David N. Walker's Blog, page 24

Our Assurance from God’s Promises

All too often, we Christians want to complicate Christianity. We come up with rules we think must govern what it means to be a Christian. We make up rituals and rites and all manner of complication that have nothing to do with the Christian life.

It is our purpose in this series to cut through all the rituals and rules and expose the true essence of Christianity. Hopefully, by the time this series is complete, everyone reading it will see how truly simple Christianity is.

If you have not read the earlier posts on this subject, find the “Categories” list in the right-hand column of this page and click on “Christianity 101.” This will pull up all the previous posts so you can read through them in order.

Going through all the covenants we’ve looked at the past couple of months may seem a bit tedious to some, but there’s method in my madness. To recap, the Adamic, Noahic, Abrahamic, Palestinian and Davidic covenants all gave God’s people great promises that still apply today. Understanding these promises should give us hope—or even better, assurance.

The Mosaic Covenant, unlike the others, was given to show us our hopelessness when left to our own devices. Commonly known as the law, it demanded a level of obedience no man could live up to. Our failure to be able to live up to the letter of the law showed us that the law was incapable of saving us. Our only hope for salvation was for God to do all the work Himself, which is exactly what He promised under the New Covenant.

All of these covenants, taken together, should provide today’s Christians an unshakable faith and confidence that God not only loves us but is also willing and able to provide for our salvation. Understanding these things leaves little room for doubt.

In sessions two and three of this series, we discovered who we are (beings created in the image of God and after His likeness) and why we’re here (because God wanted to fellowship with us). We also discussed the fact that God knew when He created us that we would fall into sin and be separated from Him, but He created us anyhow. He knew from before the foundation of the world how He would go about redeeming us so we could be His family and share in His fellowship.

Next week, we’ll take a close look at God’s plan for this redemption. Meanwhile, take a look at the first chapter of the Gospel of John—particularly verses 1-3 and verse 14. Give some serious thought to these verses, as they hold the key to God’s plan to redeem His people.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you abide in Me and My word abides in you, then you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Christianity 101 Tagged: Christian, Christian Fellowship, Christianity, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Faith, Fancy Series, God is in control, Godly Wisdom, Grace, Heaven Sent, inspiration, Jesus, Redeem, Redemption, Works

Machismo

A recent newspaper article proposed the idea that something about the machismo in teenage boys prevented them from being able to form close relationships with other teenage boys. I didn’t stop to read the article that day, and by the time I thought about getting back to it the paper had already been recycled.

That didn’t keep me from thinking about the premise, though. I’ve thought a good deal about it since then, and I think our need to be macho does us a great disservice, and the effects are lifelong.

My wife has a number of close relationships with girlfriends she’s known since high school—some even since elementary school. Other than renewing acquaintances at periodic high school class reunions, I have no contact with childhood friends.

Until I saw this article, I always assumed the difference was that she went to college locally, while I went 1500 miles away, and that she always lived in the same part of town where she grew up, while I didn’t. Now I think there’s something more fundamental than just geography involved here.

As a teen, I couldn’t possibly allow anyone to think I was anything less than perfectly happy and well-adjusted. I think this is a normal part of the male need to be macho, but it robs boys—and men as they grow up—of the ability to be vulnerable.

Unfortunately, close relationships demand a certain level of vulnerability. You can’t get close to me unless I let you get past the facade I hide behind.

This is where the gals have a huge advantage over us guys. Where we could never let another guy see us crying, for instance, that’s no problem for them. They not only don’t mind letting a girlfriend see them cry, they strengthen their relationships when they do.

It’s sad that we guys are so pig-headed we value our macho image more than we value relationships. This behavior pattern we form as teens generally stays with us the rest of our lives. It followed me into adulthood and deprived me of countless relationships through the years.

Somewhere in my fifties—maybe even my sixties—I began to relax this wall I’ve always used to keep everyone out. I think I’ve only been able to do that because of writing. I began to let people see my babies—my pathetic early attempts to write novels. When people who read these things managed to accept me anyhow, I think I concluded subconsciously that it was okay to let people peek through the fence now and then.

As a result, I’ve managed to develop some pretty good relationships with other writers. Even now, I’m not sure how close a lot of these are. They’re mostly cyberfriends whom I’ve either never met or else see once or twice a year at writers’ conferences. And most of these friends are women. I don’t know whether I just don’t have that many opportunities to make male friends or whether I still have trouble letting men past the gate.

In any case, I’m grateful for the writer friends I do have, while at the same time I rue the loss of so many relationships through the years. Why do we guys have to worry so much about not letting anyone see any weakness in us?

How do your experiences stack up in this area? Those of you raising boys, what do you tell them to help them through the murk of teenage machismo?

——————————————

WANA: We may not have it all together, but together we have it all.

——————————————

For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Advice, Authorship, Caring, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Fancy Series, friends, Heaven Sent, Life, Life experience, Life lessons, Life truths, Life values, Machismo, People, Personal development, Relationships, Self-help

The New Covenant

All too often, we Christians want to complicate Christianity. We come up with rules we think must govern what it means to be a Christian. We make up rituals and rites and all manner of complication that have nothing to do with the Christian life.

We’ve worked our way through the covenants of the Old Testament to give some background for the rest of the series. Now we’re getting into the meat of Christianity and how it affects our everyday lives.

At the time the New Covenant was given to Jeremiah to proclaim to the people, they were living under the Mosaic Covenant, which contained laws governing every little thing that could arise in the people’s lives. Living under all those laws must have been like living in a straight jacket. Compare that with the simplicity of the New Covenant, as stated in Jeremiah 31:33 & 34:

“But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.

“. . .they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the Lord, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

This covenant is repeated in Hebrews 8:10-12. Stop and reflect on this for a moment. Under the old covenants, God gave the people a lot of rules to follow to try to appease Him enough to earn their way into heaven. He knew that no one could be good enough to earn salvation, but He had to prove it to them and to us.

Under this covenant, we do nothing. It’s all His doing. Under the law, He put all his rules and regulations in writing for the people to follow. Under the New Covenant, He puts His rules and regulations on our hearts. Instead of telling us what we have to do, He makes us want to do right.

Obviously, this last statement is an oversimplification. If it worked exactly that way, we would be perfect, and there would be no sin. That’s not true, because we still have our fallen nature, and Satan is still at work.

Those two factors mar our perfection, but our drive toward perfection comes from within rather than from a bunch of written laws. Moreover, He says he will forgive our iniquity and no longer remember our sins.

Of course, God has perfect recall. He never forgets anything. What this means is that He chooses not to call our sins to mind. When we’re covered by the blood of His Son, He sees the image of Jesus when He looks at us instead of seeing our old nature and all the sins we have committed.

This should come as good news to us as Christians. We don’t have to wear our hair just so or wear certain clothes. We don’t have to refrain from this or that. We don’t have to say “Hail Mary” or perform any sort of religious act. God does it all.

How did God transition us from all the rules and regulations of the old covenant to this marvelous new covenant? We’ll begin looking at that next week.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you abide in Me and My word abides in you, then you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Christianity 101 Tagged: Christian, Christian Fellowship, Christianity, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Faith, Fancy Series, God is in control, Godly Wisdom, Grace, Heaven Sent, inspiration, Jesus, New Covenant, Works

Bubba Goes to Sea

Every time I go on a cruise and see how the chefs doll up the food—they’re a lot more interested in how pretty it is and how fancy the name is than how good it tastes—I’m reminded of the story of my friend Bubba’s first cruise. I decided to share it with you today, because he and I think a lot alike. It’s a bit long for a blog, but you’ll find it funny.

Me ‘n’ Junie May walked into the dining room, where this furrin-lookin’ guy stopped us. “Seapass?”

“Naw. It ain’t passed. It’s right out the window there.”

He held his hand out, looking a little pained. “Seapass, pliss.”

Huh? Who was Pliss? “Naw. We the Martins.”

His whole face lit up. “Ah, yes, Misser Mizzez Mar-teen. Seapass, pliss.”

I seen some people give this guy’s twin the little cards they given us ‘fore we climbed onto the ship, so I decided to try that. He beamed as I handed it to him.

“Ah, Misser-Mizzus Mar-teen. Okay sit you someone else?”

Now, I had no idee whut he wanted with that, so I turned to Junie May. She went all the way to the tenth grade, ‘n’ she’s smarter’n a whip. She whispered, “He wants to know if he can seat us at someone else’s table.”

Well, I was right shocked at that. “If it’s their table, let ‘em have it.”

“No, he means . . .” She gotten one o’ them disgusted looks o’ hers and stepped in front of me to talk to the man. “That would be fine.”

“Yes, tank you.” He bowed and smiled and talked to another guy wearin’ a uniform and said, “Table one-oh-four.”

The boy showed us all his teeth at once, extended his arm to one side, and said, “Pliss.”

I looked around to see who Pliss was, but they warn’t no one else there. I wadn’t sure what to do, but like I say, that Junie May is a bright one. She figgered out he wanted us to go with him.

He took us over to a table where two other couples sat.

I thought he wuz real sweet when he held Junie May’s chair for her. Then he put her napkin in her lap. When he headed my way, I grabbed my own napkin to keep ‘im from tryin’ any funny business with me.

I saw the guy across the table givin’ me the once-over, so I figgered he wanted us to interduce ourse’f. “Hi. I’m Bubba Martin, an’ this here beauty is my wife, Junie May. Ain’t she just’ purty as a ten-point deer?”

Seem like half the people in the dinin’ room turned to look at us. I get that a lot, though. Must look like some movie star or sumpin’. Didn’ wanna disappoint ‘em, so I stood up and waved. Junie May jerked on my shirt sleeve. I get a lot o’ that, too, so I sat down.

The others interduced theyse’f, too. The guy the other side o’ Junie May allowed as how he and his wife wuz from Gulfport, Mississippi. The other guy said they wuz from Massachusetts. Didn’ s’prize me none. I know’d they wuz furriners, cuz they didn’ speak very good English.

Junie May tol’ ‘em we wuz from Pyote, Texas, and the guy from Massachusetts said he’d of never guessed. No big s’prize’ there either. Them Yankees ain’t usually too smart. ‘Sides, even lotsa normal folks don’t know where Pyote is. Monahans is the big city, and Pyote kinda gets overlooked. Truth be tol’, I didn’t know where Cambridge, Massachusetts, was neither.

While we wuz interducin’ ourse’f to one another, I looked around at the table. Seemed like these folks got all their grandma’s silverware out to oncet. They wuz knives and forks all over both sides of each place and even a fork and a couple of spoons turned sideways out toward the middle of the table.

And glasses? They musta know’d we’d be thirsty, ‘cuz they wuz two or three at each place. Not real mugs with handles, but them funny-lookin’ glasses on li’l poles. You know, the kind drips all over the bibs of yer overalls when ya drink from ‘em.

Well, anyways, we come there ta eat, so I thought mebbe we’d oughta get down to bidness. Li’l Filipino guy poured some water into my glass, so I tol’ him I wanted chicken-fried steak and mashed taters. “And put the gravy on the side.” Well, youda thunk I wuz speakin Chinese or sumpin, way he looked at me.

He pulled back the pitcher and said, “Pliss?”

Who the heck was this Pliss guy they kept askin’ ‘bout?

Junie May elbowed me right hard and whispered to me. “He just pours the drinks. Wait for a menu.”

Well, Betty Jo didn’ make ya wait fer no menu back home ta the City Grill ‘fore ya could order. Fact, she couldn’t type good enough ta have no menus.

‘Nother li’l guy come by and put a basket o’ bread in the middle o’ the table. Just’ one basket fer all of us. Guess we wuz s’posed ta fight over it.

Anyways, we all sat there a-waitin’ fer sumpin’ ta happen. Massachusetts guy talked Yankee, but I couldn’t translate it. Wish’t I’da been sittin’ where Junie May was. Probly coulda unnerstood the guy from Mississippi.

After while another one o’ them cute li’l fellers come by and handed us menus. Leastways that’s what I ‘spected they was. Couldn’t find no chicken-fried steak nowhere on there. No fried chicken, neither. Never heard o’ no café didn’ serve one or t’other.

Most of it seemed ta be written in Eye-talian or French or some such thing. Couldn’t make head nor tail of it. Thought mebbe I had the dern thing upside down, but didn’ help none when I turned it.

Finally found some sliced melon, so I ordered that ‘un. I mean, ever’ country boy knows how to handle a big ol’ slice o’ watermelon, though I’ll hafta admit I like it better fresh stol’ out’n the field.

Always liked soup, too, so I ordered one called Vichyssoyzee—sumpin like that. Probbly be right tasty.

Didn’t have a clue whut them Entries wuz about, though. Ya wouldn’t believe all the stuff they’d writ down there.

Tagliatelle with roasted chicken and Portobello mushroom—tossed in olive oil and lemon cream. Couldn’t figger out what tag-li-a-telle might be. And how the heck did they get cream from a lemon?

Sauteed shrimps provencales. Now I’d et shrimp oncet, but I never et no pro-ven-cales. Fergit that.

Duck breast a l’orange. Bet me, Buckwheat! I done shot my share o’ ducks, and they warn’t never no orange ones. Who’d they think they wuz kiddin’?

Wild mushroom strudel. Didn’t these folks know nothin’? I mean, I ain’t no super-sophisticate, but I know strudel’s got cherries or blueberries in it—not no dang mushrooms.

Whole roasted tenderloin of beef. Well, that sounded like sumpin’ I could eat.

It didn’ take long to figger these chef fellers didn’ know much about food. Well, actually it did. They like to let folks set there for a while ‘fore they get ‘round ta servin’ ‘em. Guess they figger if ya get hungry enough waitin’ you’ll eat whatever they bring you.

Thing is, they didn’ bring me no melon a-tall. Brung me a couple o’ li’l tiny slices of cantaloupe instead, and one o’ them wuz green. I mean it. Green cantaloupe. Who’da thunk? Well, I et the reg’lar ‘un, but I didn’ touch that other ‘un. I mean, a feller might get sick eatin’ stuff like that.

Then, after we sat and waited fer awhile longer—the Yankee and his wife yakkin’ the whole time in Massachusian—they trotted out our soup. I tooken a big ol’ spoonful o’ mine an’ had to spit it back into the bowl. The dern fools forgotten to heat it. I mean, it was colder’n Aunt Nanny’s bed after Uncle Fred died. Yuck! I just’ lef’ it in the bowl and let them haul it back to the kitchen. Ignernt furriners.

Didn’ think it could get no worse, but it did. After leavin’ us to listen to them Yankees jibber-jabber for a long time, they finally brought supper out, but you wouldn’ believe it. They wuz a coupla li’l tiny pieces o’ meat on the plate, all covered up ‘ith gravy.

But ‘twarn’t even real gravy. No sir. It wuz brown. I mean, Betty Jo wouldn’ try ta serve no brown gravy. Ever’one knows gravy’s white.

An’ the taters. Warn’t no reg’lar mashed taters, nor even baked. They wuz in a li’l tiny pile all puffed up ‘ith a rooster comb or sumpin’ on top. Crusty, too. Not sof’ like real mashed taters. An no gravy a-tall on them.

Then they wuz some funny-lookin’ green stuff on the plate. Don’t know what that was.

I looked at Junie May and said, “Come on, honey. Le’s git outta here ‘fore we get pizened.”

She grabbed her purse an’ stood up. “Yeah. I seen some folks eatin’ hamburgers ‘n’ hot dogs up by the swimmin’ pool. Le’s go up there.”

When we lef’, that funny-lookin’ feller in the white suit by the door eyeballed us like we wuz the ones done sumpin’ wrong. Can you believe it?

——————————————

WANA: We may not have it all together, but together we have it all.

——————————————

For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him atdnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Advice, Authorship, Caring, cruises, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Fancy Series, Fine dining, friends, Heaven Sent, Life, Life experience, Life lessons, Life truths, Life values, People, Personal development, Self-help

Davidic Covenant

All too often, we Christians want to complicate Christianity. We come up with rules we think must govern what it means to be a Christian. We make up rituals and rites and all manner of complication that have nothing to do with the Christian life.

It is our purpose in this series to cut through all the rituals and rules and expose the true essence of Christianity. Hopefully, by the time this series is complete, everyone reading it will see how truly simple Christianity is.

If you have not read the earlier posts on this subject, find the “Categories” list in the right-hand column of this page and click on “Christianity 101.” This will pull up all the previous posts so you can read through them in order.

This week’s study is the Davidic Covenant. It is contained both in the 7th Chapter of 2 Samuel and in the 17th Chapter of 1 Chronicles. The actual text of these two passages involves so many words you probably wouldn’t want to read them all, so I’ll skip that and just discuss the meaning of it.

This covenant was established soon after David became king. He wanted to build a house for God, but God built one for him instead. He told David his son would build Him a Temple.

God promised David that his family would reign in Jerusalem forever, which may sound a bit strange at first glance. He also told David He would never turn His back on him as he did on Saul.

History shows that since the Babylonian captivity, no king of David’s lineage has been crowned in Jerusalem except Jesus, and He was mockingly crowned by Roman soldiers, so what’s up with this promise? The promise is centered on Jesus, Who is of David’s lineage. This promise will not be fulfilled until Jesus returns to set up His millennial kingdom.

Of course, the part about the temple was fulfilled by Solomon. He built it and housed the Ark of the Covenant in it.

When the angel of the LORD appeared to Mary, he confirmed this covenant God made with David. Luke 1 records it as follows:

32. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David;

33. and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.

Once again, we have a covenant God made some 3,000 years ago with one of our forefathers which gives us reason to feel secure and to trust God. The writers God anointed to write 2 Samuel and 1 Chronicles couldn’t have known Solomon would build the temple. They wrote what God directed them to write, and He, of course, did know. They also couldn’t have known what God meant by an eternal kingdom, but subsequent events and writing have shown us exactly what He meant.

Such demonstrations of God’s foreknowledge are very comforting to me and make me feel very secure in Him. How do you feel about this?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you abide in Me and My word abides in you, then you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Christianity 101 Tagged: Christian, Christian Fellowship, Christianity, David, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Davidic Covenant, Faith, Fancy Series, God is in control, Godly Wisdom, Grace, Heaven Sent, inspiration, Jesus, Works

Travel Destinations

The following was in an email I recently received. It was so good, I thought it was worth sharing with you.

My inconclusive travel plans:

I have been in many places, but I’ve never been in Cahoots. Apparently, you can’t go alone. You have to be in Cahoots with someone!!

I’ve also never been in Cognito. I hear no one recognizes you there.

I have, however, been in Sane. They don’t have an airport; you have to be driven there. I have made several trips there, thanks to my friends, family and work.

I would like to go to Conclusions, but you have to jump, and I’m not too much on physical activity anymore.

I have also been in Doubt. That is a sad place to go, and I try not to visit there too often.

I’ve been in Flexible, but only when it was very important to stand firm.

Sometimes I’m in Capable, and I go there more often as I’m getting older.

One of my favorite places to be, is in Suspense! It really gets the adrenalin flowing and pumps up the old heart! At my age I need all the stimuli I can get!

I may have been in Continent, but I don’t remember what country I was in. It’s an age thing. They tell me it is very wet and muddy there.

Life is short. Smile while you still have your teeth. From one “mental” person to another.

Perhaps you have been to some of these fascinating destinations. How did you enjoy your trip?

——————————————

WANA: We may not have it all together, but together we have it all.

——————————————

For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Advice, Authorship, Caring, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Fancy Series, friends, Heaven Sent, Life, Life experience, Life lessons, Life truths, Life values, People, Personal development, Self-help

Palestinian Covenant

All too often, we Christians want to complicate Christianity. We come up with rules we think must govern what it means to be a Christian. We make up rituals and rites and all manner of complication that have nothing to do with the Christian life.

It is our purpose in this series to cut through all the rituals and rules and expose the true essence of Christianity. Hopefully, by the time this series is complete, everyone reading it will see how truly simple Christianity is.

If you have not read the earlier posts on this subject, find the “Categories” list in the right-hand column of this page and click on “Christianity 101.” This will pull up all the previous posts so you can read through them in order.

We have covered the Adamic, Noahic, Abrahamic and Mosaic Covenants in earlier posts. Today we’ll take a look at what is referred to as the Palestinian Covenant. Like the Mosaic Covenant, it is directed at the nation of Israel, but, as with the Mosaic Covenant, we Christians can learn and take comfort in this one.

This covenant is given in the 30th Chapter of Deuteronomy, but to understand it, we need to take a look at the final verses of Chapter 29. Both passages below are from the New American Standard Version.

25. “Then men will say, ‘Because they forsook the covenant of the Lord, the God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt.

26. ‘They went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods whom they have not known and whom He had not allotted to them.

27. ‘Therefore, the anger of the Lord burned against that land, to bring upon it every curse which is written in this book;

28. and the Lord uprooted them from their land in anger and in fury and in great wrath, and cast them into another land, as it is this day.’

The curse listed above took place centuries before the birth of Jesus. From that time until the middle of the last century, there was no independent nation of Israel. It was subjugated by one conqueror after another until the nation finally ceased to exist. At the time I was born, during World War II, there was no nation of Israel. Jewish people were scattered to the corners of the earth.

Now, let’s take a look at Chapter 30. What a wonderful promise.

1. “So it shall be when all of these things have come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, and you call them to mind in all nations where the Lord your God has banished you,

2. and you return to the Lord your God and obey Him with all your heart and soul according to all that I command you today, you and your sons,

3. then the Lord your God will restore you from captivity, and have compassion on you, and will gather you again from all the peoples where the Lord your God has scattered you.

4. “If your outcasts are at the ends of the earth, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there He will bring you back.

5. “The Lord your God will bring you into the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it; and He will prosper you and multiply you more than your fathers.

6. “Moreover the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live.

7. “The Lord your God will inflict all these curses on your enemies and on those who hate you, who persecuted you.

8. “And you shall again obey the Lord, and observe all His commandments which I command you today.

9. “Then the Lord your God will prosper you abundantly in all the work of your hand, in the offspring of your body and in the offspring of your cattle and in the produce of your ground, for the Lord will again rejoice over you for good, just as He rejoiced over your fathers;

10. if you obey the Lord your God to keep His commandments and His statutes which are written in this book of the law, if you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and soul.

11. “For this commandment which I command you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it out of reach.

12. “It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will go up to heaven for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?’

13. “Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will cross the sea for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?’

14. “But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it.

What a promise. Who other than the Creator of the heavens and the earth could gather up people scattered among all nations and bring them back together to restore their homeland? The history books tell us that it was the United Nations, at the urging of Great Britain, that brought this about, but the United Nations was merely the vehicle God used to accomplish His purpose.

In 1948 a tiny remnant of Jews gathered in the area designated for them. Despite the hatred and constant attacks from Muslim Arabs, they held their territory. The attacks before they even had a chance to organize a government, but they prevailed. In 1967 and again in 1973, the combined forces of the Muslim nations of the Middle East attacked Israel, and in both cases the Israelis won decisively.

Do we think they were able to organize and sustain a nation just because of their superior intelligence and military superiority? They may have that superiority now, but they certainly didn’t have it at first. They were able to create and sustain their nation because of the promise of God in the Palestinian Covenant.

We Christians have a unique opportunity to see God’s power at work here. The promise was made over three millennia ago, and some of us got to live through the fulfillment of it. For those who were not around in 1948, it is still recent history. We can all take comfort in knowing that our God can enforce His promises and protect His people.

How does seeing God’s faithfulness at work in these covenants make you feel?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you abide in Me and My word abides in you, then you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

 

Filed under: Christianity 101 Tagged: Christian, Christian Fellowship, Christianity, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Faith, Fancy Series, God is in control, Godly Wisdom, Grace, Heaven Sent, inspiration, Israel, Jesus, Palestinian Covenant, Works

Being Thankful for You

We won’t be together next Thursday for me to express my thanks to each of you personally, but I am truly thankful for you. Everyone who reads this blog. Everyone who reads my posts on Facebook or Twitter. My friends in DFW Writer Collective. Everyone who has ever encouraged me verbally or through a written word. I deeply appreciate each and every one of you, and I pray God’s richest blessings on you.

I posted this image on Facebook a few weeks ago, but it speaks such a powerful truth I haven’t been able to let go of it.

My hope for each of you is that you can see your own worth. Don’t worry about your failings—we all have those. Don’t worry about whatever you don’t like when you look in the mirror—we all have those things, too. Don’t worry about negative things people may say about you—they are small-minded and are probably trying to lessen their own faults by denigrating you.

Remember always that you are valuable. So much so that God created you in His own image and after His own likeness, and that He did that because He wants to fellowship with you. Jesus endured being incarnated—becoming one of His own creatures—and allowing Himself to be crucified so that He could rise from the grave and redeem you from the consequences of your sin. That all makes you pretty important. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

I am having surgery on my left shoulder, and I don’t expect to be able to write much for the next little while. I don’t know whether that means for the next couple of weeks or couple of months or what. I just know that surgery on the left shoulder, for a left-hander, is going to be a bit debilitating. I’m not even sure I’ll be able to shave and dress myself normally for awhile, much less pound on a keyboard.

I’m going to try to set up enough blogs ahead of time to cover this period, but I’m not sure how many is enough. I may miss one or two along the way, and I’m sure I’ll miss or be limited on Facebook and Twitter. I also won’t be replying to comments during that time, but please don’t stop making them. I treasure each one of them. Try not to forget me, and I’ll see you as soon as I can. Meanwhile, remember I love each of you.

——————————————

WANA: We may not have it all together, but together we have it all.

——————————————

For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Advice, Authorship, Caring, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Fancy Series, friends, God, Heaven Sent, Jesus, Life, Life experience, Life lessons, Life truths, Life values, People, Personal development, Self-help, Thanksgiving

The Mosaic Covenant

All too often, we Christians want to complicate Christianity. We come up with rules we think must govern what it means to be a Christian. We make up rituals and rites and all manner of complication that have nothing to do with the Christian life.

It is our purpose in this series to cut through all the rituals and rules and expose the true essence of Christianity. Hopefully, by the time this series is complete, everyone reading it will see how truly simple Christianity is.

If you have not read the earlier posts on this subject, find the “Categories” list in the right-hand column of this page and click on “Christianity 101.” This will pull up all the previous posts so you can read through them in order.

Last week, we examined the Abrahamic Covenant. Like the Adamic and Noahic Covenants, it was a permanent covenant, meaning its provisions are still in full effect today, just as they were at the time the covenant was made.

Today, we look at a different type of covenant: the Mosaic Covenant. I know my Jewish friends will take exception to my next statement, and I don’t want to offend any of them, but the Mosaic Covenant was a temporary covenant. It provided the law which governed God’s people until the New Covenant was perfected by Jesus’s death on the cross and His subsequent resurrection. Since Jews don’t recognize this, they still live under and honor the Mosaic Covenant, but as Christians we live under the New Covenant.

The Mosaic Covenant was given to Moses by God on Mount Sinai, and it was recorded by Moses in Exodus 20 through 31. I won’t bog you down with the entire twelve-chapter covenant here, since it would make this blog far too long for anyone to want to read.

He starts out in Chapter 20 by giving us the Ten Commandments. Then He goes on through the next eleven chapters delineating the Mosaic Laws. If you really want to appreciate being under the New Covenant, read through these chapters and imagine trying to live up to each and every one of them.

Some of the interesting items covered here are how long a Hebrew slave must work for you if you buy him and what to do with a female slave you have purchased. The law goes on the cover what to do when a master injures a slave along with what to do if an ox gores a man to death. It also cover what to do if someone steals an ox or a sheep. It goes into what to do if a man seduces a virgin and that a sorceress is to be put to death.

It goes into what feast are to be celebrated and exactly how they are to be celebrated. Then it talks about the conquest of the land He has promised them and how He will go before them.

The rest goes into all sorts of detail about what Moses and the people are to do. He includes details of how the Ark of the Covenant is to be made.

As I said earlier, this covenant was superseded by the New Covenant. For that reason, I won’t continue going into details about its provisions. I do think there are a couple of things about it worth discussing.

As I already mentioned, it differs from the first three covenants we discussed in that it covered a specific period of time, while they were ongoing. It also differs from the first three in another way.

In each of the first three covenants, God talked about what He would do. He did not tell Adam or Noah or Abraham, “You do this, and I’ll do that.” He just volunteered to send an offspring of Eve’s who would bruise the serpent’s head. He just promised Noah he would never again flood the world—nothing required in return. In His covenant with Abram, He did require Abram to leave his home, but it was to lead him to a better place. There was no detailed list of do’s and dont’s like He gave to Moses.

From our 21st century vantage point, we can look back in history and see that God was always true to His word in fulfilling these covenants. We know Who bruised the serpent’s head. We know God has not flooded the world or sent any other worldwide disaster since Noah survived the flood. We know a great nation descended from Abram. We know God protected His people, Israel.

As 21st-century Christians, we have no excuse for doubting God. He has proven His faithfulness over and over again through the centuries. We should take this as a great comfort.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you abide in Me and My word abides in you, then you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Christianity 101 Tagged: Abraham, Abram, Adam, Christian, Christian Fellowship, Christianity, Covenants, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Faith, Fancy Series, God is in control, Godly Wisdom, Grace, Heaven Sent, inspiration, Jesus, Mosaic Covenant, Moses, Noah, Works

Just Like Kids

It’s been said that you never finish raising your kids, although, like Alexis in the television series Castle, my daughter is probably more adult than I am. Be that as it may, I’ve decided this bit of wisdom applies to my writing.

After years of wrestling with the story of Fancy, I decided to quit trying to write it as a novel and write a series of novellas instead. That seemed to work well, and I put the final volume on the market a few months ago and started on a new work.

Like the child that keeps moving back home, Fancy keeps returning and demanding that I drop everything else and take care of her. She’s done this to me several times now. Here’s the original cover we published for the first volume:

First, she came sniveling home crying that people made fun of her and said she looked like a first grade primer. I’d published the paperbacks in size 6 x 9 with large print, and I realized that was right. She did look like a first grade primer. So I changed the sizes of all the paperbacks and resubmitted them to CreateSpace.

No sooner had I got the new size on the market than she came back home and moaned that the titles of the novellas weren’t quite right. In particular, the title of volume five didn’t even bear the name Fancy. Once again, I agreed with her and decided to have all the titles redone so they maintained a consistency, including volume five. This meant having the covers redone, which of course, cost extra money.

Here’s how this cover looked:

Finally, everything seemed to be all right, and I settled down to work on my WIP. All right, that is, until about two weeks ago. I was at a “Meet and Greet” session with a bunch of other authors gathered for a book signing event, and someone mentioned that the covers of NY Times bestselling books generally had the authors’ names in big bold print at the top, with the book title below and somewhat more subdued.

While we all exchanged glances and began to discuss how much sense that made, Fancy came up and tapped me on the shoulder and reminded me that mine were not that way. She told me that, as much as she enjoyed having her name prominently displayed, I’d probably sell more books if I branded my own name instead of hers.

After discussing this with others at the event, I concluded she was right and that I needed to correct this. Once again, I’m helping my cover artist buy his groceries in order to overcome my own mistakes. The new cover of the first volume will look like this:

Of course, these changes don’t involve just the first volume. Each change had to be carried out with all seven volumes individually.

Actually, I’m undertaking two different projects at once here. She also told me I should bundle all the novellas into one or two volumes to make it easier for people. I won’t have to charge $2.99 per volume—which is admittedly on the high side for an e-version of a novella—just to keep Amazon, et al, from cutting my royalty in half. With several novellas bound into a single volume I can charge much less. So I’m working on putting all the e-versions together into one or two volumes. The paperbacks will be in three volumes, since putting all of them together would create a 700+ page book and they don’t divide logically into two volumes.

I don’t disagree with Fancy. The improvements did need to be made. But—over and over again? Maybe once I get these latest changes done Fancy will leave me alone to pursue new work. I’ll let you all know when the new covers and the combined volumes are ready. Maybe we’ll have a party, but I won’t invite Fancy. She’d probably tell me of some new change I needed to make.

——————————————

WANA: We may not have it all together, but together we have it all.

——————————————

For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Advice, Authorship, Caring, CreateSpace, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Fancy Series, friends, Heaven Sent, Life, Life experience, Life lessons, Life truths, Life values, People, Personal development, Self-help