Articles from this month's issue of the Berean News

Photo Opinion Q: Describe a time when God answered a prayer of yours.
	Jeanne When God gave me healthy babies, that was definitely an answer to prayer, and more recently, when my surgery report came back negative (cancer free).
	Steve Both of my children are miracle babies.
	Roy Recently my middle son Mark had a spiritual awakening, which is an answer to years of prayer.
	Rachel Tim, my fiancé, is a direct answer to my prayers. He's everything I asked God for in a husband.

Perspective Isis by Larry Urbaniak   In the first and second centuries AD, one of the most popular and widespread religions in Italy was the religion of Isis. Originally, Isis was an Egyptian goddess. In fact, she was considered to be one of the most important goddesses of ancient Egypt. Her name is the Greek form of the Egyptian hieroglyphic meaning "throne." Since the word "throne" was feminine in gender, its personification was a woman, the mother of the king. The royal throne was, in effect, the creator of the king. Isis was the wife of the god Osiris, who was murdered by Seth. Osiris was torn into pieces by Seth and the pieces were scattered. But Isis found and reunited all the pieces of her dead husband's body. Through her divine powers she then brought Osiris back to life again. Her supernatural and divine powers were said to supersede those of all other deities combined. She became known as the "giver of life." People believed that she held in her hands the power of life and death. At the beginning of the Christian era, the cult of Isis was the most popular of all the Oriental mystery religions. Isis, by this time known as the goddess of love, was the patroness of many of the elegant Roman courtesans. And many reputable men of the time were supporters of the Isis Mysteries. In one source, the goddess herself is quoted, "My name, my divinity is adored throughout all the world, in diverse manners, in variable customs, and by many names." There then follows a list of divine names by which she was known. The quote goes on, "And the Egyptians, which are excellent in all kind of ancient doctrine, and by their proper ceremonies accustomed to worship me, do call me by my true name, queen Isis." As many of you no doubt already know, in the Greek language of the New Testament, God's love is designated by the word AGAPE. This Greek word was coined exclusively for its specific use in the New Testament. Every time it is used in scripture it means, without exception, God's pure and divine love. Besides the Bible, there is no other usage of the word AGAPE in literature -- with one exception. One of the other names of Isis was Agape. What Satan cannot control, he counterfeits. Isis was a counterfeit of God's love, of AGAPE. She never had God's life. She never had His love. She never knew Jesus Christ, who is the only way to the one true God. Isis was a clever imitator of AGAPE in name only. Satan has been just as successful today as he was in the first and second centuries at counterfeiting God's love. Our society makes love a god. It is used as an ideal, as a allusive goal, as an advertising inducement. But the love that is sought and worshipped by so many is a pale imitation of AGAPE. Neither sex nor infatuation are AGAPE. Neither physical nor psychological chemistry are AGAPE. No love of man, no matter how noble or strong, is AGAPE. Many of us, as sincere Christians, try to make our own love AGAPE. We cannot. We can only produce a weak imitation. AGAPE is God's love. We can, however, accept His love and allow it into our lives. We can become vessels through which His love can flow. We can give Him our bodies as living sacrifices, crucified in and through Christ, so that He may use them as channels of AGAPE. AGAPE is not a natural love. It is a supernatural love. It is not a human emotion or a human feeling. It is God Himself loving through us. God is the one doing the loving, not us. AGAPE is a choice. What God requires from us is the choice to allow Him to love His love through us. Our job is to make that choice, each day, one day at a time.

Viewpoints To Everything There is a Season by Jon Larson I'll never forget the first time I heard the song, "Turn, Turn, Turn" on the radio. I was a teenager, and I had no idea they were quoting the Bible; I just loved the words. I remember thinking, "Wow, that's neat! 'A time to sow, a time to reap.' Cool, there's a season for everything!" The season which has become most important in my life is the memorial season. Every year after Christmas, as we go into what some call the dog-days of winter, my attention starts to focus on the Lord's request to do this in remembrance of him. That has always been the key phrase to my mind. Jesus is personally requesting me to do something very specific for him. When my Lord, my Savior, my Master, my Head, my Teacher, my Shepherd, my Bridegroom, my Vine, my Guide, my Brother, my Water, my Bread, my Light, my very Life requests of me to do this in remembrance of him, what could be more important? It is a personal request from the King of Kings and Lord of Lords to do this remembrance as a memorial for him. We are given simple and basic instructions: eat some bread and drink some wine in remembrance of Jesus. However, the symbolism of these instructions reminds me of the words from the hymn, "'Tis a mine, aye, deeper too, than can mortal ever go." No matter how often I look into this matter, "Still some new rich gem appears." I've never been particularly interested in what I personally get out of the memorial service, because my prime objective is to honor the Lord's request. Sure, I want to come away with a closer communion to the Lord and his followers, but my first goal is to bring honor to the one who died for me and rose again. If that goal is met, and if I've given diligence to purge my heart from sin just as the Hebrews purged their homes of leaven, real communion will follow. I believe the timing is important. This request was not given on any random day. No, this request was made on the most crucial day in all of history, a day that will never be forgotten through all eternity: the day Jesus died on the cross. Under Jewish law, the day started at 6 PM. Sometime after 6, Jesus and his disciples partook of a Passover meal. It was after this Passover meal that Jesus made his request. The fullness of time had come. Christ our Passover Lamb would be slain the following afternoon, which was still the same day as the request. The literal and symbolic meanings are staggering. When Jesus made his request, he knew full well what was to follow: the betrayal, the trials, the beatings, the scorn, and the agony. He knew he would be carrying that cross, be nailed to that cross, be hanged on that cross, and die on that cross. He was, indeed, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. He did all that for us; what can we do for him? Well, for one thing, we can make our best effort to fulfill his request. We have specific instructions on what to do, but even I admit the instructions are not specific on when. Should it be daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, or something else? This is a key question, because we are individually responsible to our Lord for doing our best to fulfill his request. We need to be looking to Jesus as our leader for guidance in answering this question for ourselves. So, how do we decide? Must we delve into all the Jewish writings and customs on the subject of Passover, then jump into everything we can find in church history and customs concerning communion, and finally, immerse ourselves in all the scholarly writing available on the subject? If we did, we would, in all probability, come away with our hands up in surrender, a glazed look in our eyes, and a major headache; mumbling, "whatever!" I find it impossible to believe that the basic answer cannot be found directly in the Bible. For myself, the Passover meal, which precedes the request, and Paul's direct reference to Christ as our Passover Lamb persuade me to observe this memorial yearly on the same day Jesus observed the Passover. God tells Moses in Numbers 9:3 to keep the Passover commemoration on the 14th day of the first month in the Jewish calendar. Now, if I look at a Jewish calendar and find the corresponding date on our common calendar, I will know when to fulfill the Lord's request. Ask a survivor of Pearl Harbor if it is important what day we memorialize those who died in the attack, and they will tell you that remembrance is appropriate anytime, but the memorial of Pearl Harbor is commemorated annually on the anniversary of the day it happened, December 7. Jesus, on the same day he would die and shed his blood as an atonement for sin, requested his disciples to eat some bread and drink some wine in remembrance of him. It is a holy thing. It is an honor. It is a privilege. Let us keep the season and the feast.

A Daughter's Heart Soaring Like Eagles By Donna Mathewson One of my favorite scriptures is found in Isaiah 40:29-31. It tells us that our Father "gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD, will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint." We all grow weary at times. Life is hard; it is not easy for any of us. Each of us has our own battles that cause us to grow tired and worn. Our daily experiences drag us down whether we are young or old. We live in an imperfect world and we ourselves are imperfect. Isaiah holds out hope to the weary. We do not need to be discouraged. The promise found here in Isaiah is a thrilling one. We can soar on wings like eagles, but there is a key. Only those who hope in the LORD have been given that key. When we hope, we can renew our strength. When something is renewed it is given new vitality, it has been rejuvenated. The Hebrew word actually means to exchange. We can exchange or trade our strength for His strength. What a promise that is! In our own strength we can do nothing, but what great things can be done with the strength of Christ. Let us keep in mind that this is not a one-time exchange, but a continual process. Each day, each hour, each moment we need to consciously make the effort to exchange our strength for His, but when we do, we will soar. Have you ever seen an eagle soar? It flies far above the earth, above the valleys and mountains. If you've ever been on an airplane you gain a similar perspective to that of an eagle or one who soars on eagle's wings. The earth which was bigger than life becomes quite tiny from up above. So our trials, which seemed so large to us just a short time ago, will look much smaller when we are lifted up to the heights on the pinions of Christ's love. When our strength is renewed and we are able to view our experiences from a heavenly perspective, it is then that we are able to run and not grow weary, walk and not faint. Why? Because we see things from God's perspective. Gaining God's perspective is something that would make life easier for all Christians. I know I have the tendency to look at life from my own finite perspective. From down here in my finite world, in this moment, I just don't get what God is doing sometimes. Were I to be able to look down the road a week, a month or a year, I might have a different perspective on my trials today. That is where trust comes into play. Will I trust my Father to do with my life as He sees fit and know the outcome will be better than anything I had ever imagined? I can answer "YES!" without hesitation to that question because my Father has led me down many a road that look from my perspective to be not a good road, at least not one I would choose. In the end, He has given me the desires of my heart. I have learned that my Father has a wild imagination his ways are grander than my ways and I can ALWAYS trust Him. This is not to say that doubts never creep in, they most assuredly do, but when they do I remember the way He has led me so far and I praise Him and remind myself that my perspective is distorted. When I think about scriptures like "a day with the Lord is as a thousand years " or "He owns the cattle on a thousand hills " or remind myself that I am a daughter of the King, it changes my perspective. I realize that in my own little finite world life seems overwhelming, but it doesn't have to be that way. I can choose to look at the big picture. I may not always understand why life takes this or that turn, but I can rest assured that my Father knows what He is doing with my live and the end result will be worth the ride. It may not always be an easy ride, I may hit bumps in the road that hurt, but ultimately I will get to my destination and when I do, it will be worth it all. For then I shall see my Father face to face and what a perspective that will be!

Roy's Reflections WWJD by Roy Boswell   Many of us take our lives in our hands when we surround ourselves with shells of steel, plastic, glass, and rubber. My car, a Buick La Sabre, does a better job of protecting my body than some vehicles would, but there is still a risk factor. Every Sunday, I drive part of Highway #45, officially known as La Grange Road. Long before interstates existed, this highway was the way to travel between the north and the south suburbs of Chicago. If one knows where to look, you can still follow much of the original road as it snakes down the nooks and crannies through the Cook County Forest Preserves. Only recently has the government decided to straighten out the many dangerous twists and turns. On a recent Sunday morning, Arlene and I headed north on "La Grange Road." We were on our way to church. As we approached a busy intersection, an elderly lady, without a glance in any direction, rocketed from the cross street and managed a two wheel right turn, through the red light. Her bright silver Mercedes, with its black leather upholstery and look of "old" money came within a couple of feet of whacking my car. I instinctively pushed my horn signal panel and sent out a short blast in her direction. Perhaps, just as instinctively, she raised her right hand pointed it toward me and gave me the finger. That's perhaps the politest term I can come up with to describe her crude single digit salute! The experience seemed to exhilarate her to the point of repeating it several times. Well, I don't believe near collisions are worth dying for, so I just followed her down the road. As I pulled closer, I noticed an interesting bumper sticker. It had the initials "WWJD". Now, I know what those letters stand for. I see them daily on bracelets, necklaces, books, and greeting cards. Lots and lots of my friends have those letters proudly displayed in just about every imaginable manner. Under the letters, WWJD, was the explanation, right on the bumper sticker so there could be no doubt about the meaning. "What Would Jesus Do?" That's what they stand for. Not a bad question, if you ask me. I might change it just a little and ask, "What Would Jesus Have Me Do?", but I'm not going to quibble about it. Those four letters have sparked many conversations as unknowing folks ask, "What do those initials stand for?" Many opportunities for talking about Jesus have come about because of those displays. Taking this woman at her word, I would love to have had an opportunity to ask her these questions: "Would Jesus Have Repeatedly Made An Obscene Gesture At Me"? Or, "Would Jesus Have Encouraged Me To Follow Your Example"? I do not display religious bumper stickers on my Buick. I've heard some of the comments made by non- believers about the apparent hypocrisy they see. The message on the bumper sticker doesn't always match the behavior or driving habits of the believer behind the wheel. I know this: on that recent Sunday morning, a lady behaved in a most non-Christlike manner, while displaying a bumper sticker that asked a question whose answer belied her behavior. The life-lessons here are: 1). Character counts because that is how we are judged by our fellow man! 2). If you choose to deal with character-related issues on the bumper of your car, understand that you're going to be held to a higher standard! 3). If you want to advertise your faith on your bumper, you won't get any hassle from me. However, make sure your behavior and attitude don't shout and scream "HYPOCRISY"!

Craft Time for Camp Dear Friend of Camp Blessing, Greetings to you in Jesus' Name! It seems likes ages, but only eight months ago we were enjoying our week at the Berean Christian Conference in Grove City, PA rejoicing, praising and just enjoying the fellowship of each other and having fun as the Lord's people. Well, take a look at your calendar and you'll see we only have four months to go until it will be that time again! :) This is your reminder to get those crafty hands busy! We need your "hand-crafted" items to sell at the gift boutique. Check out the Camp Blessing newsletter and you'll see how profitable your efforts were last year. So, finish up that afghan, knit some more mittens, cook up some jams, paint a picture, sew up a storm, pound out that wood project and bring those goodies to the conference. The shoppers will be looking for all the old favorites as well as new items. Looking forward to see you and your crafted items! Love in His service, Barb Casell & Phyllis Schwede Camp Blessing Gift Boutique Shopkeepers

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