LOST IN THE WOODS

LOST IN THE WOODS - Gladwin JR Manuel

‘With night closing in around her, Cassi gave up and went down on her knees.
Tears rolled down her cheek as she uttered a word of prayer. With all hope lost, she slumped to the ground, obvious to the fact that with the night around the corner, it will be impossible for anyone to find her. She knew that it will be a matter of time before the wild animals found her.
But someone else found her first - The guy she disliked and hated the most...’
The story revolves around these two young people, as they fight their own emotions and try to survive the night. Things turn around for the worst when their paths cross with poachers.

Even through the darkest hour, Cassi understands what love really is. And it is this new found understanding of love and God that gives her strength to face her fears.

Vanity

Swirling, tossed about, 

Churning in a storm of doubt

Patched ground longs for rain

River turns to waste

Fish takes one final breath

Wriggling to survive fighting death

Dry skies, merciless beats down

As green meadows turns brown

Death Death Death

The sun a molten gold

Fury untold

No respite even for the old

Death Death Death

Another life bites the dust

Churning in the storm of doubt

Madness recoils and snatches lives

Love lost will not be found

In this dry desert ground

Death Death Death

Another life bites the dust

Widening, death’s fangs reaches out

All hope lost in this doubt

Death Death Death

Marches unopposed with a shout

Vultures swarm the skies

Love cries

Death Death Death

Love bites the dust

And what remains is

Dust Dust Dust!!!

 

 

What Does the Bible Say about Alcohol?

• Does the wine in the Bible contain alcohol?
• Does the Bible forbid the drinking of alcohol?
• Does the Bible promote the drinking of alcohol?

Many Christians today understand the Bible to forbid drunkenness but permit drinking. Most, if not all, evangelical churches and seminaries, however, require its members to abstain from all forms of alcohol. Obviously, there continues to be differences of opinions on what God thinks about drinking. Because of this, and the large amount of space given to the subject in the Bible (the word ‘wine’ is mentioned in the Bible 256 times), it is worth taking another look at what the Bible says about wine, drinking, and drunkenness.

Wine and Alcohol

I have heard it said that the wine mentioned in the Bible had no alcohol in it–that it was grape juice. Yet, if the wine in the Bible had no alcohol in it, then it wouldn’t mention drunkenness, but it says, do not get drunk with wine … (Ephesians 5:18) and to be not addicted to wine … (1 Timothy 3:3). How can you get drunk on grape juice? The 1 Corinthians church, for example, was getting drunk while celebrating the Lord’s Supper (1 Corinthians 11:17-34). We can assume, therefore, that when the Bible mentions wine, it is referring to an alcoholic beverage.

Wine and Blessing

There are many positive statements about wine in the Bible. God suggests that Israel spend part of their tithe … for whatever your heart desires, for oxen, or sheep, or wine, or strong drink, or whatever your heart desires; and there you shall eat in the presence of the Lord your God and rejoice, you and your household (Deuteronomy 14:26).
A parallel is made between joy in the Lord and an abundance of wine (Psalm 4:7 and 104:15).
Paul said, I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself… (Romans 14:14). He also recommended to Timothy that he take wine for medicinal purposes (1 Timothy 5:23).
Isaiah speaks of a lavish banquet in which the Lord Himself will prepare aged wine (Isaiah 25:6), perhaps just as Jesus did when He performed His first miracle, turning water into wine, at the wedding in Cana (John 2:10). In fact, we know that Jesus Himself drank wine (Luke 7:33-34).

Not only is a lack of wine understood throughout the Old Testament as the judgment of God (Jeremiah 48:33, Lamentation 2:12, Hosea 2:9, Joel 1:10, Haggai 2:16), the presence of wine is associated with the blessing of God. When Isaac pronounced God’s blessing on Jacob, he said, Now may God give you of the dew of heaven, and of the fatness of the earth, and an abundance of grain and new wine (Genesis 27:28; see also Proverbs 3:10 and Daniel 10:3).
Dan Wallace, a Greek professor at Dallas Theological Seminary, said, Wine is so often connected with the blessings of God that we are hard pressed to figure out why so many modern Christians view drink as the worst of all evils ("The Bible and Alcohol" www.bible.org). It is, therefore, biblically inaccurate and ridiculously inconsistent for any "Christian" or "Evangelical" institution to forbid the consumption of alcohol and yet permit, for example, divorce and women teaching men.
Distributed by www.relationalconcepts.org

Alcohol and Drunkenness

Getting drunk is a sin. Why? Because God says so (Ephesians 5:18). They were, of course, drinking alcohol in biblical times. The real issue, therefore, has nothing to do with drinking but with the possible effects of drinking. Primarily, it removes the ability for sound judgment. Put simply, … whoever is intoxicated is not wise (Proverbs 20:1).
Consider these examples: Noah drank himself drunk and was humiliated (Genesis 9:21). Lot was incapable of resisting sin because of his drunkenness (Genesis 19:32). Nabal’s drunkenness proved his foolishness (1 Samuel 25:36). Elah, king of Israel, was murdered because of his drunken vulnerability (1 Kings 16:9). Being drunk is so incapacitating to men that it is used as a metaphor for the immorality of man (Revelation 14:8, 16:19). And it is so despised by God that it is used as an overall theme for the judgment of God (Lamentations 4:21, Nahum 3:11).

Alcohol and Excesses

There are other issues to consider besides the general acceptability of drinking and the specific sin of drunkenness. Drinking which does not lead to drunkenness can still be done in excess. What is excess? It’s too much. What is too much? You have to determine that for yourself. It’s just like every other gift of God. Just remember, you will give an account for what you decide (Romans 14:12).
Overeating is a good parallel to the sin of overdrinking. Do not be with heavy drinkers of wine, Or with gluttonous eaters of meat … (Proverbs 23:20). The Bible is not against food, just like it is not against wine. But eating can lead to gluttony and drinking can become excessive.
Not only is it wrong to drink in excess, it’s wrong to love to drink. This leads to addiction. He who loves pleasure will become a poor man; He who loves wine and oil will not become rich (Proverbs 21:17). God may have suggested to the Israelites that they spend their tithe on alcohol, but notice that He told them to drink it in His presence (Deuteronomy 14:26). Drinking, without accountability, tends to become the habit of someone with an addiction, or someone who loves to drink.
And finally, we should not be associated with heavy drinkers (Proverbs 23:20).

Alcohol and Judgment

Freedom to drink does not mean it is never a sin to drink. We should deal with this issue according to the formula given in Romans. Now accept the one who is weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions (14:1).
We should not judge a brother or sister who chooses not to drink in the same way that we should not judge a believer who chooses not to eat meat. Let not him who eats regard with contempt him who does not eat, and let not him who does not eat judge him who eats, for God has accepted him (Romans 14:3).
We should not drink in front of a believer who is trying not to drink or who struggles with alcoholism. It is good not to eat meat or to drink wine, or to do anything by which your brother stumbles (Romans 14:21).
The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God (Romans 14:22). We need not judge one another because each one of us shall give account of himself to God (Romans 14:12) as to why we choose to drink or why we choose not to drink. Drinking, like anything else we do, should be done for Christ and done in thankfulness (Romans 14:5-9).
Questions and Answers
Q: Does the wine in the Bible contain alcohol?
A: Yes. Hannah (1 Samuel 1:14), the Apostles (Acts 2:13), and Christ Himself (Luke 7:34) would not be accused of being drunk if the wine they were consuming did not contain alcohol. (See also Ephesians 5:18 and 1 Timothy 3:3.)
Distributed by www.relationalconcepts.org

Q: Does the Bible forbid the drinking of alcohol?
A: No. A lack of wine is understood throughout the Old Testament as the judgment of God (Jeremiah 48:33). God even suggests that the Israelites’ yearly tithe could include the purchase of strong drink (Deuteronomy 14:26).
Q: Does the Bible promote the drinking of alcohol?
A: No. The Bible allows it if you are a strong enough believer to resist the negative consequences–excess drinking, addiction, drunkenness, association with heavy drinkers, causing a brother to stumble, or judging others.
Distributed by www.relationalconcepts.org

One Love One Marriage

In today’s world where everything is open, where crime and Divorces are as common and on a rise; where ‘Living In’ is been deemed as safe; having multiple partners is seen as one's way of enjoying life - 'The True Meaning Of Marriage & Relationship Is Lost.' -  Just a dream, that can easily been blown away by the doubts, pressure and external forces that raise their heads out of nowhere - marriage is no more an eternal bond, but a strife to keep it going, to keep it together. What is supposed to be the most beautiful thing that God made for man, has over the period of time lost its color, and has turned ugly and grey.

Let me start here, where God made Eve - and I believe Eve was made for Adam and no one else, that is so obvious isn't it. And yet, how many of us forget that Eve was made out of Adam's ribs for Adam –
“But for Adam no suitable helper was found. 21 So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs and closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.

23 The man said,
"This is now bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called 'woman, '
for she was taken out of man."

24 For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.

Let me take you from here to another area that bothers us – God's will for us in marriage. Is there any way we know that this is God's will for us? We make our own decisions and expect God to bless it. God will bless your marriage 'cause he loves you, but it won’t be the perfect will of God . Let me pause here a bit – hello, how many relationships have you had? There is a cut-off point for each one of us when we realize that it is God who has someone for us. For man – God has made a woman out of His own ribs. For woman, she has been made out of a man’s rib. And if you observe with God, it happened in His time.

And sadly many of us do not wait on God, for His time – to make all things beautiful. And the end product is this. We end up being broken and not prepared for the most beautiful thing called marriage. Even after marriage the past keeps clouding our mind, where we had given our heart to many. A heart is a piece of paper –save it for the one who deserves it. For it is GOOD.

I had a friend who got into a relationship. And every time I saw them together, I saw the most beautiful perfect couple. Five years down the line their relationship broke. WHAT HAPPENED HERE – too soon, they had gotten into a relationship even before they where 16. If it was in Gods Time, I am sure it would have ended up beautiful. But here I want to point out another factor.

7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." (1 Samuel 16).

That my friend is the mistake all of us make. We choose on the appearance or what appears to be beautiful. And God knows, He understands, and surely He knows that it won’t last. And he will tell you in many ways – oh I am sure He speaks, and when he speaks you will hear loud and clear. But then, we are so blinded by the desires of our heart, and we are so wise in our own eyes; we forget Proverbs 3:5,6

Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.

That my friend is the will of God right there for us, that we simply ‘Trust him’ with all our heart and lean not on our own understanding – He will make our Paths straight. KJ version says 'He will direct our path...'

If you know that it is not the will of God – do not continue in that path my friend, because that path ends in misery, pain and Divorce (if you are planning to marry even though you know it is not God's will). Just tell God to do His will, and get away from that path.
However, I have seen something else, when two believers do fall in love, their marriage ends up beautiful. Here too, I bethink it is the will of God. It might not be the perfect will, but submissive will. He loves us, and he will do the best for us. The plus point here is that both of them are IN TUNE with God, and it fits –somehow into God's plan for marriage. I will take you through a model I came across from ‘I MARRIED YOU’ by Walter Trobisch.

He refers to a triangle. Where the triangle has 3 ends point, each point connected with each other. The top point is God, the other two points is man and wife. Note, here, there is a distance between the man and a wife, but they end up in meeting on top –God. He also refers this as a tent, that it is so sacred that only three people are involved here. If any fourth person steps in, the tent inevitably gets destroyed. It can be even one’s parents, or children or someone else. No one must enter the 'Sacred Room', it’s simply God, man and his wife.

This beautifully explains that even after marriage, there will be distances and differences, but when both are in Tune with God, bang- that my friend is the perfect will of God in marriage. It is so important that both look up to God.

AS FOR ME AND MY HOUSEHOLD, WE WILL SERVE THE LORD. ( JOSHUA 24:15 *NIV )

I always believed that God has someone made for each one of us. And in His time he will make all things beautiful. But before that He will reveal Himself to us. That’s how we will come to know Him – we will come to know Love – God is Love. And the most beautiful thing about His love is seen on the cross, after been spat upon, after been whipped, made fun of and tortured. He looks up and tells God- ‘Father forgive them, for they do not know what they do.’ I realized over the years that Love is not about that steering emotions and drive that makes you to fly. No, it isn’t about all those rosy things and those things that are so sweet. No, Love my friend is this- when you look at a person’s ugliest thing and yet, at that point choose to love them. That my friend is Love…it’s a choice we make and we stick by it. And that is what God did; He chose us first and loved us.

Let me conclude then, God has His Will for us in the book – Bible. Clear guidelines
2nd Corinthians 6:14,15,16

14Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? 15What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? 16What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people."

Find one who fears the Lord, one who thirsts for God. Watch out there are many fakers – you will know a man of God by watching His life, by the words He speaks, and more importantly, being in God’s presence makes one humble.

And it is so important that one builds their House on Prayer. It is that and that alone that will make the foundations strong. Proverbs 31:10 onwards speaks of a woman of prayer and she fears the Lord – she is wise and she makes her husband proud.

30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.
10 A wife of noble character who can find?
She is worth far more than rubies.

This is my prayer that God will build your house. And let not your life fade away, there are many ways to serve the Lord. Do not wait for God to push you; he is very gentle he won’t do that. But He will show you the way. Obedience is better than sacrifices, and that is how you will show him you love him. May God bless you and everything you do. God Is Good…

Gladwin Manuel

ILLUTIONS

It seems just like yesterday
We met
The fun laughter we shared
Now things have changed

We become so numb
We can’t feel each others
Pain, can’t understand
This thing, this feeling…..

The sound of your voice
Your eyes
Searching me deep within
Soothing, comforting, healing, but now….

Can’t you see
I can’t live without you
I can’t breathe without you
I’m crying, I’m falling, hey my heart
Is calling…

You become so numb
You can’t feel my
Pain, can’t understand
This thing, this feeling…

Letter to an athiest-

*Well I swear the Jest be laughable,
Such plain audacity is hard to come by these days.
Well I dare say lady thou has indeed made a point,
But therein stating your mind as being brutally honest let me assume that ye knowest thyself too well to be bothered by such far-fetched assumptions as this chap has brought forth.

'Let me skip a bit, and hop a little, and wink a wee bit and see you giggle'
But in sooth well ye ain't anywhere close to anyone who crossed my path-
I however must state Dear Lady that you do seem to have a concern of me spilling over- Which I did figure out in my weak feeble mind eventually

Well time makes and breaks friends, emotions goes beyond and creates a stir-
A high assumption of love, a very dangerous path to tread, when one gives away the heart to some unknown creature, with tongues flickering, sweet flattery and dead promises- that too is far fetched and a painful illusion - a pain

But this Segreto of 'Pain' comes from thine experience of having dealt with minds ye presumes is mine-
By two faced coin, doesn't have one a reason to be honest and open- and at the same time know the other side of care and concern- or radical illusion of the mind has little arms to know the ways of God and His creation- "well she thinks I will be a pain-she does Glad"-I say to myself-"well does she know me - and does she know I am where she comes from..."- pain, there isn't a word to describe pain in its monstrous forms of betrayal- pain, there isn't a place in this world to find a place that doesn't grow it in forms of rape, murder, misuse, force and a gentle tongue that has power to build and to destroy- wait- pain- interesting the way she puts it in a bottle and throws it into the sea, expecting for a rescue in forms to take her to a safer place as - no pain.


Let me put it this way I aint your type- and ye are not a 'Femme fatalle." for me to be scared of falling for-that's far fetched- but then doesn't mean we 'act' be friends. Every friendship starts somewhere and ends somewhere.
And I might eventually-over do it. Well over-do is a word that has different meanings in different forms and means different to different people. I don't know what you meant by that- I must assume you mean that I might try to force you to believe and accept my thoughts about God- well girl- you know yourself too well that no one can force anything on you. No-I love debating and 'conversations' but then you can't force me to believe I am God and that there is no God-or me to force you to believe - that there is a force- a spirit that binds everything together, and holds the course of its destinations, where time is real not an illusion, just as love which is real but an illusion in this present world- I speak of this force as an ominous potent, omnipotent awesome force that even the best of minds could never fathom...

and on those lines let me take your leave- I too love conversations...I too find em fascinating. But me going over board must not bother you a wee bit cause that won't change your state of mind unless you realize yourself that God does exist? I must say lets try to be friends- and see where this leads us or lasts- lets not kill something as beautiful as trust by assumptions and unheard reasons. I however want you to know that I am a mind of free thoughts of beliefs- I been through all those books and I find em interesting- questions still unanswered- I even went as far as writing a book -DOES GOD REALLY EXIST? IF HE DOES HE MUST BE THE BIGGEST MARSHMALLOW FELLOW, MASS MURDER WHO EVER PULLED AND AXE...Eventually when you seek for the truth-the truth will set you free.

Bell tolls

The bell tolls so soft it can’t be heard
Besides the river; beneath the ocean
Against the roots of the mountain
Beneath its bed; hard, hurting bed….

The river roars
The ocean boils
The mountain smiles
The bell still tolls-

Beside the river; beneath the ocean
Against the roots of the mountain
Beneath its bed; hard, hurting bed

The river dries
The ocean is now ice
The mountain, old, rugged smiles
The bell still tolls

If only the bell was heard
The sweet music of love
The wind would have carried
And buried this vow…


Beside the river; beneath the ocean
Against the roots of the mountain
Beneath its bed; hard, hurting bed
The bell still tolls

The sound of sweet music
A heart full of dreams
The sound of his voice
Still tolls it seems

A love beneath the ocean
Beside a fresh stream
Underneath the mountain
Will toll forever and redeem
This dream…