Category: General

Loving God’s Ways

From Doug Wolter’s Blog Life Together

“God’s ways are not our ways and his thoughts are not our thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8

The text goes on to say that God’s Word and his ways are like the rain and snow that gently fall down and sink into the earth, which in time, brings forth life. Foster writes,

What a contrast with our ways, which involve wanting to open up another person’s head and tinker around in there for a bit! But you see, God’s ways are all patience and love, all grace and mercy. Our ways are domination and control, all manipulation and guile.

 

You see it’s one thing to love God; it’s quite another to love God’s ways.

-Richard Foster, Sanctuary of the Soul: Journey Into Meditative Prayer via Life Together

Guard Your Heart

From Michael Hyatt’s Blog: Three reasons to guard your heart:

“Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life” (Proverbs 4:23).

Because your heart is extremely valuable. We don’t guard worthless things. I take my garbage to the street every Wednesday night. It is picked up on Thursday morning. It sits on the sidewalk all night, completely unguarded. Why? Because it is worthless.

Not so with your heart. It is the essence of who you are. It is your authentic self—the core of your being. It is where all your dreams, your desires, and your passions live. It is that part of you that connects with God and other people.

Just like your physical body, if your heart—your spiritual heart—dies, your leadership dies. This is why Solomon says, “Above all else.” He doesn’t say, “If you get around to it” or “It would be nice if.” No, he says, make it your top priority.

Because your heart is the source of everything you do. King Solomon says it is the “wellspring of life.” In other words, it is the source of everything else in your life. Your heart overflows into thoughts, words, and actions.

In Tennessee, where I live, we have thousands and thousands of natural springs, where water flows to the surface of the earth from deep under the ground. It then accumulates in pools or runs off into creeks and streams.

If you plug up the spring, you stop the flow of water. If you poison the water, the flow becomes toxic. In either situation, you threaten life downstream. Everything depends on the condition of the spring.
Likewise, if your heart is unhealthy, it has an impact on everything else. It threatens your family, your friends, your ministry, your career, and, indeed, your legacy. It is, therefore, imperative that you guard it.

Because your heart is under constant attack. When Solomon says to guard your heart, he implies that you are living in a combat zone—one in which there are casualties.
Many of us are oblivious to the reality of this war. We have an enemy who is bent on our destruction. He not only opposes God, but he opposes everything that is aligned with Him—including us.

Cozy

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 an exemplary life among the natives so that your actions will refute their prejudices. Then they’ll be won over to God’s side and be there to join in the celebration when he arrives. 1 Peter 2:11 (MSG)

From Seth Barnes: When cozy is no longer normal.

Perspective

On the recommendation of friends, my wife and I have checked out the show “Switched at Birth”, I’m not here to give a review (although so far we’ve found it interesting). I was caught a little off guard at my reaction to the show.

If you are unfamiliar with the show, it revolves around the revelation that two girls, who are now 16, were switched at birth (hence the title of the show). The two families are have a rough start trying to figure out what this means to them and their respective daughters. But what really blew me away was how the parents of one of the girls immediately seemed to assume ownership of their biological daughter, trying to weigh in on decisions about how to raise her, and even considered pursuing their legal options to have her real parent’s parental rights removed. This struck me as down right evil.

Let me preface that with, I in no way know how I would react to such a thing, at present it is unthinkable that this amazing little girl isn’t mine, especially when she is being really stubborn :). But it bothered me, and it bothered me that it bothered me. And I think I know why, it took awhile, and I think it was the Holy Spirit who revealed it, but the reason it bothered me so much was, because I’m adopted.

Every time I saw the way the girls on the show reacted to their parents insensitivity, I could see myself in their shoes. Their sense of security shattered, always question what could have been, and who they really were. And yes I know it’s a TV show, but when I was younger these questions and doubts were a part of my life.

God has guided me through a lot of these twists and turns, and there’s still a ways to go. But seeing this all again has reminded me that regardless of the toughness adoption brings to life, I was and am awesomely blessed to have been adopted by two truly amazing parents.

Our only comfort today, tomorrow

Question:  What is your only comfort in life and in death?

Answer:  That I am not my own
but belong—
body and soul,
in life and in death—
to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ.

He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood,
and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil.
He also watches over me in such a way
that not a hair can fall from my head
without the will of my Father in heaven;
in fact, all things must work together for my salvation.

Because I belong to him,
Christ, by his Holy Spirit,
assures me of eternal life
and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready
from now on to live for him.

The Heidelberg Catechism, Lord’s Day 1.

Via Ray Ortlund

Promises

“16 And what union can there be between God’s temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God said:
“I will live in them
and walk among them.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
17 Therefore, come out from among unbelievers,
and separate yourselves from them, says the Lord.
Don’t touch their filthy things,
and I will welcome you.
18 And I will be your Father,
and you will be my sons and daughters,
says the Lord Almighty.”
Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete holiness because we fear God.”

2 Corinthians 6:16 – 7:1 NLT

Costly Grace

Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must knock. Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: ‘Ye were bought at a price’, and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.”
— Dietrich Bonhoeffer (The Cost of Discipleship)