15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. 16Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4)
In sundry places and during various times I dismissed the possibility that anyone could understand my plight and problem. I could not fathom anybody understanding my predicament, my anxiety, or my fears simply because they seemed too great for someone who wasn't in my shoes to grasp. How could they understand?
Yet, Jesus does. As our High Priest, He not only is there to counsel and help, He has experienced the very human sufferings and pains we experience now, even in our present day. Rejection, loneliness, fear, betrayal...He's felt it all, but to the extreme. What He experienced is far greater than anything we could ever experience because He was completely innocent. The question is now, how could we EVER understand what it felt like to be Him and to be in His situation.
However, He doesn't ask us to sympathize with Him; He simply offers His sympathy to us. He really knows and really understands and really wants to help us in our time of sorrow.
Saturday, July 7, 2007
Friday, July 6, 2007
sowing wind.
7 "They sow the wind
and reap the whirlwind. (Hosea 8)
What is it that I spend most of time doing? Am I just sowing the wind, of which the seeds are empty, worthless, and void of any value? Because if I am, if I have dedicated any part of my being to something that is as empty as the wind, I will surely reap the whirlwind. Contrary to what I might hope for, opposite of what I may perceive, I will not simply gain nothingess or end up empty handed like the wind, but rather I will experience the destruction and catastrophe of wasting my time and effort...I will be caught in the whirlwind of this world.
I want to sow seeds that have meaning, that will yield abundant crop. The only way I can be productive is by abiding in the Vine, and then the fruit I bear will be of the Spirit.
and reap the whirlwind. (Hosea 8)
What is it that I spend most of time doing? Am I just sowing the wind, of which the seeds are empty, worthless, and void of any value? Because if I am, if I have dedicated any part of my being to something that is as empty as the wind, I will surely reap the whirlwind. Contrary to what I might hope for, opposite of what I may perceive, I will not simply gain nothingess or end up empty handed like the wind, but rather I will experience the destruction and catastrophe of wasting my time and effort...I will be caught in the whirlwind of this world.
I want to sow seeds that have meaning, that will yield abundant crop. The only way I can be productive is by abiding in the Vine, and then the fruit I bear will be of the Spirit.
Thursday, July 5, 2007
returning the love.
2 So I bought her for fifteen shekels [a] of silver and about a homer and a lethek [b] of barley. 3 Then I told her, "You are to live with [c] me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will live with [d] you."
God's love for us is conditional; there is one thing we must do in return; we must love Him back; we must surrender our whole, entire hearts to Him and Him only; He must be the only one; no questions, no if's, no exceptions. That's the condition.
Hosea understood God's condition. His heart was fully given to God, not Gomer. Perhaps he loved her, but his real love was for God, which then resonanted and spilled over to wife. The only real way he could accept her back was through his faithfulness to God. Without God's love, I'm sure it would be difficult for him to take her back.
Perhaps if we would dedicate our lives to God, wholly and completely, we would be able to do even the hardest tasks we're confronted with daily. Perhaps we would love like we have never loved before.
God's love for us is conditional; there is one thing we must do in return; we must love Him back; we must surrender our whole, entire hearts to Him and Him only; He must be the only one; no questions, no if's, no exceptions. That's the condition.
Hosea understood God's condition. His heart was fully given to God, not Gomer. Perhaps he loved her, but his real love was for God, which then resonanted and spilled over to wife. The only real way he could accept her back was through his faithfulness to God. Without God's love, I'm sure it would be difficult for him to take her back.
Perhaps if we would dedicate our lives to God, wholly and completely, we would be able to do even the hardest tasks we're confronted with daily. Perhaps we would love like we have never loved before.
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
reservations.
2 When the LORD began to speak through Hosea, the LORD said to him, "Go, take to yourself an adulterous wife and children of unfaithfulness, because the land is guilty of the vilest adultery in departing from the LORD." (Hosea 1)
I wonder how Hosea felt about taking Gomer to be his wife, knowing full well that she would leave him. Did he love her from the beginning? Obviously, he was being obedient to God, but I wonder if he really surrendered his heart to her completely. Perhaps, knowing that she would commit adultery, he loved her with reservation.
Is loving someone with reservation sufficient? God doesn't love us with any reservation, even though he knows we will abandon Him and follow others. Even though He knows our hearts, the wickedness and everything we think and feel, He still loves us. I want to love with that kind of love...
I'm so glad we can count on God; there is no need for us to ever hold any reservations. He will not ever be adulterous, so we can love Him fully and completely now...and forever.
I wonder how Hosea felt about taking Gomer to be his wife, knowing full well that she would leave him. Did he love her from the beginning? Obviously, he was being obedient to God, but I wonder if he really surrendered his heart to her completely. Perhaps, knowing that she would commit adultery, he loved her with reservation.
Is loving someone with reservation sufficient? God doesn't love us with any reservation, even though he knows we will abandon Him and follow others. Even though He knows our hearts, the wickedness and everything we think and feel, He still loves us. I want to love with that kind of love...
I'm so glad we can count on God; there is no need for us to ever hold any reservations. He will not ever be adulterous, so we can love Him fully and completely now...and forever.
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
pride.
16 But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the LORD his God (2Chronicles 26)
Even when we think we have all our enemies, vices, and evils in check, we sometimes forget the most dangerous force is within our own souls. Uzziah was a mighty man at one time. He fought against countless opponents, and yet he conquered them and strengthened his nation. He was up against some hard situations, but somehow he managed to get through them. But amid all his ambitions and success, this great man and warrior failed to realize his greatest weakness was himself and his pride.
No man can escape this downfall. All men must bow down. Either you choose to be humble or you become humbled. Not only should we be aware of this in our every day encounters with other people and with God, but we should also be conscious of it when we're dealing with those who have fallen. It's a very painful thing to have such a downfall. We need to show them grace. I'm sure Uzziah was not only reminded daily of his failure, but I'm sure he was filled with an unfathomable amount of shame and regret. For all those Uzziahs out there, you're not alone. Return to God.
Even when we think we have all our enemies, vices, and evils in check, we sometimes forget the most dangerous force is within our own souls. Uzziah was a mighty man at one time. He fought against countless opponents, and yet he conquered them and strengthened his nation. He was up against some hard situations, but somehow he managed to get through them. But amid all his ambitions and success, this great man and warrior failed to realize his greatest weakness was himself and his pride.
No man can escape this downfall. All men must bow down. Either you choose to be humble or you become humbled. Not only should we be aware of this in our every day encounters with other people and with God, but we should also be conscious of it when we're dealing with those who have fallen. It's a very painful thing to have such a downfall. We need to show them grace. I'm sure Uzziah was not only reminded daily of his failure, but I'm sure he was filled with an unfathomable amount of shame and regret. For all those Uzziahs out there, you're not alone. Return to God.
Monday, July 2, 2007
rest.
7 Be at rest once more, O my soul,
for the LORD has been good to you. (Psalm 116)
The soul is not always at rest; there are times of disturbance; there are moments of wake and tremble; there are feelings of fatigue and weariness. In this life, we cannot expect calm and placid waves upon these corrupt shores. People will inevitably come in and destroy any peace that we were feeling. We will inevitably make mistakes that will cause our own lives to crumble. However, these disturbances, intrusions, and mishaps are only momentarily. God will make restoration if we allow Him to.
Perhaps one of the most difficult parts of restoration is giving up all control and surrending all anxiety and fear. When the calm comes again, when the rest is given once more, we are unfortunate to have the tendancy to be suspicious and paranoid. We cannot enjoy the rest fully because we are so afraid of what might happen next or we are so overwhelmed by what did happen. Instead, like David, we just have to be grateful for the rest we are given and be thankful that God is so, so, so good to us.
for the LORD has been good to you. (Psalm 116)
The soul is not always at rest; there are times of disturbance; there are moments of wake and tremble; there are feelings of fatigue and weariness. In this life, we cannot expect calm and placid waves upon these corrupt shores. People will inevitably come in and destroy any peace that we were feeling. We will inevitably make mistakes that will cause our own lives to crumble. However, these disturbances, intrusions, and mishaps are only momentarily. God will make restoration if we allow Him to.
Perhaps one of the most difficult parts of restoration is giving up all control and surrending all anxiety and fear. When the calm comes again, when the rest is given once more, we are unfortunate to have the tendancy to be suspicious and paranoid. We cannot enjoy the rest fully because we are so afraid of what might happen next or we are so overwhelmed by what did happen. Instead, like David, we just have to be grateful for the rest we are given and be thankful that God is so, so, so good to us.
Sunday, July 1, 2007
trust.
22 Stop trusting in man,
who has but a breath in his nostrils.
Of what account is he? (Isaiah 2)
Much of my woe is derived from trusting in men, and then feeling the disappointment and letdown of their failure. How often I have entrusted my heart to people, how many times have I hoped in mankind, how quickly have I become vulnerable in the hands of family and friends to be hurt because of their inconsideration and negligence?
I believe most of my pain is from trusting people. I'm not saying that we should live our lives cynically. Or that we should just assume the worst in everybody. However, we should NEVER, NEVER, NEVER trust anyone more than we trust God. We should always keep a little part of our heart conscious of the fact that someone, anyone, everyone might hurt us. While we should reserve a big part of our heart in an awareness that God will NEVER hurt us or let us down. If we live with this mentality, I think we would be less vulnerable.
who has but a breath in his nostrils.
Of what account is he? (Isaiah 2)
Much of my woe is derived from trusting in men, and then feeling the disappointment and letdown of their failure. How often I have entrusted my heart to people, how many times have I hoped in mankind, how quickly have I become vulnerable in the hands of family and friends to be hurt because of their inconsideration and negligence?
I believe most of my pain is from trusting people. I'm not saying that we should live our lives cynically. Or that we should just assume the worst in everybody. However, we should NEVER, NEVER, NEVER trust anyone more than we trust God. We should always keep a little part of our heart conscious of the fact that someone, anyone, everyone might hurt us. While we should reserve a big part of our heart in an awareness that God will NEVER hurt us or let us down. If we live with this mentality, I think we would be less vulnerable.
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