Doug – Page 14 – Random Thoughts

Righteousness Through Faith

good works vs righteousness — via TruthOrFiction.com

Can someone be justified (saved) through good works alone? Romans 3:20-26 says, “²⁰ Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. ²¹ But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, ²² even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; ²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴ being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, ²⁵ whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, ²⁶ to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” (NKJV).

Here Paul is speaking to a mixed crowd of Jews and gentiles. Jews claimed to be justified by the Law of Moses. The problem is that no man (except Jesus) has or can keep the Law perfectly, so he must constantly make sacrifice as atonement:”by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight”. The purpose of the Law was not to justify unto salvation, but to make it clear how far man is from perfection: “the Law is the knowledge of sin.” Continue reading “Righteousness Through Faith”

Publication Services – Who is For Real?

Imposter_masks-internet publication services I have received a fair number of inquiries from aspiring authors about e-mails they have received from “publishers”. I have received one or two of these myself. The messages vary, but in essence they portray the sender as a publisher, generally they use impressive names that include the word “press” to give the impression that they will print the book. Most are, at best, publication services.

Some offer to convert the author’s book manuscript into an eBook for a minimal fee – often about $50.00. Others offer to oversee the entire publication and printing process and request fees of several thousand dollars. Are any of them on the level? Do any of them offer genuine value? Continue reading “Publication Services – Who is For Real?”

Prepared for Destruction

I was reading in Romans and came upon a passage that said, “What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction,”. Paul is speaking here of people, not pottery, but using an analogy of a potter who creates some vessels to be honored and some to be destroyed. It took me aback a bit: does God create some people with the intention of destroying them or using them in diabolical ways, such as Judas Iscariot was? Let’s take a closer look at this passage.

Romans 9:18-24

¹⁸ Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.

¹⁹ You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?” ²⁰ But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” ²¹ Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? Continue reading “Prepared for Destruction”

Avoiding the N.S.A.

We live in troubled times. Because there are a lot of bad people who want to hurt us, the people who say they’re protecting us sometimes seem more like bad people than good people. Whether they are or not is a discussion for another venue. The point here is that as writers, we sometimes do research into troubling topics. Fiction authors need factual info to weave into their stories. Non-Fic writers research topics of discussion. Both can stray into subjects that can get you flagged by the N.S.A. or other authorities as someone to watch.

Is this a real concern? That depends on what you’re researching and how deeply you’re diving. If you’re digging to learn everything you can about locating and joining an ISIS terror cell, you may well get put on a watch list. If you then dig into the building of bombs from domestic items like a pressure cooker, you may wind up having to explain yourself. What can you do to reduce the risk of having men in black knocking on your door? Continue reading “Avoiding the N.S.A.”

Humility

humility, CS Lewis I once was a member of a church that had the Deacons rotate through offering an invocation at the opening of the worship service. There was one Deacon whose prayers I dreaded. They always went something like, “Oh, Lord, we are disgusting worms, undeserving of your presence, much less your grace. We should be crushed…” you get the idea. He counted this as showing humility.

While I do agree that believers are undeserving and we are not to present ourselves to the Lord with a haughty attitude, was such self-deprecation really necessary every time he prays for the congregation? Is abasing oneself (and everyone else present) humility? A dictionary definition of humility reads:

NOUN

a modest or low view of one’s own importance; humbleness.
synonyms: modesty · humbleness · meekness · diffidence ·
_{Powered by}_{Oxford Dictionaries}

Continue reading “Humility”

Hush the Voices

Hush the Voices Writers hear voices in their heads. That may sound psychotic, but it’s not: everyone does but most people ignore them. We listen. We listen intently.

When we listen to the wrong voices, it can be damaging to our work … and our psyche. When those voices whisper to us, “you’re not good enough to do this”, “you have nothing new to say”, “this has been said before” we need to hush those voices … or at least turn them around.

Perspective_Lobster Miracle Even if it is true that what we’re pursuing has been said before – King Solomon, the wisest man in the Old Testament said, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 1:9 NIV) – there are always new ways of saying it. Your perspective of a common issue may be something fresh and new. You can also make a point by coming at an issue with satire, as I did in 6 Reasons to Stick with Legacy Publishing.

The “you’re not good enough” accusation may have truth in it. No one (except possibly Harper Lee) nails a best seller with their first novel, but you have to start somewhere. Write. If, when it’s done, it’s no good: lay it aside and write another. Go back to that first one when you’ve gained experience and dissect it; can it be made into something good? If you feel you’re wasting your time, ask yourself, “Can one become an Olympic runner if they demand medals every time they step onto a track?” Training is as important to a writer as it is to an athlete. Those lame stories are not wasted time and effort: they’re training.

So when those voices of dissension whisper their poison in your mind’s ear, if they cannot be ignored, write about them. Use it as a writing exercise by writing your bio: the one that will go on the back of your best-seller, and talk about your humble beginnings and overcoming doubt. Write how you did it, then do it.

Discussion vs Argument

Discussion vs argument As Christians, should we have an open mind toward opposing or alternate viewpoints or close our minds and hold steadfastly to our beliefs? Can we learn anything valuable from those who disagree with us or engage us in argument?

First, can we learn anything from our antagonists? Yes, we can learn what it is that causes them to have an opposing opinion. When we learn that, we may be able to counter the conditioning that helped them form that opinion – or find that their opinion was simply passed along by someone else, not based in any experience. Continue reading “Discussion vs Argument”