Memo From the Mann

Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him. ~ Mark 15:32
Have you ever witnessed a small child get set in their ways. They perceive a situation through their very young eyes and mind and you can’t persuade them any different. They normally have to act out with some form of intolerance. They cry out, they stamp their feet, ...holding their breath, that’s a good one ... they usually do this until they tire out and then either fall asleep or forget why is was they were so upset.
At the crucifixion in (Mark 15) there was a group of people that also perceived a situation and had their minds set. Pilate attempted to reason with them, but they weren’t gonna hear any of  it. Their eyes and mind were set on a decided conclusion.
Petulant behavior isn’t just a youngster’s condition. There are plenty of adults that haven’t figured out how to negotiate not getting their own way. It’s the reason why we witness road rage, unprovoked violence, and a world that’s so impatient.
The way we perceive a situation will determine how we react to it. In Romans 12:2 we read, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
At the gathering before Pilate we learned of a group of people who had become conformed to the world they were living in, and as for the young child, they may very well need to be taught of God’s way before they can mature in their faith, but as for our present world, the unconforming begins with ...a transforming and renewing of the minds, and a discerning of God’s will,  would certainly be a welcome change, and a start to recognizing what is good and acceptable, and perfect.
Pray on...
Scripture: Mark 15:32; Romans 12:2
Song: I'm Willing to Do Your Will (Album: Worship)

The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” ~ Mark 14:38
I admit right here, and right now that I am weak, that I have moments where I lose control, that I have a dark secret, that I have an addiction ...to dark chocolate. Yes, I also have other food addictions, but not withstanding them, I continue.
My spiritual life has been in good condition these past number of years. It’s been a steady deepening of understanding, and a closer relationship with God, but saying that, I have to be clear that my flesh has not been in lock step. It has, and continues to be a deterrent to my lifestyle, it is a biblical thorn for sure.
Jesus says in Mark 14:38 that the spirit is willing to avoid temptation, but the body is vulnerable, that it’s weak ...and so it is as late in the evening I hear the dark chocolate calling, and it tempts me to no end, until weakened, I make my quiet, slow, guilty walk, to my downfall.
Now some perspective would be good here. Dark chocolate is not what some of you would think to be a serious breach of temptation, but it is because it’s part of a human condition that we have to be aware of, and one that we prayerfully must deal with.
As I wrote in my song “I’m a prayer whisperer in need of a Gethsemane Wink.
Pray on...
Scripture: Mark 14:38Song: A Gethsemane Wink (Album: Love Strands)

Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. 
~ Mark 13:33
Our demise here on this earth is a guarantee, it’s a definite, you can bet your life on it. (Sorry for that little play on words there).
Knowing that, we find ourselves in a place where we don’t have any idea when and or where that day will happen. We don’t have a single clue!
Now in context, this verse (Mark 13:33) is speaking Biblically of the end times, but when are days come to an end, that in itself is our personal end times.
And yes, we should be on guard, and we certainly should be alert to the chance that it could happen at any moment, but that doesn’t mean we should be living in a state of fear. But it does behoove us to be living in a state of awareness.
Are our hearts right? Are we experiencing each day to its fullness? Are we walking in the footsteps of Jesus? Are we acting on the opportunities that are presented before us?
Through our faith are we eagerly awaiting, and anticipating our arrival before God?
Pray on...
Scripture: Mark 13:33Song: Stars Under My Feet (Album: Stars Under My Feet)

but she, out of her poverty, put in everything ~ Mark 12:44
I often foolishly offer that my happiness is in opposite proportion to my lack of debt. That is to say that I carry no debt, and believe that I live a happier, more content, and stress free life because of it.
Now the premise is that I don’t have money problems which relieves the weight, and stress, that accompanies them. My wife and I make our purchases in cash. We have learned to wait until we can afford an item before we bring it home.
Then again, we were brought up in a time when our parents paid over time and after the last payment brought home a brand new sparkling product. Today we bring home the product and by the time we pay it off, it’s old and needs to be replaced. Backwards huh?
But it hit me today that I’ve got a bit of it wrong. Yes, I have no worldly debt, and I love that, but I DO have a world of spiritual debt.
Everything I have is by grace. Just for clarity’s sake, the monies we save for the things we need are eyeballed to us by God’s grace, It’s really just borrowed from God, I don’t own it ...it could very easily be taken away by God at any moment ...in reality, I’m actually nothing but in debt to him.
Truly I tell you, this poor soul owes absolutely everything to his gracious father in heaven ... and so do you!
Pray on...
Scripture: Mark 12:44Song: You Give to Me (Album: The Twelve)

Have you seen the money people are spending on collectibles lately? An amazing amount of money has been, and is, being spent on all sorts of things that have been in the possession of the famous (often worth more when they’re no longer with us). I don’t personally adhere to this behavior, but then again I’ve never been an autograph hound either.
So I’m reading in Mark 11 about the arrival of Jesus in Jerusalem, and something jumps out at me. Something that screams ‘Ebay!’
Listen to this and see if you know where I’m going...
Mark 11:1–3 (NIV): As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. 3 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.’ ”
Did you hear it?  Did you notice it? The colt, the unridden colt, the unridden, prophetic colt (or donkey as it’s sometimes referred)! Are you gonna tell me that the colt wouldn’t be a collectors item in today’s world, that it wouldn’t be worth way too much money, that it wouldn’t garner a hefty profit for someone on Ebay?
Now what does that tell us about the world we live in? There has to be a message loud and clear in that revelation.
See, I understand the value of the colt. It served the Son of God. It transported him ...and no one else had ever ridden it (a virgin of sorts). But there’s a difference between valuing something and using it for a prophet. It seems to me that our world has blurred the line between the two.
Then again we live in a world that is so far removed from that Palm Sunday event so many years ago. But I can’t help but wonder about such things ...and that recognizing the world’s values, the careless loss of innocence ... and the basic disrespect for human life aren’t signs of how we’re treading down a dark path.
Lord, help us to regain our vision, our voice, and our love for the life that was won for us.
Pray on...
Song: It's Cold War (Album: Trio)Scripture: When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. ~ Mark 11:7

As the new year begins, and we welcome an unknown future of events, this seemed like a beneficial piece of scripture to begin with this week.
Each new day is unlike any we’ve experienced before, and to negotiate our way through it successfully we need some guidance, and that is what God reveals today in Isaiah 58:11. Not only does he say he’ll guide us, but he says he’ll always guide us.
Pray on,
~ E.M.
Song: Lead Me Down the Road (Album: Re:Prize)