With the same patience God has to save his children, a French search and rescue team endured and rescued a Haitian girl from the rubble fifteen days after the deadly earthquake.“French rescuers pulled a teenage girl — very dehydrated, with a broken left leg and moments from death — from the rubble of a home near the destroyed St. Gerard University on Wednesday, a stunning recovery 15 days after an earthquake devastated the city.French Ambassador Didier le Bret praised the persistence of the French rescue team, which has kept looking for survivors for days after the Haitian government officially called off the search.”(Bull, Gregory and Fox, Ben. “Stunning Recovery: Haitian Girl Pulled from Debris.” www.news.yahoo.com. January 27, 2010.Accessed January 28, 2010.)
Just as the Christian walk often requires patience before we are able to see the fruit of our labor, campaigners waited years before they received their dream.“After a 17-year battle these tireless campaigners have proved persistence pays off.In 1992, after continually struggling to get across Longridge Road, in Ribbleton, Preston, community campaigners decided they needed a pelican crossing.After nearly two decades they have finally got their way.Rose Caine, 65, who led the campaign as part of the Longridge Road Tenants’ Association, said: “We want to say to people never give up on something. It has made a tremendous difference being able to cross.”(Robinson, Ben. “Tireless Campaign Wins Group Pelican Crossing.” www.lep.co.uk January 27, 2010.Accessed January 28, 2010.)
Jesus promises to give his people peace in a way that the world could never give even as world leaders must admit that their desires for peace were too ambitious.“President Barack Obama says his administration overestimated its ability to persuade the Israelis and Palestinians to resume meaningful peace talks.Obama says both parties have been unwilling to make the bold gestures needed to move the process forward. If the U.S. had anticipated that earlier, Obama says he might not have raised his expectations so high.Obama says the U.S. will continue to work toward a two-state solution in which Israel is secure and the Palestinians have sovereignty. His remarks came in an interview with Time Magazine published Thursday.”(Associated Press. “Obama: Expectations for Middle East Peace too High.” http://news.yahoo.com. January 21, 2010.Accessed January 21, 2010.)
Even in times of calamity, Haitian people of faith are able to find peace as they place their hope in God. “Carmella Delerme of Miami, Florida, said her mother clung to her Bible for days, reading psalms over and over again, as they waited for word on the whereabouts and condition of Delerme’s sister and other relatives.When her sister, who was in Haiti on a missionary trip with their Seventh-day Adventist Church, called late Thursday, Delerme said, ‘I went straight to church and prayed and prayed and prayed. We continue to pray for those who are lost and still in need.’On the streets of Port-au-Prince, with many of their churches crumbled, people have gathered to worship and sing Catholic and Protestant hymns.”(Ravitz, Jessica. “Haitians Everywhere United by Faith.” www.cnn.com. January 18, 2010.Accessed January 21, 2010.
The heart of God rejoices over the deliverance of his lost children, that he has gone through great lengths to save, in the same way one British couple rejoices over their twin sons that they spent tens of thousands to have.“Twins Ben and Walker are the pride and joy of a couple who spent £100,000 on fertility treatments in 25 years of trying for a child.Mum Monique Ward said yesterday of her two-week-old baby boys: ‘When I held them for the first time my eyes filled with tears.We’ve wanted this for so long it seemed unreal everything had finally come true. They’re our little miracles - both are perfectly healthy and neither of us can believe they are really here.’” (Chaytor, Rod.“Twins joy for couple who spent £100k in 25-year bid for a baby.”www.mirror.co.uk. January 14, 2010.Accessed January 14, 2010.)
Jesus warned believers that there would be tribulation in the world, and the devastation in Haiti is proof of that; yet, there is also comfort and joy in stories of hope.“Orphanages filled with scores of Haiti’s most vulnerable citizens — its parentless children —survived without losing a single child. A missionary lying trapped for 10 hours in the collapsed rubble that was once her mission was reunited with her husband, who drove hours to dig her out and take her to safety. A college student managed to send her worried parents a two-word text message that meant everything: ‘I’m OK.’” (Celizic, Mike.“Amid Haiti Horror, Stories of Survival and Hope.” www.msnbc.com. January 14, 2010. Accessed January 14, 2010.
There are some interesting episodes in the Bible where rejoicing takes place in the most difficult of circumstances. I think of Paul and Silas in prison yet they were singing hymns to God (Acts 16:25) and notably James who said we should consider it pure joy whenever we face trials of many kinds (James 1:2). Paul even said that we should rejoice in the Lord always - and this was said whilst a prisoner! (Philippians 4:4). How is this possible? I remember when I became a Christian about 30 years ago. My mother and father thought I’d gone mad and my sister wouldn’t even speak to me - I felt like an outcast in my own family! This indeed filled me with sorrow - yet at the same time I experienced joy. I wasn’t laughing uncontrollably or going around with a huge grin on my face but deep down inside I felt this joy. It was joy in the thought that there was a solid foundation in my life, that I knew Jesus as a friend and that one day He was going to make everything right. There was something to live for, a meaning to life which I hadn’t experienced before. This has always remained with me so that when trials come along I can see them in their proper perspective - they are simply temporary but Jesus is eternal! I believe that in order to maintain this joy we always have to focus on the larger perspective, the wider issue - that God is real and He’s coming back to take us home soon! By the way my sister speaks to me now and my mother doesn’t think I’m so strange after all!
Over the past few weeks the world has been buzzing, not about Iraq, not about Afghanistan, not even about President Obama (exaggeration), but about a new movie that may have just saved a dieing industry. You haven’t seen as much buzz on social networks such as Twitter and facebook since the 2008 Presidential elections. The past decade saw a dramatic decline in movie ticket sales, the rise of Netflix, the demise of Blockbuster, and the creation of Redbox.
Enter James Cameron’s Avatar, a movie that has captured the imagination and transcended culture. Just about everyone has seen the movie, and why not it can be seen in three different ways; you can get the regular theater screen, see it in 3D, and even IMAX 3D, just to round out the experience.
Now the question arises, “How can I use AVATAR, to share Jesus with others?”. Well for starters the major themes that seem to be woven into this movie are greed, love, and spirituality. Each of which you can find many practical biblical references for. But if you need an even more in depth look at how you can draw biblical principles from this movie I highly suggest you take a look at Rev. Roy’s blog he has many interesting insights into the film.
Love is not something that we just say to others, but it sacrifices for others.“The traditional wedding vow line “in sickness and in health” has never been as true as it was for a New Iberia man who showed there are no boundaries when it comes to love.Brodie Dressel, 27, donated one of his kidneys in November to his wife, Cindy, who was dying of end stage renal failure.‘I pretty much made the decision to donate once I heard the diagnosis,’ Brodie Dressel said. ‘It pretty much had to be done.’” (Kirkpatrick, Ron. “Local Man Donates Life-Saving Token of Love.” www.katc.com. January 6, 2010.Accessed January 7, 2010.)
Love is a word defined by our actions towards those we know and those we don’t.“On a plane bound for O’Hare International Airport, Elsie Clark felt weak, scared and utterly alone – until she spotted a pair of shiny leather shoes across the aisle.What happened to the 79-year-old Canadian over the next 12 hours – she was embraced by a good Samaritan, escorted through O’Hare in a wheelchair and welcomed to a swanky high-rise for a dinner overlooking Lake Michigan – saved her from a traumatic stranding in Chicago.It also proved that, even in tough times, people can surprise each other with acts of kindness.”(Dizikes, Cynthia. “Good Samaritan Flies to Passenger’s Rescue. www.chicagobreakingnews.com. January 5, 2010. Accessed January 7, 2010.)
