Thursday, January 19, 2006

Good Morning!

 

 

Today's Reading:  Revelation 1:10-11

 

-- Interesting note from Barclay about this being the earliest reference to the Lord's Day in literature, so the switch from Saturday to Sunday as the day of rest happened pretty early in the history of the church.  An interesting language note/question from this -- are we really accurate when we call Sunday the Sabbath?  If you follow Barclay's wording, it seems like the Sabbath has to be Saturday, and that we don't keep Sabbath, we keep the Lord's Day.  You can kind of see where this could go in the idea of the weekend -- TWO days without work - maybe we should be keeping both days.

 

Barclay doesn't really mention it, but there is this idea of being "in the Spirit" on the worship day.  How often are we prepared and focused on worship to be in the Spirit?  And the other thought is that if John was living in a cave on this rocky island above the sea, note that he still was worshipful enough to be in the Spirit, and he still kept Sunday, regardless of his circumstances.

Today's Scripture

By the seventh day God had finished all the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.  And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.

 

Genesis 2:2-3

Today's prayer request:     Mother of Cindy Martin

 

Cindy Martin is a former high school classmate of mine, and her mother has cancer and has been undergoing chemo now for about six months or so. She needs prayer to help her keep going during this tough time.

 

Today's class member prayer:

 

Brigitte Severance

 

Have a great day.

Jay

Wednesday, January 18, 2006

Good Morning!

 

 

Today's Reading:  Revelation 1:9

 

-- Two things from today's reading, as we get past the introduction to Revelation into the the first of the two major sections of the book.

 

-- John in this verse sets the context for the book.  He introduces himself and his credentials as a fellow Christian, and he tells the reader where he was -- Patmos -- when he received the vision and why he was there - for preaching the gospel.

 

-- For more info on Patmos, including some pictures and a map, here is a link to the Wikipedia entry:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patmos

 

-- As Barclay notes, John writes during a time of great persecution for Christians -- the reign of the Roman emperor Domitian (for more on him go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domitian).

 

-- Even with this verse, you get a sense that John is writing to encourage others.  He writes that he is a companion not only in their suffering, but their patient endurance.  There is something comforting and encouraging about the idea of patient endurance -- I get confidence that there is an end to our troubles, it is just a matter of time.

 

-- It is interesting how John's surroundings may have influenced his writing - Barclay mentions that the word 'sea' is mentioned 25 times in Revelation.  According to tradition, John wrote Revelation while living in a cave that overlooked the sea and was in earshot of the crashing waves.

 

-- Here's a question for us -- John writes about the patient endurance of Christians of his day in a world where the government was actively hostile to the Christian faith.  There are those today who feel persecuted by the government for their Christian faith, but don't seem to be enduring that perceived persecution with patient endurance.  I don't know if John is advocating an approach of patient endurance to persecution, but it seems like he speaks favorably and admiringly of it.  Is patient endurance our call if we think that a government is hostile to our faith, or is active confrontation our duty?

Today's Scripture

The night is nearly over; the day is almost here.  So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.

 

Romans 13:12

Today's prayer request:     The family of Brian Calhoun.

 

This is Ron Ray's coworker, whose brother-in-law died suddenly of a heart attack at 32, leaving behind a 3 year old daughter Hannah and a wife Elizabeth who is five month pregnant.  Need to remember this family during this time of intense grief and shock.

 

Today's class member prayer:

 

Christie Peebles

 

Have a great day.

Jay

Prayer Request

 

Below is an email that I received from one of my coworkers.  His brother-in-law passed away this weekend.  We need to keep his expecting wife and daughter in our prayers.

 

Ron

 

From:                     Calhoun, Brian P. 

Sent:                      Saturday, January 14, 2006 10:24 PM

To:                          IT SCGen Trading Floor Support; IT SCGen Inf SA Email; Simmons, Donald B.

Subject:                 Possibly Out of Office

Importance:         High

 

Just wanted to give a heads up that I might have to be out of the office part of this week.  We got a call this morning that my brother in law was being rushed to the hospital and possibly had a heart attack.  They had gone to Chattanooga to take their daughter to the aquarium and it happened at the hotel.  They don't know for sure the official cause, but it happened very quickly.  He was only 32 years old and he leaves behind his wife (Elizabeth - my wife's sister) who is 5 months pregnant with their second child - a boy, and their three year old daughter Hannah.  We drove up to Chattanooga this morning and just got back to Birmingham.  I don't know what the arrangements are yet, but I'll let you know for sure if I'll be out any days.  I know we have a number of things on our plate first thing Tuesday including getting the new doozer contractor setup for Johnny.  If I need to be out please check with Bob as he might need some assistance getting those things done and covering the floor.

 

Thanks,

 

Brian P. Calhoun

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

Good Morning!

 

The new books arrived yesterday, so I can get a book to those who need one.  If you need one, please let me know how I can get one to you.

 

Today's Reading:  Revelation 1:8

 

-- Quick blurb today, running late this morning.

 

-- This verse is one of the memorable lines from Revelation that you know even before you read the book.  "I am the Alpha and Omega" uses the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet to symbolize the completeness of God.

 

-- The interesting fact from Barclay's commentary today is about the word Almighty -- it is a word that is used, surprisingly, only seven (there's that number again) times in the New Testament, and six of those are in Revelation.  It seems to me that "Almighty" is a phrase that would be throughout the New Testament, but it really isn't.  Just yet another of the ways how Revelation is just a bit different than the rest of the New Testament, and that it really has an Old Testament feel to its wording and writing and concepts.

 

-- But isn't this verse of scripture so reassuring to you as a Christian - that the dimensions of your God are not bound in any direction?

Today's Scripture

 

I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.

2 Corinthians 6:18

Today's prayer request:      For Saundra Aaron

 

This is Valerie's brother's mother-in-law, who is going through chemo to treat breast cancer, and who is having a hard time now after the holidays in keeping her spirits up during treatments.

 

Today's class member prayer:

Chris Wesson

 

Have a great day.

Jay

Monday, January 16, 2006

Good Morning!

 

Some of you have the day off today, some of you have to work.  Hope you all have a good day.

 

Today's Reading:  Revelation 1:7

 

-- Quick one verse section today.

 

-- As Barclay says, John sets up the tone of the whole book of Revelation here -- the second coming of Christ - a triumphant and victorious arrival.

 

-- Barclay points out an interesting note about the second coming -- while it is a promise of hope to all Christians, it is also a threat to Christ's enemies.  Barclay makes a point to say that it not just the Roman and Jews that crucified him, but all that sin and refuse to repent or believe who oppose Christ.

 

-- Remember that John is also writing in a very, very difficult time for Christians, so images of a triumphant Christ and the promise of ultimate victory were great encouragement to the Christians of John's day.  But they also should be encouraging to us as well.  However, my sense is that we aren't as encouraged by this kind of language in Revelation, because we really have been "trained" in a way to believe that the book of Revelation is something we should be scared up.  I think that the truth of the matter is that for Christians who are being persecuted, they see this as a book of hope.  For us, who worship as we wish and have no persecution to speak of, this is a scary book. Why is that?

 

-- My guess is that it has something to do with change.  If nothing else, Revelation is a book about change and accountability.  For Christians who have been faithful during difficult times, change and accountability have no fear for them -- it is what they want and need.  I don't think we really want change and accountability. I think we appreciate it in the abstract, but it would be pretty inconvenient for us if the second coming happened during our life time.

Today's Scripture

 

But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream

Amos 5:24

Today's prayer request:      For justice

 

MLK day is one where we are supposed to reflect on those values of equality and justice for all.  We need to pray for those in our communities who are not treated equally, not just those treated badly because of the color of their skin, but also those who are denied justice because they are poor.

 

Today's class member prayer:

Krystle Hatton

 

Have a great day.

Jay