"...without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." Genesis 1:2
Nothing, there was nothing worth claiming. Nothing worth keeping in that dark and magled mess of planet. But the Spirit moved. God came and parted the waters. He put some above and some below. He separated the dark water again and set it all in one place, causing the land to appear. He then filled the water with teaming life.
That is the journey of a soul, the journey of my soul. Disorder, emptiness, darkness these are the characteristics in my heart. But the Lord separates darkness. He divides it in half, He pools it all into one place. Then he fills the uninhabitable void with life. And I wait for the day, when "...the first heaven and the first earth (are) passed away; and there (will be) no more sea." Revelation 21:1
Monday, August 6, 2012
Sunday, August 5, 2012
The Waters (part three)
There are times darkness floods, like Noah's water, "the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened."(Genesis 7:11) The darkness raises up from inside and falls down from circumstances. It surrounds, there is no escaping.
In those moments there is nothing to do but yield. Surrendering in hope to Christ is the only recourse.
"I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and He heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and Thou heardest my voice. For thou hadst cast me into the deep in the midst of the seas; and the floods compassed me about; all Thy billows and Thy waves passed over me. Then I said, I am cast out of Thy sight; yet I will look again toward Thy holy temple. The waters compassed me about, even to the soul; the depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast Thou brought up my life from corruption."
"O Lord my God. When my soul fainted within me I remembered the Lord: and my prayer came in unto Thee, into thine holy temple...I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord." Jonah 2:2-9
In those moments there is nothing to do but yield. Surrendering in hope to Christ is the only recourse.
"I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and He heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and Thou heardest my voice. For thou hadst cast me into the deep in the midst of the seas; and the floods compassed me about; all Thy billows and Thy waves passed over me. Then I said, I am cast out of Thy sight; yet I will look again toward Thy holy temple. The waters compassed me about, even to the soul; the depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast Thou brought up my life from corruption."
"O Lord my God. When my soul fainted within me I remembered the Lord: and my prayer came in unto Thee, into thine holy temple...I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord." Jonah 2:2-9
Saturday, August 4, 2012
The Waters (part two)
The wind on the sea produces enormous waves which crash and bounce on the shore. It is a majestic sight, but the wind on the sea is troublesome. It churns up the sand, and flying sand stings.
"...the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left." Ex 14:21, 22
I imagine Israel wedged between the sea and the pillar caught in a wind storm. Not an ordinary storm but a supernatural one coming from the east, right at them. All night they were pummeled by the sand. It got into their tents. It covered their clothing, their bedding and their hair. It scratched their eyes and added grit to their food. Moses said, "Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will shew to you today..." (Exodus 14:13) In that situation most of us would resent the storm and complain, "Just when things were hopeless, they got worse." But that sand that peeled their skin was needed. Yes, it blasted them, and yes it weighed down their caravan as they traversed the ocean floor with pounds of sand tucked in their baggage, but the sand prepared the way for salvation.
Trials that sting; sins we shake out of our hair only to find more tomorrow. These are all precious reminders that the Lord is preparing for our deliverance. Let the wind fly on the sea, it is there we discover salvation. "...they shall offer sacrifices of righteousness: for they shall suck of the abundance of the seas, and of treasures hid in the sand." (Deuteronomy 33:19)
"...the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left." Ex 14:21, 22
I imagine Israel wedged between the sea and the pillar caught in a wind storm. Not an ordinary storm but a supernatural one coming from the east, right at them. All night they were pummeled by the sand. It got into their tents. It covered their clothing, their bedding and their hair. It scratched their eyes and added grit to their food. Moses said, "Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will shew to you today..." (Exodus 14:13) In that situation most of us would resent the storm and complain, "Just when things were hopeless, they got worse." But that sand that peeled their skin was needed. Yes, it blasted them, and yes it weighed down their caravan as they traversed the ocean floor with pounds of sand tucked in their baggage, but the sand prepared the way for salvation.
Thursday, August 2, 2012
The Waters (part one)
"Teaming with life..." He said it was teaming with life.
Although inanimate it breathes. Inhale. Exhale. Rhythmically it's bellows swell and deflate. Without a mind it has moods: peaceful, playful, or angry. It tricks you, it soothes you, it grabs your ankles and pulls. The ocean is wild, it acts like a living thing.
In all of its phases the ocean reflects God's waves of mercy. They may be small and subtile; just lapping at your toes. They can be giants rushing miles into shore, completely changing the landscape as they go. Or they can be surprising, catching you off guard; soaking you from head to toe. Waves of mercy... Thank God they keep coming.
But the ocean as powerful as it is cannot go past its determined limits, "He hath compassed the waters with bound..." (Job 26:10) Ellen White says, "A homeless wanderer, reproach and penury His daily lot, He lived to minister to the needs and lighten the woes of men, to plead with them to accept the gift of life. The waves of mercy, beaten back by those stubborn hearts, returned in a stronger tide of pitying, inexpressible love. But Israel had turned from her best Friend and only Helper. The pleadings of His love had been despised, His counsels spurned, His warnings ridiculed." (GC 20)
Israel was unmoved by the tide of God's love. Heaven forbid it happen to us. Are we embracing the daily waves of mercy? They come as blessings and rebukes. They gladden our hearts and cross our flesh. Oh, they come and continue to come, but "He hath compassed the waters with bound." As great as the wave may be it cannot go past the stoic heart. Waves of mercy only affect change where they are accepted.
Although inanimate it breathes. Inhale. Exhale. Rhythmically it's bellows swell and deflate. Without a mind it has moods: peaceful, playful, or angry. It tricks you, it soothes you, it grabs your ankles and pulls. The ocean is wild, it acts like a living thing.
In all of its phases the ocean reflects God's waves of mercy. They may be small and subtile; just lapping at your toes. They can be giants rushing miles into shore, completely changing the landscape as they go. Or they can be surprising, catching you off guard; soaking you from head to toe. Waves of mercy... Thank God they keep coming.
But the ocean as powerful as it is cannot go past its determined limits, "He hath compassed the waters with bound..." (Job 26:10) Ellen White says, "A homeless wanderer, reproach and penury His daily lot, He lived to minister to the needs and lighten the woes of men, to plead with them to accept the gift of life. The waves of mercy, beaten back by those stubborn hearts, returned in a stronger tide of pitying, inexpressible love. But Israel had turned from her best Friend and only Helper. The pleadings of His love had been despised, His counsels spurned, His warnings ridiculed." (GC 20)
Israel was unmoved by the tide of God's love. Heaven forbid it happen to us. Are we embracing the daily waves of mercy? They come as blessings and rebukes. They gladden our hearts and cross our flesh. Oh, they come and continue to come, but "He hath compassed the waters with bound." As great as the wave may be it cannot go past the stoic heart. Waves of mercy only affect change where they are accepted.
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Texting (part one)
Every Page
"God’s holy, educating Spirit is in His word. A light, a new and precious light, shines forth from every page. Truth is there revealed, and words and sentences are made bright and appropriate for the occasion, as the voice of God speaking to the soul." Ellen G White – {COL 132.2}
"As the voice of God speaking to the soul..." It is amazing that the King would speak personally to our hearts! He speaks great and marvelous themes, but He also speaks personally intimate ones too. "Words and sentences are made bright and appropriate for the occasion." I have seen Him do this. There have been times I have humbly read His word and had a burden on my heart and He relieves it by bringing to light things in the text I had never noticed before. He has made me recognize that every time I read His text there are personal and specific blessings in store for me. Because I want you to believe that the King is willing to text you about specific needs in your life I will share some of my experiences with God texting me.
Each morning after prayer I write in my journal and unburden my heart before my Father. Afterwards I go to my regularly scheduled Bible study. Here is an excerpt from a few weeks ago... I hope you will bring your burdens to Him and read the Bible looking for his personal texts to you.
June 14, 2012
A day of lasts. The last time I wake up in this house, the last time I walk through my garden, the last time I see the beautiful view out the window. What is in my heart this morning that I want to give to you Father? I guess it is mostly that I am surprised that you are interested in these last moments. That you want to walk through them with me. This is what I pray for that You walk with us and be noticeable to our dull senses. We are pilgrims. This is a journey....
Please help us find the right place to live. Can you make finding a rental house easy? Should we even rent? Are there other options?
2 Sam 7
V7 ...I have walked with all the children of Israel...
V10 Moreover I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more;
V11 ...Also the LORD telleth thee that he will make thee an house.
Thank you for speaking with me. Please give me awe and reverence. Help me not be tricking myself that it is really You texting me. When I realize I am in your presence and You are really engaged in communing with me all my other requests grow dim besides this one, I pray that You save my children.
V 12 I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.
V15 But my mercy shall not depart away from him.
This is happiness in my heart, you are faithful, your mercy endureth forever. I can only respond to You as did David,
V18 Who am I, O Lord, and what is my house that thou hast brought me hither to?
I will depend on you. We are not worthy of your goodness, but you are a mighty God, whose name is love.
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Racham. Plural (part 2)
For forty weeks and 24/7, love bathed each of my babies. My lungs breathed so they didn't need to. My heart beat to give them blood. I ate things they were unable to digest. Every cell in me; every thought, every feeling centered around the growing fetus. I talked to it. I sang to it. I prayed for it. I lived my life for it. A mothers love for her unborn baby is tender and deep. I believe there may be no words on the planet to express it, yet in Hebrew God multiplies racham to denote that kind of love. It is defined as "compassion (in the plural); by extension the womb (as cherishing the fetus)..."
Lamentations 3:22 says, "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions (racham) fail not." God loves us with the same tender compassionate care that mothers have for their babies. He breathed life into us. His heart pumped blood to save us. He drank the bitter cup because we could not do it and survive. He speaks to us..."And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye it in.." Isaiah 30:21. He sings to us..."The Lord thy God...will rejoice over thee with joy; He will rest in His love He will joy over thee with singing." Zephaniah 3:17 He prays for us..."I pray for them...which Thou hast given me." John 17:9 He died and lives for us..."For in Him we live, and move, and have our being...for we are also His offspring." Acts 17:28
There are no words in the universe to describe God's love for us, it is racham multiplied by omnipotence!
Lamentations 3:22 says, "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions (racham) fail not." God loves us with the same tender compassionate care that mothers have for their babies. He breathed life into us. His heart pumped blood to save us. He drank the bitter cup because we could not do it and survive. He speaks to us..."And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye it in.." Isaiah 30:21. He sings to us..."The Lord thy God...will rejoice over thee with joy; He will rest in His love He will joy over thee with singing." Zephaniah 3:17 He prays for us..."I pray for them...which Thou hast given me." John 17:9 He died and lives for us..."For in Him we live, and move, and have our being...for we are also His offspring." Acts 17:28
There are no words in the universe to describe God's love for us, it is racham multiplied by omnipotence!
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Racham Singular (part 1)
Your father did it as did mine. He stood over your infant bed and wondered at the miraculous gift he was given. Inevitably with the back of a finger he fondled your soft cheek. I have seen my husband do this and it would seem that his rough hands could bruise the tender skin, but they never did. His touch, full of love and compassion, ran like water over a smooth surface.
That picture expresses God's tender compassion toward all His children. The Bible says, "Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him." Psalm 103:13. The word pitieth in Hebrew is racham. It means "to fondle; by implication to love, especially to compassionate..." Because He is our Father, the Lord watches over us and marvels at the wonderful gift He has in us. He fondles us with oceans of love and compassion. In our infantile ignorance we do not recognize the touch, still it changes us. We are surrounded by it; buoyed up by it, and it makes us live.
That picture expresses God's tender compassion toward all His children. The Bible says, "Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him." Psalm 103:13. The word pitieth in Hebrew is racham. It means "to fondle; by implication to love, especially to compassionate..." Because He is our Father, the Lord watches over us and marvels at the wonderful gift He has in us. He fondles us with oceans of love and compassion. In our infantile ignorance we do not recognize the touch, still it changes us. We are surrounded by it; buoyed up by it, and it makes us live.
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