Rune Before Prayer

A ancient Celtic prayer I would like to share ....

RUNE BEFORE PRAYER

I am bending my knee
In the eye of the Father who created me,
In the eye of the Son who purchased me,
In the eye of the Spirit who cleansed me,
In friendship and affection.
Through Thine own Anointed One, O God,
Bestow upon us fullness in our need,
Love towards God,
The affection of God,
The smile of God,
The wisdom of God.
The grace of God,
The fear of God,
And the will of God
To do on the world of the Three,
As angels and saints
Do in heaven;
Each shade and light,
Each day and night,
Each time in kindness,
Give Thou us Thy Spirit.

What period in history do you belong in?

This should be fun ... What period in history do you belong in?


Click here: Quiz Farm - What period in history do you belong in?
http://quizfarm.com/test.php?q_id=55200


My result:


You belong in the Renaissance.

Renaissance

75%

Pre-Modern World
65%

Middle Ages
60%

Prehistory
50%

Modern World
50%

Industrial Era
50%

Ancient World
35%

A "Why God?" kind of thing ...

I'm in one of those melancholic moods, nothing to bad mind you. Just one of those "Why God?" kind of things I guess. God has given us visions of His kingdom-a world that works for everyone, where needs are met and gifts are called forth. Paul in Romans 8:22 tells us that "creation grows in labor awaiting" for Jesus' arrival. So I wonder Lord, why must things be so hard sometimes? Why really must we wait? Why can't you do what I can imagine the creator of the universe would do ... go shazam! Just bring it on, let your kingdom come!

Things on earth seem most fragile since you made it. God would have figured out how mankind can progress without pollution. God would have figured out how to create an economic system that allows everyone to thrive, not just those favored by the marketplace or whatever. All people would live abundantly. Gods way isn't about wealth I know, abundance and wealth are two different things...

I know that things I long for and "need" do not make up for the fact I'll 'kick the bucket' someday. I know that "fate," twists of fortune, whatever, in an instant, can and will rearrange my plans. Its happened before in both quiet and large ways. For the "better," for the "worse." Bottom line is that a person can count on very little for sure! It can make one nervous ...
So one wonders ... why doesn't God swoop in here and tidy up the place. Don't we all yearn for this? On our own we are so helpless to make a difference. We can try to live frugal, not pollute, get along, help out, encourage, make others smile ... But if so many others don't do these things what difference will my small gestures make? We obviously can't save the world!

We can do all these things because God has given us a vision. Just because they are right to do. For the sake of those who follow. We can do these things because we believe Your kingdom will come someday. And its best to know that I helped, even if just a tiny bit ...

But at times it isn't easy ...

Tim, just typing away...

Its all about Jesus

"Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on, do not sin again." John 8:11b

One thing I get from the story this verse comes from is that Jesus didn't shame the woman for her wrongs, but came to rescue her. To turn from longings that were draining her to something that will fill her. Or more accurately would quench her thirst. The stories in the Bible and Jesus' parables are not merely cool stories or literary vessels to hold theological truth. They are the nuts and bolts stuff of Jesus' life here on earth. To his banquets he welcomes the dreaded tax collectors, whores, and various other reprobates. He came for the sick, not the well. He came for the unrighteous, not the righteous. He came even for those who betrayed Him, like Peter, the ones who forsook Him at His time of greatest need. And like in the "Prodigal Son" parable, He responded like a lovesick father!

No matter how far I go into theology and nic picking this verse and that (which as you must know by now I tend to do rather often), it gets back to this. I've screwed up more than my share of times, but the God of the universe and beyond still loves me. He hurts like a father (being one I know how that is) and still offers His grace and love and takes me back ... even with tears. When one really, really realizes this, there can be no turning back. Where else can one go? (John6:68) Its all about Jesus for sure.

http://thundercatt99.blogspot.com/2009/06/divorce-and-woman-at-well.html

The Manga Bible

This guy is coming out with a Manga Bible! Pretty neat, eh? He says to think of it as a kind of expensive tract, because it obviously does not contain all of the text of the real thing ...

http://www.themangabible.com/

I can't help but wonder if there are other religions in the world that use their sacred texts as marketing material to the extent that Christianity does. I mean... do you see comic-book Korans? Telletubby Torahs? Wall-art B'hagavad Gitas (if I spelled that right, it's a miracle)? Any thoughts?

Stare at the Barn

Hey ... You gotta check this out! Just Stare at the Barn ... Very Cool!

Have a blessed evening everyone!

wrestling around ...

How many of you remember wrestling around with your Dad when you were small, or wrestled around with your own kids? I remember doing that getting all tangled up and trying to break free. Of course I could never really win and when I got loose I would hang around to get "captured" again. I loved the feeling of strength and security of his arms around me and I just loved being close to my Dad. I didn't really want to be free but I think I wanted to push against his strength and know he still had me tight no matter how much I twisted and turned.

I think that this is what my relationship with God is like now. A lot of the time I feel like I'm wrestling with God, with my faith, with my theology, with everything. It seems like I'm trying to break free of God but really I'm not. I just enjoy the sensation of knowing that no matter how much I wrestle, no matter how much I fight, God's got a tight hold on me and he's not letting go. I like feeling the strength and security of God's amazing grace. I like pushing the boundaries of my faith, but I also like knowing that no matter how much I push God still has me wrapped up in his arms. I like knowing that nothing I can do (nor any question I can ask) will separate me from the great love of God. (Romans 8:35-39)

Oh 2 B Narrowminded

Egad...someone has accused me of being narrow minded ... again.

Having been accused elsewhere of being narrow-minded, I would just like to briefly defend myself.

If we accept every single idea and theory to pass us by as being right or equal, we are not free at all are we? We are in fact slaves to whatever idea the current climate happens to throw at us, without any real thought of your own. We are then being the tail and not the head. (Deu. 28:13 something I tried hard to get through to my kids.) It is only when we know truth that we are really free. We can only truly be open-minded when the truth is established. In that case, we can evaluate every idea and belief for what it is. Testing it as it were. Of course then it becomes like Christ was asked on trial: "What IS truth?"

Is it not the mark of an intelligent person to be able to consider and evaluate an idea without accepting it?

Just some thoughts ...

Tim

A Perfect Day

I hope you woke up this morning with a big smile on your face.

I hope the sun is shining just for you

And the birds are singing their very best songs ...

I hope your coffee is hot and tastes just right

and the cats are purring contentedly,

And the mailman waves a cheery hello and there are no bills in the post ...

I hope that your day is filled with lovely surprises

And friends call you up just to say "Hi" ...

I hope you feel on top of the world with a spring in your step all day ...

I hope just everything goes your way ...

I hope everything is well with your world,

A place for everything and everything in it's place ...

I hope you can enjoy all you do and you are complimented on the way you look

And you can laugh and talk and share to your heart's content ...

I hope you have all you wish for yourself and those dear to you,

And all your dreams come true ...

and at the end of the day I wish you a perfect moon shining just for you,

a snug and coy bed with the softest of pillows

And I hope you sleep like a lamb with a smile on your face ...

I hope you have a perfect end to the perfect day

and I hope that every day is just as wonderful in it's own way...

Author Unknown, at it again ...

Wednesday Prayer

May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half truths, superficial relationships, so that you will live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression and exploitation of people so that you will work for justice, equality and peace.

May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation and war, so that you will reach out your hand to comfort them and change their pain into joy.

And may God bless you with the foolishness to think that you can make a difference in the world, so that you will do the things which others tell you cannot be done.

Author Unknown

Amen! Have a blessed day everyone!

"A Piece of Truth"

Satan, in one of his many wanderings to and fro in the earth, went for a walk with one of his millions of demons.

They saw a man ahead of them stoop down and pick up something from the ground.."What did that man find?" asked the demon.

"A Piece of truth," said Satan."Doesn't that disturb you?" asked the demon.

"No," said Satan, "I shall help him make a belief out of it. Before long, out of the vanity of his own discovery, he will end up worshiping his belief. Then he will become blind to all other truth!" And then he laughed.

~Author Unknown

An interesting story ... It's not about the personality; it's about the person. It's not about corner on the truth but about the One who is the truth. John Wesley said something like, Do you call upon Christ as Savior? Then I extend to you the right hand of fellowship. I've always liked that notion. At the end of the day, me being "right" will not put me in right-standing with the Lord.

Have a blessed day everyone!

slow, dull and confused

There are just those times I am.....slow and dull and confused. Chances are so are a lot of others.

But I think we, the confused, can find encouragement knowing that we are in pretty good company. Consider the many times Jesus looks at the disciples, the men who have been with him, watched him perform miracles...and he says - Are you still so dull? (Matthew: 15:16) or he asks them why they do not understand what he is REALLY saying (Matthew 16: 9, 11).....do you ever wonder at Jesus' patience with them? If He is that patient with THEM, how much more patience do you think He has with you and I?

I believe we grow over time and through much turmoil. Someone wrote that we don't learn about commitment by studying the definition, we learn by attempting to remain committed day after day, by trying and failing and trying again. We live it out to learn it, to grow. I believe our understanding comes that way as well. We learn a little and then we stumble and seem dull....and then we learn a little more. As we live our lives with Him. Growth does not occur at the pinnacle, growth is what happens on our way up TO the pinnacle, and it is followed by another valley and an often arduous climb after that.

So take courage if you feel dull, I tend to believe it is a sign that we are in the midst of a valley or on the upward slope of a new mountain, on the verge of new growth!

Thoughts in the morning ...

Fathers Need Not Fathers Be

I dedicate this shot poem to my own Father who passed away a few years ago. I still miss him so ....

Fathers need not fathers be.

All one needs to do is choose

To love for life,

and that embrace,

Held long and hard,

bestows the grace

Each craves.

For all in time must lose,

Restored alone by memory.

So now it is with you and me.

~Author Unknown

Until I see you again Dad!

Another Love Quote

Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get . .

Only what you are expected to give ...

Which is everything.

~Author Unknown

In The Tub Being Scrubbed

I Corinthians 6:9, “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.”

**************
Traditional interpretation of this list says if you are a (or an):

evil doer (unrighteous)

goes after the desires of the flesh (fornicator)

worships images (Idolater)

untrue when married (adulterers)

abusers

Homosexual

Thief

Covetous

drunkard

reviler (party animal?)

Extortion (black mailer etc).

You shall not inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. In other words, Go straight to Hell do not pass go …


But I’ve been wondering. Paul goes on to say: “And such were some of you… but you have been washed…”Could it be, that it’s not that they have overcome those sins, but that they are no longer allowing themselves to be identified with those sins? They are not any longer saying I’m these things, but they are saying I’ve been washed, I’m in Christ? That Eternity is based on Who I know and Whose I am, not what I do? That I should no longer identify myself with my flavor of sins, cause according to Romans it’s no longer me that’s sinning anyway? This is in no way to excuse sin in our lives by any means … But more that we are currently in the tub being scrubbed!

What do you think?

I WANT these shoes!!!

-Tennis Ball inspired Nike Hypermax.

I WANT them!

Prayer 4 a Friday

A prayer I can say "Amen!" to ...

We come to Thee, O Christ, confessing to Thee the fears that twist our lives and keep us from the inner calm and peace that come from Thee:

The fear of ourselves, that we cannot do what is expected of us;

The fear of being found out for our littleness and pride in ourselves;

The fear of being left out when joy and richness come to others;

The fear of not being ready when opportunities present themselves for service;

The fear of death, that when it comes our time to die, we shall not have done the things we would have done, because we were afraid to venture out.

We find ourselves shrinking back before the unknown, wanting assurance where we must have faith; We find ourselves hesitating to follow Thee, O Christ, afraid the cost may be too great, and life may pass us by. Give us the strength and peace that only Thou canst give.

Amen-

--Rachel Henderlite (1905-1991) Written for a service of worship at Montreat, North Carolina, July 20, 1954 from A Book of Reformed Prayers, ed. Howard L. Rice, Lamar Williamson, Jr., 1998, Westminster Press.

How do you experience the holy?

Now here is an interesting quiz ... How do you experience the Holy? A quiz to find you spiritual "type." Onward ....

Click here: Spiritual Survey: What Type Are You? - explorefaith
http://www.explorefaith.org/seeker/index.html

My result:

The Seeker

Seekers are people who naturally connect with the Holy One through questioning. They have a healthy skepticism that makes it easy for them to explore different opinions, understandings, and experiences of faith. They do not feel the need to accept traditional faith patterns in order to come to a lively trust in God. They do not feel that faith needs to be categorized or institutionalized in order to be real. Inconsistencies and mystery are not daunting to them, but they sometimes find it hard to recognize God in ready-made answers to questions of faith. They seek to relate to the Holy One through exploration and journey. They tend to pray with hopefulness rather than certainty in God’s response. If they were to meet God face to face, they would want to ask God questions.

The woman who met Jesus by a well near her town exemplifies the qualities of a seeker. She was courageous in speaking with Jesus — a male who was outside her tradition — and she even boldly challenged Jesus when he questioned her about her faith and life. Though she was on a path of trying to find and live spiritual truth, she was humble enough to accept new truth when it was revealed to her.

Mr Bland

At Church ....

I've never experience jelly legs, or uncontrolled laughter.

I've never experienced trembling.

I've never experienced the feeling of wanting to be "slain in the spirit."

I've never had the experience of yelling out in an unknown tongue in the middle of service.

In fact more than just not experiencing these things - I've never even desired them either! I don't feel inadequate and definitely don't feel I'm missing out. At the present time I feel close to God and I feel like I'm growing as a Christian and not backsliding. That's not me bragging, I do genuinely feel like that. (2 steps forward, trip on a rock, another step forward ...)

So firstly, what makes me different (and the millions of others who feel the same) from those who do these things? And secondly, if they are gifts from God to make Christian's feel closer to Him, why do I feel close without them?

This post is NOT to blast away at those of us who experience these things for sure. I know many brothers and sisters who experience these things. God uses different means and speaks to us in different ways. There are many streams in our faith. But I do wonder why I seem to get the not so showy BORING gifts? Maybe because they will send me into being hyper showy? LOLLOL I don't know....

Tim

When I Need to Fall Apart

When I Need to Fall Apart

We don't always have to be strong.
Sometimes our strength
is expressed in being vulnerable.
Sometimes we need to fall apart
to regroup and stay on track.

We all have days when we cannot push
any harder, cannot hold back self-doubt,
cannot stop focusing on fear,
cannot be strong.

There are days when we cannot focus
on being responsible.
Occasionally,
We don't want to get out of our pajamas.
Sometimes we cry in front of people.
We expose our tiredness, irritability,
or anger.
Those days are okay.
They are just okay.

Part of taking care of ourselves means
we give ourselves permission to "fall apart"
when we need to.
We do not need
to be perpetual towers of strength.
We ARE strong.
We have proven that.

Our strength will continue if we allow
ourselves the courage to feel scared,
weak, and vulnerable when we need
to experience those feelings.

Today, help me to know that is it okay
to allow myself to be human.
Help me not to feel guilty or punish myself
when I need to "fall apart...
but to accept it as part of life
And part of being human...

author unknown

live your way to the answer... Another Rilke

A quote I came across that I had to share ...

"I beg you...to have patience with everything that is unresolved in your heart and to try to love the questions themselves as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language. Don't search for the answers, which could not be given you now, because you would not be able to live them. An the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually, without ever noticing it, live your way to the answer..."

- Rainer Maria Rilke

Divorce and the Woman at the Well

Awhile ago I was on a discussion site which was discussion the issue of divorce. It always amazes me how this subject gets so "heated". Suddenly there are those who are supposed to be apostles of grace get right into rule keeping, guilt and condemnation and I find it truly sad.

That said, I am a lot more interested in the big picture of the significance of Jesus than I am the details of any controversial passage. Let me give you an example:

The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.” Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.” The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.” (John 4:15-18)

I am not quoting all of this story, because the majority of the people here know it well. It’s one of the great chapters of the Bible, and it is a great “big picture” passage. The woman’s sexual past, marital history, Samaritan ethnicity and gender were of no particular interest to Jesus. What was important? This woman was filling up her life with substitutes for the significance and love of her true husband, Yahweh. She needed living water, and she needed the one who gives water without cost and without deserving it. She needed to believe in God’s messiah, and come to receive from him, eternal life in all its dimensions.

That’s how I understand Jesus. The primary thing is not that I have screwed up my life, and may continue to do so. That’s a given. The primary thing is Jesus himself, and the Gospel that comes to me in him alone.

I used to work at a store where several Christians worked. One of the guys we Christian folk witnessed to was a young man who was divorced and remarried. One evening, another Christian- a Church of Christ guy- and I were talking religion with this fellow, and the Church of Christ guy said that if Harold became a Christian, he would need to go back to his first wife and remarry her!

Yes, you read that right. Now, what was this person thinking of? He was thinking of Jesus’ words in Matthew 5 and 19. There had been no adultery. The guys marriage broke up, and he tried again. That did not matter to the Church of Christ guy. The marriage was illegitimate and needed to be abandoned, and the first marriage restored. Then God would be happy, of course, because that’s what God is all about: people repenting correctly.

I think that if the Church of Christ guy had been at the well with this woman and Jesus, he would have listened, and when Jesus left, he would have said, “Lady….let me add a few things to what Jesus said here. Your various arrangements have all been sinful, and if you become a believer in the messiah, you will need to go back to husband #1, if you can find him, and make that marriage work again, no matter what. Repentance is very important to real faith, and we cannot overlook these illegitimate sinful relationships. That would be a bad witness.”

Of course, that would be really stupid, but it would be taking the verses seriously. Not the Gospel, but the verses. The problem with divorce and remarriage is that there is no comprehensive writing on the subject in the bible. What I'm saying is that no writer sat down and wrote an entire discourse on the whole subject of marriage. What you get is bits and pieces in response to particular questions. We are left to put the whole together.

I not against people being convicted against remarriage for sure. I am convicted against drinking for example in my case, but I don't attempt to make it a law for others. But this is the conclusion I've come up with under guidance of the Holy Spirit ...

God hates divorce. Malachi 2:16

He also forgives. 1 John 1:9, John 8:1-11

If you seek answers to divorce according to the law, then you will be condemned by the law.

If you confess your sin…and seek His forgiveness, you will be forgiven by His Eternal Grace.

Your choice: Guilt or Grace!?

Christ died as our punishment. He who knew no sin, became sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21).

How cool is that?!

Sometimes I feel like ...

Sometimes I feel like the “quiet reflective be-by-myself” me, but I am at a social event with friends.

Sometimes I feel like the “serious intense” me, but others may just want to joke around.

Sometimes I feel like the “let’s get out of here and go hang out” me, but my friends are all busy.

Sometimes I feel like the “witty goofy funny loud” me, but others do not really laugh.

Sometimes I have trouble finding which me to be.

Am I the only one who feels this way?

Or is it the occasional glitch of readjusting to life outside the hospital?

Psalm 88

Psalms 88

88:1-18 O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day [and] night before thee:

Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry;

For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave.

I am counted with them that go down into the pit: I am as a man [that hath] no strength:

Free among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, whom thou rememberest no more: and they are cut off from thy hand.

Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps.

Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted [me] with all thy waves. Selah.

Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me; thou hast made me an abomination unto them: [I am] shut up, and I cannot come forth.

Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction: LORD, I have called daily upon thee, I have stretched out my hands unto thee.

Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise [and] praise thee? Selah

Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? [or] thy faithfulness in destruction?

Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?

But unto thee have I cried, O LORD; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee.

LORD, why castest thou off my soul? [why] hidest thou thy face from me?

I [am] afflicted and ready to die from [my] youth up: [while] I suffer thy terrors I am distracted.

Thy fierce wrath goeth over me; thy terrors have cut me off.

They came round about me daily like water; they compassed me about together.

Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, [and] mine acquaintance into darkness.

I came across this Psalm 2 or 3 weeks ago, but decided then not to post about it. I figured that I might have been throwing enough darker stuff out there and this Psalm takes the cake! I had a particularly rough week then on several fronts and really identified with this thing. My relationship with God is a struggle at times and the dynamics of that seems to keep me on track. Its when I get complacent ...

It is quite freeing to me to come to the prayer book of the Bible and find both great joy AND great despair. Its definitely fair to ask, what is this despairing stuff doing in there? I think it has to do with honesty. We all know that we can get really ticked off about the way others treat us, offend us, betray us ... And we also know we really can't control others, nor should we desire to. But we shouldn't be afraid to acknowledge our anger, even rage to God because they aren't so ... "nice." We should give these feelings to God because there is a deep trust that God will know what to do and how to do it, and will do what is just. This is a healthy kind of faith I think. Sometimes, just naming our anger and giving it to Jesus is just the right therapy. Certainly better than trying to control something out of control for sure.

Though the this Psalm ends on a very somber note, what follows it is the 89th Psalm which begins like this:

I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.

For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever: thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavensNo matter how long the winding trail, no matter how dark the night, His presence will been seen, "...but joy comes with the morning."

I'm at the 89th Psalm place now, but more that likely, surely even, the 88th Psalm place will come again ... and I'll be none to happy about it ... but He is with us ...

Just some thoughts ...

Yankee/Dixie Quiz

Another test! Yippee! This one analyzes your common terms for things that are region-specific, then gives you a percentage. It's mostly for Americans, but I'm sure worldly people can do it as well ...

http://www.angelfire.com/ak2/intelligencerreport/yankee_dixie_quiz.html

My result:

57% (Dixie). Barely into the Dixie category.

How interesting, I've never been down south!

Chesterton, Davis, Gordon & King

"I have little doubt that when St. George had killed the dragon he was heartily afraid of the princess."

~G.K. Chesterton

"The saddest thing I have ever see, is a beautiful bird with glorious wings that is convinced by others it cannot fly."

~M Shawn Davis

"Love is blind-it sees more, not less. But because it sees more its willing to see less."

~Rabbi Julius Gordon

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."

~Martin Luther King

The Master Weaver

Something I came across:

"There is a Jewish belief that there is no such thing as coincidences. If you take the Hebrew word for 'coincidence' & spell it backwards, you get "God has woven." What may appear to us as coincidences are all part of God's plan.

If you look at a beautifully woven rug or needlepoint from underneath, all you'll see is a disjointed crisscrossed tangle without any pattern or harmony. God is the Master Weaver, but all too often we, with our limited human perspective, manage to see only the crisscrossed tangle. We should never lack the faith that there is a pattern and that a/the Master Weaver is watching over it."

Pretty cool stuff huh! Just wanted to share it with you all.

"Birth Verse"

What is your "Birth Verse"

http://www.mybirthverse.com/

My result:

Lamentations 3:25 NIVThe LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;

Good grief! From Lamentations! lol Cool passage though ...

A Really Cool Lil Blessing!

"May the saddest day of your life be no worse... than the happiest day of your past

~Irish Blessing

How cool is that?!!!

trapeze act

A quote I would like to share ...

"The Christian life resembles a trapeze act. You can swing on the bar, exercising and building muscles all you want. But if you want to improve and excel, you have to take risks. You have to let go, knowing that nothing is beneath you, and you reach out to the next trapeze bar."

~ Paul Tournier

Another Agape Thing!

I guess one of the most amazing things I find in a relationship with Jesus is coming to grips with agape love. That Christ decided to die for me long before I was born, regardless race, habits, doctrinal positions and anything else that often, we as humans, allow to get in the way. That Gods love is without condition and even if we don't accept Him, he still loves us anyways.Another thing that hits is that this unconditional love, by implication is what we should be adopting when we call ourselves a follower of Christ. This kind of love, in me as far from perfect, makes me pause to think why I got so angry with someone who has a totally opposing view on life as I do. Or someone who goes out of their way to oppose argue with me, or someone I pick little fights with. I've been reflecting in the past week or so since I've been off pain meds, on many of my relationships with people and it becomes so obvious that its much easier to talk Christ than live it. I can reel of theology, life experiences and whatnot, but my life and behavior has really got to reflect this relationship between Christ and me. And the sad truth is that I come up wanting ...

I realize that Jesus is chiseling away the rough stone, smoothing those parts so that He can be reflected more clearly. At this point I wish to apologize to all my brothers and sisters, and others, when my words don't match up to my walk. I apologize when in haste I argue my part in my desire to be understood and ending up hurting someone. May Christ keep me humble, keep us all humble, and allow us to grasp what it really, really means to have the fruit of the Spirit. What it really means to walk without condemnation, in the shadow of the Cross, in His presence. And to be a refection to others what Christ's unconditional agape love is all about.

A blog from Tim... sorta ...