The Prison Break That Wasn't

Paul in the Bible lived a life radically different than his life before giving his life to Jesus Christ. Paul, or Saul as he was known before his encounter with God, was a man of means, a man of destiny, a man of influence and who made it his life work to eradicate the Jewish zealots who were threatening Roman rule in what is now Israel.

Then after his conversion we see a different man, a man now on a mission for His Savior, a man who made it his life work to spread the gospel of Jesus throughout the world. This same man who hunted down Christians now is starting churches throughout Asia. This man who worked at the pleasure of the Emperor of Rome would later be thrown in a Roman jail at the request of that same Emperor. What an exchange we witness in the book of Acts! Everything he was, he was no more. His passion, his priorities, his citizenship, everything changed after meeting Jesus Christ.

Summer Storm

Like a summer storm
You blew into my town
Stealing love from perfect strangers

Then you glanced my way
Moment sealed with your kiss
And I can still recall the feeling

You had the perfect smile
To go with the perfect words
My heart was filled with your wonder

You said, "Let's go live our dreams"
Won't hold nothing back
I'll be yours in every season

Like a summer storm
Out of nowhere you were born
Changing everything that you touched

Full of fury and grace
The way you touched my face
And my world was changed forever

The Inventor of Coca-Cola

Today's post is about the inventor of Coca-Cola, John Pemberton. John spent most of his childhood in Rome, Georgia before entering Medical College and earning his medical degree in 1850. After a brief stint practicing medicine and surgery, Dr. Pemberton opened up a drug store in Columbus, Georgia.

Then came the Civil War and Pemberton enlisted, serving in the Third Calvary for the Confederate Army. In 1865 he suffered a saber wound to the chest during the Battle of Columbus. During his recovery he became addicted to the morphine that he was using to ease his pain. This started Pemberton on a desperate search for an alternative to morphine that would allow him to cure his addiction.

Table Talk

Sometimes when I think of great figures in history, I don't tend to give them attributes with which they deal with daily life. I think of them as moving from great task to world-changing task without a thought about their daily bread, housing, or raising their children. One such man is Martin Luther. There is the hurdle of the century which he lived first of all, from 1483 until 1546.

It is difficult for me to imagine life in that century, physically, mentally or spiritually. Let's discuss the spiritual environment of the day for now. The Catholic Church reigned throughout most of the Christian world. Bibles were few and those rare copies were found in churches, not in homes. Most of the general population couldn't read or write and mass printing was just beginning to make books available for public consumption for those would could.