Words of the Wise

 

Well-driven nails by One Shepherd !! 

This morning in my Bible reading I focused on two passages - one from Ecc. 12 and the other from Acts 16.  

Ecclesiastes  12:11 --  I love the words of this passage, they always stir my heart-emotion.

Let me quote the words .. 

"The words of the wise are like goads, 

and the words of the scholars are like well-driven nails, 

given by one Shepherd, "

Do you see the pictures painted in this verse?  

Goads -- are farming implements , a round stick with a pointed end used to urge cattle to move forward, or in the right direction.  So to apply the analogy we see that the words of the wise are meant to be 'sharp' as in they get our attention and spur us on in the way we should go. 

The next picture is that of a carpenter driving nails into the wood.  My dad was a carpenter and how often I watched him drive one nail after the other with unfailing precision straight into the wood.   Here the analogy points to the fact that words from the wise or the wise scholar will not 'knock' us off course, will not cause us to bend to the right or to the left but will encourage us to stay on a straight path.  

And the 'source' of these good words?  The last picture is that of the Shepherd.  Who is a Shepherd but one who cares for his sheep. He will watch over them, protect them, feed them, care for their health and well-being.  And the pivotal word here is ONE ... Who is the ONE Shepherd but Jesus ... the WORD made flesh in the one who is a faithful and true Shepherd. All the words that are 'wise'  ,that are 'true' come from ONE source - "I am the way, the TRUTH..!".  Truth is the kind of thing that defines 1 plus 1 equals 2.   Any 'word' contrary, is immediately recognized as being false. 

In John 16:13 Jesus - the ONE Shepherd -  promises that when the Holy Spirit comes, whom He calls the Spirit of Truth, He will guide us into ALL truth.  He will only repeat the words of the ONE Shepherd.  

You and I and every believer have the indwelling Spirit of Truth, who guides us into all truth. 

But the enemy is also at work to distract us from hearing/recognizing that 'voice'.  We are easily moved to doubt we are 'discerning' God's Voice , we are overwhelmed with the amount of info and knowledge and media voices that bombard us daily. And so - too often- that soft voice is covered by the noise around us.   

Self-doubt is the most effective tool in the enemy's hand isn't it?  We are quick to second guess whether it was our own thought/feeling or if we were discerning the nudge of the Spirit., and we tend to err on the side of caution and surmise that it was our own 'words'.   I want to encourage you to be confident in knowing that you CAN and DO hear the voice of the ONE Shepherd through His Holy Spirit that lives within you.  

in Acts 17:11  The Bereans are commended, praised, because they checked what Paul was teaching , against the words of the One Shepherd.  If Paul came as guest speaker to our church do you think we would all be checking to  see if he was speaking 'truth' ?  I don't think so ... and yet  if the Bereans were praised for checking Paul's teaching for themselves .. and they only had the Old Testament!!  -  how much more should we heed the warning to be discerning - to check for ourselves what we hear - no matter who the 'teacher' is ..  (myself certainly included!!!)   Know for yourself what 'words' are well driven nails given by ONE Shepherd - the Spirit of truth !!  

The second passage I focused on this morning was an account of fitting life-examples of the Ecc. passage. In Acts 16. we have snap-shots of the 'word' being spoken and how it was received and by whom. 

The first example is Timothy who met Paul, who desired to have Timothy join him in spreading the 'word'.  We know Timothy gladly responded and in verse 4 we see that Paul and Timothy delivered the 'gospel truth' as it had been determined by the apostles and elders at Jerusalem.  The 'words' agreed.

 

The second example was a man from Macedonia whom Paul and  Timothy and Silas were sent to preach the 'word' - again the man heard and believed. 

The third example is a woman named Lydia, who was obviously a wealthy independent woman. How do we know?  She had her own business - a weaver of purple (worn only by the rich) she was leading a group of women,  and she had the authority to open her home and hospitality to Paul and company.. She was already a worshipper of God but verse 14 says that she 'opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul".  She discerned the 'words spoken by ONE Shepherd" 

The fourth example is the demon-possessed girl.  She followed Paul and his friends proclaiming that they spoke the 'words of truth'.  Paul cast the demons out of her and she was set free, to the anger of those who had used her for their monetary gain!  

The fifth and last example is the keeper of the prison that Paul and Silas were cast into.  When God sent an earthquake to get the prison keeper's attention as well as set Paul and Silas free, the jailer received the word of truth and he and his household were saved !!  

how beautiful , how powerful are the words of Truth.  Truth has the power to set free, to change anyone who receives it ... whether a  Greek youth, a man from a foreign city,  a rich business  woman, a demon-possessed girl  or a jailor doing his job!  

I love how in each of these examples the word 'spread' through the one who first heard and received the 'word', to impact their sphere of social contact.   

May we learn from these examples and know how powerful the unchanging truth is and may we be discerning so that our 'words' will be well-driven nails that will not cause someone to 'bend' from the truth, but will be life to those who hear us. 

Not Possible !

                                                   crocheted insert panel on back of knitted sweater

I love the relaxing benefit of knitting or crocheting.  My mom died early December, after months of being bedridden.  The stress of caring for her was telling on my physical health and I reached for something that would help me find a quiet, healing inner space.  My knitting needles and crochet hook were what I needed.

Today, I was enjoying a cup of coffee with my husband at our kitchen table, crocheting in my hand. My husband, watching me, commented, "Isn't there a crocheting machine? I know there is a knitting machine."
I was surprised to admit I really didn't know !  A quick internet search revealed the answer.
No, there is no crocheting machine.  There is a machine with multiple needles that is able to weave threads into a pattern resembling crochet, but the authentic look  of hand crochet worked with a crochet hook, is not possible to do by machine.
If the craft fails to entice artisans, it will become a dying skill.
Hand work takes patience and practiced skill over much time. But it is worth the end result and its value increases when the investment to produce it is recognized.

Not much in our world cannot be automated, to save time, money, work.  I am more and more valuing the things that cannot be done 'by machine'.

I thought of things the scripture speaks of  that cannot be gotten quickly or easily. Things that we must 'work' by hand heart to get.  Things of great value that are also in danger of being a lost 'art' in our world today.

Patience -- We all speak admiringly of someone who has 'the patience of Job' ... but we wish there was an easy fix to possess it.  James 1:3,4 reminds us that patience comes only with 'work', and 'testing' and 'time'.  While its worth is eternal, it requires our diligence to work it into our character.

Wisdom --  Ahhh ...  if only we had the wisdom of Solomon!  An old Amish saying goes .. "Too soon old, too late smart."   How true !  If only we could live our life backwards!
 Proverbs 8:11  points out to us that 'wisdom is worth more than rubies!"  Earthly riches easily ensnare the pursuit of man, but how many make wisdom their goal?  We are not born with wisdom - knowledge and experience and time teach us wisdom if we are willing to learn. James 3:17 describes the beauty of  godly wisdom -"But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy."  

Faith/Trust -- In our cynical world, it is not easy to trust. Deception and betrayal abound. Yet, we are told in Hebrews 111:6  that without faith "it is impossible to please God".  All that we do in service for God,  all that we may give of our time, resources and money - none of it matters if we do not first have faith!  What does it mean to have faith?  It means that we so know the character of God that we trust Him --  trust His word, His promises.  We trust Him so much we willingly walk in obedience to the things He asks of us, lays out for us in His word.   Does trust come easily ?  No... it means getting close enough to someone to know them, to observe them, know how they think and act.
That takes time and commitment and perseverance.  

Relationships - God is love and He commands us to love.  It is impossible to love without having relationships.  God called us into a family of brothers and sisters and friends - a people that are to be known for their love for each other. Jesus said in John 15:12,  "This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you."   We live in a fast paced world where technology over-rides face-to-face conversation.  We are more and more isolated in a world full of people. Why? Because to build relationships means vulnerability, and self-lessness.  It takes time and caring, a forgiving attitude  and commitment.

The year 2016 has only hours left before it is slips into the 'past'  ... and a new year will begin.
Let us resolve that in the new year we will focus our diligence on the things that cannot be easily obtained but whose worth is eternal.  Let us pursue those things that are important according to how God defines worth and value.  For in these things we will find the fulfillment - the value of life -  that we all seek.

I wish all of you, my readers, a very blessed 2017 - may the Lord Himself be your 'Gift' that keeps on giving all year through.

Wishing everyone of you, my dear readers,

 a very

BLESSED NEW YEAR!

We are starting a new year -- again!!  It seems we hardly have time to get comfortable with writing one year and the next is upon us.
New Year's resolutions are still being made but I have noticed that for most people they are not made with the same zealous intent to keep them.  Seems we have all been there and failed too many times.

Today, I came across some notes I made last summer that made me think about how important it is to know who we are.
We have all heard the phrase "Know Thyself".  It is an ancient Greek aphorism that is  inscribed in the court of the Temple of Apollo. So from ancient times we know there has been a recognition of the need and importance of knowing oneself.
How many religious thoughts or paths start or focus on self,  understanding the world from a self-perspective, finding the god within?   How many ad campaigns are successful because they convince us of some self-need?  How many self-help books feed that inner pride that we can do it ourselves, be self-sufficient, self-reliant, self-driven, self-aware. Do you know there are 113 English words prefixed by self ? see a list here.

Yet for all our self-focus, can we really ever know ourselves by looking within ourselves?
It is so easy to delude ourselves into seeing ourselves as we wish to be seen rather than as we are.  Scripture refers to what happens when a man looks at himself in a mirror.   "....for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was." (James 1:24)
Until we are willing to see ourselves through God's eyes, see ourselves as He declares we are,  we cannot truly 'know ourselves'. As Jeremiah astutely notes ...  "The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?" (Jer. 17:9)

Even when we give mental ascent to the 'wicked' tendencies of our heart we are far quicker to see those tendencies in others than ourselves. And while we would not define self-awareness as wicked, does all sin not start with a 'self-focus' ?

I recognized an example of that in myself this summer when I made the notes I came across this morning.
I was following the US Open Tennis tournament where I knew most of the major players.  One afternoon I was in the kitchen multi-tasking - baking and watching a match where one of the players was Roanic -a fellow Canadian. The match was a tight one with winning points going back and forth. All three sets were won by tie-breakers.  While I was watching the match, I realized I was not enjoying the match as much as I had the others and emotionally wanted to turn it off.  I had enjoyed all the previous matches - but this one was different.
Why?

Reflecting on the question, I realized that there were two reasons.
One -  in all the other matches I was simply enjoying the games, noting the great shots and cheering for the best man to win. But in this match I had a 'personal' interest.  I wanted one man to win, not because he was playing better than his opponent but because of what his win meant to ME. I wanted a Canadian to win.
Two - Some of the other matches I had watched were taped and I knew the outcome of the game, so the stress level in watching the game was much relaxed.  The game with Roanic was live, the outcome to me was unknown and it was stressful to watch, especially because I knew who I wanted to win the match. I wanted to control the outcome and couldn't.

Isn't that how we walk through life ?   We are quite objective and reasonable in how we judge the things that we encounter UNTIL we have some personal issue or involvement or interest.
I'm not saying that is wrong -- I don't think it can be avoided.  But recognizing that that is what we do can help us to not fall into the traps a self-focus lays to ensnare us.

How often are our prayers formed/worded from our own perspective or desires?   Do we really want God to choose the best solution/answer or do we want Him to answer according to our own desire?  Do we already know how He should answer ? Do we want to be in control? Do we want the answer to fit in with our own desired end?

What does "Thy will be done" really mean?   Can we really bring a burden or a need or a worry or a request to God and with a calm heart say,"Thy will be done" ?"   Can we from our heart pray .. " I leave my request entirely in your hands knowing that my own intense desire in how I want my prayer to be answered is based on my limited vision and knowledge.  I thank you for understanding my human weakness and I willingly give you the right to overrule my own self-wisdom."

Can we 'watch' what God will do simply from a trust-perspective that He will of course do the best thing, the right thing?  Do we recognize that holding tight to our own self-focus interest in our requests may actually 'hinder' God's best for us and for others rather than make room for God's best?

It is not an easy thing to do, is it.... to lay down the way we KNOW a prayer answer should come, but we can grow more and more into that kind of trusting place where our prayers simply bring to God's throne the things that are on our heart.

As the world around us reflects less and less of God's wisdom, God's children have the opportunity to show a world of lost souls  that we have Someone we can trust... the Unchanging One who is all wise - our Eternal Father, who has only our good in mind even when at first it seems to be contrary to what we think is clearly best for us !

Would it make a difference in how 2015 ends if all God's children lifted their eyes off of 'self' and looked more and more  to Him in childlike trust - knowing that in everything we ask we can trust God to do what is best?  He is the God who hears and acts - always - in answer to every prayer.
One of my favourite shows of this season is It's a Wonderful Life.  Wouldn't it be fun if we could see a movie that would show the differences that would happen  in 2015 if more and more of God's people forgot about 'self-interest/focus and turned their hearts and eyes to a God-focus?

"And Jesus Stood ..."

Last Sunday, we had as invited guests in our morning church service,
 the veterans of a local Legion,
 who came with the pageantry associated with Remembrance Day. 

What stood out to me and played over and over in my mind was the part of the presentation when someone was instructed to read the names of the Legions' veterans who had died this year. 

The names were called out one by one, and then these words were spoken ..

"They do not answer, they do not answer."  

The words haunted me and in my mind I visualized a very different scenario. 

Every day there are estimated to be as many as 450 Christians who are martyred for their faith. 

Every day!
That is one every three minutes.

Are they forgotten? 

In my mind I see each one as they step over death's threshold into Life. 

Jesus rises to His feet, 

even as He did for the church's first martyr, Stephen, 

and He calls out their name. 

No need to turn to His Father and say ...

'They do not answer."  

For there is a joyous, victorious, answering cry,

 "I am here!" 

before they fall to their knees to worship the one for whom they  died. 

This Sunday* is International Day of Prayer 
for the Persecuted Christians.  

Will we remember those who die for their faith?

 Pray for those are are living in danger today, 

knowing that if they testify of their faith 

it could cost them everything they hold dear in this earthly life?   

Will we remember their families who are left trying to survive without their loved one - 

spouses left to be a single parent in difficult, even impossible situations, 

children who must now grow up without the love and guidance of one or both their  parents. 

We enjoy our freedom in the lap of luxury, how easy it is to forget the privilege that is ours.  

It is not our right, it could one day change and we too called to be faithful  in the face of martyrdom.  

Will someone pray for us ? 

   "Remember the prisoners as if chained with them

—those who are mistreated—

since you yourselves are in the body also." 

Hebrews 13:3

* There are several days in November given as the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted church, but the day we pray is not so important as that we remember to pray - every day. 

"What Speaks To You?"

There is a commercial on TV that for some reason so grates on my nerves that as soon as I hear it come on I reach for the remote and hit 'Mute' !!
I have never listened long enough to find out what  the commercial is about,  all I know is that the words "What speaks to you..."   are delivered in an annoying  tone of voice  that keeps the words repeating in my  head no matter how hard I try to block them out !

I was thinking about this commercial the other day,  as the words yet again re-echoed in my head and I thought...  No matter how many times this commercial  has tried to make me listen  to its message,  it has never got past my 'quick on the draw' mute-button finger !
I suddenly was struck with the thought --- Am I that quick to 'mute' out the voice of the enemy ?  so quick to 'mute' any voice that tempts me to look, taste or feel something contrary to exercising or developing a godly character?

There are so many voices the 'speak to us'   throughout the day.
Voices that call, entice, invite, tempt, distract.
Some catch  our attention and we turn our ears willingly ... others cause a 'mute' response from our receptors and we effectively tune them out.

But how discerning are we in what we mute and what we allow 'to speak to us'  ?
What controls the 'mute' button in our will and mind ?

 What is our standard, our guide regarding distracting voices of the world ?
Do we think it is OK to listen if we do not act on it ?
Watch if we do not participate?
Touch if we do not partake?
Taste if we do not eat ?
Do we justify to avoid denying ourselves?
Give in so we need not exercise our self-control?
Lower our standards so we meet them easily ?

Are we sometimes quicker  to 'mute' God's voice than the world's ?

I thought about  bible examples ... the times God spoke  to Samuel, to Elijah, to Moses, to Daniel, to John, to Paul  ... all quick to hear and obey.
Not like the people of Israel who gathered at the bottom of Mt. Zion and cried out to God not to speak. They could not bear to hear Him, and asked Moses to 'mute' God's voice to them.
I thought about those who did not 'mute' the voice of the enemy -  Achan quick to listen to the voice that spoke to him -- "Take it, no one will know!"
Or Balaam quick to listen to the voice that promised monetary rewards and power.
Or Ananias and Sephara who listened to the enticing words of the enemy .. "Play it both ways .. look good on the outside but satisfy your greed."  Not muting the voice  cost them their lives.

I once had a pet goat who had an amazingly consistent 'mute'  button for all voices but mine.  No matter how softly I called her name, her head would jerk in my direction and she would rush to my side !

That is how I want to be ...  sensitive, listening for God's voice though it be but a whisper, but my finger on 'mute'  to the voice of the enemy.

"And when he brings out his own sheep , he goes before them, and the sheep follow him,
 for they know his voice. 
Yet they will by no means follow a stranger but will flee from him, 
for they do not know the voice of strangers." 
John 10:3,4 

Can You Say It ?

The above photo is my patio corner flower garden.   I love  the profusion of blossoms and colour.   Every flower is true to its kind  --  easily recognized and named.

There is an old testament battle, the  account  of which contains a detail I enjoy because it is one of clever espionage.

In Judges 9 we have the story of a sibling quarrel between the Ephramites and the Gileadites that became so heated they went to battle against each other.
The Gileadites won  and gained control of the fords of the Jordon River  that escaped Ephramites needed to cross  to return safely home.
When an Ephramite would approach the ford the Gileadites would stop him and ask .. "Are you an Ephramite?"    and if the one desiring to cross would say 'No, I am not!'   then the Gileadites would demand.. "Say, Shibboleth!"  and if the man said .. "Sibboleth!"  he was known to indeed be a Ephramite because the Ephramites could not pronounce the 'sh'!
Caught in his lie, he was revealed as the enemy.

I heard a modern version of that story yesterday morning.  During WW II the Americans had a similar way of discerning who was a spy among their soldiers.  A suspected spy would be called into the commander's office and told ... "Sing the second verse of the Star Spangled Banner!"  If the soldier clicked his heels in a smart salute and a quick 'Yes, Sir'  followed by a correct rendition of the second stanza of the national anthem, he was immediately arrested as a spy !    Why?  No American knows the second stanza!

We have another example in I John 4:2b,3

"Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. "  

Here we are told how we can know on whose side someone is ..  friend or foe!  

Someone who is of God,  will confess who Jesus is !   They will declare Jesus to be God. They will know His character and will 'confess' it in their own life -- their words, their actions will reflect the image of the One they believe in.  If they cannot, we know that they are not of God but of the enemy!   

"He that says (confesses)  he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked." 

I John 2:6 

 We too,  have an enemy who often stands at the crossings of our life. He stands in the way of those who pass by demanding of them ... "Can you say Jesus, confessing Him to be the Lord of your life?"    

The answer a person gives will either cause Satan to sneer with glee or hang his head and flee! 

"Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you !" 

James 4:7 

The Thinking Few

By chance I came across a 'thought' provoking rhyme the other day.

It goes like this...

"Though man a thinking being is defined,

Few use the prerogative of mind,

How few think justly of the thinking few,

How many never think at all, who think they do!"

The author of this little poem is a woman named Jane Taylor. Not having heard of her before and being curious I did a little google search and found that she was an English poetess who died in 1824 at the age of 40 of breast cancer.

Surprisingly, every one of you would be able to quote readily for memory something she wrote ! "Twinkle, twinkle little star..." - so familiar yet is never credited to its creator Jane Taylor.

The 'thinking' poem has stuck in my mind because more and more I see that 'thinking' is becoming a prerogative of the past.

I read a great deal written by and about people of ages past and I am always struck by the contrast of depth of their thought to the writing of today. From an early age, learning/thinking was expected even of the very young. Sport/entertainment was not priority of those who wished to make something of their life. A boy of 13 was in university already fluent in Greek and Latin as well as other languages.

In our age has 'thinking' become to the mind what 'fast food' has become to our palates? Do we prefer 'others' do the preparation and we just swallow undiscerningly?

How much value is in the preparation?

I read the other day how 'time and obesity' is directly related. The question was asked, "How often would you eat French fries if you had to peal the potatoes, cut them up, soak them in ice water, heat the oil, and fry them?"

Often the more healthy the food, the more time/effort in the preparation. At the very least it must be purchased fresh and washed. To cook from 'scratch' takes much more time than to tear open a box or thaw a frozen entrée in the microwave.

When cooking from scratch, what heightens the enjoyment of the food is not just in the eating of it but also the handling of the ingredients, the awareness of blending flavours, the smells of cooking, and the building anticipation of tasting it. Also taking the time for presentation and table setting and fellowship around a table adds to the experience and resulting 'health' to the body and soul.

Is it the same with 'thinking' ?

Information, so quickly and easily accessible, floods our minds and like fast food addicts we quickly gulp on the run.

It has been shown that when information enters our brain , there is a small window of time that gives us the option to 'think' on this information and then store it to long term memory. If we do not stop to 'think' , the brain decides that the information is not important and treats it as 'trash' deleting it from our minds.

What hinders us from 'thinking' as in mulling information/concepts/ideas over in our minds, considering, meditating, absorbing , and storing in a way that makes it available to draw on when wisdom is called for?

I think the two biggest hindrances to the thought life are noise and busyness. Both are huge distractions and a drain on our energy. Then when we do finally have a moment to just 'sit' we reach for a remote or computer keys or some 'toy' of choice that our electronic world offers. We live in a world where 'quiet' has become uncomfortable to many. And thinking needs 'quiet'.

I see how this trend has also influenced how we do church.

Worship has taken on an emphasis of 'loud' and physically interactive leaving little room for encouraging reflective and spiritual thoughtfulness.

I see fewer and fewer people bring their bibles to church and often even those who do leave them lying unopened on the pew.

There is something that detracts from our ability to retain when scripture is flashed on an overhead screen rather than us reading it from the bible in our laps.

I also see that doctrine/theology is becoming a subject to avoid. What we believe is becoming something undefined and we rather feed on a 'fast food' diet of love and acceptance. Not that those are not important but 'home cooked' love has main ingredients of truth and time - both of which take the discipline of thought.

As Jane Taylor's clever rhyme states, God created man a thinking being.

So how important is it to think ?

The scriptures readily and clearly call man to think, to reason, to discern, to question and to test, to talk. No fast food offering from God.

We are called to be "transformed by the renewing of (our) mind, so that we can prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." Rom. 12:2

The bible declares that thinking defines who we are .... "For as he thinks in his heart, so is he" Prov. 23:7

David understood the need for solitude.... "Meditate within your heart on your bed and be still." Ps. 4:4b

The Hebrew word for meditate has in its meaning "to ponder, imagine, study".

The very first Psalm expresses the importance of meditating in our life. It declares that the one whose "DELIGHT is in the law of the Lord and who meditates therein day and night" is the man who is blesses in all his ways and in all he does !

As lack of exercise weakens the muscles of our body so also laziness weakens the most important muscle of our body - our brain - our mind needs a healthy active brain!

Exercise of body or mind takes discipline and will power! But the rewards are great!!

"Think on these things" Phillipians 4:8

****

What's 'New' ??

The above photo is of my new e-reader, the Amazon Kindle that my kids and husband gave me for my birthday . I love it!!

Have you ever stopped to consider how many times a day you say or hear the word 'new' ??

A common greeting - 'What's new'?

A new experience, a new outfit, a new kitchen, new dishes, new hairdo, new technology, new recipe, new toy, new appliance, new décor, new friend, new book, new baby.... the list is endless.

In every instance 'new' is an adjective that conveys to us a sense of value concerning the 'thing' referred to ! It is not something old or worn out. It is something fresh, something desired, something we did not have before.

The word 'new' is also used in scripture, perhaps not as many times as we would guess. It is mentioned 49 times, with 7 of the references in the New Testament.

A very often quoted and one of my favorites is "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, old things have passed away, behold all things have become new." (II Cor. 5:17)

There is another reference to 'new' in Colossians 3:10 where Paul refers to believers as having put on the 'new man'. Because of something I learned this week about the Roman class system these words 'new man' have taken on a deeper significance of meaning for me.

I always simply understood Paul's reference to 'new man' fitting in with the above quoted verse in II Corinthians but I am wondering if Paul did not have a vivid analogy in mind drawn from the customs of his world.

Paul, living in a world dominated by Roman rule, would have understood their political structure. The Romans had two elite classes of citizens. One of these classes was the Senatorial class from which were elected the members of the Senate and the consul. The consul was a man elected to the highest political office in the Roman Republic.

This Senatorial class was dominated by the nobles. The nobles were distinguished by the fact that they had an ancestor who had served as consul.

The elitism of this class was closely guarded and men were appointed/elected to the Senate or as Consul because they carried birth-rite membership in this class of Roman citizens.

However, on a rare occasion, a man would so distinguish himself on his own merit that he would be elected as a consul even though his family did not belong to the noble class.

When this happened, Romans would call him a 'new man' because he was the first in his family to be elected to this public office. He then consequently qualified his family for noble status.

Publius Sulpicius Quirinius was such a man, who lived in Paul's lifetime.

How does this interesting Roman political tradition magnify the meaning hidden in the reference to 'new man' in our passage in Colossians 3?

I see several points of parallelism.

1> A 'new man' is not someone who is 'grandfathered' into a position of honour.

For the Romans it was not someone who could lean on ancestry.

We also cannot depend on our family connections or heritage in seeking relationship with God. We cannot take for granted that because our parents, grandparents or uncles were godly believers, we automatically belong to the 'noble' class and are part of God's family in the Kingdom of God.

2> A Roman 'new man' came on his own merit, as must we to become one of the elect.

What is our own merit ? Unlike the Roman man who distinguished himself by his mighty works or exemplary achievements, we must come on the merit of our own repentant hearts recognizing our personal need of a Saviour.

"..the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel" (Mark 1:15)

3> The Roman 'new man' was elected by man. The 'new man' believer is 'elected' by God. Paul admonishes the believer in Col. 3:12 that as an elected 'new man' the believer must live up to the standard now required of him.

"Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering;

While a Roman elected 'new man' could lose favour with the people, the believer 'new man' need not fear the opinion of man, only the opinion of God matters. "Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies". (Rom. 8:33)

4> A 'new man' leaves his old 'class' behind and steps into an entirely new identity.

Looking at verses 5- 9 in our Col. 3 passage , we see that the 'old man' belonged to the class of sinners (fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, covetousness, idolatry , anger, wrath, malice , blasphemy, filthy language, lying)

But the 'old man' has been put off -- the Roman citizen could not belong to two classes at once. He could not belong to both the common class and the elite noble class. He had to leave one behind and embrace the 'new' .

So the believer, becoming a 'new man' steps out of his sinner class and steps up into the heavenly noble 'elect' class!

Col 1:13 "He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, (1Th 2:12) "that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory."

5> The 'new man' believer, just like the Roman 'new man' who qualified his family to belong to the noble class, has an great influence on others.

" whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." (I Cor. 10:13) becomes his motto. He lives in such a way that his life will honour his new class and make others want to become one of the 'elect' as well.

"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." (Matt. 5:16)

6> There is one difference in the Roman 'new man' and the believer. The Roman 'new man' had to prove that he was independently wealthy - he had to be able to prove that his personal worth was at least one million sesterces (about 2 or 3 million dollars in today's currency) There was no monetary salary offered with his elected position so he had to have his own resources.

The believer, on the other hand, is offered the riches of the kingdom for his support !

"And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus."

(Phil. 4:19)

The invitation to become a 'new man' in the Kingdom of God is open to all ... not those born into the 'right' family, not those who earned it by their works , but ANYONE may come and receive the status of the elect 'new man'.

In the words of Jesus, hear His invitation .."And the Spirit and the bride say 'Come!' And let his who hears say 'Come!' And let him who thirsts come. And whoever desires , let him take the water of life freely." (Rev.22:17)

*******

A Pink World

There is a Cherry-Blossom tree where I live that is glorious in pink splendor every spring. Not only is the tree loaded with 'pink' but the falling double rose-like blossoms fall to cover the grass under the tree!

Recently, a young friend of mine celebrated her 17th birthday with a 'Pink' party.

After the party she wrote a poem. She gave her permission for me to share it.

A Pink Teen

She was Pink.

And all she ever wanted was Pink.

Pink... Pink, Pink, Pink.

Pink paint, Pink walls and a Pink Royal Ball

To which all who attended were Pink.

Pink crown, Pink hair, and a Pink teddy bear

Given to her by a prince who wore Pink.

Just think ... Pink !... a world painted in Pink!

She wanted no fur, nor mink, not any un-Pink thing.

For all she ever wanted ... was Pink.

Pink love, Pink tears, Pink through all the years

Until her life blazed the color of Pink.

What color will your life be?

by McKenzie Rigney

When I first read her poem, I smiled and thought - What a sweet little poem but the question in the last line hung itself on my mind and made me think.

I realized there was a deeper underlying meaning in the words of McKenzie's poem.

The girl in the poem loved 'pink'. Every choice she made was coloured by 'pink'. If it wasn't pink she turned away from it. It was her overriding focus - Pink - the color that brought harmony and beauty and unity in her life!

She was not satisfied... her yearning was not stilled... not until her whole world blazed with Pink!

What color will your world be? What colour mine?

Each of us is offered a palette of colour from which we choose the color that will eventually determine the visual reality of our life.

Some people choose the color of money. Their choices, their goals, their decisions are coloured by the questions... How will this be good financially? What is the monetary advantage here? What is this worth? Is this a promising investment? What is the return for my time spent? More and more their life will brushed until there is nothing left that is not painted the color 'money.

Some people choose the color of self. Their choices, values, motives are painted by the questions... How will this make me feel? Will this make me look good? Will this give me what I want? Me, me, me is the only paint-loaded brush that colors their character, their life... until every is painted the color of 'self'.

Some people chose the color of ego/pride. They load their paint brush to paint .. asking .. How will this give me the advantage over others? How can I show my superiority - intellectually or otherwise? Where can I put others down to show myself higher? Where/how can I find opportunity to put myself in control or be the one with the final word? Finally, with their whole world painted with 'pride' they find themselves alone.

Others may choose the color love. In every situation their brush is ready to pain ... Will I find love here? Can I show love here? Will this choice/decision make me feel loved?

Other choices are made. Some choose the color or discontent.. or the default color of anger. Some may choose the color of good works, the colour of giving or the color of giving their life in service to others.

Our color of choice will keep painting our life until we are known for our color. People will see what our overriding desire are, what motivates us, what determines the value of what we accept or reject.

But how can we know that in the end we will be happy with the color we have painted our world? I believe no matter how pretty or appealing a color may initially look.. there is only one color that will ultimately satisfy us with lasting beauty.

I want the color of my life to be the color of Jesus Christ. I want my thoughts to be a color reflection of His thoughts. I want my actions to be painted with the color of His love in me. I want my reactions to be pained with the color of obedience in forgiveness and grace. I desire the glow of His countenance to be reflected on mine. I want my motives, goals, choices, decisions to be painted with the color of His Word. I will reject all that is un-Jesus. I desire for my world to be ablaze with this one color so that those who look at my life will see and recognize the color of Jesus.

What would the world be like if everyone chose the color of Jesus?

We cannot paint the whole world but we can paint our life 'spot' in it - imagine spots joining to spots until there is a coming together in the unity and harmony of ONE color that the world will not be able to ignore !!

"Till we all come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness (color) of Christ!" Eph. 4:13

Perfect !

A perfect shot, isn't it ?

My daughter took it of their family dog and sent me the photo with the challenge to use it for a devotional.
I awwww...ed over the photo , of course! Then, I let my thoughts go and I followed them.
Let me share them with you .

*****
Scattered throughout our days and years, often in unexpected time and place, are flashes of perfection. We see a sudden vision of beauty, the coming together of details unusual or rare, insights that quicken our spirits or stir our emotions.

Often we recognize the fleeting quality of a perfect moment and something deep in us immediately reaches out to grasp hold and somehow capture, record, preserve it to relive its pleasure at will, to share it with others or to ensure that the experience will not be subject to fading in our less than perfect memories.

We reach for the camera or the pen to freeze the image, experience or insight that marks its significance in our soul.

Perfection ! Why does the mere glimpse of it resonate so profoundly in the depths of our being?

Did you ever stop to consider that we were created for perfection? That perfection is what 'fits' us best ?
No wonder we are so uncomfortable with sickness, grief, sorrow, pain, confusion, injustice and yes... death itself. We were never 'fitted' for those kind of things. We yearn for the perfect. When there is no longer a need to hold on to fleeting glimpses.

We were created in the image of our Creator God who is a God of Perfection. Would we not also be designed to enjoy perfection as well?

The garden of Eden was perfect. Sin destroyed that perfection and the resulting consequences were ill-fitted to man, leaving him ever dissatisfied deep in his soul.
But God's plan was still perfect....He would use man's failing to raise him up to be a 'perfect' man , fitted in every way to enjoy an eternity of perfection! He sent Jesus to prepare the way... and to send the His Spirit into our hearts . That is our work in this life - to yield to the indwelling Spirit guiding us, preparing and perfecting us for our true eternal home!

There is an interesting verse in Ecc. 3:11 that says "He has made everything beautiful (perfect) in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end."

Some bible translators translate the original Greek work into the English 'eternity' and some as 'the world' .
I think both together give the best sense of what God is saying. God has indeed put a sense of eternity and perfection in our hearts so we never lose the yearning to be perfect as we were created to be.
But as long as we are in our earthly bodies we are limited by this earth time. We do not have the ability to see what God did before our time or what He will do after this earth time is over. We cannot imagine what true perfection in all things is like !

"Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man, The things which God has prepared for those who love Him." I Cor. 2:9

One day this earth will end and there will be a new beginning ... A new heaven and a new earth where perfection will rule.
Can you imagine?
Never more a disappointing moment, a moment of sadness, a twinge of pain or regret. The moments of perfection we yearn to hold onto here will stretch timelessly there with nothing to cause even a ripple of discord. Every moment, every experience, every thought, every vision is unending perfection!
What unspeakable joys await us !!
*

Have You Misplaced Your Awe?

Let all the earth fear the LORD;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
For He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast.
Psa 33:8,9

We stand and watch the power of the ocean waves.... the glories of a sunset sky.... the wonders of mountain grandeur..... the intricate details of a flower, the tiny perfection of a hummingbird and our hearts are lifted up in awe to the Creator who designed and fashioned it all !
We think of His omnipresence, His omnipotence, His omniscience.... and are moved with the powerful emotion of awe.

If we were to define what triggers our feelings of awe would we not list....

Something much bigger than we can comprehend....
Something overwhelming to our senses ....
Something that makes us feel very small and insignificant .....
Something that is far outside the realm of our control....

God is all of the above and more , is He not ... so to feel awe toward God is a natural and proper response, one that is easily stirred within us.
When our awe is rightly placed in God and we see Him for Who He is ... the resulting emotions are peace, comfort, quietness of mind, trust, and love.

But ......

What if our 'awe' gets misplaced ? What happens then ?
What if circumstances overwhelm us? Financial circumstances, sudden loss of health, death of a loved one.

I am facing surgery and am aware how easily the surgeon's knife could slip, damaging a vital vessel or cord and change my life in important ways. I am in awe of how many details keep my body intact for it to continue to function in perfect working order.

We see the stability of our world crumble around us in frightening events - war, earthquake , destruction, financial recessions, stock market crashes, famine, drought, floods, tsunamis, hurricanes, tornadoes, etc.

How easily we are moved with awe at how little control we have over the events that shape our lives - both personally and globally. How easily our awe is moved or misplaced.

When our awe is misplaced - when we fixate on some overwhelming circumstance, event or experience, or to man/nation/people holding earthly power or position , the resulting emotions are ones of fear, worry, anxiety, anger, insecurity, vulnerability.

I have heard it said... "The one who fears God , fears nothing else" Perhaps this is a paraphrase of Psalm 118:6 "The Lord is on my side, What can man do to me?"

Could we not also say, "The one whose awe is firmly fixed on God, will never misplace it" ? Then we will not be overcome by awe of man or circumstance. Our hearts will not fail for what we see around us in a crumbling, frightening world. We will walk in faith and hope and trust knowing that we are forever safe in the hand of our Almighty God.

Where is your awe? Is it in God ? or is it misplaced ......
*

Lifting Our Hands

I think most of us have become comfortable with people raising their hands in church. We know that we are indeed encouraged to do so by Paul in 1Ti 2:8, "I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting."

Often when something becomes the 'thing to do', what we lose is the reason WHY we do it.

Do we know what it means to raise our hands to God ? or what it SHOULD mean ?

I realize over and over again how God has made His ways and words clear to us because they relate to the physical things we understand easily. The understanding of the spiritual often lies in understanding the physical.

We have so many readily recognized meanings of raised hands in our every day life that are symbolically true of the spiritual as well.

1. A Sign of Surrender --- We all have visual images in our mind of people taken captive with their hands raised in surrender. It is a universal sign that a person is 'giving up', that he has nothing left to fight with.

Is that what we are also saying to God ? "God, my hands are raised... I surrender to you ... Not my will .. but yours, O Lord!"

2. Clean Hands -- Who has not as a child been asked... or as a mother asked... "show me your hands" ? We recognize the importance of clean hands to our overall health.

I love Psalm 24:3,4 "Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart."

Do we lift up our hands to the Lord saying... "Examine my hands - my heart - O Lord... are they clean ?? May I come before your throne, into your Presence?"

3. Reaching for the Father -- I love to see how quickly and naturally the small child reaches up their hands for the parent -- wanting to be picked up !

Is that what we mean when we lift our hands to God ? "Oh Lord, pick me up! I am reaching for you and you alone. Hold me where I am safe and secure!"

4. Lifting our hands to Honour -- I watch the concerts/public rallies/gatherings/sports events where a sea of hands are in the air honoring some hero.

Are we lifting our hands high to honor the One to Whom all honor is due ? Saying "To you alone is all glory and honor forever and ever... There is none other but You !"

5. Lifting our hands to Receive -- Little ones so naturally lift up their hands in expectation to receive something from the hand of their parents.

Are we also expectant when we lift our hands to God ? Do we desire what is in His hand to give us ? Do we reach up in faith to receive it?

6. Humility.. Raising our hands is an outward act of humility... Opening our body leaves us vulnerable ... we tend to want to protect ourselves by holding our arms tight around our body. As parents we are all amazed how quickly a child shows his independence by folding his arms tight and saying .. "NO!"

Lifting our hands to God is saying that we have nothing in ourselves... we are needy and longing for more ... "More of you, Lord and less of me, I trust not in my own riches or strength or wisdom."

"I would that men/women everywhere lift holy hands ... " The next time we are in a service or in our private time of prayer ... let the act of lifting up our hands be full of meaning to us and a wordless expression of prayer to God.

*****

A Quote, a Deer, a Flower and Morgan

I read a quote the other day that grabbed me.
It is found in the Talmud, credited to Abba Arika -- he said .. "On the day of reckoning man will have to give an account of every good which his eyes beheld and which he did not enjoy!"

I immediately thought of the verse in I Tim 6:17 ... which says that God "gives us richly all things to enjoy!"
How often do we rush past something 'good' because we are in too big of a hurry to stop and enjoy it. Or so engrossed in our thoughts that we scarcely notice.

Perhaps it is easy to enjoy the detailed beauty of a helenium bloom or take time to capture a photo of coloured leaves against a blue sky or a curious deer peering through the brush.

But what about the 'good' our "eyes behold and we don't stop long enough to see it.

Like Morgan.

I met him when I was waiting in the doctor's office for my husband. I looked up from my book when a mother walked into the office with her 'special' son. His eyes were glazed but when he turned and saw I was looking at him , his face lit up with a smile and he pointed his finger at me and exclaimed "Merry Christmas!"

I smiled and returned the greeting.

He sat down across from me in the chair his mom indicated but his eyes stayed on me, continuing to happily wish me a "Merry Christmas!"

I wished him a Happy New Year, Happy Birthday and several other holidays which he happily repeated but returned to his favorite .. "Merry Christmas!"

I asked him for his name. "Morgan!" was his reply. "Merry Christmas!"

"That's a nice name, Morgan. How old are you?"

He giggled his answer .. "Eight!"

"No, silly!" corrected his mother. "How old are you!"

"Fifteen!" Closer but still not quite right. Sixteen was the right answer.

Conversation was not possible with him .. but communication was.

When he left the office he gave me another happy "Merry Christmas !" and I heard his happy giggle fading into the distance.

But the 'good' of his happy voice and cheerful greeting has stayed with me. It reminds me to look for the good around me and take the time to enjoy it !

We all know the scripture ...

Jas 1:17 "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning."

All things 'good' come from God as gifts to us. 'Good' fills our day, crosses our path, speaks to us through the voices of loved ones and strangers. It peeks out from behind the 'trouble' we would happily turn away from. It waits for us to notice on the other side of tears.

Do we watch for the good that surrounds us , look for it?

To not enjoy the good things things God has provided for us , is it not the acting out of selfish unthankfulness?

I know how much I enjoy watching my granddaughters enjoy the things I give them or do for them. Would God's heart not also be blessed to see His children enjoy the things He has so liberally provided ?

If we walk through our day looking for the 'good' to be thankful for and take the time to enjoy it, would our lives have room for petty unhappiness or discontent or aggravation ?

"Merry Christmas, everyone!!" smile

Addiction - For Good?

I caught this Pileated Woodpecker just outside my computer window. I think he is addicted to headaches. I get one just watching !!
But in reality he is simply addicted to the grubs he finds in stumps or dead trees.
Addiction......
I was listening to the news today and there was a segment reporting on addiction to video games that got me thinking about addiction.
What exactly is 'addiction' ?
One definition says this... "the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, as narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma. "

Addiction is recognized as a negative force that hinders or destroys one's natural enjoyment of life.
Man as created by God is 'good' - God said so ! That means our desires, our characteristics, our traits, our emotions , our natural tendencies all have their roots in something good.
However, because of Adam's sin, the knowledge of good and evil entered the consciousness of man . Man now had the power to choose. Sin and self-ishness can turn something intended for good to something harmful or bad.
But addiction ? How could an addiction ever be good ? The definition above talks about "habit forming ... to the extend that cessation causes severe trauma". Should we not be so 'addicted' to loving and serving God that to turn away would cause severe 'trauma' ?

I watched the Pileated Woodpecker to day, I watch the birds and the squirrels -- each of them is 'addicted' to their daily activity. They repeat the same actions over and over again ... not to their hurt , but rather to their enjoyment of life!

I thought of our 'future' to come when we will be living on the New Earth! Will our God-given tendency toward 'addiction' then not meet its holy intended purpose?
Then we will so love and enjoy perfection, righteousness and the glory of God's Presence that there will be nothing in us that will ever yearn for anything other than what IS !!

May we look forward to that time, preparing ourselves in this life by being 'addicted ' in our love for God and in our desire to walk in obedience before Him.

"And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might." Deu 6:5 KJV
***

The Beauty of God's Cure

Have you ever thought about why it is that our human default is to rebel against a 'law' ?

I came to a new understanding of God's law this week when I was looking at Gal. 5:22,23 in a morning bible study I enjoy with a dear friend.

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law."

The words "against such there is no law" caught at my attention, as they had so often before.

I suddenly wondered if there was anything to be gleaned from the Greek word translated 'law'.

I found that there was.

The first part of the definition given goes like this... "animal grazing, a prescribed usage".

Perhaps at first glance you might just respond with a "huh?"

But think about it.

When we are ill, we go to the doctor who will, if our condition warrents it, write out a prescription and with it instructions for its usage.

We do not complain about taking the 'cure', we even pay good money to get it and take it faithfully, trusting in its ability to restore us to health.

But perhaps this explains our reluctance to 'obey' a law - it reminds us that we are not well and we rebel against being 'sick' and needing medicene!

If we take this picture to understand God's 'law', we have a new way of understanding it.

Is it not because His people were 'ill' with sin, that God prescribed the 'law' and gave them instructions for it usage?

And if they filled His perscription, taking it faithfully, they could trust that it would bring about their cure!

If you think about the Greek word reference to grazing animals ... is their perscription not 'grass' and they graze according to the 'prescribed usage' ??

But wait... does our verse not say "against such there is no law" ?

Yes.. it does because there has been a great change in our condition.

Jesus, who fulfilled the 'law' , exacted for His followers, not a new prescription to take when we feel ill... but a cure! And with the cure gave us a 'higher law' to PRESERVE our health!

The higher 'law' is that if we live by the fruit of the Spirit we will not need a 'law' because no 'ills' can come against the fruit of the Spirit.... we will be immune to sin if we trust in Him and give the Holy Spirit full reign in our hearts !

1Jn 2:10 "He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him."

Of course we are not yet perfect ! but that is our goal ! "Be perfect, even as I am perfect", says the Lord. We can only be perfect if 'love' is perfected in our hearts.

The NT believers were warned not to go back to living by the old 'law'. The old 'law' is outdated, it has lost its effectiveness - it can no longer restore to health.

We must take the new 'prescription' -- living by the law of Christ... love God with all your heart and your neighbour as yourself --- and giving evidence of the fruit of the Holy Spirit in your life!

Then you will need no law to cure you... you will walk and live in health !!!!

Rom 13:8 "Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law"

**************

A Day of Broken Connections

I thought yesterday was going to be an ordinary day ! In fact, I was looking forward to it because I had no commitments or appointments. It was a free-day!

By morning, I knew I had come down with a miserable cold… my throat hurt, I had a hacking cough, my sinuses were stuffed, and my nose was running !

I got up, slipped into my comfy chair to enjoy the pleasurable distraction of my computer.
What greeted me was a black screen. Nothing I did would entice it be anything but unresponsive !

I could not turn on the TV instead. We are in the process of switching our TV signal from satellite back to cable….as a result do not at present have access to TV programming.

Radio signals here are blocked by the mountains so the static crackling reception of the few stations we get is far too aggravating to listen to.

I wanted to make some phone calls .. and was told that the numbers could not be reached. This has never happened before, but I learned that the private company with which we have our long distance plan was having problems with its systems and consequently I could make only local calls. Most of my calls are long distance.

Hmmmm… mix the above ingredients and stew for five minutes and you come up with a miserable day !! Right ?? Wrong !!

I have learned in my years of walking with the Lord that if I look into my cup and see that it is at best only half full… I know the Lord just isn’t finished pouring yet !!!

I placed an SOS phone call to my tech friends in Mississippi and Benji said it was most probably the video card that had failed.

My dear husband was quite willing to go buy me another one and came home with a high end graphics card that was marked down from $235.00 to $69.00. We really needed a better video card than we had because we wanted to connect our TV to our computer. I was thrilled with the ‘deal’ !! But alas it was a faulty card and kept shutting my computer down. So back it went and Vic bought an even better card !! By this afternoon, a day and a half later, my computer was up and running again, better than it was before !

I have found that I don’t really miss the TV, or the radio too much and I could probably live with restricted phone lines but I cannot live without my computer! So being able to get back online today more than delighted me.

And my cold ? Oh yes… it is miserable and I had to postpone an anticipated visit today with a dear friend … but when you have a chronic disease that you will have for the rest of your life.. having a cold that lasts a few days and is gone, is hardly worth griping about !!

But something really grabbed me when I stood in my kitchen yesterday and realized that I had no computer, no TV, no radio and no phone. I felt so totally disconnected. I thought back to what it was like before we had all these technical resouces connecting us with the whole world. If we had to go back to only snail mail... how limited we would be .. how totally cut off !!

Our world has become very small and we have more options to stay connected to one another today than at any other time in history !

I thought about how eager I was to get everything fixed. It was, in fact, the most consuming focus of my day.

Then I wondered …………

We are immediately distraught when we lose our connection with each other.
But do we feel the same about losing our connection with God?
There are several ways God provided for us to be 'connected' - if any one of them is broken do we immediately notice and focus on 'fixing' it?

Are we careful to keep our Christian fellowships strong?
Heb 10:25 "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching."


Do we keep our heart in a constant prayer mode ??
1Th 5:17 "Pray without ceasing."

Do we remember to be thankful in everything??
Th 5:18 "In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

Do we love to read God’s Words to us as eagerly as we read our e-mails?
Jos 1:8 "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success."

Do we feel that we are in ‘peril’ when we realize our communication with God is interrupted ? Do we panic and immediately make every effort to reconnect as quickly as possible ?
Jud 1:21 "Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life."

Let's remind ourselves today how important it is to take every care to keep our 'Eternal Kingdom' connections strong and secure.
God created us to be in fellowship with each other… but first of all to be in close fellowship with Him !

Who and What Controls You ?

I dreamed that we were living in a time when Christians were being threatened and we knew it was only a matter of time before we would be killed for our faith !

I was trying to explain to my sister-in-law and her husband, who had come to visit, the dark time we were living in and how we needed to be strong. Suddenly a vehicle with two uniformed men drove up and I thought .. "Oh..here they come to kill us..” But they only dropped off a huge chain link cage full of chickens.

The phone rang and I turned away from the window to answer it. It was a man asking that we agree to contribute a roaster full of food to feed some down and outers off the street … about twenty of them. I argued that I didn’t think it was a good idea because I was a Christian and I was expecting to be killed shortly and if I agreed to feed these men and was killed before I could serve them then they would go hungry.
The man wasn’t taking no for an answer even though I further explained that with expecting to be killed I had not gone grocery shopping and didn’t have any food in the house. He still wasn’t accepting anything short of me agreeing to contribute to this meal… so finally I agreed after he told me that perhaps I was a little ‘squirrelly’.

I needed a larger roasting pan than I had so I sent Vic out to go buy one. He came back with a huge one. He had to bring it home on a wheel barrow. It had large legs and a ceramic animal head on it. It would never have fit into a normal oven but in my dream I was quite pleased with it and decided it would be great to roast potatoes in it -- that would be my contribution to this meal.
The day came for us to bring the food to these men and they were already gathered in a large room. The men were shabbily dressed and unshaven. Before the meal was started a man obviously in charge addressed these men asking them to stand if they had had a change of religious faiths since their last meeting. One of the men stood…. And I thought.. “They are taking note for when the killing starts.” I knew it was now only a matter of time.

OK.. so you have the idea by now that I am a crazy dreamer …. Always have been !!

Every one of the details in my dream I can connect back to conversations or comments made to me the previous day, although taken individually they made a whole lot more sense than the crazy quilt my untended mind wove them into.
I think not one of us would argue with the fact that we have a subconscious mind that keeps on working when we are asleep – even though it sometimes seems to lack intelligent discretion as to how to use the information stored in our brains that it obviously has access to.

However, I think few of us have spent much time considering that perhaps, to a greater extend than we realize, our conscious mind is influenced or controlled by our subconscious. We may think that we are consciously in control of our thoughts, our deeds, our actions, our decisions… when in reality the very converse might be true!

I watched a documentary on TV the other night that really made me think.

The documentary detailed a study done on this very subject. What they found is that not only do we have a subconscious mind but we also have two ways of seeing.
One is the obvious - our physical eyes relaying sight information to our conscious mind --- but then they learned that we have another sight path we are not even aware of.

They did an experiment that consisted of flashing a word very quickly across a blank screen. Most people could catch it. But then they used what they called a mask … a jumble of lines clumped together. When the mask appeared on the screen very quickly following the flashed word – no one saw the word... only the mask and yet when they were asked if the word that they did not see look more like ‘this’ or like ‘this’ they were all able to pick out the word that looked most like the word that had been flashed onto the screen. So even though consciously they had not ‘seen’ the word, their choice of which word they chose when given the multiple option was ruled by something they were not aware of in their conscious mind.

My mind was racing toward the spiritual implications of this study!
I love when God’s Word is confirmed by scientific studies – often done by men who do not profess any belief in a Creator God!!

Does scripture not teach us that we are not to be ruled by our ‘outer’ man but rather by our ‘inner’ man... our spiritual man within us?
“Rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. (I Peter 3:4)

The outer man is to die... so the inner man can live in righteousness in the image of Christ.

“Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth……. put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him” (Col. 3:5,10)

Consider …. If my subconscious mind takes what my conscious mind feeds it and works with it ‘behinds the scenes’ where I am not aware… then what if my spirit takes what I give it and works with it ‘behind the scenes’ where I am not aware. Then, if this is true I will be influenced in a powerful way to act and react and think... not according to my conscious physical brain but rather my ‘inner man’ or my spirit!!

Look what God’s Word says in Psalm 51:6 “Behold You desire truth in the inward parts and in the HIDDEN part You will make me to know wisdom.”

That is an incredible concept, don’t you think?

While there seems to be little wisdom in how my subconscious mind uses or abuses the information it is fed….we have a decided advantage in our spirits.
“By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.” (I John 4:13)

If we belong to the Lord we have His Spirit in us watching over and working with our spirit… using what we give Him to work with and applying the wisdom of God to make it truly life changing.

But there is a catch, isn’t there. The Holy Spirit can only work with what we give Him. If we do not feed our spirits with the Word of God then perhaps the Holy Spirit must sit idle.
Interesting isn’t it ? that both our subconscious mind and our spirit are fed with words?

And maybe we need to think more seriously about what we do allow through our 'gates' -- our eyes , our ears -- because maybe the words , the sights are NOT gone when we turn off the TV set or close that book, or walk out of the place where we really shouldn't have been. Maybe they continue working in a hidden place to conform us to the image of what we have seen or heard.

And maybe when we spend time in God's word, or fill our spirit with worship through prayer or music .... that is NOT gone either when we turn to go do other things. How encouraging to think that God's Word in us is working in hidden places to make us wise in the things of the Lord.

As we become mature and strong in the Lord, perhaps maturity is not so much that we have controlled our conscious mind as it is that we have fed our spirit and grown strong from the inside out !!

“That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man” (Eph.3:16)