The Haiti Earthquake...Why God?

Fox news reported that "the shaking started on Tuesday, Jan. 12, at 4:53 p.m. EST in the Haiti region, just 10 miles southwest of Port-au-Prince."

The results of course have been devastating to the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. The capital city is flattened and the conservative estimated death toll is now around 50,000. Such senseless wholesale carnage in such a poor country is hard for many to reconcile with the idea of a loving sovereign God. Couldn't God have stopped this earthquake if He is almighty? If He is loving, wouldn't He have wanted to?

Some, like Pat Robertson, have suggested that God is punishing Haiti for a pact they made with the Devil over 200 years ago. It's the same group that suggested that God was punishing New Orleans, LA through the devastation of Katrina.

In Jesus' days, there were many such attempts to explain disasters and calamities in a way that cast blame on the victims. Here's what Jesus had to say,

Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus answered, "Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish." Luke 13:1-5 NIV


The Bible lists many reasons for the suffering on this planet, here are a few

-Divine judgment: characterized by unmistakable supernatural phenomena and always preceded by prophetic warning. (the flood, Sodom and Gomorrah)

Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets. Amos 3:7

-Cause and Effect Consequences of one's actions: if you drink and drive, you put yourself at great risk of being in an accident.

Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, "See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you." (John 5:14)

-The Devil: Although God allowed Satan to harm Job through natural disasters, disease, and marauders, it was Satan who did it. (Job 1)

-The natural results of living in a sinful planet: earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, etc

For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that[i] the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. (Romans 8:20,21)

-The neglect of our duty to take care of one another, so that the innocent suffer.

Because of the oppression of the weak
and the groaning of the needy,
I will now arise," says the LORD.
"I will protect them from those who malign them." (Psalm 12:5)

The Haiti earthquake clearly meets the criteria of the last three categories. It's impossible to know for sure why this happened, but we can know that it was not Divine Judgment, since it was not preceded by any prophetic warning; nor was it supernatural in nature. It was not the result of anything the Haitians did, since we cannot control the earth's crust.

What would I say to Pat Robertson?

-It isn't just Haiti that has made a pact with the Devil. It's the whole human race. When Adam and Eve chose to obey the Devil and disobey God, they gave this planet into his hands.

The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. So if you worship me, it will all be yours." (Matthew 4:5)

The Devil has great power over the forces of nature, and He uses that power to his own purposes. He loves to cause great suffering and then point the finger at God.

-Earthquakes are a reality on this planet. They happen from time to time for natural reasons. Since the human race has rejected God, God has to allow nature to takes it's course, and the second law of thermodynamics is taking into effect. Everything tends towards disorder. The planet is deteriorating just like everything else does when left to itself. Only something outside and greater than this planet can restore it. Until that happens, calamities will happen. We asked for independence from God, so He hesitantly gave it to us.

-Suffering and death appear like the worst of all evils in our eyes, and they are terrible. But we must always remember that everyone dies. Whether it's an earthquake, or a heart-attack. We will all die one day. Great disasters cause headlines, but the fact is, millions die every day. One day you and I will be one of them. Even looking at death as a tragedy requires the belief that we were meant to live forever.

In God's eyes, death is not the worst of evils. Despair, Oppression, violence, slavery, torture, are all much worse and happen every day. These are caused by human choice. Don't Miss This: The Greatest Evils In The World, the Ones God is Most Concerned About, Are Caused By Human Choice.

Human Selfishness is the real problem on this planet. It's always tempting to point the finger at God and ask Him, "why don't you do something?" but I'm guessing He wants to ask us the same question.

Evil and suffering cannot be solved by politics or technology. They can only be solved through the speaking and living of the gospel: a new principle of life based on a renewed relationship with God which He initiates by first forgiving us. God is the only cure to our selfishness. Only He can teach us how to love in the truest sense of the word. This relationship if properly nurtured will naturally result in us loving mankind made in His image. But please, before we preach it to others, let’s make sure we live it ourselves.

Black Ice: Clearly Dangerous

I took my kids to the school playground yesterday, as I tend to do on Sundays when school is closed. We slid on the hill, did some swinging, and then started chasing an old ball around the basketball court. My kids are quite young and not too stable. Since we haven't had much snow yet, the court was pretty clean, except for this sections of black ice. My kids were constantly slipping on them.

Anyone who lives in a nordic state or province knows about black ice. It's known as being especially dangerous since it is the most slippery kind of ice on the road... and you can't see it coming.

Now this news flash may upset some, so sit down and brace yourself. THERE IS ACTUALLY NO SUCH THING AS BLACK ICE... unless your talking about frozen mud.

the "Black Ice" that most people have in mind is actually clear ice. The only reason it's black is because the pavement underneath is black. When I go to the skating rink. The ice there looks white, with the exception of several blue and red lines. It's actually the same kind of ice as what's on the road, except the cement under this ice is basically white, with some red and blue lines drawn on it.

Now that I've insulted your intelligence, here comes my point.

Many people, are just like this kind of ice. It isn't that they're particularly good people, or particularly bad people. Basically they are simply a window into their surroundings. You place them in an atmosphere that encourages moral behavior, and they act moral. You place them in an atmosphere that encourages immoral behavior, and they follow the crowd.

Many people in business know about the 20-80 phenomena. This applies here. I would say that probably about %20 of people have real moral color of their own. They either are truly corrupt and cause those around them to act corrupt, or they are truly moral, and cause those around them to be moral. %80 of people are morally clear. They go with the crowd, their environment.

Which are you? Are you one of the %20 people who have a strong moral influence on others either for good or bad? Or are you one of the %80 who blend in?

The lesson of black/white ice, is that things are not always as they seem. People are not always what they seem. We shouldn't assume that just because a person acts a good, that they truly are morally upright. They may just be following the crowd. That applies to us as well.

Think about it. History repeatedly demonstrates the power that a few individuals can have on a society, either for good or evil. This is a hugely empowering truth. Look at the difference Hitler made in Germany. A few good people, dedicated to the uplifting of others can have just as powerful an effect. Don't be clear. Have color of your own...and make it a good color.

New Year: Time to Overcome Addictions

This is the time of the year where people love to make resolutions. Today is the 6th of January, and by now many people already feel like a failure over their failed resolutions. When it comes to overcoming any bad habit, what people need to understand is that our actions stem from our beliefs. These beliefs shape our thoughts and conscience, and these in turn, control our actions. It all starts with our beliefs.

There was a time when psychologists did not pay attention to people's beliefs. The Freudian school taught psychologists to look at the human mind sort of like a machine. If we simply fixed hidden issues and helped resolve bad memories, right thinking and actions would result. The focus of psychology was in the subconscious. It was believed that the subconscious was really the place in the mind where everything happened. Personal beliefs, thoughts, and the will were basically ignored in trying to heal the mind. Evolutionary thinking denies the existence of free will in human beings, and treats us like other animals. It is concerned with instincts, unconscious conditioned reactions to stimulus, and heredity. Sigmund Freud based his entire psychological theory on the assumption of evolution.

Today, we know that Freudian psychotherapy has never been proven to be more effective than taking a placebo for depression. Psychology today is all about dealing with the conscious processes of the mind. Thoughts, beliefs, and the will, are the target of modern counseling. We've found that people are not victims of their past and heredity. We have free will and personal responsibility. We can take control of our lives and destiny, given the right beliefs, thoughts, and action of the will.

Let's apply this to keeping resolutions and overcoming bad habits.

Modern psychology may operate under an explicitly theistic framework. Yet it is far from acknowledging the existence of a personal God. What they seek to do is teach people to think about the future positively. They teach people to believe that the future is basically good, and that things will work out in the end. By telling yourself these things over and over again, you will gain confidence and strength to fight the battles of life.

And it Works. Somewhat.

The problem is that unless a person has real reason to believe that life will basically turn out well, they can't just tell themselves these things forever.

Let's look at the world through the lens of complete atheism. What does the future look like? Well, one day we will all die, so will everyone we know and love. We will become dirt. One day that dirt will be consumed by the sun when it explodes. In the meantime everything we are and accomplish on this planet is utterly meaningless.

Now I know some happy atheists, kind of. But as a rule, their happiness is circumstantial. It's based on their current life being good. And deep down, there is a constant despair. An atheist's happiness can't possibly be based on hope, because there is none.

(please don't be offended. First of all, there are few true atheists out there. Most people use the term atheist, when in fact they are agnostic, meaning that they just don't know. They still hold on to a ray of hope. I meet many people like this every day. Atheists can be very kind people and I am not trying to diminish them in any way. I'm just calling it the way I see it based on 2 years of Bible work where I spent my time talking to strangers about God.)

It's interesting how scientists who don't even believe in God are demonstrating His existence in the fact that human beings are incapable of having genuine happiness without Him. By demonstrating the need for hope in human beings to be truly happy and strong people, they have demonstrated our need for God.

An old hymn that is sung in many churches has the chorus 'faith is the victory, faith is the victory, O glorious victory, that overcomes the world'

It's based on 1 John 5:4, which says

This is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith.

Very often in life, it isn't actual suffering that gets us, but the anticipation of suffering. There is no one who is physically unable to quit smoking, quit over-eating, quit pornography, etc, it's that they can't fathom how life will be bearable without it. They anticipate a miserable life ahead for themselves if they quit these addictions, and so they get discouraged and go back to them again and again. Addictions feed on fear of the future.

Fear of the future is a belief. You don't know the future, you can only have beliefs about it. That belief that the future will be grim without this bad habit is based on a worldview where we are basically on our own in this lonely universe, left to fight the battles of life on our own. How will we make it without our crutch?

I've got news for you. We are not alone. If you incorporate this new belief into your life, and make it a habitual part of your thinking, you will find that no addiction can control you.

Here's how it works. Basically, the Bible tells us that there is a God, who is not only very powerful and the Creator of everything. But He also knows your name and the number of all the hairs on your head. He has good things in store for you.

"delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

"I know the thoughts I think towards you...thoughts of peace and not of evil." Jeremiah 29:13

Because He has set his love upon me, therefore I will deliver him...I will deliver him/her and honor him/her. With long life I will satisfy her and show her my salvation. Psalm 91:14-16

This is the one belief that will make life a success for you: God is on your side. He's intensely interested in you and wants to show you true happiness that you cannot fathom.

As long as you believe this, nothing can ever defeat you.

Now, am I talking about some positive thinking therapy based on no real evidence? Absolutely not. Those things work for a while, but eventually they backfire because we can only believe a lie for so long. But this is different. The more you make it a point to seek God, learn about Him, and follow His will, the more He will actually reveal Himself to you in tangible ways.

"the angel of the Lord encamps all around them that fear Him, and He delivers them. O taste and see that the Lord is good." Psalm 34:8

God invites you to taste and see for yourself. You won't be disappointed.

Reader: Are you tired of living life wondering why? Are you tired of being afraid of what lies around the corner? Are you tired of cheep mind-numbing thrills and thirst for something more meaningful in life? Faith is the victory. Place your faith in the One who is worthy of it. Every other "god" out there will let you down. But the one who formed you, who holds your life in your hands, who promised: "I will never leave you nor forsake you," He will never let you down.

There's one condition though. You have to seek Him with all your heart. This isn't because He's trying to test you or make you jump through hoops. It's just that our mind takes the mold of whatever we dwell the most on. If we spend most of our time focusing on the worries and pleasures of this world, our faith will never be much good to us. It won't be strong enough to ever support us.

But if we make the willful decision to develop a mind of faith through constantly focusing on God's goodness, studying His word, and talking to Him throughout the day, we will find that He will more than meet us halfway in giving us new minds of faith, hope, and joy.

Without God, we are frail and weak. But with God, we are invincible. That's why God says to us:

Or let him take hold of my strength, that he may make peace with me; and he shall make peace with me. Isaiah 27:5

New Year's Resolution: Avoid Cruise Control

One of the features that I value the most in a car is cruise control. I average around 3000km per month, most of those on the highway, and it’s nice to relax your foot and not have to worry about your speed as you trek along. It’s so important to me that I would probably not buy a car without this feature.
Cruise control is nice when I drive on the highway, but I’ve gotten myself in trouble a few times when I have tried to use it on narrow, winding country roads. These kinds of roads demand constant attention, focus, and re-adjustment of my speed. It is impossible to just put it on cruise and just sail along. To do so puts me at great risk of going off the road.
Thomas A Kemphis, the medieval author of the well-known book, Imitation of Christ, once noted something very insightful concerning the spiritual state of many Christians.
“Actually, our fervor and desire for virtue should increase every day as we grow older. But now it is considered wonderful if we still hold onto a spark of our first fervor.” –Book 1, Chapter 11.5
What he seems to be describing here, is a state of spiritual decline in many Christians, caused by what I would describe as spiritual cruise control.
If a person is on cruise control spiritually speaking, there are two things that can happen. The first is that they will crash. Many of the colossal moral failures we see in Christian leaders are not the result of one impulsive decision, but rather the inevitable fruit of a stagnant spiritual walk. Just like a good marriage is not destroyed in a moment, so a healthy spiritual walk does not just fall in an instant. The second, and much worse thing that can happen, is that we will find ourselves on the broad way that leads to destruction. The broad way is the only place we can be comfortable on cruise control. For every one person who crashes, there are probably ten who find themselves in this predicament.
Many people seem content in cruise control spirituality. They haven’t grown in years. They are basically the same people with the same bad habits that they were 20 years ago. Their religion is more of a tradition, than something that brings them true joy and satisfaction. Though they seem to be in a far better state than those who fall into serious moral lapses, in many ways they are much worse off. Those who crash are brought face to face with their true spiritual condition. But the majority live a relatively comfortable existence in this state, and are unaware of their problem. The most deadly forms of cancer are the forms that are hardest to diagnose early. A person just seems to be the picture of health, and by the time they learn of their disease, it’s too late.
Here’s a little quiz to figure out if you’re on spiritual cruise control:
1. Is your spiritual life characterized primarily by routine and tradition?
2. Have you made significant spiritual progress in the past year?
3. Have you gained exiting new insights into the spiritual life in the past year?
4. Have you overcome any bad habits, poor attitudes, or personality flaws in the past year?
5. Have you been a genuine blessing to those around you this past year?
6. Is your spiritual journey a source of great joy in your life?
How did you do? If you didn’t do so well, be happy! You’ve just made the most important step towards healing: diagnosis. There is a Great Physician who is more than able to heal you.

The Incubator Bird: Rising Above Life's Circumstances

Pictures from http://blogs.answersingenesis.org/blogs/ken-ham/2005/06/16/the-incubator-bird-evidence-for-creation-in-australia/

The Australian Incubator Bird, (also Megapode or brush turkey) is a remarkeable little bird that just happens to be the only bird in the world that incubates it's eggs without the use of it's own body heat.

Instead it builds a large mound of decaying matter over it's eggs, the heat from which incubates the eggs. It's quite a remarkable feat for the 65 cm long bird. The mound is usually around 1 meter high by 4 meters wide.

This little bird is remarkable evidence for the theory of intelligent design.




When the chicks are born, they are buried under 1 meter of decaying matter. These chicks will die if they don't get out of there soon. They don't waste any time. They start digging with their little legs against the mound over them. The debris falls on them, they shake it off, pack it down, and keep digging.

There's a lesson that these little chicks can teach us about how to overcome adversity. At times we find ourselves in dark chapters of our life; times that seem hopeless and ready to destroy us. The more we fight against them, the more dirt seems to fall on our head. But don't give up. Sometimes the dirt that falls on us is the only way we can climb out of our circumstances.

Like a mountain climber, we climb higher and higher in life by putting more and more obstacles under our feet. By rising above, we form strength of character that promises to bring with it peace, contentment, and joy.

Driving back from my wife's parents this past Christmas, I heard a story on the radio about a horse that had fallen into a well in Manitoba. At first, the firefighters tried to save the horse by pumping all the water out of the well. But the well was so deep, that once the water was all pumped out, there was no way to get all the way down to the horse.

So the next thing they did was to fill the well with water. From the horse's perspective, it must have seemed like they were trying to drown him. Here he is in the middle of winter, freezing, and these people are dumping water on him. Slowly the water rises to his neck and has to start swimming. He swims and swim; cold and exhausted, wondering why his loving owner is subjecting him to this treatment. Yet little does he realize that he is slowly swimming right out of the well!

Sometimes we question God's dealing with us. Sometimes life seems so much harder than it needs to be. We complain and chafe under our load. But take courage. God never sends us hardship that is unnecessary. If you have put your trust in Him, you can know that all things are working together for your good. Sometimes you are the cause of your own problems, but even then, don't give up. Learn from your mistakes and rest confident, knowing that God is working to deliver you. Sometimes His way of delivering us may seem too hard from our perspective. But God knows what He's doing. take courage, put a smile on your face, and sing a song of praise to Him. Because He is surely going to save you. Just having this hope, faith, and courage, will tend to make life's trials much more bearable.