Author: ComeFullCircleblog

HOPE

by ComeFullCircleblog, posted in Uncategorized

HOPE

Hope this very short, strange word that is in everybody’s vocabulary .This well known yet almost elusive word that is easily recognizable but so hard to put into practice, to implement in one’s life consistently, especially when it seems to be hiding or nowhere in sight.

Often when faced with  life’s many challenges and  discouragement  you may be told ,to “keep hope alive ”  or “don’t lose hope ,the situation is bound to improve” “ don’t’ give up hope ,let’s remain hopeful” ..even when the stark realities are starting you in the face .How do you hold on when hope cannot be grasped and slowly fades away as you watch?

So what really is it? and where do you find it, this hope? It seems to be hiding from most, so who hid it? why was it hidden? where can you go to get some, and once it’s found, where do you keep it so that it doesn’t become elusive and start this whole charade again?

Google says it is a feeling of expectation and desire for a particular thing to happen.

Also stumbled upon  a certain specialist in positive psychology known as Snyder  who even created a Hope Theory

He postulated  that for hopeful thinking to exist there must be a  goal , pathway thoughts ,agency thoughts and barriers.
Goal – being the wish or desire the thing one hopes for, the pathway thoughts are the various routes to take to achieve the goal, agency thoughts refer to the motivation to undertake the routes to achieve goal or the ability to instigate change and achieve the set goals. The barriers of course are self-explanatory , these hinder one from achieving the goal and it’s the point at which most would give up if they see no light at the end of the tunnel.

All these are factual ,however I feel they may be incomplete.

We all have had a desire for  one thing or the other and hoped to achieve it .Our thinking or beliefs  have also had a  major role to play in the process ,but the thinking that eventually carries the day is that which is anchored on something real, a solid belief , and a solid faith.

True hope is a strong and confident expectation ,and hope is intricately intertwined with faith. One cannot hope for something unless they have some faith.

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see ,according to the Holy Bible  in Hebrews 11.In case you may be wondering the Holy Bible is a collection of books written by men ages ago ,but they were inspired by the Living God. So  everything in it is accurate.

There is also a trust worthy saying that deserves full acceptance…that we have put our hope in the Living God who is the savior of all men and especially of those who believe in him.

The  hope theory seems  ok ,until you get to the access thoughts part. What does one anchor their access thoughts on? You need an audaciously true and authentic fact to be your base ,a fact so real that others know it to be true and can testify of it , a fact so real that it’s a solid foundation to build your hope on. A solid rock to stand upon. For who is God, besides the LORD? And who is a rock, besides our God? 2 Samuel 22: 32 The Holy Bible still urges us to Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal. He is the ultimate truth ,he is the sure foundation on which one can build their very life upon ,and  put their hopes  upon  and cast their  fears to.

The Bible says  with  regard to the certainty of God’s promise “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure” Hebrews 6:19

Let us then hold on unswervingly to the hope we profess for HE who promised is faithful.

 

 

 

 

All about Easter

by ComeFullCircleblog, posted in Inspiration

Easter Eggs come in all manner of vibrant colors during this time of year and at times laced in chocolate and other yummy stuff. Easter bunnies also seem to surface from hiding typically bringing the Easter eggs with them. I’m not sure where the bunny gets the eggs from, he possibly could not have laid any of them ; that that’s for sure! I want to burst your bubble if your thought Easter is all about them, because it is not. Neither is it about mega shopping offers, or get away holidays to exotic destinations. I’m not saying that shopping or holidaying is a crime; don’t get me wrong .They just aren’t the center of what Easter is.

Easter is a time to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. It also coincides with the Jewish Passover .Why is this so significant? One may ask.  Simply put the Passover was symbolic of what Jesus would accomplish through his death and resurrection. To get this into perspective let’s go back in time to when the Passover was instituted ,then forward it by a couple of thousand years  to the time of Jesus’s death and resurrection then fast forward it again to the present .

During Passover the Lord instructed the Jews to sacrifice a lamb, a 3 year old male lamb, without blemish .Each family would do so on the fourteenth day at twilight. The lambs blood would be then smeared on the sides and the top of the door frames of the houses where they ate the lamb (after it was roasted of course) This would be a sign to the Lord as he went through the land where they were in captivity, any house that had the lamb’s blood the Lord would pass over it and they would be spared ,no destructive plague would befall them .The converse would be true for those that hadn’t smeared lambs blood on their door frames. The blood applied on their homes would spare them and ensure that they lived on. The lamb sacrificed here was the Passover lamb.

Now, let’s jump back into our time travel machine and go to the time of Jesus’s crucifixion.

Crucifixion was a historical method for capital punishment in which the victim would be impaled to a wooden beam ,sometimes in the shape of a cross ,and left there to die. This method was one of the Roman’s favorite as it caused the victim such pain and humiliation, and sent a clear warning to all observers that you did not want to be in the Roman’s bad books.

So how come Jesus was crucified? He wasn’t a roman .He should have been tried and punished under Jewish custom. But this wasn’t the case ,It all happened  as it did ,so that all that was written concerning him would come true.

“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert ,So the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believed may  have eternal life” John 3:14 -15

“But I when  I am lifted up from the earth ,will draw all men to myself” John 12:32

After he was tried by the Jewish leaders ,they took him to Pontius Pilate ,who found no basis for a charge against him. Pilate then took him out to the people ,but they demanded him to be crucified. “Crucify  your King ? “He asked them  They responded that they had no king but Caesar. It was as if they wanted him punished for treason , for claiming to be king ,yet they had Caesar for a king.    Jesus was indeed King and still is King ,but of another kingdom.

He was sentenced to death by the Romans. They had him flogged, severally, with a whip that tore off Jesus’ flesh with every single whip. This whip was made of leather and knotted with a number of small pieces of metal or sharp bones. Already weakened by this, he was made to carry his large wooden cross uphill to where he would be crucified .They nailed him to the cross and left to hang there for hours.

In the case of Jesus, he was not a victim, he had no sin in him, and he did nothing deserving punishment.  He did not attempt to fight back or save his own life. He could have called unto his Father who could have sent 12 legions of angels to help him (That’s  like an entire platoon or battleship of reinforcements!)  but he did not. He knew he was going to die this way, For this very reason he came to the earth .

He knew that his blood had to be shed ,and enough blood to cover all people on earth , those living back in the day and  those living now approx. 7 billion and even for those in  the future. He knew that for all of humanity  to be ransomed ,a few drops of blood wouldn’t do , it had to be all his blood ,every drop of it. He hang on the cross ,feeling his blood draining from his body for 3 hours  and just before he gave up his spirit, he proclaimed  “ It is finished”  .The work he was sent to do on earth was done ,he shed his blood so that through it we may be forgiven our sins and have eternal life . “…This is eternal life, that they May know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” John 17: 3

It had to be HIS blood to be shed because HE was holy from birth ,born of a virgin by the power of the Holy Spirit, lived without sin in this  vile world ,and was in constant communication with God, he was and still is perfection.

All this happened during the Passover feast  . This is the reason  Jesus is referred to  as the lamb of God ,who takes away the sin of the world. After his death ,the people no longer needed to sacrifice a lamb and smear its blood .Jesus IS  the Lamb of God ,without blemish , without sin ,Pure and  Holy .HIS blood is now what we need to apply symbolically .By declaring that  one’s loved ones and homes are covered by the blood of Jesus .

He was later laid in a tomb , and its entrance sealed but Lo and behold , the earth quaked and the stone was rolled away and he rose from the dead on the third day ,Easter Sunday.  Jesus had told his disciples  before his crucifixion that he had the power to lay down his life and take it up again.

“ The reason my Father loves me is that I  lay down my life – only  to  take it up again. No one takes it from me , but I lay it down on my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.” John 10:18

Jesus suffered willingly .He was not a victim of circumstance as some have portrayed him to be.

Most of us enjoy watching movies ,for me I have a weakness for action.  Don’t we love it when the hero  or heroine in the movie takes a bullet for another, jumps on a grenade to save a loved one ? Or even the outlandish ones of carrying a huge missile that was directed on earth and the hero manages single handedly to  propel it to outer space and into a huge black hole, risking his very life to save all of humanity!  And we all adore the hero saying “oh so brave!” some even shedding a tear “how self-less, he must really love the country ”, and the hero is honored as the movie ends  and  he sometimes gets called back into active service. We then rush for the premiere tickets and tweet about how awesome the hero was and  the  film directors lauded for their inspiring work…..

Wait a minute ; Jesus is the real Hero here !Why don’t we react to him  the same way ? He alone died selflessly  and had to have his blood drained ,poured out,  for all of us  so that we may live. So that anyone, anyone   from any part of the world ,any race  ,no matter what you did  or didn’t do would have eternal life just by simply believing in him and his word.

How come we don’t live our lives adoring him  and being thankful for saving us ,yet we are the sinners ,we are the ones deserving the punishment ,but he took it on our behalf ,so that we can be free .

He Died for you, are you willing to live for him?stencil.default

The Cross

by ComeFullCircleblog, posted in Inspiration, Uncategorized

There is a lot that has been said about the cross  and along with it  many perceptions about what it is and not, what it should be and shouldn’t .

Most of us have used it as a fashion statement  or as an ornament that denote various groups  and lifestyles .Some outfits just don’t seem complete without hanging a shiny  cross on the neck , either  huge and chunky or the  less  obvious tiny ones  and in some cases  worn as ear rings ,anklets, you name it.

For some  it’s just another symbol with ancient origins of past civilizations  while to others a sign of condemnation  ,judgment ,rebuke.

In ancient times it was used as a form of capital punishment ,where the offender would be whipped and then finally impaled to  a stake or cross and left there to either bleed to death or die of asphyxiation. It was the most  excruciating pain  one would have to bear for their wrongdoing also aimed to shame the victim.

Yet there was one who willingly took this  shame ,this agony  and death on  your behalf ,on my behalf. Now that’s real Love .  I no longer believe anybody who tells me they would cross the oceans for me let alone catch a grenade for me!

The amazing thing is , He  had not committed any  crime as heinous as the death he endured. He was without sin , holy, pure, righteous. A beautiful exchange happened  in his death. All our wrongdoings ,wrong think-ings and sin that we ever did and will ever do were impaled on that cross with him ,his blood was shed so that it can purify us all. Records show that he died for only 3 days and resurrected  and  sits in heaven with the LORD Almighty. And in exchange for his death, we received his righteousness  and eternal life  . For those who simply believed in him  ,they got eternal life ( once you die and are buried  on this earth ,you will still live on  with him in his dwelling!)

Instead of shame and rebuke that we so rightly deserve after messing up , getting caught in the wrong side of the law ,almost ruining our lives ,wrecking our relationships and even trying to take away our very own  lives ,he offers grace and mercy. Don’t get me wrong ,there is always consequence for our actions but as long as you are with  him ,he will give you grace  and mercy even when you  know that you don’t deserve it.

You may have heard of the one I’m referring to  but if not ,his name is Jesus. So today when I look at the cross ,it reminds me of his undying love  for me that he willingly bit the bullet for me and you! If that isn’t  love then tell me what is.

By believing in him ,he forgives you your sins even when it’s hard to forgive yourself ,and looks at you just  as if you’d done nothing wrong. There will be no shame, no condemnation ,as many of us have been told to  believe.

The cross reminds me that I have been made whole again ,just by believing that he died in my place  so that I can live  , so one becomes a new person ,with a new mind .He lets you start fresh ,aren’t we all looking for a fresh start ? A clean break of some sort? Well if you are then jump on it.

In him  (if you hang out with him n trust him) there is eternal life even though you die and leave this world , peace even when you are in a storm, grace even when you know you don’t deserve it ,mercy when what you should be getting is a whopping ,hope in even in the disparaging moments and best of all eternal love even when you feel unlovable.