Titus 1:3 reminds us again that God has a "right time" for everything - - my job is to listen and watch so I don't miss the signs of His right timing.
Interesting how money 1:11 seems to be an ugly root for all kinds of problems. Yet -- if money is used correctly; what a blessing it can be!
"Everything is pure to those whose hearts are pure" but the bummer is -- none of us have pure hearts -- we're all tainted with selfishness and sin. Kindof like whoever is without sin, cast the first stone.
3:1 a reminder to be respectful and supportive no matter who wins the election!
3:9 -- Foolish discussions! Keep our eyes focused on Him, leaning back on Him!
Paul wasn't afraid to call a spade a spade. Administrators like that are hard to come by & draw a lot of criticism.
The election cycles sure bring out the worst in people. And having a black president has brought out the worst in a lot of people I once respected. I think God allows situations to show us what we really are made of to see if once we see ourselves we realized how bad off we are & turn to Him for deeper healing & cleansing.
But it is easier to get caught up in the foolish discussions as Paul brings out at the end of 3 than to admit our own failures. Easier to nitpick & try to distract from our weaknesses by pointing out others shortcomings. Which is why we are still wandering in this desert called earth instead of in heaven.
I went back a chapter and read about Korah, Dathan, and Abirum -- before heading into the blooming rod. Those men had rebellious hearts - - they didn't want to follow God's instructions, they simply wanted honor and glory for themselves. I was thinking about Proverbs counsel to "throw out a mocker and you will have peace" or something like that -- K went around a got the whole camp stirred up against Moses.
So now -- God causes the blossoms on the old dead, dried out stick -- kind of like giving Sarah a baby from an old dried shriveled up womb. HE can bring life out of death. I AM the resurrection and the LIFE! What power is His! So many times I ignore or don't revel in that power.
I thought it was interesting that in 17:11 it said that this rod illustration should put an end to their complaints against Me and prevent any further deaths. BUT -- in the next verse; those humans were complaining that they were doomed to die!
In 18:29 God reminds the Levites (and all of us) to "give to the Lord the best portions of the gifts given to you" We've visited this before -- giving God our very best, not just the left overs! This is a pretty good indication of Whose we are.
The water of purification just convinced me that I would never want to be a mortician!
The gifts given by David & the people show that they were willing to give of their best as you said above. I'm sure David's selflessness in giving inspired them to give as well. Pretty neat that David was able to gather almost all the materials for the temple. Solomon didn't squander them either. He had a heart to build the temple. Was specifically chosen by God to do so. That must have been nice, to know what you were supposed to do before you were old enough to even rule.
David charged Solomon to keep true to God & give Him his whole heart & mind in front of the nation. He didn't just share the rosy picture but also the other side of disobedience. That way Solomon knew the consequences if he choose to disobey. A lot of time we just want to share the happy ending stuff & not the other side of reality. It's good to realize there are consequences. Our lives are hidden from God just because we don't share the flip side of blessing. We are still accountable for our choices.
ooo -- good point Chris about David sharing both sides of the choice. And . . . even with David's encouragement; with all the perks of having a kingdom handed to you; with God, knowing the beginning from the end, choosing Sol to be the next king; even then -- the power of choice (Sol's) was his downfall in the end. We are on enemy territory, the power of choice is God's blessing of freedom, but humanities probability of curse.
Chpt 25 -- they and their families were all trained in making music before the Lord, and each of them -- 288 in all -- was an accomplished musician. We may not all be "trained" today for making music - - but I appreciate how much time each person puts in each week to do their best with their instrument/voice!!
26:6 Obed-edom shows up again! Apparently all his sons and grandsons "chose" to follow his faithfulness -- they were very capable men, well qualified for their work.
So we get a long list of all the people that surround David -- and these are his trusted men that he calls in to make his official Solomon announcement. I like it that he even called the guys in charge of the livestock! It shows that he valued each one; no wonder they all loved him. I bet he knew each one by name.
David's charge to Solomon is precious; David cares about Sol -- but also about his people that Sol will be leading. "learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately" (Don't just know about Him, know Him intimately) "Worship and serve Him with your whole heart and a willing mind" (Power corrupts; often the leader starts taking that worship to himself, this is David's safeguard to pride) "For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought" (Even a king's life is open to the Lord) And then the precious promise "If you seek Him, you WILL find Him" and the un-rosy part "if you forsake him, He will reject you" (Doesn't that send horror shivers down your spine - to be rejected by God?)
TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY - enough said.
I also like David's plea to his peeps to support Solomon and the reminder that this Temple is for the Lord God himself. Sometimes I think we think the church building is for us -- NOT! It's for God - I like that thought!
David leads by example -- the very best kind of leader!
His prayer is so powerful and poignant; God owns it all and "Who am I?" "Who are my people?" that we could give anything to You.
Know God intimately, I like that & it leads into the 1st verse today that David wrote in Ps. 108 If you know God intimately, you'll have confidence in Him & you'll sing His praises from that depth of knowledge. Like the song that says "even if...", things don't go how I want them to, I will "trust in Who You are". I will trust God's character. The more I know of Him, the more I trust Him. It makes total sense that satan doesn't want us to spend time in God's Presence & that he tries to hinder that relationship as much as possible.
v12 all human help is useless. Yep, pretty much sums it up. I don't think I remember David ever sending to another kingdom to get warriors or chariots. He knew where his strength & help came from.
Ever been in a dire situation & the person you know could help you isn't & can't be around? God puts us in those situations, I believe, so that we will realize Who really is the One we should turn to first & always. He may direct us to people BUT then we know it's by His counsel.
After all those curses, David still tells God to deal well with them. He knows God's character here too. It's like he's saying, "I want vengeance, but I just leave them in Your hands, You take care of them". I like that.
In v27. He wants God to help them see that God is the one doing all the withholding of blessing or bringing trials, not them. I'd love that to be announced when I have trials too. But it's just so people won't judge me, which is impossible to accomplish. There's no way we can ever understand the work that God is doing in every heart here on earth. It's none of our business. If we were perfect & didn't have anything to surrender to God then maybe. But we're just to leave people in God's hands & be willing to be instruments in whatever way He needs us.
109 ends with confidence in God no matter the outcome. Again, knowing God's character brings this out of us. No matter what, I will trust You. Sometimes easier said than done BUT saying it vocally cements it more in my brain than just saying it in my brain.
OOO! what version are you in Chris? To know God intimately -- that reminds me of David's counsel to Solomon yesterday! 1 Chronicals 28:9 "Learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately"
AND - thank you for the pulling out of v27 that it's NON OF OUR BUSINESS what God is doing in every heart here on earth - - to leave people in God's hands -- soooooooooo good for me to hear and think about!
I LOVE waking up on Wed am, because I enjoy the Psalms:) 108 4 Your unfailin love is higher than the heavens (present) Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds (past) v1 -- because of the present and the past "My heart is confident in You, O God (future) it all works together.
That tells me that when the worries for the future crop up, I need to dwell on his love and faithfulness to turn me back to confidence.
V15 HE will trample down our foes - - we just need to hide behind HIM and cheer HIM on!
I was thinking that 109 might be referring to Christ? Who else would love (vs 4) the wicked? That's God-love.
The plea in Verse 26 "Help ME) seems to be answered in chpt 110.
Finally I love the reminder in 109:30 "Repeated Thanks" There can never be enough gratitude sent to our God for all He's done, is doing, will do! Thank you God - - keep me in the repeated mode, I want to have an infinite loop of love and gratefulness to YOU!
Don't wear yourself out getting rich (23:4) how much is enough? and even that question is pointless, as vs 5 says "in the blink of an eye wealth disappears!
I love 23:10-11 when it talks about the defenseless - "their Redeemer is STRONG" really good word pic"
I lot of thoughts about children / discipline / what to avoid
24:5 "The wise are mightier than the strong" I've seen that many times, actually -- if you had to choose, would you rather be in a tense situation with someone wise or strong? I'm thinking of the old show McGiver (he probably wasn't that wise, as he was following a script -- but you get the idea)
vs 12 don't excuse yourself by saying "Look, we didn't know" For God understands all hearts -- reminds me of what Jesus said to the pharisees after the healing of the blind man in John 9:41 If you were blind, you wouldn't be guilty, but you remain guilty because you claim you can see"
The godly may trip 7 times, but they will get up again -- I see this as returning back to God, no matter how many times we fail; not giving up on His redeeming mercy.
Don't rejoice when your enemies fall (not even on the inside) be merciful and gracious clear down to your core, remembering that we ALL fall and fail (talkin' to myself here)
An honest answer is like a kiss of friendship -- many times those honest answers aren't hard to here -- but what is so wonderful about those kinds of answers -- you can trust the person. Hard to be friends with someone you can't trust.
So let's put 24:33,34 "a little extra sleep, a little more slumber . . . then poverty will pounce on you like a bandit" together with 23:4 "don't wear yourself out trying to get rich, be wise enough to know when to quit"
I guess it means work hard / rest hard -- thoughts?
I like the work hard/rest hard. When I really sleep, I miss EVERYTHING that goes on around me. But I think that really because my mind is resting hard in/on my Strong Warrior God.
I needed to find texts today that showed Jesus fighting for me. I remembered the stories of God fighting for the different armies with different elements of nature. But I had to find the words "fight for you".
In NLT there are 4 verses & the first one in Ex 14 13-14 really helped me. The enemies I see, feel or have imagined fights with, I will see, feel or imagine no more because my God will fight for me. Today, right now.
But I forgot to read the next verse which cracked me up!
"Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the people to get moving!'"
I'd love for God to just "take" everything from me, but He knows that wouldn't help me at all. I have to start the new thought patterns, refuse & even rebuke the old ones & the devil who tempts to go back there again.
Israel had to walk across the bottom of the Red Sea. I'm sure they were scared to death that the wall of water would come down upon them. But they still had to exercise that faith to get to the other side.
I have to get moving too! I have to exercise my faith so that I can be walking out my faith as God delivers me & slashes apart my foes. Real or imagined.
I read Ps 139 today. I'm so thankful God had David write this psalm to show us how intimately He is involved & wants to be involved in our lives. How intertwined we are with heaven whether we acknowledge it or not.
He knows everything about me (v1), yet still loves me. Lord, I'm totally amazed by You.
You know my words before I speak them (v4) & how You must cringe at times when You know what I'm going to say about others or even about myself. I'm so sorry Lord, for letting you down like that & talking about your beloved children, including myself in such a derogatory manner.
v5 You bless me in spite of myself! It overwhelms me - how You love me - yes, I'm amazed at Your heart of mercy & grace toward me.
I can never escape Your Presence - THANK YOU! I can never be so far You can't redeem me or others - & help me especially remember that last part. You are ALWAYS near us, always reaching out for our hearts to pull us back to You.
v17 how precious are Your thoughts towards me. How tender, how compassionate, how inspiring & uplifting. Never shaming or condemning. You are about reconciliation not judgement. Please help me show that part of You to those that are scared of You down here. Because how deep, wide & very great is Your love for me - them!
v23-24 "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts (and there are so many of these). Point out anything in me (note it's not others) that offends You, and lead me along the path of everlasting life (because I keep tripping out of it & others are following - so scary).
Reminds me also of the last part of Ps 19 that talks about letting my words & meditations or ponderings of my heart be acceptable in His sight today. Thank You Lord, You are my Strength & my Redeemer! I am so very amazed how You love me!
Chris -- you and DAvid have a lot of poetry in your very souls -- I love how you wound Amazed into his letter to us!!
Verse 17 about how he wants reconciliation not judgement reminds me of the story of Nicodemus, the well woman, and the prostitute -- really, every encounter with Jesus was about that, but those 3 stories are on my mind right now
So Amos was a shepherd and a fig farmer - - and from Judah; God sends him with a message to Israel -- that must have been a bit daunting!
He starts out saying that everyone has sinned, and God has punished everyone: Edom, Ammon, Moab, Judah -- then comes the message for Israel -- and it seems to be a 2-fold insult to God. Insult #1 is the disrespect toward others 2:6-8. Insult #2 is the worship of other idols 3:15 and 4:4,5.
Fat Cows -- that's the name for the Israelites (and us) who love luxery - - fat cows
God makes it clear that his method of discipline has one goal in mind: to cause us to return to Him -- "ALWAYS near us, always reaching out for our hearts to pull us back to You".
BUT -- there does come a point where He gives us 4:12 Looking ahead to chpt 5 it will be another "Call to Repentance" Thank you God for not giving up easily
16:1 Jesus tells us ahead, so we have something to cling to. Even when everything seems to be falling apart, He's still in charge, knows what's happening.
Seeps like in 5-13, Jesus is describing a 2-prong God effort for us. Prong one -- Jesus comes to show us what God is like, to dispel Satan's lies of a demanding, hard-hearted God. Prong 2 -- the Holy Spirit comes to assist us in the choice of believing, to convince, to guide. That doesn't mean we'll listen -- but God is giving every tool available that He can work with along side of free choice.
It's interesting that if Jesus had stayed, the H.S. would not have come (16:7) wonder why that is??
I'll never completely understand the Trinity, and that's ok -- I believe their are 3 united parts to God. But when Jesus was here, He always stressed His One-ness with the Father. He always did what His Father told him. Here in 16:14 The Spirit will tell you whatever He receives from me. There's just a 3 strand unity there - - -
Jesus words to His disciples about going away, coming back briefly seem easy to understand in hind sight.
Jesus whole mission was to give glory to the Father 17:1 and, by comleting the mission - He DID bring that glory to the father vs 4
He was really concerned for His disciples (and us) I feel that same concern as a parent for my kids 17:15 "keep them safe fro the evil one" I'm more concerned about Satan's influence on them than physical harm. One is temporary -- one is eternal.
How God wanted us to experience perfect unity -- sigh; so hard on the earth -- I think tho, that is part of Godly peace.
I AM He! The reference to God is obvious.
Pilot's main question was if Jesus was a king. Jesus couldn't care less about worldly fame (reminded me of Daniel telling Belteshazzer to keep his "stuff") Jesus was concerned that Pilot think about truth - - He came to show Truth; He wanted Pilot's heart. Jesus could never escape from His passion of us.
Thought to end on: 16:27 "The Father Himself loves you dearly"
that's a great thought to end on. I was wondering why the disciples didn't ask Him where He was going. Is it because they figured if He died, it's over? I know they didn't get that He was the Messiah until He rose again. They only saw what was in front of them - the small pic - just like we do.
I like your thought about unity being part of Godly peace. So as we experience more of His Presence in our lives, then we experience His true peace, even with each other. That would give us more patience with each other's foibles for sure!
I don't think unity is all of us thinking the same way, like some people do. I think it's all of us with our different approaches & uniqueness being brought together by the HS for a common goal - the kingdom of God. It's all about Him. When we're all directing our energy toward God & His purposes & not advancing our own...I think we'll be united. But that's my take on it. I think it's what the disciples did in the upper room.
Titus 1:3 reminds us again that God has a "right time" for everything - - my job is to listen and watch so I don't miss the signs of His right timing.
ReplyDeleteInteresting how money 1:11 seems to be an ugly root for all kinds of problems. Yet -- if money is used correctly; what a blessing it can be!
"Everything is pure to those whose hearts are pure" but the bummer is -- none of us have pure hearts -- we're all tainted with selfishness and sin. Kindof like whoever is without sin, cast the first stone.
3:1 a reminder to be respectful and supportive no matter who wins the election!
3:9 -- Foolish discussions! Keep our eyes focused on Him, leaning back on Him!
Paul wasn't afraid to call a spade a spade. Administrators like that are hard to come by & draw a lot of criticism.
ReplyDeleteThe election cycles sure bring out the worst in people. And having a black president has brought out the worst in a lot of people I once respected. I think God allows situations to show us what we really are made of to see if once we see ourselves we realized how bad off we are & turn to Him for deeper healing & cleansing.
But it is easier to get caught up in the foolish discussions as Paul brings out at the end of 3 than to admit our own failures. Easier to nitpick & try to distract from our weaknesses by pointing out others shortcomings. Which is why we are still wandering in this desert called earth instead of in heaven.
I went back a chapter and read about Korah, Dathan, and Abirum -- before heading into the blooming rod. Those men had rebellious hearts - - they didn't want to follow God's instructions, they simply wanted honor and glory for themselves. I was thinking about Proverbs counsel to "throw out a mocker and you will have peace" or something like that -- K went around a got the whole camp stirred up against Moses.
ReplyDeleteSo now -- God causes the blossoms on the old dead, dried out stick -- kind of like giving Sarah a baby from an old dried shriveled up womb. HE can bring life out of death. I AM the resurrection and the LIFE! What power is His! So many times I ignore or don't revel in that power.
I thought it was interesting that in 17:11 it said that this rod illustration should put an end to their complaints against Me and prevent any further deaths. BUT -- in the next verse; those humans were complaining that they were doomed to die!
In 18:29 God reminds the Levites (and all of us) to "give to the Lord the best portions of the gifts given to you" We've visited this before -- giving God our very best, not just the left overs! This is a pretty good indication of Whose we are.
The water of purification just convinced me that I would never want to be a mortician!
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThe gifts given by David & the people show that they were willing to give of their best as you said above. I'm sure David's selflessness in giving inspired them to give as well. Pretty neat that David was able to gather almost all the materials for the temple. Solomon didn't squander them either. He had a heart to build the temple. Was specifically chosen by God to do so. That must have been nice, to know what you were supposed to do before you were old enough to even rule.
ReplyDeleteDavid charged Solomon to keep true to God & give Him his whole heart & mind in front of the nation. He didn't just share the rosy picture but also the other side of disobedience. That way Solomon knew the consequences if he choose to disobey. A lot of time we just want to share the happy ending stuff & not the other side of reality. It's good to realize there are consequences. Our lives are hidden from God just because we don't share the flip side of blessing. We are still accountable for our choices.
ooo -- good point Chris about David sharing both sides of the choice. And . . . even with David's encouragement; with all the perks of having a kingdom handed to you; with God, knowing the beginning from the end, choosing Sol to be the next king; even then -- the power of choice (Sol's) was his downfall in the end. We are on enemy territory, the power of choice is God's blessing of freedom, but humanities probability of curse.
ReplyDeleteChpt 25 -- they and their families were all trained in making music before the Lord, and each of them -- 288 in all -- was an accomplished musician. We may not all be "trained" today for making music - - but I appreciate how much time each person puts in each week to do their best with their instrument/voice!!
26:6 Obed-edom shows up again! Apparently all his sons and grandsons "chose" to follow his faithfulness -- they were very capable men, well qualified for their work.
So we get a long list of all the people that surround David -- and these are his trusted men that he calls in to make his official Solomon announcement. I like it that he even called the guys in charge of the livestock! It shows that he valued each one; no wonder they all loved him. I bet he knew each one by name.
David's charge to Solomon is precious; David cares about Sol -- but also about his people that Sol will be leading. "learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately" (Don't just know about Him, know Him intimately) "Worship and serve Him with your whole heart and a willing mind" (Power corrupts; often the leader starts taking that worship to himself, this is David's safeguard to pride) "For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought" (Even a king's life is open to the Lord) And then the precious promise "If you seek Him, you WILL find Him" and the un-rosy part "if you forsake him, He will reject you" (Doesn't that send horror shivers down your spine - to be rejected by God?)
TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY - enough said.
I also like David's plea to his peeps to support Solomon and the reminder that this Temple is for the Lord God himself. Sometimes I think we think the church building is for us -- NOT! It's for God - I like that thought!
David leads by example -- the very best kind of leader!
His prayer is so powerful and poignant; God owns it all and "Who am I?" "Who are my people?" that we could give anything to You.
Know God intimately, I like that & it leads into the 1st verse today that David wrote in Ps. 108
ReplyDeleteIf you know God intimately, you'll have confidence in Him & you'll sing His praises from that depth of knowledge. Like the song that says "even if...", things don't go how I want them to, I will "trust in Who You are". I will trust God's character. The more I know of Him, the more I trust Him. It makes total sense that satan doesn't want us to spend time in God's Presence & that he tries to hinder that relationship as much as possible.
v12 all human help is useless. Yep, pretty much sums it up. I don't think I remember David ever sending to another kingdom to get warriors or chariots. He knew where his strength & help came from.
Ever been in a dire situation & the person you know could help you isn't & can't be around? God puts us in those situations, I believe, so that we will realize Who really is the One we should turn to first & always. He may direct us to people BUT then we know it's by His counsel.
After all those curses, David still tells God to deal well with them. He knows God's character here too. It's like he's saying, "I want vengeance, but I just leave them in Your hands, You take care of them". I like that.
In v27. He wants God to help them see that God is the one doing all the withholding of blessing or bringing trials, not them. I'd love that to be announced when I have trials too. But it's just so people won't judge me, which is impossible to accomplish.
There's no way we can ever understand the work that God is doing in every heart here on earth. It's none of our business. If we were perfect & didn't have anything to surrender to God then maybe. But we're just to leave people in God's hands & be willing to be instruments in whatever way He needs us.
109 ends with confidence in God no matter the outcome. Again, knowing God's character brings this out of us. No matter what, I will trust You. Sometimes easier said than done BUT saying it vocally cements it more in my brain than just saying it in my brain.
OOO! what version are you in Chris? To know God intimately -- that reminds me of David's counsel to Solomon yesterday! 1 Chronicals 28:9 "Learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately"
ReplyDeleteAND - thank you for the pulling out of v27 that it's NON OF OUR BUSINESS what God is doing in every heart here on earth - - to leave people in God's hands -- soooooooooo good for me to hear and think about!
I LOVE waking up on Wed am, because I enjoy the Psalms:) 108 4 Your unfailin love is higher than the heavens (present) Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds (past) v1 -- because of the present and the past "My heart is confident in You, O God (future) it all works together.
That tells me that when the worries for the future crop up, I need to dwell on his love and faithfulness to turn me back to confidence.
V15 HE will trample down our foes - - we just need to hide behind HIM and cheer HIM on!
I was thinking that 109 might be referring to Christ? Who else would love (vs 4) the wicked? That's God-love.
The plea in Verse 26 "Help ME) seems to be answered in chpt 110.
Finally I love the reminder in 109:30 "Repeated Thanks" There can never be enough gratitude sent to our God for all He's done, is doing, will do! Thank you God - - keep me in the repeated mode, I want to have an infinite loop of love and gratefulness to YOU!
I was leading into my remarks today by using yours on knowing God intimately. Which is why it reminded you of it! Hee hee!
ReplyDeleteDon't wear yourself out getting rich (23:4) how much is enough? and even that question is pointless, as vs 5 says "in the blink of an eye wealth disappears!
ReplyDeleteI love 23:10-11 when it talks about the defenseless - "their Redeemer is STRONG" really good word pic"
I lot of thoughts about children / discipline / what to avoid
24:5 "The wise are mightier than the strong" I've seen that many times, actually -- if you had to choose, would you rather be in a tense situation with someone wise or strong? I'm thinking of the old show McGiver (he probably wasn't that wise, as he was following a script -- but you get the idea)
vs 12 don't excuse yourself by saying "Look, we didn't know" For God understands all hearts -- reminds me of what Jesus said to the pharisees after the healing of the blind man in John 9:41 If you were blind, you wouldn't be guilty, but you remain guilty because you claim you can see"
The godly may trip 7 times, but they will get up again -- I see this as returning back to God, no matter how many times we fail; not giving up on His redeeming mercy.
Don't rejoice when your enemies fall (not even on the inside) be merciful and gracious clear down to your core, remembering that we ALL fall and fail (talkin' to myself here)
An honest answer is like a kiss of friendship -- many times those honest answers aren't hard to here -- but what is so wonderful about those kinds of answers -- you can trust the person. Hard to be friends with someone you can't trust.
So let's put 24:33,34 "a little extra sleep, a little more slumber . . . then poverty will pounce on you like a bandit" together with 23:4 "don't wear yourself out trying to get rich, be wise enough to know when to quit"
I guess it means work hard / rest hard -- thoughts?
I like the work hard/rest hard. When I really sleep, I miss EVERYTHING that goes on around me. But I think that really because my mind is resting hard in/on my Strong Warrior God.
ReplyDeleteI needed to find texts today that showed Jesus fighting for me. I remembered the stories of God fighting for the different armies with different elements of nature. But I had to find the words "fight for you".
In NLT there are 4 verses & the first one in Ex 14 13-14 really helped me. The enemies I see, feel or have imagined fights with, I will see, feel or imagine no more because my God will fight for me. Today, right now.
But I forgot to read the next verse which cracked me up!
"Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the people to get moving!'"
I'd love for God to just "take" everything from me, but He knows that wouldn't help me at all. I have to start the new thought patterns, refuse & even rebuke the old ones & the devil who tempts to go back there again.
Israel had to walk across the bottom of the Red Sea. I'm sure they were scared to death that the wall of water would come down upon them. But they still had to exercise that faith to get to the other side.
I have to get moving too! I have to exercise my faith so that I can be walking out my faith as God delivers me & slashes apart my foes. Real or imagined.
I read Ps 139 today. I'm so thankful God had David write this psalm to show us how intimately He is involved & wants to be involved in our lives. How intertwined we are with heaven whether we acknowledge it or not.
ReplyDeleteHe knows everything about me (v1), yet still loves me. Lord, I'm totally amazed by You.
You know my words before I speak them (v4) & how You must cringe at times when You know what I'm going to say about others or even about myself. I'm so sorry Lord, for letting you down like that & talking about your beloved children, including myself in such a derogatory manner.
v5 You bless me in spite of myself! It overwhelms me - how You love me - yes, I'm amazed at Your heart of mercy & grace toward me.
I can never escape Your Presence - THANK YOU! I can never be so far You can't redeem me or others - & help me especially remember that last part. You are ALWAYS near us, always reaching out for our hearts to pull us back to You.
v17 how precious are Your thoughts towards me. How tender, how compassionate, how inspiring & uplifting. Never shaming or condemning. You are about reconciliation not judgement. Please help me show that part of You to those that are scared of You down here. Because how deep, wide & very great is Your love for me - them!
v23-24 "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts (and there are so many of these). Point out anything in me (note it's not others) that offends You, and lead me along the path of everlasting life (because I keep tripping out of it & others are following - so scary).
Reminds me also of the last part of Ps 19 that talks about letting my words & meditations or ponderings of my heart be acceptable in His sight today. Thank You Lord, You are my Strength & my Redeemer! I am so very amazed how You love me!
Chris -- you and DAvid have a lot of poetry in your very souls -- I love how you wound Amazed into his letter to us!!
ReplyDeleteVerse 17 about how he wants reconciliation not judgement reminds me of the story of Nicodemus, the well woman, and the prostitute -- really, every encounter with Jesus was about that, but those 3 stories are on my mind right now
So Amos was a shepherd and a fig farmer - - and from Judah; God sends him with a message to Israel -- that must have been a bit daunting!
ReplyDeleteHe starts out saying that everyone has sinned, and God has punished everyone: Edom, Ammon, Moab, Judah -- then comes the message for Israel -- and it seems to be a 2-fold insult to God. Insult #1 is the disrespect toward others 2:6-8. Insult #2 is the worship of other idols 3:15 and 4:4,5.
Fat Cows -- that's the name for the Israelites (and us) who love luxery - - fat cows
God makes it clear that his method of discipline has one goal in mind: to cause us to return to Him -- "ALWAYS near us, always reaching out for our hearts to pull us back to You".
BUT -- there does come a point where He gives us 4:12 Looking ahead to chpt 5 it will be another "Call to Repentance" Thank you God for not giving up easily
Shows how God once again passes by people because He needs ones who's hearts are totally His & who's ears are constantly listening for His voice.
ReplyDeleteHappy half way through the month of September!!
ReplyDelete16:1 Jesus tells us ahead, so we have something to cling to. Even when everything seems to be falling apart, He's still in charge, knows what's happening.
Seeps like in 5-13, Jesus is describing a 2-prong God effort for us. Prong one -- Jesus comes to show us what God is like, to dispel Satan's lies of a demanding, hard-hearted God. Prong 2 -- the Holy Spirit comes to assist us in the choice of believing, to convince, to guide. That doesn't mean we'll listen -- but God is giving every tool available that He can work with along side of free choice.
It's interesting that if Jesus had stayed, the H.S. would not have come (16:7) wonder why that is??
I'll never completely understand the Trinity, and that's ok -- I believe their are 3 united parts to God. But when Jesus was here, He always stressed His One-ness with the Father. He always did what His Father told him. Here in 16:14 The Spirit will tell you whatever He receives from me. There's just a 3 strand unity there - - -
Jesus words to His disciples about going away, coming back briefly seem easy to understand in hind sight.
Jesus whole mission was to give glory to the Father 17:1 and, by comleting the mission - He DID bring that glory to the father vs 4
He was really concerned for His disciples (and us) I feel that same concern as a parent for my kids 17:15 "keep them safe fro the evil one" I'm more concerned about Satan's influence on them than physical harm. One is temporary -- one is eternal.
How God wanted us to experience perfect unity -- sigh; so hard on the earth -- I think tho, that is part of Godly peace.
I AM He! The reference to God is obvious.
Pilot's main question was if Jesus was a king. Jesus couldn't care less about worldly fame (reminded me of Daniel telling Belteshazzer to keep his "stuff") Jesus was concerned that Pilot think about truth - - He came to show Truth; He wanted Pilot's heart. Jesus could never escape from His passion of us.
Thought to end on: 16:27 "The Father Himself loves you dearly"
that's a great thought to end on. I was wondering why the disciples didn't ask Him where He was going. Is it because they figured if He died, it's over? I know they didn't get that He was the Messiah until He rose again. They only saw what was in front of them - the small pic - just like we do.
ReplyDeleteI like your thought about unity being part of Godly peace. So as we experience more of His Presence in our lives, then we experience His true peace, even with each other. That would give us more patience with each other's foibles for sure!
I don't think unity is all of us thinking the same way, like some people do. I think it's all of us with our different approaches & uniqueness being brought together by the HS for a common goal - the kingdom of God. It's all about Him. When we're all directing our energy toward God & His purposes & not advancing our own...I think we'll be united. But that's my take on it. I think it's what the disciples did in the upper room.
celebrating uniqueness:) Great thought on unity!!
ReplyDelete