Easter is just around the corner and lots of folks are figuring out how they’re going to spend the day…
and thinking more and more about what happened on that day…
what Jesus did for us…
Tag Archive - Jesus
Jesus’ Prayer For Us: Unity
"Love your neighbor as yourself" ... the most important expression of Unity... and one the whole world can see!
Near the very end of Jesus’ life here on earth He said a prayer… one that provides valuable insight on the theme of Peace, Love and Unity… this prayer for future believers (that would be us) immediately follows a prayer for himself, and for his disciples…
“My prayer is not for them alone, I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” John 17:20-23.
Top Commenters For February 2012
Today’s post is recognition for the folks who helped support the community here at I’m Just Thinkin’. Thank you so very much for sharing… your thoughtful comments and encouragement help me learn to be a better writer, and provide valuable insight into what’s working… and what is not. Iron sharpens iron!
Here’s a listing of the Top 10 Commenters for February 2012:
Carol Peterson (13)
Joe Lalonde (13)
Dan Black (9)
Arny Sanchez (6)
Loren Pinilis (4)
Christine Niles (3)
Adam Tucker (1)
Adam Collings (1)
Bill Jones (1)
Chris Henderson (1)
The month of March is upon us… it doesn’t even seem like we had winter here in Jacksonville, Florida… more daylight… fresh new growth… a bright future… yeah!
The Quintessential Christian
The Quintessential Christian?
Quintessential – representing the perfect example of a class or quality.
Example: “Everybody thinks of him as the quintessential church boy?”
I would hope the quintessential christian would be a draw… someone who is real… human… a dude who is a magnet, drawing others into the church and close to Jesus.
What does he (or she) look like?
When we think of his outward appearance it may be very different for each of us…
at first glance maybe he’s just another face in the crowd…
when you start to get to take a closer look and really get to know him you might being to see something more…
you may realize there is something quite different about this dude…
you may look at him now and…
admire him…
adore him…
respect him…
and be curious…
what’s up with this dude?
He is different…
but why…
and how…
confident…
gentle… and at the same time firm.
faithful…
loving…
forgiving…
a servant…
and maybe just one more thing…
he is oh so not perfect…
does that bother you?
it shouldn’t.
What do you see when you envision The Quintessential Christian?
The Lion And The Lamb
A warm, cuddly Lion (:
I watched The Chronicles Of Narnia – The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe for the first time last week.
… it inspired me to write about how Jesus was both the Lion and the Lamb.
Narnia portrayed Jesus as the Lion. Strong and bold. Jesus gave it all for us. We needed that. We still do.
… we need the Lamb too. Soft and Gentle. Caring. Forgiving.
I want to grow to be like Jesus.
We often think of the Lion as masculine and the Lamb as feminine…
this seems natural… just consider the characteristics listed above…
the tendency has been to gravitate the church toward the Lamb…
the tendency has been to gravitate the church toward a warm, fuzzy and lovely place…
I personally love this place…
however, that tends to drive a lot of guys away from the church…
they seem to struggle with their masculinity in this setting…
if you read through the Gospel, the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, you’ll find Jesus was actually portrayed more as a Lion than a Lamb…
I love that dude.
I don’t really have to be androgynous to be the lion and the lamb…
or maybe that’s just the point, that being the Lion and the Lamb is OK…
Androgynous… having an ambiguous sexual identity…
just OK?
Maybe that’s what we’re striving for…
After all, He is both the Lion…
and the Lamb…
and growing to be more like Jesus is why we’re all here anyway…
Right On Dude?
Joseph’s Sweetest Dream And What They Really Mean
an angel came to Joseph in a dream and gave him baby Jesus... and the rest is history!
Do you dream a lot? It seems to me like I have lots of dreams… not just the daydreams silly… I’m writing today about the ones that come at night. Lately I’ve been on a string of really awesome dreams. That’s sweet!
However, one night recently I had a bad one… really random and out of nowhere. This one really left me wondering…
Why?
I do believe we receive messages from God in our dreams… and that we receive messages from the evil one as well. How to know the difference?
The Bible is chock full of examples of people who received instruction from God in their dreams, here’s one…
Joseph’s Sweetest Dream: An angle came to Joseph in a dream and said:
“Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Matthew 1:20
Joseph’s reaction?
He did what the Lord commanded… and, thankfully, the rest is history!
How do I know these dreams from the Lord, and how do I tell them from the ones that may just be random dreams… or those from the dark side?
- The evil one thrives on inciting irrational fear. The harder that you work for God, the more effort the devil will put into derailing your efforts.
- Intuition. Insight. Perception. Wisdom. If I’m patient and paying attention to the world around me there will generally be other clear signals that help me discern the meaning of the dream, and how to apply it (and any other situation) to God’s glory.
- Noteworthy: I have a pretty active imagination so I know some of my dreams are just fun. Goofy… Nice… and Sweet!
Still in doubt? Pray it out! The Holy Spirit will lead you, as He did with Joseph’s Sweetest Dream, in His perfect time and way.
Has God ever sent you a message in a dream that you can share?
do i really want to smell like The Old Spice Guy ?
The Old Spice Guy… we all know him from the commercials at the movie theatre… he is entertaining…
links to The Old Spice Guy's youtube videos
and we all know what he smells like, right?
well, maybe not…
does Old Spice Guy smell like a possum… or is his odor awesome?
I’m not really sure…
his attraction must be more than just a scent…
his irresistibly squeezeable man muscles for sure.
Or is OSG just an image to be deflated?
He seems to really think a lot of himself…
“are you now neck-deep in the sweet waters of friendship and trust” he asks?
He sure is a smooth talker…
but does he have the action too?
“anything is possible when your man smells like old spice”
Q: Do I really want to have a wind like him?
“look at your man now back at me” …
dude, now you’re really creeping me out, this sounds exactly like a comparison affair!
I have to wonder if he really knows what love is (like my man Forrest? )
Not sure what Forrest smelled like…
but I’m Just Thinkin’ I’ve got a better scent…
it’s called Smells Like Jesus…
Smells Like Jesus? I’m Thinkin’ that this fragrance is more like Dolce and Gabbana, than The Old Spice Man…
and whatever Jesus smelled like, count me in!
What do you think Jesus smelled like?
Top Commenters This Month
Carol Peterson (9)
Dan Black (5)
Joseph Lalonde (5)
arny (3)
TC Avey (3)
Christine Niles (2)
Adam Collings (1)
MGalloway (1)
Seth Caddell (1)
Traci B (1)“I Twitter”
