PRAYING FOR THE NEXT GENERATION

 ANOTHER GENERATION GREW UP, WHO KNEW NEITHER THE LORD NOR WHAT HE HAD DONE FOR ISRAEL 

JUDGES 2:10

Judges 2:10 reads like an epitaph on the graves of those who should have been teaching the next generation about the Lord. And it puts a chill in the heart of all parents and grandparents who love their children. What if those who come after us don’t know the goodness of God?

This passage is a call to pray for generations that will come after us. What could be more important than to pray that those who follow us will follow the Lord, too – only with more passion and fervor? What greater tragedy, even indictment, is there than that those who know us best, our families and children, know the Lord least? Psalm 78 is a call to arms and to prayer for the next generation: 

"We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done. He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which he commanded our forefathers to teach their children so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born and they, in turn, would tell their children. Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget his deeds but would keep his commands"(verses 4-7)

The ministry Moms in Touch has seen God quietly change school campuses and students’ lives as it has summoned moms’ to "pour out your heart like water in the presence of the Lord. Lift up your hands to him for the lives of your children" (Lamentations 2:19). Who is more passionate for the faith of children than mothers? History abounds with the stories of women like Susanna Wesley (the mother of John and Charles Westly) and Monica (the mother of Augustine) who prevailed in prayer for their children. And history is different because of their commitment.

In Christ,

Janet Irene Thomas

Playwright/Director/Screen Writer

Producer/Gospel Lyricist/Author

Founder/CEO

Bible Stories Theatre of

Fine & Performing Arts

www.biblestoriestheatre.org

CREED AND PRAYER

 DEUTERONOMY 26:1-11

26:5 THEN YOU SHALL DECLARE BEFORE THE LORD YOUR GOD…

Martin Luther’s morning and evening prayers typically included saying the Apostles’ Creed and the Lord’s Prayer, followed by a prayer of thanksgiving.  For many of us, the Lord’s Prayer and the thanksgiving make perfect sense-but the Creed? It’s a nice thing to do, but is it necessary to do it daily? Luther’s sequence was thoroughly and anciently Biblical, and it followed the pattern of the liturgy in this text: Confess our faith and pray: pray and confess your faith.

Moses is giving instructions for when the Israelites take possession of the promised land. After the people are settled in the land, each family leader is to take some of the first produce to offer to the Lord. When bringing the offering to the priest, the worshiper is first to confess his faith and say this creed: "My father was a wandering Aramean, and he went down into Egypt…But the Egyptians mistreated us and made us suffer...So the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm" (26:5-6,8). Then the person was to place the offering before the Lord and bow in prayer to "rejoice in all the good things the Lord your God has given to you and your household" (verse11).

Prayer is coupled with creed because prayer is a relationship, not a technique. Techniques are about what we can do in and through ourselves. Prayer is about who we are in God and who he is to us-and that is what creed s are about, like the one in this text and the great creeds of Christian history.  In retelling and summarizing the story of our redemption, they describe the terms of the engagement we call Prayer. They help us talk to the true and living God, not just to ourselves.

Creeds have great power to enrich our prayer lives. Take the first line of the Apostles' Creed and think of what it can mean for the enjoyment of prayer: "I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth." This first line expresses the belief that the God we address as Father is the very one who spoke the universe into existence and continues to sustain it by His Word. He is more than able to care for us because he is almighty. He is more than willing because he is our Father!

Learn a creed like the Apostles' Creed; it will help you enter the relationship of prayer more thoughtfully and joyfully.

In Christ,

Janet Irene Thomas

Playwright/Director/Screen Writer

Producer/Gospel Lyricist/Author

Founder/CEO

Bible Stories Theatre of

Fine & Performing Arts

www.biblestoriestheatre.org

FAITHFUL MOTHER

Luke 1:26-56

There is a wonder surrounding Mary, the mother of Jesus, that transcends traditional religious thought. That she was a privileged vessel, chosen to bear God’s Son, is wonder enough, for she is a participant in the miracle of the incarnation at a level no other human being can comprehend.

It is clear that she did not claim to understand it herself, but simply worshiped God in humble acknowledgment of the phenomenon engulfing her existence: "My soul doth magnify the Lord," she exclaims (v.46). 

We can hardly fathom the bewildering moments she experienced 1) when Simeon prophesied future mental/emotional suffering (2:35); 2) when she and Joseph spoke with Jesus after they thought He was lost in Jerusalem (2:49, 50); 3) when Jesus gently rebuffed her at the wedding in Cana (John 2:4); 4) when Jesus seemed to reject her and His brother’s efforts at helping Him, though they clearly misunderstood Him at that time (Matt. 12:46-50). 

These instances prompt our learning the wisdom of persistence and obedience in following God’s basic directive on our lives, even when the details of the outworking of His will are unclear or mystifying.

Mary is also a study in the pathway forward in God’s will. She might have sought elevation in position among those who saw Jesus for who He was-Messiah-but instead 1) she remained steadfast with Him all the way to the Cross, rather than protect herself (John 19:25); and 2) she obediently joined other of Jesus' disciples in the Upper Room, waiting as He commanded for the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:14).

Mary is a model of responsive obedience, one who lived out her own directive for all ages: "whatsoever he [Jesus] saith unto you, do it" (John 2:5).

In Christ,

Janet Irene Thomas

Playwright/Director/Screen Writer

Producer/Gospel Lyricist/Author

Founder/CEO

Bible Stories Theatre of

Fine & Performing Arts

www.biblestoriestheatre.org

SET APART

Romans 11:16

For if the firstfruit is holy, the lump is also holy; and if the root is holy, so are the branches.

The key word in this verse is holy, as is clear from the word’s repetition. A holy "firstfruit" comes only from a holy "lump," Paul writes, and a holy "root" makes for a holy "branch." To make sense of all this, we must remember that the word holy does not primarily mean "pure," "righteous," or "glorious," which are some of the concepts we associate with the term because of our keen awareness that God, is holy. The truest meaning of holy, even when it is applied to God, is "set apart." Holiness is not so much an attribute of God as an aspect of all His attributes; it is what sets Him apart as God. Therefore, Paul in this verse is speaking of things that are set apart.

The Old Testament can help us understand the first of the images Paul uses here. For instance, in the books of Moses, we find that the people of Israel were commanded to present an offering of "firstfruit," the first produce they harvested each year (Num. 28:26-31). Elsewhere in Numbers, this offering is described as a cake made from ground meal (15:20-21). Such a cake would necessarily be made from dough mixed from the ground meal of the wheat that had been harvested first and set apart for the offering. Thus, if the part (the cake) is holy (set apart), so is the whole (the lump of dough). Paul’s second image is somewhat easier to interpret. If the root of a plant is holy (set apart), the rest of the tree must be holy also, for the root supports everything from the trunk to the branches.

Now we can discuss why Paul employs these images here. Most scholars agree that, in speaking of objects that serve as a source (a lump of dough or a root) in the context of a discussion of Israel, Paul is thinking of the calling of Abraham. God set Abraham apart, and therefore, set apart the nation that sprang from him. And that has consequences for Israel even up to Paul’s time. Because Abraham was set apart, so are his descendants, even to this day…they remain a people set apart for God’s purposes. To put it in other language, God is not finished with Israel yet.

In Christ,

Janet Irene Thomas

Playwright/Screen Writer/Director

Published Author/Gospel Lyricist &Producer

Founder/CEO

Bible Stories Theatre of

Fine & Performing Arts

www.biblestoriestheatre.org.

THE WEDDING RING - SYMBOL OF ETERNITY

MADE PURE BY FIRE 

ZEPHANIAH 1:1-7; 2:1-3; 3:9-20

THEN WILL I PURIFY THE LIPS OF THE PEOPLE

A wedding ring is a splendid symbol of the marriage between a man and woman, and between God and his people. It is a circle, a symbol of eternity. Human love is beautiful, like flowers in a wedding. But like the flowers in a wedding, it wilts and fades over time if it is uprooted from the soil of God’s eternal love. To survive and flourish, our love must be planted in God.

A ring is also made of a precious metal. Precious metals are refined by fire; it is the fire that burns out the impurities. Marriage have their fires-turmoil and disappointment, tragedies and misunderstandings – but the fires need not destroy the marriage. They can help make it more pure and precious.

God is a husband to his people; he has married himself to us in covenant love. When we persist in sin like an unfaithful spouse he brings the fire of judgment on us. Sometimes the fire is brutal and searing, like the Day of the Lord described in Zephaniah. But its purpose is for purity. "Then will I purify the lips of the peoples, that all of them may call on the name of the Lord"(3:9). The fire of judgment isn’t God’s last word, it’s his next-to-the-last word. His last word in the redemption and restoration described at the end of Zephaniah’s prophecy, and it is for the whole world, "that all of them may call on the name of the Lord."

God doesn’t enjoy judgment. It is work he must do, but Isaiah, calls it
"his strange work…his alien task" (Isaiah 28:21). "As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways!" (Ezekiel 33:11).

Understanding God’s perspective gives us great hope to pray in the face of judgment. We pray to a God who is not wanting anyone to perish (see 2 Peter 3:9), and who wills to turn the fires of judgment into the fires of purification. Even in the midst of Zephaniah’s harshest words, he says, "Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, you who do what he commands. Seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you will be sheltered on the day of the LORD’s anger" (2:3). 

In Christ,

Janet Irene Thomas

Playwright/Screen Writer/Director

Published Author/Gospel Lyricist &Producer

FOUNDER/CEO

Bible Stories Theatre of

Fine & Performing Arts

www.biblestoriestheatre.org.

I BELIEVE, HELP MY UNBELIEF!"

Mark 9:24

How do you come to Jesus? What do you expect from him?  Some of us come like this father, thinking Jesus is probably willing to help, but not sure his is able: 

"But if you can do anything…" (9:22). Others are like the leper who came to Jesus, thinking he was able, but wondering if he was willing: "If you are willing, make me clean"(1:40). Both kinds of people have an incomplete belief in God: Either they believe that God has lots of love but limited power, or they believe that God has plenty of power but limited love. But the God we pray to in the name of Jesus is perfect both in power and in love.

The Lord shows remarkable patience with those who have limited faith in him. To those like the father of the boy with a demon, Jesus laughs and say, "If you can?...Everything is possible for him who believes" (9:23). To those like the leper, he is "filled with compassion" and smiles as he says, "I am willing" (1:41).

Healing faith, or for that matter any kind of faith, is not necessarily an either/or. It is not that you either have it all or you have nothing. Both the father and the leper, with their puny little faith, come away from Jesus blessed. That’s because our faith is not in faith itself, but in Jesus. He said it only takes a little bit of faith, a mustard seed-sized faith actually (see Matthew 17:20), for him to laugh or smile and do for us what we need.  

Thanks be to God, it is enough to say to him, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!"

In Christ,

Janet Irene Thomas

Playwright/Screen Writer/Director

Published Author/Gospel Lyricist &Producer

FOUNDER/CEO

Bible Stories Theatre of

Fine & Performing Arts

www.biblestoriestheatre.org.

KORRYS BEARS STORIES LANE THE NEW CHILDRENS TV SHOW

PRESS RELEASE

Bible Stories Theatre of

Fine & Performing Arts

Woodbridge, VA 22193

Saturday, July 15, 2017

COMING TO FREDERICKSBURG/STAFFORD/RAPPAHANNOCK COMMUNITY TV AND COMCAST CABLE CHANNELS ...

TWINKLING LIGHTS! MAGIC DOORS! TALKING BEARS!

Children will love this new TV Show created by Janet Irene Thomas, especially for children, and the adult child- at-heart!  Travel down the magical time-tunnel and learn Bible Stories, in a fun and exciting way.

This FUN NEW CHILDREN'S TV SHOW is a history-hopping, time bending, action packed, twinkling spectacle filled with excitement and kiddie learning adventure.

Children will enjoy this story of a young school teacher stumbling upon a group of five friendly half/human bears, who talk and walk just like her!

They will experience the fun and glee as she tries to uncover their magical secret after each story -reading!

While on vacation at a Virginia's Shenandoah Valley Mountain Resort, Elementary School teacher Korry Peters, stumbles upon a group of rare Marsican bears, who can walk and talk just like her!

Later, she uncovers their magical secret; they are mystical time travelers!  And to her further amazement, each time she reads a Bible story, they become the characters!

                                               ...updates to follow

In Christ,

Janet Irene Thomas

Playwright/Screen Writer/Director

Published Author/Gospel Lyricist &Producer

FOUNDER/CEO

Bible Stories Theatre of

Fine & Performing Arts

www.biblestoriestheatre.org.