September 5, 2019
Dear friends,
Have you seen this saying? “I can only please one person a day… Today is not your day and tomorrow isn’t looking good either.” I saw this near the front desk in the waiting room of a dermatologist yesterday. According to the Internet, this quote is from N.J. Nielsen, who also wrote: “It’s not about finding shelter from the storm, it’s about learning to dance in the rain.” That is interesting because when I picked up my father to drive him to his appointment yesterday, it was raining more intensely than usual. Dad gave me a golf umbrella that he had won and we scurried to the car. After waiting more than forty minutes to see the doctor, my father was glad to hear his name called. After his visit, the clouds rolled away, letting the sun light up the busy streets of Montreal.
While I was sitting in the waiting room, several people came in early for their appointments and were asked to have a seat and come back to the counter fifteen minutes before their scheduled time. The receptionist was kind enough to tell them that the doctor was 45 minutes behind schedule. I thought of saying “Do you know why people are called patients? It’s because you need to have patience to see a doctor!” but I didn’t.
On Tuesday night, while watching the final episode of a six-part video series entitled “The Case for a Creator” I learned that James Watson and Francis Crick discovered the double helix, the twisted-ladder structure of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), in 1953. To many people, that might seem like a long time ago, but to those of my generation, it was just before television sets were made in colour. Many discoveries have been made since then, and although I am not a scientist, I am certain that mankind will never come close to knowing what God does.
One of the books in our office is entitled “Six Days – The Age of the Earth and the Decline of the Church.” It might seem strange that the age of the Earth is paired in the title with the state of the church. Author Ken Ham wrote in 2013: “The Church is reaching a crisis point. Really, the Church has already reached it – and we are witnessing the tragic results of compromise on the authority of God’s Word. More and more pastors, church leaders, and Bible scholars are choosing either not to take a stand on Genesis or to teach some form of evolution and/or millions of years in their churches, Sunday Schools, or college courses. Many of them will unfairly characterize biblical creationists as people who deny the value of what they term as ‘science.’ Others try to convince those who sit under their teachings that Genesis is symbolic or somehow millions of years can be fit in, or that God really did use evolution to create the universe.” If you have questions about the Bible and Creation, I recommend that you read this book.
Scripture for the weekend: “But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!” 2 Timothy 3:1-5 (NKJV)
Thought for the weekend: “Now, one thing that is beyond any reasonable doubt is that Jesus believed the Bible. When it comes to the Old Testament, the point is very straightforward; over and over in his teaching, Jesus authenticated and endorsed it as the Word of God. And as for the New Testament, even though it was written years after his days on earth, it too rests ultimately on Jesus’ own authority, and the early Christians knew it.” – from “Why Trust the Bible?” by Greg Gilbert
By His grace,
Steve