Author's Note and "Stephen-An Essay"

Author's Note: I am currently working on my second Biblical essay, this one about Jezebel, and since I plan on posting it here I thought I'd post my first. I've posted this essay about Stephen, the first martyr, else where on the web but I thought it should have a place on my blog. Written May 2009.

Stephen- An Essay

Recently, the story of Stephen in Acts 6, 7 has really been on my mind. I never quite knew his story, I just knew him as the man who became the first martyr and whose death was seen by Saul, who would become Paul. I never understood who he was, where he came from, or why his life ended in such a violent way. I ran across the story of his death when I was flipping through Acts and it really struck a chord with me, and I'll tell you why later on, but sometime after that I backed up to the beginning of his story to learn what lead to his death.

Stephen's story begins with a simple dispute between the Hebrews and the Hellists (Greek speaking Jews) and those who were in the midst of it called upon the 12 disciples to settle it. This dispute took the disciples away from their full time job of spreading the Word. If such disputes continued, they could not do what they were called to do, the building up of the Kingdom of God. To settle this problem the 12 called the multitude of disciples and asked them to find "seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business". All were pleased with this and they "chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit." This is our first introduction to Stephen, that he was a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit....quite the reputation to have. Because of the ministry of Stephen and the 6 other men, the word of God spread and the number of disciples increased.

In verse 8 of chapter 6 it says, "And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs among the people." Again it says he was full of faith and we begin to understand why he stood fast even unto a violent death. In the succeeding verses we see the beginning of the road to that death, for in verse 10 it says that they who were from the Synagogue of the Freedmen (v. 9) "were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit of which he spoke". The roots of his murders’ hatred are seen here and in verse 11 it says, "Then they secretly induced men to say, 'We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.'" This makes you wonder if there was money involved or other incentives that were of equal value. The ones who "stirred up the people" took him to be judged by the council and falsely accused him of blasphemy, but something strange and wonderful occurred during the trial for in verse 15 is says, "And all who sat in the council, looking steadfastly at [Stephen], saw his face as a face of an angel." Here was Stephen in the midst of the hardest test of his life and all that is said of his countenance was that he had a "face of an angel". I don't know about you, but I can honestly say that no one has ever told me that I had such a face...even in my happiest of moments. We can see why the Bible called him a man of faith, for it would take a faith that was full to overflowing to withstand such a test.

Chapter 7 begins Stephen’s response to the accusations with a basic introduction, “Brethren and fathers, listen”. Stephen saw his trial as a grand stage and one last ditch effort to win his fellow Jews to the salvation they had rejected. The Bible says in I Peter 3:15, 16, “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; (16) having good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be shamed.” Stephen exemplified those verses even though they were written after his time; there was no trace of shame on him for he knew that the shame lied with his accusers and he sought to make plain to them the shame and sin they bore. Stephen did this by showing them that they were repeating history, for just as their ancestors rejected God in the wilderness so they too are rejecting God, though they claim to be His children. There is something I want to point out here, Stephen was a man full of faith as we have seen, but he was also a man full of knowledge. He did not go out preaching with only his faith and zeal to see him through, for he had knowledge as well, knowledge of his people and where they came from and knowledge of the holy scriptures. He faced his accusers with intelligence as well as faith. His answer wasn’t a simple, “Because I believe” or “Because I have faith”, he brought his audience through the pages of history showed them how Christ was the only one who “fit the profile” of the Anointed One. He had faith, but he was able to give an answer to those who had none.

Stephen, after giving his accusers a history of the Jews’ rejection of God, was filled with, what I believe to be, Holy Fire. Verses 51-53 say, “You stiffed-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you. (52) Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers, (53) who have received the law by the direction of the angels and have not kept it.” This is reminiscent of Jesus turning over tables in the Temple. I can just see Stephen stand up before his accusers and point his finger at them, telling them that they are no different than the gentiles and they are murderers and rejecters of God’s revelation. The Bible says that they were “cut to the heart”, but this did not mean repentance, for it says they “gnashed their teeth at him” and threw him out of the city where they then stoned him to death.

Here is what impacted me about his death when I was leafing through the pages of Acts. I was in search of God’s love, I knew it was there, but I wanted evidence of it that was outside of my existence and perceptions. I then stumbled across Stephen’s death and sure enough, the love of God was plainly seen. It’s strange how God’s love can be seen in the most violent of circumstance, but it’s there. In verse 55 of chapter 7 we see God’s love in the midst of everyone’s hatred for Stephen, “But [Stephen], being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.” I wonder if fear or maybe just a hint of doubt found its way into Stephen’s heart, I don’t know a man who can easily stand before a crowd of people who were literally gnashing their teeth at him. The love God had for Stephen is quite evident, for He gave him a taste of heaven and showed Him what it was all for. Stephen, in turn, shows us what an unshakable faith looks like, in verse 56 he says, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” He didn’t keep this vision quiet, he was excited and wanted everyone to know what he saw, no doubt was left in him for he knew he just saw his Lord. As the crowd took him outside the city and began throwing stones with all the hatred they could muster, he had two final prayers to the One he would soon see. He begged that God would not preserve him on earth, but would take his spirit to heaven so that his hope would be realized. His last prayer was full of a love that could only come from of the Father of Love, for he begged that his murderers would not be charged with their sin. Such faith Stephen had and what amazing love from the Father to whom all was given. This story is impacting to me for it shows a faith I want and an evidence of a love I now have, I just hope that I will one day have a story where someone could look upon it and say “wow, such faith and love between a child and her Father.”

Something I wrote for our church's newsletter

WHY I LOVE FALL
By Catherine Valentine

As the leaves come floating down from the trees and the wind has a bite to it; the coffee is brewing and the tea is hot, tell me, what’s not to love about Fall? The change of season is beautiful to behold, for here, it is the rhythm of life, a song the Creator composed just for His creation. The bushes and trees take one last brilliant bow as gold, red, and orange fill the woods and I ask again, what’s not to love about Fall? As a lover of nature, I have always looked forward to the change of season and I am especially fond of Fall, but the reason for this is not what you may think. As brilliant as God created this season it is not my love for nature that makes me look forward to this time of year, but what the change of season promises, a promise of a season of Thanksgiving and good cheer all around.

In this season of Fall comes a celebration of a bountiful harvest of food, family, and friends. Throughout the year there have been family struggles and friends in need, tears have been shed and feelings hurt, but as we gather together around the Thanksgiving table we delight in our good fortune of having friends to lean on and family standing by our side. This time of year reminds us to look around and remember why each person is in our lives and why they are at our table. How fortunate we are to have a table over flowing with food and not enough chairs for family and friends, not many are as blessed. This is the reason why I love Fall, because I am so privileged to sit at a table which is surrounded by loved ones and to partake in the richness we have as we delight in this change of season.

Draw your own connection between these...

--

Child's Prayer

Listen Jesus, to my quiet prayer
Just a simple request
To the One I hold dear
When night's shadows draw close
And I'm in the dark, so alone
Keep near Your heart
Keep me from fear, keep me from harm
Love me throughout the night long
And when morning finally dawns
Keep in my memory Your open arms
So I do not fear another night to come.

Midnight Horror

Can you hear the child crying?
Through the midnight hours
Weeping for his mother
Lying broken and bruised
Another drink, just one more
Cigarette butts dot the floor
A child is in the recliner
The Thrown of Manhood
His queen is in the bedroom
Trying to quiet her cries
Just another drink, whom could it hurt?
Cigarette butts dot the floor
His child is sobbing
Won't that kid shut up!
His mother deserved it after all.

Author's Note and "Black Bird's Cry"

Author's Note: Most of us in the west live in prosperity, especially compared to the rest of the world, and often we are blind to other's poverty around the globe. However, above all else, we are blind to the poverty of those in our own back yard. We turn a blind eye to all the different forms of poverty and like the black bird, it tries to wake us from our daydream.

Black Bird's Cry

A gentle walk
In the quiet woods
On the whistling breeze
There's the song of birds
A yellow butterfly
Fluttering its wings
There is solace
Among the trees

Though over head
Black birds are swarming
Darkened shadows
Against the sunrise
They tell a story
Testimony all should abide
"Not all is right in the world"
Can you hear their cry?

A babbling brook
A refreshing spring
The coolness of the air
As I sit in peace
Turtles sleeping on a rock
Flowers turning their faces
To the afternoon sun
All at rest in this happy home

But no! A croak of a black bird
Broken is the quiet repose
No rippling brook
Nor songs of birds
Can out cry the cry
Of the black bird
With each croak and flap of wing
It declares, "Not all is right!"

Venus is shining bright
As the sun turns west in the sky
I see an owl flying by
Its silent wings, but a breeze
The crickets are chirping
And I delight
In the grass between my feet
Such peace under starlit sky!

As the sun goes
Its last rays hits the eye
Of the somber watcher.
The black bird
Bids all a good night
With one final call
Before day turns to night
"It's not right, listen to my cry!"

What If?

What if
No one saw
You gave back money
Which wasn't
Yours at all

What if
You gave food
To a begger
Who did not
Thank you in return

What if
You stayed
At bedside of an old woman
Who spat your name
In discust

What if
You told the truth
Exposed a lie
And it did not matter
Not to one or all

What if
There was no praise
Your works
Never seen
Would you do them?

What if
You lived to serve
With out an ouce of praise
Or a gasp of awe
Would you have your reward?

Author's Note and "The Grave Digger"

Author's Note: In many homes across America, in dark allies in the big cities, in church pews, in country fields, there are those digging there own grave. They all came there by the choices they've made, but will we choose to take the shovel from their hands and show them a better way?


The Grave Digger

It hits the ground
The thunder of it echos
And reaches to the highest heavens
The shovel glimmers cold
Under the moonlight
There is weeping that never dies
For they are the cries
Of the grave digger

Who knows how
He found himself here
Under the shadows of night
Digging the grave
Which will bare his name
What choices he made
And continue to make?
How did it end this way?

The hole is big enough now
He lays aside his shovel
And with bitter tears
He sets the stone above the hollow
He lies in wait, wondering when
Others will fill his grave
Who will pick up the shovel
And finish the work he begun?

He laid himself here
With his hands, he dug his grave
He made his choices
Condemned by his tears
The silent crowd watches
Waiting for someone
To pick up the shovel
But will no one bring him up again?

Author's Note and TobyMac inspired writings

Author's Note: Much of my writings are inspired by music and I often explore new ways to write by looking to some of my favorite artists. Jars of Clay's lyrics, for example, are often very philosophical and offer some new insight each time you hear them. This is contrasted with the lyris TobyMac sings, they have conplex concepts wrapped up in a nice, easy to digest, package of simplistic lyrics. The Newsboys' lyrics, on the other hand, are often very light hearted and filled with God centered praise. Everyone of these have overlaped at some point or another, but this is the general idea. I have resently become a fan of TobyMac and as I was watching a concert DVD of his I became intrigued by his lyrics and music. Since intrigue often spawns creativity, I became inspired and wrote the following poems. I am more fond of the first one, but the other one is worth a look as well.

Beautiful People

Beautiful people
In all their colors and shapes
Master pieces
On a gallery wall
If only I was one of they

She’s size 22 with too white skin
Anything but beautiful to the average eye
But to the baby in her arms
She’s the sun, the moon and stars by night

Beautiful people
In all their colors and shapes
Master pieces
On a gallery wall
If only I was one of they

A factory man breaking his back for bread
Can barely make it home again
His baby girl welcomes him at the door
Her laughter could wake the dead

Beautiful people
In all their colors and shapes
Master pieces
On a gallery wall
If only I was one of they

He doesn’t have title, nor a car that runs
People just pass him by as he goes to work
But at the end of the day he comes home
And to his wife, he’s a shinning knight

Beautiful people
In all their colors and shapes
Master pieces
On a gallery wall
If only I was one of they

They have given all for others
I can hardly say the same
I’m young and more than a few look my way
But tell me, whose more beautiful today?

Beautiful people
In all their colors and shapes
Master pieces
On a gallery wall
If only I was one of they

Your Own Skin

You walk along the streets
Striving to be seen
As the one who has it all
Hoping no one would ask
Why you walk your walk
Hoping no one would see

You’re not comfortable
In your own skin
Your own skin

You smile in politeness
As your inner critic
Tears down the passer-byes
Giving you a reason
To say “I‘m alright!”
But there’s a small voice that cries

You’re not comfortable
In your own skin
Your own skin

The day you know love
The day you find friendship
Is the day when you know
We’re all the same
Unique in our own way
And you’ll only find it when…

You are comfortable
In your own skin
Your own skin