Scripture of the Month: Honesty

Even in the littlest of details, strive for honesty. 

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Scripture of the Month: Mistakes

There is a difference between making a mistake and committing a sin.

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Scripture of the Month: New beginnings

Life is a series of beginnings. How you enter into them makes all the différance.

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Is Jeremiah 10:3-4 against Christmas?

Jeremiah 10:3-4 is simply an excuse for Christians to celebrate Christmas. It’s also an excuse to call Christians “pagans” that celebrate Christmas. One can’t win either way. For many people, Christmas is a feeling that takes them back to their childhood. They gravitate towards the gingerbread, the gifts, the carols, and the Christmas tree. Talk about a sensory overload! It’s a cherished custom that’s hard to let go of.

Not to stray off-topic, but at first glance/read, many people take Jeremiah 10:3-4 out of context. It’s better to read the chapter in its entirety, but I want to look at the first 4 verses. This chapter opens with a request for Israel to listen to what Jeremiah is saying, for he speaks the Word of God. The second chapter is a reminder that we live in the world, but we shouldn’t even think of taking up such worldly ways. Verse 3 speaks of idol worship where trees are cut down to make idols for worship, and we’re never to worship God through images or idols of any sort. Verse 4 describes how the idols are then decked in silver and gold. Yet, despite the care, time, and patience that goes into craving and decorating a lifeless deity, comes to life it does not.

Statue of Baal via Google Arts & Culture

We can clearly see that Jeremiah is condemning idolatry, not Christmas trees. He is reminding his people that the gods that the pagans worship are NOTHING compared to the True and Living God. Compare Jeremiah 10 with Isaiah 40:18-20; 44:14-17, and read how similar the arguments are. When will a Christmas tree become a graven image for these passages to apply? When people start bowing down to worship or pray to them.

However, I’ll also have to concur that there is a slight resemblance between the Christmas tree and the tree of Jeremiah and Isaiah. The Christmas tree is supposed to be a decorative symbol, yet, there are songs directed to the tree as if they were meant to serenade it.

Although Jeremiah 10:3-4 may not be of the beloved Christmas trees, they began as a pagan tradition and there is no denying it, no matter how much one dresses or lights it up. Christmas loving Christians are going to want to defend and argue over other man made traditions that non-loving Christmas Christians keep, such as birthdays, but that’s a topic for another day.

GIF via Best Wishes

Conclusion

The Israelites failed to heed God’s warning time after time. They were fascinated by the religious practices of their neighbors, so it became easier overtime to ignore God, and slip into idolatrous worship, thus learning the way of the Gentile. The celestial body was part of the Gentile’s worship, so that includes the sun, and December 25th do have significant history with sun worship. As the wisest man once said, “There is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Many customs and traditions are recycled and simply given a new name and purpose, and Christmas is one of such.

When we look at Jeremiah 10, we must remember that Christmas came into being long after the death and resurrection of our Savior, as a day to honor His birth. Some might argue that “we honor Him every day,” but why December 25th to commemorate a birth that is inaccurate? Why December 25th to give gifts, spend time with loved ones, and share with the homeless? Shouldn’t those things be done during the year, and not one day a year? What’s so special about this one day that we stop to “celebrate” and “honor” Christ? Why not every day? It’s no wonder why this festive season is fill with so much of anxiety!

GIF via Society19

Getting back on track, Jeremiah 10 is referring to idolatry as the practice of decorating Christmas trees originated later. However, although the passage is not referring to Christmas trees, take time to look into the celebration of Christmas and its trees. God warns that “the customs of the peoples are futile”, so why are Christians bent on looking at pagan practices and seeking to copy them? Why do we seek to justify the keeping and practices of it? We need to stop borrowing attractive religious customs from the world around us, and worship God in spirit and truth as it is meant to be. Our religious practices should be taken DIRECTLY from the Bible.

Final Thoughts:

• No matter what, we can’t put Christ back into Christmas, for He was never there to begin with, no matter how it is dressed up. It’s not even pronounced Christ-mas, but kri-smuhs. If it’s all about Christ, why is the ‘t’ silent?
• It’s AMAZING how many people disobey or trash Christ during the year, but come together to “celebrate His birth” for one day. Make it make sense.
• It is easy to give praise with our voice, but what about action through obedience?

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VERSE OF THE MONTH (December 2021): 

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. 

Hosea 4:6 🤔

Scripture of the Month: We are lacking knowledge

Romans 15:4 perfectly captures why the Bible was written. Yet, many people lack knowledge for they do not read, learn, meditate, and study the scriptures. They lean on false teachings instead of opening the Bible. They get their learning from Hollywood, misinformed and misguided individuals/celebrities, instead of going directly to the Word.

It’s no wonder we are destroyed due to a lack of knowledge!

To reject the knowledge of the Word of God is to reject God. Today, open your Bible and seek knowledge. 

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WORD OF KNOWLEDGE

Amen! Well put! Educational institutions tend not to provide spiritual insight.

By the Mighty Mumford

Not learned in my college

Was the word of knowledge……

The Spirit living

In you giving

Words that only from God can be acknowledged!

–

Jonathan Caswell

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Learn to ask…

How are we going to receive when we’re afraid to ask? Even if it’s the most menial thing such as asking for help in the kitchen to stir a pot or to retrieve an ingredient from the fridge?

Unfortunately, we live in a society where pride rules supreme, so when we fall on hard times, we tend to lick our wound instead of asking for a bandage to put on it. We tend to complain about things instead of asking. That never makes the situation better. Yes, yes, I know that asking for help especially when we’re in dire situations can make us seem weak, needy, and inferior, but seeking help is not a form of weakness.

Sooner or later, you’re not going to have a choice.

You do not have, because you do not ask. 

James 4:2

Sometimes, people don’t always automatically know your needs, so never be afraid to ask for help when you truly need it, even if it’s menial. If you feel like that thing call control is slipping away from your fingers, don’t hesitate to ask for help, for it’s natural to. Not everyone might be willing to help, but that too is okay. The most important thing is that you’ve gathered the courage to ask.

And that’s my two cents. 

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VERSE OF THE MONTH (January 2021):  

For if you remain silent at this time, 
relief and deliverance for the Jews will 
arise from another place, 
but you and your father’s family will perish. 
And who knows but that you have come to 
your royal position for such a time as this?” 

Esther 4:14 👑

How my reading fared in 2020…

Reading has always been un passe-temps préféré of mine, but lately, not so much.

At the beginning of 2020, I had one goal in mind: to read through my TBR. What started out as fun became tedious, and I just wasn’t up to the task by the time July rolled around, so it was only fair that I put reading on hold. The classics I wanted to read and get over were shoved aside, and the 20 books I chose to read by year-end were a disaster. To be honest, I had enough time to read and even do a read-a-thon marathon, but my heart wasn’t in it. However, I still managed to read 115 books before quitting, so from these books, I’ll choose my highs and lows.

5 Cups of Coffee

Unfortunately, I did not rate any books five steaming cups. However, these books came close to a warming up 5:

Dancing the Dream by Michael Jackson – MJ certainly had a way with words. Although I can’t rate all of his poems 3, 4, or even 5 stars, I enjoyed the majority, especially the ones where he expressed his concerns for the earth, the treatment of animals, and love for his mother. This poetry collection is some of the best I’ve read. 

Moonwalk by Michael Jackson – In his words and thoughts. Sometimes they were jumbled, sometimes they didn’t make sense, but what else did I expect from MJ. If it’s one thing I came away with from both MJ book is the way he told stories. He would’ve been a terrific storyteller of books. 

The Making of Port-Of-Spain by Michael Anthony is perhaps the best book I’ve read from a local author. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about my capital from eras gone by. When compared to the present, POS appears to have taken too many a facelift and there are current plans to put her through another one at present. 

Books I enjoyed

I Hated, Hated, Hated This Movie by Roger Ebert. Actually, I liked, liked, liked this book. Ebert mixed no sugar in drinks to sugarcoat why he disliked the movies he thinks should be avoided at all cost. He reminds me of myself when it comes to talking about books.

Letters From Cuba by Ruth Behar – The story focuses on a young Jewish girl who leaves Poland to help her father make a new life for their family in Cuba. The format of this book was in letter writing, and it bought back fond memories of letter writing between my friends and me back then. The book is based on the author’s life, and if I do find the time, I’ll share my thoughts in another post.

All-American Murder: The Rise and Fall of Aaron Hernandez by James Patterson – JP has found his niche and that’s writing real-life crime stories. Although detailed, this book was well written. Although I’m no fan of the NFL, I knew Aaron, and that’s how big a deal he was. This man had a bright future ahead of him, yet, he threw it all away just to hang out with drug dealers and gang members until he eventually became a criminal himself. The Bible warns us about the company we keep (Proverbs 13:20) and had Aaron heed that warning, he would’ve been alive today. 

Books I didn’t enjoy

Maybe Twinkle is funny on film – I can’t recall any of her movies as I write this – but she’s not funny in ink. In Mrs. Funnybones I found the humor to be stiff and forced – like most unfunny Bollywood films. The writing fell flat as it was amateur and unimpressive. I expected more from Mrs. Khanna given her so-call legendary funny status in India. Mrs. Funnybones is not very funny at all. 

Another book I extremely disliked was Woman of God by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro. The faith presented in this book was not a Biblically sound one, but rather, a mysticism one. The one I call ‘God is not a genie’ faith that was also presented in the “Christian” film War Room. This book was drawn out, boring, and HIGHLY offensive. The character wants us to believe that God whispers in her ears as Priscilla Shirer claims, and she even had a few choice words for God that can only be labeled as blasphemous. There was no character development and the writing was horrible. 

Chestnut Street by Maeve Binchy is perhaps one of the BIGGEST overrated books I’ve ever had the displeasure of reading. Too many characters, too many boring stories. There was one that reminded me of Tom (Cruise) and Katie (Holmes) due to the fact that the characters’ names were just that: Tom and Kate. The author seems to hate men, for they were mostly cast in a distasteful light. Or maybe it’s an Irish thing, for most Irish authors that I read love putting men down. Are Irish men that bad?

Favorite Classic

Ah, my least favorite genre. Classics are supposed to withstand the test of time, but most of them are nothing special. Yet, I’ll try to polish off my classic TBR this year. I read a total of 21 classics last year, and if I had to choose a favorite, it’ll be Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne. Even though the story revolved around a so-call English gentleman, the French valet Jean Passepartout was the true hero. 

Least Favorite Classic

That’s easy. Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, Daphne du Maurier’s My Cousin Rachel, Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea, and Carlo Collodi’s Pinocchio. I also disliked The Borrowers by Mary Norton. There is nothing right in stealing other people’s property and labeling it as borrowing. Definitely not a positive message for children.  

I’ve come to the conclusion that most classics are just overhyped, boring books that don’t age like a vintage bottle of Châteauneuf-du-Pape.

Top DNF

It’s hard to DNF a book…

…but in some cases, there is no choice left. I read a few books from James Patterson, and while I liked his true-crime books, I couldn’t say the same for The Chef. I love the concept of a cop who is also a food truck chef in New Orleans, but I couldn’t stand the protagonist, for he was an egomaniac and a homewrecker. Also, we get more descriptions of the food rather than the investigation.

Another book I had to DNF was Stuff Christians Like by Jonathan Acuff. There was nothing funny to tee-hee about. There is nothing wrong with Christians being funny, but they must know their limit. Most authors – classic to modern – don’t think twice about mocking Christ. There are Christians that may say they’re not offended, but true Christians know not to mix matters when it comes to mocking our Lord and Savior. 

My reading goal for 2021 is very simple: read better books. Although I’m currently on my 8th book for the month, it remains to be seen what I’ll actually call a good book, save the Bible.

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VERSE OF THE MONTH (January 2021):  

For if you remain silent at this time, 
relief and deliverance for the Jews will 
arise from another place, 
but you and your father’s family will perish. 
And who knows but that you have come to 
your royal position for such a time as this?” 

Esther 4:14 👑

🕯 We’re called to be lights in this dark world. 🕯

VERSE OF THE MONTH (January 2021): 

For if you remain silent at this time, 
relief and deliverance for the Jews will 
arise from another place, 
but you and your father’s family will perish. 
And who knows but that you have come to 
your royal position for such a time as this?”

Esther 4:14 👑

Small goals for 2021.

As the French say: C’est la vie!

I don’t make resolutions of any sort, but I’ve written down a few goals I’ll like to accomplish in 2021.

Draw closer to Christ

There are times in my walk with Christ that I feel as if I’m not doing enough as a Christian. There are still little kinks that I need to work out where my attitude is concerned, and I’ve taken the matter to God. Yet, closer, closer, the closest I could be at the feet of my Lord is where I long to be.

Return to writing

*Sighs* I haven’t written short stories or full-length ones for that matter in a long time. I have a lot of ideas backed up that I’ll like to see completed, so I’ll try my best to oil those gears soon, and share a story or two. 

Be more creative

I love creating things! Lock me in a room with a laptop for a day or two, and I’ll emerge with… well, banners like what you see above or the sign-off signature at the bottom. I want to be more creative with my hands, so I’m looking to do more DIY stuff. 

Read better books

This is definitely going to be a challenge. I’ve discovered, whether outdated or modern, books do not live up to the standard that I hold them to. And most of these books – classic to modern – seem to enjoy mocking Christ. There are Christians that may say they’re not offended, but true Christians know not to mix matters when it comes to mocking our Lord and Savior. 

Draw better

I’ve taken up drawing once again. Although I’m no expert, I’m excited to be relearning to draw since I’ve been out of touch with this practice. So far, I’ve been loving it, but I’ve stopped for a while… yet, again. I hope to share some of my amateur creations with you soon.

Make memories

It doesn’t matter where I’ll be or who I’m with, I’m determined to create wonderful memories!

When I next post, it’ll be 2021. We’ve made it through 2020 because of God, despite the circumstances. Let us keep looking towards His guidance as 2021 approaches.

All the best for 2021!

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