Jack’s Winning Words 2/7/17
“God is alive and crabby!”  (The Brand New Testament)  I have several “modern” versions of the Bible: Good News—Living Bible—The Message—Possibility Thinkers Bible—Reader’s Digest Version.  Perhaps you have others.  They’re designed to put old words into the current vernacular.  I still like “the Lord is my shepherd” better than “God is my spare tire.”  But I do appreciate attempts to help us understand God’s will for his people in this world.    ;-)  Jack

FROM RJP IN NAPLES:  But unfortunately some things just do not translate very well. I still like to old versions.====JACK:  I'm for any version that makes the message clearer.  The King James Version was an attempt to do that for 17th century England.  Old people usually like old versions, but not all old people are like that.

FROM JT IN MINNESOTA:  Those quotes are way modern.  I am old fashioned....I too prefer "the Lord is my shepherd".  I read the scripture in church last Sunday....Isaiah 58:1-9.  That felt good.  I liked the message.  Very relevant in this century as it was apparently in theirs.====JACK:  Those verses from Isaiah have some relevance in our world and need some "modern" interpretation to accent the old.

FROM FACEBOOK LIZ:  we humans speak different languages, so whatever works, i say.  i have wondered whether god is bipolar. eight days? yikes!  the biblical floods & other calamities may indicate a temper...so, crabby? it certainly seems possible.====JACK:  IMO,God became human in the form of Jesus to let us know that he understands what it is to be human....and so that we can catch a glimpse, through Jesus, that it is possible for humans to be somewhat godly.  I'm sure that he understands what it is to be bi-polar...and crabby, too.====LIZ:  we totally agree on this one!

FROM JB AT LSTC:  I don’t know about God as my spare tire. I’d hate to think of God hanging out in my trunk. But alive and grabby gave me a chuckle this morning. Thanks!====JACK:  Even the image, spare tire, is dated.  The newer cars don't have them, but they do have GPS.  "The Lord is my GPS."====JB:  That I could pray!

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  I'm with you on that! Spare tire just doesn't quite do it for me, but maybe a teenager would identify...I like The Message and the Cotton Patch Gospels, too, and Leslie Brandt's paraphrase of the Psalms and Gospels.  Who was it said, 'It's not what I don't understand in the Bible that bothers me; It's what I understand all too well!"  Can't bring his name up right now!====JACK:  If you don't understand the source of a quote, just say, "Abe Lincoln" or "Mark Twain."  In this case, it's Mark Twain.  For one who professed to be a skeptic, he was really knowledgeable about the Bible.  A lot of Bible believers could stand to improve their knowledge of "the Good Book."

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  He has a lot to be crabby about in this world.  The truth is very hard to find and it's what we are supposed to tell all the time.  But He still loves us.====JACK:  God loves us....even on those days when we are crabby....because he understands.

FROM CZB IN NEW HAMPSHIRE:  I don’t like the spare tire analogy either!  Much more a GPS. ====JACK:  I don't need a GPS, because I'm not travelling as far as I used to.  I don't need a spare tire, either, because I belong to AAA.  Ah!  "The Lord is my cell phone memory bank."

FROM ST PAUL IN MESA:  I maybe told you that Eugene Peterson (the Message) and his wife are fairly good friends of ours.  when our daughter Annika and family worked at Flathead Lake Bible Camp in Montana (Kalispell),  the Peterson's lake home bordered on camp property.  Jedd and Annika got to be good friends and  they often baby sat in the evenings when Jedd and Annika were either doing camp work or went out for some R and R.  Eugene wrote for 4 hours five days a week from 8 to noon and did so religiously, pardon the pun.  wonderful people.  he has to be really up in the years now.  you can google him and find out more about his life.  our other daughter Becca fell in love with The Message while in high school.  she and a friend read it to each other almost every morning while driving to school and even spent some time in the parking lot to continue to read.  good memories of both kids...====JACK:  When I attended at Pastoral Leadership Conference at the Crystal Cathedral Robert Schuller personally signed a copy of his "Possibility Thinkers Bible" in which all of the positive quotes in the Bible are highlighted in blue.  He and I both started new congregations at about the same time...his using an outdoor movie theater and mine using a school gymnasium.

FROM AW IN ILLINOIS:  Some times I believe this, and I don't blame God for being crabby. ====JACK:  Do you remember the character, Crabby Appleton, in the Tom Terrific cartoons?  BTW, why do you suppose they're called "crab" apples?