Initially there were the twelve tribes of Israel, mush like Jesus and his twelve apostles. All of the tribes were God’s people, not just one. But God’s favor rested mostly on Judah and Joseph, with Judah leading the way when they marched. Eventually there was a split and the northern part of Israel became known as still Israel and the southern kingdom was called Judah. To this day there is still speculation as to who these northern tribes are. But many have researched them throughout Europe and even America.

So while Judah and the jewish people are indeed God’s chosen people, so are the rest of Israel! Through some of my research I have been trying to find these lost tribes. Many people living in Europe and America are from what I believe to be the lost house of Israel. In the end God promises to bring two sticks together, one from Ephraim (Joseph’s son) and one from Judah. Some see Christianity representing Ephraim, so bringing christians and jews together would be the fulfillment of this prophecy.

You may actually be a part of God’s chosen people Israel and not know it. God promises in the end that the jealousy of Ephraim at Judah will stop. How he will do this noone knows, but it is a promise. Much of the anti-semitism to this days actually stems from an age old score or divorce between Israel and Judah. It has been in fact Israel persecuting the jewish people and of course it has gone both ways. So the lost house of Israel has had a grudge against Judah out of jealousy. But somehow God will take this jealousy away. If you have a thing against jews, it may be an age old grudge you are not aware of. And you may be angry at those on your same team.

God says in the Bible that if we seek him with all our heart we’ll find him.

This argument is simply an assumption and offers no real reason for there not being a God. It begs the question why can’t God for a temporary period of time allow bad things to happen? Perhaps there is a greater reason behind everything that we simply don’t understand. Sometimes perhaps there is a reason to allow bad things to happen. A good example is a parent who allows their child to fall down to learn a lesson. It’s not that the parent enjoys seeing their child hurt, but there is something to learn from the experience that the child unfortunately could not learn any other way. Sometimes learning from our own mistakes and those around us is the best way to learn!

So why would God allow a hurricane to kill hundreds of people, or disease, wars, famine, etc. The answer may be so far above our thoughts that we could never truly understand. But perhaps it is part of a learning experience. According to the Bible we are living in a temporary state where evil exists. It is promised that one day there will be no more tears, but rather only pure joy. This brings to mind that wrestler who has trained so hard for the big match. He sacrifices his time and goes through plenty of physical pain to achieve his goal. But then when his hard work pays off and he wins the big match, he feels satisfied.

As we read the Bible we see a storyline developing. God creates the perfect world and perfect
creatures to live in this world. Everything is perfect, there is no sin, no death, and evil does not exist. But then something horrible happens, Adam and Eve disobey God and are banished from the garden. As a result of their sin many other bad things happen. But it doesn’t end there, God himself intervenes in the affairs of man throughout history and offers the hope of restoration. The hope that everything will one day be restored and even made better!

The biblical storyline brings to mind the typical movie where everything starts off well. We see the all American family and everything is going great. But then something bad happens, the family breaks up and everyone becomes embittered and miserable. Then we see how the characters develop, handle stress, and how the new situation their in compares with where they started from. But then we see the family coming around and eventually in the end coming back together. How many movies are based on a couple falling in love, breaking up, and then coming back together again. And often not until they realized what they truly had can they truly appreciate one another moving ahead. We may even see the parallel of tempation where
the guy is tempted by the prettier woman and gives up all he has for her. Only to end up bankrupt and broken from this. But then he wakes up and goes running back to what he had, something he perhaps didn’t appreciate before.

So why exactly God allows evil to exist we may never know or perhaps we will one day. But nevertheless it is not a good argument to use to deny God’s existence. There are many reasons why God can allow evil to exist and this does not conflict with his good nature. I’ll hold on to the fact that he created everything initially good and on to his promise to one day restore everthing to perfection!

I noticed some time ago that certain numbers would follow me around. Everytime I looked at the clock I would see for example 31 in some fasion. Then I looked back through my life and sure enough I used to live at a number 31 address and also a variation 103. Somehow everytime I decide to look at a clock I see something like 131 or 313. The number 11 also follows me everywhere around. The probability of this happening as coincidence is amazing. But it’s not just these numbers, it’s everything. Sometimes I’ll say something, even a joke, and I realize it has revealed to me something about myself. The more you open your eyes and ears, the more you start to see and the more you are amazed. The math for this to happen to everyone everywhere is just mind boggling and tells us something very big is truly in control of everything, everywhere.

We have to be careful and not force meaning in everything we see, nor expect to find meaning when we sneeze for example. We also need to be rational and of sound mind when interpreting the reality around us. But when we are of sound mind and truly listen there are all kinds of messages for us.

One day when my wife and I were talking about what is wrong with the world I threw a ball and it accidentally knocked the clock off the wall. And my wife sarcastically said “oh are you saying time is the problem?” And then when she threw the ball shortly later it also accidentally hit the clock and knocked it back off the wall, right after I put it back up. That moment seemed to hint that perhaps one day soon time would be removed and this would solve all problems. This also plays on other synchrosies where people all over the web and also myself always see 11:11 on clocks. It seems that this is a phenomenon happening to a lot of people. The double 11’s represent a coming together and the end of dualism. It signifies a return to everything being good. Many believe that soon it will be the end of time, but it won’t be the end.

So keep your eyes and ears open and remember that everthing that happens has meaning and a purpose. Things may seem difficult and bad things often happen, but somehow someway everything is all working together for a higher purpose we could never understand. After the most difficult of lives, and many, many tears, I still truly believe that G-d is in control!

We read in the Bible, in Genesis, that originally there was no rain!  According to the Bible a mist arose from the garden and provided the water.  “But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.” Genesis 2:6 (KJV)  Furthermore, when we look at the fossil record we find something very amazing that supports this statement.  We find petrified wood with no growth rings!  - http://www.wyattmuseum.com/noahs-ark-08.htm

Scientific study confirms the absence of growth rings in plants from what they label the “Carboniferous period”

“There was, as we have already said, secondary bark and wood, similar to that of modern trees but lacking the spring and winter rings which correspond to seasonal alternation of moisture and dryness. This is a further proof that the Carboniferous climate was fairly uniform.” (Larousse Encyclopedia of the Earth, p. 369.)

Growth rings are caused in trees by periods of differential growth.   We can trace the age of a tree as well as learn something about the rainfall and other climate variations during various periods of time.  All the wood we find today is a product of trees that have significant growth rings.   However, fossils of wood have been found with no growth rings indicating that these trees that existed during a time where there was little to no rain!

People often choose to believe we either have free will or are simply products of determinism.   The truth is both are true and co-exist simultaneously.  There is some element of fate in all of our lives, those things we simply cannot control.  Yet, there is also a degree of freedom which we all share.  For example, you can’t control who your parents are but you can choose whether or not you will listen to them. 

We see from families of alcoholism that many children grow up to be alcoholics themselves.  In other cases they have little or nothing to do with drinking.  If everything was predetermined by our paths, then everyone in these scenarios would turn out very similar.   In a nutshell, some people with tough pasts become very bitter and miserable people, while others overcome, forgive, and go on to do great things.

In religion, it is often said that God is sovereign and that we have zero power over anything we do.  They say since God is all powerful if we make any of our own decisions, for example to become saved, that we are limiting God.  Some pastors I’ve talked to will even go so far as calling you a heretic if you believe you had anything to do with the choice of becoming saved.  It is to them, in some way, limiting God and taking credit for what he did.  They fail to understand the truth that an all powerful God could certainly choose to limit his complete control and offer us free will.  The Bible speaks clearly of free will and responsiblity for our actions. 

“But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”  (Joshua 24:15 NIV)

Because God is outside of space and time and sees the past, present, and future all at one moment, he makes his plan considering the choices everyone makes.  Think of a game of chess where your opponent could choose any number of moves, yet, you know in advance what he’ll do.  Based on this knowledge you shape your overall plan around the freedom of choice your opponent has.  And although you give him or her the ability to make choices, by knowing them you still remain in control. 

The truth is we have free will given to us by an all powerful God who was powerful enough to allow us to choose.  The argument can be turned around to say if you’re saying we can’t choose because it limits God’s sovereignty, then saying he can’t allow us to choose also does.  In may ways we are victums  of our circumstances, those things we have either zero or very little control over.  We all have been given a lot in life and all are responsible for making the best of it.  Jesus said to him who was given a lot, that much was expected, but to him who was given little, less was expected.  God knows our circumstances and someone giving $20 dollars to charity may be worth more in his eyes then a billionaire giving a million dollars.  You cannot seperate your lot or circumstances from your actions.  But you also can’t negate your choices because of your lot.