[Spirit100]

I'm starting this journey next week and will be sharing the journey on ocassion here in the Church 101 thread.

Feel free to check it out and share your thoughts!

https://soulcon.com/

It is my sincere hope you all are having a mindful and gratitude filled Thanksgiving! :Thumbs:

[Spirit100]

http://www.davidjeremiah.org/site/magazi...ional.aspx

Have a blessed day folks! :Thumbs:

[Spirit100]

December 18, 2017

…when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
1 John 3:2

Recommended Reading: 1 John 3:2-3

In one of his homespun sermons, evangelist D. L. Moody said, “There was a man in London who had all the promises of God printed together in a little book, and some time after some one in the country sent up for a copy. He received the answer that all the promises of God were out of print.” Moody then held up his Bible and said, “Perhaps that man had never heard of this.” And he added, “I advise you to make all God’s promises good. God always keeps every promise He makes, and I defy any infidel to show any promise he has not kept.”

Apart from the living Word of Jesus, God’s greatest tangible Christmas present to us is His written Word, which is packed with promises about the future.

God has packed His Word with promises for today—and for tomorrow! Many of the greatest promises involve our Lord’s return and our eternal future in Him. Just as He came the first time, He will come again—in power, glory, and transforming grace. The future is bright because we know one day we will not only see Him, but we shall be like Him as well.

[Spirit100]

WITH THE POWER OF IMAGINATION, I ENVISION NEW POSSIBILITIES IN MY LIFE.

Charles Fillmore explained imagination as “the faculty of mind that images and forms; the power to shape form and thought.” Imagination is the power that pulls me through challenges in my life and the faculty that illumines the wisdom of God.

I strengthen my imagination through simple practices that allow my thoughts to expand. Consciously thinking outside the box, I practice doing things in new and different ways. Imaginative play can be cultivated by drawing with crayons, collecting images that inspire me, and writing in a journal. Such activities release limitations and invite inspiration. With the power of imagination, I envision new possibilities and manifest them in my life.

I will pray with the spirit, but I will pray with the mind also; I will sing praise with the spirit, but I will sing praise with the mind also.—1 Corinthians 14:15

[Spirit100]

Eyelashes, Fingernails, and Bodybuilding
January 8, 2018

Your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
1 Corinthians 15:58

Recommended Reading: 1 Corinthians 15:50-58

The newest edition of Guinness World Records describes a Chinese woman who set the record for the world’s longest eyelash (almost five inches); an 84-year-old great-grandfather from Los Angeles who is the world’s oldest male bodybuilder; and a woman in Houston with the longest fingernails currently for a woman (over 18 feet—she’s been growing them for more than twenty years).

What’s your world record? Everyone wants to be known for something. We crave a sense of significance. Something in us tells us our lives shouldn’t be in vain, yet our attempts to leave a legacy often fall short of God’s perfect plan.

The greatest legacy comes from humble service. When we serve Him faithfully, in places obscure or acclaimed, whether honored by men or reviled, He will use us in ways beyond reckoning. Even the smallest tasks, when pursued faithfully and prayerfully, will create a chain reaction that can only be calculated in heaven.

“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58).

We can be steadfast in our service, unmovable in suffering, abounding in ministry to others, because we know our labor is not in vain.
Warren W. Wiersbe

[Spirit100]

And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take place.
Revelation 22:6

Recommended Reading: Luke 21:29-36

Sir Isaac Newton, the father of physics, was an ardent student of Scripture who maintained a lifelong interest in prophecy. He felt too many people were setting dates for the end of the world, but he said the end would not come until “wicked nations” are in ruins and the Jews are back in their ancient homeland. Based on his study of the Bible, Newton foresaw the world in crisis and the reestablishment of the state of Israel. But even Newton couldn’t stop himself from setting a date. According to a recently discovered letter, he estimated the end of the world would occur in 2060.

It’s tempting to speculate when Christ will return, but we do not know the day or year. We simply know His coming is “shortly.” Romans 16:20 says, “The God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly.” Revelation 1:1 says these things “must shortly take place.”

People tend to ignore the ever-present warnings about the Last Days, but for the believer they represent our ever-present hope.

He who thinks half-heartedly will not believe in God; but he who really thinks has to believe in God.
Isaac Newton

[Spirit100]

Guidance

I OPEN MY MIND TO DIVINE INSPIRATION.

Myrtle Fillmore wrote, “You would not think of closing your eyes and walking around saying that you can’t see and don’t know where you are going. So why close your eye of omniscience by saying, ‘I do not know what to do?’ Repeatedly affirm that you do know!” With this sage advice, Myrtle reminds us it is never about asking some outside force for guidance; it is remembering and affirming our ever-present connection within divine mind.

Connecting within my sacred heart space, I allow a feeling of curiosity to guide me along as I find confidence for my next steps. I relax into the Silence where I have constant access to divine guidance. With steadfast faith, I follow where I am guided.

Let your good spirit lead me on a level path.—Psalm 143:10

[Spirit100]

[Spirit100]

A righteous man regards the life of his animal.
Proverbs 12:10

Recommended Reading: Matthew 10:27-31

Have you ever asked yourself why God created animals—so many of them with such variety?

Clearly God loves animals. He filled the Garden of Eden with them, preserved them during the Flood, and expressed concern about the cattle of Nineveh at the end of the book of Jonah. He even makes the surprising statement in Proverbs 12:10 that righteousness includes treating our animals well.

God undoubtedly created animals to be lessons for us. We learn diligence by watching ants do their work (Proverbs 6:6); we learn trust from the sparrows (Psalm 84:3); safety from the hen with her chicks (Matthew 23:37); confidence from the eagle (Isaiah 40:31); surefootedness from the deer (Habakkuk 3:19); discipleship from the sheep (John 10:4); gentleness from doves (Matthew 10:16); obedience from the horse (Psalm 32:9); wisdom from the badger (Proverbs 30:26); courage from the lion (Proverbs 30:29-30); and faith from the raven (Luke 12:24).

If you’re vacationing with your children this summer, talk about the animals. Sometimes their very presence is a sermon for our souls.

All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small, / All things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all.
Cecil Frances Alexander

[jetpilot]

Heard of the good Samaritan all my life. Everyone acts like they know where it came from. Then I read Luke 10:25-37 and got it from the source. How many people really know what the good Samaritan did? Great thread and hope to see more posts here.

[TheRealThing]

Heard of the good Samaritan all my life. Everyone acts like they know where it came from. Then I read Luke 10:25-37 and got it from the source. How many people really know what the good Samaritan did? Great thread and hope to see more posts here.

Not only were the actions of the good Samaritan generous and compassionate to a degree far superior to the norm of that day, that would also be the case even by any reasonable standard expected of a devout Christian.

The Jews and Samaritans of the ancient world hated each other bitterly, and this had been the case from the days of Abraham. In spite of thousands of years of conflict between Israel and Samaria, he had left the innkeeper with enough money to see the injured man through his recovery period. But he also promised to pay the innkeeper further for any unanticipated shortfall, the next time he came through. And obviously the character of the Samaritan was good enough surety for the innkeeper. ABTW, the good Samaritan expected no repayment. And I'm sure as far as he knew he'd never see the stricken Jew again. Thus all things considered, in my mind the character of the good Samaritan likely exceeded the majority of the Jewish orthodoxy of the day.

Pretty striking when considering that the Jew is and were God's chosen people, this though the Bible clearly reveals that they are no better than anybody else. (All men have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.) But the point here is they very often failed in their dealings with others. God chose the Jew in spite of his many flaws, not because he was somehow more deserving than the other nations. And like the Jew, Christians fail in many ways today. Though, in our case as the Holy Spirit teaches us and reveals to us our many flaws, we have the opportunity to repent of same, and as the result are conformed to the image of Christ across the time span of our lives. So, the more we judge ourselves the better off we are. In any case the true goodness which any man may express, be that through giving to The Church, or charities, or any good work, they are but the reflection of the goodness of God Himself shinning through their lives.

In other words the larger picture here IMHO, is that it is very likely the good Samaritan was a believer in God and helped the stricken Jew because of his (the Samaritan's) right relationship with God. Ironically though the Jew is God's chosen people, he often lives a godless life style just like the other peoples of the world. But for salvation's sake, God has 'chosen,' all men first by offering His only Son as a sacrifice for them on the cross. And like the Jew, it is up to each individual as to whether he will choose God in return. God chose the Jew first, and He reached out to the peoples of the world in those days through Israel. But with Christ's substitutionary death on the cross, He chose all men first where it comes to the matter of salvation.

Romans 5:8 (KJV)
8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

John 3:14-16 (KJV)
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

(Jesus was lifted up on the cross) and thus all men are to look 'up' to Him in order to be saved.

[Spirit100]

https://www.rzim.org/read/a-slice-of-inf...revelation

[TheRealThing]

https://www.rzim.org/read/a-slice-of-inf...revelation

Spirit that was a great article and I greatly appreciate your having posted the link. The dichotomy established by the enlightenment as it turns out, just happens to be a pet peeve of mine and a subject on which I have posted several times. As the writer lays out, there has been a separation of spiritual and temporal thought, (or earthly, for lack of a better term)

I am not one who believes that any one form of truth, can or should exist apart from the others. Especially in the case of the way spiritual truths impact social and scientific truths. No partition, no wall of separation should exist between the spiritual and the temporal, and that even if for the time being, the temporal does happen to be grounded in science. I say 'for the time being,' because IMHO the Lord will melt this universe at some point very soon with a fervent heat. But rejection of any truth perverts all truth in the mind of any who would be so foolhardy. My contention about all knowledge then, is as follows.

As is the case with everything that exists within the universe, that Thing which came first was God. If one does not accept that simple foundation, no matter what he builds, it is doomed to collapse as do all lies. This is what He says about understanding creation; John 8:12 (KJV)
12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

It is impossible for one who denies Christ to understand nature fully. Why? Because man's mind brilliant though it may be, in the natural state is one of partial yet substantial darkness. To wit, in Romans 1:21 Paul declares, when men choose a lifestyle outside of Christ, 'their foolish hearts are darkened.' Now, I understand fully that the truth of salvation is utterly unattainable outside a saving knowledge of Christ Jesus, but I cannot see anyway to limit the light of knowledge (the illuminated mind or as the writer of your article referred to, the enlightenment) to salvation only. The Light, illuminates men's hearts to receive all truth. Conversely, the darkness causes man to reject the heart of all truth, God. It would be like trying to understand the solar system while denying the sun.

But in man's dogged rejection of that light, lies the reason why he pushes so hard for the exclusion of Christianity or God's tenets from the public forum, from the public square, from the law, from the halls of congress and from the courts of this land. But it is also why men came up with the Big Bang Theory, and the Theory of Evolution. But worse, America at some point in the relatively recent past, turned her back on her need of the Lord. So now in the case of all the contempt and hatred erupting in our land, we see that in doing so we have sown the wind, and now we are and WILL reap the whirlwind. Anyone whom would deny that America is out of control at the social level, and since we are a government of and by the people, therefore at the federal level too, is kidding himself.

But I digress just a bit. Science falls short because they dismiss creation in favor of an exploding rock. Which theory BTW is so fraught with unresolvable impasse that Big Bang theory adherents had to fall back to the absurd position of saying that an impossible number of universes have existed simultaneously in time and that in one of them the Big Bang worked.

I won't belabor the point further, but anytime man denies God, His creative hand, and His sovereignty over every last little smidgeon of DNA, the very science he depends on to carry the day will at some point betray him. And, man will be forced to either admit the truth or he will have to lie. And since men prefer to believe a lie: 2 Thessalonians 2:11 (KJV) 11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:

My position is that all truth is of God, and man when he denies God at any point, will suffer for having done so. I believe the day of Tribulation is very likely near upon us, and the suffering will be impossible to describe.

[jetpilot]

I'm a beginner. Reading Luke right now.

[TheRealThing]

I'm a beginner. Reading Luke right now.

Hard to argue with the benefit you will gain from reading Luke. Did you know that many prominent Bible Scholars believe Luke was a gentile? If so, that would make him the only gentile contributor to the entire New Testament. And to fortify that claim, Paul took Luke with him on the mission field when he received the Macedonian Call. (That is the call to the gentile field) Acts 16:6-10

Luke had a more understandable and direct writing style than perhaps some others did. But no matter who the author, every word in the Bible is the Word of God, and therefore inerrant. And I know it's difficult, but I find the King James Version to be more enlightening than many of the other translations. But if you use something like say the NASB or NKJV, I have found that it is helpful or revealing, to reread your text in the KJV. :biggrin:

And may I say, I believe time is short!

[Spirit100]

I'm a study bible guy myself. I have three different bibles i read from and use all three.

The study bible helps clear the murkiness i experience at times. It provides another perspective as well. Continued success Jetpilot...you've inspired me to read Luke as well this week/month !

:Thumbs:

[Spirit100]

https://www.davidjeremiah.org/site/magaz...ignup=true

Hope you all are doing well and had a blessed Thanksgiving! :Thumbs:

[TheRealThing]

And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take place.
Revelation 22:6

Recommended Reading: Luke 21:29-36

Sir Isaac Newton, the father of physics, was an ardent student of Scripture who maintained a lifelong interest in prophecy. He felt too many people were setting dates for the end of the world, but he said the end would not come until “wicked nations” are in ruins and the Jews are back in their ancient homeland. Based on his study of the Bible, Newton foresaw the world in crisis and the reestablishment of the state of Israel. But even Newton couldn’t stop himself from setting a date. According to a recently discovered letter, he estimated the end of the world would occur in 2060.

It’s tempting to speculate when Christ will return, but we do not know the day or year. We simply know His coming is “shortly.” Romans 16:20 says, “The God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly.” Revelation 1:1 says these things “must shortly take place.”

People tend to ignore the ever-present warnings about the Last Days, but for the believer they represent our ever-present hope.

He who thinks half-heartedly will not believe in God; but he who really thinks has to believe in God.
Isaac Newton

I would like to think all men of great intellect realize the benefit of studying prophesy. Of course not all of them do, but Isaac Newton did, as you say. With regard to the 2060 deal and the importance of His coming as that would apply to His people. Christians; Newton's 2060 date seems remarkably close.

The prophet Daniel was a man "greatly beloved of God." The Archangel Michael was dispatched to him to sort of 'fill him in' on a few rather profound things, as can be seen in...
Daniel 12:3-4 (KJV)
v3 And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.
v4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: > many shall run to and fro, and [B]> knowledge shall be increased. [/B] { note: > signs mine}

Two signs for the end of time that the Lord shared directly with only one man as far as I can see, that being Daniel. Here is why I believe the increase of knowledge is so pivotal to the end of time, and I apologize for stating it again but every time I consider this passage I get goose bumps. Before I present my argument let me point out that many noted Bible commentators state that the increase of knowledge referenced in Daniel is Bible knowledge. I cannot agree that the increase spoken of by Michael is only Biblical. All truth is of God, IMHO, one cannot separate or compartmentalize truth. So firstly, I believe that the Lord regulated the advancement of man's knowledge and therefore his progress, by confounding his language at the Tower of Babel. The people's of the earth spoke ONE common language at that point but they spoke hundreds after that time. God I believe did this, because as He said at that time, “nothing they could imagine would be withheld from them." Why, because of their ability to coordinate with one another. That language barrier served to regulate man’s progress for centuries, but has now been removed.

There is no longer any separation between the nations because the foregoing language barrier has been largely eradicated by a number of factors relative to an increase in knowledge; interfacing super computers and people learning each other's language to name two. But for man, there is a literal knowledge explosion happening at present. For example, is the knowledge doubling curve--- 'Buckminster Fuller created the “Knowledge Doubling Curve”; he noticed that until 1900 human knowledge doubled approximately every century. By the end of World War II knowledge was doubling every 25 years. Today things are not as simple as different types of knowledge have different rates of growth. For example, nanotechnology knowledge is doubling every two years and clinical knowledge every 18 months. But on average human knowledge is doubling every 13 months. According to IBM, the build out of the “internet of things” will lead to the doubling of knowledge every 12 hours.'
http://www.industrytap.com/knowledge-dou...hours/3950

And think about the great changes this world has seen just since the close of WW2 in September of 1945. We’ve gone from propeller driven aircraft to machines so advanced one fighter jet launched from an aircraft carrier, could take out two major foreign cities, shooting down several enemy fighters on the way in, and on the way out, of whatever country had been it’s target. Rumor has it we can even clone people these days, who really knows? Achieving anything we can imagine however, would appear to be the case presently. Granny Bear just posted a thread recently about gene editing. Men can go into the genome and make corrections to the DNA, thus resolving heath issues prior to birth.

Factor in all the other evidence, not to mention the guidance of the Holy Spirit: (which in my view is even more credible than the secular evidence) and a rather compelling case for the soon coming of Christ becomes obvious. I don’t begin to know the day, but I believe it is close. Which brings me to our shared “hope.” The reality of all this is such that mankind, outside of God’s Ark of Safety, has no hope that this earth will stand. It’s clear that if not for the intervention of God, once Antichrist assumes control it would only be a matter of time until all flesh would die. Matthew 24:20-22 (KJV)
v20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
v21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
v22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.

Just saying, as for me and my house, the day is nigh. :biggrin:

[Spirit100]

DECEMBER 6, 2018

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.
John 1:1-2

Recommended Reading: John 1:14

The modern debate about abortion rights in the West has centered on the questions of personhood and the beginning of life. Does life begin at conception? At birth? With the first breath? With the cutting of the umbilical cord? Christians are almost unanimous in their belief that life begins at conception and should be honored as such throughout pregnancy. But there is one life in human history that began even before conception.

The Bible is quite clear that the Man who came to be known as Jesus from Nazareth was the eternal Second Person of the Trinity. He existed in fellowship with the Father and the Spirit before He was conceived and incarnated as a human being on earth. The eternal Word of God “became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14), though He had existed from eternity before His birth. Though eternal and God, He did not lord His status over humanity, but came as one of us, humble and a servant (Philippians 2:6-8).

Divesting, humbling, serving, submitting—these traits of Christ that we remember at Christmas become the template for the life He gives to us.

[Spirit100]

Love

I AM DIVINE LOVE IN EXPRESSION.
I am a creative spiritual being, and the substance with which I create is divine love. This includes the loving feelings I may experience as my day unfolds. These are important elements, but divine love exists deeper than feelings, at the very core of my being.

The Trappist monk and author Thomas Merton described love as “an intensification of life.” My life today is deepened and strengthened by the creative intensity I bring to every choice. It is only by allowing the substance of love to shape my day that I can intensify my life experience and be a blessing to others. I am divine love in expression, and my heart is open to every opportunity the day will bring to share that love with others.

Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.—Colossians 3:14

:Thumbs:

[Spirit100]

https://www.rzim.org/listen/let-my-peopl...und-part-1

[Spirit100]

https://www.davidjeremiah.org/site/magaz...ignup=true

[pjdoug]

DECEMBER 6, 2018

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.
John 1:1-2

Recommended Reading: John 1:14

The modern debate about abortion rights in the West has centered on the questions of personhood and the beginning of life. Does life begin at conception? At birth? With the first breath? With the cutting of the umbilical cord? Christians are almost unanimous in their belief that life begins at conception and should be honored as such throughout pregnancy. But there is one life in human history that began even before conception.

The Bible is quite clear that the Man who came to be known as Jesus from Nazareth was the eternal Second Person of the Trinity. He existed in fellowship with the Father and the Spirit before He was conceived and incarnated as a human being on earth. The eternal Word of God “became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14), though He had existed from eternity before His birth. Though eternal and God, He did not lord His status over humanity, but came as one of us, humble and a servant (Philippians 2:6-8).

Divesting, humbling, serving, submitting—these traits of Christ that we remember at Christmas become the template for the life He gives to us.

John 14:9

[pjdoug]

A righteous man regards the life of his animal.
Proverbs 12:10

Recommended Reading: Matthew 10:27-31

Have you ever asked yourself why God created animals—so many of them with such variety?

Clearly God loves animals. He filled the Garden of Eden with them, preserved them during the Flood, and expressed concern about the cattle of Nineveh at the end of the book of Jonah. He even makes the surprising statement in Proverbs 12:10 that righteousness includes treating our animals well.

God undoubtedly created animals to be lessons for us. We learn diligence by watching ants do their work (Proverbs 6:6); we learn trust from the sparrows (Psalm 84:3); safety from the hen with her chicks (Matthew 23:37); confidence from the eagle (Isaiah 40:31); surefootedness from the deer (Habakkuk 3:19); discipleship from the sheep (John 10:4); gentleness from doves (Matthew 10:16); obedience from the horse (Psalm 32:9); wisdom from the badger (Proverbs 30:26); courage from the lion (Proverbs 30:29-30); and faith from the raven (Luke 12:24).

If you’re vacationing with your children this summer, talk about the animals. Sometimes their very presence is a sermon for our souls.

All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small, / All things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all.
Cecil Frances Alexander

Genesis 1:26
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

[Spirit100]

Enjoyed watching my nephew baptized in Lexington this morning. To God be the Glory!

:Thumbs:

[pjdoug]

Enjoyed watching my nephew baptized in Lexington this morning. To God be the Glory!

:Thumbs:

great news.

[Spirit100]

Free

I AM FREE. I AM UNLIMITED.

God’s essence and energy is free and unlimited, and because I am divinely created, I exist without restriction or repression.

I begin to understand freedom as a quality of Spirit through conscious communion with God. As I connect with Spirit in prayer and meditation, I begin to experience and know a deep, authentic kind of freedom. If I feel stuck in life’s circumstances, I remember and call upon the freedom through Spirit that surpasses any condition in my outer life.

I eliminate any thoughts, feelings, or actions that no longer serve me. I connect with the unlimited essence of Spirit within me and affirm: I am free. I am unlimited.

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.—Romans 8:2

:Thumbs:

[Spirit100]

Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry, for anger rests in the bosom of fools.
Ecclesiastes 7:9

Recommended Reading: Ephesians 4:25-32

There’s a time and place to be angry—at the right moment and to the right degree—but our anger is often destructive, for “human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires” (James 1:20, NIV). We get angry about politics; our traffic snarls exasperate us; and daily life has its own tensions. Eruptions of anger may be understandable, but they can damage our most precious relationships.

The first way of dealing with madness this March is recognizing that the anger isn’t contained in our circumstances; it’s contained in our hearts. The circumstances—a rude caller, a bounced check, a burnt biscuit—may provoke our anger, but the real source is the underlying rage in our own spirits. Anger begins in our minds and thoughts.

The best way, then, for dealing with anger is to fill the mind with God’s Word. If you need some anger management, open your Bible and seriously search out its best verses about anger. Start with Ecclesiastes 7:9 and James 1:20, then check out Ephesians 4:25-32. Find some verses to commit to memory, and let God use His words to bring healing to your angry thoughts.

Anger is short-lived in a good man.
Thomas Fuller, Puritan

[TheRealThing]

^^ You know, in 2Pet 2:7 the Apostle speaks of how Lot vexed his righteous soul daily with the filthy conversation of the wicked. To be vexed is to be troubled past any real point of escape. Such trouble is always in the forefront of one's consciousness. In fact, as the day draws nearer the boiling cauldron of unrest and upheaval we see around us will become too much for any man to ignore.
Luke 21:26 (KJV)
26 Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

These are vexing times. And as you say, trouble brews seemingly at every hand, and we sort of just land on one issue long enough to gripe about it for a while and then move on. I'm sure you agree that sin needs to be called out, it's just that we have to be careful how we do so. Case in point.

Ceding majority privilege to Dems, our esteemed Senator Paul has declared that he will vote with the them in an attempt to derail the President's efforts to go around a resistant Congress in order to fund the border wall. I believe that to be a mistake if for no other reason than to try and stem the nearly unfettered flow of life destructive drugs which come northward. This idea that politicians can be morally aloof about the devastation caused by the ease of availability of illicit drugs is ludicrous. As any family which finds itself beset by the plague of drug addiction knows, the suffering is catastrophic and consumes everyone in said family. Thus the family and ultimately on the grand scale, the nation, so infected becomes roadkill to the scourge of drug addiction. The problem is in the way we share with Senator Paul our misgivings.

The suffering associated in just that one area of modern life is difficult to consider, and as everyone knows there are many more vexations on top of that. But it makes those of us with a family connection to drug usage want to cry out in pain. King David expressed such pain as he cried out in pain for the sake of his people the Jew, in the 7th Chapter of the Psalms. Had Israel been obedient, she could have well avoided the trials and genocides perpetrated across time. Nonetheless the Jews have suffered mightily in their time, and the worst is yet to come. This cry of pain was the result of what he foresaw coming to visit the Jew during the Great Tribulation. In short, wisdom grants one the insight of the true nature of suffering as the result of sin. Anger is as you say Spirit, for the shallow.

Where anger is concerned, the Lord is the lone exception... Psalm 7:11 (KJV)
11 God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day.

Because His character is Holy, God is angry with those whom would dare persecute His own children.

Romans 12:18-19 (KJV)
18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.
19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

Like those unfortunate souls of the Titanic who found themselves bobbing so hopelessly in the wintry, icy blackness of the North Atlantic, Judgment for all men is certain. And like looking down on that horrific scene of the wrecked Titanic, mature Christians recognize the true nature and horror of the judgment to come. They know better than to feel uppity or judgmental of others. But not having 2 seconds in the morning to thank the Lord for His goodness is not somebody else's fault. It's our own and we owe the Lord some time to visit each morning. I believe anger is at the root of all conflict. Be it the result of dropping a piece of toast in the morning, jelly side down, or the road rage which follows. Many times we don't even know why we're angry until we've managed to make a spectacle of ourselves.

[Spirit100]

Wisdom

I LOOK FOR MEANING BY TURNING WITHIN TO DIVINE WISDOM.

My search for right answers will bring me to one place—the presence of the Most High, the kingdom of God in my life. There I find the wisdom I need to make any decision—significant or trivial. Spirit within guides me to the understanding I seek and the courage I need.

I create my path, looking for guidance and meaning along the journey. Faith enables me to see the underlying blessings and to anticipate the best outcome in every concern. When I place my trust in the indwelling presence of God, I am one with infinite wisdom. My soul is at peace in the presence of God. I look for meaning by turning within to divine wisdom.

Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white.—Luke 9:28-29