Monday, January 9, 2012
Happy 2012 and Prayer Requests
I just want to wish everyone a very happy new year! I truly hope that 2012 is pleasant or at least tolerable for everyone. I know that life can be very diverse all over this planet. Many times much economic disparity exists depending on the region one lives. Many times we can also be very well off financially, but we may have other needs that are perhaps emotional or spiritual. Sometimes we are well in many areas of our lives, but we are not well physically. Sometimes we are well, but we have friends or relatives that have special needs relevant to some of the things I just mentioned. For some reason, I wanted to start a prayer request posting for this year. So, if there is something you may want to pray about feel free to write me or just post a comment on the blog, and I will try to tell most of my friends to lift us all up in prayers this year. If for some reason you do not want to post a comment, you can also email me at the following address: moisesarango@gmail.com. Once again, I wish for everyone to have a healthy, happy, and prosperous 2012. May God bless everyone!
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
O Little Town of Bethlehem
The following is a bit of background information on the Christmas Carol, O Little Town of Bethlehem.
“Rector Phillips Brooks (1835-1903) of Philadelphia, wrote the words to O Little Town of Bethlehem in 1868, following a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. He was inspired by the view of Bethlehem from the hills of Palestine especially at night time hence the lyrics of O Little Town of Bethlehem. His church organist Lewis Redner (1831-1908) wrote the melody to O Little Town of Bethlehem for the Sunday school children's choir (www.carols.org.uk/).”
The lyrics to it are as follows:
O little town of Bethlehem
How still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting Light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight
For Christ is born of Mary
And gathered all above
While mortals sleep, the angels keep
Their watch of wondering love
O morning stars together
Proclaim the holy birth
And praises sing to God the King
And Peace to men on earth
How silently, how silently
The wondrous gift is given!
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of His heaven.
No ear may hear His coming,
But in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive him still,
The dear Christ enters in.
O holy Child of Bethlehem
Descend to us, we pray
Cast out our sin and enter in
Be born to us today
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell
O come to us, abide with us
Our Lord Emmanuel
Why Bethlehem?
Mathew 2:1 reads: “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem (ESV Bible).”
Now, about 700 years before Jesus was born, the Prophet Micah wrote the following:
Micah 5:2 (5:1) “But thou, Beth-lehem Ephrathah, which art little to be among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall one come forth unto Me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from ancient days (JPS Tanakh).”
Personally, I think the foregoing is interesting, but then again that’s just me. Either way, I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas whether you celebrate it or not.
References:
ESV Bible
JPS Tanakh
Carols.org.uk. “O little town of Bethlehem.”
http://www.carols.org.uk/o_little_town_of_bethlehem.htm
“Rector Phillips Brooks (1835-1903) of Philadelphia, wrote the words to O Little Town of Bethlehem in 1868, following a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. He was inspired by the view of Bethlehem from the hills of Palestine especially at night time hence the lyrics of O Little Town of Bethlehem. His church organist Lewis Redner (1831-1908) wrote the melody to O Little Town of Bethlehem for the Sunday school children's choir (www.carols.org.uk/).”
The lyrics to it are as follows:
O little town of Bethlehem
How still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting Light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight
For Christ is born of Mary
And gathered all above
While mortals sleep, the angels keep
Their watch of wondering love
O morning stars together
Proclaim the holy birth
And praises sing to God the King
And Peace to men on earth
How silently, how silently
The wondrous gift is given!
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of His heaven.
No ear may hear His coming,
But in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive him still,
The dear Christ enters in.
O holy Child of Bethlehem
Descend to us, we pray
Cast out our sin and enter in
Be born to us today
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell
O come to us, abide with us
Our Lord Emmanuel
Why Bethlehem?
Mathew 2:1 reads: “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem (ESV Bible).”
Now, about 700 years before Jesus was born, the Prophet Micah wrote the following:
Micah 5:2 (5:1) “But thou, Beth-lehem Ephrathah, which art little to be among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall one come forth unto Me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from ancient days (JPS Tanakh).”
Personally, I think the foregoing is interesting, but then again that’s just me. Either way, I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas whether you celebrate it or not.
References:
ESV Bible
JPS Tanakh
Carols.org.uk. “O little town of Bethlehem.”
http://www.carols.org.uk/o_little_town_of_bethlehem.htm
Saturday, November 26, 2011
The Goats and the Sheep
In Mathew 25:31-46, Jesus is speaking and he says:
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.' "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?' Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me. ‘And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life (ESV Bible).”
The previous quote also appears to be in some way relevant to Ezekiel 34:17 which said:
"And as for you, O My flock, thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, even the rams and the he- goats (JPS Tanakh)."
I will not even try to interpret this for you. I am just posting it so you have the opportunity to read it and decide for yourself what you think.
References:
ESV Bible
JPS Tanakh
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.' "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?' Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me. ‘And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life (ESV Bible).”
The previous quote also appears to be in some way relevant to Ezekiel 34:17 which said:
"And as for you, O My flock, thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, even the rams and the he- goats (JPS Tanakh)."
I will not even try to interpret this for you. I am just posting it so you have the opportunity to read it and decide for yourself what you think.
References:
ESV Bible
JPS Tanakh
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Happy Third Anniversary!
Happy anniversary to you, happy anniversary to you, happy anniversary dear blog…. Happy Anniversary to you, and many more…. Well, it is the third anniversary for this blog, and I hope that any of you out there that have stopped by to read have enjoyed it. If you have stopped by, and never read any of the various topics that I have covered on here than I hope someday soon you have the time to read. Anyhow, I hope you enjoy your cyber stop, and may God bless you. Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by.
Sincerely,
Mo
Sincerely,
Mo
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Dr. Gary R. Habermas
Dr. Gary R. Habermas is Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Dept. of Philosophy and Theology at Liberty University.
I recommend that you visit his website, and take advantage of all the resources that it provides. Below is the link to the website:
http://www.garyhabermas.com/.
I recommend that you visit his website, and take advantage of all the resources that it provides. Below is the link to the website:
http://www.garyhabermas.com/.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
My Favorite Investment Plan
My favorite investment plan has been around for a very long time, and I will tell you all about it. A co-worker recently asked me if I would ever consider investing in Gold? Thinking about, the way currencies fluctuate globally now days it probably not a bad idea, but I really don’t think I would do it. Actually, I think my reply to the co-worker was that I would invest in Gold if I had a good safe at my house with good guns for protecting it there. Now, if I was investing on paper or keeping it in a bank vault then I really doubt that I would do it. I really do not trust institutions that are constantly changing their rules. I mean you really never know when the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision will have a secret meeting in Basel, Switzerland and change the rules on everyone, although I really don’t know how much jurisdiction they really have anyhow. When it comes to investing, I do have a retirement pension type of account that is on an investment plan, and they have changed the rules on that a couple of times since I first got it. My suggestion for investing is the one Jesus endorsed. In Mathew 6:19-21, Jesus said:
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (ESV Bible)."
Now, if you cannot really grasp that whole concept of heaven, I can try to make it more tangible although as Christians we also do think of it as our eternal home. I mean, Jesus did say in John 14:2: “In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you (ESV Bible)? Ok, let me get back to another tangible way to view it. I was having a conversation with a very close friend of mine one day, and she said to me: “you know I raised my daughters telling them to lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven.” I said that I agreed, but then she said something really funny which was: “yeah, I told them to get a good education even if they had to get loans for it because once that information is in your brain; no one can steal it from you.” For some reason, my way of viewing the concept of heaven became broader after that. So, again, my suggestion for investing is really: “lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.” Moreover, if you have money or something, just give it away. Jesus also said in Luke 6:38: “give and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you (ESV Bible)."
Well, I can really give many other reasons why I agree with this concept for investing, but for now, I will let you meditate on what I have said thus far. Thanks for reading My Favorite Investment Plan posting.
References:
Holy Bible, ESV
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (ESV Bible)."
Now, if you cannot really grasp that whole concept of heaven, I can try to make it more tangible although as Christians we also do think of it as our eternal home. I mean, Jesus did say in John 14:2: “In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you (ESV Bible)? Ok, let me get back to another tangible way to view it. I was having a conversation with a very close friend of mine one day, and she said to me: “you know I raised my daughters telling them to lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven.” I said that I agreed, but then she said something really funny which was: “yeah, I told them to get a good education even if they had to get loans for it because once that information is in your brain; no one can steal it from you.” For some reason, my way of viewing the concept of heaven became broader after that. So, again, my suggestion for investing is really: “lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.” Moreover, if you have money or something, just give it away. Jesus also said in Luke 6:38: “give and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you (ESV Bible)."
Well, I can really give many other reasons why I agree with this concept for investing, but for now, I will let you meditate on what I have said thus far. Thanks for reading My Favorite Investment Plan posting.
References:
Holy Bible, ESV
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
The Light of Life
What is light?
"Light is a phenomenon that has particle and wave characteristics. Its carrier particles are called photons, which are not really particles, but massless discrete units of energy (www.thebigview.com)."
So light, pretty much, consists of photons, which are the units of energy and I guess everything that exists in our space-time comes from energy. We also know that atoms are held together into objects and planets and stars, etc. by photons....
In John 8:12, Jesus said:
"I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."
In the Epistle of Paul to the Colossians 1:16-17, referring to Jesus, Paul said:
"For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together."
A lot of this scientific stuff I mentioned was not really known back in the first century. I find it interesting how some of these verses from the Scriptures perhaps make more sense to someone reading it today than way back then.
References:
http://www.thebigview.com/spacetime/faq.html.
Holy Bible, ESV
"Light is a phenomenon that has particle and wave characteristics. Its carrier particles are called photons, which are not really particles, but massless discrete units of energy (www.thebigview.com)."
So light, pretty much, consists of photons, which are the units of energy and I guess everything that exists in our space-time comes from energy. We also know that atoms are held together into objects and planets and stars, etc. by photons....
In John 8:12, Jesus said:
"I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."
In the Epistle of Paul to the Colossians 1:16-17, referring to Jesus, Paul said:
"For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together."
A lot of this scientific stuff I mentioned was not really known back in the first century. I find it interesting how some of these verses from the Scriptures perhaps make more sense to someone reading it today than way back then.
References:
http://www.thebigview.com/spacetime/faq.html.
Holy Bible, ESV
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