Dodger: Hey there! I don't know about you, but my Summer vacation is over...man, I can't believe it zoomed by so fast!
Lilly: No joke! It's almost ridiculous how quickly it went by, and I'm full of dread.
Dodger: Dread? Why? I thought you were excited for school.
Lilly: I was, until I heard about Mr. Scerge.
Dodger: Mr. Scerge? What about him?
Lilly: He's my new science teacher. I've heard he's the toughest teacher in the whole school.
Dodger: So? I thought you liked teachers who stretched your efforts.
Lilly: I do. What I don't like is that Mr. Scerge will fail you just for having to get a drink of water in his class. He also steals your pencils and eats them.
Dodger: Lilly, that's ridiculous! Where did you hear all this stuff?
Lilly: I dunno. Everyone at school knows. It was on my Twitter the other day.
Dodger: Who tweeted it?
Lilly: Jerry Rigking.
Dodger: The school bully? You're letting something he posted on Twitter motivate your entire feelings about going to school?
Lilly: Well...
Dodger: Lilly, I don't think Jerry is really your best source for knowing about a science teacher. Don't you think you'd better find out for yourself? Maybe look him up online or something?
Lilly: You think I should?
Dodger: I do. We actually have an example from the Bible. It's not exactly the same situation as yours, but it makes sense to apply it here.
Lilly: What is it?
Dodger: It's in Acts 17. We may have talked about these guys before.
"The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue. Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. (Acts 17:10-11, ESV, boldface added)"
Lilly: I'm a little confused.
Dodger: Basically the Berean Jews wanted to know if Paul was telling them the truth about God. They wanted to be sure that the Bible confirmed what he was saying, so they looked it up. I think we let rumor determine way too much of what we do. What if we did like the Bereans did and checked things before blindly believing them? That might save us a lot of confusion and trouble, both about school and about God!
Lilly: Good point...alright. I'll look up Mr. Scerge before I pass any more judgment on him, and 'll be sure to look at the Bible before I pass judgment on what someone tells me about God.
Dodger: Nice double whammy. Well, we have to pack our backpacks back up again and finish some homework. Thanks for coming by today! Remember, Jesus loves you, and that's not about to change!
Lilly: Ciao!
(ESV refers to English Standard Version of the Bible, Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Sunday, August 30, 2015
Sunday, August 9, 2015
See-Through?
Dodger: Hey there! How was your week? Mine was a little bit hectic. Lots of travel. You would not believe the number of advertisements I saw just getting around. I feel like there's an ad for everything! TV shows, pizza, legal services, insurance, websites, the list goes on and on. It's kind of crazy. Lilly, what about you?
Lilly: After the theme park I actually came down with a cold, so I stayed inside most of the week, but yeah, I know what you mean. We let a lot of advertising into our homes too. I don't think I'd mind, but a lot of it is really fake. I just know that all the promises on those products can't be real, but they can be pretty convincing.
Dodger: Well, those ads are made by professionals in that field. One of my best friends is a communication major in college, and he's been studying how advertising works. They target their audience, which is why some of those messages are so persuasive. They usually tell a story to make their ad really stick. Come to think of it, that's not really all that new.
Lilly: How so?
Dodger: Well, people have always advertised their products. Sometimes, though, the advertising was the product.
Lilly: What?
Dodger: Well, if you read about some of the prophets in the Old Testament, you find out a lot of them were even more fake than our commercials, and God wasn't too happy about it.
Lilly: Fake prophets?
Dodger: Yeah. You see, they'd tell people something they claimed to have heard from God, only it wasn't true.
Lilly: Why would they do that?
Dodger: Same reason advertisers do what they do now. It was lucrative. You could make a lot of money, telling people what they wanted to hear.
Lilly: But, wouldn't that lead people to believe the wrong things about God?
Dodger: It did. In fact, it got really bad. Eventually God's people were living completely sinful lifestyles, but because the prophets insisted that everything was okay, no one felt any need to change.
Lilly: No one was telling the truth?
Dodger: Oh, some were, but not as many people wanted to hear them, and they were often in trouble for speaking the truth.
Lilly: Yikes!
Dodger: Well, it didn't end well. Eventually God's people lost their land, and they had to start all over again because of their sinful lifestyles. It's a sobering reminder to check what we hear against what God actually says. Sometimes we hear nice things that sound like God said them, when He really didn't.
Lilly: Like "The Lord helps those who help themselves?"
Dodger: Right. That's not in the Bible anywhere, but a lot of people will say it is.
Lilly: So, the best bet then is to read the Bible so we actually know what's in it.
Dodger: Right! You can't be fooled by a lie when you know the truth. Don't do what everyone else is doing just because it's popular. Large groups of people have been wrong in the past. Instead, study God's Word so you really know where to stand, and then, when you hear something that is supposedly about or from God, you know where to look.
Lilly: Plus, by knowing the truth yourself, you can share it with others.
Dodger: Right. Paul's letter to Timothy says it well: "When Christ Jesus comes as king, he will be the judge of everyone, whether they are living or dead. So with God and Christ as witnesses, I command you to preach God’s message. Do it willingly, even if it isn’t the popular thing to do. You must correct people and point out their sins. But also cheer them up, and when you instruct them, always be patient. The time is coming when people won’t listen to good teaching. Instead, they will look for teachers who will please them by telling them only what they are itching to hear. They will turn from the truth and eagerly listen to senseless stories. But you must stay calm and be willing to suffer. You must work hard to tell the good news and to do your job well (2 Timothy 4:1-5, CEV)."
Lilly: Whether it's popular or not, when you know the truth, it sets you free.
Dodger: You got it. Well, we better get going. Thanks for joining us today! See you next time, and remember that Jesus loves you, and that's not EVER going to change!
Lilly: Ciao!
(CEV Refers to Contemporary English Version)
Lilly: After the theme park I actually came down with a cold, so I stayed inside most of the week, but yeah, I know what you mean. We let a lot of advertising into our homes too. I don't think I'd mind, but a lot of it is really fake. I just know that all the promises on those products can't be real, but they can be pretty convincing.
Dodger: Well, those ads are made by professionals in that field. One of my best friends is a communication major in college, and he's been studying how advertising works. They target their audience, which is why some of those messages are so persuasive. They usually tell a story to make their ad really stick. Come to think of it, that's not really all that new.
Lilly: How so?
Dodger: Well, people have always advertised their products. Sometimes, though, the advertising was the product.
Lilly: What?
Dodger: Well, if you read about some of the prophets in the Old Testament, you find out a lot of them were even more fake than our commercials, and God wasn't too happy about it.
Lilly: Fake prophets?
Dodger: Yeah. You see, they'd tell people something they claimed to have heard from God, only it wasn't true.
Lilly: Why would they do that?
Dodger: Same reason advertisers do what they do now. It was lucrative. You could make a lot of money, telling people what they wanted to hear.
Lilly: But, wouldn't that lead people to believe the wrong things about God?
Dodger: It did. In fact, it got really bad. Eventually God's people were living completely sinful lifestyles, but because the prophets insisted that everything was okay, no one felt any need to change.
Lilly: No one was telling the truth?
Dodger: Oh, some were, but not as many people wanted to hear them, and they were often in trouble for speaking the truth.
Lilly: Yikes!
Dodger: Well, it didn't end well. Eventually God's people lost their land, and they had to start all over again because of their sinful lifestyles. It's a sobering reminder to check what we hear against what God actually says. Sometimes we hear nice things that sound like God said them, when He really didn't.
Lilly: Like "The Lord helps those who help themselves?"
Dodger: Right. That's not in the Bible anywhere, but a lot of people will say it is.
Lilly: So, the best bet then is to read the Bible so we actually know what's in it.
Dodger: Right! You can't be fooled by a lie when you know the truth. Don't do what everyone else is doing just because it's popular. Large groups of people have been wrong in the past. Instead, study God's Word so you really know where to stand, and then, when you hear something that is supposedly about or from God, you know where to look.
Lilly: Plus, by knowing the truth yourself, you can share it with others.
Dodger: Right. Paul's letter to Timothy says it well: "When Christ Jesus comes as king, he will be the judge of everyone, whether they are living or dead. So with God and Christ as witnesses, I command you to preach God’s message. Do it willingly, even if it isn’t the popular thing to do. You must correct people and point out their sins. But also cheer them up, and when you instruct them, always be patient. The time is coming when people won’t listen to good teaching. Instead, they will look for teachers who will please them by telling them only what they are itching to hear. They will turn from the truth and eagerly listen to senseless stories. But you must stay calm and be willing to suffer. You must work hard to tell the good news and to do your job well (2 Timothy 4:1-5, CEV)."
Lilly: Whether it's popular or not, when you know the truth, it sets you free.
Dodger: You got it. Well, we better get going. Thanks for joining us today! See you next time, and remember that Jesus loves you, and that's not EVER going to change!
Lilly: Ciao!
(CEV Refers to Contemporary English Version)
Sunday, August 2, 2015
The No-Stop Summer.
Dodger: Hey there! Is it just me, or is summer just flying by?
Lilly: I can't even believe how time has zoomed past. It's almost unbelievable!
Dodger: Still, this is as good as it gets. Warm weather, great friends, life is truly beautiful.
Lilly: I agree...although, this isn't as good as it gets.
Dodger: Right, right. We're going to a theme park tomorrow.
Lilly: That's not what I meant, Dodger.
Dodger: Well, what did you mean, then?
Lilly: I mean there's even more for us in store than this summer, or even this life.
Dodger: Riiiight...and you're of course referring to heaven?
Lilly: Yes. I think sometimes we tend to kind of put heaven in a box and forget how wonderful it's going to be. It's not just floating on clouds and playing harps - there's going to be all sorts of people, and food, and most of all, it never stops! A life with God, forever and ever...I'm not sure there's even a way to quantify how amazing that's going to be.
Dodger: I think, though, that Revelation does describe a little bit of it. It's chapter 21, verse 4, and it says this: "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away (NKJV).”
Lilly: A world without any kind of pain. Now that's an amazing promise.
Dodger: It's the promise God gives us. Today may be great, or it may be terrible- but every day with God can be rejoiced in, because one day we'll see Him face to face.
Lilly: It's like the unending summer!
Dodger: Yep...only ten quadrillion zillion billion jillion times better.
Lilly: Well, that's awesome.
Dodger: It is indeed. Hey, we'd better get going. I got to go to bed early so I'm fresh for tomorrow's roller coaster rides.
Lilly: Me too. Thanks for visiting us today!
Dodger: It's always fun hanging out with you. Remember, Jesus loves you, and that's not about to change!
Lilly: Ciao!
Lilly: I can't even believe how time has zoomed past. It's almost unbelievable!
Dodger: Still, this is as good as it gets. Warm weather, great friends, life is truly beautiful.
Lilly: I agree...although, this isn't as good as it gets.
Dodger: Right, right. We're going to a theme park tomorrow.
Lilly: That's not what I meant, Dodger.
Dodger: Well, what did you mean, then?
Lilly: I mean there's even more for us in store than this summer, or even this life.
Dodger: Riiiight...and you're of course referring to heaven?
Lilly: Yes. I think sometimes we tend to kind of put heaven in a box and forget how wonderful it's going to be. It's not just floating on clouds and playing harps - there's going to be all sorts of people, and food, and most of all, it never stops! A life with God, forever and ever...I'm not sure there's even a way to quantify how amazing that's going to be.
Dodger: I think, though, that Revelation does describe a little bit of it. It's chapter 21, verse 4, and it says this: "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away (NKJV).”
Lilly: A world without any kind of pain. Now that's an amazing promise.
Dodger: It's the promise God gives us. Today may be great, or it may be terrible- but every day with God can be rejoiced in, because one day we'll see Him face to face.
Lilly: It's like the unending summer!
Dodger: Yep...only ten quadrillion zillion billion jillion times better.
Lilly: Well, that's awesome.
Dodger: It is indeed. Hey, we'd better get going. I got to go to bed early so I'm fresh for tomorrow's roller coaster rides.
Lilly: Me too. Thanks for visiting us today!
Dodger: It's always fun hanging out with you. Remember, Jesus loves you, and that's not about to change!
Lilly: Ciao!
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