A S P E C T S - a monthly devotional journal For subscription information on receiving Aspects every month via e-mail, or the laser-printed edition by mail, see NOTES, COPYRIGHT & SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION near the end of this file. Aspects is written by David S. Lampel. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Issue #47, October 1994 (Internet Edition) B L I S S F U L I G N O R A N C E ----------------------------------------------------------------- In this issue: Perspective 1 - Smorgasbord Perspective 2 - I Know Whom I Have Believed Perspective 3 - Harvesting His Bounty ----------------------------------------------------------------- As I write this, people all around are going ga-ga over Clint Eastwood. Perhaps (if you haven't been stranded on a desert isle for the last two years) you have heard of the small volume entitled The Bridges of Madison County. And perhaps (in case you haven't been living on the moon for the same span of time) you've heard tell that they are making a film version of the same book on location in the aforementioned Madison County. Well, we live in Madison County, just a stone's throw from one of those now-irritatingly-famous bridges. You have to understand that for the most part Iowa folks are honest, hard-working citizens who mostly live free of the glitter and blinding lights of Hollywood. They have lived their lives happily ignorant of film folk--seeing them only from a distance, through their respective movies and television appearances. So you might expect that a film crew rolling into town with celebrities in tow might be more than a small event for the local residents. That ain't the half of it. Everyone's coo-coo to see a star. The buzz in the papers and the local television news reports is "What did Clint do today? Did you see him? Did he smile and wave at you? Where, exactly, are they filming? Do you really know where the farmhouse is located? Oh my, be still my heart!" Daily, Linda is quizzed by her co-workers: "You're so close! Have you seen him yet?" No; but we've begun padlocking our gate. This week they began filming right in downtown Winterset, roping off block after block and monopolizing huge chunks of the town. The local television crews were out in force, videotaping anything that moved--even anything that didn't. One station let its camera gaze lovingly upon an empty chair sitting in the middle of the street, zooming in to frame the name embroidered upon its back. "And this--this is the chair for Clint's co-star: Meryl Streep!" That was all they got to see of her, of course, since she wasn't even in the state that day. Just her chair. Crowds gathered--well, actually, they flocked--to catch a glimpse of the star/director: Clint Eastwood. They clustered on street corners and hung themselves out of windows, Instamatic cameras snapping away. They stood starry-eyed, hoping he might just glance in their direction. To a fortunate few he even spoke--and their lives were forever changed. _____________________________ During these heady days I've found myself daydreaming What ifs . . . What if ol' Clint came onto our property, asking to film here? What if he--or one of his crew--were interested in renting our home for the duration, as they have others? What if this venerable movie personage actually came up and spoke to me? The more I thought about it, the less I liked the idea. I decided that any relationship I might have with either Clint Eastwood or Meryl Streep should be confined to my appreciation (or disdain) for their on-screen work. I realized that I hadn't any desire to know them as real people; I was content to know them only as who they were in their work. Anything more would become an obstacle to any fantasies I might have. I discovered that I was more comfortable keeping that veneer of fantasy between us. Clint Eastwood would remain for me the greedy soldier in Kelly's Heroes; Meryl Streep would remain the tortured and complex Sophie in Sophie's Choice. I didn't want to learn that in real life "Kelly" might be short-tempered and irritable; I didn't want to risk discovering that the exquisite "Sophie" might, in reality, have chronic bad breath. _____________________________ Is this what some of us have done with our God? Have we decided that we would rather remain blissfully ignorant of who He really is, settling for a simplified, glossy version trumped up by Hollywood? What stands between us and an accurate understanding of God? Is it anger? fear? stoicism? Or is it a feeling of superiority--that we're doing fine without knowledge of God, thank-you. When we avoid the reality of God, are we expressing a fear of Him--or a fear of what we might find in ourselves? Psalm 119:37-38 NASB Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity, And revive me in Thy ways. Establish Thy word to Thy servant, As that which produces reverence for Thee. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Perspective 1: S M O R G A S B O R D ------------- In San Diego there was a type of restaurant I have yet to find in Iowa: the "soup and salad" establishment. Here one paid a flat fee, then helped oneself to a bounty of salad fixings and a selection of homemade soups. My personal favorite was located near our home. The salad bar in this restaurant was probably fifty feet long, double-sided, and replete with every imaginable companion to the chilled plate. I would begin with the basics of lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, onions and grated cheese--passing by the pickled cucumbers. Moving further down the line, I would grab a large spoonful of the crab salad, but pass by the three-bean salad; the potato and macaroni salads were favorites, but not the grated carrot; the creamy Jell-o and pineapple salad (the one put together with whipped cream) would be added to my plate, but not the one containing raisins; finally, a dressing would be selected from the many options. From the salad bar, one would move to where simmering pots of soups awaited the ladle. I would usually pass up the vegetable or chili and help myself to a bowl of hearty turkey noodle. Across from the soups were the breads--fresh baked and still warm from the oven. The muffins were a favorite, usually choosing the apple-nut over the cornbread--unless, of course I was having chili. Later I would return to sample the slices of cheese pizza or sweet almond cakes, but never anything that contained coconut. And finally, after everything else had been consumed, I would waddle over to the final station for a small dish of chocolate or tapioca pudding, easily passing by the cubes of red Jell-o. _____________________________ This is the kind of relationship some Christians have with God. They move down the line, pushing their tray before them, selecting only those parts of Him they think they'll like. "Let's see, I'll have some of that grace and forgiveness--but I think I'll pass on the correction. How about just a little light Sunday School--but none of that heavy Bible study. And give me plenty of that `old-time religion'--but go easy on the conviction and wrath. For dessert, I believe I'll have a large helping of that love and compassion--hold the holiness." _____________________________ John F. Murray once wrote that "there must be many serious-minded believers who, as they look at what is often portrayed as Christianity today, wonder if it pertains to the same God in whom we ourselves profess to believe." We cannot pick and choose what we want of God. He is not broken down into compartments, bins filled with His various character attributes, bins from which we may select or reject. He is of a piece, unified, inseparable. He is to be taken as a whole. Some people will say, "I'm comfortable with Jesus, but God the Father is too intimidating." But Jesus said John 14:7-10 "If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him." [8] Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us." [9] Jesus answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, `Show us the Father'? [10] Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work." Jesus was only a physical representation of God's true character. If we are drawn to the Christ as our compassionate Savior, we must remember that His compassion has come from the Father. If we love Him for His sacrifice, we must remember that that same sacrifice began at the Father. Like Abraham, it was He who placed His only Son upon the altar. Jesus, in His death, demonstrated no greater love than did the Father. _____________________________ Exodus 3:13-15 Moses said to God, "Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, `The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, `What is his name?' Then what shall I tell them?" [14] God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: `I AM has sent me to you.'" [15] God also said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, `The LORD, the God of your fathers--the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob--has sent me to you.' This is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation." Into the Word ------------- Psalm 119:66 ______________________________________________ Prov 1:7 ______________________________________________ Prov 1:22 ______________________________________________ Prov 1:29 ______________________________________________ Prov 2:1-3:35 ______________________________________________ Prov 12:1 ______________________________________________ Prov 15:14 ______________________________________________ Prov 18:15 ______________________________________________ Hosea 4:6 ______________________________________________ Hosea 6:6 ______________________________________________ John 7:28-29 ______________________________________________ John 8:55 ______________________________________________ John 14:7 ______________________________________________ John 14:17 ______________________________________________ Acts 22:14 ______________________________________________ 1 Cor 1:21 ______________________________________________ 1 Cor 12:8 ______________________________________________ Gal 4:8-9 ______________________________________________ Eph 1:17 ______________________________________________ Eph 3:16-19 ______________________________________________ Phil 3:8 ______________________________________________ Phil 3:10-12 ______________________________________________ 1 John 2:3-4 ______________________________________________ 1 John 3:1 ______________________________________________ 1 John 4:8 ______________________________________________ 1 John 5:20 ______________________________________________ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Digging Deeper--Moving Higher ------------- Come, Thou my Light, that I may see Thy truth divine, Thy love so free. Dispel the clouds of doubt and sin, And let the face of God shine in. Come, Thou my Life, that I may be Made one in living faith with Thee. Renew my will and make it Thine, Thou living Source of life divine. Come, Thou my Guide, that I may know The way my seeking soul should go; And never from Thee let me stray, Thyself the Life, the Truth, the Way. Come, Thou my King, and I will make My heart a shrine for Thy dear sake; Until this earthly life of mine Shall be forever wholly Thine. Amen.(1) _____________________________ "From the Biblical viewpoint, spirituality is not fragmented... "What is the final screen of truth? The answer can only be the existence of God and who He is. Therefore Christian truth is that which is in relationship to what exists and ultimately to the God who exists. And true spirituality consists of being in the correct relationship to the God who is there, first in the once-for-all act of justification, secondly by being in that correct relationship as a continuing moment by moment reality. This is the Biblical emphasis on true spirituality. It is a continuing moment by moment proper relationship to the God who exists."(2) Making It Personal ------------------ Do you sometimes think God holds people to an unattainable standard of holiness? Are you easily intimidated by Scripture passages, such as the following? 1 Peter 1:15-16 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." With what attributes and behaviors of God are you uncomfortable? Which of them do you find yourself--perhaps unconsciously--avoiding? If you are married, would you be satisfied if you knew only half of who your spouse really is--half of their personality, half of their abilities, dreams and aspirations? If your spouse wanted to tell you something about who they are, would you somehow avoid that knowledge? Into the Word ------------- Each person carries around with him a mental image of God the Father. Put into words your image of God, then use Scripture to prove--or disprove--its accuracy. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Perspective 2: I K N O W W H O M I H A V E B E L I E V E D ------------- The title of this issue is an intentional misnomer, for ignorance--especially as regards knowledge of our God--is not in any way blissful. Whatever God is, He always is . . . Psalm 33:11 But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. . . . and whatever He says He is, He can be trusted. Numbers 23:19 God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill? So the responsibility we have is to discover who He is: to know Him intellectually and experientially. _____________________________ We do not typically think of ourselves in the same company as the Greek philosophers and intellectuals who worshipped a vast panoply of gods around AD 51-54. But the story of Paul visiting the Areopagus on Mars Hill can be as convicting to us in AD 1994 as it was to a few of them. Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: "Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious." Ah yes, we are certainly religious, aren't we. We travel to church every Sunday, we participate in the organized services, maybe we are even a part of a Bible study. If anyone asks, we're ready to say, "Oh yes, I do this, and I do that, and I attend such and such church." "For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD." Do you worship an unknown God? Put another way, how well do you know the God you worship? Acts 17:22-28 "Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you. [24] The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. [25] And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. [26] From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. [27] God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. [28] `For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, `We are his offspring.'" _____________________________ How do we get to know our God? Well, how do we get to know another person? What steps would you take to get to know, say, a preacher or college professor, or an author? The first thing you might do is read what the person has written; this would be one of the best ways to discover how the person thinks and what he believes. Second, you might attend his public lectures and listen carefully to the theories he propounds, and learn how he conducts himself around others. Finally, you might take steps to get to know him on a more private, personal level. You would sit with him, one on one, and have an informal dialogue over various subjects from the mundane to the profound. Just so with our God. In our hands we hold God's written word: His most profound thoughts and the history of His people. Read it, again and again; read it straight through, read it a piece at a time; pass through it quickly and study it in depth; but read it. It is the voice of God speaking to you. Listen to God's public lectures--His word put forth by those called to explain it to this generation. As they are called to be living examples of Christ, learn of His personality as it is brought to life in their lives.(3) Finally, spend quiet, intimate time with Him. Certainly speak freely with Him, sharing your most private thoughts and aspirations, but also listen, quietly hearing and feeling His presence as it is revealed to you. This is how you get to know the God you worship--this is how you get to know a living, actively vital God, for our God is not something made by human hands, but He is the one who made the world and everything in it; [He] is the Lord of heaven and earth. _____________________________ "`To know' is not a mere exercise of the head. Nothing is `known' until it has also passed over into obedience."(4) Into the Word ------------- Numbers 23:19 ______________________________________________ Deut 6:5 ______________________________________________ Deut 7:9 ______________________________________________ Deut 10:12 ______________________________________________ 1 Sam 15:29 ______________________________________________ Psalm 33:11 ______________________________________________ Psalm 37:3-11 ______________________________________________ Psalm 63:5-6 ______________________________________________ Psalm 73:25-26 ______________________________________________ Psalm 119:89-91 ______________________________________________ Prov 8:17 ______________________________________________ Prov 19:21 ______________________________________________ Prov 23:26 ______________________________________________ Eccl 3:14 ______________________________________________ Isaiah 31:2 ______________________________________________ Malachi 3:6 ______________________________________________ 1 Cor 8:2-3 ______________________________________________ Hebrews 6:17-18 ______________________________________________ James 1:17 ______________________________________________ 1 John 5:3 ______________________________________________ 2 John 1:6 ______________________________________________ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Digging Deeper--Moving Higher ------------- I come to the garden alone, while the dew is still on the roses; And the voice I hear, falling on my ear, the Son of God discloses. Refrain: And He walks with me, and He talks with me, and He tells me I am His own, And the joy we share as we tarry there, none other has ever known. He speaks, and the sound of His voice is so sweet the birds hush their singing, And the melody that He gave to me, within my heart is ringing. I'd stay in the garden with Him though the night around me be falling, But He bids me go--through the voice of woe, His voice to me is calling.(5) _____________________________ "What is God like? What kind of God is He? How may we expect Him to act toward us and toward all created things? Such questions are not merely academic. They touch the far-in reaches of the human spirit, and their answers affect life and character and destiny. When asked in reverence and their answers sought in humility, these are questions that cannot but be pleasing to our Father which art in heaven. `For He willeth that we be occupied in knowing and loving,' wrote Julian of Norwich, `till the time that we shall be fulfilled in heaven . . . For all things the beholding and the loving of the Maker maketh the soul to seem less in his own sight, and most filleth him with reverent dread and true meekness; with plenty of charity for his fellow Christians.'"(6) Making it Personal ------------------ Why is it important for you, personally, to know God's true character? We have discussed the reading and study of Scripture, listening to pastors and teachers, and prayerful communion with the Lord as means by which to know Him. Are there others? Why do you think it is so easy to rebel against the mechanics of what it takes to know God? What can you do about it? Into the Word ------------- The knowledge of God produces practical results. We pursue this knowledge not only because God commands it, but because it makes tangible contributions to our lives--and one of those contributions is the ability to use the mind of God as a weapon against temptation. Read Matt 4:1-11. What application do you find for your own life in this episode between Jesus and Satan. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Perspective 3: H A R V E S T I N G H I S B O U N T Y ------------- It's all there for the taking. So many people, blinded by the fashionable cynicism of our day, consider a close relationship with the Lord to be nothing more than a toilsome burden. They fear knowing Him intimately for the imagined demands and restrictions He will surely place on their lives. Oh, they're so wrong. _____________________________ It's all there for the taking. With each passing year, we have learned how to harvest the natural bounty God has planted around our land. Late spring is the time for black berries and wild raspberries; both make delicious jams and jellies, but are also good on cereal, or just by the handful. Their prickly canes are generously scattered throughout the woods as well as mixed in with other plants and bushes about our property. During the hot humid days of summer we pick the elderberries, which can be found easily along roadways and in the fields, picked when their whitish flowers have changed to clusters of the small, deep-purple berry. These berries make a distinctive jelly, a hearty wine, or can be combined with apples for pies. Around the same time, the mulberry trees are bearing their fruit. Day lilies, delicate orange beauty plentiful alongside country roads, last only a little while when cut, but brighten a room while they do. Summer also brings my personal favorite: wild plums. This year they were extraordinarily abundant, and we put up over fifty jars of Linda's popular Wild Plum Jelly. Late summer and early autumn is the time to harvest the many varieties of wildflowers and "weeds" found in great supply in fields and pastures; these are hung upside down for drying, then used throughout the house for decoration and their year-round scent of the out-of-doors. Pine cones and acorns, too, are picked up and used for decorations. Brown-headed cattails, so plentiful in low-lying ditches, are also cut for taller arrangements. In the cool and drier days of autumn, before the winter snows blanket the world in white, hickory nuts are collected for their delicious, slightly maple flavor. Drying milkweed pods are picked for use in decorations. Leaves are raked and shredded for use in the compost heap and as mulch around bedding plants. Dead or dying trees are felled, sectioned, then hauled to the woodpile for drying. and will be used the following year. Last year's wood is split and stacked indoors for fueling this year's fires. _____________________________ Plants and trees and berries are not the only evidence of God's generosity. When we are bowed low by the pressures of living-- when we need someone to lift us up, He is there. Matthew 11:28 KJV Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. When we deserve His wrath--when a lesser god would deal with us harshly--He offers us grace and forgiveness. Nehemiah 9:31 But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God. God never turns away from us. Even after we have turned our back on Him, He does not hesitate to come to our aid whenever we call out to Him. Psalm 18:6 In my distress I called to the LORD; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears. Sometimes the Lord's compassion is evidenced in physical healing. Psalm 30:2 O LORD my God, I called to you for help and you healed me. In all trials and situations, His Spirit comforts us. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. There is no end to the Lord's blessings. Psalm 21:1-4 O LORD, the king rejoices in your strength. How great is his joy in the victories you give! You have granted him the desire of his heart and have not withheld the request of his lips. You welcomed him with rich blessings and placed a crown of pure gold on his head. He asked you for life, and you gave it to him--length of days, for ever and ever. All there for the taking.(7) Into the Word ------------- Lev 26:12 ______________________________________________ Deut 4:7 ______________________________________________ Deut 30:9 ______________________________________________ Deut 31:6 ______________________________________________ Deut 31:8 ______________________________________________ Joshua 1:5 ______________________________________________ Job 10:12 ______________________________________________ Psalm 5:12 ______________________________________________ Psalm 11:7 ______________________________________________ Psalm 94:19 ______________________________________________ Psalm 149:4 ______________________________________________ Jer 31:3 ______________________________________________ Jer 32:41 ______________________________________________ Zeph 3:17 ______________________________________________ Haggai 1:13 ______________________________________________ John 14:16-21 ______________________________________________ Eph 2:13-14 ______________________________________________ Titus 3:4-7 ______________________________________________ Hebrews 4:16 ______________________________________________ Hebrews 10:22 ______________________________________________ 1 John 3:1 ______________________________________________ Jude 1:21 ______________________________________________ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Digging Deeper--Moving Higher ------------- When all Thy mercies, O my God, my rising soul surveys, Transported with the view, I'm lost in wonder, love and praise. Unnumbered comforts to my soul Thy tender care bestowed, Before my infant heart conceived from whom those comforts flowed. When worn with sickness, oft hast Thou with health renewed my face; And, when in sins and sorrows bowed, revived my soul with grace. Thro' every period of my life Thy goodness I'll pursue, And after death, in distant worlds, the glorious theme renew.(8) Praise God from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost! Amen.(9) _____________________________ "In the old days the government of England resolved to build a wooden bridge over the Thames at Westminster. After they had driven a hundred and forty piles into the river, there occurred one of the most severe frosts in the memory of man, which tore the piles away from their strong fastenings, and snapped many of them in two. The apparent evil in this case was a great good; it led the commissioners to reconsider their purpose, and a substantial bridge of stone was erected.It is a good thing when the worldly reformations of unregenerate people are broken to pieces, if thus they are led to fly to the Lord Jesus, and in the strength of His Spirit are brought to build solidly for eternity.Lord, if my resolves and hopes are carried away by temptations and the force of my corruptions, grant that this blessed calamity may drive me to depend wholly on your grace, which cannot fail me."(10) Making it Personal ------------------ If God is eternally the same, if He never deals falsely with people, if he generously offers His grace and blessings to all--if all this is true, then why do some people have a deeper relationship with God than others? When we read the words of Spiritual pillars such as A.W. Tozer, Dietrich Bonhoeffer or C.H. Spurgeon, we quickly recognize that each of these men shared a close, personal relationship with their God. God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit never change; from before there was time, they have been exactly as they are today. The variable, then, must be found in the ones on the other side of the relationship. I challenge you to begin a quest to have that kind of a knowledge of your God. Begin with investigating the kind of relationship Jesus had with the Father, then read the biographies and writings of great people of God, to learn how their lives came to be so firmly established in the Lord. Take God's holy word and treat it as you would a cherished companion; instead of seeing it as something dry and boring, see it as your precious and irreplaceable connection to the mind of God. Drink it in, as if it were water and you are dying from thirst. Into the Word ------------- Are God's blessings always pleasant? When trials come into our lives, does this mean God is absent? Do bad things happen to good people? What does Scripture have to say about this? ======================================================================== NOTES, COPYRIGHT & SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION Notes ----- 1 Hugh T. Kerr (1871-1950). 2 Francis A. Schaeffer, The God Who is There: Speaking Historic Christianity into the Twentieth Century (Inter-Varsity Press, c.1971), p144f. 3 Always remembering, of course, that even though it is their calling to live as Christ, being human they will certainly experience their moments of failure--just as do you. 4 J.A. Motyer. 5 C. Austin Miles (1868-1946). 6 A.W. Tozer in The Knowledge of the Holy: The Attributes of God: Their Meaning in The Christian Life (HarperSanFrancisco, 1992), p.21. 7 Thank you, Doris! 8 Joseph Addison (1672-1719). 9 Thomas Kern (1637-1711). 10 Charles Haddon Spurgeon, The Quotable Spurgeon (Shaw, 1990), p.77. Jude 1:24-25 To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy--[25] to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen. Copyright Information --------------------- All original material in Aspects is Copyright (C) 1995 David S. Lampel. This data file is the sole property of David S. Lampel. It may not be altered or edited in any way. It may be reproduced only in its entirety for circulation as "freeware," without charge. All reproductions of this data file must contain the copyright notice (i.e., "Copyright (C) 1995 David S. Lampel."). This data file may not be used without the permission of David S. Lampel for resale or the enhancement of any other product sold. This includes all of its content. Brief quotations not to exceed more than 500 words may be used, with the appropriate copyright notice, to enhance or supplement personal or church devotions, newsletters, journals, or spoken messages. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture is from the New International Version. NIV quotations are from the Holy Bible: New International Version, Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by the International Bible Society. Used by permission. NASB quotations are from the New American Standard Bible (C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977 by The Lockman Foundation. Subscription Information ------------------------ Aspects is published monthly. There are two preferred methods of receiving it on a regular basis: 1) You may subscribe to the laser-printed (hard copy) edition, which is sent out via regular mail. 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