"Holiness" - The Means to Relationship with God

The concept of holiness as portrayed in the scriptures acts in tandem with the concept of separation. According to the scriptures, we are to be separated from the world so that we can be holy unto God. Leviticus 20:26 says, "And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the LORD am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine." God's reason and purpose for separating the Hebrew nation from their world was simply that they should be His; holy unto Him.

Note what is the purpose behind the Nazarite vow as stated in Numbers 6:8, "All the days of his separation he is holy unto the LORD." Those who were to take upon themselves the vow of the Nazarite, such as Samson the judge and Samuel the prophet, were to separate themselves from several things. For instance, a Nazarite could touch no dead thing, could not even bury his own family, could not cut his hair, could not eat nor drink of anything that grew on the vine, could not use vinegar, along with other criteria. Why did God set those laws for the Nazarite? The purpose was to be holy unto the Lord. Holiness is consecration; it's dedication; it's sanctity; it's devotion. Although it must be needful to turn away from many things, all of those ideas in actuality point toward something greater, that is, a relationship with the Lord.

Why would God give mankind the opportunity to take on this vow of the Nazarite? By doing thusly, He opened the door to whosoever would desire a relationship with Him to do so. He presented them the opportunity, the means, and the benefits. Why? He desired relationship. Isn't that the underlying theme of the entire Bible? Isn't that why God created man? Isn't that why God called Abram out from Ur? Isn't that why God chose David to rule his people? Isn't that why God gave us the Song of Solomon? Isn't that why God reached for so long for a nation who played the harlot? Isn't that why, ultimately, He robed himself in human flesh, taught, and performed miracles, all just to suffer rejection, be beaten until His visage was marred more than any other, receive a crown of thorns to his head and spikes to his hands and feet, and die on a rugged tree? That, friend, is precisely why. Relationship is what drove our Saviour to Golgotha. Relationship is what refrained Him from calling for legions of angels to come to His rescue. Relationship is why He arose the third day. Relationship is why He poured out His Spirit of whom we are recipients.

Seeing the great God of the universe in that light should cause us all to stop and self-assess. Am I fulfilling the dream of my Saviour by my godly lifestyle and my prayer life and my consistency in studying His Word and adhering to His perfect law of liberty? Or am I treading under foot the Son of God by ignoring His call to devotion or by rejecting his precepts and seeking instead to satisfy my own lusts? Paul said in Romans 12:1, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service."

I propose that we search our hearts and ask God to search our hearts thoroughly. I do not want to squander my allotted time on earth on my own selfish whims and desires. I do not want to pass up such a rich opportunity to actually become a friend to the wonderful and holy Creator of the Universe. Abraham didn't miss it and I don't intend on missing it either.

Yours in Christ,
Jarron

The Superstar of Supermarkets

A new Wong's Supermarket recently opened here in La Molina. It has some really neat features that most other grocery stores around here don't have. Actually, it's been called the "Superstar of Supermarkets."

Top notch quality!

For instance,

It has an automatic water mister to keep the produce fresh. Just before it goes on, you hear the distant sound of thunder and the smell of fresh rain in the air.

When you pass the milk cases, you hear cows mooing and you experience the scent of fresh cut hay.

In the meat department there is the aroma of charcoal grilled steaks and smoked ribs.

In the seafood department, the fresh, clean, crisp smell of the ocean and the sound of waves slapping the shoreline greets you.

When you approach the egg case, you hear hens cluck and cackle and the air is filled with the pleasing aroma of bacon and eggs frying.

The bread department features the tantalizing smell of fresh baked bread & cookies.

I've stopped buying toilet paper there...

More Photos of Huachipa

Just kidding! (kind of...)

The following are photos of the classroom and students in the school where I am employed. These were taken during chapel this past Friday. The students in our classroom are in grades 3-6. ("our" being myself, Miss. Yenina, and Miss Monica) The kids really are a barrell of fun. Enjoy as you peruse through a sliver of my life as it was on Friday.

The "1st Samuel Knowlege Game" (not sure what the real name is) Notice the boy on the left is eager to answer a Bible question (Either that or just eager to talk. That seems to be a fad going around the learning center).

6th grade. One stretching. One yelling. One Morphing. One looking at the camera.

Teacher, Mr. Brown, enters the scene with a group song...

"Hey kids, as you may know, I don't play a lot of guitar..."

(pulls out ukulele)

"I just play a little guitar." haha

The kids seemed to appreciate my little joke... they laughed at least.

Two of my more studious pupils indicating how many pages they'd done that week. (I think.)

I luckily got this snapshot in during an unusual occurence of order.

The following are just a few snapshots of some of the older, more disciplined, mature students here at LISOFT. Enjoy!

Kathy really is a sweet natured girl.

A brave co-worker enters the lion's den with only a screwdriver for protection. Actually, he's installing a handle on the High Tech score key holder chamber box thingy with a very obedient student in the background turned around and sitting in his own desk quietly doing his Pace in a completely undisruptive manner. (Key words are italicized.) Not sure who the banshee on the right is.

Gonzalo, Isha, Christian, Gringo, and David (more well-behaved kids)

To say the least, I love my kids and I really enjoy working at LISOFT. Already, it's been a great experience for me and I look forward to the next 8 or so months we have remaining. Gotta run!

Until next time, God bless!

Sr. Jarrón Marrón

Huachipa Zoo Last Saturday

Seven days ago I was privileged to be able to spend the day with the Sotomayor family at the Huachipa zoo here in Lima. I brought my camera along to get some good shots of the lions, bears, leopards, and one Andean Condor. I had a feeling this was going to be a good day! Upon our arrival we decided to go look at the little animals first.

After the Giraffe, that is...

These are aquatic creatures native to, among other places, Peru. They can be found in rivers, lakes, and even the ocean. They're called "fish".

Here's one such example of the fish's natural habitat, the mighty Rimac river.

We also saw this pod of cayman hatchlings. (They too enjoy dwelling in water.)

Iguanas... (also native to Peru) (They like to drink water.)

Snakes...

More snakes...

More snakes...

and more...

and more...

This weird lizard-like thing

And, believe it or not, more snakes. (This time a Boa.)

As well as this tortoise piggy-back riding a croc.

y Focas tambien

Penguins and a really tall skinny bird.

Not sure what this one's called but it looked weird, so I took a picture.

And right before we went on to the big animals, here is where my camera died, because I forgot to charge it the night before. However, I found some people who had a camera that worked, so please enjoy the following pictures of animals that we saw.

Lion

Bear Jaguar

Puma

Monkey

Zebra

Deer

Can't wait to go back! Maybe then I'll remember to charge my camera.

God bless,

jb

Rejoice Evermore

Dear Reader, The other day my parents received a letter for me from SBVC inviting me to join a certain honors society for Spanish course students called Sigma Delta Mu. Apparently my teacher, Ms. Sogomonian, nominated me to be one of the lucky few. (I really don't know how many are in it, but if it's "honors" I'm guessing a few.) Needless to say, I was flabbergasted, surprised, and pretty happy to boot. She's always been my favorite teacher, but now she's totally my favorite! :) Anyhow, My dad photographed the letter and the note from Prof. Sogomonian and emailed them to me the other day. I really hope they let him go to the initiation in my absence, since my schedule won't allow me to attend, being that I'm in Peru for the next 8 months and all. Besides, since I'm actively fostering friendly relations and mutual respect between Spanish-speaking and English-speaking nations (pt. 3 in the letter), I should be alright. :) Entonces, I figured I'd let you know all this in case someone was just waiting for an opportunity to rejoice with them that do rejoice (or something like that).lol Viva Sigma, Viva Delta, and Viva Mu! God bless, Jarron

Translated - Hello Jarron! I hope that you are very well and that you decide to inscribe in Sigma Delta Mu. Nori

I'll let you translate the next one...

NOTICE!!! ...If You Work at a School

No wonder I'm wore out every afternoon!

Brand New Self Motivational Bestseller!

I'd say that's taking reverse psychology a little far.