Tuesday, April 26, 2011

In the Bible reading I follow, today had pieces from Old, New Testaments and Psalms all with similarities - 'irony' in itself, even moreso how it applies to my faith and I'm sure many struggle this way...

1. Judges 6, Gideon is approached by an Angel of the Lord, not believing it is the Lord, he asks for a sign, he gets it, then says to God, 'don't be angry with me, i need one more sign its you', so God in His grace gives him another sign. C'mon! I say, how don't you get that Gideon?! God talked to you, you saw the Angel and yet you needed 2 signs to understand it was Him?! Really?
Ha!
That's so me. I have had prayers clearly answered by God since I was a teenager and yet, nearly 30, I bring something to God, lay it before Him and wonder if He is there, if He hears me or if He cares.
2. Then in Luke's writings of the crucifixion, he recounts Peter. Being a disciple, he saw countless miracles, he knew Jesus was the Messiah, the Lord. Jesus told Him directly days earlier, you will disown me. Peter denied it.
Luke 22:54-62
Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.”

But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said.

A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.”

“Man, I am not!” Peter replied.

About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.”

Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him:“Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” 62 And he went outside and wept bitterly.

God always wins, Jesus always wins. What was Peter scared of? Would he possibly suffer with Jesus? That would be frightening to me too, possibly suffering alongside Him. Jesus rose 3 days later, God won, Satan was defeated. Would I, like Peter, have denied Him out of fear? (shudder).

3. Then in Psalms, they reference the Israelites...
Today, if only you would hear his voice,
“Do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah,
as you did that day at Massah in the wilderness,
where your ancestors tested me;
they tried me, though they had seen what I did.
For forty years I was angry with that generation;
I said, ‘They are a people whose hearts go astray,
and they have not known my ways.’
So I declared on oath in my anger,
‘They shall never enter my rest.’”

The Israelites were flip-flopping - believe God and be taken care of / not believe and be miserable and back and forth, back and forth. I mean seriously how many times before they get it?? Can they not just trust God, for once and for all?? Oh, maybe we're like that too.

What God is showing me, is that He is in each Moment, He creates each moment, He's here. How can we shut Him out of life or moments of life?

The message below I emailed to Quinn on Monday to tell him of my 'vision'.

I drank coffee last night, so couldn't sleep when we went to bed (11:15). I need to stop drinking coffee in the evenings, not good. I was laying there thinking about God and I had a vision, sorta. If i was a graphic designer I'd create a picture, but I'm not, so I'll do my best for you to see it in your mind.

I envisioned a multi storey building, God forms the base of this structure, then on the first floor are big chunk words of "your birth", amongst the words are pillars, each piller has G-O-D lengthways down the side of it, lots of pillars amongst the floor ,to hold up the second floor. The Second floor has the word Education throughout it. Many pillars again with GOD throughout each floor, many, many floors form this building with parts of life, such as your family, friends, knowledge, your marriage, your child(ren), (I didn`t really get past the 'child' floor, prob because I haven`t been there yet) with lots of God pillars throughout each floor, I did understand that the top floor is the end of your life and God pillars are there too.

I don't think the words I wrote justify this image given to me last night, it was beautiful and majestic, lots of strength. I kinda felt compelled to get out of bed and go record it then, but my mind was getting tired. Right after this my arms and hands felt very heavy, like they had mini pillars encasing them, it felt heavy, but it was in a good way, like it was God`s strength right there (hard to explain). I asked Him to release the weight actually because it was preventing me from sleep. :)

I know God was showing me how He is IN each moment of life, he GIVES us each moment and He's with us in each moment, He created each moment and He is in the moment, something we should never forget. He can help us in each moment, He is the moment.

What I know today is, I must be more aware of how I act, react and live each moment. God is with me, he's here.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

facebook

I was thinking this last week how grateful I am for Facebook. Do you know who much it has taught me over the last couple years?? Day in and day out my Newsfeed is FULL of thought provoking, engaging, teaching, God-centered moments. Granted I have kinda made it that way (or it's been provided for me to make it that way). There are people and organizations communicating God's word in ways that others can learn from. Since about 6-7 years ago, I have been drawn to learning (when I joined my church, sermons and reading books), I don't think I've read a fictional book in this time. But this last 2 year period hasn't given me a lot of time to read many non-fiction books either. That's what I like about Facebook, I'm able to read the articles organizations or individuals pass on and still be learning even though I don't have time for big books. As I said I just got the book Crazy Love, my first book in forever and when I do take some time to read it, it's hard to put down.

Of course nothing replaces some non-facebook, get-your-nose in the Bible time. The real Word. Lost track of that over this winter too, now these last few weeks I have done it, it requires discipline for me to just do it. You learn something new each day.

just my thoughts...

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Just Stop and Think

If you got 15, check out this video. Our Bible Study group is doing a series on this popular book, Crazy Love by Francis Chan. This was an introduction video we watched. Very much looking forward to expanding or perhaps changing (!) my view on who God is, His big Greatness. Excited!! If you've read this book, let me know what you learned or thought of it.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

blogless funk?

Think I am in a blogless funk. I have a smidgent of an post idea at times, but can't grasp the whole concept of a blog post, so I don't even start. Just you all know I'm still here, thought I would post something.

It's almost Easter weekend, and Easter has hardly crossed my mind. We had our Palm Sunday service at church this last weekend, that was the start of it for me, I think. Our church always visualizes Palm Sunday in some way, usually containing Palm leaves filling the church, I appreciate that visual so much. This time they had a wooden donkey, Jesus beside, with all His
followers excited, waving palm leaves, celebrating and of course some downer Roman guards had to be around to try to dispel the excitement. And the choir singing Hosanna adds to the message.

Last night I was reminded Easter is so close and I hadn't even thought of how we're going to celebrate this with Caden. A thought ran through my mind that we better get to the store and buy some Easter eggs or Easter decorations, but in the end that wouldn't serve a purpose for Caden anyway and as adults that wouldn't be how I want it celebrated. What to do...

This thought also crossed my mind recently...What a total injustice Jesus went through. I mean, can you imagine, having done absolutely NOTHING against the law and suffering as he did??!?
After being slapped in the face by the man who arrested him, Jesus says (from the Book of John)...
“If I said something wrong,” Jesus replied, “testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?”

The captor didn't answer, but sent him to the high priest for further questioning.

I find the conversation between Jesus and Pilate (Roman Governor) intriguing every time I read it...

From the Book of John:

Then the Jewish leaders took Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness they did not enter the palace, because they wanted to be able to eat the Passover. So Pilate came out to them and asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?”“If he were not a criminal,” they replied, “we would not have handed him over to you.”

Pilate said, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.”

“But we have no right to execute anyone,” they objected. 32 This took place to fulfill what Jesus had said about the kind of death he was going to die.

Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

“Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked, “or did others talk to you about me?”

“Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?”

Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.”

“You are a king, then!” said Pilate.

Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

“What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him. 39 But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of the Passover. Do you want me to release ‘the king of the Jews’?”

They shouted back, “No, not him! Give us Barabbas!” Now Barabbas had taken part in an uprising.

Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. 2 The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe 3 and went up to him again and again, saying, “Hail, king of the Jews!” And they slapped him in the face.

Falsely accused, slapped, flogged, spit on, struck with a staff, insulted, made to wear a crown of thorns, betrayed by His friends and loved ones, made to carry a wooden cross and crucified - Jesus. There is injustice around the world today and we've witnessed or know of accounts, however this one recorded several times in the Bible (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) and prophesied of in the Old Testament, is ultimate. The perfect one, the King, sacrificed for us, so we could simply repent of our sin and be given Eternal Life through Grace and Forgiveness.