Thursday, May 18, 2006

Good Morning   

 

Brad and Ray are leaving tomorrow for Beijing, China.  Note the current weather.

 

Current  Temp:  (at 7P local time)   79 degrees and smoke (I'm not making it up)  

Tonight:    Mostly clear . Low around 67F   .  Winds ENE  at 5 to 10 mph.   

The 10-day forecast at: http://www.weather.com/outlook/travel/businesstraveler/tenday/CHXX0008?from=_topnav_business 

One of the web sites I go to regularly is www.slate.com.  They are currently have a running blog that just started, by a Jewish writer who is reading the Bible each day and writing his impressions.  He began the project since we was not a particularly faithful Jew, and he didn't really have a good knowledge of the Bible.  He is now reading the Bible each day, and writing a blog about his impressions as he really reads it for the first time. I'm not sure yet how to take his commentary -- it is light, but it is also questioning in a way that is offputting at times.  The link to his blog is http://www.slate.com/id/2141712/entry/2141714/

Today's Reading:    Revelation 12:6 -- Barclay 89-90

-- a short passage here about the woman fleeing to the desert for protection from the dragon.  The short question is what does this mean?

-- well, as from earlier this week, we remember that we are working with the idea that the woman is symbolic, and that she represents the community of God here on earth.   Not specifically the Jews, but the Jews are necessarily a part of this vision, since the child -- Christ -- came from this community of God.

-- so, after the birth of Christ, keeping with the symbolism laid out by Barclay, the community of God was protected by God from the dragon for a period of time -- recorded by John as 1,260 days, but that is probably a symbolic time period as well, a way of saying that during the hard times on earth, the persecution of God's people by Satan, God protected his people.

-- for me, for this chapter to really make any sense at all at this point, it has to be that John is not looking at the future right now -- he is looking at some sort of heavenly reenactment of the history of struggle between God and evil, to give us the background of what direction the future is to take.  Once we get to the end of this chapter, we can look back and see how all the pieces come together -- I hope.

Today's Scripture   

 

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?  You are not your own, you were bought at a price.  Therefore honor God with your body. 

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 

Today's prayer requests:    Saundra Aaron

Valerie's brother's mother-in-law continues to go through treatment for cancer.  Need to remember her and her family in her struggles.

Today's class member prayer:

 Jerri Wesson     

Jay