Overcoming Adversity - After record floods with devastating consequences

A mural composed of 216 separate paintings

How does a town overcome adversity when hit by a flood, a hurricane, a tornado or earthquake?

For those not living in Canada, Cochrane is NW of Calgary, Alberta and east of Banff, in the foothills of the Rockies.

One year ago, record rainfall rapidly melted snow packs high up on mountain peaks. The result was devastating: torrents of water destroyed houses, bridges and highways.

In Calgary and cities further south, flooding resulting in billions of dollars of damage.

This mural was unveiled recently at the Cochrane Ranch House. Artists came together to declare that townspeople would help one another rebuild their beautiful city in the mountains. Each tile is one foot square, is its own individual picture and each is by a different artist. All of them together form this huge mural. You can click on each of the tiles to see them in detail.
Check out, especially, the horse's eye. Click on any square that makes up the mural to see what the square really is.

Greek Gods, myths and religion - Part 2 - 100 photos

The Statute of Athena - Notice the size of the man beside it.

When Paul arrived in the Hellenistic world, he faced a multitude of gods and temples. Greek mythology as it was taught across the Roman world, had a god, or goddess, or myth to explain everything, include human abilities and natural events, such as storms and thunder.

How did the message of Christ Jesus penetrate this ancient world view?

How die the apostles and early Christians overcome the tremendous bias against the statement "There is only One God"?

The photo of Athena is from the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada.

Click for 100 pictures in a photo essay

Greek Culture and Values - Part 1 - 100 photos

Sailing ships took Paul to Greece

Greek values and culture aren't "everyone's cup of tea", but a quick examination shows how utterly Greek life had implanted itself in the hearts and minds of people.

How was it that the message of a crucified carpenter, who was "the son of God" - as Paul clearly taught, could break into
that all-pervasive world view?

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My person of the year is ... Billy Graham

Great commentary about Billy Graham.

Read here

A Great Pentecost, today! Wednesday, June 4 (!)

A Menorah, in Hebrew, spells the word, Yeshua (English - Jesus)

Today WAS Pentecost - Wednesday, June 4.  (!) the 50th day since Passover - for Jewish people who keep the traditions found in the Pentateuch, the Torah. It is a great day of joy. For 50 days they have been counting the "omer", the sheaf of bounty, since the "First-fruits".

This was new to me. I've been attending one of the Messianic Synagogues in Toronto and have been greatly blessed as I come to appreciate many additional levels of spiritual understanding that Messianic Jewish believers glean from the Scriptures, in the Old as well as the New Covenant.

For Messianic Jews, the Full Moon in their first month of the year governs the day of Passover, which doesn't obey the Julian of Gregorian Calendars (!)  Thus, they are not bound by the tradition that Passover always has to fall on a Friday, and the resurrection of Yeshua Messiah always falls on the Sunday.

Consequently, Messianic Jews received a double blessing today! In Jewish thought, Pentecost, of Shavuot, commemorates the day when the revelation of the Almighty, the Torah, came down to Moses on Mount Sinai. For them, the significance of this day is "the giving of the Law, which formed a diverse, ragtag tribe of people into a living community, the Jewish people."

Messianic Jewish believers and Christians find another, related, meaning, in which the importance of the day is "A second blessing, the giving of the Holy Spirit, which formed a diverse, ragtag people from around the world into a living community, into the living body of Yeshua Messiah!"

If you are reading this today, Wednesday, rejoice in the double blessing! If you read it on any other day of the week, rejoice! Thank God for the growing numbers of godly men and women among Jews in Israel and spread around the world.

Who needs traffic lights when cars move like this in Addis Ababa?

There may be a science to traffic lights, but I'm not sure about it.

Not after watching this video.

In Addis Ababa, cars go every which way, get through traffic, never really stop, only slow down, and then move, whether to the left or right - which ever is more convenient.

Cathie and I survived that traffic. Not sure that we survive the traffic jams in "organized" Toronto, though.

This is amazing - and yes, Africa is working very well, thank you! Click here for the video

For those of us who love Africa, here are 30 quick visual tours

Ray and Jill Davis visit a village in South Sudan

Some great photos by an awesome communications team puts many parts of Africa in your hands within seconds.

30 Instant Trips to Africa

 

Will these 14 predictions for American Churches come true?

Thom Rainer has stuck his neck out - way out, and on the basis of his research, and that of others, is predicting several trends in American churches.

See how many of these you agree with and how many you disagree with. If you want the whole article, click here

1. Larger churches will acquire smaller ones as the cost of keeping small churches going meets the ceiling of giving in older congregations.
2. Denominational structures will become smaller as declining giving comes from shrinking churches.
3. Many new members will be transferring in from other churches, not coming from evangelism.
4. The trend will be towards more mega-churches.
5. Worship styles will become more, not less, unified.
6. High-expectation churches, where members are asked to make significant contributions to the work of the congregation, will become more numerous.
7.. It will become more difficult for churches to build and acquire land.
8. More large churches will function as mini-denominations, with multiple locations and their own missions programs and literature.
9. Worship centers will be smaller, as people seek greater intimacy in church life.
10. Small groups will become more significant.
11. Pastors will stay at their churches longer.
12. Local churches will increase their role in training ministers.
13. Church members will find new ways to take their faith to their community
14. Churches will have more communicators on their staffs.

Paul in Cenchrea and Nicoplis - 35 photos

This canal links the Aegean Sea with the city of Corinth

An amazing story emerges from a remote place...the port city of Cenchrea. Paul's visit to Nicopolis was also historic, another little known part of his travels.

Cenchrea is rarely visited, but it was important in the scriptures. Paul mentions Phoebe in Romans 16:1, the first person's name in that long list of "fellow servants". 

Phoebe was a remarkable woman, serving the Lord through hospitality in amazing ways.

Reading about Phoebe reminds me of some of our Turkish students and their trip through Greece. One memorable comment sticks in my mind: "I was brought up by my grandmother to hate the Greek people. Everything about them was despicable. However, we went to Greece on a tour, following the footsteps of Paul. In every place, for two weeks, we stayed with Christians. They washed our clothes, gave us meals, gave up their beds so we could sleep well and even provided tour guides in the historical locations like Philippi. I came back home completely rebuked. I had been taught to hate, but their hospitality taught me to love. I came back with love in my heart for the Greek people."

That, dear friends, is how early Christians overcame the "unstoppable opposition from the Greco-Roman world" in the First Century. Love, warm hospitality and kind gestures - this isn't a program, or something fake. Phoebe was that kind of person in Cenchrea.
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A blind/autistic boy and the Kingdom of God - What do you teach someone like this?

This may have been the kind of bush that Moses saw burning

This video shows what an autistic and blind boy can do.

It should give us hope for those in our neighborhoods who have difficulties, and encourage care givers, too. 

Remember Moses at the burning bush? (The photo shows a bush in the dessert where he may have walked.)

Moses exclaimed, "Lord, I'm a person with stumbling, mumbling lips. I can't speak to the Pharaoh! I can't fulfill to let your people go!" (i.e. "How can I possibly be successful?)

And what did the Lord Almighty say ? "Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight of makes him blind? Is it not I, the LORD! Now, go! I will help you speak and will teach you what to say."

A prayer: "God, let me remember Christopher singing at the head of a 40 voice choir the next time I have a chance to chat with a disadvantaged person."

Click here