Honour HIS Temple

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;  you were bought at a price. Therefore honour God with your bodies. 1 Cor 6:19,20 NIV

 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 1 Cor 3:16 ESV

These verses make it very clear that we have to look after our bodies, after all we are reminded that we are bought at a high price. Don’t thumb your nose at a Holy God!

This blog might annoy or even hurt some readers, but that presupposes that I actually get some folks who will not ignore, but read my musings. What are the things that we have to be careful about if we are serious about honouring God’s Holy Temple? In Paul’s day, it included food which had been offered to idols or not consecrated. It would also have included anything which had a bad influence on the health, eg gluttony which is also warned about in other passages and/or anything which would make them sluggish. Some liquids would hamper bodily functions and make them sluggish. Sound familiar?

But what about today? There are some obvious ones, and that is where I may lose some friends or readers. Some of the things we were warned about in Paul’s day can be directly related to our time, and to us individually. Take overeating. It was a real issue then, and it is a real problem today, especially with all the unhealthy fast foods we consume. The result can be obesity, and a health issue to go along with it. A shorter lifespan is not uncommon. Tell me, is that honouring our Holy God? Oh, I can already hear some overweight folks say, but it’s in my DNA and genes, so I can’t help my weight. I know some obese folks, but I have not come across any who have actually tried to change their eating regime. Why? Easy, because they like their eating lifestyle, and have accepted their weight issue. In fact, they do not see any health issues at all.

What about our national love, and consumption of alcohol? It makes the body woozy, sleepy, unable to drive, stagger etc etc. Is the sight of a drunk man or woman (yes sadly, this includes women too) wandering and staggering home from the pub a sight that glorifies a Holy God? I think not! Unsurprisingly, for me, I tend to think of drinking and smoking in the same breath, so what about tobacco, and the effects on health and example to others? I know in the Bible Paul says to Timothy (who had a stomach problem), a little wine for your stomach’s sake. That little phrase has opened the door to any and all Christians to feel that the consumption of alcohol is acceptable, and even encouraged. The result is a tendency to have wine with a meal for no other reason other than they want to, and not whether or not it honours a Holy God.

Smoking tobacco is addictive, and that includes most vapes. If a smoker is addicted to tobacco, does that not give a message to children and young people, especially when you can become a slave to a legal drug? Use your imagination, and visualise a Christian coming out of church, Bible in hand, and a fag drooping from lips, bouncing up and down while talking. It doesn’t make for a pretty sight, and I would suggest not a good example of a Holy God. Would you agree?

Many folks see no problem in buying a lottery ticket once a week. It’s only a pound so what’s wrong with that? In this case, nothing, but what if it opens the door to a gambling addiction? Don’t tell me you have never heard of a well meaning pound a week turning into an amount which cannot be controlled? There are many ‘super gamblers’ who started in a very small way and didn’t see how they could possibly become addicted. I know it doesn’t happen that way for everyone, but is it worth the risk? That’s another gamble altogether. More to the point, does it give a good outlook for a Holy God?

I know there are other areas which could be mentioned, and you may disagree with some of my own suggestions, but what is the goal? If it is truly to honour the Temple of the Holy Spirit, we should take no chances but take every opportunity to keep our Holy God first and foremost. Nothing is more important as we work to honour His Temple. May we be worthy!

God or No God

I will honour those who honour me, and I will despise those who think lightly of me. 1 Samuel 2:30 NLT

The UK was once known as ‘Great Britain and Northern Ireland’, but something has changed because we are no longer ‘Great’, and you could argue that we are no longer ‘United’ either. What happened?

I believe the answer lies in the way we have treated our attitude to God. Other countries, who were once poor, third world nations, have taken over. One of the certain differences is how they approach the question of God. Not only do they believe in God, they practise that belief too. They have honoured God, and so God has honoured them in return.

The rise of the third world countries who have honoured God, has been slow, and the fall of our once proud, Godly (no, that’s not a contradiction) nation has been slow, but sure too. I am no longer proud of my country as I once was, and the downfall is clearly seen by the dishonour shown to God. The Bible is relevant even today, and when it says God will despise those who think lightly of Him, that has meaning and repercussions to place and people alike.

The question arises as to how we can ever get back to our once Great British Glory. I wish I had the answer, but one thing I do know is that our leaders and politicians do not care, and are not making plans or changes which will bring us back to God. Sadly, our national church leaders are not trying either. Oh, there are some small independent fellowships who care and would love to promote the thought, and certainty of God, but they are overwhelmed and drowned out by the sheer number of those who do not have any place for God in their lives.

I suggest we are left with this thought and associated action. Live our lives as though God really IS the most important person, and in some way we may make a small difference to those around us. It might not change the direction of our nation, but it certainly will make a difference to our own life and how it is lived, plus it may very well make a change in some of the lives of those who stand by and watch. I believe we have a bigger influence in the way we live than we realise. This is better said by Shakespeare.

Quote: “The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones” - Shakespeare

Democracy and Integrity

I don’t usually post my thoughts on another country’s actions in politics because that’s their business, but this time is different. Very different. Let me say up front, it’s the USA and the newly elected Democrat member of Congress, Rashida Tlaib who just happens to be a muslim. I say that because in a democracy, you get who you elect, so we must also remember to look behind the Congresswoman herself to the voters who put her there.

In the UK we are used to the knock about of MPs in Parliament, and it does get rowdy at times and childish too. It can also be rude, but the use of bad language is strictly controlled and legislated against inside the house, and the same is expected outside. Having said that, there are occasions where these rules are bent and abused by a few, but not too often.

In keeping with non reactionary reporting, and not being biased, the BBC reports the story accurately, but leaves out the expletives, and strong vocabulary used by Rashida Tlaib to describe her intense hatred of both President Trump, and the only democracy in the middle east, the nation of Israel. The news reports of her actual words are easily found online, by other media. Personally, I prefer the style of the BBC as compared to the all-out opinionated and reactionary USA Fox News, but each to their own.

My point is this, and it is simple. If a person is elected to represent everyone in their constituency in the highest free and democratic Congress in the world, please show some respect, dignity and humility. Go about your desire to change things from your position of power inside the House, but don’t lower the tone of your position, or yourself, by using crude and foul language. Human nature being what it is, this behaviour will only serve to entrench the opinions of hardcore Republicans, and prompt swing voters against her views. This may have spectacularly backfired on Rashida Tlaib, and I for one hope so, not based on religion but respect, dignity, decency, manners, humility and integrity, of which she has none. This post is not intended to offend, but it did get my goat, as you might have gathered! Here are the news reports from the BBC and Fox News. You can see and decide for yourself.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-46764052

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/judge-jeanine-pirro-rashida-tlaib-this-is-my-message-for-you-do-what-you-were-elected-to-do

Another One Bites The Dust

Labour was today forced to suspend another candidate after it emerged he had posted explicit and offensive messages online. John Cowan, who was fighting for a seat in South East Cambridgeshire, boasted about his seedy life on internet forums. 

A Labour Party spokesman said: 'The allegations that came to light after nominations closed are totally unacceptable and well below what the party expects of our candidates. 'The general secretary of the Labour Party has suspended the candidate from the Labour Party and we are taking action to ensure he is never again a Labour candidate. 'The Labour Party's relevant committees will be asked to consider whether he should be expelled from the Labour Party.'

The would-be MP is the latest Labour candidate to see their dreams of working in Parliament scuppered by controversial comments they have made online. Earlier in the campaign, Stuart MacLennan, 24, was dumped after admitting posting a string of deeply offensive comments on Twitter.

Another one of our prospective MPs has been sacked unceremoniously by the Parliamentary Labour Party, and rightly so. The account shown above is not the full story, and it all begs the question... "What is known about our standing MPs when they are selected"? While some people are trying to figure out who would be best suited to run our country, and yes, who would have the moral and ethical judgement needed, we have someone like this who has somehow slipped under the radar. This man wouldn't know decency or honour if he fell over it!

I, for one, cannot believe that the selectors didn't know the kind of man they were putting forward. That being the case, then the Parliamentary Labour Party have a lot to answer for. Is this the tip of an iceberg? Will the ramblings of the internet's many social networking sites be the undoing of any more, either now, or even after they have been elected? I fear it will happen. I am not concerned that these people are caught and fired, but I am worried that this shows a culture of what is going on, and condoned by the silence of the appropriate parties.

Our country needs honourable men and women to stand up for decency and humanity. This kind of person's lifestyle is at odds with any move towards a better society. All political parties should take note, and take a lot more care in who they endorse. After all, they are all going to make it easier for us, the ordinary voter, to disown them and throw them out. Not before time!