Know What You're Talking About (Replay)

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October 2, 2007

Good afternoon family.

I pray that all of you are doing very well today.  I must say that I am doing pretty good considering my sinuses are acting all crazy.  Question for everyone.  Have any of you ever had any one come up to talking crazy about something they have no clue about?  Or, what's better, how about a person that hears someone else saying something and try to butt into your conversation repeating what that person said?  What do you do?  If you are a like me, first of all you'd probably look at that person like, "I don't know you".  *LOL*

See there is danger in going around repeating what people say and you don't know what it means or have knowledge of what it is you are repeating.  Music, for example, is peppered with hidden messages but yet we go around repeating it.  I can point to one genre because I used to do this but none are exempt.  Yep, even some gospel isn't always doctrinally sound!  All of my old hip hop heads remember Wu-Tang Clan ?  Their group and music was heavily based on the old Kung-Fu flicks from back in the day.  Well what a lot of people do not know is that a lot of the members were Five Percenters.  A Five Percenter is a break off of the Nation of Islam with some crazy stuff added.  The lyrics are tight.  The beats hot.  But if you listen, in some of their songs they interject their believes and next thing you know kids (and grown men) are running around saying things they have no clue what their talking about or advocating

Let's go to some scripture please:

Acts 19:13-16    "(13) Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, "In the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out." (14) Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. (15) (One day) the evil spirit answered them, "Jesus I know, and I know about Paul, but who are you?" (16) Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding."

Here is some background on the above scripture.  Paul, an Apostle, had just gone to the city Ephesus preaching and teaching the gospel.  Paul was a devout follower of Christ and was persecuted, jailed, cast out of cities but yet he healed the sick, cast out evil spirits, and did other miracles that Jesus did.  Well here come some Jews, who were exorcists trying to cast out demons, calling on Jesus just as Paul did to cast out demons. 

The problem with this is that if you have not accepted Christ, you cannot do things in this name because you don't believe. Look what happens.  One day they tried to caste out an evil spirit in the name of Jesus, "whom Paul preaches" and the spirit says, uhm who are you.  I know Jesus and Paul, but who in the world are you and where did you come from?!  Long story short, the evil spirit jumped on the Jewish priest and beat him down.

To bring things on home, just know what you're talking about.  If you are saying some things now that you do not know what they mean, question it.  Research it.  You may find that you should not be saying it or speaking about something that could cause you harm.

Be blessed folks and have a Happy Hump Day!
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Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:  http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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Familiar Hells vs Unknown Heavens (Replay)

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June 27, 2007

Hello everyone,

I pray that everyone is having a great day thus far. Either yesterday or a couple of days ago, I was listening to an online gospel radio station (onenationfm.com) and this lady was doing a segment on Asking God.  She was talking about how we were not asking God properly for whatever it was in which we needed an answer (or whatever request we needed filled).  Then she went on to say that most of us today would rather live in "Familiar Hells" than live in "Unknown Heavens" and I was like "WHOA!".  That totally blew my mind but made me think.

Complacency.  Yep, it can be a bad thing.  A lot of the times a lot of us stay in the same rut doing the same thing because it's what we are use to doing which can be also a familiar hell. You'd rather keep doing what you're doing because it feels "right" to you even when  you know it is wrong.   In Amos 6:1-7, the prophet Amos gives warning to those who were complacent in Jerusalem.

 (1) Woe to you who are complacent in Zion, and to you who feel secure on Mount Samaria, you notable men of the foremost nation, to whom the people of Israel come!  (2) Go to Calneh and look at it; go from there to great Hamath, and then go down to Gath in Philistia.  Are they better off than your two kingdoms? Is their land larger than yours?   (3) You put off the evil day and bring near a reign of terror.   (4) You lie on beds inlaid with ivory and lounge on your couches. You dine on choice lambs  and fattened calves.   (5) You strum away on your harps like David and improvise on musical instruments.   (6) You drink wine by the bowlful and use the finest lotions, but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph.   (7) Therefore you will be among the first to go into exile; your feasting and lounging will end.

The folks in Jerusalem was basically eating high up on the hog.  They didn't have a care in the world because they were fine with what they were doing.  Why change when you had all what they had right?  WRONG!  If you read the full chapter of Amos 6 you will see the Lord very much dislikes this prideful complacency.

We are in relationships, on jobs, and hang with "so-called" friends that put you through hell every day.  But, despite it all, we stick with it because think we love him/her, or that job is really what we wanted to do and it pays well, or my boys/girls ride or die with me.  Yep, but they can ride with you straight to hell. 

Proverbs 13:20-21 says,

"(20) He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.  (21) Misfortune pursues the sinner, but prosperity is the reward of the righteous."

Ephesians 1:7-8 says,

"(7) In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace (8) that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding."

Philippians 4:19 says,

"And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus."

All the many unknown heavens we'd rather not try because it's not customary for us to do so.  Before I talked about Robert Frost's poem about "The Road Not Taken" and again I think is applicable here (if you've never read it before here is the link to it:  http://www.bartleby.com/119/1.html).  Are you living in that familiar area or are you willing to change for what God has for you? 

Be blessed gang and I pray that you all have a happy hump day.
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Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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It's History, Not Just a Religion (Replay)

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February 28, 2007

Good morning family.

I pray that everyone is doing well. I missed you guys & gals last week, but I'm back this week.  For some reason, the Holy Spirit will not let me leave the historical significance of the Bible alone.  No matter how you spin it, I can no longer look at the Word of God as a bunch of pages in a binder.  I can't help but to look at it as historical.  Obviously there is something that I need to either ingrain into my brain or something someone else needs to read.

Let's look at a few definitions:

• Religion:  "..sometimes used interchangeably with faith or belief system—is commonly defined as belief concerning the supernatural, sacred, or divine, and the moral codes, practices and institutions associated with such belief. In its broadest sense some have defined it as the sum total of answers given to explain humankind's relationship with the universe. In the course of the development of religion, it has taken a huge number of forms in various cultures and individuals..."¹
• Historical:  "having once lived or existed or taken place in the real world as distinct from being legendary; "the historical Jesus"; "doubt that a historical Camelot every existed"; "actual historical events""².  "History is a term for information about the past. When used as the name of a field of study, history refers to the study and interpretation of the record of human societies."³

See the problem with the word religion is that it can be refuted by someone.  You can place some other religion next to it and try to say, "mines is true, yours is not".  Notice that it says it is a belief system or a set of moral codes.  That's great as the Bible is the ultimate source on how we as people should live and interact.  But what I'm more focused on is the historical part.  With history, it is factual.  You could put your hands on it...or at least someone at some point and time could.  Let's look at something.

If anyone knows anything about the history of Jerusalem (or has read a little bit of the bible :-) ), one would know that the city stayed in constant battle.  The walls of Jerusalem being destroyed and repaired and destroyed and repaired.....Let's look at the book of Nehemiah:

(5) And I said unto the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers' sepulchres, that I may build it.

The walls of Jerusalem had been destroyed and Nehemiah put in a request to his king to be excused to go back home to repair the walls.  Long story short, Nehemiah and some men rebuilt the wall with a sword in one hand and a trowel in the other (about 440-446 BC⁴).  Now look at the old city of Jerusalem today.  Some of the walls still stand. (And as a side bar, passed under President Clinton's administration, the Nehemiah Program made affording a home a reality for those who would otherwise be able to afford one.  Hence building up a people...but I digress).

Now fast forward to the New Testament.  I like the definition of Historical above because it says, "the historical Jesus".  Whether people like it or not, Jesus was a real person and at the same time the Son of God. We know that Jesus came here to this earth to pay the debt for our sins, died and ascended into Heaven to sit at the right hand of God (and to intercede on our behalf). 

Looking at the Gospels (Matthew, Luke, Mark, & John), one would note that they seem pretty repetitive.  Some of the same accounts appear in each one.  What one have to realize is that the New Testament is not meant to read like a story from beginning to end (that can be a WFTD in itself).  However, what it does is give an account of the life of Jesus Christ, how He affected his disciples and how they preached and carried on the work of Jesus and the gospel.  Matthew, Luke, Mark & John were of course some of his disciples.  Now let's look at some comparisons.

• Matthew 21:8-10  "(8) And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way.   (9) And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.   (10) And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this?"
  
  
• Mark 11:9-11 "(9) And they that went before, and they that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna; Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord: (10) Blessed be the kingdom of our father David, that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest.  (11) And Jesus entered into Jerusalem, and into the temple: and when he had looked round about upon all things, and now the eventide was come, he went out unto Bethany with the twelve."
  
  
• John 12:12-16  "(12) On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem,  (13) Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord. (14And Jesus, when he had found a young ass, sat thereon; as it is written, (15) Fear not, daughter of Sion: behold, thy King cometh, sitting on an ass's colt."
  

Why did you type all of this Antoine.  Well glad you asked.  What these very similar verses from different books show us is corroboration.  It's like putting together a crime scene investigation and what you get is eye witness accounts of Jesus in action.  That's one thing about the Bible that makes it so historical and true.  It's not just a mention of an event, but you have many different eye witnesses of the same account. 

Look at after Jesus' death.  He appeared before all of the apostles and Mary Magdalene.  Not to mention others witnessed the same account of Jesus after his death.  Why in the world would someone play off the resurrection of Christ for the sake of "covering up a story"?  It makes no sense.  If you look at the books of Acts, the apostles begin to blossom and do the things that Jesus did:  preach, heal, pray.  They carried on the church to which it spread vastly throughout the world today.  Greek Mythology was nice, but it didn't last.  Even the "trueness" of Christianity trumped it's existence despite the rulers of the Roman empire.

Religion. It's a nice word. But Jesus and the Word of God is History.  You can't take anything from history, because it stands on it's own.

Be blessed gang and sorry for the length.  I got so excited because I missed you all.  We had a lot to catch up on :-) .

Happy Hump Day!



¹http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion
²http://wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
³http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical
⁴http://ezinearticles.com/?Bible-Prophecy-Fulfilled:-Messiah-to-Appear-in-Jerusalem-in-A.D.-31&id=466887
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Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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When They Say How Bad, Ask for the Good

Every day, I'm pretty sure some of us run across people who seem to have nothing good to say.  They complain about everything and they never seem to find any optimism in all that they do.  My daughter's school gave them a verse to remember out of 2 Philippians 2:14 which says, "Do everything without complaining or arguing".  I think some of us adults should learn a little something from this verse as well. 

The next time someone complains to you about something (or if you find yourself complaining), ask them this question: "Now what positive can you learn from this situation?" You'll get one of two responses:  1) They will be wondering why you asked them something like that when they were laying all the bad complaints on you thick or 2) they will honestly think about the positive points of their situation. 

Either way, you have done your part and probably have avoided feeding into their downward spiral of negativity.

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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Be Like A Tree

The beginning of Autumn has to be one of the most awesome displays of God's beauty and creativity.  The leaves on the trees change to the colors of oranges, yellows, browns, etc. and the scenery is nothing short of a photographic moment!    As I walked along the sidewalk this morning, I looked up at a tree (who's leaves were orange) and a single leaf fell, floating to the ground.  All I could do was smile because in that moment I was reminded of the power and presence of God.

In the same moment, I had to look at the tree itself and this is what I saw.  A tree is the perfect symbol of our walk with Christ should be.  Now, I know you are thinking, "Antoine, how in the world did you come up with that idea?" Well, first off it definitely wasn't mines.  The Holy Spirit had some involvement, but I am going to tell you. First, let's go back to school where we first learned about plants and their life cycles. 

As we all know, a tree starts out as a seed.  That seed is planted into the ground and over time, with some nurturing, sunlight, and watering the tree will grow to be a larger and larger plant.  As the tree gets bigger over the years, its roots go deeper into the ground in order to support the tree's weight and most importantly to get nutrients from the ground.  Then the tree grows branches.  The branches grow and spread out far so that the leaves can soak up the most amount of sun as possible in order that photosynthesis can occur.  ("Photosynthesis is a process that converts carbon dioxide into organic compounds, especially sugars, using the energy from sunlight"1.  Without photosynthesis, the tree cannot live because this is how it creates its food.)   When the tree is able, it then creates it's own seeds which fall from the tree to ground to take root and start the process all over again for another seedling. Wash, Rinse, Repeat.


If we look and compare us to the description above you may see the similarities in our Spiritual Walk with Jesus.  When we first proclaim that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior, we become babes in Christ.  This is because a 'seed' is planted within us.  As with any baby, you need nurturing and support so that you can continue to grow spiritually (see 1 Peter 2:2).  As long as you are in good ground, you will continue to grow until you can start to do things for yourself (ie, read & interpret the bible).  We continue to walk with Christ and our 'roots' go deeper into the ground to support out growth and to get more spiritual nutrients (remember, seeds have to be on good & fertile ground for them to grow - see Mark 4:1-8). As with the tree, if our roots are in loose & unstable soil, any light wind could come along and blow it over.  If our roots are not firmly rooted in Him who saves us, any hearsay or false teaching would make us stumble and fall (or blow us down).   We continue grow and stretch our arms, heart, and mind upward and open to receive more of the Son so that we may have more of Him.  At some point, we should reach a stage where we start to produce our own seeds so they can drop from us and be planted in someone else to start their spiritual lives as well (see Matthew 28:18-20).  Wash, Rinse, Repeat.

I thought this was pretty cool how it was revealed to me and I think it is how we should live our Christian Walk.  We should never remain babes in Christ.  We should be growing more every day with a continued desire for Christ.  While you may not be a Pastor or a Deacon, all of us are called be active participants in the building of the Kingdom of God (see Ephesians 4:11-13). Today, I want to encourage you to be like a tree.  Continue to grow your faith, with outstretched arms towards the Son, so that you too can leave seeds that will one day help spread the good news.

Be blessed everyone.

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall


"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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The Sky Is Still Blue

Updated: 03/18/2020

The most interesting things occur to me while walking my dog.  I have shared once before that when I am walking him alone, it is typically my quiet time to be with the Lord and this morning was no different.

This morning in Milwaukee, there was a heavy overcast and the wind was blowing pretty hard.  As I walked down the sidewalk, I happen to look into the gray ominous clouds and found a break in them.  It was just a small break, but what I saw was the beautiful blue sky and the bright white clouds high above the gray rain clouds.  Because the wind was blowing steadily, the break didn't last long.

It is something that happens all the time, but we typically do not recognize it.  When rain clouds move in your area, they are a different color and thick.  They blot out the blue sky and sometimes the sun as well.  Because the clouds are over our heads it is hard to think about what is behind them because we are caught up in the moment of preparing what could happen. What we fail to realize is that behind that storm cloud, the sky is still blue.  Behind that cloud of rain, the sky is still blue.  Behind that thunder and lightening cloud the sky is still blue!  It never changes (until dark of course).

This is how God is to us.  Even though we go through trials in life God never leaves us.  He has always been there with us.  Despite how cloudy it gets in life, God is still there.  No matter how trivial or violent the trial, God is still there.  He's there because He promised to never leave us out to dry.  In Deuteronomy 31:8 it says,

And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.

Whatever it is God has purposed for your life it will come to past.  No matter what your current situation may be, continue to hold on to His words.  If you want, remind Him of His promises!   Always know that just as the sky is blue behind the dark clouds, God is still with you through the days of your life. 

Be blessed folks and have a good one!

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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You Will Never Know It All (Replay)

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April 27, 2005

Good morning family.

The Word is here!!!!!!!!  You know, the Lord reveals a lot of things to us in the most unthinkable ways sometimes.  It can be one word spoken by another person or a simple rain drop on your window pane.  OK, sorry little poetic but you get my point.  Well, I wanted to share the idea about church folk "knowing it all" (or at least thinking they do).  Lets look at Proverbs 9:9-10.

"(9) Give instruction to a wise man , and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man , and he will increase in learning. (10) The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. "

The point that I want to really drive home is that as Church Folk we are never Holier than thou;  meaning, you do not have the right to frown upon anyone or newcomer who arrives in your church.  Whether they come in ranges or in riches, you are not perfect yourself.  From the scripture it tells me that as long as you give instruction a man (or woman ;-) ) will be wiser.  As long as you are living we are always learning in life.  As long as we are living in the word we are always learning the word.  You could read the same scripture 10 times and 5 of those times could reveal to you totally different understandings.

Not even the PASTOR knows everything.  Not to belittle the Pastor's role, but each time  he/she go to bring the word, the Lord has revealed something new to them.  So, no body is perfect and all knowing.  I think this is good news to share with people new to the church and Christ.  This maybe even good news for you!  I can surely say that before I was saved, I thought everyone in the church was suppose to be perfect.  You couldn't make mistakes and heaven forbid a "church administrator" better not get caught doing something ungodly!

In this case, I am happy to say that I was very very wrong.  You will never know it all and neither will the person with whom you share a pew.  What we can do is fear the Lord and continue to be vessels for new knowledge.  As long as we are followers of Christ, we will always be taught something new.

Be Bless Folks!
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Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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...But It's Not You!

Have you ever been driving in the car and you see someone dressed a certain way or looking a certain way?  You think to yourself, "Why would they come out here looking like that?"  Or maybe you know someone who is down on their luck and it seems all the good and kind encouraging words that you give never seem to help.  Then you wonder, to yourself, "If that were me, I'd.......".  Well you fill in the rest of sentence with whatever you like, but my point is that it is not you!

We all do many things differently and one of those things is experience life.  We all hit high points and low points at different times of our lives so we must not look on one another as if you could do it better.  Some times, you have no idea what a person might be experiencing and the way they are carrying themselves, despite any encouragement, may be the best way they can get through their storm.  It's their way of coping and dealing.

You see, when the house is on fire and someone else is trapped inside, you may be thinking to yourself, "I hope they come out...why aren't they coming out?!!"  You can say that because you can see the doors and the windows...from the outside......BUT, when you are the person trapped inside the inferno, the only thing that you can see is flames.  Yes you are trying to get out but you have to get through the fire.  Your heart may be racing and the adrenaline may be pumping but if you stay focused and calm long enough you can escape the fire.  This is exactly how life can be sometimes.  There is always some in the fire and there are others who are on the outside looking into the situation.  The perspective is always clear when it isn't skewed by being in the middle of a life crisis. 

Let us remember that we THINK we know what we might do, but since it's not us, let's not judge a person for what they do.  Until you walk a mile in their shoes....well, I think you know the rest.

"Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. " - Luke 6:37

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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Could You Handle Spit On Your Face?

Last week, I shared an article from CNN with my wife and it talked about a lady who had the tip of her pinky finger to regenerate after being cut off from a door accident.  We were talking about how cool that was because the lady had gone through new science and technology involving tissue regeneration.  Being the silly person that I am, I said ".....[now] they can dip yo stuff in some spit and it grows back...Jesus was on to something with that spit and mud stuff..".   We were cracking up talking but I started thinking a little more.  Just what in the world are you talking about Antoine?  Well, let's go to some Word!  John 9:1-11 says:

(1) As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. (2) His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" (3) "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. (4) As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. (5) While I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  (6) Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes.  (7) "Go," he told him, "wash in the Pool of Siloam" (this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.  (8) His neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, "Isn't this the same man who used to sit and beg?" (9) Some claimed that he was. Others said, "No, he only looks like him."  But he himself insisted, "I am the man." (10) "How then were your eyes opened?" they demanded.  (11) He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see."

Now, you see what I am talking about? (Just a side bar, Jesus also used spit some other times to heal.  See Mark 8:22-25 and Mark 7:31-35).  Jesus spit into some mud, rubbed it together, and rubbed it onto a blind man's face then told him to wash his face.  After that, the blind man could see!  Wait a minute here.  WHAT??!!   OK, OK, let me entertain you for a little bit and I will imagine that I was a disciple with Jesus along with some of my friends (or you can imagine you were a discipline).  This is how I think the story would have went:

Jesus, here is a man who had been blind since birth.  Now who sinned?  Him or his Mom & Pops?  "Nobody sinned, but He is blind so that he can see the miracle of God at work in his life.  Look it's gonna be dark soon and I still have my Father's business to handle, so let's get to work before night fall.  While I am in the world, I am the light of the world".  After Jesus spoke he hocked a loogie (spit) on the ground and made mud.  The disciples face frowned all up like that was so nasty that Jesus was playing with spit.  Not only did Jesus play with mud, He then plastered it onto the blind man's eyes and told him to got wash his face....

Alright, I will stop right here.  I know I am using the imagination here, but can you imagine how contorted the disciple's faces were when He spit on the ground to make mud.  THEN, he put that nasty mess onto the blind man's eyes.  Oh my goodness.  That is nasty and not healthy hygiene at all!

I only imagined what the other people felt, but what about the poor blind guy?  He's the one that had mud made with spit rubbed onto his eyes.  It said the man was blind, but it did not say he was deaf.  This means the man probably heard Jesus making mud pies out of spit!  I do not know what was going through the blind man's mind, but whatever it was, showed a measure of the highest levels of faith!

See, that man saw past all the social norms of how "unhygienic" it was or how nasty that stuff would feel on his face.  What he showed was faith to believe in Jesus no matter what he was told to do.  The blind man did not say, "you want me to do what??!!".  It did not say that, even though most of us would probably say it even if Jesus (himself) asked us to follow the same steps.  I have a question for you though.   How much do you really believe in Jesus.  How far are you really willing to go in obeying Him who saved you?  Are you ready to follow His every commandment or are you happy with visiting church every Sunday just to feel good?

Obedience, despite the outlook is what gave this man sight.  He obeyed.....he believed....he received.  Could you do the same?

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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What If......

What if grass was blue?
What if the sky was green?
What if we drove cars backwards?
What if happy really meant being mean?

What if people could fly?
What if dogs could talk?
What if college was high school?
What if crippled people could walk?

What if I we lived on Mars?
What if I didn't get up today?
What if bubble gum tasted like chocolate?
What if you really couldn't hear a see and say?

What if I lost my job tomorrow?
What if the food ran out in the house?
What if I had no money to borrow?
What if you lost your spouse?

What If, What If, What If.  We are so bogged down by the "What If's" of life that we get stuck wondering what if this or that happened?  Nine times out of ten, the "what if" will never happen and life will go on as schedule.  Stop wondering about "what if" or you will never move out of your current situation.

What If I didn't write that poem.....?  Well, I did and you should stop worry about things that probably and most likely will never happen.  Be bold in all that you do and never fear what you conjure up could happen.

Be blessed folks!

Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." - 2 Samuel 22:33

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