Jeremiah 7-9

Day 221 Jeremiah 7 5 Total nonsense! Only if you clean up your act (the way you live, the things you do), only if you do a total spring cleaning on the way you live and treat your neighbors,6 only if you quit exploiting the street people and orphans and widows, no longer taking advantage of innocent people on this very site and no longer destroying your souls by using this Temple as a front for other gods -7 only then will I move into your neighborhood. Only then will this country I gave your ancestors be my permanent home, my Temple. Only once we clean up our act will God move into our neighborhood - our hearts. But how do we know when that happens? There is soooo much distance between God and where my sinful heart lies. We are not made to be perfect, for perfection is reserved for God only. However, if we refuse to acknowledge our sin, and refuse to make any attempt to let it go, there is no room for God to move in. God designed our hearts to only serve one being - Him. When we fill our hearts with other things - money, alcohol, sex, cards, whatever - we crowd Him out and don't leave Him enough room to grow and take over. We need to perform a total spring cleaning - get rid of all of that other junk - in order to allow Him to take over our hearts. 19 "But is it me they're hurting?" God's Decree! "Aren't they just hurting themselves? Exposing themselves shamefully? Making themselves ridiculous? The answer is BOTH. We do hurt ourselves by separating ourselves from God. In Him we have eternal life. In Him we have love and joy and truth and light. But He has us, too. He loves to love us, just as we love to love our children. I didn't really know what it meant to love God until I became a mother. Holding my babies, pouring love over them, rejoicing in their triumphs, and comforting them in their fears and hurts ... that is how God loves us, and when we turn from Him, and fill our hearts with all of that other JUNK, it hurts Him, too. 4 "Tell them this, God's Message: "'Do people fall down and not get up? Or take the wrong road and then just keep going?5 So why does this people go backwards, and just keep on going-backwards! They stubbornly hold on to their illusions, refuse to change direction. It is soooo easy to fall to our stubbornness and harden our hearts against what God wants for us. When we're stuck in our own misery, it takes a huge change of heart to get us out, and that is the only thing that works. I've been happy in my misery at times. I think most of this last year I've been stuck in my own personal quagmire of bitterness - as much as I hate to admit it. But I haven't given up hope, because I know that I can work my way out of it, even if it takes longer than I'd like... So many things are running through my mind today, the last day of 2011. This past year has certainly been interesting, and was a roller coaster of ups and downs. I've had a lot of time for reflection the past few days, and I know a lot of changes have to be made in 2012. I'm looking forward to them. Praying God finds you wherever you are this year, and that you may be blessed beyond belief by Him

Jeremiah 4-6

Day 220 I have enjoyed reading about the rise and fall of leadership across the Old Testament - it has been rather interesting to see just how the beliefs of Kings could change the face of the world. Even more interesting, is how God would warn them over and over that they would not be rewarded for condemning Him, they wouldn't believe, and His punishments would come. Talk about shock & awe! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Jeremiah 4 1 "If you want to come back, O Israel, you must really come back to me. You must get rid of your stinking sin paraphernalia and not wander away from me anymore.2 Then you can say words like, 'As God lives . . . ' and have them mean something true and just and right. And the godless nations will get caught up in the blessing and find something in Israel to write home about." How often have you gone to God? You are a part of Israel, you know. We all are. And we have an opportunity every single day to go back to Him. Turn our backs on sin, and ask for forgiveness. What stops us? What stands in the way? I could make a list of a million things, or I could just give one simple answer: The only thing standing in our way, is our very own self. I trip myself up all the time, and I know you probably stand in your way, too. But you can stop wandering from Him, you can run back with your arms open. He will hold you tightly. 18 "It's the way you've lived that's brought all this on you. The bitter taste is from your evil life. That's what's piercing your heart." I've had a REALLY bad day today. In fact, I had been reading my study and had started writing this post when I had to stop to deal with Red having major Asperger's meltdown. It is now after 1am and I'm only just now getting around to finish my thoughts and prayers. When we have days like today, I can't help but wonder if this really is all my fault. All of the sins and pain I caused in the past caused Red's condition. No ... no, I know that isn't right. There is no karma in God's Word. Red is exactly the way God made him because, one of these days, all of his little aspie hangups will glorify Him. (Just praying, its sooner than later, today ... please) When God sent Christ to live and die for us, Christ took all of that pain and sin with him. No longer does my life reflect my behavior - Christ saved me from that horrible sentence. It is simply time for me to learn how to deal with my child - so easier said than done. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Jeremiah 5 3 But you, God, you have an eye for truth, don't you? You hit them hard, but it didn't faze them. You disciplined them, but they refused correction. Hardheaded, harder than rock, they wouldn't change.4 Then I said to myself, "Well, these are just poor people. They don't know any better. They were never taught anything about God. They never went to prayer meetings... Growing up, I wasn't taught the everlasting and eternal love that Christ provides. I was not taught how to speak with him, and commune with him. I was not shown that letting Christ shine from my heart was the most amazing feeling in the world. I am constantly questioning my ability to teach my children these things. I'm certainly under qualified, right? I'm *only* a Mom ... No, that can't be right, either. I don't have to have a Pastor's degree to teach my children that Christ loves them and its easy for them to love Him back. I am a Mom. And even on days like today when my heart is broken and I feel like there is never going to be an end to the hurt Red's condition causes, I know there is still Hope, Faith, Love .... God. Every day. All the time. Forever.

One Year Later

I always find it amazing when I let a year go by without thought, or concern, or basically anything else. Like, my heart just falls off the face of the planet. The past year has seen a LOT of struggle, heartache, triumph, and laughter. But I have missed constant study, and I have REALLY missed writing. Again, with so much to say, you'd think that I would never ever get up from this computer. Yet, somehow, I manage to find a million and one distractions. If I stopped now to talk about all the changes in my life, I would never have any time to do anything else. Suffice to say, I have had an incredible journey :) I've been reading a chronological study of the Bible, and it has really opened my eyes to a whole new side of God. I'm taking it slowly, doing a little bit of research and other reading along the way, and I've never been more in love with the word of God than I am now. I've been reading for quite some time, and I've made it up through Jeremiah. I am excited about writing again, and letting God's Holy Message wash over me, and through me.

1 Corinthians 13

Love.

Love is what created us, what moves us, and what we were created to do. And I can think of very little to describe the Love of God for us, and the Love we are to have for each other more than this chapter.

If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, "Jump," and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing. If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love.

~ Love never gives up.
~ Love cares more for others than for self.
~ Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
~ Love doesn't strut,
~ Doesn't have a swelled head,
~ Doesn't force itself on others,
~ Isn't always "me first,",
~ Doesn't fly off the handle,
~ Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
~ Doesn't revel when others grovel,
~ Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
~ Puts up with anything,
~ Trusts God always,
~ Always looks for the best,
~ Never looks back,
~ But keeps going to the end.

Love never does. Inspired speech will be over some day; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit. We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete. But when the Complete arrives our incompletes will be canceled. When i was an infant at my mother's breast, I gurgled and cooed like any infant. When I grew up, I left those infant ways for good. We don't yet see things clearly. We're squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won't be long before teh weather clears and the sun shines bright! We'll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!

(and this is my favorite favorite part)

But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love.

1 Corinthians 12

vs 2 ... Remember how you were when you didn't know God, led from one phony god to another, never knowing what you were doing, just doing it because everybody else did it? It's different in this life. God wants us to use our intelligence, to seek to understand as well as we can.

I remember what it was like before I met God all too well. I was sad - all.the.time. I was empty. I could never get enough, of anything. I struggled, I cried, I pretended everything was okay. I desperately searched for happiness anywhere I could find it. by the time I finally went back to church at the age of 24, I had almost completely destroyed myself.

I think of the story of the Prodigal Son quite often. While I had been away from God, I had committed horrible sins, I had hurt countless people. I was battered, broken, dying. I had taken so long to go to church because I had feared harsh judgment, not just by people, by by God. Instead, I was embraced, forgiven, loved. God was not concerned about the road I had taken to get back to Him - He was just glad I was back.

vs 27 ... You are Christ's body - that's who you are! You must never forget this. Only as you accept your part of that body does your "part" mean anything.

I have loved the "parts of the body" comparison since the very first time I heard it. I have always felt awkward and out of place. I was never pretty or thin enough to be part of the "it" crowd. Never athletic enough for the jocks. Too citified for the countryfolk, too countrified for the cityfolk. I didn't even really fit in with the dorks. I was always just me becoming a Christian and a part of the Body of Christ was huge for me. I belonged. I mattered. I had a place and I had purpose. Now I just have to figure out what it is, which I haven't been able to do yet. Thankfully, God is patient.

1 Corinthians 11

Ok, I realize that this chapter touches on two very very important things, but I have to write the conversation that just took place after reading this chapter.

First of all, regarding marriage. I'm not quite in a position to comment about marriage today, as the past couple of weeks have provided some discussion and frustration both in my house and with some friends. There are some points that I need to ponder before I write about it.

Then, Paul addresses communion, and I don't feel I'm quite qualified to discuss that, either. Paul makes it very clear to not make a mockery of the act, and I suppose I could go through a diatribe of all of the acts we take all together too lightly ... but would you really be patient enough to read all of that? Face it, that's one huge long list.

So, instead of all that, I'm going to go here instead. As I've said before, I'm truly enjoying reading the message version of the Bible, and today was no exception.

vs 34 ... If you're so hungry that you can't wait to be served, go home and get a sandwich. ...

Wait.

Did Paul just tell the Corinthians to go home and eat a sammich? Because that is THE Awesome! Here's the conversation that followed:

Me: Wait, did Paul just tell the Corinthians to go home and eat a sammich????

Hubby: (laughing Um ... yeah, I think he just did!

Me: A sammich! That's awesome!!

Hubby: But what kind of sammich would he have eaten?

Me: Not a ham sammich, that's for sure!

Hubby: Turkey? Did they have turkeys?

Me: I think they had "foul". What about deer? A deer sammich.

Hubby: Or something with just vegetables?

Me: Ohhh, hummus! He was telling them to go home and have a hummus pita!

Red: A hummus pita! With tzatziki! Now THAT is what I'm talking about!!! Wait ... weren't we talking about communion? Because, now I'm hungry...





Amen.

Changes around here

Time to change the blog around - I haven't been very attentive to the blog. Mostly because there is such a wide variety of things I want to say. So, from here on out, this will just be my Bible Study, and there will be other places for my insane running commentary.