John
began on Wed., Aug 8, 2017 at 8 PM
Well Dana, it’s been over a year now
that we’ve been writing the blog. Our introductory post focused on the letters,
and then emails we had been writing to each other since Bible school. http://foxholecowboysblog.blogspot.com/2016/07/introduction-1.html I know we
didn’t have any time frame in mind that this would go, but it’s hard to believe
it has been over a year.
Speaking of letters....I’ve been
carrying a letter in my Bible since November 2013. Ashley Rollinson, Director
of the Christian ballet troupe, Light of the World, Ballet School and Company http://www.lightoftheworldballet.com/ sent it to me
back then. We had seen her company minister in our church. (It was the first
time I had seen dancing in a church, but it really ministered to us and the
congregation.) One of the dances they performed was called Whisperers. Through
ballet they showed how Satan can come and whisper to Christians, trying to get
them to not listen to God or to even turn away in despair, but how God helps to
defeat Satan. We were so impressed that we sent them a sizable donation.
Her thank you letter was hand
written. (When was the last time you received one or wrote one—emails not included?)
It so ministered to me then, I kept it and tucked it in my Bible. Through the
years, I have pulled it out time and again to reread it and be encouraged
afresh. I’d like to share it with you.
Mr. & Mrs. Calsin
We are overwhelmed by your generous hearts and encouraging
words. Thank you for sowing into LWB (Light of the World). What faith you have!
We greatly appreciate you sharing your story & prayer
needs. While praying for you Psalm 112
came to heart. There’s a great reward for your labors. I am praying for
breakthrough & promotion. Also, may this coming together of family be
richly graced with God’s favor & peace. (I mentioned how all of Carol’s
family was coming to the Shore for Thanksgiving week, and some needs associated
with that.)
Thank you, thank you for your obedience! Blesswings of charity for what
rests ahead & great refreshment & encouragement be upon you!!
In
the Light of Jesus-
Ashley
Rollinson & LWB
(Then
she inserted a copy of Psalm 112 in entirety)
Psalm 112 NLT
1 Praise the Lord!
How joyful are those who fear the Lord
and delight in obeying his commands.
2 Their children will be successful everywhere;
an entire generation of godly people will be blessed.
3 They themselves will be wealthy,
and their good deeds will last forever.
4 Light shines in the darkness for the godly.
They are generous, compassionate, and righteous.
5 Good comes to those who lend money generously
and conduct their business fairly.
6 Such people will not be overcome by evil.
Those who are righteous will be long remembered.
7 They do not fear bad news;
they confidently trust the Lord to care for them.
8 They are confident and fearless
and can face their foes triumphantly.
9 They share freely and give generously to those in need.
Their good deeds will be remembered forever.
They will have influence and honor.
10 The wicked will see this and be infuriated.
They will grind their teeth in anger;
they will slink away, their hopes thwarted
and delight in obeying his commands.
2 Their children will be successful everywhere;
an entire generation of godly people will be blessed.
3 They themselves will be wealthy,
and their good deeds will last forever.
4 Light shines in the darkness for the godly.
They are generous, compassionate, and righteous.
5 Good comes to those who lend money generously
and conduct their business fairly.
6 Such people will not be overcome by evil.
Those who are righteous will be long remembered.
7 They do not fear bad news;
they confidently trust the Lord to care for them.
8 They are confident and fearless
and can face their foes triumphantly.
9 They share freely and give generously to those in need.
Their good deeds will be remembered forever.
They will have influence and honor.
10 The wicked will see this and be infuriated.
They will grind their teeth in anger;
they will slink away, their hopes thwarted
While
that Psalm was a word in season (A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold
in a setting of silver. Pro 25:11 RSV) because it has also been appropriate
to a number of things that have continued since 2013, it still ministers to me
when I pull out Ashley’s card to remind myself of God’s care, concern, and
provision over the years.
And
speaking of years.... If you look at their web site, each year for the past ten
years this ballet company has travelled worldwide to the following countries,
many more than once: Peru, Burma, Israel, India, Kazakhstan, Sri Lanka,
Philippines, China. (Me, I’ve been to New Jersey, Chicago and Wisconsin.) When
I look at their itinerary and see the all
the foreign lands they have travelled to in order to minister the Gospel
through ballet and dance, I shake my head in wonder at what God will use in the
least likely of places (Burma. Other than this ballet company I don’t know
anyone who has been to Burma.) to reach this lost and dying world.
Well,
you have probably started the harvest by now so I hope you have some time to
squeeze in a reply. Let me know if there are any specifics Carol and I can pray
for as you get deeper into the harvest season. I know modern wineries don’t do
it this way, but how many times have you been asked if grapes are processed the
way Lucy (of “I Love Lucy” fame)
did it way back when?
Your foxhole friend
John
++++++++++++++++
Dana replied Fri, Aug 11, 2017 at 11:22
AM
Hey John,
So, we’ve been at it a year already?
And, no death threats, angry mobs surrounding our houses, or letter
bombs to boot. God is good!
Your recollection of the encouraging letter sparked a memory of when I
got married right out of Bible College.
Brother Grazier sent us a check for $50.00 as a wedding present. In the card he wrote, “$49.99 is for your
wife. You can have all the rest.”
To have a relationship with Brother Grazier, one had to have an
appreciation for his style of humor…which I most certainly did. For him to joke with someone, went beyond the
mere humor of the message; it showed the depth of one’s relationship with
him. Though I was only allocated $0.01,
it was of great encouragement, because it said that this man, for whom I had
the most profound respect as a Biblical educator, and whose walk with God I
wanted to emulate, could also be considered a true friend. I miss him all the time, and so many times in
my walk with God, I hear classic “Grazier-isms” in my head.
Letters
have also often played a crucial part of my own life. Many times an encouraging
word from afar has been just the thing to get me over the hump of a perilous or
disheartening time. One never knows how much something that was written and
sent to another might be just the thing needed to get them through a rough patch
of life. Something written and sent (via
mail or e-mail) says to the recipient that they were thought about, and that
time and energy was spent on them. So
many people feel so all alone and so alienated from just about everything, and
a kind word sent their way is often worth its weight in gold.
And, while I’m not a huge fan of so much in our society and personal
lives becoming “virtual,” I have to admit that the technology has provided
almost instant and universal access to those about whom we care. I haven’t figured out yet how to enjoy a
virtual cup of coffee, but I do recognize that said technology has afforded us
a means to keep up our own relationship, though years and miles have separated
us, and for that I am grateful. This
blog would be a lot more labor intensive if we had to do it all on paper and
mail our changes back and forth.
Distribution would be limited to printing copies and stapling them to
telephone poles.
Speaking of which, with the explosive advent of cellular telephones, I
wonder how long it will be before telephone poles go the way of the horse and
buggy. However I do not wonder about it
too much, as it only serves to remind me that one day, I too, will go the way
of the horse and buggy. I remember the
nihilistic tattoos somewhat more common in an earlier time, which were
supposed, I suppose, to be an indication of one’s sense of self-menace that
read, “Born To Die.” If you had that on
your arm or across your chest, it announced to the meek and mild of the world
just how bad or tough you considered yourself.
These days I’m considering getting a tattoo which reads, “Born To Be An
Old Fogey,” as it is a little more accurate.
When I read the Psalm (112) sent to you by Ashley Rollinson, I was
curious as to the translation of the Bible that was used. The NLT or New Living Translation was
something of which I was heretofore unaware, so I checked it out. Here’s what the Bible Gateway website says
about it, and I quote:
“The goal of any Bible translation is to
convey the meaning of the ancient Hebrew and Greek texts as accurately
as possible to the modern reader. The New Living Translation is based on the
most recent scholarship in the theory of translation. The challenge for the
translators was to create a text that would make the same impact in the
life of modern readers that the original text had for the original readers. In
the New Living Translation, this is accomplished by translating entire
thoughts (rather than just words) into natural, everyday English. The end
result is a translation that is easy to read and understand and that accurately
communicates the meaning of the original text.” Bible Gateway https://www.biblegateway.com/
The sentence that really caught my eye was:
“The challenge for the translators
was to create a text that would make the same impact in the life of
modern readers that the original text had for the original readers.”
A
couple of blogs ago, we were talking about reading the Bible in the context of
the original recipients, as opposed to reading it through the colored lenses of
modern schools of thought or theological systems. I intend to give this new
translation a look and see if the description Bible Gateway gives it is
accurate. If so, that is a huge step in
the right direction in my way of thinking.
There were immediate and important reasons and occasions and purposes
for God inspiring the writers of Scripture to write what they wrote, and when
and to whom they wrote it. Those
occasions and purposes surrounded very real events, in very real places
concerning very real people…very real people who thought light years
differently than the way we think today.
I couldn’t see it being a bad thing to read and understand the
Scriptures from their point of view at the time they first encountered it. There is so much we miss by reading and
trying to understand the Bible through 21 century conventions only.
That’s in no way implying that the Bible is only some ancient document
that doesn’t have just as much relevance today as it had then. It’s God’s Word; God’s living Word, that just
as surely speaks to us in the modern world as it did our spiritual forefathers
in the ancient world.
To
that point, I previously mentioned in one of our blogs that often Biblical
prophecy has more than one fulfillment.
There was often an immediate, or very soon to be fulfillment, and
another reserved for a more future time. Case in point Jesus’ “Olivet
Discourse” recorded in Matthew 24, Luke 21, and Mark 13. Jesus prophesies the destruction of the
temple in Jerusalem in 70 AD, which would be accomplished in many of the
disciples’ lifetimes (immediate) and also of His coming at the end of the age
(later fulfillment.) The Bible works
like that.
So
I’m cautiously optimistic regarding this new translation, but do intend to
check it out. I really like the English
Standard Version, and I still love the King James Version as well. It is helpful, I find, when studying a
passage, to read it in several different translations. That can often serve to bring clarity to a
verse or passage that when first read, might seem obscure or difficult to
comprehend. If I find this new translation helpful, perhaps down the road we
can discuss it.
Until then, I remain your friend and brother,
Dana
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