Pretty... Pretty is as pretty does.
When I was younger, I heard my grandmother say this, and countless others...and knew they were advising me to behave properly, be nice, be polite, smile and say please and thank you, etc. etc. etc.
"The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." 1 Samuel 16:7
I've spent the last 35 years doing what I can do to improve appearances. Shaping a haircut to compliment and balance a face, using color to brighten a face, covering up the natural signs of aging (gray hair!! shudder.....)
I've practiced my craft, I've gotten a lot of education, know a lot of 'stuff' about what I do, how to do it and why. But only the outward appearance is changed. And while it is true that the outward appearance affects the way we feel about ourselves, it doesn't really change anything that is inside us. It doesn't change who we are.
I can change appearance, but only God can change a heart. And He is so very good at what He does.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Light...
Light... I caught myself complaining this morning about the lack of sunshine. Why is it that when the sun is not shining bright, I tend to be sluggish? grumpy? lazy?
Jesus said "I am the Light" He has shown me this morning that when I allow 'clouds' to rise up between us, that I suffer. Very often, issues and concerns rise up that I am powerless to remove. He is able. My choice is to look at the clouds, or to ask Him to shine His Light thru those clouds.
He has promised and He is faithful. I most often ask for Him to remove the cloud....and often He does. There are other times when He does not, but He provides the warmth and light to get thru it...sustaining me....and what a joy to feel that Light shining on my face again.
He is so good
Personal Trainer....
Personal Trainer… a person who works one-on-one with a client to plan or implement an exercise or fitness regimen….
People hire them when they want to lose weight or change their body condition and they can’t seem to accomplish it by themselves for whatever reason. Maybe they don’t work at it every day as they need to. Maybe they don’t perform the exercise correctly, opting instead for an easier way that doesn’t really stretch the muscle much. (..that’s me, if there is an easier way, I will find it.)
Sometimes more weight needs to be added. Other times, the weight needs to stay the same and the endurance level needs to be increased. Or maybe raise the tilt on the treadmill, same pace, same distance or time…but more uphill.
I don’t like any of it. I am sure I would like the result.
I have a personal Trainer. I don’t pay Him. He offers Himself to me freely. I love the results He has accomplished in me. Never want to go back to the shape I was once in. But sometimes I want to quit and just stay in ‘this’ shape. He pushes me on.
He allows me a break now and then, a time to ‘rest in the shadow’ (Ps. 91:1) But He does not allow me to quit. Even more, He does not allow me to WANT to quit for very long. He ‘renews my strength’ and helps me to ‘run and not grow weary, walk and not faint.’ (Isa. 40:31 personalized by me)
I often say that I am old and tired. But ‘ He energizes those who get tired, gives fresh strength to dropouts. For even young people tire and drop out, young folk in their prime stumble and fall. But those who wait upon God get fresh strength. They spread their wings and soar like eagles, they run and don’t get tired, they walk and don’t lag behind.’ (Isa. 40: 29-31 The Message)
I’m thankful for the faith muscles that I have. And I trust The Trainer when He adds a little weight, or increases the incline of the hill, or pushes me for another lap. He has shown to me that He knows what He’s doing.
People hire them when they want to lose weight or change their body condition and they can’t seem to accomplish it by themselves for whatever reason. Maybe they don’t work at it every day as they need to. Maybe they don’t perform the exercise correctly, opting instead for an easier way that doesn’t really stretch the muscle much. (..that’s me, if there is an easier way, I will find it.)
Sometimes more weight needs to be added. Other times, the weight needs to stay the same and the endurance level needs to be increased. Or maybe raise the tilt on the treadmill, same pace, same distance or time…but more uphill.
I don’t like any of it. I am sure I would like the result.
I have a personal Trainer. I don’t pay Him. He offers Himself to me freely. I love the results He has accomplished in me. Never want to go back to the shape I was once in. But sometimes I want to quit and just stay in ‘this’ shape. He pushes me on.
He allows me a break now and then, a time to ‘rest in the shadow’ (Ps. 91:1) But He does not allow me to quit. Even more, He does not allow me to WANT to quit for very long. He ‘renews my strength’ and helps me to ‘run and not grow weary, walk and not faint.’ (Isa. 40:31 personalized by me)
I often say that I am old and tired. But ‘ He energizes those who get tired, gives fresh strength to dropouts. For even young people tire and drop out, young folk in their prime stumble and fall. But those who wait upon God get fresh strength. They spread their wings and soar like eagles, they run and don’t get tired, they walk and don’t lag behind.’ (Isa. 40: 29-31 The Message)
I’m thankful for the faith muscles that I have. And I trust The Trainer when He adds a little weight, or increases the incline of the hill, or pushes me for another lap. He has shown to me that He knows what He’s doing.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Love...
Love.. Today is Valentine’s Day. Love is in the air….and the banner of love has been flying high, restaurants full of couples, and stores cashing in on the opportunity to sell merchandise designated for your ‘valentine’.
‘…He has taken me to the banquet hall, and his banner over me is love.’ (Song of Solomon 2:4) The entirety of Solomon’s book is a romantic love story. It has lots of rich lessons for us, lessons about our relationships as husband and wife, and the love relationship that God has for us….the relationship that God WANTS us to be completely engaged in and committed to.
I’ve been married to my valentine since 1974. He treats me like a ’lily among thorns’ (S.of S.2:2) He makes me feel treasured and beautiful. I am secure knowing his love for me.
‘How great is the love the Father has lavished on me, that I should be called a child of God! And that is what I am !’ (1 John 3:1 personalized by me) I am secure in my marriage…my husband puts me as his top priority, nothing out-ranks me except God Himself.
How much more secure I am to be in the love of God. “His banner over me is love.” (S.of S. 2:4) God has stopped at nothing to communicate His love for me. Jesus left the perfection of heaven to step into a body of slowly dying flesh, just to communicate the love of God, to dwell among us, and to restore our relationship with Him back to the way it was…perfect and complete.
‘Taste and see…the lord is good..’ (Ps. 34:8)
‘Whoever is wise, let him heed these things and consider the great love of the Lord.’
(Ps. 107:43) How I pray you really know Him….know His character, His perfect love for you. He is so good.
‘…He has taken me to the banquet hall, and his banner over me is love.’ (Song of Solomon 2:4) The entirety of Solomon’s book is a romantic love story. It has lots of rich lessons for us, lessons about our relationships as husband and wife, and the love relationship that God has for us….the relationship that God WANTS us to be completely engaged in and committed to.
I’ve been married to my valentine since 1974. He treats me like a ’lily among thorns’ (S.of S.2:2) He makes me feel treasured and beautiful. I am secure knowing his love for me.
‘How great is the love the Father has lavished on me, that I should be called a child of God! And that is what I am !’ (1 John 3:1 personalized by me) I am secure in my marriage…my husband puts me as his top priority, nothing out-ranks me except God Himself.
How much more secure I am to be in the love of God. “His banner over me is love.” (S.of S. 2:4) God has stopped at nothing to communicate His love for me. Jesus left the perfection of heaven to step into a body of slowly dying flesh, just to communicate the love of God, to dwell among us, and to restore our relationship with Him back to the way it was…perfect and complete.
‘Taste and see…the lord is good..’ (Ps. 34:8)
‘Whoever is wise, let him heed these things and consider the great love of the Lord.’
(Ps. 107:43) How I pray you really know Him….know His character, His perfect love for you. He is so good.
Covet...
Covet…..We don’t use that word. Maybe you use it, but it’s not in my vocabulary normally. I do know it’s one of those ‘thou shalt not’ things…
Chamad=covet in the original language. In the verb form, which is the acting out of this thing called chamad, it means to desire passionately or intensely, to take delight in something delectable. It expresses the idea of finding pleasure in something.
So why is it a ‘thou shalt not’ ? Is our God just mean and nasty and intends for us to not enjoy anything?
“Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house, nor thy neighbor’s wife, not his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbor’s.”(Ex. 20:17) ‘Don’t set your heart on anything that is your neighbor’s.’(Ex.20:17 The Message)
You see, it’s not that we should not find pleasure….we’re just not to find it in the wrong places. Having the great house is ok…as long as we are not taking what we want from someone else. Are we sure the desire for the great house is not out of a wrong heart motive?
And who is a neighbor? Looking for a loophole? Jesus addressed that very thing in Luke 10. My conclusion is that my neighbor is anyone within the realm of my existence and opportunity of influence. Wherever the ripple effect of my decisions go…whoever it touches… that is my neighbor. I am not to undermine any other person in order to further the desires of my own heart.
This ‘thou shalt not’ has to do with our wanting and even planning to have what is someone else’s, and even getting it by whatever method necessary, at their expense. An extreme example is David’s coveting the wife of another man, and what David was capable of doing to have her. The story is told in 1 Samuel 11.
‘..David said ‘ put Uriah in the front line where the fighting in the fiercest, then withdraw from him so he will be struck down and die.’ (vs.15 NIV)
Whew…I’d surely not do anything that awful would you? ….Then the Lord answered my prayer about revealing to me the sin in my own heart so that I might truly repent and turn away from it, asking Him to forgive and remove the guilt. He did. It is ugly. I am so thankful that He will remove the ugliness and grow me up in the process.
You’ll have to examine your own heart prayerfully in His Presence. If you know His love, you’ll feel safe doing that. It’s not a pleasant thing to look on purpose at the ugliness within yourself. But I believe it is necessary for spiritual growth. God knows every detail of it anyway…it’s us that refuse to acknowledge the presence of it within us, we are the ones who hide our eyes and pretend it’s not there. We pretend that it will not be noticed, or will somehow go away and never effect our lives. Wrong. So wrong…
Chamad=covet in the original language. In the verb form, which is the acting out of this thing called chamad, it means to desire passionately or intensely, to take delight in something delectable. It expresses the idea of finding pleasure in something.
So why is it a ‘thou shalt not’ ? Is our God just mean and nasty and intends for us to not enjoy anything?
“Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house, nor thy neighbor’s wife, not his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbor’s.”(Ex. 20:17) ‘Don’t set your heart on anything that is your neighbor’s.’(Ex.20:17 The Message)
You see, it’s not that we should not find pleasure….we’re just not to find it in the wrong places. Having the great house is ok…as long as we are not taking what we want from someone else. Are we sure the desire for the great house is not out of a wrong heart motive?
And who is a neighbor? Looking for a loophole? Jesus addressed that very thing in Luke 10. My conclusion is that my neighbor is anyone within the realm of my existence and opportunity of influence. Wherever the ripple effect of my decisions go…whoever it touches… that is my neighbor. I am not to undermine any other person in order to further the desires of my own heart.
This ‘thou shalt not’ has to do with our wanting and even planning to have what is someone else’s, and even getting it by whatever method necessary, at their expense. An extreme example is David’s coveting the wife of another man, and what David was capable of doing to have her. The story is told in 1 Samuel 11.
‘..David said ‘ put Uriah in the front line where the fighting in the fiercest, then withdraw from him so he will be struck down and die.’ (vs.15 NIV)
Whew…I’d surely not do anything that awful would you? ….Then the Lord answered my prayer about revealing to me the sin in my own heart so that I might truly repent and turn away from it, asking Him to forgive and remove the guilt. He did. It is ugly. I am so thankful that He will remove the ugliness and grow me up in the process.
You’ll have to examine your own heart prayerfully in His Presence. If you know His love, you’ll feel safe doing that. It’s not a pleasant thing to look on purpose at the ugliness within yourself. But I believe it is necessary for spiritual growth. God knows every detail of it anyway…it’s us that refuse to acknowledge the presence of it within us, we are the ones who hide our eyes and pretend it’s not there. We pretend that it will not be noticed, or will somehow go away and never effect our lives. Wrong. So wrong…
Snow...
Snow… Seldom do we see the amount of snow that blankets the landscape right now. Leaving work yesterday, it seemed early…
A blanket of white covering everything makes just a tiny bit of light bounce and reflect until it almost seems like daylight…even when the sun has long since set, even when clouds hang low, weeping out fluffy white flakes.
Every little speck against a backdrop of this snowy whiteness stands out starkly, the contrast is so great. A footprint thru to the soil beneath, a tire track, a patch of snow that has been soiled with a spilled drink…every little thing shows up against the pure white snow.
I was thinking yesterday about how disfigured and imperfect I am. When I examine myself against a simple ten-part standard, I fail miserably. Black….dirty…so ugly against the pureness of God. It serves the purpose God intended…it makes me see how badly I need a Savior. I can’t get myself pure when I can’t even follow ten simply stated guidelines. Did you see any black ugliness in yourself ?
‘Come now ! Let us reason together…’ (Isa. 1:18) That is God speaking thru the prophet Isaiah. Engage yourself…enter into the conversation He initiates…He continues ‘though your sins are like scarlet…they shall be as white as snow…’
Imagine a bright red laying against this backdrop of snow. What a contrast ! My sin shows up. Like a huge bright red stain on this pure white landscape of snow..my sin shows up. The Good News is that the scarlet blood of my Savior ‘purifies me from all sin’ (1 John 1:7) I am ‘justified by His blood…’(Rom. 5:9)
White as snow… He ‘suffered outside the city gate to make me holy through His own blood.’ (Heb. 13:12) Whiter than snow.. ‘..wash me and I will be whiter than snow.’ (Ps.51:7)
How could anything possibly be whiter than this snow….
Mirror...
Mirror…There are indeed many distorted mirrors, making us look taller and thinner, or wider, or strangely curved. A perfect clean mirror will reflect a perfect image of what stands before it. Often, we don’t like what we see…
What we call The Ten Commandments mirrors something to me that’s not pretty. When I look at that ‘thou shalt/thou shalt not’ list closely, I become keenly aware of how disfigured I am.
‘…through the law we become conscious of our sin.’ (Rom. 3:20)
Are you brave enough to look into that mirror with your eyes really open? We will start with a simple one. ‘Thou shalt not steal.’(Ex.20:15) There’s no thief reading this right? No bank robbers on the list, I’m sure.
The word translated steal is ‘ganab’ in the original language. It means to secretly bring, to obtain by stealth, the implication to deceive, to thieve literally or figuratively.
Think you’re innocent? So, you’re 100% honest on your tax forms? You have never passed on some unkind, untrue, or unnecessary remark, taking away someone’s good reputation. What about that item that was mis-priced, you knew it, but that young kid working as a salesclerk didn’t. What about the stuff you bring home from work, that stuff the company pays for, provides for you as you work there, and you take it home to provide for your family, saving yourself the cost of purchasing it yourself? Maybe you didn’t correct that person who thought it was you that did that great thing, you just kept quiet and let them think it. Dozens and dozens of things to list. This mirror shows my face. I’m guilty. Perhaps I’m the only one though…or maybe you’re not looking into this same mirror…maybe you’re looking into a distorted one. You know, one that makes you look taller and thinner. Better than you really do.
Think I’m being legalistic? I am. That is what law is…legal. God’s purpose in issuing law is served when we really begin to see how guilty we are of breaking them. Only then do we really see our predicament, and our great need of rescue.
When God looks, He sees all that stuff… unless I’m covered by His Son. Then He sees Jesus, the One and Only Perfect One.
Thank You Lord for Your amazing grace. I’m a thief.
What we call The Ten Commandments mirrors something to me that’s not pretty. When I look at that ‘thou shalt/thou shalt not’ list closely, I become keenly aware of how disfigured I am.
‘…through the law we become conscious of our sin.’ (Rom. 3:20)
Are you brave enough to look into that mirror with your eyes really open? We will start with a simple one. ‘Thou shalt not steal.’(Ex.20:15) There’s no thief reading this right? No bank robbers on the list, I’m sure.
The word translated steal is ‘ganab’ in the original language. It means to secretly bring, to obtain by stealth, the implication to deceive, to thieve literally or figuratively.
Think you’re innocent? So, you’re 100% honest on your tax forms? You have never passed on some unkind, untrue, or unnecessary remark, taking away someone’s good reputation. What about that item that was mis-priced, you knew it, but that young kid working as a salesclerk didn’t. What about the stuff you bring home from work, that stuff the company pays for, provides for you as you work there, and you take it home to provide for your family, saving yourself the cost of purchasing it yourself? Maybe you didn’t correct that person who thought it was you that did that great thing, you just kept quiet and let them think it. Dozens and dozens of things to list. This mirror shows my face. I’m guilty. Perhaps I’m the only one though…or maybe you’re not looking into this same mirror…maybe you’re looking into a distorted one. You know, one that makes you look taller and thinner. Better than you really do.
Think I’m being legalistic? I am. That is what law is…legal. God’s purpose in issuing law is served when we really begin to see how guilty we are of breaking them. Only then do we really see our predicament, and our great need of rescue.
When God looks, He sees all that stuff… unless I’m covered by His Son. Then He sees Jesus, the One and Only Perfect One.
Thank You Lord for Your amazing grace. I’m a thief.
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