Apples of Gold

A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.

Proverbs 25:11

 

 

 

This blog is a continuation of last week's blog, The Power of Words. I challenged my readers to see how many of the phrases that I listed had originated in the Bible.  Below, you can check your answers to see how well you did.

 

1. A sorry sight   (Shakespeare's MacBeth)

2. Apple of his eye   (Psalm 17:8)

3. To pine away   (Ezekiel 33:10)

4. A fool's paradise   (Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet)

5. Skin of his teeth   (Job 19:20)

6. All of a sudden   (Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew)

7. Blind leading the blind   (Luke 6:39)

8. As dead as a doornail   (Shakespeare's King Henry VI)

9. As pure as the driven snow   (combines two of Shakespeare's phrases from MacBeth and The Winter's Tale.

10. The eleventh hour   (Matthew 20:6)

11. Beside himself   (Mark 3:21)

12. His head on a plate   (Mark 6:28)

13. Dash to pieces   (appeared in Shakespeare's The Tempest in 1610 and the KJV in 1611)

14. A stone's throw   (Luke 22:41)

15. Eaten out of house and home   (Shakespeare's Henry IV)

16. Heart's content   (Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice)

17. Sharper than a serpent's tooth   (Shakespeare's King Lear)

18. Hold my tongue   (Esther 7:4)

19. Safe and sound   (Luke 15:27)

20. The crack of doom (Shakespeare's MacBeth)

 

There is a poetic beauty to the language of the King James Bible. It was a product of the Elizabethan era; a time when the English language reached its zenith. We see this, not only in the KJV Bible, but also in the writings of William Shakespeare- another product of this time period. The powerful influence of the Bible has impacted our language in an immeasurable way, however, the REAL power of the Word is its ability to change our lives.

 



Exercising My Faith

For we walk by faith, not by sight...

II Corinthians 5:7

A couple of years ago, my husband and I made a New Year's resolution to exercise regularly together. We wanted to make sure that we stayed healthy so we could enjoy watching our grandchildren grow up. I still remember that first day of exercise (using an exercise DVD that our daughter had loaned us), we put everything we had into it. Surprisingly, it wasn't as hard as I expected it to be. I went to bed that night feeling really good about myself.

I woke up the next day and could hardly get out of bed. I was sore in places where I didn't even know there were muscles. Every step, every breath, every movement was agony.  I wondered what I was thinking, to put myself through so much pain. I seriously considered just quitting. Surely nothing could be worth this much hardship.

But I didn't quit. For weeks I dreaded our exercise time.  I wondered if it would ever come easy to me. Two years later, we still exercise regularly.  Our health improved and we have greater stamina than I ever thought possible.  I can't say that I necessarily look forward to exercising, but it has become second nature to me- a part of who I am.

Faith is a lot like this. In many ways it is like one of the muscles in our body. The more that we exercise it, the stronger it gets. Conversely, a muscle that is seldom used becomes flabby and, eventually, will atrophy.

Exercising our faith is usually difficult, and sometimes downright painful. It is only when it becomes a regular part of our life that we can expect to reap the benefits.  While physical exercise profits little in comparison, exercising our faith has eternal benefits.  It gives us the spiritual stamina to survive every crisis that comes our way.

When you start any exercise program, it is best to start with small steps and work up to bigger things.  This week, start with the simple things that God is prompting you to do.  Go and share your faith with that lost neighbor or co-worker. Or maybe you need to agree to teach that Bible class at church that no one else wants.

It may be easier to be a spiritual couch potato, but you'll never truly exercise your faith until you get out of your comfort zone.  Only by living by faith will you see the full power of the risen savior, Jesus Christ.

The Power of Prayer

If you ask anything in my name, I will do it.

John 14:14

My birthday was this week and I can never celebrate a birthday without remembering the birthday that God used to remind me of the power of prayer.  My husband and I had been serving as missionaries in Indonesia for a couple of years.  Our teenage daughters were involved in a youth group called International Christian Youth, which was made up of high school students from a dozen different countries.

After one of the weekly Bible studies, my husband came home and told me that he had been asked to be the speaker for their annual retreat and wanted me to be one of the counselors.  That was no problem for me, until I found out that the retreat fell on my birthday.  As much as I enjoyed working with youth, I have to admit that I wasn't overjoyed at the idea of spending my birthday with a hundred noisy teens. I finally agreed, grudgingly, to go.

Arriving at the retreat site, we quickly discovered that the facilities were more rustic than we had expected- and that's saying a lot when you have been living in a third world country for a few years!  Our room consisted of a set of rickety bunk beds and was crawling (quite literally) with insects and lizards.  The bathroom contained a squatty potty (basically a hole in the floor over which you squatted) and a sink equipped with cold water only.  Since the temperatures hit close to 100 degrees and there was no air conditioning, it seemed that the cold water would come in handy. I'd like to say that I didn't grumble about the living conditions, but that wouldn't be the truth.  I had a terrible attitude about the whole thing.  Fortunately, God can use us; even despite ourselves.  Just look at Jonah!

Many of the youth had brought along lost friends from the international school or their neighborhoods.  Despite my bad attitude, it was hard to resist the atmosphere of love among those youth and the earnest desire to see their friends come to Christ.  The final night of the retreat, my husband led an appeal for the lost to come forth and receive Jesus as their Savior.  We were overjoyed to see twelve teens come down and accept Christ.

I had to admit that the ride home was not terribly pleasant for me.  The Lord was really dealing with me about my attitude about the retreat and I had to get my own heart right with God.  I couldn't help but wonder at the fact that He had so blessed the retreat, despite me and my hard heart. My daughter helped me to put it into perspective.  She was looking through our recent copy of the International Missionary Board's prayer calendar.

"Look, Mom," she said, pointing out my name in the booklet. "The churches back home were praying for you on your birthday."

That was a real light bulb moment for me.  It wasn't my husband's deep Bible studies (though he is certainly a gifted speaker) nor me and my bad attitude that had brought those twelve souls to salvation.  It was the power of prayer. And though God had taught me the lesson of prayer's power before that day, I can never celebrate a birthday without being reminded of how our Wonderful, Loving God allows us to partner with Him in His ministry through the power of prayer.