"And the Spirit of the Lord fell upon me, and said unto me, Speak; Thus saith the Lord; Thus have ye said, O house of Israel: for I know the things that come into your mind, every one of them."
Ezekiel 10:5
This is a chapter where Ezekiel is shown a vision and told what to say to the backsliding people. The whole "I know the things that come into your mind" warns us to watch our thoughts as well as our actions... that the two are related, and that we need to choose our thoughts as carefully as we make other choices in our lives. :) The thing that I think hit me the most about this scripture today is that God knows everything that comes into our minds... not in a scary way, like "oh no! definitely shouldn't have been thinking that!" ...although of course that is a consideration as we go throughout our days. :) It hit me more in the direction of... we are going to become like God someday, right? And, if indeed we all gain the ability our father has through lots and lots of progression, it makes a LOT of sense that we wouldn't be comfortable living in a society with a lot of perfected people if we hadn't perfected ourselves... specifically our thoughts. In one way, what an *amazing* way to communicate... mind to mind. No room for misinterpretation or misunderstanding. :) ... and in another way... what a lot of work I need to do to be able to live somewhere like that where all of my thoughts can be understood and shared. ... So, today, let's work on our thoughts. Can we be nice to people in our thoughts as well as our actions? Can we concentrate on good, and dismiss the bad when it comes along? ... it might take some practice, but I think we can get there if we work on it. ... and how cool will it be to *literally* know the mind of God? Wow. :)
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Ezekiel 14:23
"And they shall comfort you, when ye see their ways and their doings: and ye shall know that I have not done without cause all that I have done in it, saith the Lord God."
Ezekiel 14:23
What strikes me about this verse is the "I have not done without cause all that I have done" part. I think that this is true in all of God's work, not just this verse. :) And it is comforting to see that everything is not just random... even though we know that it all makes sense, it is really cool when we can see and comprehend how it is all working. It seems to be a gift that God gives to prophets often, but one that I think we can all strive for. When we read the
scriptures and really try to absorb them... to know God as much as we can, then we kind of get on the same wavelength, and we don't just get peace... we get understanding. God shares his thoughts with us, at least to the extent that we can handle... and we can see more of the reasons that God does what he does. Too often, we look around at the world and see so much chaos and harm... and it doesn't seem like it makes sense. We don't think that we can do anything about it, or that anyone can. With God, we can step back and get a larger perspective, and see the incredible forces there are in the world that are working for Good... that are changing things for the better. And we can be a part of making things better, and fitting ourselves into God's plan of happiness... that makes *sense* and will eventually solve all of the problems, globally and individually. :)
Ezekiel 14:23
What strikes me about this verse is the "I have not done without cause all that I have done" part. I think that this is true in all of God's work, not just this verse. :) And it is comforting to see that everything is not just random... even though we know that it all makes sense, it is really cool when we can see and comprehend how it is all working. It seems to be a gift that God gives to prophets often, but one that I think we can all strive for. When we read the
scriptures and really try to absorb them... to know God as much as we can, then we kind of get on the same wavelength, and we don't just get peace... we get understanding. God shares his thoughts with us, at least to the extent that we can handle... and we can see more of the reasons that God does what he does. Too often, we look around at the world and see so much chaos and harm... and it doesn't seem like it makes sense. We don't think that we can do anything about it, or that anyone can. With God, we can step back and get a larger perspective, and see the incredible forces there are in the world that are working for Good... that are changing things for the better. And we can be a part of making things better, and fitting ourselves into God's plan of happiness... that makes *sense* and will eventually solve all of the problems, globally and individually. :)
Friday, July 6, 2007
Jeremiah 32:40
"And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me."
Jeremiah 32:40
Fascinating. :) In a way, it sounds like God is promising not to do us good, but to keep throwing obstacles at us. ...That isn't always what we want, but it is usually what we need. We *need* those obstacles to grow into what we are. If we are going to become like God, we can't just kick back and coast. We have to confront those fears; we have to overcome those doubts. We have to keep learning, growing, and becoming more than we are right now. We need to have that constant motivation... that "fear." And if it is God's fear... maybe it is of our separation from him permanently. He fears that, and loves us, and that is why he wants us to go through all the challenges of life... so that we will learn and grow, and so that one day we can return to him, and not suffer that separation forever. Let's stay motivated today, and meet those challenges, and find the lessons all around us. Let's learn, so that we can return home to our Father.
Jeremiah 32:40
Fascinating. :) In a way, it sounds like God is promising not to do us good, but to keep throwing obstacles at us. ...That isn't always what we want, but it is usually what we need. We *need* those obstacles to grow into what we are. If we are going to become like God, we can't just kick back and coast. We have to confront those fears; we have to overcome those doubts. We have to keep learning, growing, and becoming more than we are right now. We need to have that constant motivation... that "fear." And if it is God's fear... maybe it is of our separation from him permanently. He fears that, and loves us, and that is why he wants us to go through all the challenges of life... so that we will learn and grow, and so that one day we can return to him, and not suffer that separation forever. Let's stay motivated today, and meet those challenges, and find the lessons all around us. Let's learn, so that we can return home to our Father.
Friday, April 27, 2007
Jeremiah 2:13
"For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water."
Jeremiah 2:13
The two evils mentioned here are all too common... and it is interesting to me (and sad) that we do this. Not only do we reject God, but we set up infinitely inferior "replacements" for him in our lives. God is the only one who can fill the void in the soul, and yet we throw things at it, like something else will be able to fill it. ... cookies are one of my faves, but you know... there are all sorts of things. Thrill-seeking, games, books, clothes, or actual other people that we try to make little gods in our lives. ... not fair to anyone actually, because no one can ever live up to those expectations, and no thing (even cookies) can fill that hole in our lives. Only God. Everything else is a broken cistern, and can't hold what we need to sustain our souls. I'm not saying cookies are bad, mind you... or other forms of distraction or escape... and other people certainly aren't bad. However, when we use anything as a replacement for God, or try to fill our emptiness with something besides him, we hurt ourselves, and make the emptiness even more stark. This leads to desperation, because our souls are starving, and we grasp at whatever we think will fill that need... but until we actually turn to God, things can only get worse. ... today, let's make sure we include God in our lives, and slake the thirst of our souls with his living water... and nothing less.
Jeremiah 2:13
The two evils mentioned here are all too common... and it is interesting to me (and sad) that we do this. Not only do we reject God, but we set up infinitely inferior "replacements" for him in our lives. God is the only one who can fill the void in the soul, and yet we throw things at it, like something else will be able to fill it. ... cookies are one of my faves, but you know... there are all sorts of things. Thrill-seeking, games, books, clothes, or actual other people that we try to make little gods in our lives. ... not fair to anyone actually, because no one can ever live up to those expectations, and no thing (even cookies) can fill that hole in our lives. Only God. Everything else is a broken cistern, and can't hold what we need to sustain our souls. I'm not saying cookies are bad, mind you... or other forms of distraction or escape... and other people certainly aren't bad. However, when we use anything as a replacement for God, or try to fill our emptiness with something besides him, we hurt ourselves, and make the emptiness even more stark. This leads to desperation, because our souls are starving, and we grasp at whatever we think will fill that need... but until we actually turn to God, things can only get worse. ... today, let's make sure we include God in our lives, and slake the thirst of our souls with his living water... and nothing less.
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