Daily Manna from Heaven

Jenny and I sung The Prayer (Celine Dion and Josh Groban) in her sister’s wedding last December 17, 2009 in Awali Church, Kingdom of Bahrain.

by Dr. Harold Sala

“For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.” Proverbs 23:7, NKJV

Some 3000 years ago the wise man—perhaps Solomon himself—said it so well: “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.” Simply put, you become what you think—negatively or positively. Your thinking shapes your attitude, and your attitude is like the wood carver’s tool that molds you into the image you become.

A 27-year-long medical study documented what the writer of Proverbs observed a long time ago. Dr. John Barefoot of the Duke University Medical Center and author of the study says that people who are depressed, lack motivation, and generally feel hopeless, have far greater health problems than those who are positive and upbeat.

Furthermore, he says that individuals who think negatively of themselves and others have a 70 percent higher risk of heart attack and a 60 percent greater chance of premature death than those who are generally positive. (“Mood Affects Your Health” Family Circle, November 1996, p. 58).

He would agree with the words of Proverbs 23:7 in the Bible that says “as you think in your heart, so are you.” OK, what’s new? Solomon knew that 3,000 years ago, but now we’ve documented it. Dr. John Barefoot believes that you just can’t afford to worry, and if you find yourself feeling “blue” for more than a couple of weeks, you need professional help.

The study also revealed something important, something that the thousands of letters which have come to me over the years bear out. When you have a relationship with God—“religious involvement” is what the study called it—you have a more positive mental altitude, and your attitude determines your attitude: whether you get above your problems or sink lower and lower.

The study show that when people live with “bad feelings” their negative attitude tends to lead to excessive smoking, drinking, food binges, and dangerous activities which only feed the downward spiral.
What does a God-connection have to do with your attitude? Plenty.

Perhaps everything. Anyone who has read the Bible realizes that there are times when individuals who had great faith in God ended up in pretty negative situations. Joseph found himself in prison because he resisted the sexual advances of the wife of the man he worked for. Daniel refused to bow to the king’s image and ended up being fed to the lions (who weren’t hungry). Jonah got tired of being God’s spokesman and ended up being bait for a big fish.

Read the New Testament and you will see the same thing. Stephen was martyred. Paul was imprisoned more times than he could count. Scores of men and women found themselves badly out of sync with their society and felt rejection and scorn, but–and this is where the whole thing turns the corner—when God’s children found themselves in tough situations, they didn’t give up, they didn’t despair. They knew that God—not their enemies or their adverse situations—was going to triumph.

It was this confident assurance that made the difference. No matter how beleaguered they were, or how hopeless things looked, they knew that God was in control, and that kept them generally positive and upbeat.

OK, friend, on a scale of 1 to 10, where are you? If 10 on your scale is positive and upbeat, and 0 is negative, how would you rate yourself?

Without a relationship with God, there is little hope in some situations, but if you are fully persuaded that God is sovereign and that nothing can happen to you apart from His knowledge, you can remain confident and positive no matter how dark the day.

If you question what I’m saying, I suggest that you read Paul’s letter to the Philippians, written from prison, and see how your relationship with the Lord determines your attitude, and your attitude determines your future. It’s still true today.

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by Dr. Harold Sala

“Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity.” Psalms 51:7-9

When a friend of many years became involved in an affair, Annette Lawson began asking, “Why do people walk out on good marriages for someone who is totally different from themselves and the kind of a person they would live the rest of their lives with?” Finding answers to that question led to more than a decade of exhaustive research.

When this sociologist was asked, “What advice would you give to someone contemplating an affair?” she replied, “One thing that hasn’t changed about adultery is the danger. It really is a risky undertaking that can leave people’s lives in ruins.”

It’s the bottom line which doesn’t come across today when the media portrays the glamour of romance a dangerous fling which leaves the lives and families of people in ruin.

Seldom, if ever, does a movie or a television production tell it like it really is the hell of a burning conscience, the fear of discovery, the concern over HIV or venereal disease, the question of ultimate cost. That forbidden fruit may taste sweeter than that which is legitimate isn’t the issue. The issue is the cost which is always paid in the currency of human suffering.

Should you, for one, be toying with thoughts of an affair, there are three questions which always must be answered: 1. How do I appease my conscience? 2. How do I tell my husband or wife? and 3. How do I handle my thought life and memory?

Occasionally, when I deal with an issue such as this, I get letters from people who say, “I was aghast at what you said. Why don’t you just stick to the Bible?” Should you ever feel like that, you need to discover that this great book addresses the issue of life as it is today. Issues such as our sexuality, fidelity in marriage, and adultery are all discussed in the Bible, and the Bible realistically conveys the consequences of our choices, something which the media quite consistently fails to do.

The first issue to be dealt with is this: How do I deal with a troubled conscience? This was the question which confronted David following his affair with Bathsheba. Make a note of Psalm 51 and see the steps which David took as he poured out his scalding confession to God.

First there was confession as David cried, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.” Then came cleansing as David prayed, “Cleanse me with hyssop and I will be clean; wash me and I will be whiter than snow.” Then David asked that God would restore the joy and gladness which he had enjoyed as the reconstruction of a life took place.

The second issue of how you ask forgiveness of the one to whom you are married, and how you rebuild the relationship which has been damaged, is a delicate one. A pastor or a counselor can help you as you seek forgiveness and restoration.

Final issue: How do you forget, picking up the pieces without your memory’s playing the situation back like a broken record that won’t shut off? Make a note of II Cor. 10:4, which talks about bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Jesus Christ.

Replaying the broken relationship in your mind only keeps the memory alive, but giving it to the Lord, asking the Holy Spirit to bring healing, eliminates it once and for all. It did for David, and it will do the same for you as well.

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by Dr. Harold Sala

Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?’ they asked. ‘And who gave you this authority?” Matthew 21:23

Authority is an issue today in science, in business, in government, and even in religion. By whose authority do you do this? And what backs up this authority? At no point is this issue more pronounced than when it comes to the Bible. Is this book simply a collection of religious writings? Or is the Bible different because of irrefutable evidence demanding that its authority be recognized?

To pronounce the Bible authoritative simply because it says it is an authority is circular reasoning. I can say that I am an elephant, but that doesn’t give me a long trunk and tusks of ivory. So there has to be a demonstration of credibility which gives authority to this book, the Bible, outside of the Bible itself. I contend that five disciplines give it that ring of authority: 1. The correlation of prophecies found in the Bible with secular history; 2. The verification of scientific statements with scientific facts; 3.The modern science of archaeology confirming names and geographic places mentioned in the Bible; 4. Manuscript evidence; and 5. The testimonies of men and women whose lives have been powerfully changed by this Book.

Let’s start with a definition. Archaeology is the scientific study of the remains of a past civilization. It’s far more than just digging up relics from the past. There’s no second chance for the archaeologist, and it is a scientific discipline which has added repeated confirmation that what the Bible says is true. “Like what?” you may be thinking. Well, for a starter, take the book of Genesis. Until archaeologists unearthed the extensive finds at Mari, in Syria, some contended that writing hadn’t even been developed by the time of Moses; but the thousands of tablets at Mari demonstrated that names such as Abraham, and Sarah, and David were common 1400 years before Christ. The Mari tablets not only demonstrated conclusively that people could write, but that there were libraries full of tablets containing highly developed language skills. Score one for archaeology.

If the Bible were only a collection of myths and fables, it would be only a matter of time until archaeologists should prove the inaccuracies of its references to geography and culture, but the main findings of archaeologists have only confirmed the statements of Scripture. I can’t help but think of the Hittites whom Moses talked about, whose existence was denied by many because there were no records of them apart from the Bible. Then archaeologists came up with documents proving their existence. “Ah, I guess they existed after all,” they concluded. The person who denies the accurate history of the Bible, considering it only literature, is neither an historian nor a literary critic; he or she, a priori, is prosecutor, jury, and hangman.

Relating to archaeology is the discovery of manuscripts thousands of years old, which can be compared to the biblical texts of our day, and what they reveal only adds to the credibility and authority of the Bible. For almost 2000 years scrolls were buried at Masada in Israel, where the Romans destroyed that last fortress of first century Israel, and then they were unearthed following the establishment of the modern state of Israel. Moshe Perlman says of this, “The Psalms of David as recited in today’s synagogues are the same as those uttered by the Zealots in their synagogue the same Hebrew words, the same sentence structure, the same beginning and end of each chapter.”

Should you be one who has never considered the evidence for the authority of this unique book, don’t depend on what others say with sweeping, categorical statements. Find out for yourself. It is well worth your time to discover that the evidence demands a verdict. Yes, you owe it to yourself to find out what this book is all about.

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by Dr. Harol Sala

“Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise the fruit of lips that confess his name.” Hebrews 13:15

Have you ever had the urge to just break out in song? It may have been inspired by a beautiful morning, or the check that arrived in the mail, or the phone call from a best friend. You felt like shouting something that Handel would have written, something that would praise God from the depths of your being.

You didn’t, of course, because you didn’t want folks to think that you were a fanatic, or crazy or on drugs, and besides, it isn’t natural to sing like that, right? Right! It isn’t natural; it is supernatural.
When Paul and Silas sat in a Roman prison at Philippi, their feet in stocks, their back stinging from the cut of lashes, they began to sing with joy. Let’s face it to sing in the face of tough circumstances just isn’t the natural thing to do; it’s supernatural, or above the natural trend of circumstances. When you are in trouble like Paul was in, you want to cry, not sing; yet in this incident which took place long ago in a Roman prison, there is a great lesson, a guideline for living for us today.

You can read about Paul’s situation in Acts 16. Whether lifting his voice in song was a spontaneous outburst or a reasoned commitment, an act of worship, I leave to your discretion. I, for one, believe that Paul didn’t much feel like singing, yet as a conscious act of the will, he made a decision to lift his voice in a sacrifice of praise; and when anyone makes that sacrifice, his spirits are lifted and the joy of the Lord floods his heart.

The writer of Hebrews focused on this very act of thanksgiving and praise when he said, “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise the fruit of lips that confess his name” (Heb. 13:15).

When you face difficult circumstances, you come to a fork in the road. One option is the natural one complain, grumble, and let everyone know that you are displeased with the way you have been treated. The second option is to realize that no matter how difficult the situation, God can bring joy and gladness out of it.

One of our listeners learned this lesson through bitter trials. She told how her husband walked out on her, leaving behind five children. Within a year her oldest son, then 17, had become an alcoholic. A second turned to drugs, and she turned to the Lord. She writes, “As I had no one to lean on then, I fell back on God, praying, hoping. I kept reminding myself this is just a night, stormy though it seems. This too shall pass and the day will dawn eventually. Now five years after, the dawn has gloriously arrived! My son is healed, and the other never became dependent, and the other children are now happy and well adjusted. With the help of God, all of us as a family have triumphed, and in the process God has met our needs, materially, financially, emotionally.”

Did the husband come back? No. Did God answer her prayers? Yes, but in a different way from what she expected. He didn’t deliver her from all of her problems, but He met her in them; and that, friend, is what produces joy.

Why is it that the writer of Hebrews referred to praise as a sacrifice? Because, at times, it is just that. Take time to make a study of the life of David, and you will quickly identify with the difficulties which he faced; yet he learned that through praise and worship, we rise above those difficulties. Make a note of Psalm 71 where David talks about his afflictions and yet says, “But as for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more.” The sacrifice of praise is amply rewarded.

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by Dr. Harold Sala

“The Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Succoth. There were about six hundred thousand men on foot besides women and children. Many other people went up with them, as well as large droves of livestock, both flocks and herds.” -Exodus 12:37-38

When LANDSAT began sending back pictures from satellites in space, scientists began seeing the faces of the earth in a new light. It was almost as if someone had switched on the light and enabled them to see ancient trade routes in the middle east which archaeologists knew were somewhere out there but now precisely became “down there.”

Satellite imagery, which was first developed with military objectives in mind, became a new tool for archaeologists who want to pin down the locations of long-since forgotten cities–at least, forgotten to the thousands of people who thumb through the pages of their Old Testament and stumble over words like Beersheba, Hebron, Abel Beth Maacah, Napthali and Tirzah. But some 4,000 years ago, these were as meaningful to people as Manila, Frankfurt, Tokyo or New York.

In ancient days when a city was destroyed in warfare, the survivors were usually taken away as slaves and the city was sacked and burned. Unlike the cities of World War 2 which were rebuilt with a monotonous uniformity, the wind and sand began to drift over these ancient cities and they were soon lost to history. Napoleon and his army passed by the ancient city of Babylon and never knew it was there.

It’s safe to say that about a foot of silt and debris accumulates for every century, yet where there was an ancient site–called a “tell” by archaeologists–there are tell-tale signs today. Satellite imaging makes these stand out vividly and enables scientists to chart transportation routes and identify undiscovered landmarks.

Archaeologists are making some remarkable discoveries which should only enhance our trust in the historical accuracy of the Bible. Like what? For a start, the exodus of some 2.5 million slaves from Egypt to the promised land of Canaan was one of the greatest migrations ever undertaken by a nation. Can archaeologists help document this move?

According to the Bible, Moses led the group in a rather circuitous path, avoiding the immediate and direct route to Canaan from the Nile River Delta where they were living. Some explain that by saying that he was lost for 40 years because he didn’t want to stop and ask directions. Don’t you believe that for a moment.

Jeffrey Sheler explains, “Recent archaeological data, scholars note, also are consistent with the Bible’s explanation, in Exodus 13:17, about why Moses and the Israelites took the long way to Canaan through the desolate Sinai wilderness rather than following the shorter coastal route: Enemy military posts lay on that path. Egyptian hieroglyphics from about 1300 B.C. at the temple of Amun in Karnak depict a series of Egyptian installations along the coastal route. And modern excavations have uncovered a string of Egyptian citadels strikingly similar to those in the Karnak relief, stretching from the Nile delta to Gaza.”

Archaeologists from Hebrew University agree. The presence of the forts “is perfectly compatible with the Exodus” says Professor Trude Dothan. At the same time archaeologists don’t expect to find parking meters and left over parts from their wagons. These who came out of Egypt were slaves and traveled light. Much like the Bedouins who still trek across the Negev, their tracks being erased by the wind and sand, not much was left behind.

Does archaeology prove the Bible? You can’t prove anything to anyone who doesn’t want to accept the evidence, but for those who openly and honestly evaluate the evidence recently unearthed by archaeology there is a tremendous amount of new discoveries which affirm the historical accuracy of this grand old book. The Bible is history–not a collection of myths or stories added centuries after the event, and history which is valid only confirms other historical data regardless of who wrote it or where. History speaks for itself.

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by Dr. Harold Sala

“Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord…. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” -Ephesians 5:22-25

Nearly three centuries ago the Welsh-born English minister Matthew Henry wrote that when God made woman, he did not take a bone from man’s foot so he could trample a woman under his feet. Nor did he take a bone from Adam’s head so he could dominate her. Instead he took a rib from under his arm so he could protect her, and close to his heart so he could love her. How could it be better said?

That men often don’t know how to treat women is obvious! It is not only a cultural issue; it’s a genetic issue as well. While God gave to men the instinct to lead, He never gave them license to dominate or abuse.

“Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church,” admonished Paul. And Peter, the fisherman turned preacher, wrote, “Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers” (1 Peter 3:7).

It is not only in physical strength that men and women differ. What drives them is different. How they communicate is different. How they approach their work or relate to their families is different. Even how they express themselves is different. Failing to understand those differences produces arguments, abuse, and layers of misunderstanding, centuries deep.

The feminist or women’s rights movement has been making an attempt to put an end to the lopsided abuse which some women have received; yet the very attempt to put an end to injustice has robbed some women of motherhood, companionship, and marriage.

When sexual differences are respected, three things happen: First, individual needs can be met in marriage. Ambrose Bierce wrote, “Marriage consists of a master, a mistress, and two slaves, making in all just two.” God never intended sexual differences to pit men and women against each other in an unending battle of the sexes.

It was His intention to let those differences meet each other’s needs– for each one’s strength to play upon the other’s weaknesses, to allow each to complement the other in such a way that a couple forms a bond in marriage which allows each to meet the needs of a mate in such a manner that each derives a satisfaction and happiness which can come no other way.

The second result of recognizing sexual differences is that an interdependence in marriage produces harmony and happiness. This concept of absolute independence just doesn’t work. A plus and a minus produce a whole, but two minuses only produce negative feelings and emotions. When each person learns what part he or she plays in a marriage, a team spirit develops.

The third result is that there is an intimacy which touches every part of a person’s life. This is far more than sexual, but an emotional union which includes the spiritual as well as the emotional and physical.

A final thought: Have you ever had your arm in a cast? Do you remember how awkward it was when you tried to scratch your ear but found that your arm was pointed out somewhere in space? What normally would be a pretty simple thing becomes awkward and difficult.

That’s the way it is when we interfere with God’s order. Following God’s orders in relation to our differences is not only good for a marriage, but is also good for the individuals involved. You just can’t improve on some things, and that’s for sure.

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