Vilification and the Golden Globes

Posted on January 9, 2017 by Lynn

l_f8cefcb0-7450-11e1-99ef-6f1e72500004I will admit it right out…I get star struck at times.  Being a writer, I have often wondered about having my Wounded Trilogy made into a movie and what “star(s)” would take on the character roles.  I can’t imagine what it must feel like to have your written work immortalized on the small and big screen but for this small-town Canadian girl, it would be a dream come true.  That said, there is so much about Hollywood that glitters like gold, and so much more that is rusty and tarnished.

The entertainment industry seems to go out of its way to shock and glorify lifestyles and despicable morality that flies in the face of Biblical Christianity.  Hollywood models the kind of “Christianity” that espouses that there are hundreds of different ways to God, that it’s okay to walk the wide path and to forget the scripture that says the narrow path is the better way and that Jesus is the ONLY Way, Truth and Life.  That’s the modern feel-good, “Christianity”, where everything is acceptable because God loves everybody and as long as you’re not hurting anybody else you can do as you please without fear of judgment.  That’s Hollywood’s Christianity…and they’ve got it wrong.

That kind of secular, worldly, tolerant “Christianity” is not Biblical Christianity.  It’s false teaching.  It may appeal to a wide audience because people are not held accountable for their sin.  There is no repentance, sanctification, or justification.  People wallow in their sin, are even applauded for their “courage”, and any one who tries to tell them their way is NOT God’s way, is labeled bigoted, intolerant and mostly ignored or openly vilified.

I have noticed that in this secular society we now live in, a society that prides itself on freedom of speech, press, and religion, that one is only “free” if they do not attempt to say anything that goes contrary to the popular way of thinking.  There is an anti-Christian sentiment running rampant in our world today but perhaps more prevalent now than at any other time in history right here in Canada and the U.S.A.  Although Canadian and American Christians may not be physically tortured or persecuted per se, listen to a Middle Eastern underground house church leader: “Persecution is easier to understand when it’s physical: torture, death, imprisonment….American persecution is like an advanced stage of cancer; it eats away at you, yet you cannot feel it. This is the worst kind of persecution.”

Bible-believing Christians are attacked online, in the Press, in schools, colleges and yes, even in Hollywood.  We are bullied, harassed and ridiculed by the so-called tolerant masses.  We do not have “freedom” to speak what the Bible clearly teaches as Truth because it goes contrary to what people want to hear.  This is a society that has been turned on its side, abandoning what’s right in favour of what’s clearly wrong.  In nations that once professed to be God-fearing, Canada and the U.S. have turned their backs on Christian ideals.

We are legalizing sin.

Let’s call it what it is!  We are allowing people to murder their babies, euthanize their sick loved ones all in the name of “freedom”.  We are abandoning traditional marriage and family values in favour of alternative lifestyles.  It’s okay to foster multiculturalism and ethnic diversity in our schools but then openly taunt and jeer students who bring a Bible into a classroom.  There is no clear differentiation now between the male and female genders and that’s totally acceptable.  We’ve become so “free” that rules no longer apply and we are sinking lower and lower into our base depravity that the wicked prosper and the “good” are bullied into silence.  There are no absolute truths and we are seeing suicide rates rise, crime rates rise and our children are leaving the church in droves because they are confused by the messages they see showcased in Hollywood.  They are sucked into believing the lies spread by the secular society around them because we are failing as Bible-believing Christians to boldly teach them the Truth of the Gospel.

Finally, seeing the woes of this world get worse rather than better because of our out-of-control liberalism, we as nations, divided under God, desperately cry out to be saved from the ills around us but refuse to listen to the only One Who can truly save us if we heed the warnings from His Word.

We wonder why the Voice from Heaven is silent.

Jesus said it best: “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town, among his relatives and in his own home.” He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. He was amazed at their lack of faith.  (Mark 6: 4-6)

He was amazed at their lack of faith…  He could say the same thing of us today.

Hollywood mirrors the hearts and minds of society around it.  The Oscars and Golden Globes award shows showcase the sense of fear this industry of imagination is dealing with.  America, (and Canada) are under attack from the enemy without and within as the two nations deal with their lack of faith.  We have no faith in our politicians, in the economy, in our military, police and any others in authority and, it is obvious we have no faith in any kind of god.  In a room filled with dreamers, revolutionaries, pro-active thinkers and activists, they think their liberal ideals will change the world for the better.  All the tinsel and glitter and haute couture fashion cannot mask the fact they will one day be judged by God for their deeds.   Not one of them seem to acknowledge that much of their doom and gloom is due to their lack of faith.  Faith and Fear cannot co-exist.  You either have one or the other.

If they had any kind of faith they would know God is in control and they would not be fearful of the future.  Faith shows us that God has not abandoned His children, no matter how wayward they have become.  The Lord says, “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’ (Jeremiah 33:3) He calls for us to repent of our sins, seek Him with all our hearts, and He will save us if we have faith in HIM!  Faith drives out the fear.  I pray Hollywood gets that message loud and clear…

Can you imagine the amazing T.V. shows and movies that would come out of a faith-filled Hollywood?

Can I get an AMEN?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Happy New Year, and Welcome to 2017!

Posted on January 5, 2017 by Lynn

1-thess-5-18We’ve been buried under snow and experiencing bitter cold temperatures for the past week.  Still, once Christmas is over and New Year’s Eve’s come and gone, I immediately go into a looking-forward-to-Spring mode.  I took down the tree on the 2nd and put away all the decorations for another year, and I always feel like the house looks so much more open and refreshing afterwards.  Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE Christmas and decking the halls and all, but it’s nice to go back to normal.  I let my Feng Shui OCD take hold of me as I put my house in order again.

Lucy Maude Montgomery in her classic, Anne of Green Gables book said, ““Isn’t it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?”  There is a sense of expectation each New Year that we’re starting the year fresh with no mistakes to account for…yet.  My most popular blog post over the past three years has been https://lynndove.com/2013/01/01/25-encouraging-scripture-verses-for-the-new-year/ that particular post gets at least 25,000 hits in one day!  Just seems that so many people want to start the New Year off right with encouragement from the Word.

I have been pondering upon each of those verses over the past few days, letting God’s Word wash over me.  So many unknowns this year, but God never changes.  He is the same today, tomorrow and for eternity.  His mercies are new EVERY morning.  We are incredibly arrogant to think that we can change what God has allowed to happen in the past, present and into the future.  He is not surprised by world events, or world leaders; He tells us HE is in control and He will always be in control!  The challenge is to be content, knowing He is in control in the midst of all circumstances.

But am I?

Am I content when the New Year has Albertans seeing gas prices jump at the pump, and home heating bills rise, and numerous other costs we need to consider now that we have a new carbon tax in the province?  Am I content knowing that Canada will also be affected when a new U.S. president is inaugurated?  Am I content or am I worried?

Merriam-Webster defines contentment as: freedom from worry or restlessness :  peaceful satisfaction.  If I believe God is in control do I actually experience that kind of “freedom” from worry and luxuriate in peaceful satisfaction?  Honestly…it’s tough.

Still, God is teaching me through His Word and through practical application that I need to let go of worry and try to experience contentment in all circumstances – known and unknown.

Last Sunday morning, on the first day of this New Year, I was privileged to witness one of my former students get baptized.  I wept when she sang her own version of “Amazing Grace” because she has embraced what it means to be content no matter her circumstances.  Not an easy thing to do when only five years ago she was a carefree, girl of nine and now she is blind and mostly confined to a wheelchair due to a traumatic brain injury five years ago.

I didn’t really know much about Hope Peacock before her injury other than maybe bumping into her at the school I taught in.  At that time I was teaching in the Junior High wing and she and her sister were in the Elementary wing.  Her father, Trevor is the Pastor of Harvest Bible Chapel Calgary where my daughter and son-in-law attend.  The first time I officially met Hope was at my grandson’s baby shower.  She and her little sister, Gabi cuddled a little with my grandson and then retreated to play with the other girls who had come with their mothers’ to the shower.  Several months later, I got an urgent message from my daughter to pray for her Pastor and his family when Hope had gone into the hospital for a routine tonsillectomy and through a series of unfortunate complications was having serious, life-threatening seizures.  (If interested, my readers can read about Hope’s journey through her blog: http://prayingforhopepeacock.blogspot.ca/ )

I immediately put out an appeal to pray for her and her family through our church’s prayer chain and later through my blog: https://lynndove.com/2012/02/08/praying-for-hope/  We were praying at school, at church, at home, and Hope’s mom, Heather kept us all updated on Hope’s condition.  There have been real miracles throughout these five years, and doctors have been baffled at times with her progress, but there have also been heart-wrenching discouragements too.  Many times I have questioned why God has not chosen to fully restore Hope to full health, but I know He is still in control!

Three years ago, in the midst of her medical challenges, Hope opted to join my Creative Writing class at school.  I wondered if her brain injury would impact her ability to perform well in class.  I need not have feared.  With the help of her terrific aid, who transcribed all of Hope’s stories and poems onto a computer, Hope became one of my most prolific and inspiring writers.  She seemed to find her voice through writing!  Every writing assignment I gave the class that year, Hope eagerly accepted and completed.  I told her that even though I would not be teaching her the following year, she could send me her writing any time.  Last year she shared this acrostic poem with me:

Wheelchair – by Hope Peacock

W – “Wanna go for a stroll, Hope?” says my wheelchair to me.

H – Happily Hope replies, “What would I do without you?!

E – Everywhere I go, you keep me company, my friend.

E – Eyeballs stare as we go past, maybe wondering how we met.

L – Living with you can be hard at times, cause I’d rather use my feet, but I like that you carry me through.

C – Comfortable sitting on your cushy seat carries me to a fluffy cloud of heavenly bliss.

H – Helping me everyday to get from here to there.

A – Able to get through my day, because you bear my weight.

I – I love you, my wheelchair friend, even though you bring me pain and grief.

R – Riding along, you will be a part of the story God is writing for me.”

I wept when I read it then and I still tear up when I read it!  She has learned in five short years, what has taken, and is still taking me a lifetime to figure out, to be content in all circumstances.

Last Sunday, as I watched her Dad gently lift her from the confines of her wheelchair to enter the waters of baptism, I remembered the last line of her poem.  God is writing Hope’s story, and He’s using her wheelchair and personal testimony for His Glory!  Amen and Amen.

 

 

 

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The Wait is Over!

Posted on December 19, 2016 by Lynn

Paxton Levi Charles Dove was born on December 17th at 2:23 a.m., weighing a whopping 6lbs. 15 oz.  Our third grandbaby is doing well and my son and his lovely wife are trying to adjust to the new “normal” in their lives.  It may take some time 🙂

We are blessed that we live close so we saw little Paxton when he was only an hour and a 003half old in the hospital and yesterday my husband wanted to visit them at home with a cake in hand.  (see picture)  Both sets of grandparents are thrilled, as are great-grandparents, great uncles and aunts, and the numerous aunties,  uncles, cousins and second cousins.  Paxton better get used to being passed from arm to arm to arm because we all want to get a chance to cuddle with this little miracle over the days, weeks, months and years ahead!

Our son and daughter-in-law spent considerable time thinking up a name for their first-born and had it picked out long before he was born.  It seems so appropriate, with Paxton being born just before Christmas that his name means “Peace”.  The last name “Dove” is also symbolic of peace.  His middle name, “Levi” is equally interesting meaning “joined in harmony” but also has its roots with the priestly duties of the Levites in Israel.  Put it together it’s Peace bound in harmony with Peace.  How perfect is that?  I hope this little dude will be just as chill as his name!

Now his third name, “Charles” is to honour grandfathers, and great-grandfathers and other Charles’ in the Dove lineage.  However, the name “Charles”, in the European form, means “warrior” and “king”.  Whoa!  I wonder if my son and daughter-in-law planned it that way?  In the middle of my new grandson’s most peaceful name they have linked it with a mighty warrior king name.  Peaceful but also a mighty king.  What a brilliant name!  What a name to live up to!

Such a radical name; so meaningful…and yet so familiar…when our hearts, thoughts and minds at Christmastime are always focused on the NAME ABOVE ALL NAMES: A Man of Peace but also a mighty KING: Jesus!

In Biblical times, names actually meant something.  Often a child would be named in honor of an event that took place at the time of his or her birth, or for a unique physical characteristic. Adam’s name meant “earth” because he was taken from the dust of the earth. Esau’s name meant “hairy,” because he was hairy. Esau’s twin brother Jacob was born hanging onto his brother’s heel so his family named him Jacob, which means “heel-catcher.”

When God chose the Name, “Jesus” for His only begotten Son, He knew the Power, and the Importance behind that Name!  Isaiah prophesied: “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace…” (Isaiah 9:6-7).  He would be called Immanuel “God with us” (Matt. 1: 23); and “Saviour” (Matt. 1: 21).

But there’s so much more about the name, Jesus!

Alpha and Omega – “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.” Rev. 22:13

Bread of Life – “Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.’” John 6:35

Creator of Heaven and Earth– “By Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities– all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.…” Col. 1:16-17

Deliverer – “And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.” 1 Thess.1:10

Good Shepherd – “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” John 10:11

Great High Priest – “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.” Heb. 4:14

I Am – “Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” John 8:58

Judge – “…he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead.” Acts 10:42

King of Kings – “These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful.” Rev. 17:14

Lamb of God – “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” John 1:29

Light of the World – “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12

Lord of All – “For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Phil. 2:9-11

Redeemer– “Then you will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.” Is. 60:16

Risen Lord – “…that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” 1 Cor. 15:3-4

Son of Man – “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:10

Son of the Most High – “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David.” Luke 1:32

The Door – “I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.” John 10:9

The Resurrection and the Life – “Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.” John 11:25

The True Vine – “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.” John 15:1

The Way – “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life.”   No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

The Word – “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John 1:1

He is the Only One Worthy of that Name with ALL its meanings!  He is the Only One we Worship and Adore, and I pray ALL my children and grandchildren will follow HIM all the days of their lives! 

JESUS!

 

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