Gentleness: Not Mine, But His

"...Thy gentleness hath made me great." ~Psalm 18:35

How does God's gentleness make me great?

Some Bible versions translate this word "gentleness" as humility, others as condescension, or help. Each of these words gives us a different picture of how God makes us great.

     Humility. One of the key principles that Jesus taught about His kingdom is that those who are the least will be the greatest; the meek (or humble) will inherit the earth. (See Matt. 11:11; 5:5.) Meekness/gentleness is one of the fruits of the Spirit mentioned in Gal. 5:22-23. It's against our human nature to be gentle and meek; that's why Prov. 16:32 says, "He that ruleth his spirit [is greater] than he that taketh a city." But when we allow the Spirit of Jesus, the King of the universe, to fill us and cultivate His attributes in us, we partake in His greatness.
     Condescension. By condescending from the throne of the universe to become a man and suffer and die for our sins, Jesus demonstrated the ultimate humility, so that we could be called the sons and daughters of God. What a great, undeserved honor! This greatness comes from nothing in ourselves; it is solely the gift of God, made possible through His condescension.
     Help. The help that God offers us in our daily battle against temptation and sin is what makes it possible for us to be overcomers and reign with God in His throne. (See 2 Tim. 2:12; Rev. 20:4, 6.)

Lord, thank You for Your gift of gentleness, and for condescending to this earth so I can have salvation. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit and cultivate Your gentleness in me, so I can be like You and spend eternity with You. I don't want the world's greatness; I want Your greatness.

Fullness of Joy and True Community

Notes on 1 John 1:1–10 and 2:1

“These things declare/write we unto you…”

-       “that ye may have fellowship with us”

-       “that your joy may be full”

-       “that ye sin not”

If our joy is full, we have no more desire for the “pleasure” of sin; we are already full of joy, so that there is no desire or room for anything else.

For example, if we’ve just eaten a big, satisfying meal of healthy food, then junk food loses its temptation and appeal because we’re already full. This is how it is with sin, too. Sin is like the junk food. If we are not full of God’s joy, then we will be easily tempted to fill up our emptiness with the pleasures that the world offers. *

And not only this, but when we have fellowship with others whose joy is also full of the same, we have positive peer pressure to “sin not”.  This is the purpose and great benefit of true community.

And what are “these things” that promise to fill our emptiness so that we have no more desire to sin? “…that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.” Not just the theoretical statement, but the practical experience of John and his fellow disciples—not just hearing and seeing, but “handling”.

Darkness is a synonym/symbol for sin. Darkness cannot remain while there is light; likewise, sin cannot remain if we are walking in the light. Darkness is a cover for sin, making it easy to hide from others. But if we are walking in the light, it means we have nothing to hide. Therefore, true fellowship and community means that we have nothing to hide from each other, because we have a clear conscience with God and with each other. Wouldn’t it be awesome to be part of such a community, where everyone is honest and transparent with each other, because nobody has anything to hide? We can have such a community through Christ. If the first-century apostles could have it, so can we!

Reflection: What is my practical experience with the “Word of life”?  What have I seen, heard, beheld, and handled, that can bring fullness of joy to others? Am I an active part of a joyful, supportive faith community, where there is positive peer pressure to stay close to God and walk in His light?

Personal Response: I have seen how God has supported and sustained me and filled me with joy as I surrender to His will, even when it goes against my personal hopes and dreams. There is no darkness of discouragement or despair when I surrender all to Him. Instead, He fills my heart with the light of His love and the promise that He will not withhold any good thing from me. And when I start to forget, then I have an entire community of friends and adopted family who remind me of God’s promises and leading in my life. What more could I ask?

The Hope of the Cross

“Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder. And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy. Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.”

Think of it for a moment. Jesus—burdened with all the weaknesses of fallen humanity in His human nature—was in agony. His human desire shrank from the fate before Him—a cruel, torturous death at the hands of His enemies. As He knelt there in the garden, great drops of blood dripped from His forehead as He wrestled with God in prayer.

Yet, love prevailed. Love for you, love for me. As God the Father brought the picture of your face, and of my face, before Jesus, He could not say no.

And because He said yes to that great sacrifice on the cross, you and I have hope. Because of that sacrifice, every sin in our record is blotted out—under one condition! What is that condition? John 3:16 tells us the answer: We must “believe in Him.” Faith is the key that unlocks heaven’s storehouse. Everything is possible to him that believeth. And is it our own faith that we have to muster up to believe in Him? No; God has granted to each and every one of us a “measure of faith” (Romans 12:3), which will grow and strengthen as we exercise it. When Satan throws our past mistakes and failures in our face to discourage us, it is our privilege to throw Jesus’ sacrifice in Satan’s face, and remind Him that Jesus’ blood now covers us, and he (Satan) is a defeated foe.

But the miracle doesn’t stop here. If Christ had stayed in the grave, we would still have no hope. But Romans 6:4 tells us that Christ’s resurrection gives us power to walk in newness of life—to not only have a clear record covering our past, but also to maintain that clear record from now until Christ comes again. How is this possible? Through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, living out Jesus’ perfect character in us. And again, this can happen only when we believe in His power and claim His promises in faith, believing that He loves us and will accomplish what He has promised. “This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” I John 5:4.

Will you have faith in Him today? Will you trust in His righteousness to cover you and empower you to walk in newness of life?

The Christian's Wine

"And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit." 

Ephesians 5:18

In a sense, Paul is saying here that the Holy Spirit is the Christian's "wine". Wine has a reputation for making people happy in an unrestrained sort of way (Psalm 104:15). However, that happiness is "excessive" in the sense that, when one is drunk, it releases one's inhibitions and leads them to do all sorts of embarrassing, inappropriate things that they wouldn't normally do.

In the same way, Paul promises that the indwelling of the Holy Spirit will fill us with happiness, such that we won't be able to restrain the impulse to sing and praise God in a way that wouldn't otherwise come naturally to us (Ephesians 5:19). However, in contrast with wine, the Holy Spirit will never lead us to engage in inappropriate, morally embarrassing behavior. The Holy Spirit will release our inhibitions in a good, holy way.

I love how God never asks us to give up something without providing something better in its place!

Saving Face

Saving face is very important in Asian cultures. But what does “saving face” really mean?

Each one of us has a “face”, or a mask that we like to wear—a “face” that says, “I am a good person.” Why do we feel the need to wear this mask? Why is it important for us to “save face”? Could it be that there’s something not so nice inside of us that we’re trying to hide?

The fact is, we are all sinful. Our hearts are naturally full of selfishness, pride, and ugliness. We know that this is not good, and it makes us feel ashamed. So we try to hide under a mask. We don’t want people to know how ugly and broken we are inside.

Inevitably, things will happen that cause us to “lose face”—to expose some of our imperfections and/or the ugliness of our natural hearts, and people begin to see that we are not really “good people” on the inside. We respond to this in different ways—some hang their heads and mope in silent embarrassment, wishing they could disappear. Others become violent, angrily lashing out at the one who caused them to “lose face” in front of others.

Actually, even though Asians are the most known for their cultural value of “saving face,” it is really ingrained into every human being. We all try to “save face” and make good impressions so that people will think well of us. This is not distinct only to Asians. The difference is that Asians tend to be more sensitive to each other’s feelings, not wanting to embarrass or shame anyone, whereas Western cultures tend to value self-preservation—saving our own “face”—above the feelings or “faces” of others.

Now that we have defined the concept of “saving face,” my next question is what does “saving face” mean to the Christian?

I would like to propose a novel concept: Jesus Christ came to this earth so that we won’t need to “save face” anymore.

We try to “save face” in order to preserve our masks that cover up the ugliness and brokenness inside. But Christ came to cleanse us from our ugliness and repair our brokenness. He came to give us His love, His humility, His goodness in place of our selfishness, our pride, and our sinfulness. He came to give us His “face”—which is not a mask, but a true reflection of what is inside: perfect goodness.

“A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.” Ezekiel 36:26, 27

“For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.” 2 Corinthians 4:6, 7

When we have the face of Jesus Christ, we speak His words and do His works, motivated by His heart of love. We are no longer concerned about our reputation, about “saving face,” because we have nothing to hide anymore. (See Philippians 2:5–7.) We are the same inside as we are outside, because we have Jesus in our heart. Yes, we may still make mistakes and have imperfections; however, our desire is not that people will think good about ourselves, but that they will see Jesus in us. We live to preserve His reputation, not our own.

What kind of “face” do you have today? Do you have the face of Jesus?

Love and Long-Handled Spoons

Why does it matter so much to us what other people think of us?

I was pondering this question today. Here's the answer that came to my mind.

God created us with a desire for love and affirmation. This is not bad, in and of itself. First and foremost, He created us with this desire so that He could fill it with His love for us. However, He also gave us that desire for human love and affirmation. He made us as relational beings, to have relationships with one another that reflect His relationship with us. But problems arise when we go about seeking love and affirmation for ourselves. This is the wrong way; it's not how God designed our "love tanks" to be filled.

I am reminded of a parable which depicts Heaven like this:
In Heaven, everyone has only long-handled spoons with which to eat. The length of the handle makes it impossible to feed oneself. The only way to eat is to use your spoon to feed somebody else. 

Love and affirmation is like that. If we try to seek it from others, doing things to "impress" people, etc, it's like trying to feed ourselves with a long-handled spoon. It always leaves us unsatisfied, wishing for more. But when we use our "spoon" to feed others—when we look for ways to love and affirm those around us—the blessing comes back to us tenfold, and our "love tank" is filled to overflowing. This is God's plan.

May God help us to change our selfish mindset, for "it is more blessed to give than to receive." Acts 20:35.

He Knew

When God brought Israel out of Egypt, He did so knowing that they would want to go back to their fleshpots, etc.

In a similar way, God is working with me, helping me to walk away from and turn my back on the sinful habits and pleasures in my own life, knowing that at some points during the journey I will complain and balk and want to go back.

It's part of the withdrawal process (sin is an addiction), and He knows that, and He's prepared for it. He won't give up on me and leave me to what I think I want (things which will hurt me and tarnish me).

He might let me taste those things again (like the quail in the desert), just to remind me why it's bad for me and why I'm walking away from it.

And then He'll keep on leading me out, away from sinful Egypt and towards the "land of promise," where "all nations" will know that He is my God, and I am His daughter. <3

Expect Victory

"Great peace have they which love thy law, and nothing shall offend them." ~Psalm 119:165

I remember when I was young, I would often hear this verse flung at one's opponent in an argument. One would say, "I'm offended that you _______," and the other would retort by quoting this verse. I even did it myself a few times.

However, when I did a word study on this verse recently, I discovered a completely different meaning—one rich with encouragement for me in my faltering walk with the Lord!

Ellen G. White says in the third volume of Bible Commentaries that this "peace" referred to in Ps. 119:165 is "harmony with heaven"! Wow! And of course, Strong's Concordance (as well as EGW's comments) reveals that "offend" simply means "to falter, stumble".

So check this out: "Great harmony with Heaven have they which love thy law, and nothing shall cause them to stumble (or fall into sin)."

But it doesn't end here. The next verse says, "Lord, I have hoped for thy salvation, and done thy commandments."

Again, Strong's helps to elucidate the meaning. "Hope" in the Hebrew means "to expect", and "salvation" means "deliverance; hence aid, victory, prosperity".

So check this out: I can expect victory if I love God's law, because I am in harmony with Heaven, which means that nothing will cause me to fall into sin. And David testifies that this was his experience: "I have. . .done Thy commandments" (verse 166).

As Christians, we claim to love God, and by extension, His Law (which is a transcript of His character). Do we expect victory?

"According to your faith be it unto you." ~Matthew 9:29

Come and See!

            The little girl was nearly bubbling over with exuberance. “Come and see, Daddy,” she insisted, tugging at her father’s sleeve. “Come and see what I found!” Her joy is contagious.

            . . .

            Startled passersby on the dusty road move aside for the speeding man in long traditional robes.  He sprints past them, grinning from ear to ear. What good news does he carry? they all wonder. Careening around the next bend, he spots his brother and the news tumbles out: “Simon, Simon! We have found the Messiah! Come and see!”

            . . .

            Philip simply couldn’t wait for an “appropriate time” to share his news. He tramped through the dense foliage to the secret hideaway where he knew his friend was praying. Ditching formalities, he interrupted without apology. “We have found him of whom Moses, in the law and the prophets, did write—Jesus of Nazareth. . . . Come and see!”

            . . .

            Joy must be shared. It’s a natural reaction. If we’ve found something good or exciting, we want to tell someone! Even John the Baptist, when He first set eyes on Jesus, forgot the rest of his sermon in his excitement. “Suddenly…his eye kindled, his face was lighted up, his whole being was stirred with deep emotion. With outstretched hands,” he announced the presence of the long-promised One—the Messiah. DA 135

            “With the calling of John and Andrew and Simon, of Philip and Nathanael, began the foundation of the Christian church. John directed two of his disciples to Christ. Then one of these, Andrew, found his brother, and called him to the Savior. Philip was then called, and he went in search of Nathanael. These examples should teach us the importance of personal effort, of making direct appeals to our kindred, friends, and neighbors.” DA 141

            When Christ starts working in our lives, when we start to see Jesus for who He really is, when we really start to realize the amazing depth of His love for us, we won’t be able to keep it to ourselves! “No sooner is one converted than there is born within him a desire to make known to others what a precious friend he has found in Jesus. The saving and sanctifying truth cannot be shut up in his heart.” DA 141

            The Bible itself ends with an invitation to “come”—“And the Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come.’ And let him that heareth say, ‘Come.’ And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.”

            Who have you invited?

Jeroboam

Recently I've begun to read through the stories of the Old Testament. A recurring theme keeps popping up - fear. I've now come to the story of Jeroboam. Here again we see the terrible results of fear, when it is allowed to take hold in someone's heart. Fear of future revolt (i.e. lack of faith in God to protect him) led Jeroboam to erect "high places" of false worship, with idols and common priests (non-Levites), and establish his own day of worship for the people. Really, Jeroboam? You saw nothing wrong with this??!? And in all this he supposed he was worshipping God. You'd think he would have taken a clue when the Levites refused to be priests over these "high places" he had built. But no. Fear had blinded him until he had no more discernment. How frightful! And not only that, but his continued journey on this path led him eventually to despise the messenger of the Lord sent to rebuke him. And not only did Jeroboam despise this messenger, he also intended probably to have him killed!!! ("Lay hold on him" was Jeroboam's command.) Perhaps he was thinking, "How dare you find fault with my way of worshiping God?!" So caught up in his own self-righteousness, he could not perceive or discern the voice of God or the signs of His displeasure. How terribly frightful indeed... Who would think that such a "little" thing as fear could lead to such appalling results and consequences? Who would conceive of its power to blind a person so thoroughly? O Lord, deliver me from my own fears!!!!

There are Higher Joys

This morning I was thinking about all the exciting little things that have happened recently, and it made me grin from ear to ear. Then suddenly, it was as if the Lord spoke directly to my heart: "But there are higher joys." :) Of course it's not wrong to take joy in the little things, like a note from a friend, or a small thoughtful gift, or a few relaxing days to yourself. But what about the eternal joys, the ones that will last forever? Seeing God face to face, seeing a dear friend accept Christ, experiencing God's forgiveness... Aren't those things so much more deserving of our contemplation and joy? What if I mulled those things over and over in my head throughout the day, the way I do with other things? Wouldn't I feel so much closer to heaven? I want these "higher joys" to fill my thoughts throughout the day, every day. I want to feel close to heaven.

Corpse in My Closet

"But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?" ~James 2:20

     I used to think this was talking about those people who believe you can go to Heaven without keeping the commandments - that the commandments were done away with at the cross. And it is... But there's a deeper meaning, a more personal meaning, which just dawned on me this morning as I added this verse to my memory bank.
     When I pray for various things, I generally believe (at least intellectually) that God will answer my prayers. But this verse made me think, Do I demonstrate that faith by my works, or do I have a "dead faith"? Do I do my best to help God answer my prayers, or do I sit back and do nothing? Do I move forward, making choices which reflect my faith that God will answer my prayers? I had to ruefully admit that my faith was nothing more than a corpse in the closet of my heart.
     But I thank God that He is a God who can make dry bones live! (See Ezekiel 37.)
     So my next question was, "What can I do to show God (and myself) that I believe His promise to answer my prayers?" One of my prayers lately has been that I will find a Thai friend to help me get around town, and to help me learn Thai. However, I'm a little ashamed to say that I haven't really done much to "help God out" in that realm. Perhaps an appropriate response on my part would be to make more effort to associate with people in my community, and make myself available. It's inconvenient sometimes, it's not always what I feel like doing, and it's embarrassing when people try to talk to me and I have no clue what they're saying. But do I really want God to answer my prayer? If so, I need to act accordingly. After all, isn't that what I came here for - to reach out to people and show them Jesus' love? Jesus wasn't a hermit; I can't be one either.
     That's just one example of faith that needs to be acted out in my life. There are many more. Perhaps there are corpses in your closet, too. Let's work together to "prophesy" to those "dead bones", that Christ might breathe His life into us and give us a living, active faith.

Mercy Rejoices

“And mercy rejoiceth against judgment.” James 2:13

This verse puzzled me, so I took my devotional time this morning to figure it out. http://Bible.cc brought me to Barne's Notes on the Bible, where I found some helpful insights.

The context of James 2 is about not having respect to persons - impartiality. I noticed that James' emphasis is on the do not rather than the do. So I wondered, what would it it look like if I were to turn it around and emphasize the do? Instead of saying, "Don't have respect of persons," perhaps it might read, "Treat the poor just as you would the rich. Treat the undeserving as if they were deserving." A light bulb turns on. This is mercy! Justice (or judgment) dictates that people should be treated no better than they deserve. This is why mercy appears to triumph over (or "rejoice against") judgment. This is a foundational principle of the plan of salvation - "Christ was treated as we deserve, that we might be treated as He deserves." (DA 25.2) At the final judgment, Satan will argue against us, "They are guilty! They deserve to die and share my punishment with me! They have broken your Law, and your Law condemns them to death." That's when Mercy will come forth to triumph over Judgment. "Yes, you are right - they don't deserve eternal life. They have broken my Law," Christ responds. "But I took their punishment for them. I was treated as they deserve, so that they can be treated as I deserve."

How can I not be merciful, when Christ has shown so much mercy to me? Wow....

If I Don't...

"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God.... But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord." ~James 1:5-7

I often pray for wisdom. Wisdom for homeschooling, wisdom for speaking with people, wisdom to overcome daily temptations.

But do I believe that He will really give it to me?

Do I "ask in faith, nothing wavering"?

Verse 7 - No faith, no wisdom. No faith, no anything!

If I don't believe, I won't receive.


"Lord, I believe. Help thou mine unbelief." 

(Mark 9:24)

All Joy

Last year I committed to join a number of my friends in memorizing the book of Acts. I never finished, due to conflicting time schedules and the need to reorder my priorities once I got to Thailand. However, I learned a lot about the power of God to help me cement His words in my mind. It was an incredible experience. (For the record, I still plan to finish the book of Acts! However, the review schedule is too much for me to handle at the moment.)

This year, since I've laid aside the Acts Challenge, I've been feeling a lack. I need to memorize, but motivation has been absent. Then came an invitation in my inbox: "James: Before Men and Angels". Just what I needed. :) Something short and sweet, but power-packed. So this morning I've started.

"My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience." ~James 1:2-3

All joy.

Not 5% joy, 95% grief.
Not 95% joy, 5% grief.
100% joy!

100% joy? How can it possibly be?

The key is how you count. :) He's not saying the temptations will be enjoyable experiences. He's not saying you will feel like being joyful. He says count it all joy. Heavenly math. :) In the heavenly math books, 5% joy can equal 100% joy. How? Simply this: Stop counting when you reach the end of your blessings list. Don't count the negatives.

A new twist on a familiar verse. I love it. :)

Father, teach me how to count, so that my joy may be full.

Spiritually Poor

"Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." ~Matthew 5:3

The poor in spirit. I had always thought this meant something like "humble", referring to those who really were close to Jesus, but went around hanging their heads in holy humility.

No.

The poor in spirit. The spiritually poor. Those who have "a sense of their spiritual poverty".

In other words, they are spiritually sick, and they know it. Theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

What???!

Isn't heaven for those who are spiritually strong and thriving?

No. It's for the spiritually poor. The ones who despair because they are "wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked." (See MB 6-7.) It's for me.

Really??

"Those who know that they cannot possibly save themselves, or of themselves do any righteous action, are the ones who appreciate the help that Christ can bestow. They are the poor in spirit, whom He declares to be blessed." (MB 7)

"Whatever may have been your past experience, however discouraging your present circumstances, if you will come to Jesus just as you are, weak, helpless, and despairing, our compassionate Saviour will meet you a great way off, and will throw about you His arms of love and His robe of righteousness. He presents us to the Father...saying: I have taken the sinner's place. Look not upon this wayward child, but look on Me." (MB 9)

How comforting....

Hungry for Love

"Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled." Matthew 5:6

I was reading this morning one of my favorite passages - Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, p. 18-21. I've read it many times before, but this time something jumped out at me which I'd never seen before. In the first paragraph, it reads, "Righteousness is love...." Suddenly, I thought, What if I replace the word 'righteousness' with 'love'? I read the verse again: "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after love: for they shall be filled." Shivers coursed up and down my spine as I drank in the words.

So many of us - all of humanity in fact - are searching, longing, for love. Josh Groban sings, "Everybody wants to be loved...." There is another secular song which speaks of "looking for love in all the wrong places." It seems that no matter how hard we search for true love in this world, it always eludes us, deceives us, betrays us. Yet, we have a promise that when we hunger and thirst for God's love, we will be filled - not just with His love manifested towards ourselves, but with a heavenly love that wells up inside and flows out to all around us. When I recognize the quality and magnitude of God's love, I can't help but covet it. But for some reason, my heart despairs, because it seems that such a love is so hard for this weak, fallible human being to obtain.

The very next paragraph speaks directly to me, like a thunderbolt from heaven. "Not by painful struggles or wearisome toil, not by gift or sacrifice, is righteousness [or love] obtained; but it is freely given to every soul who hungers and thirsts to receive it." I struggle to wrap my mind around it. By my very nature, I feel compelled to struggle and toil for that which I desire, else I can not receive it. But this is not heaven's way. No matter how much I struggle and fight, I will never obtain this love I desire. The only way is to rest and receive. To surrender. No fighting or striving required. God's love is my love. All I have to do is long for it. Long for it with all my heart. And I will receive it. Wow...

What will it take for me to stop fighting and struggling? To just be still and receive?

As He Loves

[Thoughts on Steps to Christ, chap. 1]

Through the ages, Satan has distorted man's perception of God to such an extent that most people view God as a stern judge - always "watching with jealous eye to discern the errors and mistakes of men, that He may visit judgments upon them." [SC 11] My heart was immediately pricked with the thought that I probably come across the same way to the boys I homeschool - always watching to catch them in some misdemeanor so I can give them a mark. But if I am to be a representative of Christ, and reveal His love to the world, I must work to remove this misconception of God's character. How am I to do this, and yet maintain proper discipline and structure? The rest of the chapter explains how Jesus did that very thing.

"Love, mercy, and compassion were revealed in every act of His life." SC 11-12

"Jesus did not suppress one word of truth, but He always uttered it in love. He exercised the greatest tact and thoughtful, kind attention in His intercourse with the people. He was never rude, never needlessly spoke a severe word, never gave needless pain to a sensitive soul. He did not censure human weakness. ...tears were in His voice as He uttered His scathing rebukes." SC 12

I am also reminded of what EGW says in another place, "We are to put the best construction upon the words and motives of others." If the boys see that I expect only the best from them, at first they may try to take advantage of that, but I believe that in time, they will be prompted to put forth all their effort to measure up to that expectation and prove me right. At the same time, I must be careful not to "censure human weakness" - to be aware of their limitations and not demand things beyond what they are able.

This goes right along with what Alicia told me last night about Daniel - he doesn't respond well to punishments and negative consequences, but rather to positive reinforcement - rewards and encouragement. Of course there will always have to be consequences for our actions, but God's way, I believe, is the same - to shower us with love and encouragement, gently, lovingly nudging us forward towards the right, and expressing genuine sorrow when unpleasant consequences must be meted out.

I love this closing thought at the end of the chapter:

"The thought [of God's love]...brings the mind into captivity to the will of God." SC 15

It is only as my mind is in "captivity to the will of God" that I will be able to accurately portray His character to the world, and remove the misconceptions that Satan has planted. According to the above quotation, if I want to have the mind of Christ, to be always in harmony with Him, all I need to do is meditate on His love for me. This simple meditation has the power to captivate my heart and bring me into harmony with Christ. What a wonder!

Courageous

 I scrolled nonchalantly through the movie list, not expecting to see anything worth watching. However, my eyes stopped abruptly when I saw “Courageous” on the movie list. Now, I’m not one to typically watch movies, but I knew that this was a Christian film, and I’d heard a lot of good things about it. So I settled back in my seat to watch it.

     It was about fathers. The story of five policemen who signed a resolution to be the best they could be for their families and for God. It tells of the battles Satan hurled at them as a result, and how they (minus one) conquered together through Christ. About halfway through, the dam broke, and tears cascaded down my cheeks as I thought of my own father, now deceased. What if he’d had a chance to watch a film like this, I wondered. Might things have been different?  Would it have changed him?

     My father wasn’t a bad man. He tried to do what was right. He had a passion to proclaim the truth. But like the 5^th policeman, he had “lost control of the wheel,” and didn’t know how to get it back. (Or maybe he never really had the wheel.) It wasn’t his fault, really. It started decades before, with his own father…or rather, the lack thereof. Habits were formed which I guess seemed to him impossible to break. And even though he became an SDA and passionately proclaimed the truth, he never learned of the power of the truth to wholly transform him. What if he had? Oh, how things could have been different. I try to imagine what it would have been like to have him in my life now, as a truly converted man and father – transformed.

     Yet, God reminds me again of the miracle he brought into my life through my step-dad. No, he’s not my idea of “the perfect dad” – he doesn’t have all the characteristics on my wish list, but he has the most important thing yet – a solid walk with God. And he has been an incredible example to me of what a godly man is supposed to be like. For this I thank God immensely.

     As for my birth father, well…I just hope he made things right with God before he died. It’s been a long journey, but now I can truthfully say that I sincerely hope to meet him in heaven, so we can rebuild a relationship together, and then he can learn to be a real father, the way God designed.

I highly recommend “Courageous”. It’s even better than Fireproof (in my humble opinion).

The Law According to an Apple

I found something interesting in SOP this morning which started a train of thought...

If the Ten Commandments really are Ten Promises (see 1BC 1105.1), then they really are moreso descriptive statements than they are commands - descriptive of how a true child of God will act when he truly loves God.

Take the Law of Gravity, for instance. If you hold an apple above your head and suddenly let go, does that apple have to struggle and put forth effort in order to comply with the Law of Gravity and fall to the ground? Of course not! That's silly, right? It is merely a natural, predictable phenomenon - what goes up must come down.

It is the same with the Law of God - the Decalogue. Those 10 Laws are merely descriptive of what will happen when you are subject to God's rulership in your life, just as the Law of Gravity is descriptive of what will happen to weighty objects subject to the atmosphere of Earth.*

The difference between people and apples is that we have a choice as to whether or not we will be subject to the Law. (Apples, obviously, do not.) Keeping the Law is not the problem; choosing to be subject to the Law every moment, by accepting God's sovereignty over us, this is where we find our perpetual battle. When we fully accept Him, it will be (through His power) but a natural, predictable phenomenon for us to abide by His Laws and display His character.

Isn't that beautiful? 

"You cannot change your heart, you cannot of yourself give to God its affections; but you can choose to serve Him. You can give Him your will. He will then work in you both to will and to do according to His good pleasure. Thus your whole nature will be brought under the control of the Spirit of Christ." ~ Steps to Christ, p. 31

*Disclaimer: I am not a scientist. Please forgive my painfully pathetic description of the law of gravity. Thanks.