Where is Your Eternal Place?

March 26, 1931 – February 27, 2015

Thanks to social media, I found out Leonard Nimoy passed away today, as a result of Chronic Obstruction Pulmonary Disease.  He played my beloved Mr. Spock in the television and movies series, Star Trek.  His character knew the sacrifices that needed to be made for others.

I am not sure where Mr. Nimoy stood in relationship with God.  Did he have the opportunity to hear the Good News?  Did he know God?  At the time of death, did he think about eternity?  I hope he did, and that he made the choice to believe.

Rest in Peace, Mr. Nimoy (I hope).  

Life Lessons from a Starship Captain

I definitely have a favorite Star Trek Captain, Jean-Luc Picard.  I wrote about Picard in one of my earliest posts: Defeating Oppression.

I recently came upon this article of leadership lessons, and thought I would share.  The writer definitely captured the character traits I loved watching.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2012/03/13/five-leadership-lessons-from-jean-luc-picard/

No where in the series do we understand that Picard is a believer, but if you watched him, you would think we was.  His morality center was iron-clad.  He knew what was right and what was true, and he knew he must enforce those things, no matter the personal cost.

This is the morality standard I want to live by.  There is one God and one Truth.  There is right, and there is wrong.  Picard made mistakes he would regret, just like I do.  However, he did not live each day wavering his beliefs. I hope that I can do the same.  Let my decisions and my actions reflect my beliefs.

For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. They will reject the truth and chase after myths. (2 Timothy 4:3, 4 NLT)

Without the foundation of Truth, we waver in our moral decisions. Stay grounded in the Word.

Augmented Perception

Have you ever heard of "Google Glass?" This is a wearable computer that provides a way to access the environment with an augmented reality.  

Users wearing the glasses can say, "OK Glass, take a picture," and the glass will not only snap a photo of whatever you are looking at, but can also send it to your contacts.  It takes videos, sends text messages, offers turn-by-turn directions, and will bring up google articles of whatever you ask it to.  Check out the video sample.

I just absolutely loved the concept of yet another geeky device that reminds me of Geordi LaForge's visor (from Star Trek - The Next Generation for my non-geeky readers).  But then I started thinking about perceptions.  What if we believers could don a set of "Godly Glasses?"  What if we could have the augmented reality of having God's perception on the upper right corner of our daily vision?  It would be so helpful to have God's word helping us to see the world as He sees it.  Imagine looking at a person you have judged to be "just fine," but then having the "Godly Glass" alert you to what that person needs.  

The Bible tells us we have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit that does help us navigate the world, much like my fabled "Godly Glasses." Consider this verse: "And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness.  For example, we don't know what God wants us to pray for.  But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words." ~Romans 8:26 (NLT). 

We can get better at hearing the message of God when we train ourselves to listen.  Spending time in the Word and in prayer is the key to learning how to see the world through God's perspective.  We can train our minds to think on things of God.  When you find yourself dwelling on something negative, perhaps an unfortunate life event or even your current circumstances, dive into the Word.  Pray.  These are the key actions we can take to alter our perceptions and change our worldview.  Shy away from the things of the world that are triggers to bad thoughts.  

"Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God's right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth." ~Colossians 3:1-2 (NLT)

The Corruption of a Leader

Admiral Marcus

Ok, I know I have already posted about Star Trek's new movie, Into Darkness, but I wanted to reflect on the topic I had planned to discuss before I went to see the movie and became distracted by the overwhelming message of friendship bonds.  I was interested to see how the character that had risen up the ranks of Starfleet and the United Federation of Planets, Admiral Marcus, became so twisted in his thinking patterns and so off track of the original purpose of Starfleet.

Admiral Marcus was so consumed by his hatred for the Klingons that he created a hidden purpose within Starfleet, a supremely military purpose.  He used subversive means to get his hidden agenda across, so that no one was aware of what was happening.  He planned the regeneration of a historic super-villian, Khan, for his ability to craft a super military vessel.  He was going to sacrifice the Starfleet flagship explorer vessel Enterprise to start a war with the Klingons.

How did he get that way?  Does that really happen to good people, and good leaders?  Do we really lose our purpose and go down a dark path?

Yes.

Let's look at a biblical example.  King Saul was given God's blessing to become Israel's first leader.  However, he soon lost the blessing of God, due to disobedience.  God expected full obedience of his people, and was disappointed.  David became the chosen leader of God.  Saul became consumed by his jealousy of David, and then plotted to kill him.  He was blinded by his sins.  I do believe Saul was a good leader for Israel, since God had chosen him, but he went down a path into darkness.  He never recovered.

Christians, and even church leaders are not immune to darkness.  We are often targets of Satan's attacks.  Sometimes the attacks are in the form of things that we want (temptations).  Sometimes the attacks are in the form of hardships, illness, or pain.  If we allow these things to consume our thinking, we will wind up in the dark places of our being, and we risk losing our connection with God.  How do we keep ourselves protected?

We need to stay connected to the Word of God and to His people.  We need to study daily His Word and meditate on His purposes.  We need to stay connected to His people by attending a church that encourages conversation and discussion about the things of the bible.

I encourage you to find a group of people you can study with and discuss the purposes of God, as well as our attacks and responses (both when we succeed, and when we fail).  If you want help finding a small group, please comment.  I would be happy to try to help you.

"For where two or three are gathered together in my name (Jesus), there I am in the midst of them." ~Matthew 18:20 KJV

Love Beyond Life

Spoiler alert... don't read this if you haven't seen the movie, Star Trek Into Darkness!

Do we know what it means to love these days?  I just went to see a great movie last night, and was surprised by the message I took from it.  We saw the new Star Trek - Into Darkness movie, and I must admit, I had read a spoiler before going to see it, so I thought I would know what lesson I would take and write about.  I was wrong.

"We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us.  So we ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters." ~1John 3:16 (NLT)

Towards the beginning of the movie, Spock is willing to lay his life down for the "needs of the many." What he doesn't understand is just how much his death would impact his friends, and how hurt they were that he would just willingly put himself in harms way.  He says later, "I did feel those feelings when my world died, so I choose not to feel.  It doesn't mean I don't care."  Kirk wonders how he can do that.  Personally, I know I have buried feelings and not allowed myself to feel.  I never knew that others would perceive me to not care.  

Later in the movie, we see a twist... and Kirk is given the opportunity to lay his life down for his friends.  We see Spock run down to see his friend dying.  He says to Spock, "how do you choose not to feel? I don't want to feel scared."  But, we see Spock with tears in his eyes say, "I don't know, I seem to be having difficulty right now."  Spock suddenly experiences very real emotions.  

When Kirk dies, Spock feels rage and a thirst for revenge at the loss of his friend.  

This is what the disciples must have experienced when Jesus died.  There must have been tremendous pain, fear, confusion and anger at the loss of their beloved friend and leader.  How much more pain would they have to endure?  

As we go through life, we start to see more and more that life is pain.  We see how much more we need our friends to care for and love.  We need to think of them when we consider eternity.  Will they be joining us in Paradise?  These are the friends we give our lives for.  

"This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you.  There is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friends." ~John 15:12-13 (NLT)

Struggling to Find Balance

Star Trek: The Original Series (TOS) first aired 46 years ago Friday.  I've been a fan of the various series that have been part of the franchise since I was a little girl.  Of the characters of TOS, my favorite is Mr. Spock.

Spock is a being who cherishes logic and order, and does not always appreciate emotions.  Half-human, half-Vulcan, he struggles to bring balance to his world.  His character is the one I can most identify with.  Like Spock, I really like things in a orderly way, and when problems are laid out in an orderly manner, I can usually find a solution.  When things are highly charged with emotions and chaos, I am not as functional.  Spock had a deeply seated emotional center, and struggled to keep his emotions hidden.  I do this too.  Some days I even wonder if I even have emotions.  However, on the days I am faced with multiple illogical problems, I find that emotions can overwhelm me.

I find solace in Jesus Christ, who died once and rose again to save us.  I am able to see the logic of the gospel message, and from there, see the emotions of what the ultimate sacrifice was for me. Daily prayer and reading keeps me centered on the things that are important.  This has become a needed ritual for me.  This could be the answer for you, if you find yourself becoming "illogical."

"So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God.  There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most." ~Hebrews 4:16 NLT

Defeating Oppression

Locutus of Borg... or is he still Captain Picard?

Ah! I just love the Star Trek series.  The series is based on the idea of exploring new worlds and new civilizations, and to boldly go where no man has gone before!  Many people hotly debate which of the Star Trek series is the best series, and which of the Star Trek captains is the best captain.  Me, I'm partial to the Next Generation (TNG to my fellow Trekkies).  I just absolutely adore the character of Jean-Luc Picard.  What a stalwart man.  Honor and duty was his calling.

I was fascinated by the storyline of his transformation into Locutus of Borg.  If you are curious, just google it, as there is a wealth of information about this topic.  Bottom line, he was taken by a race of cybernetic beings and forced to assimilate into the collective hive.  When people were assimilated, they lost their sense of self.  But, Locutus (or Picard) retains a sense of individuality.  This assists him with accessing the person of Picard that remains under the hive mind.

I see this cybernetic modification and connection to the collective hive as an illustration of demonic oppression in the mind of the individual.  Have you ever struggled with the haze of repetitive thoughts? Maybe it is a song that plays over and over and over again?  Maybe it is intrusive thoughts of the last negative thing your significant other said to you?  Whatever it is, it prevents you from clearly thinking and performing your day to day work tasks.  I believe these are oppressive thoughts from a demonic source, and must be addressed.

Locutus was eventually defeated, and Picard emerged again, but only by defeating the hive mind and using his individuality.  He was able to communicate his needs to his people, and with their help, Locutus disappeared.  We need the prayers and support of our believers, words from the scripture, and a system of focus to defeat the demonic oppression we find ourselves under.  Only with prayer and scripture can we be free from oppression.

Sustain me, and I will be rescued; then I will meditate continually on your decrees.  (Psalm 119:117 NLT)