Upcoming Events

It always seems as though circumstances arrive to make the normal flow of things, the daily plans, go awry. Still, you must deal with each situation, and do your best to keep going.

So, I wanted to share with you what’s coming up in the days and weeks ahead. As time permits, hopefully at least once a week, I will share some thoughts on a portion of Scripture that I believe is vital to each Christian, as well as the only means of defense against the enemies which try to get us down, or keep us down. That Scripture is Ephesians 6:10-20, and deals with The Armor of God.

I hope to address these verses, and these different pieces of spiritual armor, in order, one by one, in an effort to help us find the strength to face life’s challenges.

As I said, there are some things going on right now that require my focus and attention, but I will do my best to get at least one entry on this topic published on the blog each week. So, keep watching the site, study these verses on your own, and let’s look forward to the Lord enlightening us together!

© 2006, Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press. All rights reserved. All material printed on this site is protected by the copyright law of the United States. It may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press, obtainable by writing to soulscape@alltel.net. Altering or removing any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content is not permitted. Any and all portions of material copied from the Soulscape Blog must be properly attributed to Chris Keeton and Soulscape, and cited with original blog web address.

Wilderness Experiences

Deuteronomy 8:2
"And you shall remember that the LORD your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not."

We all have had our own "wilderness experiences," those times where we ran and walked and trudged through countless hours, days or years, with seemingly no end in sight. The further we traverse the wilderness, the further away the end seems to be. We ask, "Why me, Lord? What good can come from this? Could you not receive more glory by delivering me from this burden?"

When we think of a wilderness, what comes to mind? A desert, usually; miles and miles of sand, scorpions and sunburn, with nary a place to rest our weary heads, nor a drink of water to cool our souls. But what we often miss is that the wilderness has its own beauty, a beauty that is only found within the wilderness itself. Where can this beauty be found? That’s the subject of the verse above.

The wilderness experience, no matter what it might be for each individual, is for a purpose. The children of Israel, upon gaining their freedom from Egypt, turned their back on the Lord and gave into idol worship. They gave into fear and unbelieving, lacking the faith that the Lord would give them victory in their conquest of the Promised Land. God was extremely angry with the Israelites, but the wandering in the wilderness for forty years was more than a punishment for past sins. It was much more.

Deuteronomy 8:2 tells us the reason God led them through the wilderness for those many years: to humble their spirits and test their souls; to show God, and the world, what was truly in their hearts; whether loving and obeying God were really as important to them as they claimed. The true punishment for the sins of Israel was that all but Joshua and Caleb died in that wilderness, without entering the Promised Land. But their descendants had to go through the wilderness, too. God was testing them as well.

The same is true of us today. While some of what we must endure is caused by our own poor choices, much of our own wilderness experience may be the Lord doing for us what He did for Israel. No matter what we go through, if we continue to trust in Jesus as our Savior and Lord, He will continually lead us through our wilderness, never leaving or forsaking us. But through the wilderness we must go. The question is, what do we learn, and what does He learn about us, through the experience?

The Lord is trying to humble us, to get us to the place where we see past ourselves and our own selfishness and pride. It’s not about how good or bad things are for us; it is not about who does what to us. It is about the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ seeing us through.

The Lord is testing us, showing us the truth about ourselves. As we recall taking tests in school, we remember the purpose of tests: to show us and the teacher what we do know and what we don’t know. By knowing these things, we see the areas we need to spend more time focusing on and improving, so that the next test brings with it the assurance that we’ve learned and grown from the experiences of the past. Sometimes this spiritual testing reveals that we are not where we need to be, that we are not acting as a Christian should, even though we thought we were. The tests are not to be taken lightly, nor looked upon as a means of making us feel unworthy, but to show us where we can and must improve, and be more like the Christ who died for us.

The Lord wants to see what is truly in our hearts. Some of us, quite plainly, have the wrong things in our hearts. That is extremely important for two reasons. First, what is in our heart doesn’t stay there; it comes out and shows itself. Second, God is looking on the heart and judging not only our actions, but our motives. We might fool everyone, including ourselves, but God is not fooled or mocked, and when the truth is revealed about what is really in our hearts, will we be proud and will God be pleased?

Finally, our wilderness experience is one way the Lord can see if we will indeed keep His commandments. It is easy to do the right thing in front of other Christians, when things are going smoothly, when everything is falling into place. But when it gets a bit uncomfortable for us, when things are falling apart around us, when there’s nothing but desert in all directions as far as your eye can see, will we still hold to the commands of the Lord? Will we hold fast to EVERY command, even if it’s not convenient or fun?

Our wilderness experiences should not be looked upon as a source of despair and depression, but as an opportunity for the Lord to help us grow, to show us what He can do and how much He loves us. Throughout those forty years, there were desperate and worrisome times, but the Lord never once let them down. At the end of their journey, the children of Israel could look back at their progress, where they came from and where they now stood. They could see the faithfulness of God, and how He used that experience to get them exactly where they needed to be.

So, look not at your wilderness as a barren landscape, bereft of joy and hope, but instead see it for what it is: a personal meeting with the Lord for your good and His glory. Don’t let your wilderness defeat you. Remember that tests can be failed, but if we learn the lessons of humility, testing, motives of the heart and obedience, our wilderness will not overcome us, but we will overcome our wilderness.

© 2006, Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press. All rights reserved. All material printed on this site is protected by the copyright law of the United States. It may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press, obtainable by writing to soulscape@alltel.net. Altering or removing any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content is not permitted. Any and all portions of material copied from the Soulscape Blog must be properly attributed to Chris Keeton and Soulscape, and cited with original blog web address.

An Eerie Tie-in with Last Week's Entry

Last week, I began my entry by posing a question we have all asked: Are things ever going to get better?  Another way to phrase that question would be thus: Can things get any worse?

Ask, and ye shall receive.

Friday night, my son was admitted to the local hospital with bronchialitis, which could be described as “Yucky Lung Crud.”  Takes after his old man in that regard.  I was an extremely sickly kid growing up.  I had pneumonia fourteen times by the age of eleven (I wrote out those numbers so you would know I didn’t just accidentally hit a digit by mistake).  Since that time I have dealt with the dreaded hereditary curse of asthma.  Oh, well.  That’s life.

The problem, though, was this: I’ve never been on the parental side of an illness like this.  I have a greater appreciation for what my own parents and grandparents experienced when I was the one laying on the bed, wheezing and coughing, IVs and oxygen tubes running everywhere.

Needless to say, neither side is pleasant, especially the view from way up here in the parental section.

Throughout his hospital stay, which lasted from very early Saturday morning until Tuesday afternoon, I was impressed by two things, which I would like to share with you.

First, I never quite understood what total helplessness was.  Sure, intellectually speaking I knew, but until you see your own child struggling to breathe, laying still when he usually is bouncing off the walls, until you’re there hearing the coughs and wheezes above the whine of an oxygen tent, knowing exactly what he feels like, yet being unable to do a single thing to make it better, you don’t fully comprehend helplessness.

It is in those totally helpless times that a person’s faith is put to the test.  At that moment, I had to put into practice all that I had preached about trusting the Lord.  I knew He would see us through, and that’s exactly what He did.  But it was still difficult.

Second, I was impressed by the sheer number of people, especially children, who came through the hospital with illnesses of their own.  How many of them relied on the Lord to see them through?  Did they have the peace of knowing everything would be okay, no matter what?  I’m sure some of them did and others did not.  But from personal experience, I can say that I wouldn’t want to go through anything, good or bad, without Him to lift me up and show what “sufficient grace” really is.

Doctors say that, while my son is getting better, we should prepare for this pattern repeating itself.  It’s nothing new to me.  I wish David didn’t have to go through what I did, and am praying that he doesn’t.  But either way, I look forward to teaching him, to showing him, that the Lord will always be there when we need Him most.

Is He there for you?

© 2006, Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press.  All rights reserved.  All material printed on this site is protected by the copyright law of the United States.  It may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press, obtainable by writing to soulscape@alltel.net. Altering or removing any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content is not permitted.  Any and all portions of material copied from the Soulscape Blog must be properly attributed to Chris Keeton and Soulscape, and cited with original blog web address.

It's Not Always Great, But Sometimes It's Pretty Good

“Are things ever going to get better?”

That’s a question all of us ask from time to time, and without fail we wish the answer was, “Yes.” Unfortunately, life rarely works out that way. A good maxim to live by would be EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED.

There are indeed some very difficult passages through which we must occasionally journey, but then, there are some pretty amazing passages, too.

The last several months have been difficult on a number of fronts, and when I am tempted to ask what could possibly be next, I invariably find out. For instance, I’ve been under the weather now, with a couple of different maladies, for over a week (hence the delay in cranking out another blog entry!), as well as several times over the recent past, and I wonder if I’m ever going to get over whatever is “going around.”

I have seen the loss of many people close to me, those whom I have pastored, members of my own family. Today I was present at the passing of yet another, both a church member as well as a great-uncle. His home-going was easy; one moment he was here with us – the next he was looking into the face of the Lord. The night before he passed, his daughter-in-law heard him ask my great-aunt if she wanted, “…an old house or a new house,” commenting that he was getting ready to have a new house.

He truly is enjoying that new house now. But not everything is sad or painful.

I always had ideas about what I would experience through life, but being an only child, I never thought I would get to be an uncle. That changed when my brother-in-law and his fiancée welcomed little Madilyn into the world this past December.

I don’t exactly know why, but I really, really enjoy the idea that I am an uncle. Perhaps it was the fun I had with one of my own uncles that makes me think of the fun she and I can have together. Stupid jokes, talking dogs, public embarrassment, I’m looking forward to it all. My son enjoys having a baby cousin, as you can see, and as I look into their faces, I realize how truly wondrous life is.


Sure, there are a lot of negative things, a lot of pain to go through. But in missing the bad, we miss the glorious. Without those moments when we don’t know how we’ll make it, we would never be able to see and appreciate the sufficient, sustaining grace of God. While I don’t enjoy the bad times in life, I wouldn’t trade it for the world, because the good times in life are more than worth it.

If you’re hurting right now, ask the Lord to show you all the blessings in your life, and ask Him to pour out His grace upon you, so that you can enjoy those good times even more. And, when you think about what awaits God’s children once this life is over, it just doesn’t get any better.

© 2006, Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press. All rights reserved. All material printed on this site is protected by the copyright law of the United States. It may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press, obtainable by writing to soulscape@alltel.net. Altering or removing any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content is not permitted. Any and all portions of material copied from the Soulscape Blog must be properly attributed to Chris Keeton and Soulscape, and cited with original blog web address.

Supernovas, Emission Nebulae and Molecular Clouds . . .Oh, My!

I’m one of those people who really enjoy watching the History Channel, the Discovery Channel, the Science Channel; well, you get the idea. Anyway, I am always amazed at those shows exploring the solar system and the universe.

There are some people out there who believe that Christianity (and to some degree, any major religion) is merely a crutch for the “Intellectually Challenged,” that any logical person would see past the futility and foolishness of the God idea. Some of these people will say, “You’ve seen the science, you’ve looked at the complexity of the universe. How can you believe in God?”

Well, for me, that complexity, that grandeur, further solidifies my own faith in God, not diminishing it in the least. For me, when I watch shows like this, when I contemplate the universe, and the science involved in “understanding” it, I think to myself, “I knew my God was big, but WOW!”

The entire concept of everything accidentally happening, that all things just happened to work out perfectly to create life, that gradual change and development has created the myriad species existing today, is ludicrous to me. While it might not be a brilliant intellectual exercise, or not well written, allow me to explain. I recently watched a program on Earth’s moon, and frankly, I was astounded at some of the things that were proposed by the show and the scientists involved in it. Here is the overall synopsis, as closely as I can remember it:

A few billion years ago, a planet smaller than Earth but larger than the moon collided with the Earth, just perfectly enough not to totally destroy either. Parts of the Earth and this smaller planet were blown off and accreted (fused together) to form a moon, perfectly designed to compliment the Earth. This moon we see in our sky perfectly regulates our planet’s orbit and rotation and tides, perfectly lies between us and the sun, perfectly hiding the much larger sun during an eclipse. Every four weeks, without fail, the moon’s phases perfectly come and go. Scientists tell us that the moon is slowly getting further and further away from Earth, at the rate of about an inch a year. And, perhaps most stunning of everything, all of this takes place at exactly the right distance from the sun to keep life going strong: not too close, not too far, for a planet that has absolutely everything to ensure our existence.

Seems a bit too ordered for me to believe it is all random. In fact, I would have to have much more faith than I do right now to believe that.

I believe we should try to understand the world around us. I think we should expand on the knowledge we have gained in the past so we can improve our future. But where my view and the majority of scientific and worldly views differ is this: I don’t believe this quest for knowledge should try to destroy our belief in God, but rather, reinforce it.

I think there are many things in this life, in this world, that cannot be explained. But a lack of explanation (or the presence of a “scientific” explanation) should not stand as evidence disproving God.

The Lord has allowed us to live in an extraordinary time. Never before in history have we had so many opportunities, so many wonderful pieces of technology, so much medical knowledge. If He permits, we will continue to advance. But as we advance scientifically, technologically, socially, let us not allow the natural tendency to marginalize God take hold in us. More knowledge does not mean less God. The two, human intelligence and the Divine, are not at odds with each other. They should compliment and reinforce one another.

If Christianity is a crutch, so be it. I know I, for one, could not take a step without Jesus within me, giving me the strength. He has given me what intelligence I have. How can I betray that gift by denying the One who bestowed it upon me? Jesus is more than a crutch to me; He is the One who gives me the strength to stand and walk what little I can on my own.

I need Him. To me, nothing has meaning without Him, and this universe would be a pretty lonely place if He weren’t here. All of those awe-inspiring pictures of the universe, of distant galaxies and planetary nebulae and the great unknown, say to me simply one thing . . .

What a mighty God we serve!

© 2006, Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press. All rights reserved. All material printed on this site is protected by the copyright law of the United States. It may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press, obtainable by writing to soulscape@alltel.net. Altering or removing any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content is not permitted. Any and all portions of material copied from the Soulscape Blog must be properly attributed to Chris Keeton and Soulscape, and cited with original blog web address.

A Better Way Than the "Normal"

Romans 14:19 – Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another.

Aren’t you tired of all the negative floating around out there? It seems that no matter where we turn for relief or respite, negativity finds us. It has been many years since our nation has been so divided. Political parties seem to be the worst these days, most politicians no longer working to better the country, but to besmirch and beat “the other guy.”

Our jobs, our homes, everywhere we look we see strife. And unfortunately, this kind of strife has worked its way into the very fabric of our spiritual lives, into our churches. For generations, members of the same Christian family have looked upon different denominations and congregations as inferior, in the wrong, a blemish on God’s true church. And it is not only limited to the larger scale; we find this strife much closer.

In the game of “He Said-She Said,” of striving to win (whatever that means), the thoughts, consideration and feelings of others take a back seat, sitting along side “doing what’s right,” in a vehicle bound for nowhere any of us would want to be.

At times, most of us forget that we are here to do the right thing, not the easy thing. It is easy to give in, to fight, to tear down. But God, in His Word, tells us what we are to do in this life. We must chase after those things that foster peace in and among us, to find those things that edify, or build up, the spiritual strength of one another.

Strife, animosity and anger destroy the person having these feelings, damage the recipient of those feelings, hurt the testimony and spiritual growth of the entire congregation, and diminish the effectiveness of the Lord’s Church. Does it seem worth it?

It most certainly takes hard work and determination to forgive, to set your heart on Godly things, on what He is pleased with, on what is right. Right is not always easy to do, but it is what God expects of His children. The only way to be able to do the right thing is concentration and patience. You must continually concentrate on the right thing, making the decision not to give into anything else, and practice it at all times, so that it gets easier.

This is not to say that pursuing the things that make for peace and that edify one another will someday become the easiest thing in the world. What it does mean is that you learn how to do it effectively, and you are more likely to avoid saying or doing things you will later regret. It is a lot like losing weight. If you’re on a diet and weigh yourself three times a day, you will soon get discouraged because you don’t see much progress. But if you weigh yourself once a month, the results are dramatic.

As you begin focusing on and practicing the things of peace and edification, you might find it extremely difficult and not see much progress, but slowly and surely, the more you practice it, the more progress and success you will see.

We need to flee from those things that tear down and destroy peace, because they are killing us emotionally and spiritually, on so many levels. The world, our churches, our homes, are in desperate need of building up, of a sense of the peace God has promised His children. What decision will we make? What will be our legacy? When people think of or remember us, will they recall a Godly person who strove to seek peace and build up others, or someone who tore apart the hearts and lives of others, and was less than peaceful?

There is more at stake than just you and me. The integrity of God’s church, the appeal of the Christian testimony, and the success of the Lord’s kingdom are also determined by our faithfulness to this commission to pursue the things of peace and edification. Life is too precious and too short to do pursue anything else, and when it comes to peace and edification, it is a worthy, wonderful pursuit.

© 2006, Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press. All rights reserved. All material printed on this site is protected by the copyright law of the United States. It may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Chris Keeton and Soulscape Press, obtainable by writing to soulscape@alltel.net. Altering or removing any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content is not permitted. Any and all portions of material copied from the Soulscape Blog must be properly attributed to Chris Keeton and Soulscape, and cited with original blog web address.