tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-116033642011-12-14T18:57:33.684-08:00Within Reach! provides "essays" on understanding how God, the Bible, and Christianity affects our daily lives. Here I post editorials and questions to promote thought and personal study. I encourage your friendly comments, feedback, and discussion.Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.comBlogger181100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1162483353910058072006-11-02T07:51:00.000-08:002006-11-02T08:02:33.953-08:00

Digital Video Recorders (a.k.a. TiVo) are, in my opinion, the greatest invention since the Thermos Bottle. For those who are unfamiliar with these devices, just understand that they seek out and record your favorite television shows and allow you to watch them anytime… and skip the commercials.I’ve found that I can literally watch three hours of regular television in two hours time! Plus, I can

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1133495967361379492005-12-01T19:52:00.000-08:002005-12-01T19:59:27.363-08:00

"Of the gold, the silver, and the bronze and the iron, there is no limit. Arise and work, and may the Lord be with you." -- 1 Chronicles 22:16"He who gathers in the summer is a son who acts wisely, but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who acts shamefully." -- Proverbs 10:5"He who tills his land will have plenty of bread, but he who pursues vain things lacks sense." -- Proverbs 12:11"Whatever

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1132546371530971462005-11-20T20:11:00.000-08:002005-11-20T20:12:51.543-08:00

So in the garden when Jesus was about to be taken, Peter picked up a sword and all he could do was cut off someone's ear.Imagine that!There's a message here, I think... and that message is that if we Christians take up arms as a first resort, we run the risk of deafening others to our cause.It's just a thought.

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1128040408494203252005-09-20T17:28:00.000-07:002005-09-29T17:33:28.500-07:00

"Do you see the man skilled in his work? He will stand before kings, he will not stand before obscure men." --Proverbs 22:29The Bible encourages us to know our "craft" and work our "business" well. Many are called to serve in the clergy, many are called to teach, to be healers, and YES to even work in the marketplace.God exists in the marketplace and He loves to meet us there! For most

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1125253334441702032005-08-28T11:09:00.000-07:002005-08-28T11:22:14.446-07:00

I understand that there are people in this country that do not believe in God. I understand also that there are those who do believe in God but do not want to serve Him, worship Him, or acknowlege Him.There have been people that want to take the phrase "Under God" out of the Pledge of Allegiance. Those that support the argument take the stance that they don't believe in God and should not

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1117593982944730422005-05-31T19:34:00.000-07:002005-05-31T19:46:22.950-07:00

It frightened me when I got married how much "more of a person" I was treated by society.Those who are single often state their fears of being outcast by the "normal" married people. And married people nod their heads and say "That's right, we should be more considerate." But then nothing happens.Here's some things that happened to me when I was single:Whenever someone needed to stay late at

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1113516976279829862005-04-14T15:10:00.000-07:002005-04-14T15:16:16.283-07:00

"If your brother sins, go and show him his fault when the two of you are alone. If he listens to you, you have regained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others with you, so that at the testimony of two or three witnesses every matter may be established. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. If he refuses to listen to the church, treat him like a Gentile

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1113185651438071952005-04-10T19:12:00.000-07:002005-04-10T19:14:11.440-07:00

A wise man once taught me a new insight to the story of Moses and the burning bush. Moses had to slow down and observe the bush for some time before he could have recognized that God was burning the bush and yet it was not being consumed. Think about it... think about a bush burning. How long would it burn before you would notice that it should start to burn up? At least a couple of

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1112844399118705092005-04-06T20:17:00.000-07:002005-04-06T20:26:39.116-07:00

No, there is no such commandment. Yet Gossip is certainly not a good thing for sure! Proverbs tells us that "A gossip goes around revealing secrets" and later says "Where there is no wood the fire goes out, so where there is no gossip the strife ceases."Gossip is never successful at keeping a secret. Sure, we like the "rush" of feeling important when we share a secret. Can we learn to have a

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1112568464705954942005-04-03T15:36:00.000-07:002005-04-03T15:49:56.346-07:00

Y'know, I am a resident of the state of Kansas. In two days, we are having a referrendum vote on adding a marriage amendment to the state constitution, that would define marriage as between a man and a woman.For the record, I'm in favor of it and will vote for it. But that's not what this post is about.This post is about not being a "gay-basher" -- and I wish I could come up with another phrase,

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1112153307536837102005-03-29T19:27:00.000-08:002005-03-29T19:28:27.536-08:00

Here is an excellent article on the topic. I have been looking for scriptural references, and the following quote sums everything up, I believe.http://www.faithnet.org.uk/KS4/christianeuthanasia.htm"...euthanasia is actually mentioned in the Bible in two places and both are in the Old Testament. The first is when Abimelech asks his armour-bearer to put him to death after he had been hit on the

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1112111689379656682005-03-29T06:34:00.000-08:002005-03-29T07:54:49.386-08:00

Former President Bill Clinton posts his daily dairy on the internet. He has a particular statement that I want to discuss today. You can read the entire article at http://billclintondailydiary.blogspot.com/2005/03/terri-schiavo-and-democratic-party.html"By and large Americans are religious, but do not want others to force their (beliefs) on them."--Former U.S. President William J. Clinton1.

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1112027785992432482005-03-28T08:23:00.000-08:002005-03-28T08:36:25.993-08:00

Over the past several months I have been involved in an interview for a position at a company where I would like to work full time. During my interview process I was told that I was the "#1 candidate for the position" and that the hiring manager would "work to put together" a hiring package that would be right for me.Time had passed and I checked in periodically. I was not given any indication

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1112028405758620882005-03-25T15:45:00.000-08:002005-03-28T08:46:45.760-08:00

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."Why is school prayer illegal? I understand that "forcing" someone to pray is illegal and wrong (and I don't think God wants

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1111766718686842062005-03-24T10:35:00.000-08:002005-03-25T08:06:10.696-08:00

In his book The Purpose-Driven Life, Rick Warren tells us clearly that life here is not about "us" but about God.Have you ever heard people ask, "Why does God allow suffering?" or "I can't believe that if there is a God that He'd be so cruel." My personal favorite is "Why did God do this to me? I deserve better!"Hey, make no mistake about it--Mother Teresa was considered by many to be a very good

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1111517211320579812005-03-22T10:38:00.000-08:002005-03-25T07:59:23.400-08:00

"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you ma have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you." -- Colossians 3:12Let's face it--people are difficult sometimes. I haven't met a person (me included) who doesn't have specific quirks and issues. Sometimes issues that people have can rub against us like sandpaper. And sometimes these people don't even know that they are being

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1111434542442358062005-03-21T11:40:00.000-08:002005-03-21T11:49:02.443-08:00

I recently was in a discussion with someone at a breakfast, and we were going over our insights into a financial study we were doing through our church. The person I was speaking to had said that everything does belong to God, but it just seemed silly to dedicate smaller items to the Kingdom. He had no problems dedicating his house and finances to God, but he acted like God isn't interested in

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11603364.post-1111433877322764282005-03-21T11:36:00.000-08:002005-03-21T11:37:57.323-08:00

Within Reach! is my blog of my "essays" on understanding how God, the Bible, and Christianity affects our daily lives. Here I post editorials and questions to promote thought and personal study.

Paul McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02828543002128557210noreply@blogger.com0