Success and Failure Blog

When I wake up in the morning and see the sun is again shining;  and when I walk along the seashore and notice the wonder of nature:  there I remember my Maker’s awesome power (Genesis 1:1-31).

When I look at the sky and witness the birds fly; and when I gaze at the ground and view the beautiful flowers around: there I remember my heavenly Father’s loving care (Matthew 6:25-34).

When I listen to somebody teaching and preaching in a rally; and when I watch someone seeking and evangelizing for the lost one: there I remember my Lord and Savior’s mission order (Matthew 28:19-20).

When I come across a couple whose love to each other is truly noble; and when I chance on children who obey their parents in great passion: there I remember Paul’s letter (Ephesians 5:21-33, Ephesians 6:1-3).

When I commit a mistake and repent for my soul’s sake; and when I forgive a fellow and forget the peccadillo: there I remember the “Lord’s Prayer” (Matthew 6:9-13).

When I am given a blessing and to my neighbors share the good thing; and when I really have nothing and still never go wanting: there I remember my God is a great provider (Philippians 4:19).

When the day’s work is over and the sunshine is nowhere; and when the evening sets and it’s already time to rest: then I remember to go to the Lord and whisper a prayer (Matthew 6:5-8).

           When the sky meets the earth a miracle happens and man says its science. The eyes of the unseen have not the sight to see that no big bang could ever achieve such greatness. If they were given the eyes to see they would see with a newness of spirit the brilliance of this creation. They wouldn’t be concern with the environment, instead focus their eyes on the creator who made it and will keep renewing it.        

            We are all concern for our future and not on our relationship with our Lord. We have become self-absorb with our needs that we stop focusing on our path to freedom. We forgot that all roads lead to Christ. 

            I have been rereading Matthew 15:1-20 it’s not about washing your hands that make you unclean but what comes out of your mouth from your heart that makes you unclean.  I knew that I had unclean thoughts and I was closed off not just from the Lord but from others. My angry, sickness, and depression were outward signs that not all was well. It is time to stop the deception and ask for forgiveness. 

            I am sorry Lord that I have been consumed with me and my issues that I removed myself from everything around me. I have kept my issues close to me and not giving them to you.  I have walled up my heart so I couldn’t be hurt by anyone, Lord. I was keeping my distance because I was angry with you. I give you my heart that you will take from it the dark places that makes me stumble. In the place of the dark places put peace, joy, perseverance, long suffering, and love.  Encompass about me songs of deliverance that will permeate everything around me like a cocoon of safety that I may grow in your likeness until the day you come. 

            We cannot run far enough away from our Father’s love for us. The signs of HIS love are all around us from the big bright sun to the delicate tiny fingers of a new born baby His love permeates everything around us. 

            We are the Lord’s one small miracle after another. You were created to be loved by the Father. There is nothing you have done that the Lord won’t chase after you like HE did for me. 

            One thing I have learned through my journey is HE NEVER gives up on me.             

            (Your Name) is greatly blessed, highly favored and deeply loved. By Jesus Christ.

The Emergence of Day and Night

It is stated quite explicitly in scriptures that, ‘…Since the creation of the world, God’s invisible nature, namely, his eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made. So they (mankind) are without excuse’ (Romans 1:20).
Therefore, can day and night, light and darkness, reveal something about God’s eternal power and Godhead, that we naturally would not understand? Where is the source of day and night, light and darkness; how did they emerge? Did they emanate from the same source?

It is evident that from the beginning of creation, God separated the light from the darkness, and called the light day, and the darkness he called night. These two entities which are diametrically in contrast, and are at variance with each other, from all evidences, emerged on planet earth by two separate ways, and evidently from two separate sources. For to the prophet Isaiah the Lord said; ‘I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, have created it“ (Isaiah 45:7).

Although there is not much of a difference in terms of definition, between the word form, and create, nevertheless, I believe that the Holy Spirit inspired the usage of two different words, with almost similar meaning, to convey an important lesson, and to differentiate the process by which both entities emerged.

I will first begin by asking the question, Why was the earth without form and void, and darkness over the face of the deep, when God created the heavens and the earth? Where did the darkness come from, and what caused the earth to be without form and empty? Did God find an existing earth which was covered in darkness! where did it come from? Or did God create an earth without form and empty, with darkness over the face of the deep?

Secondly, is the emergence of darkness upon the earth a secret, or has it been revealed? If it is a secret, it makes no sense trying to find it out because, ‘The secret things belong to the Lord our God,’ but if it has been revealed, ‘it belongs to us and to our children for ever, that we may follow all the words of the law of God. And it is certain that, the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing his plans to his servants the prophets’ (Deuteronomy 29:29; Amos 3:7).

We can be assured, that there are revelations regarding the creation of the earth, because God in his dialogue with Job asked him the following questions; ‘Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? On what were its footing set, or who laid its cornerstone…while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for Joy?’

The dialogue continues; ‘Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know all this. What is the way to the abode of light? And where does darkness reside? Can you take them to their places? Do you know the paths to their dwellings? Surely you know, for you were already born! You have lived so many years! (Job 38:18-21).

The fact that God asked Job, ‘Can you take them (light and darkness) to their places? Do you know the paths to their dwellings?’ Signifies that they emanate from two different sources. And since it is stated that, the morning stars sang together, and the sons of God shouted for joy when God created the earth, is a clear indication that when God created the earth, it was not formless, empty, and darkness covering the face of the deep. Furthermore, this is what the Lord says; ‘He who created the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned and made the earth, he founded it; he did not create it to be empty, he formed it to be inhabited…he says; ‘I am the Lord, and there is no other’ (Isaiah 45:18).

Therefore, the account of creation found in the first chapter of Genesis, beginning with verse two (2) onwards, does not relate to the original creation of the earth, but refers to the renewal of the face of the earth, after the original earth was destroyed, and lay in waste and emptiness, due to Lucifer’s rebellion. God then renewed the earth, making it conducive for man’s existence. And so it is written; ‘When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the earth’ (Psalms 104:30).

Day and night were not part of the original creation of the earth, They emerged as the result of
Lucifer’s rebellion. Prophecy reveals that, ‘…When the Lord will come, and all the holy ones with him, on that day there will be no light, no cold or frost. It will be a unique day, without daytime or nighttime…a day known to the Lord. When evening comes, there will be light.’ (Zechariah 14: 5-7).
This is typical of the earth which existed from the foundation of the earth, before Lucifer rebelled, and brought darkness into existence.

Day and night, light and darkness, are not just natural phenomena with no apparent significance. There is an important reason why God, from creation, separated them from each other, as he also set apart the seventh day, and distinguished it from the rest of the other six days of the week, by omitting the evening and the morning as being the seventh day. The scripture simply says; ‘Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God finished his work which he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all his work which he had done in creation“ (Genesis 2:1-3).

The seventh day with the omission of evening and morning, depicts a unique day unto the Lord, a day without daytime or nighttime, a day known to the Lord. When evening comes, there will be light. Typical to the one at creation.

Therefore, just as the seventh day Sabbath has both a physical and spiritual application, for it is written; ‘For if Joshua had given them rest (which he did physically), God would not speak later of another day. So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God; for whoever enters God’s (spiritual) rest also ceases from his (physical) labors as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, that no one fall by the same sort of disobedience“ (Hebrews 4:8-11).

Similarly, day and night, light and darkness, have both literal, and spiritual implications. Day is indicative to the kingdom of light, and light is indicative to Jesus Christ, the Ruler of the kingdom of light. Whilst night is indicative to the kingdom of darkness, and darkness is indicative to Satan, the ruler of the kingdom of darkness.

The light which God formed, is Jesus Christ, the only Begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, and proceeded from the Father. And therefore, everything that is good, everything that is true, is associated with light who is Jesus Christ. And so it is written; ‘ In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.“ He is the true light that gives light to every man who comes into the world.“ And Jesus himself said; ‘ I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life“ (John 1:4-5, 9; John 8:12)

This is the same light that will govern the earth, when the kingdom of God is established on earth. For the prophet Zechariah wrote; ‘…Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him. On that day there will be no light, no cold or frost. It will be a unique day, without daytime or night time… a day known to the Lord. When evening comes, there will be light. On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half to the eastern sea and half to the western sea, in summer and in winter. The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only one“ [There will be no existence of the kingdom of darkness, and no Satan to assume the title lord] (Zechariah 14:5-9).

The apostle John echoed similar sentiments in the book of Revelation, concerning the New Jerusalem. He wrote; ‘I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its light. (Revelation 21:22-25).

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We must believe in God by faith and trust His ways by faith. God is ready and willing to reveal Himself in amazing ways to those who will believe in Him. Deuteronomy 4:29 proclaims, “But if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find Him if you look for Him with all your heart and with all your soul.” The people who believe in evolution refuse to acknowledge the Word of God in their life because majority of who believe in evolution are also atheists or agnostics. The Bible tells us, “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God’” (Psalm 14:1; 53:1,Proverbs 1:7). Also Romans 1:19-20 declares plainly that all men do know God exists because God has clearly revealed that knowledge to them through the evidence of creation. Those that deny God are doing so out of the rebellion of a darkened heart (Romans 1:21). “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them … men are without excuse … their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools … Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie” (Romans 1:18-25).

Scriptural proof that Mankind is created by God:

Genesis 2:5 And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground.

Genesis 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

Genesis 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Isaiah 45:12 I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded.

John 1:3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

Colossians 1:16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:

Job 33:4 The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.

Genesis 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

Deuteronomy 4:32 For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it?

Job 20:4 Knowest thou not this of old, since man was placed upon earth,

Genesis 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

Job 33:6 Behold, I am according to thy wish in God’s stead: I also am formed out of the clay.

Genesis 1:26-27 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

1 Corinthians 11:7 For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man.

Genesis 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

James 3:9 Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God.

Genesis 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Genesis 5:2 Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.

Genesis 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

1 Corinthians 15:45 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.

Colossians 3:10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:

Genesis 2:15 And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.

1 Peter 4:19 Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.

Job 10:8-11 Thine hands have made me and fashioned me together round about; yet thou dost destroy me. Remember, I beseech thee, that thou hast made me as the clay; and wilt thou bring me into dust again? Hast thou not poured me out as milk, and curdled me like cheese? Thou hast clothed me with skin and flesh, and hast fenced me with bones and sinews.

Job 31:15 Did not he that made me in the womb make him? and did not one fashion us in the womb?

Psalms 139:14 I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

Job 33:4 The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.

Genesis 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

1 Corinthians 15:47 The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.

Conclusion: On Day One, God created light and separating it from darkness. Day Two, God creates an atmosphere in the “midst of the water,” and separates between the waters below and above, calling the latter “heavens.” Day Three, God causes the water below the heavens to gather into one place and dry land appears. God then creates the plant life on earth. Day Four, God makes the sun, moon, and stars. Day Five, God creates the birds and fowl of the earth. Day Six, God creates beast, “moving animal,” and finally humanity in His own image. With all these scriptures its clear that evolution theory is false and baseless as it leads to humanistic ideas.

The Problem of Evil

Since the beginning of time, there has been a war raging in the cosmos. It is a war that starts in heaven when Lucifer decides that he wants to be God. Lucifer was God’s most beautiful creation. He walked before the throne room daily and was considered an archangel. But Lucifer became jealous of God, and it was out of that jealously that Lucifer convinced one third of the angels to join his efforts to overthrow God and become God himself. It was at this point He ceased being an archangel and became the Prince of Darkness. The Devil’s revolt resulted in him being cast out of Heaven by God and ever since Satan and God have been enemies.

In our time we look forward to the day that evil will no longer hold sway in the world. We long for a heaven on earth. And one day there will be a new heaven and a new earth. But until that day comes when evil is finally no longer, evil still remains and causes much pain on the earth. In God’s original creation everything that God created was good. In fact for a time, humanity itself knew no sin. Then man sinned, and evil manifested itself into the world. Evil can be defined “as the refusal to accept the true God as God. True evil elevates itself or another to replace God.” The question often arises, if God being holy and just knew that evil and sin would come to the earth than why did He not prevent it or stop it? There are three reasons why God allows evil to continue in the world and they are the following: 1.) God created man with free will and thus gave man the ability to choose to accept Him or reject Him, 2.) The fact that evil and suffering is so prevalent in our lives reveals the fact that we have our own inadequacies and that we need God, and 3.) God allows evil because He does not want His children to get used to the present life because as the Bible says, we are just pilgrims and sojourners passing through and as believers, Heaven is our final eternal state.
God created man with free will and thus gave man the ability to choose to accept Him or reject Him. God did not create evil. God did create persons with freedom who could practice it. So we are who actualize evil, not Him. He could have created a world without the possibility of evil, but He preferred a world with free choice. God created us with the power of choice. To quote from Ravi Zacharias,
“What would it take to create a loving world void of evil? A world in which love is capable of meaningful expression and experience would also imply a world in which there is choice. If someone tells you that they love you, those words mean something because they are freely given. If you learned that someone had told you they loved you but that they had been forced to say it, their words would not mean very much. Thus, if we want to speak of a loving world, we must also speak of a world in which choices are exercised. And in such a world, there is also the possibility of choosing a course of action that is not loving, i.e. evil.”
True love implies and demands a free choice! Or else you would have a fixed environment in which humanity would be robots. Alvin Plantinga claimed the following:
“If God creates human beings with true, morally significant free will (where humans can freely decide to act in ways that really do advance goodness in the world, or really do cause evil in the world against self, others or world), and if God wants a world in which there are significant amounts of moral goodness, it’s possible that God cannot get that kind of world without significant amounts of moral badness as well. After all, if people are left free by God, then the morally significant states of the world will in large part be up to the decisions of humans, not up to God.”

The fact that evil and suffering is so prevalent in our lives reveals the fact that we have our own inadequacies and that we need God. Simply put, all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God. When Adam and Eve sinned, God promised that one day there would be one coming that would be a sacrifice for sin and would make a way for people to have there relationship restored to God. That was done when Jesus died on Calvary. Jesus took all of humanities sins, and bore them for all of humanity so that people might have a chance to be saved and inherit eternal life. We see here that “Christ’s atonement guarantees the final end of evil and suffering”. Alcorn says, “The drama of evil and suffering in Christ’s sacrifice addresses the very heart of the problem of evil and suffering. One day it will prove to be the final answer.” The answer to the problem of evil and suffering according to Alcorn,“is not a philosophy, but a Person; not words, but the Word.” Jesus Christ is the answer to the problem of evil. Only He can help us with the feeling of inadequacies and the feelings of hopelessness. Only He can save humanity from their sins. Only Jesus can provide true lasting peace.
God allows evil because He does not want His children to get used to the present life because as the Bible says, we are just pilgrims and sojourners passing through and as believers, Heaven is our final eternal state. If everything was perfect and no problems ever surfaced and there was no pain in life then people would not have to rely upon God anymore for anything. Alcorn points out that “in order to appreciate our eternal future, we will remember the sufferings of the present.” Because we have pain and suffering, we must rely upon an Almighty God. Human beings do not have all the answers. Dinesh D’ Sousa writes.

The only way for us to really triumph over evil and suffering is to live forever in a place where those things do not exist. It is the claim of Christianity that there is such a place and that is available to all who seek it. No one can deny that, if this claim is true, then evil and suffering are exposed as temporary hardships and injustices. They are as transient as our brief, mortal lives. In that case God has shown us a way to prevail over evil and suffering, which are finally overcome in the life to come.”

So in reality, in the big picture evil and suffering is only temporary. So every trial and every tribulation that we may face in life is well worth it, because one day those that believe in Jesus will receive new resurrected bodies that will no longer be corrupted. We will be in Heaven where Jesus is, and there will be no more sin. Revelation 21:1-7 best illustrates what will happen in the end: 1And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. 2And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 4And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 5And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. 6And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. 7He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
In conclusion, we have seen the three reasons why God allows evil to exist in our present world. According to Ed Hindson and Emir Caner,
“What evil forces us to conclude is either God is not good, or that our conception of God’s relationship toward us needs serious rethinking. The evidence about evil drives us decisively to this latter conclusion. God uses evil, suffering, and disorder to drive us to Himself. If He gave only good, we would be self-satisfied. If he had given immediate death when we sinned, He would be just. That He gives us partial goodness and partial suffering now forms a texture of hope that in the future, He will in fact make all things right in a final consummation and restoration. God is not through: He will continue to work on us, like a persistent sculptor working the metal with hard blows and constant lighter corrections, to help us become worthy of happiness if we receive Him and submit to His plan. On most occasions, it seems, we do not know why God allows certain evils. But we know someone who knows these things, and we can therefore trust Him to make good on His promise that “he who began a good work in us will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

Even God Himself acknowledges the existence of other gods (“Has any god ever tried to take one nation out of another nation…” Deutoronomy 4:34).  He warns us time and again in His Word to be careful not to place our trust and our worship in other gods.

God = the supreme being.

gods= an image of a deity; an idol.

The question is not the existence of God and/or gods but where our faith lies.  What we believe.

In Christianity we believe in One Supreme Being, The Lord is God, who has existed before all time.  Before the earth and stars and the Milky Way as we know it was formed, He was there.

We also believe that there other powers  which can take control over our lives, these would be the other gods.  It could be a thing such as money or power; a person such as a spouse, child or public figure; a being, such as mother nature.

In order to serve the One and the Only true God we must recognize that other gods do exist.  Why?  If we deny that other gods exist, how will we know when they are intruding with our faith, our trust in the Lord.

It is difficult for me to understand how someone could deny the existence of God, Our Father, but it is difficult for some people to understand why I and many others choose to believe in a loving, merciful God who created mankind and everything around us.

If not for God and His promises, then what is our purpose?  I choose to believe for many reasons.

First, if there was such a thing as a “Big Boom” do you really think that it would have been able to create a perfectly round planet(s) with such intricate elements?

Second, if we evolved from something else why have we not evolved again?  It would only stand to reason that if evolution is right that we would keep on evolving into some other form.

Third, there is what God has done for me in my life.  Before God I was a scared, unrational, depressed, angry person with no hope or faith.  God has created within me a new being, a new person.  He has placed hope where there was no hope.  He has given me peace where there was chaos.  He has given me love where there was hatred.  He has given me mercy where there was guilt.

Lastly, I choose to believe that there is something better for us all.  We are here to fulfill God’s purpose.  To strive for the reward of heaven on earth.  The road that will take us “home.”  If I am wrong, I would rather believe and be at peace than to be right, and not believe suffer the wrath of Him who created us.

Not sure of God’s existence?  You do not believe He does exist? Read Does God Exist? written by a former atheist.

Have a great day!  Godspeed to you!  And may His blessings overflow to you and your family.

In His Loving Name, Mary