my though today... living our lives IN Christ, in a transparent way with HIM, with ourselves and friends... if everything is not perfect, well, God will fix that, meanwhile, we can wait on Him and learn the lesson God wanna teaches us. I know is not easy, Jesus said it won't be easy but He overcame the world. He is our strength!
By the way, the chapters for today (Gn. 39 and 40)... AMAZING! But we can talk about that some other day... :)

Lord of the Impossible

Hey friends. I've got to admit I've been stressed today. There's a miracle that I need to have happen in my life and I don't know where it's going to come from. I asked God to speak to me through His Word during my prayer time, so I opened up Genesis and the chapter that I read had God asking, "Is anything too hard for the Lord?" (18:14). Is giving a baby to Abraham and Sarah in their old ages too hard for the Lord? Is answering my prayer for a miracle too hard for the Lord? Is the day you're having too hard for the Lord? Thankfully it's a rhetorical question and the answer is "no." I don't know about you, but especially today I needed to be reminded of that.

Genesis 12:1-3

I read this comment on a news site today concerning the current conflict between Israel and Gaza:

Sadly, what we may be witnessing is the inevitable results of Genesis 12:1-3 coming into effect with stark reality - that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob has entered into judgment with the inhabitants of Gaza and they are reaping the "reward" of their anti-Semitic hatred of their Jewish neighbors.

For reference Genesis 12:1-3 (NRSV):

Now the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’

Personally, I disagree with the above comment's take on Genesis 12. In part because I don't think we can equate the current political entity known as Israel, created in 1948, with the nation mentioned in the verse. And Genesis 12 in no way gives carte blanche to Israel to exercise excessive violence, and call it God's judgment.

And yet I would venture to say that the above comment reflects the common view of much of conservative American Christianity today.

What are your thoughts on above scripture, and how we should understand it today?

Creator

I found this short YouTube video the other day, and I thought I'd share it as it relates to the readings in Genesis.



BTW, I do hope everyone will participate in the blog here. Do feel free as Dave mentioned to post your thoughts, things learned, resources you find. It doesn't matter if you post a lot or a little (although, if you post a whole lot, like several pages in one post, it might not get all read). Eevn if you hvae dfitfcuily tpniyg out waht you wnat to say, thats okay we'll figure it out. And don't hesitate to ask questions, including controversial questions - those are the best kind - they will often generate conversations and really get our brains working.

As we read through the Bible...

Hey friends!  Many of us at Coram Deo Church have started reading through the Bible this year and I just wanted to say thank you for deciding to share your Bible-reading journey with the rest of us.  If in your devotions you read something that you find particularly interesting or profound or confusing or inspiring, then feel free to post your thoughts below.  Hopefully together we can grow from each other's thoughts and questions.

For example, as I was reading the story of the Tower of Babel, I found it interesting how big a deal it was that they were trying to make a "name" for themselves.  I got the feeling that it wasn't the height of the tower that mattered; nor was it their unity; it was the fact that they were trying so hard to make a "name" for themselves instead of lifting up the name of God that was the problem.  We all want to change the world, but as we do so, let's remember that we're not doing so for our own glory but rather for the glory of God.  May He alone get the credit for the good things that He does through us.