"The Man Who Broke Into Auschwitz"

Interesting Article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/us_auschwitz_book

The M'Cheyne Cluster 3.31

"You shall season all your grain offerings with salt. You shall not let the salt of the covenant with your God be missing from your grain offering; with all your offerings you shall offer salt." Leviticus 2:13.

"If his offering is a sacrifice of peace offering, if he offers an animal from the herd, male or female, he shall offer it without blemish before the Lord." Leviticus 3:1.

"It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations, in all your dwelling places, that you eat neither fat nor blood." Leviticus 3:17.

"He who finds a wife finds a good thing

and obtains favor from the Lord." Proverbs 18:22.

"For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him." Colossians 1:16. 

"Simon Peter said to them, 'I am going fishing.' They said to him, 'We will go with you.' They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing." John 21:3.

"Now none of the disciples dared ask him, 'Who are you?' They knew it was the Lord." John 21:12.

"Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written." John 21:25.

Still My Soul

I’ve been enjoying Keith and Kristyn Getty's song talking about resting in God. My favorite line, "Still my soul be still, do not be moved by lesser lights and fleeting shadows."

The M'Cheyne Cluster 3.30

"It is a burnt offering, a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the Lord." Exodus 1:9, 13, 17

"A truly wise person uses few words;

A person with understanding is even-tempered." Proverbs 17:27 (NLT)

"Let your reasonableness be known to everyone." Philippians 4:5a

"Jesus said to him, 'Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.'" John 20:29

Here is a striking recognition of Jesus calling His disciples brothers. Talking to Mary Magdalene, He says, "Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" John 20:17 (Emphasis Added)

Why Something Left?

Well, I fancied the poem by Robert Frost entitled "Unharvested." The whole story. Partly.

A scent of ripeness from over a wall.
And come to leave the routine road
And look for what had made me stall,
There sure enough was an apple tree
That had eased itself of its summer load,
And of all but its trivial foliage free,
Now breathed as light as a lady's fan.
For there had been an apple fall
As complete as the apple had given man.
The ground was one circle of solid red.
May something go always unharvested!
May much stay out of our stated plan,
Apples or something forgotten and left,
So smelling their sweetness would be no theft.

 - Robert Frost

The M'Cheyne Cluster 3.28

"as the LORD had commanded Moses." Exodus 39:1, 5, 7, 21, 26, 29, 31, 32, 42, 43 (ESV)

Better to have little, with fear for the Lord,

than to have great treasure and inner turmoil. Proverbs 15:16 (NLT)

But Peter stood outside at the door. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the servant girl who kept watch at the door, and brought Peter in. John 18:16 (ESV)

So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, 30for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me. Phil 2:29

Passengers...the last people I ever see.

Who of us hasn't thought, "This could be my last flight?"

At the gate, I sit in a row of blue seats
with the possible company of my death,
this sprawling miscellany of people—
carry-on bags and paperbacks— 

that could be gathered in a flash
into a band of pilgrims on the last open road.
Not that I think
if our plane crumpled into a mountain 

we would all ascend together,
holding hands like a ring of skydivers,
into a sudden gasp of brightness,
or that there would be some common spot 

for us to reunite to jubilize the moment,
some spaceless, pillarless Greece
where we could, at the count of three,
toss our ashes into the sunny air. 

It's just that the way that man has his briefcase
so carefully arranged,
the way that girl is cooling her tea,
and the flow of the comb that woman 

passes through her daughter's hair ...
and when you consider the altitude,
the secret parts of the engines,
and all the hard water and the deep canyons below ... 

well, I just think it would be good if one of us
maybe stood up and said a few words,
or, so as not to involve the police,
at least quietly wrote something down. 

"Passengers" by Billy Collins

The M'Cheyne Cluster 3.26

"The cherubim spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings..." Exodus 37:9 (ESV)

"The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing,

while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied." Proverbs 13:4

"Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible." Ephesians 6:24

"Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God." John 16:2

"Take heart; I have overcome the world." John 16:33

Timing's Everything

I remember having a conversation about relationships with a respected friend and mentor. While I was spouting about my trifling girl troubles, he said definitively, "Well, it all comes down to timing, brother." Timing. I remember being blown away with such simplicity. Is that all it is? I had my doubts. That is, until I read this poem.

Timing's everything. The vapor rises
high in the sky, tossing to and fro,
then freezes, suddenly, and crystalizes
into a perfect flake of miraculous snow.
For countless miles, drifting east above
the world, whirling about in a swirling free-
for-all, appearing aimless, just like love,
but sensing, seeking out, its destiny.
Falling to where the two young skaters stand,
hand in hand, then flips and dips and whips
itself about to ever-so-gently land,
a miracle, across her unkissed lips:
as he blocks the wind raging from the south,
leaning forward to kiss her lovely mouth.

                - "Snowflake" by William Baer.

The M'Cheyne Cluster 3.25

God called those "whose hearts stirred [them] up to come to do work." Exodus 36:2 (ESV)

"Better to be an ordinary person with a servant, than to be self-important but have no food." Proverbs 12:9 (NLT)

In Christ, there is a calling to "walk in love, as Christ loved us," letting there be "thanksgiving." Walking in the light, while trying to "discern what is pleasing to the Lord." Ephesians 5 (ESV)

Prayer: May I abide in Christ, remembering without Him I "can do nothing." For Christ said, "Abide in my love." May I also "love one another" as Christ loved me and called me "friend." Christ showed the greatest love and the Holy Spirit "bears witness." John 15 

Freedom and Delivery

Found this Christ exalting statement in my morning reading. It reminded me of a Caedmon's Call song entitled "Free". Find it on iTunes.


‎"The liberty which Christ hath purchased for believers under the gospel consists in their freedom from the guilt of sin, the condemning wrath of God, the curse of the moral law; and in their being delivered from this present evil world, bondage to Satan, dominion of sin, from the evil of afflictions, sting of death, victory of the grave, and everlasting damnation;" - Westminster Confession (Chap. 20)