Skip to main content

Posts

Perfect (Again)

           “As for God, his way is perfect: The Lord’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him. (II Samuel 22:31) Yes, I know. The exact same words as yesterday, but a different reference. It’s part of a song David sang, and it’s included both in the history books and the “hymnal” of Israel that we call the Psalms. I chose it as the verse of the day because I realized that I didn’t clearly make the point that I wanted to. Have you ever grabbed a table knife to insert or remove a screw, used a shoe to squash a bug, or a paper towel to funnel something into a jar? Have you used a rock for a hammer or (thanks to a friend for this one) a short-handled broom that requires that you bend over to sweep? None of these are perfect tools for accomplishing the task. There are screwdrivers and even power tools to insert or remove screws, fly swatters to kill bugs, and actual funnels. The handle on a hammer and the long handle on brooms are b...
Post a Comment
Read more
Recent posts

Perfect

                   As for God, his way is perfect: The Lord’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him. (Psalm 18:30) And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. (Hebrews 11:6) Perfect? How many people lost their lives in the flooding in Texas? Some might say, “If His way is perfect, why is my life such a mess?” or “If His way is perfect, why is there evil in the world? Certainly, this isn’t perfect.” But these questions are the ones asked in the maze, or in the forest where our view of the whole is blocked by trees. I saw something on social media recently about the dark matter and dark energy in the universe. This morning, I found statistics saying that we can only see about 15% of the universe, even when we use machines. When I stargazed, I stood in awe of the vast number of stars I c...
Post a Comment
Read more

Seek His Face

              if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land . (II Chronicles 7:14)           I know this is old news, but in October, I drove to Florida right after Hurricane Helene devastated parts of the territory between Pennsylvania and Florida. Some of the workers who went to help stayed in the hotel I usually stay in. Right after I got to Florida, Hurricane Milton came through, and I returned to Erie with a load of stuff, then went back to Florida to sell the trailer. I got home shortly before “snowmageddon”, when the plow crews couldn’t get secondary roads cleared even once in five days. While FEMA was doing next to nothing except getting in the way in North Carolina, the nation was summ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Gathering and Giving

                 Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest. (Proverbs 6:6-7)   “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep. “At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ “Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps.   The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’ “‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Guard Your Heart

            Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips. Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you. Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Do not turn to the right or the left, keep your foot from evil. (Proverbs 4:23-27)     This passage may not be complete or clear about the “parts” of a person according to Dallas Willard (Heart/will/spirit, mind/thoughts/feelings, body, relationships, and soul) but it has enough to be a good overall bit of advice. We are advised to guard our hearts. Our hearts are like sheep. They need to be protected from the wolves, lions, and bears of our lives, but also from their own foolishness. We’re to give careful thought to our ways and be steadfast, both of which require a clear head. We’re to keep our feet from evil. We’re to be...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sin

                 Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people. (Proverbs14:34) Sin is another word that seems to breed magical thinking. If we sin, then God does something meant to punish. But if you trip the breaker, it makes no sense to complain that the electric company has attacked you. Sin, at its core, is breaking your connection with God and putting yourself in His place. You trip the “breaker,” cutting off any connection with Him, and in many cases, issue an ultimatum saying that the only way there can be peace with us is for Him to bow to us by accepting, approving, and applauding whatever decisions we make. Individuals and groups can do this. Often, the way we choose is sanitized using terms like modern, enlightened, woke, seeker-sensitive, seeker-friendly, or emergent. The whole key is that we can ignore whatever God has said before in favor whatever we choose because for one reason or another, we’re special ...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Heart...

                 The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve.” (Jeremiah 17:9-10) “His heart is in the right place.” “I know in my heart.” “Trust your heart, it won’t lead you wrong.” I wonder what would happen if those who are so certain of our hearts did a scientific study of the percent of times that the heart was right and the percent that it was wrong. In Old Testament law, if a prophet was ever wrong, even once, the prophet was to be put to death. And if the prophet suggested the people follow some other god, the prophet was to be put to death. And today’s passage makes it clear that our hearts – our selves – are not the best choice of guidance. This is something that C. G.  Jung pointed out in his essay The Undiscovered Self . We ca...
Post a Comment
Read more