Serendipity

"Serendipity" is a term that comes up fairly often in Library Science in the context of research. (For some reason when I think of this word an image of a purple dragon comes to mind--does anybody have an idea why?) The definition in Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary: 11th ed. is as follows:

serendipity: the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for.

Perhaps you have experienced in searching for a certain item in the library, not finding the source you are looking for, you find something even better nearby. In the majority of such cases it is because of the cataloging & classification in the library--in other words, resources about the same subjects are shelved together in the stacks.
Sometimes, however, things just seem to come together. For instance, I am by nature better at presenting my own thoughts & opinions than listening to others. For me to be the husband Angie needs, however, I need to be a better listener. Understanding this, I find that the classes I'm taking this semester in graduate school, particularly "Introduction to Research," teach me to be a better listener. The purpose in the class is so I can help people find what they are really looking for, even if they don't know themselves. I think that this mindset will help me listen & pay attention to my wife better, & to respect what she has to say without feeling the need to give my own input.

Is serendipity just one of those things, or is there a reason? I know what I think, but I'll leave it up to you...

(Revelation 4:11)

The Real Holy Spirit

Pastor Trent K. at Zion Baptist Church started a new series on the Holy Spirit this morning, & it had a real impact on me. More on that in a second...

I know that when I accepted Jesus as my Savior the Holy Spirit came to dwell within me, & he will never leave. God exists in 3 Persons: the Father, the Son, & the Holy Spirit, who each have distinct roles but are equally 1 God. Jesus, who is God's Son, & the Holy Spirit were both with God the Father at Creation. Before the day of Pentecost in the 2nd chapter of Acts, the Holy Spirit existed & filled certain people for certain tasks, but filling was only temporary. That's why David could write in Psalm 51:11 "...take not your Holy Spirit from me." Indwelling comes immediately upon receiving salvation through Christ, & it is permanent, at least for as long as we live on this Earth.

Pastor Trent pointed out that, as Jesus expressed in John 16:7, it is better that we are filled with the Holy Spirit than if Jesus were physically with us on Earth. When Jesus was physically on Earth he could only be in one place at one time doing his work, but when he ascended into heaven he could send the Holy Spirit, who is ever present with each believer & he works through us!
A most important thing to remember about the Holy Spirit is that he is here to point to Christ & to help Christians. When people claim to be performing miracles, etc. by the Holy Spirit, consider this: Who is getting the glory? When the Holy Spirit is at work the glory will always go straight to Jesus, not the person doing the miracle, not the place, not the miracle itself, not even the Holy Spirit--Jesus Christ alone is to receive the glory!
Satan masquerades as an angel of light, & sometimes he can heal people, too. He wants to distract glory from God, so don't be fooled.

Inaction figure

I was watching a little Phineas & Ferb this afternoon, & in this episode the 2 main characters wanted to make an "inaction figure" of Perry the platypus (who unbeknownst to them is "Agent P"). They invented a toy that doesn't do anything so it has an infinite market. Brilliant, eh?

Hearing that term made me realize something. As a boy I had a collection of action figures--Superman, Batman, Robin, Wonder Woman, the Flash, Firestorm, & probably some others--& I was quite offended when my mom would call them "dolls." The toys I had were truly action figures, because they did something. Superman & Batman could both punch when you squeezed their legs. Robin (who back then didn't wear pants) would kick if you squeezed his arms, & the Flash's legs moved as if he was running when you squeezed his arms. (Don't think dirty; they were awesome!)

One regrettable day I went against my better instincts & sold my action figures at our family garage sale, so I have had to recollect them. I have a Buzz Lightyear with karate chop action, so he's a legitimate action figure, but none of my other superheroes do anything. Sure, they are moderately posable, & a few of them can even bend their knees & elbows, but can they be classified as "action figures"? In truth, they are little more than figurines. I still will never call them "dolls," though!

Don't expect to find a Superman exactly like this on sale anywhere. I'm not one to collect & preserve my action figures for resale value--I take artistic liberty & make modifications as I see appropriate. Doesn't he look cool?

Perhaps I need some different characters in my collection. Which one is Bruce?

Space-Time Continuum

It seems to come up a lot in writing that every action affects the future. In Star Trek they have wormholes that take you to a parallel universe that is mostly like ours, but one different choice made somewhere along the way dramatically changed the outcome. In DC Comics they similarly have alternate universes that you can access through a "Boom Tube" or other means, & when the universes overlap there is a "crisis." On Back to the Future whenever something Marty or Doc does leads to someone from that time period doing something differently, when they come back to the future there's evidence of that change; sometimes dramatically as in the case of George McFly's success & confidence, & other times minimal, like the "Twin Pine Mall" being the "Lone Pine Mall" or "Clayton Ravine" being "Eastwood Ravine." The same thing happens on Heroes with everybody bouncing around through the space-time continuum willy-nilly.
Ironically, with all this emphasis on actions having consequences, many people live in total disregard for the consequences of their own actions, but that's not the point I'm trying to make today.
I won't say that time travel is impossible, for nothing is impossible with God, but I don't think it's anything we can figure out how to do as humans. It's true that actions have consequences, & our choices don't always please God. However, if we fear we'll mess up God's plan by making wrong choices, that's kind of arrogant on our part! God knows what choices we'll make, & even though it is never His will that we make wrong choices, He can use even our wrong choices to carry out His good plan! We are not powerful enough to mess up what God is going to do.

"And do not forget the things I have done throughout history. For I am God--I alone! I am God, and there is no one else like me. Only I can tell you what is going to happen even before it happens. Everything I plan will come to pass, for I do whatever I wish." Isaiah 46:9-10 (NLT)

New Place

When I started this blog my wife & I lived in Columbus, Ohio, & I was a legal assistant. Earlier this month we moved to Clarion, Pennsylvania. It's a smaller borough than Columbus, but it has a different kind of charm. We upgraded a little bit from a 1-bedroom apartment to a 2-bedroom with a garage, & I must say it's nice having an office! I'll start working part-time at the library in town next week, & this fall I'll begin studies at Clarion University for my Master's in Library Science.
It'll be nice for me having a job in the community so I can meet people, & one of the neatest things is the church we've decided to go to - Zion Baptist Church. It's a church with a larger congregation than the one we went to in Columbus, but there are a lot of avenues to meet people & build Christian relationships. As always, we'll have to wait & see what the future holds, but it's exciting to see what God is doing!

What would you do...?

An old friend of mine asked a question on facebook, & it got me thinking... [Well, she's not old - she's actually a little younger than me - but she was my friend back in the day. Actually, she was more my wife's friend before we got married than my friend, but I knew her, & it was actually not all that long ago... What about her? I lost my train of thought...]
Oh, yeah, she asked a question! This was the question: "If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would you do?" I think a lot of people ask themselves or others this question, & most people would answer something like "go skydiving" or "go bungee-jumping", & then someone else would say something more spiritual/noble like "do more to help others", & make everyone else feel bad. I suppose this is a good question to think about to see what you value in life, but it more specifically addresses what you have always "wanted to do".
I think for the Christian it's different, though. Having almost died once myself, I want what I do in life to be valuable. Here's the other thing: If there's something you dream of doing, & you know Jesus as your Savior, & you die before that dream is fulfilled, don't worry about it! You're coming back! This life isn't "it" & for any good thing you want to do now, you'll be able to do it so much better on the New Earth in Eternity!
Sure, it's great to do neat things now, especially when it glorifies God & helps others know Him, but if you're a believer in Christ alone for salvation from your sin, you're never going to miss out on anything!