Grace and Truth

FAITH:
“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14

It’s a grandfather’s prerogative to tease his grandkids a little bit, right? So when one of my young grandkids is first learning math, I quiz him about his newfound knowledge. “Do you know about math yet?” I ask.

“Sure, Papa, I know math.”

“Well then, what’s two plus two?”

Beaming up at me, he quickly and proudly replies, “It’s four!”

“Oh, that’s where you’re wrong. Two plus two is 22. You take one two, put it next to the other two, and you have 22. And,” I continued, “one plus one equals eleven. Three plus three is 33. Don’t you know that? Who’s teaching you math?”

Invariably, eyes roll, and I hear, “Oh, Papa, you’re wrong—2+2 is four!”

“Are you sure?” I say.

“Yes, I’m sure!” is the confident reply.

Thankfully, my grandkids are getting a good handle on the fact that truth can’t be played with. Even though I’m older, an authority figure, and a loved one, they are ready to challenge me if I don’t have the facts straight. The truth stands, and they can quickly spot (and point out) the error of my “logic.”

As Christ’s followers, we need to get a better handle on that reality. You don’t play around with truth. In fact, as John is telling us about Jesus, he assures us that we know that Jesus is full of grace and truth (John 1:14).

People don’t have much trouble with the grace part. Of course God’s grace is amazing, unlimited, lavish, and actively demonstrated in the death of
Jesus on the cross. He forgives sins, restores lives, and pours out countless blessings that are neither deserved nor expected. No arguments about His grace.

But when we hit the “truth” part, the world walks out in protest. Truth, in so many minds, is a pliable commodity, so flexible that you can have
“your truth” and I can have “my truth,” even if they are completely contradictory. Illogically, in the world’s eyes, every claim can be equally
valid and, in fact, we are quickly written off as intolerant if we point out the wrongheadedness and false thinking of a worldview that does not line up with God’s Word.

John reminds us that Jesus came not only to demonstrate God’s unlimited grace but also His absolute truth. Jesus claimed to be the Way, the Truth, and the Life—the only way, in fact, to the Father. He told the crowd gathered at the temple that He and the Father were one. His truth claims can be rejected or received, with eternal consequences, but they cannot be
altered or spun to a more politically correct alternative. They do not sync with false worldviews and are not simply one option among many.

So, the question for you and for me is: “Are we playing around with truth?” We wouldn’t be among the first to bend the words of Jesus to fit our own dreams and misplaced desires. And, I should ask, are we able to spot false
truth claims and erroneous thinking as quickly as my grandkids spotted my flawed mathematical theorems? And, just as importantly, are we willing to speak out for the truth, graciously yet firmly exposing error for what it is? We can and should be agents of the grace of Christ. But let’s remember the rest of the verse and be agents of His truth as well.

It would be really great if 2+2 could be 22 when I am balancing my checkbook, but it is still and always will be four. The truth is the truth and that never changes. Thank God that He has given us truth to keep the balance of the checkbook of our lives in good order.

How have you responded to the claims of Christ?
Have you embraced Him as the Way, the Truth, and the Life?
Read Acts 4:12 to see Peter’s affirmation of Christ’s exclusive claims.
In what ways is the world trying to play around with the truth? How do many people view God’s Word and the truths found in it?
How can you be an agent of God’s grace and His truth this week?
by Joe Stowell

FRIENDS:
Father, I pray that when I leave this earth that I will leave behind a life that points to you. Help me to live as if today were my last, because we do not know what this day will bring. I pray that I will be more kind and loving to others. Thank you for blessing me and loving me. Please give me strength this day. May you be glorified and our families be blessed. In Jesus' name, Amen.

10 THINGS I AM THANKFUL FOR:
I have been sick in bed for several days so have not done anything but sleep or be on my lap top in bed.
I am thankful for the moments that I feel better. I will be thankful when my Medicare kicks in after the first of the year so I can get medical
attention besides the doctor at Wal-mart.
So I wlll be thankful for that next week. I am thankful for Ginger Ale.
I am thankful for fake potato soup. This ipretty pathetic, isn't it....sorry!!!!

FOOD:
This not so much of a recipe but a suggestion I received from someone that is a total foodie. Therefore I trust her taste buds. I will try to make a guess as to how much after you read what she said:
Christy made us a soup that was killer! chicken stock, torn up rotisserie chicken, two bags of southwestern veggies (corn, green chili, onion,
peppers) AND Velveeta cheese....took about fifteen minutes to make and holy cow was it good! eat it over chili lime chips with grated cheese and cilantro......we have had it three times since coming home!!! not exactly on the lean side either.....but we had a nice salad to balance it out!!! can switch it up with pork, beef and make it more Italian style with tomatoes....good this way too!
My guess would be:
2 cans Chicken stock or home made equivelant of about 4 cups.
She says 2 bags of veggies. If they are the big ones then I would go with the 4 cups of stock
If not, I would do 2 cups or 1 can plus maybe a little bit more.
I would buy one chicken and use part in this and part in something else.
Small box of cheese and about half of that to start. Could add more if you wanted it to be more cheesy. The chips, about a hand- ful and maybe 1/4 c grated cheese and the cilantro definately to taste.
If she says this is good than, trust me, it's good!!!!

FUN:
You can sure tell that I have been house bound. This has gotten so many laughs from all the people I have shared it with.
Here is another long one......from one of my "Biddy" friends from Seattle.

-Got up early.

-6 inches of drifted, windblown snow on the covered deck.

-*Tried to burn the house down. (...I made a big 'FOOMP!!)

-Watched it snow and snow and snow and swirl like a huge blender.


*"FOOMP"
I decided to make a bottom round roast in the crockpot. Got a recipe online that sounded intriguing.
(Brown the roast in butter and oil, pour cognac over it and flame it, douse flames with a mix of Beef stock and red wine, cook 8 hours and shred for sandwiches)....simple.

I ran to the bar and grabbed the cognac while the roast was browning on one side.

Came back.

Had an ever-so-fleeting idea I should grab a large lid in case 'something might go wrong and let the thought die an equally fleeting death.....

Had my cognac....check.

My red wine, stock mixture....check.

The lighter....check.

Dumped the cognac in. Immediately noticed a sickly sweet smell like a Perfume Nazi from Macy's had snuck in the back door. (You know...the ones that accost you and try to get you to spray on a sample?)
Ignored the smell and...............lit the lighter.

Passed it over the pot and....

'FOOMP!!!'
The ball of flame went all the way up to the ceiling and sideways to both walls!! I let out a scream. (Really, I can't scream. It's more like a Tuba that needs tuning.)

My husband came running in as I got under the flame, grabbed a big lid out of the drawer in the stove and threw it on the pot. The flames stopped and as big as that fireball was; there was absolutely no damage anywhere!!!!

I found out 2 things in the moments after the FOOMP:
[1] It wasn't a Perfume Nazi. I had grabbed the Nivan. It's Vanilla Cognac.
[2] Vanilla Cognac seems to have a much, much lower flash point than Courvosier.......

Waited 8 more hours for the roast to cook, shredded it with forks and found out meat with vanilla is weird.... It was 'ok' but not a keeper. I doctored up the rest of it with brown sugar, Ketchup, etc. and made it into BBQ for tomorrow.

Now we know why I built airplanes instead of being a chef.