Meet me in Heaven

Thoughts on the Sabbath School Lesson for 9.24.11

I’ve noticed that when we (meaning the Christians who I know) talk about our first day in Heaven, we usually describe an experience akin to a family reunion – looking for and finding family members and old friends, meeting our Bible heroes and peppering them with questions, meeting our guardian angels and getting the behind-the-scenes versions of our lives.  Don’t misunderstand, that all sounds amazing, and I believe we will get to do all of those things; I’m just not sure any of those things will be our priority.

It just occurred to me that instead of the ecstatically, joyful and noisy scene I just described, our first day in Heaven might be more of a take-our-breath-away kind of experience.

The group, MercyMe, sings a song that asks many of the same questions that I find myself asking when I try to picture my first meeting with Jesus.

“I can only imagine / What it will be like / When I walk / By your side / I can only imagine / What my eyes will see /When your face / Is before me / I can only imagine / … / Surrounded by Your glory, what will my heart feel / Will I dance for you Jesus or in awe of you be still / Will I stand in your presence or to my knees will I fall / Will I sing hallelujah, will I be able to speak at all / I can only imagine / … / When that day comes / When I find myself / Standing in the Son / I can only imagine / When all I will do / Is forever / Forever worship You / I can only imagine / …”[1]

I’m really curious about what our worship will look like in Heaven.  Maybe it’s just me, but I have a hard time picturing it with my limited human experience.  Will we have structured worship services with opening prayer, special music, scripture reading, and then Jesus will speak?  Or will it be more of a concert setting:  Jesus steps out and the crowd goes wild?  Will we follow Him around like the people did when He was here on earth – wait outside His door all night so we can be the first in line in the morning? 

None of those really seem right, do they?  They’re all very earthly styles of worship.

What will worship in Heaven look like?  The book of Revelation actually gives us several examples.  Let’s have a look.

“Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stop saying: “‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,’ who was, and is, and is to come.’
“Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:  “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.” Revelation 4:8-11

“And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. And they sang a new song, saying: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.’  Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. In a loud voice they were saying: ‘Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!’  Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying:  ‘To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!’ The four living creatures said, ‘Amen,’ and the elders fell down and worshiped.”  Revelation 5:8-14

“After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: ‘Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.’  All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying: ‘Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!’”  Revelation 7:9-12

“The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: ‘The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever.’
“And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying:  ‘We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign.  The nations were angry, and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your people who revere your name, both great and small—and for destroying those who destroy the earth.’  Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.”  Revelation 11:15-19

Anybody else see a pattern emerging here?  There is nothing boring, passive or insipid about the worship described here.  Nobody here is sitting in the balcony texting his (or her) friends.  Nobody is dozing off or wondering what’s for lunch.  The worshipers here have no doubts about who God is and what He has done:  He is the Creator, the Messiah, the Lamb, the Redeemer.  He is the Eternal Commander who has won the battle between good and evil.  No being in the entire universe will ever question His God-ness or goodness ever again.

“Worship is bending low before our Maker, recognizing and acknowledging His holiness and our creatureliness. It is submitting to His sovereignty, responding to His majestic presence.”[2]

Yeah, I’ll “meet you in Heaven, and we’ll hold hands” and sing songs together, … eventually.  But at first I’m not sure we’ll even know that anyone else is there.  We’re only going to know that our Savior and Redeemer is there and He is going to be the only Person we can see.  “Pray that we all will be there.”

---

[1] MercyMe, “I Can Only Imagine,” Almost There, 1999.

[2] Richard M. Davidson, Andrews University, Worship in the Old Testament, p. 3.

Imagine

OK, you’re walking around in Heaven.  You’ve been home about three weeks, and it’s so great!  You have Sabbath dinner with Jesus; sitting on the banks of the Sea of Glass.  During the week you’ve been catching up with old friends and making new ones.  Like one song says, you “see a million faces and recognize every one.” 

And look at the faces!  There’re David, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Matthew, Mark, Luke – not to mention Ruth, Esther, Eve, and Mary.  And don’t forget post-Bible people like Martin Luther, John Wycliffe, C. S. Lewis, and George MacDonald.

Every week there’s a Vespers program called, “Chat with the Patriarchs”.  But, just hearing one patriarch per week – wow – that’ll take FOREVER!  OK, so, forever really isn’t that big of an issue anymore, but still… You want to talk to them one-to-one!  You make a list of the folks you want to talk to and some questions you want to ask.  You don’t want to get flustered and forget something important, right?

Think about it.  You can ask anyone you want, anything you want.  Imagine it!  Who would you want to talk to first?  What would you ask them?

Now, I’ve thought about this before and there is a group of people in the Bible that I am really interested in talking to.  These people are usually not talked about directly; sometimes we don’t even learn their names.  Their being there is kind of “understood”.  Can you think of who these people are?  The parents of the characters we love to read about in the Bible.

For instance, I’d love to talk to Mary’s mom and dad.  Wouldn’t you? What must their parenting skills been like that they raised a girl who God would trust to raise His son?  And what about Hannah, Samuel’s mother?  I mean, we know her name, but what an amazing mom that she could instill such principles in Samuel’s mind in the couple of years she had to mold him that lasted him his entire life?

Oh, and what about Naomi.  She was able to raise two sons, mostly alone, not an easy thing at any time, but in a foreign country where everybody spoke a different language and worshipped a different God.  And yet, Naomi did it so well that both boys picked honorable wives in a country where they were pretty few and far between.  Which brings us to Ruth and her mother.  The family was not Jewish, but Ruth’s mom raised an excellent daughter.  Wouldn’t she be an interesting person to talk to if she were in Heaven?

Then there’s Daniel and his three buddies.  Their parents managed to raise teenagers who weren’t afraid to be different from the rest of the crowd, even when the consequences could have been death, and nobody would have known the difference.  They should have written a book for us.

Isaac?  Yes we know quite a bit about Abraham and Sarah, but not much about their parenting techniques.  They managed to really get God’s message across.  So much so that when asked, Isaac calmly lay down on the altar his father built and agreed to be a sacrifice.  That’s some amazing parenting!

Of course, there are other conversations that would be harder to have.  Can you imagine talking to Eli and having him explain to you how he felt as he watched his sons move away from God?  Think about Samson’s parents.  They followed God’s instructions for bringing up Samson and he still went astray.  What about Judas’ parents? What do you think they would have to say about the differences between the way they raised him and how he ended up?  Maybe they were OK with it?  Who knows?

And, of course, Adam and Eve – from immortals walking with God to losing essentially both of their sons because one rejected God – all in one lifetime.  Imagine the heartbreak.

I’m not trying to make any judgments about who might or might not be in Heaven.  I’m just imagining how amazing it will be to meet all these people in Heaven, and sit and talk to them for as long as I like.

Who would you like to talk to?  These folks are just a few.  What about the parents of Noah? David? Gideon? John the Baptist?  What would you like to as him (or her)?  Can you imagine the answers to you questions? And, best of all, a friend reminded me this week that once we’re actually in Heaven, none of this will matter because we’ll be with Jesus.  

“When the ransomed are redeemed from the earth, the city of God will be opened to you. . . . Then the harp will be placed in your hand, and your voice will be raised in songs of praise to God and to the Lamb, by whose great sacrifice you are made partakers of His nature and given an immortal inheritance in the kingdom of God.” E. G. White      {ML342}

Amen

Heroes R not Us

Commentary for the Sabbath School Lesson for November 6, 2010


I was just sitting here thinking, about what defines a hero these days. And, of course, the very first thing that happened was I got Bonnie Tyler’s 1984 hit, “Holding Out for a Hero” stuck in my head. The second thing that happened, though, was I started trying to figure out just what makes a person a hero. According to ten students at UC-Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism, “Webster's New World Pocket Dictionary defines a hero as a strong, brave person. Students thought that a hero should represent courage, strength, humility, and advancing the greater good.”¹

How would you define a hero? It seems like hero can mean a number or different things to as many different people. We often use the term ‘hero’ almost flippantly. If someone brings you a glass of iced water when you’re hot and sweaty, you might say to that person, “You’re my hero.!” The hero in the Bonnie Tyler song is someone to date. We call professional athletes heroes. We even have a game called “Guitar Hero” and it has nothing to do with any kind of heroic action.

So, what do you think? Who could you pick out of a line up, saying, “Now that’s a hero!”? Is being a hero a one-time thing or is it more of a lifetime of touch choices? What would a person need to do to be considered a hero? Who would fit?

Before you answer, let me throw another, seemingly very different definition at you: “A boy doesn't have to go to war to be a hero; he can say he doesn't like pie when he sees there isn't enough to go around.”² 

What do you think? Does that description make our job harder or easier? Let’s look at some folks who are considered to be Bible heroes and see if they fit what we think a hero is.

What about King David; does he fit our picture of a hero? I think almost all of us answer an almost immediate and resounding, “YES!” But once there was a man who out heroed David on every level; his name was Uriah – Uriah the Hittite.

David was behaving in a very un-hero-like way during that time. It was during that whole ugly Bathsheba episode. David was in a downward spiral trying to cover up what should never have happened and what couldn’t be hidden. And Uriah just wouldn’t follow the script.

David still thought he could control the out-come his situation. When he realized Bathsheba was pregnant he had to come up with a way for that baby not to be linked to him. In the days before paternity tests and DNA, David figured all he had to do was make sure Uriah could reasonably be considered the father of the baby. So he called for Uriah to come back from the battle, thinking that Uriah would at least hang out with his own wife for a little while…but he didn’t. He wouldn’t!

“When Uriah came to him, David asked him how Joab was, how the soldiers were and how the war was going.  Then David said to Uriah, ‘Go down to your house and wash your feet.’ So Uriah left the palace, and a gift from the king was sent after him.  But Uriah slept at the entrance to the palace with all his master's servants and did not go down to his house.

“When David was told, ‘Uriah did not go home,’ he asked him, ‘Haven't you just come from a distance? Why didn't you go home?’

“Uriah said to David, ‘The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in tents, and my master Joab and my lord's men are camped in the open fields. How could I go to my house to eat and drink and lie with my wife? As surely as you live, I will not do such a thing!’

“Then David said to him, ‘Stay here one more day, and tomorrow I will send you back. So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next.  At David's invitation, he ate and drank with him, and David made him drunk. But in the evening Uriah went out to sleep on his mat among his master's servants; he did not go home.” 2 Samuel 11:7-13

Cornered, David gives his master plan one last shot: He gives a note to Uriah to carry to Joab telling Joab to make sure Uriah gets killed in battle. Uriah carries his own death sentence.

I wonder if Uriah ever suspected something weird was going on. Do you think at some point Uriah wondered why David kept insisting he go home to his wife? Do you think he took a little peek at the letter to Joab?’

If Uriah never suspected anything was fishy, is he still a hero?

What makes someone a hero? Knowing he (or she) is walking into a trap and going in anyway? Or living a life that so laced with integrity that being honorable comes as naturally as breathing?

Kevin Miller, a pastor from Wheaton, Illinois gives us an idea:

“In Ephesians 6:14-18, Paul writes: ‘Stand firm, then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.’

“Sadly, there are a lot of Christians who wish Paul had written the following words instead: ‘Lay back and relax, then, with the belt of evasion buckled loosely around your waist, with the breastplate of defensiveness in place, and with your feet fitted with the pluralism that offends no one. In addition to all this, take up the shield of grudges, with which you can hold on tightly to hurts and slights. Take the helmet of entitlement and the bludgeon of the flesh, which is the word of anger. And air what's been done to you on all occasions, with all kinds of criticisms and complaints.’”³

1 The Hero Chronicles, http://www.heroism.org

2 Edgar Watson Howe, http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/hero.html

3 Kevin Miller, pastor of Church of the Resurrection, Wheaton, Illinois

Stand Up

Ya know, I can think of two very different kinds of heroes. The first is the fireman who runs into a burning building or the soldier who throws himself on top of a grenade and saves the lives of his buddies. (I’m using the generic “he” here, meaning he or she.) It takes someone special to be that kind of hero, someone who is brave, loyal, and impulsive. His parents probably said over and over again, “Doesn’t that child think before he acts?” And the answer is, probably not. That’s part of why he is able to do what he does. I could never be that kind of a hero. I’d look at that grenade and think, “Ooh, I bet that would hurt.” And then step behind the nearest tree. The people who can act instantly and purposefully and accomplish what others could not or would not do are amazing and necessary people. God has given them each a truly special gift.

There is another type of hero, though. This is the person who after careful and thoughtful planning makes the move that almost always leads, if not to death, then to general unpleasantness. History books are full of these kinds of heroes.

If you were raised in Texas, more specifically, San Antonio, you’ve heard the story of the Battle of the Alamo thousands of times. Whatever historians say about their motives, those men believed in something so strongly that they stayed and fought, knowing how it would end. I also think of the 54^th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment, the guys the book/movie, Glory, was written about. They were the first black regiment formed in the Civil War. If you don’t know the story, rent the movie. What a story of courage. You can probably think of others. I’d be interested in hearing about them.

The Bible also has stories of men and women who believed in something so strongly that they were willing to accept whatever consequences came. Think about Stephen. He stood before the Pharisees and, in the face of false witnesses, spoke calmly and with the authority of truth, knowing all the while exactly what would happen when he stopped talking. If I were in his situation, I think I would have just kept talking…like Jimmy Stewart in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Then I thought of Samson, after he was captured and blinded, performing his last feat of strength knowing that he would be killed along with the Philistines. The Apostles and all the early Christians knew that believing in Christ as the Messiah could get them killed in some hideously painful ways.

Jesus, himself, falls into that category. He knew before He created us that He would end up giving His life for us. And He created us anyway. Can you imagine?

How do we get to the point where we can choose to stand bravely for what we believe in no matter what it costs us? I’m not sure I know. I think that we have to start by making little, seemingly insignificant choices along the way. Then “the big choice” is one more in a long line of choices that have now formed the foundations for our lives. Sometimes, though, the day-to-day choices we make just don’t seem that important, and maybe most of them aren’t. But how will we know which ones are the important ones?

Think about it, how often do we choose to watch TV or study our Sabbath School lesson or read something that will bring us closer to Christ? Do we hold back a little tithe and/or offering because we’re a little short this month? Do we choose to sleep in Sabbath morning, or come to Sabbath School? One by one, these choices don’t seem like that big a deal. The world won’t stop if we choose to sleep in next Sabbath morning. What difference do little choices like these make in the long run. Well, read through this e-mail I got just today. (What a coincidence.) Now whoever started this e-mail claims it is true and happened at USC. Whether it really happened or not, I think it will illustrate the importance of building on a solid foundation of choosing God.

There was a professor of philosophy [at USC], who was a deeply committed atheist. His primary goal for one required class was to spend the entire semester proving that God couldn’t exist. His students were afraid to argue with him because of his impeccable logic. Some had argued with him in class from time to time, but no one had ever really gone head to head in a debate with him because of his reputation. On the last day of every semester, he would say to his class of 300 students, “If there is anyone here who still believes in God, stand up! If God existed, he could stop this piece of chalk from hitting the ground and breaking. Such a simple task to prove that He is God, and yet He can’t do it.” And every year, he would drop the chalk onto the tile floor of the classroom and it would shatter into a hundred pieces. No one ever challenged him. Maybe most of the students agreed with him, but certainly, a number of Christians had to have slipped through…quietly, without drawing any attention to them selves. For twenty years, they had all been too afraid to stand up.

Finally, a freshman came along who was a Christian. He had heard the stories of about this professor, and he was afraid. Every morning for that whole semester, he prayed that he would have the courage to stand up, no matter what the professor said or the class thought. Nothing they said could ever shatter his faith…he hoped.

Finally, the last day of class came. The professor walked to the front of the class and said, “Is there anyone here who still believes in God, stand up!” The professor and the class of 300 people looked at him, shocked, as he stood up at the back of the classroom. The professor shouted, “You FOOL!!! If God existed, He would keep this piece of chalk from breaking when it hit the ground.” He proceeded to drop the chalk, but as he did, it slipped out of his fingers, off his shirt cuff, onto the pleat of his pants, down his leg, and off the toe his shoe. From there it simply rolled away, unbroken. The professor’s jaw dropped as he stared at the chalk. He looked up at the young man, and then ran out of the lecture hall. The young man who had stood, proceeded to walk to the front of the room and share his faith in Jesus for the next half hour. Three hundred students stayed and listened as he told of God’s love for them and of His power through Jesus.

Will you …

Once Upon a Time…

Commentary on the Adult and Collegiate Sabbath School Lessons dated 10.2.2010

I have a confession to make…I love what most folks would call “kid stories.” I grew up listening to and reading fairy tales, Aesop’s Fables, and Dr. Seuss… I loved Christmas season TV with all the animated cartoon specials. Some of my favorite stories, though, are Old Testament Bible stories.

There are some folks who would tell you that Bible stories are fairy tales; I would disagree. I believe they really happened, and maybe that’s what sets them apart. All those other stories may have a lesson to teach, but no fairy tale ever change a life. Aesop always taught a lesson, but didn’t point anybody toward salvation. Dr. Seuss is great fun and, his books, I believe, have done more than almost any others to help kids enjoy reading…but they can’t lead anyone to the foot of the Cross.

Ya know, I can't remember a time when I didn't know the stories of Creation, the Flood, and the Exodus. Even when I was little though, I knew that the Bible stories were different. I knew I was learning about the lives of real people who lived real lives. These stories weren't like Cinderella or Pinocchio; Bible stories had a weight, and substance that, for me anyway, is undeniable. When I heard about Joseph and King David, Job and Jonathon, I knew they where real people who had lived real lives.

(If your experience is different, please let me know, because I'm interested to know how you came to the realization that the stories were true.)

Having said all that, why do you think some people resist taking Bible stories seriously? Why do so many people insist that they're nothing more than legends and fables long ago and far away? What is it about these stories that make so many people (even so called Christians) nervous? I just read parts of a book called, Why People Believe Weird Things: Pseudoscience, Superstition, and Other Confusions of Our Time, by Michael Shermer. Since I only read parts of the book, this is what Mary Ellen Curtain had to say about the book at Amazon.com Reviews:

“Few can talk with more personal authority about the range of human beliefs than Michael Shermer. At various times in the past, Shermer has believed in fundamentalist Christianity, alien abductions, Ayn Rand, megavitamin therapy, and deep-tissue massage. Now he believes in skepticism, and his motto is 'Cognite tute--think for yourself.' This updated edition of Why People Believe Weird Things covers Holocaust denial and creationism in considerable detail, and has chapters on abductions, Satanism, Afrocentrism, near-death experiences, Randian positivism, and psychics. Shermer has five basic answers to the implied question in his title: for consolation, for immediate gratification, for simplicity, for moral meaning, and because hope springs eternal. He shows the kinds of errors in thinking that lead people to believe weird (that is, unsubstantiated) things, especially the built-in human need to see patterns, even where there is no pattern to be seen. Throughout, Shermer emphasizes that skepticism (in his sense) does not need to be cynicism: 'Rationality tied to moral decency is the most powerful joint instrument for good that our planet has ever known.'”¹

I think it's interesting that Creationism is linked with Holocaust denial. Wow. Not to mention being in the same list of weird things as alien abductions and psychics... hm. The only explanation that makes any sense to me at this point, is that Satan is working very, very hard to steer people away from those life and spirit changing stories in the Bible.

I know a man who will not allow his four-year-old to read a Bible story from a children's book or even color in a Bible character coloring book, but will readily read “The Three Little Pigs” to her. The battle, the controversy, rages on, even in the lives of our children.

Peter tells us exactly what what we can expect from Satan:

“Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” 1 Peter 5:8 And sometimes, knowing what to expect is half the battle.

Craig Bryan Larson illustrates that point by relating an encounter that Craig Childs had with a mountain lion in Arizona's Blue Range Wilderness.

“In the United States, mountain lions are the animal regarded as the number one human predator. Author and naturalist Craig Childs was on foot doing research on the lions in Arizona's Blue Range Wilderness. As he approaches a water hole from downwind, he spots a mountain lion drinking water. The lion does not notice his presence. When it finishes drinking, it walks slowly away into a cluster of junipers.

“After a few minutes, Childs walks to the water hole to identify tracks in the mud and record notes. Just before he bends down to look closer, he scans the perimeter, and there among the shadows of the junipers, 30 feet away, he sees a pair of eyes. He expects the lion to run away, but it walks into the sunlight toward him. Childs pulls his knife and stares into the eyes of the lion. He knows what he must do. More importantly, he knows what he must not do. He writes:

“'Mountain lions are known to take down animals six, seven, and eight times their size. Their method: attack from behind, clamp onto the spine at the base of the prey's skull, snap the spine. The top few vertebrae are the target, housing respiratory and motor skills that cease instantly when the cord is cut….Mountain lions have stalked people for miles. One woman survived an attack and escaped by foot on a road. The lion shortcut the road several miles farther and killed her from behind….

“'I hold firm to my ground and do not even intimate that I will back off. If I run, it is certain. I will have a mountain lion all over me. If I give it my back, I will only briefly feel its weight on me against the ground. The canine teeth will open my vertebrae without breaking a single bone….

The mountain lion begins to move to my left, and I turn, keeping my face on it, my knife at my right side. It paces to my right, trying to get around on my other side, to get behind me. I turn right, staring at it….My stare is about the only defense I have.

“'Childs maintains that defense as the mountain lion continues to try to provoke him to run, turning left, then right, back and forth again and again, now just ten feet away. Finally, the standoff ends. The lion turns and walks away—defeated by a man who knew what never to do in its presence.'

“Paul the apostle had a similar knowledge of his greatest adversaries, Satan and his demons. Because he knew Satan's methods, he knew how to defend himself.”²

I would only disagree with Larson on one point. We can't defend ourselves, no matter how well we think we know Satan's methods. Only with our eyes and hearts fixed on Jesus can we survive any encounter with Satan. No amount of rational thinking will help us. There are no fairy god mothers to rescue us in the nick of time. Our only hope of salvation is Jesus.

1Mary Ellen Curtain, Amazon.com Reviews, http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0716733870/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books

2 Craig Brian Larson, editor of PreachingToday.com; source: Craig Childs, The Animal Dialogues (New York: Little, Brown and Co., 2007); as seen in The Week (2-8-08), pp. 40-41