Trusting Jesus Means Trusting God -- Audio Podcast

John 12:44-50

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Imagination And God

Because we are made in the image of God we are capable of calling to mind interesting, clever, unique, innovative pictures [image].  This wonderful capability that we call imagination is a gift from God.  Interestingly, when God is ignored or denied the human imagination is weakened.  However, when God is honored the imagination flourishes.

Living The Christian Faith

In my reading, I was challenged by this thought, recently: If honestly living your Christian faith was declared to be illegal would you honestly live your Christian faith anyhow?  …Does the question challenge you, too?

The Struggle For Truth Is Worthwhile

The struggle for Truth really is just that: a struggle.  And struggles, by definition, are difficult and exhausting.  Anything that is difficult and exhausting will cause us—at some point along the way—to consider giving up.  But Truth is worthwhile and therefore the struggle for truth is worthwhile.

Basic Human Nature Hasn't Changed Very Much

When I read things that were written thousands of years ago, I chuckle when I notice that the issues, challenges and problems that have to do with basic human nature haven’t really changed very much—if it all.  We human beings are pretty amusing.

Why Some People Don't Believe -- Audio Podcast

John 12:37-43
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People Who We Never Imagine Could Change Are Capable of Changing

There are people that folks look at and say, “No way.  There’s no way that person could ever change.  There’s no way that person could ever start living in a spiritually and emotionally healthy way.  There’s no way that person could ever come to Christ.  There’s no way that person could ever come to salvation.  It’s just not possible.”

But according to the Bible, those are the very people that Jesus looks at and says, “I’ve come to seek and save you.”

The Outcome Is: God Wins!

There are times that I get anxious about what is happening in our world. Things are going on that look sad and bleak. Sometimes my heart aches. At times like that I intentionally direct my attention to God. It’s not that the problems of the world then go away. However, with my eyes focused on God, I remember that He is not nervous; He is not fretting; He is NOT feeling intimidated; and—because of who He is—He knows with absolute certainty the final outcome. I don’t know that outcome in any specific sense, but I know this:  He wins!

(P.S. That’s why we want to be on His team, because He wins.)

We Don't Have To Fight Every Battle

It’s a great feeling of relief when we finally realize that we don’t have to fight every single battle.  In fact, it’s interesting to discover—after time passes—that some of the battles were never really worth fighting about, after all.

Out In The Pond On A Cold Day

I was out taking a walk this evening but it was uncomfortable because it is so cold.  The

temperature was 38 degrees.

During the walk I noticed that a group of approximately 15-20 young people were gathered in an open field at a school near my house and it appeared to me that one young man was walking away from a large pond of standing water only wearing swimming shorts (we’ve recently had flooding in the area).  I assumed I wasn’t seeing correctly, but I thought, “I’m going to walk in that direction.”

As I got near the group I could see that, yes, in fact, the young man was dressed only in swimming shorts.  He was shivering and he was wet.

I didn’t know the young fellow but my curiosity won out.  “Were you in that pond over there,” I asked?

Some of the young folks laughed and, with a big smile, he said, “Yep!”

I said, “What’s going on?  Was this for a bet?”

He proudly replied, “Yes.  I just won 20 dollars!”

“Twenty bucks?!?” I laughed.

And there was more laughing from his group of friends.

I said, “What’s your name?”

He said, “Johnny.”

I took out my phone and asked, “Can I take your picture?  No one will believe me if I don’t have evidence.”

He was beginning to get some clothes on and he said, “Sure.”

So, the young man you see in the photos is Johnny right after he did a Kenton Avenue version of the Polar Bear Club.

Just before I continued on my way, however, an insane thought crossed my mind:  If I were to take off my shoes and socks; empty my pockets; and give Johnny another $20 to go splashing around in the pond with me, the young folks standing around in this group would have a crazy story that they would tell for the rest of their lives.

This would be the gist of the story:  The day the old guy with white hair—that no one knew—went splashing around in the pond with their friend Johnny when it was 38 degrees outside.

Fortunately, the thought only lingered for a few seconds.  Then I bundled up my coat a little tighter waved to the young folks and continued on my way.

Be Humble Because We Don't Always Live In Consistent Ways

I’m thinking about the fact that I regularly see inconsistencies in people based on the things they post online. 

I guess that’s not too surprising.  It’s very hard to be consistent, isn’t it?  In other words, probably all of us have times when our thoughts and behaviors do not correspond with the values and beliefs that we claim to hold.  This is true no matter what philosophical, religious, political or metaphysical ideologies we embrace.  (Jesus was, of course, an exception to this general rule of thumb. He was consistent.)

That’s why it’s a good idea to be humble.  If we get too big for our britches—mocking others, or wagging our fingers at others—there is probably someone who knows us well who could easily point out some of the inconsistencies between what we “say” and what we “do.”

Why God Loves You

We have a persistent tendency to try to earn God’s love and grace because our human relationships have convinced us that the only way we could ever truly be loved is by doing things to deserve love.  Most of us already know the following words, but I encourage you to think about them and really believe them: God doesn’t love you because you’ve earned His love. God loves you because God is love.

Death Produces Life? -- Audio Podcast

John 12:20-26
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The Irony of Getting What You Want

I’ve always thought it would be nice to live on lake front property. Hey...isn’t there some kind of old saying about the irony of getting what you want?

Choosing To Let Go of Fear And Trust God

It would be easy to let fear overwhelm and control us.  When we hear the news and contemplate the actions that regularly occur--such as the bombings in Boston yesterday--fearful thoughts and feelings would not be an unusual response.  But we have to continue to live and a life consumed by fear is not a life well lived.  I’ve re-read Psalm 23 today and I’m choosing to let go of fear and put my trust in the Good Shepherd.

Boston Bombings, Can We Make Sense of Something Senseless?

For the past hour, or so, I’ve been watching television coverage of the bombings that occurred in Boston

today.  As my mind has groped for a way to understand this kind of horrible event it occurred to me that I’m trying to make sense out of something senseless.

Bombings like this represent the evil actions of people whose thinking has been severely corrupted, it cannot be made reasonable.

Our hearts can grow heavy as we ponder these things.  We may even have moments of feeling hopeless.  But having watched the video of the explosions numerous times, suddenly I was struck with another impression.  I noticed that as soon as the explosions occurred, there were people running toward the carnage.  People moved into the chaos.  What are they doing?  Why would they run toward the area where the bomb just exploded?  If you keep watching, the answer is obvious.  They are trying to help those who are injured or trapped under debris.

As that impression sinks in I find myself thanking God for those who respond with compassion, goodness and courage.  There are people who do what is right.  There are, after all, people who act with valor.

Yes there is ugliness and evil in this world but even when things get dim, I am encouraged by the fact that evil will not prevail.  God and His goodness ultimately reigns.

Dan Marler

Oak Lawn, IL

It's Not Easy To Really Help Others

It is ironic that sometimes when we help people they come to depend upon us in ways that we cannot fulfill.  And then the very people we have helped become angry with us because we cannot be everything they want us to be.  It seems like helping other people would be a relatively easy thing to do but, frankly, sometimes it’s not that easy.  But we’re called to keep trying to help others, anyhow!

Thanks Brennan Manning For Helping Me Understand God's Love

Many years ago, I was in a small group with a few other men. At one point in this group, we listened to some

talks by a Christian teacher named Brennan Manning.  I had not heard of Brennan, yet, at this time. In these recorded talks Brennan said something that touched me deeply.  He said, “God loves you.” 

Oh, don’t get me wrong, I had heard people say, “God loves you,” before this time.  But in my mind, it was always said in a qualified way, for instance, “God loves you! …But remember, you still have to obey Him.”

Even though I grew up in a loving Christian church with terrific people, I had never heard (or at least it seemed to me that I had never heard) someone have the audacity to just say, “God loves you,” [period].  Without some type of qualifier.

Believe it or not, this was a big deal for me. 

I listened to the talks thinking:  “Wait a minute, God loves me without some type of qualifier having to be added to the statement?!?  Wow!”

I just learned, this morning, that Brennan has died.  I believe I’ll have an opportunity to thank him for his teaching, some day, when I pass over to the other side. But for now, I’ll write it here:  “Thanks, Brennan, for the incredible gift of helping me understand that God loves me.”

…Without qualifiers.

Our Ultimate Hope Is Always In God

The issues of our world matter.  And, so, we pray for peace.  We pray that people in positions of leadership will speak and act and engage with maturity, responsibility and wisdom.  However, followers of Jesus understand that we place our ultimate faith in the only true source of stability and hope: God

The Wisdom of Saying Nothing

Recently, a staff person at a local restaurant was briefly telling me about some struggles in her

life.  After she talked about her frustration and her weariness—in an effort to be helpful and encouraging—I told her, “Don’t give up!”

She responded by saying, “Sometimes it’s best to give up.”

I said, “Well, I guess that’s true. You may come to a point where it’s not worth fighting anymore and it would be best to give up.”

She said, “Gee whiz, what kind of advice is that?  It’s pretty discouraging.”

Have I mentioned that sometimes it’s best to simply say nothing?

Self Condemnation

It’s possible that there is no voice of condemnation that you hear as powerfully and as frequently as your own voice of condemnation. That has, occasionally, been my experience. That’s why this passage of scripture is so helpful and powerful for me: “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus…” Romans 8:1. 

God's Practical Jokes

This is not very good theology and I’ll probably get in trouble for writing it, but I do feel like God has, in love, played a few practical jokes on me during the course of my life.

I Might Just Vote For The Dad

Our church is a polling place.  (This means I do not have a good excuse for not voting.  I mean,

come on!  The voting booths are only about 60 feet, or so, from the door of my office.)

As I was walking across the parking lot into the building, a few moments ago, several people representing various candidates and political parties swarmed to hand me literature pertaining to today’s local election.

One of the guys who approached me looked sort of menacing—particularly since several key teeth were missing.  But that type of influencer doesn’t seem like an effective form of persuasion when it comes to a voting process in which he will not be able to find out who I vote for.

Another person, a young lady—an older teen, perhaps—handed me a card and said, “Please vote for my dad.”

I took the card from her and looked at the picture of the candidate.  “This is your dad, huh?” I asked.

With a big smile, she said, “Yes!”

I said, “Is he a pretty good man?”

And for a second she had a puzzled look on her face as if she hadn’t been expecting a question like that.  Then she quickly recovered—you have to be fast on your feet in the world of politics—and she said, “Yes he is.”

I teased her and said, “That pause will cost you points later on when he’s running for president.”

She laughed.  Which was nice because sometimes my antics produce uglier reactions and certain types of hand gestures.  But she could see that I was joking.

I’ve read the card and you know what?  I might just vote for her dad.

(He’s got a nice looking set of teeth.)

The Significance of the "Little Moments"

It’s usually the steady accumulation of “little moments” that ends up being of greater significance than the occasional “big moments.”  But we’re easily impressed with the big moments because they look flashier.

Every Moment Is A Gift, So Use The Moments Wisely

I read the following quote recently and it was a challenge to treasure and value the time that God has presented to me, “Each moment of the day is a gift from God that deserves care, for by any measure, our time is short and the work is great.” J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership.

Potato Chips Instead of Delicious Bar-B-Que

After the services today we went to a local restaurant along with some folks from church.  We

didn’t realize it, but just before we arrived at the restaurant the power went out.

As one of the waitresses walked past me I said, “Are you still serving food?”

She looked at me and with the kind of voice that a person uses with a very small child she said, “No, the power is out.”

Okay, I admit, it was a dumb question but it was a bar-b-que restaurant and it smelled so good in this place that even though I knew they couldn’t possibly be cooking up food with the power off, I was hoping that maybe she would say something like this, “We had some ribs that we were just finishing up when the power went out. Oh, and here’s an idea sir, I’ll bring them out for you to enjoy.”

It didn’t work out that way.

Sometimes in life our palette is prepared for a fantastic bar-b-que dinner and we end up eating potato chips instead.  You know what I mean?

Looking Forward to Worship With My Brothers and Sisters

When we gather with other believers to worship God there is an excitement, energy, sense of anticipation and encouragement that happens.  The fact that we are all unique and come from a diversity of backgrounds, places and experiences and, yet, we are united as one in Christ is a remarkable and compelling truth.  I am looking forward to worship with God’s people, today!

Take Time To Nourish The Soul

The challenges, pursuits and responsibilities of life can be relentless in such a way that we may neglect what is of ultimate importance.  Jesus was expressing a related thought when He said, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?” Mark 8:36. All the pursuits of life do not have the same level of importance or value. Let’s remember to give care and attention to the nourishment of our soul.

Dan & Vic Podcast For April 5, 2013

Vic and I talk about a new song that we will be playing this weekend and we deal with this question:  Is the Bible trustworthy?

Check it out!

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E-Flash From Dan - April 5, 2013

Dear E-Flash Friends;

Hope you’ve been having a great week!

This coming Sunday, April 7^th, the message will be titled:  “Why Jesus Matters After Easter Is Over.”  This will be a great follow up to the Easter services.  To those who say, “Okay I went to the Easter services, now what…?!?”  We will provide a response to the, “now what?” question.   I encourage you to invite those who came with you this past weekend. 

This is a post-Easter service you won’t want to miss!

If you would like to hear a little more info about the services this Sunday, including a little snippet of a cool new song that the worship team will be introducing, click on the following link and take a listen to the Dan & Vic podcast.

Link….  http://visitusonline.org/scmedia.php?type=mediaplayer&loc=visitusonline.org/media/media/mediaplayer.php&id=20130404100419FB9746

I’m looking forward to seeing you this Sunday!

Love and blessings,

Dan

Arguing Rarely Changes Anyone's Mind

Some people love a good argument.  They like the intellectual challenge involved in the process of “duking it out” verbally.  The problem with arguing about a lot of issues, however, is that it very rarely seems to change anyone’s mind.  Also, some people cannot get involved in the exchange of ideas without getting mad and allowing relationships to be damaged.  (And if anyone disagrees with this post, I’d love to argue about it with you.)

Not Perfect... But Pretty Good

The Bible says that if you could control your tongue, you would be perfect. (James 3:2)  Hmm… several months ago I came very close to perfection for about 11 minutes.  For me, that’s pretty good.  (By the way, right now I’m typing which does not involve the tongue at all.)

Life Lessons And Car Washes

I pulled up to the pay station at a local automatic car wash.  The pay station did not accept credit cards, but that was no problem.  I had cash. 

I put my 5 dollar bill into the slot and it spit the bill back out.  I continued to feed the 5 dollar bill into the payment slot and the machine continued to reject the bill.  I needed a 5 dollar bill in order to pay.  I did not have singles.  I did not have any other 5 dollar bills.  And the machine did not accept 20 dollar bills. 

I tried to feed the bill into the payment slot at least a dozen times and then I realized it was futile.  The machine was simply not going to accept this bill.

But now what do I do?

To access this particular car wash requires some maneuvering into a narrow space that involves a very tight left turn and the aligning of the car tires with rails and a track system that ultimately pulls the car through the wash.  My car was already in this tight place with the wheels on the tracks.

Would I be able to back it out of this place?

Another option would be to drive forward through the car wash on the track system even though

the car wash was not turned on (because it wouldn’t accept my money).

That didn’t seem like a good idea to me.

The only other option was to jump out of my car and leave it there, unattended, at the pay station, then run across the parking lot into the gas station building and pay for the car wash with the gas station clerk.

I chose to jump out of the car and run to the gas station building.  I paid the clerk who was smiling at me as if she knew I was having trouble and yet found the whole situation amusing.  I ran back to the car and keyed the code that was given to me into the pay station.  Then the car went through the wash and came out beautifully.

On the way home in my shiny clean car, some mucky sludge came off of a garbage truck as it passed me.  Less than 2 minutes after my less than optimal car wash experience the car was dirty again.

There are some days when life likes to remind us that we don’t really have ultimate control of anything.

Why It's So Important That Easter Is True

1 Corinthians 15:12-19

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Phooey On Books!

I’ve finally come to see that it’s a waste of time to read all these books.  So, you read and read and read and then what?  Nothing!  That’s what.  You’ve just spent a whole lot of time looking at words on a page.  Pondering the thoughts of other people.  Who needs it?  Way more can be learned from a couple of good hours of television viewing.

I’m done!  Phooey on books!  And phooey on reading!  And don’t try to talk me out of it.  No more wasting my life with this nonsense!!!

 THE END!

…April Fools!  

Ha!  Gotcha!!!  Time to go to the bookstore and get some more books before they run out!  You can never have too many books.  Whoo hoo!

Giving Myself A Good, Heartfelt Talk

Occasionally, I find myself thinking about all the things that I can’t do and I have to stop and give myself a good heartfelt talk. The talk goes something like this:  “It’s not about what you can or cannot do, it’s about looking to God, following Him, and depending on Him because God is not limited the way you are.”  After that talk, I usually tell myself, “Thanks, I needed that.”