I saw His face

Hey Guys,

Well, If can't lie, it's been a hard week. My body has sort of turned on me in every aspect of the game. The people that have been through this with me -with my health - know that I will be the first one to say "hey 2nd chances!" "3rd times a charm!" But what's the rhyme for 4 times around? No I'm not giving up. I can't do that when God has given me such joy in the circumstances and living I have. But the seizures are coming back faster than um.... I ever expected I guess. The other night I almost landed myself in the ER, and the device they put me on (VNS) that shocks me every 5 minutes for 30 seconds is still too weak. Oh well, I guess I'm doing this so that I won't turn on the doctors in Seattle. They adore me there because I'm always giving them new stuff to look at, my case is bigger than the size of TX. This, my Friends, is where my life as a 2 faced Christian would never have pulled off. Because God's joy can never be copied. And it's the only way I'm surviving right now.

Luke 17:11-16 Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!" When he saw them, he said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan.

"UNCLEAN! UNCLEAN! UNCLEAN!" or "DON'T TOUCH ME, I'M SINFUL! DON'T TOUCH ME I'M SINFUL! DON'T TOUCH ME, I'M SINFUL!" How might you like walking the streets of where ever you call home screaming this? I live in a small- very small - town. If anyone sees you, everyone sees you. I once joked with my friend that if you held hands with the wrong boy while on a walk, it would be in the newspaper the next morning. That's an exaggeration, but you get the point. There's no decency, there's no hope for the person that did something wrong 10 years ago.

Is leprosy a disease caused by sin? It may be. Kings have been struck down with it for not repenting... and leprosy isn't just "the nuisance" that means it's not pleasant to look in the mirror because you're not the hunk you used to be. You lose limbs, you lose a nose, you lose... well...
But even still, leprosy can just be caused by dumb bacteria. (If I tried to spell it out I'll get a doctor wiz on here that'll spill my guts for not looking it up...) So it's a little of both.

So when these men that were infected with the disease saw Jesus, they had every right to want to be healed. Who would want to stay that way? Jesus does miracles... it just adds up. So what do they do, the only thing they can do... call from a distance. If they walk right up to him, they break the law. If He walks right up to THEM it's his own fault and heck, it means the religious leaders get a break. (or not)

There were ten of them. Jesus sent them to the Priests because that's the only way a person with leprosy in those days could start living again. "See see! I have nothing wrong with me." If the priests approve, it must not be a dream. But you don't understand do you. They went back to the priests and only 9 showed up. Where was the 10th one?

Giving thanks and adoration to the One that deserved it. This man's "stamp of approval" could wait a little longer. This Jesus, this Messiah, was the only one that mattered. This was what Joy felt like. Not so much being healed, but giving thanks. That was that person's gold that day, was seeing Heaven open up to him.

So my challenge to you, and to me... is when we are healed where are we going? No, it doesn't have to be leprosy. Or cancer, or Multiple Sclerosis, or any of "the big ones." Even the emotional things that we are healed from, that we are finally freed from, who do we dance in front of? The people that can be in awe of what "we" have done... or in front of the only One that Deserves it.

Don't be one of the nine that ran away~Cass

God and the Cracks of life

Hey Guys,

What a nutty (yes, I said nutty... ) couple'a weeks. I have no clue what I'm still doing here at the moment. Or, at least that would be my answer if I forgot who I belonged to. But the thing is, through every dumb circumstance, God reigns. I'm here because He's not finished. Yes, I know, I'm preaching 2 paragraphs early. But the thing is, it's been a crappy (oops) 3 weeks and so has my attitude. And it's been interesting watching God snap me around. Even the teacher needs a time of revival. Even the teacher forgets who is God and who is the clay. But what a crazy event to remind me of all these things. I wouldn't trade them for the world. Because, in the midst of landing me right back in the midst of square one and the doctor's questionaire, I have been reminded, once again, just how awesome the one true God is. Amen?

Isaiah 29:11 You turn things upside down, as if the potter were thought to be like the clay! Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, "He did not make me"? Can the pot say of the potter, "He knows nothing"?

Isaiah 45:9 "Woe to him who quarrels with his Maker, to him who is but a potsherd among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, 'What are you making?' Does your work say, 'He has no hands'?

Basically, I'm ashamed to say, these 2 passages are reminding us that we sometimes "stupify" God. "God! You know nothing!" (Hence the first passage.) "I'm supposed to be beautiful, I'm supposed to be like an NFL footlball player, cook, draw people in in 5 seconds flat... You don't understand what you're making God. Here let me take over!"

But as soon as we take over, who's more stupified, you, or the Maker? Because we are trying to beautify ourselves as the clay from the clay wheel, so we don't see the crack here that says "I'm still prideful" (oh really? You must be mistaken) Or, "Compassion never shows... unless it's good for me." (That ain't true, I kissed a baby once, to make my wife happy.) But God sees it and if He has to, he takes every part of us and works it out of us on the Potter's wheel. And man a live does it hurt. But the thing is, what comes out is better than what we could ever present before the King on Judgement Day. Because the Maker sees us from all sides. We? We only see ourselves from what we think.

And, lets face it honey dears. Everything we see is good. Even if, really, it's bad. Because we don't want to go before God and say "My Maker, you made something beautiful, but I messed up. You made something that would beautify those around me but I cracked your pottery by adding pride, anger, jealousy..... Father, can you fix me? Will you fix me?"

If you are a weathered Christian, a weathered "claypot" of God's that has been used many times, you know that that prayer may come out with humility and seem easy. And really? That's the easiest step of all. But it's the start of the hardest journey. Because the Maker doesn't put the bandaid on your crack and say "well the world won't notice, peace be to you, and sin no more, it'll go away." He puts you back on the potter's wheels and starts all over again if he has to. Teaching you the gift of humility, compassion, love, joy, peace, patience. But the thing is, he first has to scrap of everything

you and I have put there. And that can hurt.
But did you notice something in those verses? Although it is a warning and although at times you can read things like that and just feel completely distressed by what God is handing you... really it's what's not in those verses. He didn't say "I will not love you." He did not say "do this three times over and that's it, begone out of my sight." He still loves us, but there will come the hardships of not letting him do the work. It's his love that gets us through the biggest cracks of life. And don't you ever forget it.

Talk to you later
Cass

What powers of Hell, what Scheme of Man

Hey There

So for everyone that must know... I'm finally living in Alaska again! I was getting sick and tired of getting the reports (especially from Indiana... sorry guys) that it was negative something and snowing... and here I was in 32 degree weather and melting all my snow. God finally blessed us with about 8 inches a couple days ago. YES! Can you tell I absolutely love living in Igloo land? What in the world am I gonna do when I move?!
Oh, I had a couple people getting antsy to know what's going on in May... and the only reason I didn't address it head on was I thought I'd already brought it up for prayer, or for everyone to argue about. I'll be in Indiana from May to the end of August living with some friends of mine. I'd love to give details, but, I've learned that that's a little TOO complicated!

Galatians 5:2-4 Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. 3Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. 4You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.

Can I hear a big resounding, "OUCH!" Women? We're not excluded from this. Sorry. Circumcision these days can come in a whole different way.
Have you ever turned your back on God, but not noticed it? Hine's sight is always 20/20. So, sorry about this, but we're taking a trip. We find something in the Old testemant that we think we need to follow that makes us forget the new covenant we have with God. We make that rule that is now our idol the only thing we live for. It is now our god. And the Real God? Oh He's in there, just on the bottom shelf.
Paul is actually talking about the action of cutting the body in this passage. But when I was reading through the whole chapter I found myself weeping at the fact that I had done the same thing in so many, many ways. At times in the past I had forgotten about grace and made God sit back and watch as I go through the rituals to try and earn his love. And that's just not possible.
Reading your Bible
Going to Church
Giving to the Poor
.....
All these things are fantastic, and I love them dearly. But if you let yourself forget God because it CAN be just a ritual at night before you go to bed ("now I lay me down to sleep... okay I said my prayer!") Going to church because, well just 'cause. Giving to the poor because you want the blessing, not because you want to grow closer to the Creator and his love mercy and grace. The list goes on. Everything can be turned into that, and I don't mean to split hairs like this. But where have we forgotten grace, and where have we brought in our own salvation?
It happens. I've been there. If you don't know everything about me, you'd be surprised to know just how many 2 faced ideas and rituals I made up before I found grace. These verses say that if we do these things, Christ will be of NO (ABSOLUTELY NO) Value to us. The King of the Heavens will slip away because we've made up our own ordeal. Which sounds okay, right?
But the thing is, we're human. What thing, made by a human has ever held when faced by the fires of hell and the schemes of Satan? None. And so, my friends, the grace of Christ is the only thing we can grasp on to. The only thing. He covers every ritual we've tried, and will try, and gives us forgiveness and a future instead. I can't imagine anything other than that.
See ya around
Cass