William Bode

Wednesday, September 04, 2013 The gift of Satan 2CO 12:7-10 NLT even though I have received such wonderful revelations from God. So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud. Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong. ------------ We've all heard it before but why didn't we recognise it for what it says. God gave Paul an extraordinary vision of heaven. It was so miraculous he's not even allowed to talk about it. 2CO 12:4 NLT that I was caught up to paradise and heard things so astounding that they cannot be expressed in words, things no human is allowed to tell.

Saturday, August 31, 2013 When little is a lot. 2 Corinthians 8:1-5 NLT Now I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, what God in his kindness has done through the churches in Macedonia. They are being tested by many troubles, and they are very poor. But they are also filled with abundant joy, which has overflowed in rich generosity. For I can testify that they gave not only what they could afford, but far more. And they did it of their own free will. They begged us again and again for the privilege of sharing in the gift for the believers in Jerusalem. They even did more than we had hoped, for their first action was to give themselves to the Lord and to us, just as God wanted them to do. ------ Albanian Abundance "Help if you can," is a common refrain you hear from people raising funds. But maybe it should be rephrased, "help if you want joy." It's obvious from Paul's description of the Macedonians that they had a full plate. He says they are being tested by many troubles. Turning to Jesus had a huge

Wednesday, August 28, 2013 A New Goal for a New Person 2 Corinthians 5:1-21 NLT For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. For we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without bodies. While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit. So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. For we live by believing and not by seeing. Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from t

Tuesday, August 27, 2013 Shiny Happy People 2 Corinthians 3:3-18 NLT Clearly, you are a letter from Christ showing the result of our ministry among you. This “letter” is written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is carved not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts. We are confident of all this because of our great trust in God through Christ. It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from God. He has enabled us to be ministers of his new covenant. This is a covenant not of written laws, but of the Spirit. The old written covenant ends in death; but under the new covenant, the Spirit gives life. The old way, with laws etched in stone, led to death, though it began with such glory that the people of Israel could not bear to look at Moses’ face. For his face shone with the glory of God, even though the brightness was already fading away. Shouldn’t we expect far greater glory under the new way, now that the Holy Spirit is giving li

Monday, August 26, 2013 When do plan to be free of all your stuff? Ecclesiastes 5:15New Living Translation (NLT)15 We all come to the end of our lives as naked and empty-handed as on the day we were born. We can’t take our riches with us. _____________________ I'm moving from one country to another. Moving house with a very limited removals vehicle has forced some hard decisions. Do you keep the children's school art (they've all grown up). You read that book years ago, why do you need to keep carrying it? Possessions own us! We desire them. They weigh us down. Quite literally they weigh a lot! I was looking on web sites that estimate the weight of a person's household to make sure the hired 3.5 ton Luton van with 15.5 cubic meters can safely carry the sum of my worldly possessions. My mind is loaded with thoughts on this subject. A few years ago I decided I need a new rucksack (sm day backpack) to carry my stuff for work, as well as the all important pack up (lunch), and maybe a laptop too. I decided a l

Sunday, August 25, 2013 How far will it take you? We think you ought to know, dear brothers and sisters, about the trouble we went through in the province of Asia. We were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure, and we thought we would never live through it. 2 Corinthians 1.8.NLT (Paul the Apostle) http://bible.com/116/2CO1.8.NLT Bible.com/app There's a lot of people handing out 'encouragement' and advice that don't know what they are talking about. Some people are being told that God won't let them suffer. 1 Corinthians 10:13 NASB No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. But its obvious enough if you read what the Bible says that people who suffer (that's supposed to be everyone who follows Jesus) will sometimes feel like its too much. They'll think that the suffering is going to kill th

Friday, August 23, 2013 Another Take Philippians 2:3-4 NLT Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. Another Take When people get seriously difficult news from the doctor often friends will encourage them to "get another opinion." In life we all recognise the value of a "fresh set of eyes." So when someone comes along and offers a new perspective based on some lateral thinking we're inclined to take notice. That's what I think Paul is offering the people of Philippi. In most cultures of the world things haven't changed much, in fact even in the animal kingdom the tenancy is to look out for number one. It's a "dog eat dog" kind of a world. In fact just yesterday a quite selfless colleague of mine repeated that very motto. "You've got to look out for yourself because no one else is going to do it." Self promotion is the heart of competition, grades, ranking, manag

Death is not the grand finale! 1 Corinthians 15:54-58 NLT Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: “Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? ” For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless. It's so easy to think of death as the end. And as it is a formidable enemy we may find death the winner in our epic struggle to live. But the Apostle Paul uses all of Chapter 15 of 1 Corinthians to assure us that death is not the end. And in fact death is not the winner. Jesus is the winner. Life and it's author triumph over death. And so can we. We may still feel the slap in the face but we will not be taken down for

Willie Burp Dog's Life at Bingham Park by William Bode

Friday, July 26, 2013 There is only one Acts 4:7-13 NLT They brought in the two disciples and demanded, “By what power, or in whose name, have you done this?” Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of our people, are we being questioned today because we’ve done a good deed for a crippled man? Do you want to know how he was healed? Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead. For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.” The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had be

Monday, July 22, 2013 Written to Shock You! Deuteronomy 28:56-57 The most tender and delicate woman among you—so delicate she would not so much as touch the ground with her foot—will be selfish toward the husband she loves and toward her own son or daughter. She will hide from them the afterbirth and the new baby she has borne, so that she herself can secretly eat them. She will have nothing else to eat during the siege and terrible distress that your enemy will inflict on all your towns. http://bible.us/116/deu.28.56-57.nlt __________ Deuteronomy chapter 28 is written as a warning and it is written to shock you!This passage is written to set you up! It is written to lead you into the utter revolting shocking horrific end of our selfishness, disobedience, and sinfulness. We may think someone is good, graceful, and full of poise and culture the very picture of beauty and sophistication, when in fact inside lies the avarice of a cannibal! And it is revolting! Still this was not fiction. God's pe

Sunday, July 21, 2013 True Justice Deuteronomy 24:17-22 NLT “True justice must be given to foreigners living among you and to orphans, and you must never accept a widow’s garment as security for her debt. Always remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God redeemed you from your slavery. That is why I have given you this command. “When you are harvesting your crops and forget to bring in a bundle of grain from your field, don’t go back to get it. Leave it for the foreigners, orphans, and widows. Then the Lord your God will bless you in all you do. When you beat the olives from your olive trees, don’t go over the boughs twice. Leave the remaining olives for the foreigners, orphans, and widows. When you gather the grapes in your vineyard, don’t glean the vines after they are picked. Leave the remaining grapes for the foreigners, orphans, and widows. Remember that you were slaves in the land of Egypt. That is why I am giving you this command. Cruise Road is a real welcoming community!

Thursday, July 18, 2013 Ego Busting Grace Deuteronomy 9:4-6 New American Standard Bible "Do not say in your heart when the Lord your God has driven them out before you, 'Because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,' but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is dispossessing them before you. It is not for your righteousness or for the uprightness of your heart that you are going to possess their land, but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God is driving them out before you, in order to confirm the oath which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. "Know, then, it is not because of your righteousness that the Lord your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stubborn people. ___________ God is good. He is leading his people into the Promised Land. The promised land was a good place. Proverbially a land flowing with milk and honey but also a land filled with big bad giants. Giant

Tuesday, July 16, 2013 Be Careful Blessings Ahead DEU 8:1-20 NLT “Be careful to obey all the commands I am giving you today. Then you will live and multiply, and you will enter and occupy the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors. Remember how the Lord your God led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would obey his commands. Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone; rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord . For all these forty years your clothes didn’t wear out, and your feet didn’t blister or swell. Think about it: Just as a parent disciplines a child, the Lord your God disciplines you for your own good. “So obey the commands of the Lord your God by walking in his ways and fearing him. For the Lord your God is bringing you

Monday, July 15, 2013 Unyielding DEU 3:21-29 NLT “At that time I gave Joshua this charge: ‘You have seen for yourself everything the Lord your God has done to these two kings. He will do the same to all the kingdoms on the west side of the Jordan. Do not be afraid of the nations there, for the Lord your God will fight for you.’ “At that time I pleaded with the Lord and said, ‘O Sovereign Lord, you have only begun to show your greatness and the strength of your hand to me, your servant. Is there any god in heaven or on earth who can perform such great and mighty deeds as you do? Please let me cross the Jordan to see the wonderful land on the other side, the beautiful hill country and the Lebanon mountains.’ “But the Lord was angry with me because of you, and he would not listen to me. ‘That’s enough!’ he declared. ‘Speak of it no more. But go up to Pisgah Peak, and look over the land in every direction. Take a good look, but you may not cross the Jordan River. Instead, commission Joshua and encourage and stre

Friday, July 12, 2013 Remind God? Numbers 31:54 NLT So Moses and Eleazar the priest accepted the gifts from the generals and captains and brought the gold to the Tabernacle as a reminder to the Lord that the people of Israel belong to him. Numbers 10:10 NLT Blow the trumpets in times of gladness, too, sounding them at your annual festivals and at the beginning of each month. And blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and peace offerings. The trumpets will remind the Lord your God of his covenant with you. I am the Lord your God.” ---------- God knows everything. God made the covenant promises to Abraham and then repeated these to, Jacob, and on then to His People through Moses. So why is it that these two passages tell God's people to remind God? Can you think of other places in the Bible that God asks people to remind him? I've had a look at these passages in two passages in a number of other versions of the English Bible. (NASB, ESV, AMP, MSG, NCV, NIV, ) New Living Translation seems to be the onl

Thursday, July 11, 2013 Perfection or nothing. Numbers 27:12-19 NLT One day the Lord said to Moses, “Climb one of the mountains east of the river, and look out over the land I have given the people of Israel. After you have seen it, you will die like your brother, Aaron, for you both rebelled against my instructions in the wilderness of Zin. When the people of Israel rebelled, you failed to demonstrate my holiness to them at the waters.” (These are the waters of Meribah at Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.) Then Moses said to the Lord, “O Lord, you are the God who gives breath to all creatures. Please appoint a new man as leader for the community. Give them someone who will guide them wherever they go and will lead them into battle, so the community of the Lord will not be like sheep without a shepherd.” The Lord replied, “Take Joshua son of Nun, who has the Spirit in him, and lay your hands on him. Present him to Eleazar the priest before the whole community, and publicly commission him to lead the people. -

Wednesday, July 10, 2013 Last Enemy 1 Corinthians 15:26 NLT And the last enemy to be destroyed is death. ----------- I got news this morning that a friend died. He was only 51. Premature death came to my life early with the death of my grandfather. And then the life changing, gut wrenching, loss of my best friend and only brother (and only sibling) visited my life when on the 4th of June 1987, Daniel Allen Bode suddenly and unexpectedly died. I was irrevocably changed by these deaths. Death is inevitable. Death is our enemy. But death is not the end. I've pasted in at the end of this note the whole passage from 1 Corinthians 15 about Jesus power over death and his ultimate victory over death. Another passage that really helped me face death and make sense of it, is found in Hebrews chapter 2. ----- Hebrews 2:14-15 NLT Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the de

Thursday, July 04, 2013 Silver Trumpets Numbers 10:1-10 NLT Now the Lord said to Moses, “Make two trumpets of hammered silver for calling the community to assemble and for signaling the breaking of camp. When both trumpets are blown, everyone must gather before you at the entrance of the Tabernacle. But if only one trumpet is blown, then only the leaders—the heads of the clans of Israel—must present themselves to you. “When you sound the signal to move on, the tribes camped on the east side of the Tabernacle must break camp and move forward. When you sound the signal a second time, the tribes camped on the south will follow. You must sound short blasts as the signal for moving on. But when you call the people to an assembly, blow the trumpets with a different signal. Only the priests, Aaron’s descendants, are allowed to blow the trumpets. This is a permanent law for you, to be observed from generation to generation. “When you arrive in your own land and go to war against your enemies who attack you, sound t

Monday, July 08, 2013 I'm what you need Numbers 18:20 NLT And the Lord said to Aaron, “You priests will receive no allotment of land or share of property among the people of Israel. I am your share and your allotment. Numbers 27:5-7 NLT So Moses brought their case before the Lord . And the Lord replied to Moses, “The claim of the daughters of Zelophehad is legitimate. You must give them a grant of land along with their father’s relatives. Assign them the property that would have been given to their father. -------------- Different people different lessons. God's word isn't monochrome. The priests taught us the promise land was first and foremost about the promise giver and His presence with God people. We ultimately don't have to be trapped by the greed of the name and claim it culture often invading Christianity. To be sure the priests were not going without, but thier self sufficiency - live off the land - American dream was severely limited by God. If the people obeyed God then the Tabernacle, sacrif