Nunca antes en mi vida había visto un virus o evento cambiar nuestras formas de vida como la hecho el Coronavirus. Negocios cerrados, los deportes interrumpidos, no poderse sentar en nuestros restaurantes favoritos, conciertos cancelados, etc.

Hoy día, además de lavarnos las manos constantemente, una de las herramientas que se está utilizando para combatir este virus es el aislamiento, mejor conocido hoy día como el distanciamiento social.

El darse las manos como saludo, el abrazo y el acercarse más de seis pies a otras personas, eran conductas y acciones normales en muchas culturas. Hoy día se consideran irresponsables.

Este virus, así como lo fue el ataqué terrorista de Septiembre 11 del 2001, cambiará nuestras sociedades por siempre. No hay vuelta atrás. Todo esto contribuye a preparar el escenario a una de las más tristes características de la cultura de los últimos tiempos, la falta de amor.

La Biblia nos dice en Mateo 24:12, “y por haberse multiplicado la maldad, el amor de muchos se enfriará.” (Reina Valera Revisada 1960). Otro aspecto importante de la cultura mundial de los últimos tiempos lo será el odio a los cristianos.

En el centro de nuestra fe tenemos el mandamiento divino de amarnos los unos a los otros, de aún saludarnos con ósculos santos, de no dejar de congregarnos, etc. Nuestra fe está directamente en oposición con el aislamiento y el distanciamiento social.

Interesante saber que se recomienda que no se reúnan grupos de más de 10 personas. Eso es una ventanilla dada por Dios para la Iglesia.

No creo que fue la voluntad de Dios el reunirnos en edificios; creo que es la voluntad de Dios que seamos una familia verdadera. Las familias comparten sus vidas, comen juntos, hablan, juegan, se ríen, se abrazan, comparten historias, carcajadas y, en nuestro caso como cristianos, Hechos 2:42 nos dice, “Y perseveraban en la doctrina de los apóstoles, en la comunión unos con otros, en el partimiento del pan y en las oraciones.” (RVR 1960)

Muchas iglesias han tomado la decisión de llevar sus servicios a cabo a través del internet. Puede que esto sea una buena idea por ahora; pero quiero que sepan que el dios de este mundo secular nos odia y su deseo es destruirnos y destruir nuestra fe.

No sé como, pero de alguna forma el diablo se las ingeniará para eliminar o limitar nuestros servicios. Aquí le va a salir el tiro por la culata, ya que la iglesia NUNCA será vencida… NUNCA.

Muchos pelearán por sus servicios de Domingos, las mega iglesias, etc. Esa batalla la perderán y se sentirán como que la iglesia perdió. Mas la iglesia será lo que Dios quiere que la iglesia sea, el Cuerpo de Cristo, una iglesia santa, sin manchas, sin arrugas, gente diferente, gente apasionada por Dios, gente dispuesta a a dar sus vidas mismas por el evangelio de Cristo.

La gloria que viene va a ser mucho más grande y mucho más poderosa que la gloria de los tiempos de los apóstoles, pero también habrá más derramamiento de sangre y más persecución. En todo y con todo, veremos el avivamiento más poderoso en la historia de la humanidad y muchos, no pocos, vendrán a los pies de Cristo.

Muchos se darán cuenta de que no hay gobierno, ni ideología, ni hombre que verdaderamente pueda saciar nuestras almas y revivir nuestros espíritus… solo Dios puede.

Durante estos tiempo tan difíciles y de tanta confusión muchos tienen temor. Temor a la muerte, temor a enfermarse y temor por los niños y los ancianos que son los más vulnerables ante este virus. Mas, hay otras agendas egoístas y diabólicas como lo son el propagar el pánico, el destruir nuestra economía, algunos en contra del Presidente Trump, otros utilizan esta crisis para acomodarse más en el poder y en fin… estamos rodeados de muchas voces y opiniones. No nos dejemos engañar.

Hermanos, no seamos tontos, no tentemos a Dios ya que no somos inmunes a enfermedades. Vivimos en cuerpos mortales y no eternos. Limpiemos y ordenemos nuestras casas, lavémonos las manos, comamos bien, tengamos una rutina de actividad física y no dejemos de amarnos, de congregarnos en grupitos pequeños, en nuestras casas, con la familia, etc.

Mantengamos el gozo y la paz de Dios, la cual sobrepasa todo entendimiento. No dejemos de amarnos y de extender nuestro amor a aquellos que no odian. Confiemos en Dios y hagamos lo que nos toca. En el nombre de Jesús, amén.

En el amor de Cristo, su Siervo, Ángel Casiano para la gloria de Dios y para el servicio de su pueblo.

We can’t find anything in the Bible that can, in any way, present us as innocents; that is because we are not. All of us are guilty of sin. We find innocents only through Christ Jesus.

Nevertheless, there is nothing in the Bible that describes us as victims either. We are God’s children, uniquely and extraordinarily made.

When we make up our minds to do something (good or bad) only God himself can stop us. We learned that with the story of the Tower of Babel.

We know how to build cities in valleys and mountains; from the deserts of Arizona to the  Alaska arctic. We are truly extraordinary.  That is why I believe that every human, from within, has the power to recover from any addiction and do better for themselves.

From within, we have the power to come out of poverty, to educate ourselves, to learn new skills, to come out of homelessness, bad relationships and circumstances. From within, we have the power to overcome. As God’s people, we are more than overcomers. That is… our divine DNA.

The struggle is to believe that we have that power. Some do not believe they do, so they embrace their status quo, they have lost all hope! Some look at the government and programs as their only hope for survival. In that, they limit themselves from the fullness of their potential.

Our job, as ministers, is to speak faith. Faith comes by hearing God’s Word. The very Word the world rejects. Go and unlock your divine DNA.

 

Spiritual Shortcuts

I left dealing with spiritual shortcuts for last; however, our spirit is the most important aspect of our lives. If our spirits are inline, we are in great position to listen to God and work on our soul (Way of thinking, decision-making and emotions) and, our bodies. King David knew the vital importance of the spirit when he prayed, “Create in me a clean heart, O God,  And renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (NASB)

This information is designed to affect the way we think so we be in divine position to make Godly decisions and enjoy better and more stable emotions such as peace and joy; not anxiety, anger, depression, etc.

Spiritual shortcuts are even more detrimental for us as humans. That is because our spirit is the inner most part of us. It is with our spirits that we do the most important and the deepest thing we can ever do as humans… worship God. Jesus told the Samaritan woman, “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” John 4:24 (NASB) Anything outside of worshipping God is idolatry; idolatry happens when our spirits are corrupted.

The spirit is the only part of us that is born again (John 3:3-6); therefore, it is the only part of us that that has the ability to voluntarily and willingly, after the born-again experience, cooperate with God. In Matthew 26:41 Jesus made a powerful statement that describes the essence of our spirits and our flesh as He stated “…The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

The flesh has no hope; it opposes the Spirit of God in us (Galatians 5:17). All we can do with the flesh is discipline her (First Corinthians 9:27). That is the reason why I made the statement in our previous article that, I do not pray for God to heal my diabetes, I pray for grace and discipline in my life to continue to embrace this lifestyle.  Just like taking care of our bodies requires work; the same principle applies to our spiritual life.

Jesus gave us the best example of how we should live our lives and the foundation of a righteous life. As we are able to clearly see all through the gospels Jesus was:

1. Committed to Intimacy with the Father through prayer. (Matthew 14:23)
2. Committed to the study of the Word. (Matthew 5:17-19)
3. Committed to sharing his life with others. Let me point out that true and authentic fellowship is not just a Sunday Service, is family, brothers and sisters who are a part of each other’s life, who are there for each other’s celebrations and are also there in the struggles and sufferings of life.
4. Committed to His Ministry. (Matthew 20:28)
5. Committed to discipleship. Our ultimate mandate, after worshipping God, is making disciples.
6. Committed to the fulfillment of Father’s will in His life. We can’t get so lost in everything else and lose our soul in the process. We are here to do God’s will and not our own. (Luke 22:42)

These six commitments are the foundation of our Christian duty. A conference, a book, a Christians TV or Radio Show, a retreat, etc. are all good things and great spiritual exercises. However, if at the end of the day, you are still 1) without intimacy with God, 2) you have no desire to study the Scriptures or know what God has to say, 2) you are still disconnected from the Body of Christ, 4) you are not ministering anywhere, not even making a living or depending on the government 5) you are not in position for someone to disciple you  and you are not making disciples and, lastly, 6) your lifestyle reflects that you are doing your will and not God’s, whatever external spiritual thing you are doing is not working because is just that… external; a sad attempt to shortcut the things of God.

This is our daughter Ileana J. Casiano’s Air Force Graduation. We are absolutely proud of her as the first female in the Casiano family to join the USA Arm Forces. Israel was not perfect, nobody is! However, in Scripture we see the men and women of God honoring, loving, praying and even weeping for their nation. Not one example can be found from Abraham to Moses, from Moses to King David and all the way to the apostles where they expressed hatred against their country. The USA is not perfect either, however, it is ok to honor our country, it is ok to love our country, it is ok to pray for our country and to weep for her. Our soldiers go as far as fighting for her. They pay the price of sacrificing time with their families and, some pay the ultimate price by giving their lives for our freedom. As a father, those couple of days celebrating and witnessing, firsthand, how the Air Force was use so powerfully by God to transform my daughter’s character, were truly life changing.

Music: America the Beautiful, an amazing rendition by Phil Driscoll America the Beautiful, the classic rendition by Ray Charles and, Set Me Free, by Casting Crowns

 

 

 

Physical Shortcuts 

Physically, in terms of our health, we look for shortcuts very often. We go to the doctor, he/she does and exam, gives a diagnosis and then, after that, is very common that the Doc will prescribe us some kind of medication. In some cases, you receive the life sentence that you will have to take these medications until the day you die and, many accept that. However, “…according to leading health organizations, factors underlying most chronic diseases include tobacco use, harmful alcohol use, insufficient physical activity, and poor nutrition.”[1] To these factors you add stress and bad sleep and we are definitely in trouble.

When dealing with resolving the problem of any illness, why not start by addressing these factors? Let’s stop smoking, stop abusing alcohol, let’s get moving and let’s eat better. To these factors we can also add avoiding stress and, get better sleep. Nevertheless, because we want to keep our cigarettes, because we like to abuse alcohol use, because we hate exercise and love our foods, we rather take the pills. It is the shortcut, the easy way out. The question is, is it working? Are we getting any better? Well, NO! About half of Americans are experiencing at least one chronic health condition such as cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity. So how is that shortcut working for us?

Let’s be honest, the god of this world is Satan (2 Corinthians 4:4). When you look deeply at the way the secular world works you can actually see Satan at work. The reality is that there are a group of people making a whole lot of money out of the sickness of other people. Sick people are the reason why others are able to put food on their tables. Sick folks are a very lucrative business! So, is there a good motivation to get people healthy? Nah!!!

I was diagnosed with diabetes three years ago and, immediately, I was placed on meds, but I noticed something that it did not take me a degree in medicine to figured out. I noticed very quickly that during the summers in Alaska my sugar levels were much better, almost normal, compare to the winters. See, the summers in Fairbanks are the best, temperatures around the 70s and plenty of daylight! Is very simple, during the summers I was working around the house, cutting trees, splitting wood, riding my bicycle, walking the golf course, etc. but come the winter, I became sedentary. I could not do much with temperatures below zero and, to be honest with you, I was never excited about going to the gym, I am always excited about outdoors activities!

Last year, around this time, my wife, who is also a medical doctor, told me that we needed to stay away from process food. It is hard to stay away from process food because about everything in the supermarket is processed. However, eating real food is possible and worth it for the sake of our health. A year later I can say that I am about 30 pounds lighter and have gone from size 40 to 36. At one point in my life, not too long ago, I was size 42; that was over 40 pounds ago!

Now in Arizona, the weather is amazing this time a year. I know, it will get very hot during the summer! However, there are still physical activities that can be done early in the morning or late in the afternoon and night. My current sugar levels are normal; why? Well, very simple, 1) I don’t smoke, 2) I don’t drink, 3) I eat better, and 4) I exercise about every day.

Exercise is the foundation for my physical health. That’s why golf has been such a blessing to me. I don’t ride those golf cars; I walk the whole 18 holes; but not only that, I stretch about every morning, I do my sit-ups, I work around the house, I take my dog for long walks, I wash my cars by hand and, I just keep moving! I am also attempting to go to sleep earlier. By the way, I sleep much better because come 10 PM I am tired and ready to actually go to sleep. I absolutely love waking up earlier in the morning ready to go, excited about the day and the tasks at hand.  Finally, I avoid unnecessary stress. After all, the Bible does tell us to “be anxious for nothing…” (Philippians 4:6)

I am not taking any shortcuts with my health, I know that as long as I continue with this lifestyle, diabetes is not an issue for me. How I know? Very easy, 1) I check my numbers, and 2) I pay attention to my sex life! Oh yes, Diabetes affects that to. There are millions of men in America with Erectile Dysfunction (ED). I bet I got your attention now!

This may sound strange to you, but I stopped praying for a miracle, I do not pray for God to take away my diabetes anymore. Don’t get me wrong, I believe in the power of God and, I definitely believe in miracles, but, what a miracle is going to do if I continue to eat garage, if I embrace alcohol abuse and smoking and, if I go from my job to my couch? How long do you think the effects of that miracle will remain? Again, I am going to reap what I am sowing and, you to.

What I pray for is for God’s grace and to continue to discipline myself to keep this current and healthier lifestyle. Asking for a miracle, without the commitment to change our lifestyles is an ineffective shortcut.

Another important point; sadly, I am surrounded by sedentary and physically lazy people. That’s just the truth, especially folks my age (I am 51 years old). I can’t depend on them when it comes down to my health. My health is my responsibility so, I do not wait on anybody; I will take care of myself regardless of who is around me. If is not an emergency, I will be out there, walking, exercising, playing golf, working around the house, etc. Waiting on other people will take you to the grave early. If they want to be lazy, let them be lazy! You are the expert of your own body and you know how your body responds to certain things; like Nike say, just do it! Do it for your own sake, in obedience to God and for HIS glory.

To be continue…

 

[1] ACE (American Council on Exercise) The Professional’s Guide to Health and Wellness Coaching. (2019)

 

Introduction

As I was taking my golf lesson the other day, I was pointing out to my instructor that I was told by my first teacher to stand in an angle when swinging wages and irons. My golf instructor wasted no time in telling me that she does not teach shortcuts; that she tries her best to teach the correct way, from the beginning, to avoid the development of bad habits. Her words got me thinking about how often we use shortcuts for our physical and spiritual health.

Before I continue, let me establish that taking good care of ourselves is a biblical principle. First Thessalonians 5:23 tells us, “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (NASB) These verses represent the biblical foundation for this three-part article.  The honest true is that when it comes down to our overall health as humans, there are no shortcuts.

            A shortcut is commonly defined as, “…a shorter alternative route; an accelerated way of doing or achieving something.”[1] Shortcuts are embraced openly by our society; we like things easy and we like things now. I do not argue that time has shown us that there are better and faster ways of doing some things; not all shortcuts are bad. Nevertheless, there are times when shortcuts are designed to hurt us and rob us of a great blessing, in this case, physical and spiritual blessings. There are no shortcuts there! We must pay the price, we must work hard, do our part and, make the time, if, we want to get better… PERIOD!

Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash recently, understood these principles as he stated, “I can’t relate to lazy people. We don’t speak the same language. I don’t understand you. I don’t want to understand you.”

The Bible explains a very simple truth relating to this topic. In Galatians 6:7-8 the Bible tells us, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.⁸ Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.” (NIV) Shortcuts are, many times, an attempt to mock God. Nevertheless, the law is very clear, whatever we are sowing, that we will we also reap.

To be continue…

[1] https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=shortcut&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

 

Is not about how perfect the grill is, is about the great moments with family and friends. Let me know if you have any questions and, God bless!

 

I remember growing up in Puerto Rico hearing a very ignorant saying. Every time somebody took a loan or financed anything they really wanted, but could not afford, they would say, “The devil will make the last payment.” I don’t know where that expression came from, but it was a way of throwing away any guilt or any remorse from adding more debt into our lives.

With that mentality I remember walking into a Car Dealership in Jacksonville, Florida. My credit was pretty good as a young man, so I had power to finance. I saw a small pickup truck on display. I remember it was black, with a cool purple designed right in the center, a blue light on the bottom of the truck, nice size tires and, to top it all up, a 10 Disk CD Player. The truck was amazing. I told the salesman, “this is the one I want.” In no time, I was driving that truck out of the dealership. I felt so powerful, after all, I told myself, the devil will make the last payment, right? WRONG!

I was not a believer back in those days, but even as a believer I made some very stupid financial decisions. There was plenty of sorrow that was added for each one of those things I financed. See, we finance what we are unable to afford; that is always trouble!

I remember that I prayed, I played the lotto, I gave to evangelist and prophets who told us that if we give this particular amount of money God will bless us with great wealth and, I even waited for that big fat check in the mail. I went as far as writing checks, twice, believing that God will miraculously add the funds. Well, twice the check bounced!!!

In my early forties I asked the Lord to help me be debt free by the time I was fifty; I wanted to enjoy my jubilee year not owning men anything. I promise the Lord that if he helped me to do so I will never do anything stupid with my finances.

Nothing magical or supernatural happen; the Lord kept me employed and I pay my debt month by month. By 49 I was debt free! Today I live in a beautiful home completely debt free, my wife and I own two wonderful vehicles also debt free.  We are enjoying the blessing of God. Proverbs 10:22 tells us,

It is the blessing of the Lord that makes rich,
And He adds no sorrow to it. New American Standard Bible (NASB)

In the last couple of years, I have learned a few keys to receiving this blessing without sorrow:

1. Be content with what you have already, no matter if it is much or little:

Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. ¹² I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. ¹³ I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:11-13

• This is not a defeated attitude; this is a total trust in God that in whatever circumstance you find yourself in, God will help you do all that He wants you to do.
• We can do all things through Christ; He gives us the strength to do so.

2. Be a giver:

Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the Lord of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows. ¹¹ Then I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of the ground; nor will your vine in the field cast its grapes,” says the Lord of hosts. Malachi 3:10-11 (NASB)

• Now, I am aware that this is the Scripture that you probably have hear the most when it comes down to finances.
• The problem is not in the reality of this message according to Malachi; the problem is that we are ignoring many other aspects of Scripture that deals with finances. That is what we are attempting to address in this article.

3. Check your attitude as you give… check your heart and motives:

Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. ⁷ Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 (NASB)

• We must be excited about giving.
• If our heart is not right; giving is not going to have any effect.
• We do not give to receive anything; we are supposed to be content already.
• We give because it is the Godly thing to do and, we do it gladly.

4. We must be good stewards of all that God gives us:

Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. ² In this case, moreover, it is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy. I Corinthians 4:1-2 (NASB)

• I want to make a very important point here. We as Christians are known biblically as Saints and also as Disciples of Christ. However, we never refer to ourselves as Stewards. This word steward is another word for managers. We are managers of God’s mysteries; his blessing, his revelation, his love and every activity of God on this earth.
• 1 Peter 4:10 also helps us to make this point, “As each one has received aspecial gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” (NASB)
• When we are good stewards, we are trustworthy.
• Beloved, there is no prosperity without stewardship, moreover, there is no joy without good stewardship. We learn that in the Parable of the Talents in Mathew 25:14-30. As the servants did what they were supposed to do with their resources, they were invited to enter in the joy of the master.

5. A commitment to live within our means:

Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. Romans 13:8 (NASB)

• That Bible prohibits financial debt; therefor debt is sin; it is bad stewardship; it is against our nature as Christians.
• We are called to live within our means; if we don’t have the money to buy something cash; simply don’t buy it. This is a very cheap, simple and powerful financial advice.

In conclusion I can say that for the first time in my life I am actually enjoying the blessing that adds no sorrow. That is the blessing that comes, not from man, not from me trying to make things happen, but the blessing that comes ONLY from God Almighty. Oh, what a blessing that is!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why do we get marry? What is the purpose of marriage? After all, the Apostle Paul discourages marriage. In First Corinthians 7:1 he stated, “Now concerning the things about which you wrote, it is good for a man not to touch a woman.” (NASB) He actually discourages sex all together. In verse 7a Paul adds, “Yet I wish that all men were even as I myself am…” In verse 8 again Paul continues to discourage marriage by stating, “But I say to the unmarried and to widows that it is good for them if they remain even as I.” Paul is saying that it is good not to be marry. In verse 28 Paul is more direct concerning his deep-down opposition to marriage,

But if you marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. Yet such will have trouble in this life, and I am trying to spare you. (NASB)

         In marriage there will be a lot of trouble and Paul was actually trying to spare us from such. So, I go back to the original questions: why do we get marry? What is the purpose of marriage? With 7 billion of us right now, I think that multiplying is no longer an issue. So, we are left with one reason for marriage, Intimacy.

          God stated, from the beginning, that it was not good for man to be alone (Genesis 2:8). I can testify, that was true then and, it is true now. Unless a man has the gift of self-control as Paul did, intimate loneliness is a pain. Now I want you to think about this for a minute; God did not resolve the issue of man’s loneliness by creating another dude or a couple of good friends to go play ball, drink beer, go hunting or go fishing with. God gave man a woman.

This loneliness issue that God was referring to has everything to do with sexual intimacy. Yes, is more than just the sexual act, but in essence it culminates with good old-fashioned sex. The Apostle Paul made it as clear as the point can be made when he states,

Now concerning the things about which you wrote, it is good for a man not to touch a woman. ² But because of immoralities, each man is to have his own wife, and each woman is to have her own husband. ³ The husband must fulfill his duty to his wife, and likewise also the wife to her husband. ⁴ The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does; and likewise also the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. ⁵ Stop depriving one another, except by agreement for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer, and come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. ⁶ But this I say by way of concession, not of command.⁷ Yet I wish that all men were even as I myself am. However, each man has his own gift from God, one in this manner, and another in that. ⁸ But I say to the unmarried and to widows that it is good for them if they remain even as I. ⁹ But if they do not have self-control, let them marry; for it is better to marry than to burn with passion. First Corinthians 7:1-9 (NASB)

             In these verses we can clearly see that even as Paul was not a fan of marriage; he understood that marriage is the union established by God where we are, not only allowed, but obligated to… get it on! Paul has a more sophisticated term of course, he calls it, “marital duty”. Some husbands and some wives, however, find a sense of duty in other things and responsibilities. They focus on their careers, education, making money, etc. and, in the process, totally neglect the most important duty in marriage… INTIMACY!!!!!

               When we fail to, “take care of business”, guess what? We open doors for the devil himself to come and attack our marriages. I don’t know what is so hard to understand; this is very simple; after God, the most important relationship a married person has, is his spouse. After God, our spouse MUST be our focus. We focus on each other by learning how to do life together.

              The other day I went to play golf and they have me playing with this couple who have been married longer than I have been alive. At first, I was a little irritated because I knew the game was going to be very, very slow! After all, they were both in their 80s; but I realized, very quickly, that I was about to actually see an essential principle of marriage demonstrated before my eyes. As the game develop, it was obvious that he has been playing golf for some time and, it was also obvious that she was not. Another obvious thing was that she was not really into the game as he was. As a matter of fact, by hole 6 she was already done! But she was there with her husband; they were sharing life together. I am sure he has done the same for her and the activities she enjoys.

               I have seen thousands of marriages in my life; after all we are surrounded by married people. However, for the most part; I have not been able to witness such level of togetherness. The norm is to see the husband doing his thing and the wife doing hers apart from each other.

           It happens often that for a time, husbands and wives were devoted to their children and in that they found a degree of togetherness, but after the children became adults and were out of the house, they quickly discovered they don’t have anything in common. The husband does his work around the yard or work endlessness in his car, go out with the boys, play golf every time he has a chance; while she goes shopping, hang out with the girls and do her thing. They become business partners; there is no intimacy and there is no interest for one another. He can’t wait to do his thing and she can’t wait to do hers. It seems like the quickly they get out each other’s hair the better!

               This is not a Song of Songs marriage; they are far from that kind of passion; this is now a boring marriage. A marriage with no intimacy, no togetherness, no respect and no love. They are two strangers with nothing in common. They have chosen, for whatever reason, to tolerate each other. They are waiting for the last blow out that will make official what has been their reality for years, that they no longer have a marriage. Beloved, that is how a marriage looks like in the hands of Satan.