Connected World

Are you connected?

Being connected is important in today’s world. Without a doubt, this is the most connected generation in history.

First there were telephones. Then came facsimile and email. Now we have the Internet, cell phones, smart phones, instant messaging, text messaging, web cams and—coming soon—two way video calling on your smart phone.

Once it was a luxury to have a cell phone for business. Today it seems that every school child has one. Twenty-five years ago a Sony Walkman was a status symbol. The first ones played cassette tapes. Then came CDs. Now it’s digital MP3 players. What’s next?

With an MP3 player you can carry music, movies, TV shows and even university classes--all in your pocket! But to get them, you’ve got to be connected.

One Laptop Per Child is a company bringing low cost computers to third world countries. OLPC has one goal: to maximize the number of children who have a connected laptop.

Have you noticed how much information is available to those who are connected? With the click of a mouse button you can learn about any subject. Students rarely read books anymore. Research is done “online.”

Oh—and don’t forget about social networking sites that help families and friends stay connected.

To be truly connected requires access the Internet. Dial-up connections are slow and old-fashioned. Broadband is faster and better. Wi-Fi connects you wirelessly. Smart phones let you connect to the Internet on the go.

Being connected is fast becoming one of the new rights of the 21^ST Century. An Internet connection is the new must-have utility.

Well, hold on just a minute! Are we any safer, smarter or wiser because we’re more connected? Has the amount of available information increased our wisdom? Does information provide meaning or purpose in life? Sadly, no.

Information is just facts. Facts are useless unless you know what to do with them. Just being smarter doesn’t automatically make you wiser. Some of the smartest people in the world can do some of the dumbest things. Remember the love-sick astronaut a few years ago that tried to get revenge?

Facts and IQ only take you so far. To understand life you need wisdom.

Solomon, whose wisdom is legendary, wrote in the Bible, “For the Lord gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.” He advised, “Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.”

The Psalmist added, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”

Jesus said a wise person is “everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice.” James the Apostle wrote, “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.”

You can read more in the New Testament book of James. It’s even available online.

Do you want to really get connected? Then get connected to the source of wisdom that’s out of this world. The God of the Bible is the author, supplier and giver of wisdom.

Don’t take my word for it--read it yourself. Then listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!

Family Portrait

Have you ever had a family portrait taken? It can be a wonderful experience!

Last month we took some vacation time and visited one of our daughters and her family. Of course we took lots of pictures and videos of our grandchildren. But, while there, our daughter surprised us with an appointment at a professional photography studio.

The studio was an amazing place with a variety of costumes to wear if you wanted to change your look. The photographers were very good and took some great pictures of our family.

I had only one regret: All our family members weren’t there to be photographed together.

Now I know that’s not a big thing, but it’s been many years since we had the whole family together. And as a parent, it would be a great joy to see everyone at a reunion. Oh, to have a picture of that!

What if God took a family portrait? Would you be in it?

“Now hold on just a minute! Isn’t everyone a child of God? Why wouldn’t everyone be in it?”

Good question. People have wondered about that for a long time.

In Jesus’ day, many religious people mistakenly thought they were part of God’s family. Why? Because of their family ties back to Abraham, a man of great faith.

Jesus, however, pointed out that just being a descendant of a godly person did not automatically make them part of God’s family. He said that, even though they were religious, their lack of faith and their evil hearts showed they were actually children of the devil.

The only way to become a child of God, according to the Bible, is to believe and trust in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. “Yet to all who received him,” it says, “to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”

Jesus said that he was the sinless Son of God who came to lay down his life to redeem us from sin. He paid the price for all of our failures and rebellion against God. That’s why he died on the cross of Calvary.

So if you will come to God and say, “Father, please accept me as your child. Not on the basis of what I have done but on the basis of what Jesus Christ did for me on the cross” -- if you will do that, you will become part of God’s forever family.

Maybe you’ve wondered where you stand with God. When you’re honest with yourself, you know that you’re not always a nice person. Perhaps you think that by trying to be a better person or by following Jesus’ example God will accept you and overlook your faults.

But the Bible tells us that God’s forgiveness and love do not come to us by trying harder. It’s not trying but trusting that brings us into God’s family.

If you would like to explore what Jesus taught a little more, pick up a Bible and begin reading the New Testament book, the Gospel of John. Ask God to show you his truth and he will.

Find a church that teaches the Bible alone as God’s truth for life. Look for one where you are accepted and can struggle honestly with life.

There’s a special joy that comes in seeking God and finding the truth about him. Jesus said, “Blessed [or ‘happy’] are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”

The day is coming, the Bible says, when God will gather his entire family together in Heaven. That’s a family reunion you don’t want to miss!

Will God have a family portrait taken? I don’t know. But if he does, I hope you’re in it!

Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!

Blessed Confusion – The Sequel

For the last week our life has been a blessed confusion again. And it’s been wonderful!

“Now hold on just a minute! How is ‘blessed confusion’ wonderful?”

Well, let me tell you. Take two working adults. Add a visiting daughter on vacation with her three girls. Then put us all under the same roof and you have a recipe for blessed confusion!

Trying to coordinate work schedules, play time, day trips and family dinners disrupts our daily routine. And when three or four people talk to me at the same time, it’s confusing!

It happens every time our grandchildren visit--but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

According to the Bible, living to see your grandchildren is a blessing from the Lord. It says they are “a crown to the aged.”

Now I don’t like to think of myself as “aged,” but I guess I am to my grandchildren! And I thank God that I’m healthy enough to play with them and enjoy them. What a blessing!

Last night the girls were getting ready for bed. I sat down next to the youngest in her nightgown and she said very seriously, “Grandpa, I wished we lived here.” That melts my heart.

On Sunday we took them to Sunday School and church. They looked so pretty in their dresses. But, more than that, they learned about God and his love for them through Jesus Christ.

It amazes me sometimes how people skip church because family is visiting from out of town. Not only do our grandchildren enjoy going to church with us, they love God wholeheartedly.

I guess that’s why Jesus said, “Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” The faith of children is so pure and strong.

If you think about it, the only thing of lasting value you can leave to your children and grandchildren is your faith. Everything else gets spent, broken or wears out. But faith is forever.

Plus, in the light of eternity, passing your faith on to your children and grandchildren is the best investment you can make. When you die you will leave everything else in life behind. But if your family trusts in Christ, you will all be reunited in Heaven again.

Now some folks may think that’s too morbid to think about. Think again! Life goes by so fast. And then you will be somewhere forever a lot longer than you lived on earth.

But faith is good for more than just eternity. David, the shepherd king in the Bible once said, “I have been young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging for bread.” God knows how to take care of his children in this life as well.

The time to think about God is now. One of the wisest men to ever live, King Solomon, wrote, “Remember your creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come.”

How fast “the days of your youth” fly by! It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost a year since I attended my fortieth High School reunion. Fortieth. Wow. Where did all those years go?

In the Bible, a man named Job said, “My days are swifter than a runner; they fly away.”

Before we know it, children turn into adults. Our time with them is so brief.

If you are blessed to have your children and grandchildren nearby, stop and thank God. If they live far away and you only see them once or twice a year, be sure to enjoy the “blessed confusion” when they visit! Spend as much time with them as you can.

But most importantly, remember to point them to God and be the best example to them that you can be! The Bible’s King David said, “Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, till I declare your power to the next generation.”

Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!