I recently discovered new state- well it's not really new, since it is as old as the human heart, which is also where I found it and named it: "Between".
It appears to be a state with countless round-abouts making it easy to get from one town to another - making it easy to get lost and wander around for a long, long time.
I believe some never find their way out.
Maybe you have visited, been or lived in Between - we all find ourselves there at one time or another.
A young friend of mine has, through the divorce of her parents, lost her dad - he has moved far away. Communication is pretty scarce between them, and there are no visits on the horizon - only promises.
I ache for her, recognizing the mix of emotions that like opposite poles, battle for the 'take over of the heart'.
Optimism fighting despair, feeling loved against feeling unwanted. I have seen these internal battles in many people; battle between being a victim and being victorious, between being scarred and healed, between being set free by Jesus but condemned by oneself - the battle is internal, and the emotions fill the soul - unseen but through the eyes; the windows to that guarded place.
I found my friend living in the state of: "Hope".
She is not alone either. Our world is filled with children of all ages struggling with being left or abandoned by either mom or dad - or both - for reasons unrelated to them. They are left to deal with hurt and disappointments - and countless are camped out in Hope.
"What is wrong with living in Hope"? you might ask - "Hope is a peaceful and happy place - the Bible talks a lot about Hope". I agree! The state of Hope seems to be a pleasant place to live in - but the foundation is pretty thin. The Hope the bible talks about, is the hope we have in God - and when our hope is in God, then it is a solid hope as He has promised to never leave or forsake us, and is a keeper of his promises.
The state of Hope I am confronting,- the one with a thin foundation that would easily crumble and leave you clinging to feeble strings of pleasant memories from the past, so long ago the details have become vague,- is a fragile place to live in, because it is based on disappointment(s), or in circumstances or people changing - it is a wishful state of Hope.
What else is there?
The state of: "Forgiveness". That is the state to live in! There is a freedom there, because there are no worries about when, or if promised promises will be fulfilled.
There is no reason as to why we can't move from the state of Hope to the state of Forgiveness in one single step - but,
it seems more often the case that we set foot in Between.
- the journey from Hope to Forgiveness and the state in Between will continue in the next blog post.
-b
Friday, September 28, 2012
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
If I were a rich man.....
A rich man came running up to Jesus inquiring how to inherit eternal life.
I think this is one of the more "known" parables in the New Testament. Mark 10:17-22 says the man ran up to Jesus asking him what to do to inherit eternal life - Jesus goes over the list with him and is told by the man that these rules have all been kept. It then says that Jesus looks at him and "loved him" - then tells him to sell his possessions and come follow him and here we find out that the man is wealthy and therefore walks away sorrowful. What a sad ending! He desired eternal life, Jesus loved him, but............
His possessions meant more to him than heaven - they had laid claim to his heart to a degree where he couldn't give them up.
I am far from rich in a monetary way. Maybe I have a lot of things, but they aren't really worth a whole lot, and my attachment to them beyond liking and enjoying them isn't very strong. And yet this story speaks to me asking me the question; What am I rich in?
My husband -
oh, he makes me feel rich in his love for me.
Our daughter -
I am rich in the blessing she is to me
- they both make me feel rich, because they are above and beyond what I had dreamed of.
Do they mean the world to me? Yes.
Would I give my life for them? Yes.
Are they above God in my life? No - they shouldn't and wouldn't want to be.
What about independence?
Think I have a lot of that. Being on my own early on in life taught me that, it became part of who I am and is hard to let go of. (so don't tell me what to do or how to do what I do...)
Riches...
Matthew 6:21 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is there your heart will be also".
Image! Status! Friends! Past! Job! Attention! Praise!
What we treasure demands our focus, protection, time. It also demands upkeep - looking at each of the areas mentioned above, I see all that to be true.
Time to ask...
What is it that is so very important to us? What, in different ways than money, has made us rich and laid claim on our heart?
Philippians 3:8
"Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ!"
That is an incredible statement to make!
These words were spoken by Paul the apostle made me take a closer look at what was it that would count as rubbish? What did he walk away from?
He was a Pharisee, a Jew, tent maker, he had authority, esteem, knowledge, status, Roman citizenship by birth, position, reputation, respect among fellow Pharisees for his zealous hunt for the believers following the Way of Jesus.
I'd say he was rich in many ways!
Are your riches holding you back? - are you willing to count it rubbish so you may gain Christ?
-b
I think this is one of the more "known" parables in the New Testament. Mark 10:17-22 says the man ran up to Jesus asking him what to do to inherit eternal life - Jesus goes over the list with him and is told by the man that these rules have all been kept. It then says that Jesus looks at him and "loved him" - then tells him to sell his possessions and come follow him and here we find out that the man is wealthy and therefore walks away sorrowful. What a sad ending! He desired eternal life, Jesus loved him, but............
His possessions meant more to him than heaven - they had laid claim to his heart to a degree where he couldn't give them up.
I am far from rich in a monetary way. Maybe I have a lot of things, but they aren't really worth a whole lot, and my attachment to them beyond liking and enjoying them isn't very strong. And yet this story speaks to me asking me the question; What am I rich in?
My husband -
oh, he makes me feel rich in his love for me.
Our daughter -
I am rich in the blessing she is to me
- they both make me feel rich, because they are above and beyond what I had dreamed of.
Do they mean the world to me? Yes.
Would I give my life for them? Yes.
Are they above God in my life? No - they shouldn't and wouldn't want to be.
What about independence?
Think I have a lot of that. Being on my own early on in life taught me that, it became part of who I am and is hard to let go of. (so don't tell me what to do or how to do what I do...)
Riches...
Matthew 6:21 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is there your heart will be also".
Image! Status! Friends! Past! Job! Attention! Praise!
What we treasure demands our focus, protection, time. It also demands upkeep - looking at each of the areas mentioned above, I see all that to be true.
Time to ask...
What is it that is so very important to us? What, in different ways than money, has made us rich and laid claim on our heart?
Philippians 3:8
"Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ!"
That is an incredible statement to make!
These words were spoken by Paul the apostle made me take a closer look at what was it that would count as rubbish? What did he walk away from?
He was a Pharisee, a Jew, tent maker, he had authority, esteem, knowledge, status, Roman citizenship by birth, position, reputation, respect among fellow Pharisees for his zealous hunt for the believers following the Way of Jesus.
I'd say he was rich in many ways!
Are your riches holding you back? - are you willing to count it rubbish so you may gain Christ?
-b
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