Stewards of Life

Our pastor this week was giving us a pep talk on stewardship. He used 1 Corinthians 4:1 to remind us of how we are responsible for evangelizing others around us, but the more I reflected on this verse, the more I realized the importance of our stewardship from another perspective.

1 Cor 4:1: "This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God."

What are the mysteries of God? Of course, there’s the Trinity, the power of the Resurrection, and Heaven just name a few. But what if we looked at the mysteries of God from nature’s perspective?

There’s the universe, our galaxy, our solar system, our planet, our continent, our country, our state, our city, our neighborhood, our family, and our children. Why do I consider these mysteries?

The Big Bang theory and other “universe starter” theories all culminate around one idea: that at one moment in time “energy happened” and when it cooled, we got electrons, protons, etc. The universe came from a single point and expanded from there. Mysteries abound in this application of science since no scientist can tell you where the “energy” came from.

The fact that we are even here is fascinating. The fact that our planet can sustain life is amazing. The fact that scientists believe there are between 5 and 100 million species of life here on earth is awe-inspiring (source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20109284/ ).

The consideration that human life starts with the sharing of two independent DNA samples that are immediately combined to create a brand new human is unfathomable. What’s even more incredible is that within that new one cell, everything a new human being needs to make them a unique being is there; and when that human being dies, it will be immediately extinct.

In my last posting we touched on the mysteries of this physical 4% of the known universe, but what other mysteries of God exist? Can you think of one? Leave a comment and we can share with each other.

Right now, I can think of a biggie! God loves us each individually for who we are and that He knows how many hairs are on our heads. That is a mystery to sink your teeth into! The mystery of that kind of love is so encompassing, that we never really grasp what Divine Love means.

What does stewardship mean in relation to these mysteries? It means that we are to grow and cultivate those around us by educating them with this reality. Yet how often do we take the time to even mention the words “God loves you” to others? What are we afraid of?

A steward’s job is a very important one. It means that we are entrusted with the care of life around us. How many times to we see a piece of trash on the ground, but don’t pick it up? Are we being good stewards with respect to our own earth? What about when we see someone abusing themselves or others? Do we take the time to say, “You are special to God, take care of yourself and your family.” Usually we believe that it’s none of our business. However, if we are stewards, then every human life is sacred and loved by God.

I feel Colorado’s call right now is to share the truth that Amendment 48 brings to light: “The term ‘Person’ or ‘Persons’ shall include any human from the time of fertilization.” Visit the Colorado for Equal Rights website to learn more. (http://www.coloradoforequalrights.com/ )

Stewardship is huge responsibility not to be taken lightly. As Christians, not only do we have a duty fight for life, but we have the responsibility to cultivate it. This means caring for human life, for the earth and our galaxy. Life is a mystery! Cultivate it! Love is a mystery. Share it!

Next week, what it means to be stewards of the universe. See you then.

Where's the 96%?

I have to thank my husband for this week’s posting. He sent me an article: (http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/080804-mm-dark-energy-superclusters.html)

and suggested “96% of our universe can't be seen, but we are to believe it is there…remind you of anything else prominent in our lives?”

He referred to the following quote: “Dark energy is thought to make up about 74 percent of the universe, while dark matter — a mysterious form of matter that scientists can only detect by noting its gravitational pull on things — makes up about 22 percent. That leaves only 4 percent of the universe composed of things we can see and touch: the normal protons, electrons and neutrons called baryonic matter.”

Hmmmmm…a little math:

Dark energy 74% + Dark matter 22%

= Total unknown matter: 96%

Read the sentence again…Dark energy is thought to make up… dark matter a mysterious form of matter.

So, basically scientists are using “evidence” to produce this theory using other theories and laws, including the conservation of energy ( http://www.fi.edu/guide/hughes/energyconservation.html ) and Kepler’s law (http://home.cvc.org/science/kepler.htm ).

Fine, I accept this. Scientists are still learning about what makes our universe tick.

Okay, now I want to turn your attention to another topic.

“And God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light.” (Gen1:3)

“Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind…”(Exodus14:21)

“Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wanted.” (John 6:11)

“Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:30)

Facts: (1) The earth is here. (2) Moses was a real person and ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics indicate that Exodus 14:21 happened (http://www.trafford.com/4dcgi/robots/05-0498.html ). (3) Jesus existed and he fed over 5000 people, history does not dispute that. (4) Jesus healed many sick people and restored people to health…even life.

Fine. I accept this. I am still learning more and so are historians and archaeologists.

Scientists want us to believe things we can’t see…96% of what we can’t see. The Bible contains historic facts. Does it contain less than 4% of facts?

Scientists ask us to believe what we cannot see, yet believe God is a myth. There are Christians who ask us to believe the Bible, but discard science. So why can’t we all get along?

I believe it is because we are not asking the same question.

Which is the harder question to answer? How or why?

“How” is a question that can be answered with more research. “Why” is a question that can only be answered with the heart. If you cannot come to terms with your heart, then you can never answer the question why. If you are so threatened by the fact that there is something out there bigger than humankind, you may never get to the why and you will continue to be befuddled by the how. It is only when “how” and “why” come together that Truth makes sense.

While I don’t think Dr. Wayne Dyer would appreciate the way I use his quote (his new age thinking that you are your own universe doesn’t leave room for God), it doesn’t mean his quote doesn’t hold merit.

"Change the way you look at things and the things you look at will change..."

How far could we get with science if we were determined to look at it through God’s eyes instead of our own? Just a thought.

(Picture from NASA:

http://www.nasaimages.org/luna/servlet/detail/nasaNAS~12~12~64321~168808:Towering-Infernos

An Experience in Education

I had the opportunity to experience a bunch of different things this week. I wanted to share some of them with you because they all boil down to the same result.

First, a friend sent me the following YouTube video on science and faith (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_e4zgJXPpI4 ). You don’t need ANY science background to understand this video. It is very interesting and it follows the ideal of this blog, which is to educate others on the beautiful dance between science and faith.

After I finished that video, I clicked on another YouTube video that interested me: “The Church of Oprah Exposed” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JW4LLwkgmqA&feature=related ). I’m not a big Oprah fan for the simple reason that another author friend of mine was invited on her show and Oprah was all about Oprah and barely included her guests in her discussion. (I guess that shouldn’t surprise me. Her photo is on her monthly magazine…every month…only her face.) Anyway, that video is worth watching too. If you are Christian, you may or may not see Oprah’s subtle message that is affecting the way many others see Christianity.

Lastly, I received a barrage of emails this week on political candidates and their ideals. There were emails that described Obama Barrack as a caring, thoughtful Senator, concerned with all life issues. Other emails that describe John McCain as a family man who’s raised seven children including a little girl adopted from one of Mother Teresa’s orphanages.

What do all these experiences have in common? My take is EDUCATION.

First, the YouTube video introduces the gluing protein Laminin, it purpose of keeping us “glued” together and how Laminin exists in the shape of the cross. Laminin reveals God’s love in the tiniest protein. Without the help of a microbiologist from Texas, the Christian in the YouTube video Louie Giglio wouldn’t have been able to educate others on how appropriate this protein is to us today.

Secondly, the emails I received were designed to influence me, yet they lacked decision-making information. They talked about the character of each candidate, but their voting records (which reveal their actions) were missing. It made me think. How often do we take the time to go and find the voting records of political candidates? Do we rely solely on what others tell us, or the candidate’s speeches to influence our vote? Without educating ourselves, how do we make an informed decision?

Lastly, “The Church of Oprah” video is enlightening because it shows how vulnerable we are when we don’t KNOW our Christian faith. We need to understand what the truths of faith reveal and why they exist. It’s not appropriate to say, “It’s a church rule”. Our faith cannot increase if we live by rules alone. Rules are there for a reason, and we need to delve into the history of why they are there in order to make full sense of them in our lives.

For example, one thing Oprah said in her video was that there was a time when she rejected her Baptist roots because she heard the minister say, “God is a jealous God”. She interpreted that as the minister saying God was jealous of her. Since she believed God was a loving God, the whole jealousy thing didn’t fit. She rejected her Christian roots because of that simple sentence.

Christians who reflect on Scripture and educate themselves either through Bible study or through classes understand that the author who wrote that verse was indicating that God wants to be first in our lives. He loves us so much that He wants us to love him back as much as we can. It is silly and juvenile to believe that God is jealous of us. Such interpretation comes from a lack of critical thinking.

Taken completely out of context, Oprah is using this statement to persuade uneducated Christians of her “truth” instead of the real Truth.

So what did I learn this week?

Education is key and it doesn’t matter what the topic is! Science, faith, philosophy, and politics are just a few of the things we need to learn about. We cannot afford to be lazy any longer in this country. We are paying for it now as it is.

We need to take the time, learn something new, pray on it, and apply it to our lives. What have you learned today? (By the way: The picture is of a brain neuron.)

Why I'm Not Feeling the Blog Thing - Part 2

This is part two of Robbie's blog on energy. It is clear from the responses of last week’s blog (or the lack thereof) that my topic was too heavy. Therefore, I’m scaling back a bit. I’ve collaborated with my dear friend Robbie Iobst (http://robbieiobst.blogspot.com/) to create a two-part blog on energy. Robbie is feeling the same way I am about blogging right now, so we put our heads together and came up with the following.

Energy. What is energy? According to Wikipedia, there are, “Several different forms of energy, including kinetic, potential, thermal, gravitational, sound energy, light energy, elastic, electromagnetic, chemical, nuclear, and mass have been defined to explain all known natural phenomena.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy)

Which one(s) do you have?

For me, there are days when I feel the gravitational force greatly…I move slower than molasses. I don’t have much thermal energy…I’m cold all the time. I have kinetic energy in that when I get going, I have a hard time stopping. I have a great deal of sound energy…just ask my kids about my yelling…I can even go nuclear with them (another type of energy). But what I have most is potential energy. In my head, I have many things in I want to accomplish.

Thus, we come back to the point of Robbie’s blog. Time and energy. I’m working on a couple of manuscripts now, and therefore haven’t done a great job of keeping up with my blog. Robbie is the same way. Our kids are off for the summer, which is cutting into the writing time too. It’s a great balancing act and there are times when I swear I hear circus music in the background.

Oh yeah, back to energy…

Wikipedia also defines conversation of energy: “While one form of energy may be transformed to another, the total energy remains the same. This principle, the conservation of energy, was first postulated in the early 19th century, and applies to any isolated system. According to Noether's theorem, the conservation of energy is a consequence of the fact that the laws of physics do not change over time.^[2]”

At first, this was a scary thought. The “total energy” remains the same. That means that my synchronized juggling act is in danger all the time. What now?!!!

I’ll tell you what! I’m leaving it up to the Lord. It is a façade to think that I’m in charge. What I need to remember is that if the Lord wants me to finish all these tasks, then I will. I shouldn’t try to keep up with everything!

For all those people out there who suffer from the same “energy crisis” as I do…

STOP! Enjoy the weather, enjoy your family and have a glass of lemonade (or Red Bull if you think it will help).

Faith…science…Got questions? What would you like me to talk about? Leave suggestions and we’ll work on them together.

Free Will and Science

Recently I was talking with a close friend about free will. You may ask yourself what this has to do with science…I did at first too.

The conversation followed the premise: Why didn’t Jesus make himself known to be God? Why do we have to discern for ourselves? Why didn’t he prove it? For that matter, why didn’t God the Father come down and take care of the whole question!

The answer is free will. God loves us so much that he is willing to let us choose whether or not we want Him. Remember the famous saying, “If you love someone set them free, if they come back they’re yours, if they don’t, they never were.” (See these and so many versions of this saying at: http://teratalks.com/index.php/teratalks/comments/if_you_love_someone_set_her_free/)

So it is with God. God wants us to choose Him.

If God showed up one day and you could see Him, you’d know just how real He is. However, if He just showed up, you wouldn’t have the choice to believe, you’d be forced to believe because He would be standing right in front of you. Free will wouldn’t exist.

However, do we realize that He is already amongst us? In my current manuscript, I show the many ways in which God is present in our DNA. But more subtly than that, God exists in every part of nature that we see and experience. Every tree, every bug, every sunrise and sunset, God is present. That is our proof that God exists.

Scientists grapple with questions of how the Big Bang happened, and the first event that even caused the Big Bang to happen. They look throughout the universe seeking evidence of the first elements, and how long those elements have existed. However, the question they are asking isn’t really the right question. The question is why. Why did the Big Bang happen? For me, I have to ask, “How fantastic was “the plan” that after the Big Bang happened I can now smell a stunning rose or experience an incredible sunset? In my imagination, I could never dream of such beautiful things.

The even greater question comes to mind. How can anyone have such a grand plan that everything in nature works in harmony? The “Grand Plan” contains many systems that keep nature working. For example, bees gather pollen for themselves, which makes honey for mammals to enjoy. But at the same time, those same bees are pollinating plants so that those plants can create fruits and vegetables for us to eat. Fecal matter from cows and sheep and other animals is used as compost to grow crops. Everything has a purpose; everything is in the Grand Plan.

So how do we go along life and not notice these things? How do scientists sit in their laboratories, eat their lunches and not consider that the Grand Plan provided them with that meal? How do we get to the point where we take all this for granted?

The answer is the same. Free will. If we were forced to acknowledge that God provided that meal, we would be forced to believe that we answer to a higher power and we would be stripped of free will. We would be stripped of true love.

In a past posting entitled, “The Bees Are Dying” (http://lorettaoakes.blogspot.com/2008/03/bees-are-dying.html), I talked about how bees become disoriented (Colony Collapse Disorder). Scientists believe this phenomenon is due to the increase in cell phone usage. The cell phone waves are interrupting the bees’ radar.

Now I want to take this a step further. Scientists have been genetically engineering crops for quite a while now for several reasons. They want to make the crops disease and pest resistant, increase productivity of the crop as well as enhance the size of the fruits from the crop. We are proud of ourselves in “manipulating” nature to get what we want.

However, what effect does that have on the rest of the system? When we change the DNA of even the simplest flower (how many hybrids do you plant every year?), how does that affect the pollen of that plant, the bees that pick it up, or the honey that is created from it? Do we know how we’ve affected the complete system?

Do we recognize that in actions of manipulating DNA, we’ve exercised our free will? It could have been in the Grand Plan that nothing, not an iota of matter, could be willfully changed. Yet, we are able to change it.

Do we realize just how far that free will goes? And when we do reflect on what that means, do we take responsibility for how we’ve affected the Grand Plan? A plan that we did not create, but a God that loved us enough to include us in His plan…how have we affected it?

Ideas to ponder, don’t you think?

Cough, Cough, Sniffle, Sniffle

For the last two weeks, I’ve been out of my routine with pneumonia. It seems like every spring I come down with a bad cold or some other virus that makes me stop everything I’m doing and just “be”.

As I agonized over the fact that I hadn’t updated my blog, I tried to focus on what I might write. I researched the pneumonia “bug” and bronchitis. Was science and faith present in this? While it was all very interesting to me, it didn’t speak from my heart.

What kept coming back to me was my grandmother’s saying, “…its hell to grow old.” That spoke to me. But why?

It seems that every year I get this respiratory bug, it gets harder to kick it or it takes longer. I look in the mirror and I see the wrinkles that weren’t there twenty years ago (even ten, even five!). I take a step and I hear my “Velcro” knees and know the arthritis that’s getting worse will eventually keep me from doing some of the things that I love (if I don’t spring for the $20K per knee injections of my scientifically grown cartilage). I think of all the little aches and pains I didn’t use to have and think of my grandmother’s saying.

So why do we grow old? Scientifically, our cells have a lifespan determined by something at the end of our DNA called a telomere. Each time our cells divide, a little piece of that is lost, so that by the time we are old, our telomere is very short (read the following two websites for interesting information on the importance of telomeres: http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/T/Telomeres.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telomere). It’s like a time clock or an hourglass that gives us a certain amount of time on earth.

Remember the cloned sheep, Dolly? She seemed perfectly normal when she was born, but she lived only a portion of a sheep’s lifespan. She grew old quicker than she should have. Scientists studied this (as poor Dolly suffered) to find out that every time they divided the cells to get another clone, they shortened that all-important telomere that led to Dolly’s lifespan. They also used a six-year-old ewe to get the DNA to clone Dolly, so that ewe’s lifespan was already cut in half. That meant double trouble for Dolly.

So why was the telomere created? Certainly, our Creator had a reason for such a device. Why are we allowed to wrinkle, creak, and lose our faculties?

Pride.

For Christians, pride is considered the root for so many other sins including lust, sloth, gluttony, greed, wrath, and envy. Where does the root of pride live? In our bodies. Beauty, athletic abilities, bird song voices, steel minds that can think through any problem, all of these things come from the bodies that our Creator has given us. Many times we are swept away thinking that we can accomplish anything…given the time…and we rely on ourselves to do just that.

But over time, we lose our beauty, our athletic skill, our voices, our minds. Each time we lose a piece of one of those things (or think we will lose it); we are forced to remember that we are not here forever. We are forced to rely on God.

I grew up watching the show, “Family Affair” and loved the movie, “Parent Trap” (the original!). I thought Brian Keith was fabulous. So it hit hard when I heard he committed suicide. Why did he do it? He felt like he was of no use, he was losing the battle with age and cancer. He despaired. He couldn’t release his pride.

Many people wonder why it is such a bad thing to rely on themselves. “God helps those who help themselves”, right? (That is actually a quote from Benjamin Franklin, not the Bible as so many people think.)

Yes…and no. The more we rely on ourselves, the less we trust God. And when we lose our balance on the tight rope of time, no one can save us but God. That’s where pride comes in. Can we let go of the pride and allow God to catch us when we fall?

If we are full of ourselves, then we are not full of God. Our motivations, our understandings, our works will all be marred by the stain of pride, not faith. The pain of this truth is the pain we all must bear if we desire more from ourselves than this earthly life. In order to offer ourselves daily to God, we must give freely of ourselves.

So now, while my bones creak and my eyesight wanes, I have a better understanding of my grandmother’s saying. I also have a better understanding of God’s plan. I can’t make it to Him with the weight of pride on my back. I have to let it go. Therefore, I’ll sit here with my cough drops, my tissues and my water, and consider the ways I can release my pride. So when I’m feeling better, I can focus on God’s plan for me with regard to this earthly life.

Now go wash your hands so you don’t get sick from this transmission!

The Color of You

My son’s class bought a caterpillar set and over the next few weeks, they watched as the caterpillars turned into butterflies. What fascinated them most were the colors of the butterflies. The teacher asked, “Why did God give these butterflies so many colors? He did not have to do it. So why did He?”

Has our Creator placed symbolism in this gift of colors? Let’s look at color and see.

Color consists of hue, saturation and intensity. Three separate aspects define one thing. Could this be another symbol of the Trinity? Dive into the sea of color with me…

Oddly enough, one of the best website for the definition of color is a software development website. (http://www.devx.com/projectcool/Article/19954/0/page/6)

According to devx.com, hue is “the name of a distinct color of the spectrum—red, green, yellow, orange, blue, and so on. It is the particular wavelength frequency.” Without hue, there would be only black and white. If we associate God the Father with hue, then God gives color. He provides the canvas of the universe and then sprinkles us—color—throughout. Just as each color is unique, so are we. Without that color, we would remain black and white.

The same website defines saturation as the “…’purity’ of the color. Saturation refers to the amount of white life (or gray paint) mixed with the hue”. For example, it defines the difference between steel blue and royal blue. How does this apply to humans? The more we are saturated with Jesus Christ, the more we are in love with the second person of the Trinity, the more drenched with color we are. (http://www.devx.com/projectcool/Article/19954/0/page/6)

If we categorize the Father and Son as hue and saturation, intensity symbolizes the Holy Spirit. In the color scheme, intensity provides brightness of color. The more we allow the Holy Spirit to work within us, the more intense our color becomes.

In the end, we ourselves become a symbol of the Trinity – another way we reflect the image of God. God gives us our hue, Christ gives us our saturation, and the Holy Spirit gives us our intensity. When we fully accept all these pieces, we become who our Creator intended us to be.

How boring would it be for us to walk around with only one piece of the color trio! Nevertheless, that’s exactly what happens when we don’t take faith seriously. We become black and white, or a washed out color or we end up faded.

Now I have to confess that this is how I see atheists…faded. It has always confounded me that atheists refuse to see creation in a fuller way. Yet, I now understand that they have sterilized their world.

In the November 13th 2007 issue of TIME Magazine, Francis Collins and Richard Dawkins went head to head on the topic of the existence of God. What amazed me is that they were asking two different questions. Francis Collins said that he had moved past the how and into the why. He was asking why the earth was created, why we contained DNA, why creation existed at all.

Science is very good at asking the how…that’s what science if for. However, when we stop there, we deny the very thing that makes us human. Do animals ask why they are here? Humans have the ability to discern that question and to see the color in the answer.

One thing that amazes me about scientists who claim to be atheists is how matter of fact they seem to be. Now the answer screams aloud to me. If they dared to ask why, then they’d have to confront bigger questions. Why did the Creator make the universe?

The answer to this question is so awesome that it hits you in the face. The answer is love. That answer is one that atheists cannot confront. It is unbelievable to them that a love exists that is so great that it encompasses everything around them. If you can fathom that an ultimate power exists and loves you, then you can put science and faith in its place. If you cannot confront the truth that Someone so great loves you, then you will continue to be a one-dimensional character—a creature living in a faded existence.

Color in creation is what makes our world vibrant and alive. Our Creator didn’t have to do it, but He did. He uses color to help us define everything around us. He loves us that much. Can you comprehend that kind of love?