Memorial

Several weeks ago we spent the weekend in Oklahoma City.  While we were there we visited the Oklahoma City National Memorial.  The memorial honors the victims and the survivors of the 1995 bombing of the Murrah Federal Building .

On the morning of April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh parked a rental truck with explosives in front of the Murrah Federal Building and at 9:02am, an explosion destroyed much of the building, killing 168 people.

The site is now home to the Oklahoma City National Memorial.  As we walked among the 168 chairs that represent the lives lost I began to feel a profound sadness. The chairs stand in nine rows to represent the nine floors of the building, and each chair bears the name of someone killed on that floor. Nineteen smaller chairs stand for the children who died in the blast.

The memorial is beautiful at night with subdued lights visible in the crystal bases of the chairs.  In front of the chairs is a reflecting pool between two twin gates.  Across the street from the Memorial, Saint Joseph Catholic Church has erected a white stone statue of Jesus that shows Him with His head bowed, standing with His back to the memorial, and with His right hand over his face. The words "And Jesus Wept" are engraved on the granite base.

I had wanted to visit the memorial because of my love for history, but never expected the experience to be so emotional.  That night sleep wouldn't come as I thought about those terrible events of April 19, 1995.  After I finally went to sleep, I dreamt about the bombing and woke up frequently.  I didn't sleep well at all.

The memorial had done its job.  You see the purpose of any memorial is to get us to remember the event and or people that it is memorializing.  Before that night when I visited the Oklahoma City National Memorial I hadn't thought about the bombing for a long time. After seeing the memorial I was focused on the event and the people it represented.

A memorial is something that serves as a focus to help remember an event.  Are there memorials in the Bible?  There is a memorial right in the Ten Commandments.  Exodus 20:8-12 says,  “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it”.

What are we to remember when we keep the Sabbath?  That God created the heavens and the earth.  When did God set up this memorial to creation?  Genesis 2:1-3 tells us, “Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made”.

On the seventh day of creation, God blessed and sanctified the seventh day.  It is a memorial of creation.  Many people no longer believe that God created the world in seven days.   If we deny that God is the Creator, we have no reason to worship God.

One of the main topics of the book of Revelation is worship.  The first angel’s message in Revelation 14 includes a call to the world to worship God as our Creator.  Look at Revelation 14:6,7.  It says, “And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, ‘Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.’”  God wants a people who will worship Him as Creator.

To reject the literal account of creation as found in Genesis is to reject not only Old Testament worship but New Testament worship.   In Romans 1:24,25 the Bible says,  “Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

When we deny God’s creative power we end up worshiping the creation instead of the Creator.   Ephesians 2:8 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.”  And Hebrews 11:3 tells us that, “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible”.  Faith is important to the Christian, and by faith we understand that God created the universe.

Creation is important; It is the reason we worship God, and the seventh day has stood as a memorial to God’s creative power from creation week until today.

Let Them Eat Cake - The Mena Star

This is my article as published in the October 24, 2013 issue of The Mena Star

My favorite podcast is called Stuff You Missed in History Class.  I have always loved history and this podcast brings so many things to my attention that I never knew before.  Recently I listen to a podcast on the life of Marie Antoinette.  I learned something new about those famous words of hers, "let them eat cake".

Even if you know very little about Marie Antoinette, you have probably heard that when the peasants of France were starving from lack of bread she proclaimed, "let them eat cake".

Actually, Marie Antoinette never said it.  She was known to be concerned for the peasants.  There are records of her taking care of a peasant who'd been gored by a wild animal as well as taking in an orphaned boy.  Besides written accounts of her kind and generous nature, there are undisputed facts that prove she never spoke those famous words.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau wrote "let them eat cake" in his book, Confessions, that was first published in 1782. Marie Antoinette was 10 years old under her mother's care in Austria when the book was published.  

The expression isn't as harsh as it sounds. What Rousseau actually wrote is "qu'ils mangent de la brioche." This doesn't mean "let them eat cake," it means "let them eat egg based bread". Brioche, egg based bread, was a more expensive bread than the typical flour and water bread of the French peasants. A French law required bakers to sell their brioche at the same price as their inexpensive bread if they ran out. What has been translated as "let them eat cake" actually meant, "if they have no inexpensive bread, let them eat the more expensive brioche.

In the late 18th century, much of the French population was living in desperate poverty, while the upper classes were living a life of decadence. As a result, dissatisfaction quickly spread throughout the city of Paris. Why should people go hungry when the King and Queen had enough to feed everyone? Why should people live in abject poverty, when those inside the palace had more than they could possibly consume in a thousand lifetimes? Why should people be content with poverty when there were people who lived a life of luxury on the back of their tax dollars?

In 18th century France, the contrasts between the palace and the streets were so strong that it led to widespread anger. The people knew from experience that the current government was not a solution to their problems. In fact, the royal family seemed to be making life harder with each passing day.  The person who drew the most criticism was Marie Antoinette, whose foreign birth and extravagant lifestyle made her an easy target for public anger.  It was easy to fabricate stories about the queen's spendthrift habits. Very likely, someone attributed the words to her, and the story seemed true enough.  

Here in the 21st century we still see these same feelings.  Frustrated people through the centuries have felt there has got to be better government.  Is there any hope for something better, or do we just have to learn to live with imperfect human government?

There is something in the human heart that longs for honest government. Maybe if we just had new leadership things would be better.  There is a longing for a system we can trust. 

The good news is that there is something better.  There really is a kingdom coming that is entirely free from corruption.  We can't expect honest human government, but God gives us this promise in the Bible, "During the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed or given to another group of people. This kingdom will crush all the other kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will continue forever". Daniel 2:44

Jesus said in John 18:36, “My kingdom does not belong to this world".  "God's blessings, which cannot be destroyed or be spoiled or lose their beauty, are kept in heaven for you".  1 Peter 1:4

"So let us be thankful, because we have a kingdom that cannot be shaken. We should worship God in a way that pleases him with reverence and respect".  Hebrews 12:28

I'm ready for a change in government.   I'm ready for a kingdom that can't be shaken.  

He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I come quickly.” Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.  Revelation 22:20

The Seventh Day Adventist Church

This article was published in the June 26, 2013 issue of The Polk County Pulse.  The article was written by Michael Reisig.  I sat down for an interview with him last week.

The mission of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church on Fairgrounds Road in Mena is to make disciples of all the people, communicating the everlasting gospel in the context of the three angels' messages of Revelation 14:6-12, leading them to accept Jesus as their personal Savior, discipling them to serve Him, and preparing them for His soon coming.  The Seventh-Day Adventists believe particularly in the soon coming of Jesus Christ and that is essential to their philosophy. The history of the area church goes back over a century, to 1905, when it was first organized by Elder L. W. Feltner.

In 1957, the congregation purchased the old school building in Dallas Valley.  The church met there until 1990 when they moved to the current church building on Fairgrounds Road.  The construction was funded entirely by the congregation and was debt free at its completion.

The church has a pastor that serves several Seventh Day churches in the area, but the Head Elder of the church is Richie Lawry, who has been with the organization for over three decades.  Lawry grew up in Colorado, graduating from high school in 1973 and becoming involved in the auto repair industry.  He met his wife, Regina, in high school and they were married in 1975.

"My dad came to Mena to visit a friend and he liked it so much he ended up buying two houses," Lawry recalled.  "My wife and I visited here and liked it just as well so we moved here in 1981.  Shortly after settling here, I became involved with the Seventh-Day Adventist Church and have been with them ever since."

Within a few years Lawry became an elder and went on to become head elder in 2000.  "To me, and to us here, it is the worshiping of Jesus on the 7th day that binds us," Lawry explained.  "Jesus, when he attended the synagogue, went on the Sabbath.  I want to live my life by the 10 Commandments, and one of those is to worship God on the seventh day.  We are also a church that has a passion for missions and helping the community.  We have a soup kitchen each Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., and anyone and everyone is welcome to come by for a free meal.  We generally provide meals for over 130 people.

"We have also funded and helped build a church in San Pedro, Belize, and funded the building materials for 29 churches in Africa," Lawry continued.  "We work with a company that offers kits to build open-walled churches that can be framed in if desired.  The kits are delivered in large boxes and can be assembled in a day."

Lawry added that his is an extremely generous congregation, willing to help and to give, and although they are not generally a wealthy people, they always give from their hearts.

"If you'd like to see what the Seventh-Day Adventist philosophy is all about, we'd love to have you come out and visit with us and meet the people of our congregation," Lawry added.  "We meet on Saturday mornings from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., which includes a Bible study period and a church service at 11 a.m., and as of July 1 we will be meeting on Wednesday evenings from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. studying books of the Bible.

Let Them Eat Cake

My favorite podcast is called Stuff You Missed in History Class.  I have always loved history and this podcast brings so many things to my attention that I never knew before.  Recently I listen to a podcast on the life of Marie Antoinette.  I learned something new about those famous words of hers, "let them eat cake".

Even if you know very little about Marie Antoinette, you have probably heard that when the peasants of France were starving from lack of bread she proclaimed, "let them eat cake".

Actually, Marie Antoinette never said it.  She was known to be concerned for the peasants.  There are records of her taking care of a peasant who'd been gored by a wild animal as well as taking in an orphaned boy.  Besides written accounts of her kind and generous nature, there are undisputed facts that prove she never spoke those famous words.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau wrote "let them eat cake" in his book, Confessions, that was first published in 1782. Marie Antoinette was 10 years old under her mother's care in Austria when the book was published.  

The expression isn't as harsh as it sounds. What Rousseau actually wrote is "qu'ils mangent de la brioche." This doesn't mean "let them eat cake," it means "let them eat egg based bread". Brioche, egg based bread, was a more expensive bread than the typical flour and water bread of the French peasants. A French law required bakers to sell their brioche at the same price as their inexpensive bread if they ran out. What has been translated as "let them eat cake" actually meant, "if they have no inexpensive bread, let them eat the more expensive brioche.

In the late 18th century, much of the French population was living in desperate poverty, while the upper classes were living a life of decadence. As a result, dissatisfaction quickly spread throughout the city of Paris. Why should people go hungry when the King and Queen had enough to feed everyone? Why should people live in abject poverty, when those inside the palace had more than they could possibly consume in a thousand lifetimes? Why should people be content with poverty when there were people who lived a life of luxury on the back of their tax dollars?

In 18th century France, the contrasts between the palace and the streets were so strong that it led to widespread anger. The people knew from experience that the current government was not a solution to their problems. In fact, the royal family seemed to be making life harder with each passing day.  The person who drew the most criticism was Marie Antoinette, whose foreign birth and extravagant lifestyle made her an easy target for public anger.  It was easy to fabricate stories about the queen's spendthrift habits. Very likely, someone attributed the words to her, and the story seemed true enough.  

Here in the 21st century we still see these same feelings.  Frustrated people through the centuries have felt there has got to be better government.  Is there any hope for something better, or do we just have to learn to live with imperfect human government?

There is something in the human heart that longs for honest government. Maybe if we just had new leadership things would be better.  There is a longing for a system we can trust. 

The good news is that there is something better.  There really is a kingdom coming that is entirely free from corruption.  We can't expect honest human government, but God gives us this promise in the Bible, "During the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed or given to another group of people. This kingdom will crush all the other kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will continue forever". Daniel 2:44

Jesus said in John 18:36, “My kingdom does not belong to this world".  "God's blessings, which cannot be destroyed or be spoiled or lose their beauty, are kept in heaven for you".  1 Peter 1:4

"So let us be thankful, because we have a kingdom that cannot be shaken. We should worship God in a way that pleases him with reverence and respect".  Hebrews 12:28

I'm ready for a change in government.   I'm ready for a kingdom that can't be shaken.  

He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I come quickly.” Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.  Revelation 22:20