Health Love Sport God Life
Viva Différence Tips for Him and Her
FINDING
GOD beyond
Religion
Fruity Recipe for Harmony Lonely Planet
DEATH -The FINAL
Solutions to Loneliness
On the Rocky Road
FRONTIER?
to Soccer Fan Land
ISSUE VII
Su Meile Iš Lietuvos
Free! 1
Contents
4you.ie Magazine Published in Ireland by AONTAS © MMXII Editor Paudge Mulvihill
aontas
Correspondence to: 4you Magazine, 72 Rowan Drive, Castlebar, Co. Mayo Phone: 094 9023702 Email: info@4you.ie Web: www.4you.ie Design: Drinan Arthouse, Cork, Ireland www.drinan.ie Printer: Printbydesign Ltd. Publisher: www.aontas.ie
Page 3
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
Love & Marriage Tips Viva la Différence
Religion Losing My Religion
VII 4 by Mark Loughrige
Page 4-5 Health Lonliness
by Paudge Mulvihill
Page 12
My Story
Page 12
QuestionTime Why Did He Die?
by Mary Kelly
by Rosemary Armstrong
Page 6-7 Eternity Imagine There’s a Heaven
by Paudge Mulvihill
by Tim Coyle
Page 6-7 Sport EURO 2012
by Mark Loughrige
Page 8-9 Life & Death THE END -Where Do We Go From Here? by John Blanchard
ie
Page 10
Page 13
Recipes Loving Recipes
Page 14
Lithuanian Special
Page 15
Free Offers & Resources
Kaip Tikėjimas Išgelbėjo Mano Gyvenimą by Simona Fishel
Books, Bibles & Booklets
M e e t S o m e o f O u r F e a t u r e d Wr i t e r s for 4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
Mark Loughridge
Lives in Donegal, is married to Judith and they have three wonderful girls. In this issue he writes about exbracing the differences of the sexes & kicks off some Euro 2012 ideas.
Rosemary Armstrong
Rosemary was born in Belfast, graduated at Queens, married Alan and is mother of David. Now living in NW Donegal, she loves reading & has an interest in quilting.
Tim Coyle
Tim Coyle was born and raised in Cavan & works in Roscommon. In this issue he writes about Heaven & how we can be completely sure of getting there.
Simona Fishel
Issue VII
Simona is a native of Lithuania now living in the Boyne Valley with husband Ryan & new baby Vilte. Su Meile Iš Lietuvos. 2
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
www.4you.ie
4
viva
love
différenc
la
e
People tend to marry someone very different to themselves.
That difference is what attracts us in the first place! That’s what makes the other person seem exciting—they see and do things differently. Mark Loughridge takes a look at the Sexes, Marriage & Difference
B ut the difference between interesting and irritating is of- Determine ten just a matter of time. Too soon what intrigued us can be-
to respond to your differences with appreciation and respect. We are used to be-
come annoying—her planning starts to cramp your ‘go with the flow’ attitude, his high flying work life clashes with your plans for a warm family life. Tensions build around these differences, and we become convinced that our way of seeing life is right, and that the other person needs to wise up and come around to our way of thinking. And they think the same: if only we would see life their way, then all would be great.
ing impatient or irritated in the face of differences, used to doing what we need to get our own way. Those responses are more about your relationship with God than about your husband or wife. You disagree with how God made your wife or your husband. Marriage is about two people creating something stronger together than they are apart—that means there are two sets of strengths, and both need to be appreciated.
There are differences that are issues of right/wrong— moral issues—that need to be dealt with rather than accommodated. But the issues of background, culture, personality—these differences are not an issue of wrong or right, they are just differences of preference.
Learn where your differences create difficulty and work together at these areas. Do
How do we respond to these so that they do not become irritating? We have two choices. We can either embrace the differences that God has brought to our marriage, or we can try to be God, trying to change our spouse into our image. Paul Tripp in his book on marriage suggests five God-pleasing ways to respond to these differences:
Celebrate your Creator.
The more you acknowledge and appreciate the fact that God made your spouse exactly as you need them to be, the more you will tend to esteem and appreciate them.
we see our differences as an opportunity for developing deeper unity and harmony or an opportunity to fight? Will we learn to work to each other’s strengths, anticipating the conflicts of interest and working around them?
Admit where these differences challenge you to grow.
God uses the differences in our spouses to expose our own flaws, pride, impatience and many other sinful traits. Too often we are so busy looking at the other half with a critical eye that we don’t see where we need to grow ourselves. Marriage is not easy. We can either attempt to muddle through on our own strength, or we can look to Jesus Christ who gives strength, help and hope for broken marriages in a broken world.
Refuse to see the differences as right or wrong. When you begin to think and act as though your hardwiring makes you better, more mature, or more righteous than your spouse, you will act and respond in ways that are dismissive and disrespectful.
marriage
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
3
loneliness by Rosemary Armstrong
H
“ ow can we cope with loneliness? Our first step is to recognise its existence and potential. Loneliness, itself is not a negative quality. Its ability to destroy by isolating us from normal society can only occur if we let it dominate us.” ew words can summarise such a deep range of raw feelings as the word “loneliness”. It is a cry of a soul in pain. It is a summary of a life lived outside normal social interaction. It is the ultimate admission that a sense of isolation is dominating all we think or do. The word is full of contradictions. It affects all of us, yet ‘being lonely’ cuts us off from other humans. It may suggest a solitary individual living in a remote place, but actually some people’s loneliest times
F
4
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
are experienced in a crowd or large city. Even though most people link loneliness with old age, it affects all age groups. One has only to read about an individual suicide or about the topic in general to hear the agony of a young person or middle aged person cut off from his peers.
What triggers loneliness? Research suggests two distinct factors as major causes. Sometimes there is a lack of certain chemical balances in our bloodstream. This can
be helped by medical treatment and an awareness by the individual and their family or friends of the symptoms which show it is time to act to counterbalance the deficiency.
The other great cause is circumstances. From birth we are encouraged to be individuals and to develop as such. We live, however, in an interactive society. Not being able to connect socially, or not feeling the need to, can lead to a sense of being out of step with those www.4you.ie
health around us and to a growing isolation which eventually cuts us off from wanting to communicate. The circumstances can be widely varied – a new experience – starting school or college, a move to a new environment, a new stage of life – marriage, parenthood, a bereavement. The change in circumstance takes us out of our comfort zone with ourselves and with those with whom we interact. Sadly, today’s society which stresses instant communication through internet and mobile phones lessens our ability to listen to each other’s deeper needs and consider our own situation. The current financial cutbacks too could increase loneliness. Reductions in home helps, rural bus services, classroom assistants for the vulnerable all have an impact, as do longer waiting lists for counselling.
The negativity of loneliness becomes apparent when our social imbalance means a person feels of less self worth than peers and therefore ceases trying to maintain communication. Even where physical isolation is not an influence, the mental decision to withdraw from others leads to a depressing sense of rejection and pain. This process gathers momentum where someone is belittled or bullied by a close family member or partner. W.B. Yeats talks of spreading ‘my dreams under your feet’. Having someone trample on our aspirations or us does not enable us to mature and enjoy balanced lives. How can we cope with loneliness? Our first
step is to recognise its existence and potential. Loneliness, itself is not a negative quality. Its ability to destroy by isolating us from normal society can only occur if we let it dominate us. When facing a new situation or the pain of bereavement try to prepare positively. For a shy person it may mean taking a friend to a new situation to help them integrate or thinking up beforehand questions to initiate conversation. For a bereaved person it might be focusing on happier memories or considering a new activity, which will give them the discipline of making new friends and building new memories. Often the challenge is to begin with ourselves before we can use that experience to help others. The experience of loneliness can help us get to know and accept our weakness and strengths and so become a better person. Sometimes it is essential to find a suitable person with whom to talk about our needs.
www.4you.ie
t
“... he mental decision to
o
withdraw from others leads to a depressing sense of rejection and pain. This process gathers momentum where someone is belittled or bullied by a close family member or partner. W.B. Yeats talks of spreading ‘my dreams under your feet’. ” Christ
experienced loneliness when He was on earth. He was rejected by His own people, betrayed by his friends and misunderstood, even though He was the great Creator who came to earth out of love for us.
The fantastic message of the Bible is that the One who created us made us for a relationship with Him. Sin is a barrier in the way of that relationship, and Jesus died on the cross to remove that barrier. When we ask Jesus to take away our sin we begin a new relationship with Him. One of the results of this is that we have a constant Friend with whom to share our lives. God so valued our lives that He died to bring this about. How’s that for an answer to loneliness? It gets even better. Not only has He experienced loneliness and can walk with us in ours but He promises (366 times in the Holy Bible!) never to leave us or forsake us! The Creator made us as individuals, but made us to be complimentary interacting elements of society. God wants us to hand over our lives to Him so that He can work in us through His Holy Spirit to mature and to be all He intended us to be. Are you ready to consider that journey? If you are, talk to the person who gave you this magazine or see the contact information provided in it.
+
Christ experienced loneliness
“
when He was on earth.”
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
5
Imagine There’s A Heaven...
by Tim Coyle
Do you believe there is such a place called heaven? So many people
I’ve met do believe in heaven in some way, or at least hope there is a heaven. However, the Bible tells us that there is a heaven, a beautiful place that is so very different than the world we live in. Although we usually call the forever world heaven, it is also called paradise and the new heavens and the new earth. It is truly a wonderful place. The book of Revelation, chapter twenty one, verse four, tells us what will not be in it. There will be no more death, mourning, crying or pain. This means that the opposites of these—life, joy and health—will fill the place forever and forever. So how do you get in there? What does God require, want, and demand from you before He will open the gates of that wonderful place and let you in? After all, the Bible says that He is the ruler of heaven, so it would be very important to find out His terms. And the place to find that out is in the Bible.
The Bible says that God has a law, a perfect law. And He requires people to keep that law perfectly. How do we know that?
In the Bible, in Galatians 3:10 we read the following words: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.” Another way of putting this is, you are in trouble if you do not keep God’s law perfectly. This means no murder, no adultery, no theft. It also means no lying, no getting angry, no complaining, and no instances of jealousy or laziness or bitterness. Not even once. If you mess up at all, you are “cursed”. And if you are cursed, the gates of heaven will be closed to you forever. A person under the curse of God could never get into heaven.
It seems pretty hopeless, doesn’t it? No one can keep God’s law per-
fectly. How can anybody ever be allowed into heaven? Well, the Bible tells us that there is a way where you can be accepted by God into that wonderful place. It has to do with His Son, Jesus Christ. You see, Jesus Christ lived a perfect life. He never did anything wrong, said anything wrong or thought anything wrong. And He was nailed to a cross. And although that was a terrible injustice, God has a purpose in allowing it to happen. Something incredible happened when He hung on that cross. He paid the penalty for the sins of anyone who would believe in Him. He satisfied God’s demands. And He proved that God was satisfied with what He did by rising from the dead. Everyone who makes Him the owner of their lives and believes that He actually died for them receives complete forgiveness of their sins and is credited with His righteousness. God considers them as having kept His law perfectly because Jesus Christ kept God’s law perfectly on their behalf. And then the believing sinner is accepted into heaven. And there he will live forever because Jesus Christ, who rose from the dead, gives the believing sinner His never-ending life.
t
Would you like to go to heaven? Would you like to have all your sins
forgiven? Would you like to live forever with God in an immortal body in endless bliss? Then trust in the only way that God will ever allow you into heaven. Trust in His Son. He took care of God’s requirements. Throw yourself on His mercy. Give your life to Him.
6
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
by Mark Loughridge
B
y the time you read this article, Euro 2012 will either be reaching its climax or have passed into history. At the moment, every news bulletin is full of items relating to Euro 2012: speculation about team selections, injury worries, and reports on warm up matches. Fans across Europe are eagerly waiting for the games, hoping that their country will triumph. Just as there are different reactions to football, there are similar varying reactions to Christianity.
F
irst there is the die-hard fan who travels to every match. He is completely devoted; he shouts at matches, even if he only sees it on telly, until he is hoarse and follows his team through thick and thin. Even if his team loses every match he will return the following year to cheer them on. Football completely fills his mind; he talks about it at every opportunity. So it is with true Christians. They are filled with joy and enthusiasm about their faith. It’s obvious to everyone where their allegiances lie. Their faith is evident in their conversation and in how they live their lives. They look forward to meeting with fellow believers; they feel that they have missed out when they are forced to miss the prayer meeting. Even when they are going through hard times, they cling to their Saviour.
T
hen we have armchair fans. This fan is like the die-hard fan, only he is hindered from travelling to matches for various reasons. Maybe it’s the distance or maybe it’s financial constraints, but he just can’t get to watch his team. Even so, he watches every match on television and is as enthusiastic and devoted a supporter as the fan who attends every match. Although he can’t be at the match his heart is there and his longing is to be there with his fellow supporters. Likewise there are devoted Christians who for various reasons are prevented from meeting with other believers as often as they’d like. They long to be with the www.4you.ie
sport
EURO 2012
Pictures from Sports fellow Christians who are constantly in their thoughts and prayers. These are some of the most valuable members a congregation can have. Christians who have a real love for their Saviour and a concern for their fellow believers and who are committed to prayer for the work of the gospel. Although they aren’t as active as they would like to be, they are supporting the church in a vital way.
But there is another type of armchair fan.
He is not so committed and there is noth-
ing stopping him from going to matches. It’s just much easier to watch the match from the comfort of the living room. He’s not that put out if he has to miss a match, and sometimes could go for weeks without cheering on his team. In the same way there are many Christians who are not as committed to their faith as they could or should be. If a conversation turns to religion they shy away from voicing their opinion. They can go for weeks without spending time in prayer or reading their Bibles. Maybe they do not attend church or the prayer meeting as regularly as they should. It’s just not as obvious were there heart lies.
“
Just as there are different reactions to football, there are similar varying reactions to Christianity.
And there is a strange breed of football Finally we have the person who is to-
lover that has emerged over the last few years – the fantasy footballer. He knows hen we have the person who claims all about players and defensive records to be a football fan but has no real interand goal scoring capabilities, for one purest. He may follow a team for a while but pose—so that he can compose a fantasy has no real commitment. He usually folteam that will top the fantasy league. For lows the team that’s on some of these fans, it is not a winning streak, but the game of football they love, “He usually follows when they start to lose, but being able to talk numhis allegiance changes. the team that’s on a bers and points and ratios There are many peoand transfers. But it’s comwinning streak...” ple in the world topletely detached from the reday like this. When ality of football. They have no they are in the company of Christians interest in the thud of leather on leather, they act just like Christian,s but they or in watching the graceful arc of a welldrop the act when they are in differtaken free kick; they have no experience ent company. They put on a show of of the game. There are some like this in commitment, of love for Christ, but unthe church – a rare breed – one who can derneath it’s false—they couldn’t care talk all about scripture and theology, but less. There’s no real commitment and has no passion, no heart, no experience if things turn hard for them they quickly of Christ. But they sound good when you slip away. talk to them.
T
www.4you.ie
”
tally indifferent to football. This person has no love for a beautifully worked goal, the well-disciplined defence, or the skilful playmaker. It just doesn’t matter to them. If only they could get through the next few months without hearing very much about Euro 2012, that would be fine. How many are like that with the gospel! They are utterly indifferent to the good news that forgiveness is available, indifferent to the great cost Christ paid. They want nothing to do with it; they just want to get on with their lives. I want to leave you with just one question. Look at your own life and answer with honesty, which category do you really fit into? (And I’m not referring to football!)
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
77
Life & Death
When life finally comes to
the End Where do we go from here? John Blanchard
One question ultimately concerns every living person
— and it can be put in six simple syllables – Where do we go from here? We invest a massive amount of time, expense, energy, thinking and working into the things we do in life. Our jobs, homes, families, possessions, hobbies, plans, well-being, hopes and pleasures take up every waking hour — yet they will all eventually be snatched away from us by death. Immediately before his execution, an American criminal said, ‘You can be a king or a street-sweeper, but everybody dances with the Grim Reaper.’ I imagine he gave hours of thought as to what his final words would be, yet he was only stating the obvious. The question is: What happens when the dance is over? As far as our bodies are concerned, the answer in most cultures is fairly straightforward and other than in unusual circumstances means burial or cremation — but what about the soul? Popular ideas have ranged from agnosticism, which says that it is a complete mystery; annihilationism, which says that death ends human existence; universalism, which says everyone will go to heaven, and reincarnation, which says that the dead are ‘recycled’, returning to earth as different kinds of persons or even as animals, birds, reptiles or insects. Yet none of these ideas has any biblical basis. The Bible tells us that the souls of those who have died remain alive
8
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
and conscious in what theologians call the ‘intermediate state’, the nature of which depends on the spiritual condition of the person concerned. Jesus told a story about a rich, godless man who died and was buried and ‘in Hades’ was ‘in torment’ and a poor, godly man who ‘died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side’ (see Luke 16:1931). ‘Hades’ clearly means a place of punishment for the ungodly, while as Abraham was ‘the father of all who believe’ (Romans 4:11), ‘Abraham’s side’ obviously means a place of great bliss. We could illustrate these intermediate states by saying that the righteous are in a palace, waiting to enter the throne room, while the unrighteous are remanded in custody, waiting to receive their final sentence.
T
his intermediate state will last until Jesus re turns to the earth, when ‘There will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust’ (Acts 24:15). People may be ‘dead and buried’, but they are never ‘dead and gone’. Without explaining how this happens (and how could we understand it?) the Bible says that the souls of unbelievers will be taken from the ‘condemned cell’ of Hades and reunited with their resurrected bodies (identifiable with those they had on earth but not identical to them) to face their Maker as whole persons and receive their final, dreadful sentence. The souls of believers, reunited with resurrection bodies, will also stand before God, not to be condemned, but to be welcomed into God’s glorious presence in heaven. www.4you.ie
Where Do We Go From Here?
Lamb’ (Revelation 14:10). The French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre, who was brought up in church circles but later ‘stopped associating’ with God and became an icon of atheism, imagined the horror of this: ‘The last thing I want is to be subject to the unremitting gaze of a holy God.’ Yet this will be the appalling fate of the unrighteous. They will be exposed to the fire of God’s holy and unrestricted anger, unleashed against them in the way their sinfulness deserves and his holiness demands, with never a glimmer of his love, mercy, kindness or compassion, all of which they rejected while on earth. One other thing will make hell even worse: those who are sent there will remain there for ever. The Bible knows nothing of purgatory, a ‘second chance’ or a ‘larger hope’. It speaks of ‘eternal fire’ (Matthew 25:41) and of the unrighteous being ‘tormented day and night for ever and ever’ (Revelation 20:10).
Y
T
he ultimate division between the righteous and the unrighteous will be made when ‘each one of us will give an account of himself to God’ (Romans 14:12) — one who is utterly perfect, has complete and perfect knowledge of everything we think, say or do, is righteously angry at all sin, and has stated that ‘nothing unclean will ever enter [heaven]’ (Revelation 21:27) As ‘all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God’ (Romans 3:23) this means that without an astonishing intervention on our behalf, we are doomed to ‘go away into eternal punishment’ (Matthew 25:46). The Bible calls this ‘hell’ and likens it to a rubbish dump, a prison and a place of darkness—‘there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth’ (Matthew 8:12). Yet the most terrible picture of hell tells us that those condemned to be there will be ‘tormented with fire and sulphur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the www.4you.ie
et the glory of the Christian gospel is that God has won drously intervened to rescue sinners from this terrible fate: ‘God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us’ (Romans 5:8). In the sinless person of his own beloved Son, God provided a substitute for sinners, one who lived in perfect obedience to God’s law, then in his voluntary death paid in full the appalling penalty the law demands, becoming as accountable for men’s sins as if he had been responsible for them. Nor is this the end of the story! After three days Jesus was ‘declared to be the Son of God… by his resurrection from the dead’ (Romans 1:4), proof that all the demands of God’s holy law had been met, his justice completely satisfied and his holy anger against those for whom Jesus died vented in full. As we move towards the end of life, our final destiny is at stake, with heaven and hell as the only alternatives. Left to our own efforts, even the most religious or respectable of them, we are doomed to hear the dreadful words, ‘Depart from me… into the eternal fire’ (25:41) and to be exposed to God’s awesome anger for ever — but there is an alternative! In his amazing grace, God has made a way for sinful rebels to return to him and to enjoy eternity in his glorious presence. Jesus came, lived, died and rose again ‘to bring us to God’ (1 Peter 3:18), to deliver sinners immediately from the penalty of sin, gradually from its power, and eventually from its very presence — i n heaven, where ‘death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain’ (Revelation 21:4). There is no escape from the wrath of God except in the One who bore that wrath on behalf of those who put their trust in him. The church’s task is to preach the gospel ‘to all nations’ (Matthew 28:19), assuring even the worst of sinners that everyone who truly turns turn from sin and puts his or her trust in the Lord Jesus Christ ‘has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has passed over from death to life’ (John 5:24).
Pic: The Plassey Wreck, Inis Oírr, Aran Islands, Galway
*
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
99
Religion
Paudge Mulvihill from Mayo found that he was one of many :
I
was brought up in a good and loving Catholic home, and went through all the usual baptism,
communion, and confirmation things. With the Eucharistic Congress being held in Ireland this year I could not help looking back at what I used to believe. From an early age I was told that in the communion, when the Priest said the words of consecration, that the bread and wine were changed into the body, blood, soul and divinity of Christ and I took it to be fact. I can still remember the feelings I had on my first communion day and the build-up to that day—all the preparations done at school.
Trent, which was confirmed by the Second Vatican Council, they pronounced that “if anyone says that in the Mass a true and real sacrifice is not offered to God…let him be anathema (cursed for all eternity).” But as I read the Bible I could not square up what the Catholic Church taught with what the Bible taught. Yes, if one took the words in a very literal manner one could come away believing in transubstantiation, but this kind of literalism is not a proper way to read any book, and especially not the Bible. I became convinced that when Jesus spoke those famous words that he was speaking symbolically and not literally. I became convinced of this for several reasons. I will confine myself here to three:
Later in life I drifted away and eventually became an atheist, and indeed a very convinced and militant one. If Richard Dawkins, the Englishman who has written denouncing belief in God, had 1. esus said many things using symbolism, things which He been around back then, I would have been his number one fan. never meant to be taken literally. For example, when Jesus said But thankfully God had a very different plan for my life and “I am the door”, any clear non-literal reading will understand in 1979 I became a committed Bible-believing Christian. Quite this to mean that He is the One through whom we must go in a transformation, but that’s another story. Having come from order to gain eternal life. In another place He said “I am the light a Catholic background, and because my parents would have of the world”; again, a clear non-literal reading will understand loved for me to return to the Catholic Church, it seemed only this to mean that He is the world’s source of spiritual light. right that I revisit things and see if the Catholic Church So I became convinced that the Catholic Church was might have been right all along. I was helped in been far too literal in their understanding of Jesus’ “The this investigation by my father who had spent six words. So when Jesus says that we are to eat His years in a Catholic seminary studying for the flesh and drink His blood in order to have eterEucharistic priesthood. (I often joke that I am glad he left nal life, what does He mean by this? ThankCongress it or else I would never have been born). So fully Jesus Himself made it abundantly clear -it with the Bible in one hand and my father’s what He meant. In the same chapter Jesus help, I entered upon a time of deep reflection. goes on to say that “It is the Spirit who gives no longer One of the many issues that came up was the life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I has interest issue of the Eucharist. speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John f o r m e” chapter 6 verses 63-64). So, if “the flesh profits Here is what I found:nothing” why would we have to eat Jesus’ flesh in order to have eternal life? It does not make sense, until The Catholic Church’s teaching is that Jesus’ words, “He who Jesus tells us that the words He speaks are “spirit”. Jesus is eats My flesh and drinks My blood” are to be taken very literally saying that this is not to be taken literally, but spiritually; the indeed. They teach that when the Priest utters the words of conwords are not to be acted upon literally but spiritually. secration that the bread and wine are miraculously changed into the body, blood, soul and divinity of Christ. Now the church 2. ebrews chapter 10 verses 11-14* makes it abundantly goes on to say that while the bread and wine changes, the outclear that the sacrifice on Calvary was a once off, never-to-beward appearance of the bread and wine remains the same. So repeated sacrifice. Verse 12 tells us that the Lord Jesus offered even though outwardly the bread and wine continues to taste, to one sacrifice for sins forever. Therefore no further sacrifices are feel and to look exactly the same, they are nonetheless changed needed. Verse 14 tells us that by this one offering He perfected into Christ’s body and blood. This is called the doctrine of tranforever those who were being sanctified. The reason why there substantiation. are no more sacrifices to be made is really wonderful; when Jesus died on the Cross what he did was so perfect and complete that The Catholic Church also claims that the Mass is a sacrifice it does not need to be repeated again and again. But the Cathoand that Christ is the victim in that daily sacrifice. They express lic Church on the other hand teaches that the Mass is an actual these views very strongly indeed, for example in the counsel of sacrifice and that Christ is “re-sacrificed” every time a Mass is
J
H
10
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
www.4you.ie
Losing My
Religion
said. This is directly in contradiction to what Scripture says, that Jesus died “once for all” and that He does not need to be sacrificed again and again.
I
3. also learned that transubstantiation was never taught in the early church. In fact, it was not until 1215AD at the Fourth Lateran Council that the Catholic Church under the papacy of Pope Innocent III adopted this idea. Now of course they were considering these ideas for several years before they formally adopted them, but nonetheless the fact remains that the early church knew nothing of such notions. So what did Jesus mean us to understand about Communion? Communion is a wonderful opportunity for the believer to remember the Lord Jesus’ death and resurrection on their behalf and all the benefits that come to the believer because of what Jesus has done. It is a time of personal reflection, a time to take stock, to confess one’s sin and seek grace to help. It’s a time to rejoice and give thanks for the Lord’s extraordinary goodness in dying to pay the penalty for the believer’s sin. Because of Calvary, the penalty for the believer’s sin is fully and completed paid for and Communion is a time to celebrate and rejoice in this wonderful Good News.
*Hebrews chapter 10 says: “Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Jesus had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. For by ONE sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” www.4you.ie
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
11
My Story
before. Although I had two children under two and less time to ponder my search, there was still the niggling feeling that I wasn’t satisfied.
Finally Found What I Was Looking For
Mary Kelly
(name changed)
W
hen I was younger, I knew some of the Bible stories, but I don’t think I saw it as the TRUTH—more of a lesson to teach us the ideal way to live our lives. I never realised that the Bible was a truthful, historical book. I suppose the way it was preached in my village church meant that there was little explanation or modern day examples of how to interpret the Word, and in consequence, as a child it made little sense to me. I thought, as many teenagers do, that friends and popularity were the most important things in life. Being seen going to church was most definitely not cool. When I look back now, I believe that at fourteen I was arrogant enough to think I’d make my own way in life without any help from God, and in many ways I rebelled against my parents, too. Peer pressure and my own teenage selfishness kept me following my own path. I often thought that my actions were not right but I brushed the feelings aside. After all, I was no worse than anyone else in my peer group! When I was eighteen I started college miles away from home and I really enjoyed the freedom and thought I knew it all. Towards the end of my first year, I received a phone call from home to say that Dad had cancer. I rushed home and it became evident that there was not going to be the miraculous outcome that we all wanted. Six months after his diagnosis, Dad died. He was forty-six. At that time if anyone had asked me if I believed in God I would have said no. I was angry and bewildered that life seemed without meaning. But subconsciously, that was the beginning of my search.
I
12 12
ventually I found myself in Ireland. I met a man and fell in love and we had two beautiful children. I’ve never been one to learn much from my mistakes. I thought I’d been right all along that the love of a man was the meaning of life, I just hadn’t found the right one
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
I
t finally began to dawn on me that I’d been looking for TRUTH in all the wrong places. I’d been relying on people who either had no answers or other agendas for answers, when instead the answer had been with me all along – GOD. He wants nothing but the best for us. I read numerous books, asked hundreds of questions and did Bible studies. Finally on 7th August 2010, after buying that card ten years before, I took my “The LORD directs the steps of ‘Leap of Faith’. I wasn’t afraid. It all sounds like the godly. He delights in every such cliches when I try to put it into words, but I felt at peace, the search was over, I’d come home detail of their lives. to the Lord. I had the foundation of Jesus’ love Though they stumble, they will to build my life on and bring up the children on. It took me thirty-three years to begin to know never fall, for the LORD Jesus, and although the path isn’t always smooth, holds them by the hand.” I know for sure that I am at last on the right path. I have the TRUTH in my heart and the Light to -Psalm 37:23-24 guide me and I know the meaning of life.
n my twenties, I had a few relationships. I think that my theory was that the meaning of life was finding love; not the love of God, but the love of a man. When each of these relationships didn’t work out I decided that I hadn’t found the right place to settle down, and I moved—a lot. I’d just pick up and ship out. I remember boasting that I could leave somewhere with all of my belongings in the back of a taxi. It seems a pretty sad and lonely life now. I’d change jobs when they didn’t give me the satisfaction I was expecting. Where was I going to find the meaning of life? Then I discovered the big wide world. Maybe I was limiting my search area. So I went to look in Europe, Asia, and Australasia, but I didn’t discover it there or in boyfriends, friends or jobs. Why wasn’t I satisfied? What was I missing? When I was travelling in Australia, I lived in a hippy commune and I enjoyed it for a time. It was quite a selfish way of life. Every day was about superficial fun, but I did enjoy the sense of community, although people drifted in and out. It was really a meeting place for lost souls—everyone on a journey, everyone searching for something. At that time I was visiting fortune tellers for answers to the future and I remember buying a card with a picture of a man about to dive off a cliff. Underneath it said ‘Leap of Faith.’ At that time I took that to mean I should do a bungee jump!
E
Then a year and a half ago, I discovered that after five years together, the man I was with wasn’t the person I thought he was. Our lives were turned upside down. Everything that was built for our family was built on lies and deceit and it all crumbled. I realised that the life I’d created had no foundations. I had to build a new life for the children and myself but I didn’t have a clue how to do it. For the first time I had to rely on the help of other people. I met a lady I knew in passing outside a Christian bookshop one day and told her a little bit about our situation, and she was so supportive and practical. Once I’d got somewhere to live, we met up a few times and she told me about the church that she went to. The first time I went to her church I did so as a ‘thank you’ to her, not because I was really too interested. That sounds so arrogant and condescending now! I felt a sense of belonging when I entered the church. It wasn’t like the church I knew from childhood - no stained glass, altars or gold crosses, just genuine people who were so easy to speak to and friendly. Each week that I went along I felt that the sermon was written especially for me and sometimes I’d just cry. Looking back in a journal, on 24th June I’d written a passage from a book called Letters from Home by Neil Goodman, ‘And I cannot lie. My promises to you are from the beginning of time. You can therefore put your trust in Me because it is impossible for Me to lie.My child trust in Me forever. Trust in Me with all your heart. And do not rely on your own understanding. Acknowledge Me in everything you do and I will guide you throughout life.’
WHY Did He Die? So many people know about Jesus’ death on the cross at Calvary, but how many know why He died? What happened on Calvary is very important, but why it happened is so very much more important. Many people think that Jesus’ death on the cross has no real relevance to our lives in 21st century Ireland. What I hope to do in this short article is to show that in actual fact, Calvary and the message of the cross have very significant importance to each and every one of us. From what happened at Calvary we can learn some very amazing things: 1. The Depth of God’s Truly Amazing Love. John’s Gospel teaches us that God so loved the world that He sent His one and only much-loved Son to take the punishment for the wrong doing of every person who would come to Him seeking forgiveness and a new life. John the Apostle put it this way … “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” -John’s gospel, chapter 3 verse 16
L
www.4you.ie
Love recipes Recipe for A Loving Home Ingredients: 4 cups love 5 spoons of hope 2 cups loyalty 2 spoons tenderness 3 cups forgiveness 4 spoons faith 3 cups patience 1 barrel of laughter Take love and loyalty, mix thoroughly with faith. Blend it with tenderness, kindness and understanding. Stir in patience and hope, sprinkle abundantly with laughter. Chop any grudges into tiny pieces and soak up with a large, kind smile. Then Bake with warm sunshine. Serve daily with generous helpings (Can Serve the whole wide world, if you allow it.) Jesus died as a substitute – On the cross He took the place of every believer, bearing the consequences of their sin so that they would not have to pay the penalty themselves. This truly is remarkable love and it is so good to experience it. So in Calvary we see God’s truly amazing love – His love is truly remarkable.
Fruit of the Spirit But the fruit of the Spirit is:
love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other. -Galatians chapter 5 The Bible
remember it against us ever again. In the New Testament, God promises “I will be merciful … and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”
The Holy Spirit empowers and enables the believer to live life the way God would have it lived. Old habits and old ways no longer dominate, and the believer enters into this Holy Spirit-empowered newness of life – a life where they are progressively changed and transformed.
LOVE The next thing that Calvary teaches us is … 2. The Fullness and Completeness of God’s Forgiveness.
Because of what Jesus done on the Cross, everyone who comes to Him can receive a total and absolute forgiveness.
Therefore the believer can be absolutely assured that having being forgiven, they will go directly to heaven when they die because the problem of their sin has been fully taken care of.
Although there is so much more that could be said about the benefits that come to the believer because of Calvary, I will confine myself to one more thing : 3. The New Life offered
It is so great to know that your sin is forgiven; it brings such peace and joy to your life. This glorious forgiveness is available to everyone who will come to Him seeking it.
When you come to realise that your life is not what it ought to be, that you are not right with God, then you are ready for what Calvary and the resurrection have to offer.
No matter what your sin is, it can be forgiven. The forgiveness offered by God is so full and complete that the Bible says that when God forgives sin, He promises that He will not
Jesus did not only die on the cross, but He rose again from the dead and as a living Saviour. He makes possible for the believer what Paul the Apostle called “newness of life”.
www.4you.ie
This glorious new life includes a very real and personal relationship with God. He becomes our Father and we His children in a very definite and special way. Now of course none of these great blessings could ever be earned or merited by our good deeds and religious acts—if we could merit God’s blessings then there would have been no need for Jesus to die on the cross. If we want any of these blessings we must come empty-handed, claiming no merit of our own, trusting alone in what Christ has done on Calvary for forgiveness and new life. The astonishing good news is that the blessings of having your sin absolutely forgiven and the blessings of the New Life are utterly and totally free to everyone who comes entrusting their lives into the hands of the Lord Jesus.
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
13
Kaip tikėjimas išgelbėjo mano gyvenimą SIMONA FISHEL Šį
rudenį pirmą kartą, po vienerių metų gyvenimo Airijoje, grįžau namo – į Lietuvą. Su vyru sėdėjome kavinukėje ir gurkšnojome arbatą. Mano akys užkliuvo ties krūvele žurnalų. Atsiverčiau kaip tik tą, kuriame buvo rašoma apie Airiją. Nė kiek nenustebau perskaičiusi pirmuosius straipsnio sakinius: „Dauguma šią šalį pažįsta ne kaip turistų Meką, o kaip antrąją lietuvių gimtinę. Jei vyksti į Airiją,
Mano gyvenimas palengvėjo, kai sutikau dvi merginas, buvusias tokioje pat situacijoje kaip ir aš – gyveno tame pačiame priemiestyje, dirbo auklėmis ir ilgėjosi namų. Viena iš jų – Maurisha – buvo iš Namibijos, o kita – Sofija – iš Švedijos. Laisvalaikį dažnai leisdavau su šiomis merginomis: dalyjomės džiaugsmais ir sunkumais, namų ilgesiu, bet labiausiai mus jungė tikėjimas Dievu.
A
š užaugau netikinčioje šeimoje, tačiau nuo mažens ieškojau Dievo. Mano tėtis kartais išgerdavo, keldavo vaidus namuose, mušdavo mamą. Kai namuose vykdavo tokie dalykai, aš maldaudavau Dievą pagalbos. Būdama 10-ies ir ieškodama daugiau pagalbos iš Dievo, tapau katalike: priėmiau krikšto ir Šv. Komunijos sakramentus, tačiau į bažnyčia ateidavau tik tada, kai gyvenimą spausdavo sunkumai. Tuomet tyliai sėdėdavau bažnyčios prietemoje, mėgaudamasi ramybe ir mintyse kalbėdama su Dievu.
“Tuomet tyliai sėdėdavau bažnyčios prietemoje, mėgaudamasi ramybe ir mintyse kalbėdama su Dievu.”
S
vadinasi, dirbti...“ Prisimenu, kuomet aš pirmą kartą išvažiavau dirbti į užsienį. Buvau vos 18-os, kai 2001 metais išskridau tiesiai į Niujorką. Dirbau aukle šeimoje, auginusioje tris mergaites. Buvo labai sunku prisitaikyti prie naujojo gyvenimo ir kultūros.
14
4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
ofijos ir Maurishos tikėjimas buvo ypatingas. Jos kalbėdavo apie Dievą labai atvirai, dėl visko melsdavosi, o kai joms neduodavo ramybės gyvenimo klausimai, rūpesčiai ar baimės, jos skaitydavo Bibliją. Keletą kartų, dar būdama Lietuvoje, bandžiau skaityti Bibliją, bet ji pasirodė man per daug sudėtinga. Šios merginos, rodos, žinojo kiekvieną Biblijos puslapėlį. Kalbėdamos apie Dievą jos vadino jį Dangiškuoju Tėvu, artimiausiu Draugu, visos žemės Kūrėju, kuriam nėra neįmanomų dalykų. Aš taip pat troškau pažinti Dievą asmeniškai (kaip ir jos). Tačiau kaip besistengiau padaryti tai savo jėgomis, vistiek buvau ta pati aš. Ką turėjau daryti, kad turėčiau tokį tikėjimą, kaip tų merginų?
M
ano draugės pasidalino savo tikėjimo paslaptimi. Aš jau žinojau, kad Dievas yra triasmenis: Dievas Tėvas, Dievas Sūnus ir Dievas Šventoji Dvasia. Dievas Tėvas taip mylėjo nuodėmingojo pasaulio žmones, kad atsiuntė savo vienintelį Sūnų, išgelbėti (atpirkti) žmones iš nuodėmių. Jėzus Kristus, Dievo Sūnus, savanoriškai atėjo į šį pasaulį ir prisiėmė mūsų nuodėmes, kad mums būtų atleista amžinai. Aš suvokiau Dievą – kaip Tėvą, o Jėzų – kaip Dievo Sūnų. Tačiau kas buvo Dievas Šventoji Dvasia?
J
ėzus, gyvendamas žemėje, apaštalams sakė, kad bus daug geriau, jei Jis juos paliks ir išeis pas savo Tėvą danguje. Jėzus sakė, kad vietoj Savęs Jis atsiųs Šventąją Dvasią (Jn 16,7–15). Jis pažadėjo, kad Šventoji Dvasia mus amžinai sujungs su Dievu ir suteiks nuoširdumą mūsų maldoms, duos supratimą skaitant Bibliją. Ji suteiks mums vidinę stiprybę gyventi Dievo šlovei, išlies į mūsų širdis meilę Dievui, užtikrins mūsų išgelbėjimą gyvajame Jėzuje Kristuje.
P
o šių naujų atradimų apie Dievą, aš iš naujo savo gyvenimą paskyriau Jam. Meldžiausi ir prašiau, kad Jėzus, kuris numirė už mano nuodėmes ir po trijų dienų prisikėlė iš mirties, atsiųstų savo Šventąją Dvasią ir į mano gyvenimą. Aš norėjau pažinti Dievą asmeniškai taip, kaip Sofija ir Maurisha, o tu?
“Jis pažadėjo, kad Šventoji Dvasia mus amžinai sujungs su Dievu”
www.4you.ie
from 4you.ie
A
ll of the books or publications featured in this magazine are offered completely free of charge. No cost, no catch. Limitations are simply one copy per person (aged 18 and over), while stocks last, and delivery is only within the island of Ireland. We will endeavour to meet every request. Simply send your request, quoting the title, your name and delivery address to:
info@4you.ie or by post to:
4You.ie Magazine, 72 Rowan Drive, Castlebar, Co. Mayo
Get your orders in now: Offers limited to within the island of Ireland, while stocks last.
Reaping RACE Sports-fun comic strip
“A cheerful heart is good medicine” -Proverbs 17v22 -R E A L-
Hurling HistorY:
Christy Ring is regarded as one of the greatest hurlers in history. He played for the Cork senior hurling team from 1939 to 1963. The legendary Ring is 1 of only 3 hurlers to captain his county to three All-Ireland wins.
(Note: This cartoon is fictional -not historical!) www.4you.ie
Look up: The Bible says that we are like athletes when we ‘run the race’ and seriously follow Jesus. Look up this bible reference: 1st Corinthians chapter 9, verses 24-25. 4you.ie Magazine Issue VII
15
O N L I N E 16 From Ireland to Eternity
check out:
www.4you.ie