We Are Not Alone

I know this ambiguous title might make you think I'm about to talk about aliens in outer space. I'm not. What I am here to talk about is a song, that a friend of mine recently sent me. It really hit me hard after I stopped to think about the lyrics. I wanted to take a few minutes to share it and discuss it.

Not Alone - RED

This song is an awesome reminder that we are never alone in this life. There will always be someone there to pick you up when you fall. Since this is a Christian band, the message of the song is referring to God/Jesus being there for you when you fall. Never ever underestimate that power. It's too easy to do when things aren't going your way.

However, sometimes it takes time to find that path when you do wander, and you rarely find your own way back. There are other people in this life to help you find that path.

I went through a rough patch in my life. I'm assuming most people have. When I couldn't see God in those times, there were people who took the time to help me wash the mud out of my eyes. Who took my arm around their shoulder when I was walking with a limp. Who took the time to learn my struggles and talk me through it. I thank God every day for these incredible friends. You know who you are.

If you're reading this and you don't have a friend like this, get one. Being open and real with another human being is something that is hard, but ultimately one of the best possible things you can do. Admittedly, friends like this don't exactly come out of the woodwork. It does take time to build trust with one another. But in the end, both people will become wiser and more mature by helping one another grow. Both people can pick the other up in their time of need, and reassure them. Correct them when they go astray. Speak life and wisdom into them. You don't know what kind of impact you might have on someone.

Always remember that God will never leave you nor forsake you. But in case you forget, have someone remind you.


 "Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down, one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up."

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

Fifteen-Fifty-Six

You're probably wondering: What does the title mean? What about the numbers? Why is the sky blue? All of those questions and more will be answered in this post. (Okay maybe not the last one. But still, you get the idea.)

So let's start with the purpose of this blog. What do I hope to accomplish though writing? Well there's a few thing that I had in mind:

A): To post my stories, poems, and any other stray thoughts I might have.
B): To share my insight on a particular matter, either in my own life or from somewhere else in the world.
C): To discuss religion. Specifically Christianity, but also other beliefs if they meet criteria B) or E).
D): To indirectly help other people shape their own views on the topic of discussion for the blog.
E): To talk about something interesting in my life, as it occurs.

So while that seems like a lot, it really isn't. I don't know what will happen in my life, but I could end up posting about all of these things simultaneously because of a single discussion with someone, or perhaps just one of them. Time will tell.

Next, why the name? What purpose does "Operation 1556" serve for this blog? Allow me to elaborate: we'll start with the numbers. For those of you who know me, you should know that when I use numbers ambiguously, they generally refer to Bible verses. In this case, it's Romans 15:5-6, which reads the following:

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

So what does that mean for the blog? I'm going to break this down bit by bit, starting with the first line.

>May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had,

The most important part of this is "the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had". This is mind-blowing to think about in a lot of ways. First you have to ask yourself what kind of mindset Jesus might have had. Judging by his actions in the Bible, we can probably unanimously agree that Jesus was selfless, caring, forgiving, humble, wise, and loving, to name a few attributes. I could go on all day, but this is a good place to work off. I honestly think it's incredible that Paul prays that the Romans have the same mindset as Christ. Why? Because, if we (meaning people in general, but more likely Christians) had the same mindset as Christ, always putting others before ourselves, what would the world like? How would it be altered? Think about that. 

Lets tackle the first part of this now, why does Paul say "The God who gives endurance and encouragement"? God gives a lot of things, but this is not exactly the first thing I think of when I think of God. However I think we can get our answer as to why if we look back on the overall tone of Romans. In the 16 chapters of this book, Paul is constantly encouraging the Romans on how to live a healthier lifestyle. In Romans 1:8, Paul commends them for their faith, because it was being reported all over the world. How amazing is that? And if you continue to read Romans, it's pretty encouraging stuff. For that reason, it's probably one of my favorite books in the entire bible. So therefore, the word encouragement is included because of the encouraging nature of the Gospel message, which Paul brings to light in the book of Romans. We're encouraged to live a radical lifestyle, we're encouraged to press on toward the goal, we're encouraged to endure in suffering. Which leads us to our next word. 

Endurance. Interesting choice of word. But it's not really as complex as you think. To me, God is always giving us that endurance to get back up when we fall. Isaiah 40:31 comes to mind when someone mentions endurance: 

but those who hope in the Lord
    will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
    they will run and not grow weary,
    they will walk and not be faint.

God definitely gives endurance. There's no question about that. We just need to hope in him to find it. If we didn't have God when we fell, where would we place our hope? What would encourage us to keep going if there was no goal in sight? Would we even have the endurance to keep going? With that said, let's move on to second part of the verse:

>so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

One mind, one voice. Unity. Unity through Christ. Unity in Christ. Unity in praising God. It's so simple, and yet there's so much division in the modern day church over anything and everything. What seems like such a simple command is causing people to leave the church, because no one can completely agree on the message of the Bible. What two people might agree upon in one part of the Bible, they disagree in a different part. From the Jewish to the Christian to the Catholic, no one can seem to agree on anything. We've got the presbyterians, orthodox, baptists, methodist, etc., who all have something different to say about the Bible. "We should do this." "We shouldn't do this" "We should be more of this" "You should have these ideas about these topics" "Don't believe everything you read it's not all literal" Honestly: I don't care what anyone else thinks. But why do these differences in thought cause separations? Why can't we just come together in unity and praise God like we were made to do? Because in the end that's all that matters. Will determining what time of year Jesus was born get us into heaven? Will any differences in thought keep us out? As long as the basic core message is the same (Jesus lived and died and rose again and will come back one day and there is only salvation through him), then it shouldn't matter what we think about what. This verse calls us to be unified, and yet look at where we are today in American-Christianity. 

So finally, I can tell you what the name means. It's essentially saying "This blog is a mission to unify people through Jesus Christ". That's it. Do I expect everyone to change their minds by reading this blog? No. But I hope and pray that those differences can be put aside for the sake of Christ.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. 

-Romans 1:16