Hau Oli Makahiki Hou! Happy New Year!
IDEAS Micro-Communities
Multiplying
We continue to meet with our IDEAS colleagues around
the world via Zoom. We are leading two book studies with two groups of workers
scattered around the world, “Crazy Busy” by Kevin DeYoung, and “Thoughtful
Caregivers” by Rebecca Hecking. We are appreciating DeYoung’s honest,
God-centered, reflections on living with balance and hope in His service. Kevin
is a father (9 kids!), pastor, seminary professor, blogger, and author – so he
knows busy! And our IDEAS group that zooms from Hawaii to Virginia to North
Africa to the Middle East has lots of busy people. But we are finding our time
of connection helpful as we encourage one another to balance practicality and
spirituality as we labor for Him.
Our
caregivers group carries the concerns of elderly parents – living on opposite
sides of the globe. One colleague in North Africa had an opportunity to share
some tips from the book we’re reading with a Muslim woman who has been
housebound for several years caring for both her parents. She advised her new
friend that her care for parents would
be even better if she also cared for herself. So, they made a coffee date where
our colleague shared the love of Jesus in word and deed.
Grandchildren for the Holidays
We are very thankful to have our grandchildren here – along with their parents! Our eldest son, Nathan, wife Heather, and their sons Kekoa (7) and Makana (5) are with us for Christmas and will stay into January. And our granddaughter, Maylee (18) is coming for a couple weeks from Almaty, Kazakhstan soon. She has a winter break from her first year of University in Almaty. Her Dad, Josiah, is busy working for Tersane in Istanbul, Turkey. Aaron had a good Christmas in Eugene, Oregon and hopes to visit in 2023.
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A Kid from Kohala who
became King …and how he points to
Jesus!
Thousands
of people from around the world come to see the statue of Kamehameha I in
Kapa’au. It is one of the most visited tour stops in our state. In a similar
way, millions of global-citizens flock to the Holy Land to be where Jesus of
Nazareth walked two-thousand years ago.
Like any
King, there are legends about the exploits of Kamehameha I, some of them are
true. Surely he grew to be a respected leader. Men followed him at the cost of
their lives. Families invested their future on his decisions.
There is one
story about the boyhood of Jesus in Scripture. Christians believe in the
accuracy of the Bible that focuses on Jesus’ life and ministry. Every religion
in the world has admiration for Jesus of Nazareth. Millions strive to follow
Him today, sometimes at the cost of their lives.
After King Kalaniʻōpuʻu of Hawaii died in the spring of 1782, a group of chiefs endorsed his nephew, Kamehameha, to be the next king. Fights with a couple wanna-be successors lasted for most of the 1780’s. By 1791 Kamehameha I ruled the island of Hawaii and sought to extend his rule across the islands. He was victorious in the Battle of Kepaniwai, defeating Maui's army, led by the Chief Kahekili. King Kamehameha’s most decisive battle was in May 1795, fought along the cliffs of the
Koʻolau Range at Nu‘uanu Pali. Kamehameha assembled the
largest army these islands had seen, about 12,000 men and 1,200 war canoes.
Thousands died in the battle for Oahu. His victory was so convincing that king
Kaumualiʻi of Kauaʻi submitted to
Kamehameha without a fight, giving him control over all the Hawaiian Islands.
Jesus Christ
fought the most decisive battle in human history all alone. There was just one gruesome fatality. Jesus
taught with authority never heard. Jesus healed the blind, deaf, lame, and
afflicted. He even raised the dead. Jesus met every confrontation with
kindness, absorbing every insult. Three shameful trials declared Him innocent
and none of His enemies could find fault with Him. Nevertheless, He was
sentenced to one of the most grotesque forms of torture – crucifixion. By the
Sovereign decree of Almighty God, Jesus Christ, the Son of God and God
the Son, suffered and died. His battle determined the eternal destiny of every
human being – heaven or hell.
The Bible
teaches that Jesus was the substitute for all who put their faith in Him. He
died because we should die. Our sins deserve the punishment of death, so in
mercy and grace He died for us. And He rose from death, and now lives forever.
Kamehameha I imposed his rule by
force. If Hawaiians wanted to survive they obeyed. Jesus subjects bow to His
rule by faith and follow Him who first loved them.
Kamehameha’s reign ended with his death. Our Risen Lord Jesus lives forever. One day He will return to this earth, in fact He reigns over it already!
Kamehameha’s
rule was visible. If Hawaiians violated his kapu laws, punishment was swift and
severe. Jesus’ kingdom is invisible. By faith we belong to Jesus who fills the
heavens and inhabits our hearts.
Jesus’
followers come in every color, from every culture, and live in every country.
It has been two thousand years since Jesus walked the earth, yet more than 60
million people join His tribe every year.
Everywhere
we have traveled around the world when we say we are from Hawaii people smile.
Kamehameha I forged a kingdom that is still envied around the world. Lucky you
live Hawaii!
We have seen orphanages, hospitals,
schools, Universities, libraries, farms, and factories founded and funded by
followers of King Jesus. His Church serves with the joy of His presence and the
freedom of His forgiveness.
Jesus offers
you the best gift ever - eternal life, forgiveness of sins, peace with God and
man, hope, perseverance, and purpose. You are invited into His eternal and
invisible Kingdom by faith.
Check Him
out in the pages of Scripture – start with the Gospels
Follow the
King who came as a kid!
Mark Blair,
Kalahikiola Church, 2022
www.kalahikiolacc.com
Sources:
Kamehameha I – Wikipedia; Jesus – The
Bible
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Thanks for joining us in prayer that people will read
this Gospel message and the Holy Spirit will draw them, to Jesus!
We are grateful for your years of friendship, prayer,
and support. May the Lord help us all to reach out with the truth and grace of
Jesus this new year!
https://ideasworld.org/associate/blair-mark-and-dayna-support-0471
Phones Mark 808-218-4872 / Dayna 808-218-3698
Emails
blairstan2@gmail.com / mark.blair@ideasworld.org / dayna.blair@ideasworld.org
Blog http://blairstan.blogspot.com
Web Site https://pastormarkblair.org/
