Gregory T. Jacobs
 
Picture
How is your vision?  Let's start off with a little challenge.  When you see this picture, what thoughts go through your mind?  I have to confess that I stared at it for like 10 minutes expecting it to come into perfectly clear vision.  All I saw was a figure of a head with two heart shaped objects for eyes, and what looked like a rear-view mirror on the forehead.  Then I realized that you are supposed to stare at the center of this picture for 30 seconds, then look at a blank wall or white piece of paper.   You will see an image of Jesus that we have all grown to know, even though I am not sure how accurate those depictions are. 

This made me take a mental inventory of my own life, and whether or not I have preconceived notions about what and why we do things.  At first glance it appears that things are what they are.  A picture of a face with two hearts for eyes and a rear-view mirror on the forehead.  However, when we look deeper and start researching the scriptures, then Jesus reveals Himself to us. 

For the last couple of years, I have been on an aggressive track of Apologetics.  For those of you that don't know what that this is, it is not apologizing for all of your short comings.  No, it is the art of being able to explain what you believe and why you believe it.  So many of us have just learned to take life as it comes at us, and we never realize the necessity of research, understanding, and challenging our hearts and minds.

From 1996--1999 Brooksley Born, the Chairwoman of the Commondity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), went before Congress and the President and warned of the need for regulation in the Financial Derivatives market.  Not only was she ignored, ridiculed, and shamed; but she had all her power taken away from her and she ultimately resigned her post.  Lack of regulation ultimately led to the crash of the derivates market, which helped trigger the economic and financial crisis in the fall of 2008.  The White House, Federal Reserve, and Treasury (most of whom were present at that time in different capacities) have since admitted that they were wrong and that there is a real and necessary need for regulation.   This is one area that could have benefited from not staring at the picture and taking it at face value.  With a deeper understanding and vision, this could have been prevented.

I highly encourage everbody to look into what they believe as Christians and challenge it.  Now before you call me a hypochrite and call for me to be burned at the stake, here me out.  I am talking about Apologetics.  We are not to just take a minister or pastors word from the pulpit as Gospel, but are always encouraged to check it with the Bible.  Several years ago I decided to implement this into my life.  I realized all the different things that I had been taught through the years, but I didn't know the scripture verses to back them up, and did not have a heart felt conviction about them.  Instead, it was all head knowledge, and I could rattle it off, without fully understanding WHY! 

Be careful not to throw the baby out with the bath water with this.   This does not mean that you abandon anything that you have ever been taught, but rather that you strengthen and reinforce your convictional beliefs.  How is your Vision?  Are you able to look past the surface picture, and discern what lies beneath?  I encourage you to study to show yourself approved through the reading of His Word...
 


Comments

Judy Irvine

11/13/2009 11:35:11 am

Thanks for the blogs, Greg. I really enjoy them.... I love a challenge to 'think'. ")

 

Brad Carter

11/14/2009 6:21:52 pm

Great Blog Greg. I hope people are getting plugged into their walk more by pondering on the different areas you have touched on. God Bless Brother!

 



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