Babbling… I fear I’ve done a lot of babbling. I wonder how much harm and hurt I have done with some of them. I wonder if I’ve been in social settings so long that I don’t even notice….
Paul said to shun them. He said they would only increase to more ungodliness. (2Tim. 2:16) Matthew Henry says in his commentary on this passage that error is very productive. Is that not a horrifying thought?! Error…produces itself. And he goes on to say that error can overthrow faith. God forbid.
The NIV calls it ‘godless chatter’ and tells us to avoid it. (vs. 16) The Message always drives home the point in street language… ‘ Stay clear of pious talk….words are not mere words, you know. If they are not backed by a godly life, they accumulate as poison in the soul.’ I sure don’t need any poison injected into my soul, especially by my own mouth!
So my babblings are some pretty serious stuff. I determine to examine the words I speak…and the words I write…and ask God to reveal to me how HE sees it. I can justify my words I’m sure…we all can project the guilt onto someone else, justify our actions and words because of someone else’s WORSE actions and words.
Who gets to decide that? Not me. And not you. It is God who determines, and he sees my heart. And yours.
Let’s make a deal…tomorrow, I’m going to begin to monitor my babblings and see if there is any godless chatter going on. With ME. I am sure the devil will point out a LOT of it coming from someone else’s mouth. But I’m asking God to reveal to me what I am blinded to in myself. For if it is there…it needs to go.
This may hurt.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Re-start
Re-start.. Seems like every time I get in the very middle of something on this computer, it has downloaded upgrades and needs to ‘re-start’…
I’ve wondered what all that upgrade stuff is about, if it’s really necessary. Sometimes I liked things better the old way, before the so called improvements. When things work and fill my needs and requirements, why change it? If it ain’t broke…don’t fix it ! The downloaded upgrades are bad enough, but then I have to stop what I’m doing and let this thing turn itself off and back on.
Then this morning, I was reading over some things I had written a while back, and I realize…there’s an upgrade ! New information.
God will never get through with me. (..or you..) There will be regular upgrades. But we can refuse to download them…and we can refuse to install them…and we can refuse to re-start.
The data that is downloaded onto this computer is useless until it is installed into the brain of this machine. And even then, until the machine is turned off and starts up again, the data just sits somewhere inside the technological mind, doing no good, making no difference.
So what kind of downloads are available? Scripture spills over with truths that are current to my situation and circumstance…‘now‘. And tomorrow, there will be truths that are current for that ‘now’. And next month, next year…every ‘now’ that I walk on this earth in this body there will be truths that are current for that ‘now’.
Just because you may have read the Bible doesn’t mean a thing. The scripture you read for that ‘now’…is not necessarily the scripture for this ‘now’. Every time I open my Bible, seems as if some phrase or concept will leap off the page and I wonder… ‘surely that hasn’t been there…how could I have missed this?’
The truth contained in scripture is ‘living and active. ..it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow…it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.’ (Heb. 4:12) It will never need upgrades, it is complete.
It is US who need upgrades. ‘Study to show yourself approved to God….’ It is us who need to install them.. ‘correctly handling the word of truth.’ (2 Tim. 2:15 KJV, NIV)
I have learned with previous computers that when I don’t keep up to date, it causes problems later on that take more than the few minutes required to install and re-start. I don’t want to live my life like that….want to stay current with the God of the universe.
So…I’m re-starting this morning. Got an upgrade yesterday, installed it, and I’m operating with new attitudes and motives today. He is ALWAYS current…
I’ve wondered what all that upgrade stuff is about, if it’s really necessary. Sometimes I liked things better the old way, before the so called improvements. When things work and fill my needs and requirements, why change it? If it ain’t broke…don’t fix it ! The downloaded upgrades are bad enough, but then I have to stop what I’m doing and let this thing turn itself off and back on.
Then this morning, I was reading over some things I had written a while back, and I realize…there’s an upgrade ! New information.
God will never get through with me. (..or you..) There will be regular upgrades. But we can refuse to download them…and we can refuse to install them…and we can refuse to re-start.
The data that is downloaded onto this computer is useless until it is installed into the brain of this machine. And even then, until the machine is turned off and starts up again, the data just sits somewhere inside the technological mind, doing no good, making no difference.
So what kind of downloads are available? Scripture spills over with truths that are current to my situation and circumstance…‘now‘. And tomorrow, there will be truths that are current for that ‘now’. And next month, next year…every ‘now’ that I walk on this earth in this body there will be truths that are current for that ‘now’.
Just because you may have read the Bible doesn’t mean a thing. The scripture you read for that ‘now’…is not necessarily the scripture for this ‘now’. Every time I open my Bible, seems as if some phrase or concept will leap off the page and I wonder… ‘surely that hasn’t been there…how could I have missed this?’
The truth contained in scripture is ‘living and active. ..it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow…it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.’ (Heb. 4:12) It will never need upgrades, it is complete.
It is US who need upgrades. ‘Study to show yourself approved to God….’ It is us who need to install them.. ‘correctly handling the word of truth.’ (2 Tim. 2:15 KJV, NIV)
I have learned with previous computers that when I don’t keep up to date, it causes problems later on that take more than the few minutes required to install and re-start. I don’t want to live my life like that….want to stay current with the God of the universe.
So…I’m re-starting this morning. Got an upgrade yesterday, installed it, and I’m operating with new attitudes and motives today. He is ALWAYS current…
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Consecrate
Consecrate.. This is one of those words that is seldom used anymore, unless perhaps in poetry….
We use words like dedicate and devote. Consecration doesn’t really make a person, place, or thing really holy,(it is GOD who makes holy)... but it declares that person, place, or thing to be set apart, to be especially dedicated and devoted to the service of God. We have ceremonies to dedicate children. In those ceremonies, the parents devote themselves to bringing the child up to know God.
Does all that ‘to-do’ really matter? Does it change the way the future unfolds? Does it really matter what we ‘say’ over a person, place, or thing? What good is ceremony? Words spoken…then forgotten….so what?
Perhaps in some circles words don’t mean much. I regret to say that our culture has lost the sense of value in them. There was a time when a thing spoken could be taken for absolute truth. Vows were said only when they were considered thoroughly and there was intention to keep them.
God spoke to His chosen people, the Israelites, “Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I Am the Lord your God. Keep My decrees and follow them. I am the Lord, Who makes you holy.” (Lev. 20:7-8) It was nothing the people did that made the difference…it was GOD Who made the difference in them.
He has spoken to me… “ ..you are a chosen people. A royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him Who called you out of darkness into His wonderful Light.” (1 Peter 2:9) ‘..from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted.’ (vs. 10 The Message)
‘Friends, this world is not your home, so don’t make yourselves cozy in it. Don’t indulge your ego at the expense of your soul. Live your..life…so that your actions will refute prejudices…they will be won over to God’s side and be there to join in the celebration when He arrives. Make the Master proud of you by being good citizens…It is God’s will that by doing good, you might cure the ignorance of the fools who think you’re the danger…exercise your freedom by serving God, not by breaking the rules.’ (vs. 11-16 The Message)
I am consecrated. My home is consecrated. I work in a place that is consecrated. I live on ground that is consecrated. Some may forget…they may disregard words that spoke vows. They may turn away and go after other gods.
I determine again today that I will not.
We use words like dedicate and devote. Consecration doesn’t really make a person, place, or thing really holy,(it is GOD who makes holy)... but it declares that person, place, or thing to be set apart, to be especially dedicated and devoted to the service of God. We have ceremonies to dedicate children. In those ceremonies, the parents devote themselves to bringing the child up to know God.
Does all that ‘to-do’ really matter? Does it change the way the future unfolds? Does it really matter what we ‘say’ over a person, place, or thing? What good is ceremony? Words spoken…then forgotten….so what?
Perhaps in some circles words don’t mean much. I regret to say that our culture has lost the sense of value in them. There was a time when a thing spoken could be taken for absolute truth. Vows were said only when they were considered thoroughly and there was intention to keep them.
God spoke to His chosen people, the Israelites, “Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I Am the Lord your God. Keep My decrees and follow them. I am the Lord, Who makes you holy.” (Lev. 20:7-8) It was nothing the people did that made the difference…it was GOD Who made the difference in them.
He has spoken to me… “ ..you are a chosen people. A royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him Who called you out of darkness into His wonderful Light.” (1 Peter 2:9) ‘..from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted.’ (vs. 10 The Message)
‘Friends, this world is not your home, so don’t make yourselves cozy in it. Don’t indulge your ego at the expense of your soul. Live your..life…so that your actions will refute prejudices…they will be won over to God’s side and be there to join in the celebration when He arrives. Make the Master proud of you by being good citizens…It is God’s will that by doing good, you might cure the ignorance of the fools who think you’re the danger…exercise your freedom by serving God, not by breaking the rules.’ (vs. 11-16 The Message)
I am consecrated. My home is consecrated. I work in a place that is consecrated. I live on ground that is consecrated. Some may forget…they may disregard words that spoke vows. They may turn away and go after other gods.
I determine again today that I will not.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Enough
Enough.. What is enough? When is enough, enough? Is there such thing as enough? Who gets to decide? …
Webster says that enough is that which is adequate to the wants. A sufficiency. That which is equal to the powers of abilities.
I am thankful that God doesn’t call enough enough like I do. He has been so very patient with me for so many years. He has done such work in me, and continues to do so. He didn’t throw up His Hands like I am prone to do. “ I have had enough, Lord” (Elijah in 1 Kings 19:4)
However, I sometimes seem to hear Him say, as He did to Moses, “That is enough, do not speak to Me anymore about this matter” (Deu. 3:26) When God says something, He means it. When He answers my prayer, He has answered. And I must accept His answer.
When I have had enough… that which is equal to my power and ability, He is sufficient. “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in (your) weakness.”(2 Cor. 12:9) “I can do everything through Him Who gives me strength.”(Phil.4:13)
I wonder that perhaps enough is not about a moment in time. Perhaps it isn’t about a requirement to be fulfilled. It is about content. “..you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans do…” (1 Peter 4:3)…. “ You’ve already put in your time in that God-ignorant way of life, partying night after night, a drunken and profligate life. Now it’s time to be done with it for good.”(Peter 4:3 The Message)
“You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.” (Hag. 1:6)
“You have made your way around this hill country long enough….” (Deut. 2:3) “..the Lord your god has blessed you in all the work of your hands…He has watched over your journey…you have not lacked for any thing…” (vs.7)
“I know that You can do all things..no plan of Yours can be thwarted.”(Job 42:2)
He is Elohim, Mighty Creator God, Jehovah Jireh, the God Who provides, and Yahweh Shammah, the God Who is there….
That is, and will always be…. enough.
Webster says that enough is that which is adequate to the wants. A sufficiency. That which is equal to the powers of abilities.
I am thankful that God doesn’t call enough enough like I do. He has been so very patient with me for so many years. He has done such work in me, and continues to do so. He didn’t throw up His Hands like I am prone to do. “ I have had enough, Lord” (Elijah in 1 Kings 19:4)
However, I sometimes seem to hear Him say, as He did to Moses, “That is enough, do not speak to Me anymore about this matter” (Deu. 3:26) When God says something, He means it. When He answers my prayer, He has answered. And I must accept His answer.
When I have had enough… that which is equal to my power and ability, He is sufficient. “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in (your) weakness.”(2 Cor. 12:9) “I can do everything through Him Who gives me strength.”(Phil.4:13)
I wonder that perhaps enough is not about a moment in time. Perhaps it isn’t about a requirement to be fulfilled. It is about content. “..you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans do…” (1 Peter 4:3)…. “ You’ve already put in your time in that God-ignorant way of life, partying night after night, a drunken and profligate life. Now it’s time to be done with it for good.”(Peter 4:3 The Message)
“You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.” (Hag. 1:6)
“You have made your way around this hill country long enough….” (Deut. 2:3) “..the Lord your god has blessed you in all the work of your hands…He has watched over your journey…you have not lacked for any thing…” (vs.7)
“I know that You can do all things..no plan of Yours can be thwarted.”(Job 42:2)
He is Elohim, Mighty Creator God, Jehovah Jireh, the God Who provides, and Yahweh Shammah, the God Who is there….
That is, and will always be…. enough.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Perseverance
Perseverance… Keep on keeping’ on. Get back in the saddle. Shake it off. Keep on truckin’. However you phrase it, the message is the same…
Endurance. Persistence. In Greek, the original language of New Testament scripture, it is ‘hupomone’. It is a bearing up under, an enduring as to things or circumstances… patience and constancy under suffering in faith and duty.
“..prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind of drops out.” (Eph. 6:18 The Message)
I want never to forget the reality of the battle ground on which I stand. There IS a spiritual war going on. There IS a battle of good vs. evil. The enemy is still assaulting God’s creation. He is defeated, but until he is cast into the abyss, he continues to deceive and lie. How tiring it gets sometimes. I hear him trying to tell me it’s useless. It is NOT.
My God is bigger than any demon. He is bigger than any stronghold. He is mightier than any addiction. He is able to heal any hurt, any painful thing.
The only thing that stops Him is our refusal. I wrestle sometimes with the free choice He has given, wishing that in some situations He’d take that free will away and insist on better choices. He would not be holy and perfect were He to do that….and we would not have a capacity to love, we would be mere robots. So I stand on the battlefield, suited up with the armor of God.(Ephesians 6:13-17)
I have the belt of truth. The enemy’s lies will not pierce me.
My heart is shielded with the breastplate of HIS righteousness, not my own.
My feet are fitted with readiness.
I have a shield of faith in the God of creation with which I can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
My mind is protected by the helmet of my salvation, the enemy’s lies will not enter my mind and cause me to be deceived.
And I have the Sword of The Holy Spirit of God
.
I know what He has said, and I will use the authority that is mine in Jesus Christ to
speak that Word to all the demonic forces of the spiritual realm.
“Pray for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel…pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.” (Eph. 6:19,20)
Endurance. Persistence. In Greek, the original language of New Testament scripture, it is ‘hupomone’. It is a bearing up under, an enduring as to things or circumstances… patience and constancy under suffering in faith and duty.
“..prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind of drops out.” (Eph. 6:18 The Message)
I want never to forget the reality of the battle ground on which I stand. There IS a spiritual war going on. There IS a battle of good vs. evil. The enemy is still assaulting God’s creation. He is defeated, but until he is cast into the abyss, he continues to deceive and lie. How tiring it gets sometimes. I hear him trying to tell me it’s useless. It is NOT.
My God is bigger than any demon. He is bigger than any stronghold. He is mightier than any addiction. He is able to heal any hurt, any painful thing.
The only thing that stops Him is our refusal. I wrestle sometimes with the free choice He has given, wishing that in some situations He’d take that free will away and insist on better choices. He would not be holy and perfect were He to do that….and we would not have a capacity to love, we would be mere robots. So I stand on the battlefield, suited up with the armor of God.(Ephesians 6:13-17)
I have the belt of truth. The enemy’s lies will not pierce me.
My heart is shielded with the breastplate of HIS righteousness, not my own.
My feet are fitted with readiness.
I have a shield of faith in the God of creation with which I can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
My mind is protected by the helmet of my salvation, the enemy’s lies will not enter my mind and cause me to be deceived.
And I have the Sword of The Holy Spirit of God
.
I know what He has said, and I will use the authority that is mine in Jesus Christ to
speak that Word to all the demonic forces of the spiritual realm.
“Pray for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel…pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.” (Eph. 6:19,20)
Liberty
Liberty… We have a statue that we’ve attached that word to…I wonder if we all share the same definition of what liberty is…
“I shall walk in liberty, for I have sought Thy precepts.” (Ps. 119:45)
It seems to me that the more ‘freedom’ that has been allowed, the more choices people are allowed to take, the worse our culture has become.
And it’s because when we are able to choose for ourselves both good AND evil…when we are not seeking to do what is right in God’s eyes…we choose poorly. We have chosen much evil in this nation.
I rejoice in the liberty and freedom that I have in Christ. It is no longer because I feel forced to choose His way, for that is not freedom. I have the liberty to choose like the couple in the garden. I can choose good….or I can choose evil…and I must choose. God does not insist that I choose His good way.
Because I have grown to know Him and love Him, I have come to understand that what He says is always the right way, for my own best interests and the best interests of others. (EVEN when it doesn't LOOK that way!) The choice to follow His good way always brings life, never death. Only by choosing His good way do I find liberty from the permanently established rule that sin=death.
“..the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus made me free from the law of sin and of death.”(Rom. 8:2)
People who spout off about their freedoms and live their lives making ungodly decisions are not free. They are in the worst kind of bondage. Choices that are not lined up with God’s standard bring death. (“ the wages of sin is death..”(Rom. 6:23) Always.
You can complain about it, hit the dislike button, or throw a fit about your ‘rights’…but God is Creator, He gets to pick…what He says IS. Only within the boundaries of Christ is there freedom, for only there is a escape from this curse of sin and death. “If..the son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.”(John 8:36) “ …the free gift of god is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”(Romans 6:23)
“For freedom, Christ has set us free…”(Gal. 5:1)
Jesus, The Messiah…. is the good way. My liberty is in my relationship with my Savior. He has removed the curse. And because of that….I am His slave.
I will strive to serve Him well.
“I shall walk in liberty, for I have sought Thy precepts.” (Ps. 119:45)
It seems to me that the more ‘freedom’ that has been allowed, the more choices people are allowed to take, the worse our culture has become.
And it’s because when we are able to choose for ourselves both good AND evil…when we are not seeking to do what is right in God’s eyes…we choose poorly. We have chosen much evil in this nation.
I rejoice in the liberty and freedom that I have in Christ. It is no longer because I feel forced to choose His way, for that is not freedom. I have the liberty to choose like the couple in the garden. I can choose good….or I can choose evil…and I must choose. God does not insist that I choose His good way.
Because I have grown to know Him and love Him, I have come to understand that what He says is always the right way, for my own best interests and the best interests of others. (EVEN when it doesn't LOOK that way!) The choice to follow His good way always brings life, never death. Only by choosing His good way do I find liberty from the permanently established rule that sin=death.
“..the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus made me free from the law of sin and of death.”(Rom. 8:2)
People who spout off about their freedoms and live their lives making ungodly decisions are not free. They are in the worst kind of bondage. Choices that are not lined up with God’s standard bring death. (“ the wages of sin is death..”(Rom. 6:23) Always.
You can complain about it, hit the dislike button, or throw a fit about your ‘rights’…but God is Creator, He gets to pick…what He says IS. Only within the boundaries of Christ is there freedom, for only there is a escape from this curse of sin and death. “If..the son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.”(John 8:36) “ …the free gift of god is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”(Romans 6:23)
“For freedom, Christ has set us free…”(Gal. 5:1)
Jesus, The Messiah…. is the good way. My liberty is in my relationship with my Savior. He has removed the curse. And because of that….I am His slave.
I will strive to serve Him well.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Judging
Judging… You can know a tree by it’s fruit.
After someone has handed down a verdict about someone else, I’ve heard ‘I’m not judging, I’m just inspecting fruit’. I confess, I’m guilty of using that excuse myself…judging fruit.
But I believe God has shown me the fruit of my own heart in that matter. “..the fruit of The Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control..’ (Gal. 5:22-23) I don’t see fruit inspecting in that list, nor does that list look like the attitude of my fruit inspecting heart. In fact, it might fit the list of a few verses earlier in that chapter of Galatians ! “discord…jealousy…selfish ambition …dissensions …factions…envy” (verses 19-21)
It is true that our character is displayed in the fruit we bear out in our lives. But what kind of fruit is born out of the fruit inspector? When I inspect another person’s fruit, what kind of attitude is in my own heart, and do I live up to that standard myself? Do I criticize or condemn them for not having Grade A fruit, when my own fruit is not Grade A?
And let’s not be deceived…we’re not grading apples against apples….we’re grading fruit. It doesn’t matter that ‘I’ am not guilty in the fruit/thing I’m inspecting in someone else. I may not have that particular rotten apple to deal with in my own life, but I’ve got some rotten peaches.
The best lessons learned are often those learned out of negative examples. I don’t want to be compromising about sin, but neither do I want to be blind to the sin in my own life. When I see rotten fruit in someone else, I want to see it for what it is, but have a heart to encourage and challenge them to a higher standard….not just chunk it out with the trash.
And I want to never, ever…. have that kind of fruit in my own life.
After someone has handed down a verdict about someone else, I’ve heard ‘I’m not judging, I’m just inspecting fruit’. I confess, I’m guilty of using that excuse myself…judging fruit.
But I believe God has shown me the fruit of my own heart in that matter. “..the fruit of The Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control..’ (Gal. 5:22-23) I don’t see fruit inspecting in that list, nor does that list look like the attitude of my fruit inspecting heart. In fact, it might fit the list of a few verses earlier in that chapter of Galatians ! “discord…jealousy…selfish ambition …dissensions …factions…envy” (verses 19-21)
It is true that our character is displayed in the fruit we bear out in our lives. But what kind of fruit is born out of the fruit inspector? When I inspect another person’s fruit, what kind of attitude is in my own heart, and do I live up to that standard myself? Do I criticize or condemn them for not having Grade A fruit, when my own fruit is not Grade A?
And let’s not be deceived…we’re not grading apples against apples….we’re grading fruit. It doesn’t matter that ‘I’ am not guilty in the fruit/thing I’m inspecting in someone else. I may not have that particular rotten apple to deal with in my own life, but I’ve got some rotten peaches.
The best lessons learned are often those learned out of negative examples. I don’t want to be compromising about sin, but neither do I want to be blind to the sin in my own life. When I see rotten fruit in someone else, I want to see it for what it is, but have a heart to encourage and challenge them to a higher standard….not just chunk it out with the trash.
And I want to never, ever…. have that kind of fruit in my own life.
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