Moments of Quiet Truth

" T he fear of the LORD leads to life, and whoever has it rests satisfied; he will not be visited by harm." Proverbs 19:23 "whoever has it rests satisfied"      Is the "it" referring to the fear of the LORD or to the possession of life at the end of it? I tried to think of possible ramifications for either. If the fear of the LORD is the antecedent, the reason for satisfaction is the understanding of the sovereign One in whose presence is "fullness of joy" and at whose right hand there are "pleasures forevermore" (Ps. 16). Satisfaction comes from dwelling on and in the presence of God.    On the other hand,if the antecedent is life, then the harm referred to is the harm of death and separation from His joy-filled presence.      I am a visual learner, so I drew a diagram in my Bible study notebook of a stick figure walking along a path labeled "The fear of the LORD." At the end of the path I wrote "life" and...

     M y grandfather is dying from cancer. They've given him months to live, but nobody knows how long. He's in Louisiana and I'm in South Carolina. The last time I saw him was several years ago - before he moved from North Carolina to Louisiana. That was the last time I told him I loved him, I think.      After talking to mom last night and realizing how serious things were after just one round of chemo (nearly killed him), I began to remember  . . . . . remember the times he pushed us around in the wheelbarrow and then let us have a go at trying to get it around yard, the time he scared me by showing up Christmas morning dressed as Santa and me too young to enjoy people in costume. I remember underdogs on the tree swing in the back yard, Grandpa cringing as I looked at him with my eyes crossed, him taking me to the doctor because I was fool enough to try to reach the bar on the opposite side of the swing set with my feet as I pumped my sw...

" H is divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, "       He has begun this good work in me and He will complete it. He is a master watch-winder and He is constantly winding my clock to again accurately keep in time with His plan for me. He renews my mind when I sit at His feet.      One cog in the watch of my life that I have been dealing with of late is my allusion of my control over 'my' life. Looking back over things that didn't go as I planned, I am tempted to try to figure out what went wrong and how I can keep those 'mistakes' from happening again. This is my attempt to manipulate people and circumstances to fit the 'timing' I think is best for my life.  " You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God" 1 Cor. 6:19b-20a "Bought by such love, my life is not my own. My praise, my all...

  D ry and parched, bleeding, sore,  skin thirsty, soul thirsty.    Thirsty soul - dying from lack of Water. How often do I neglect the time to nourish that which is my protection, my first defense- time with Him? Why do I?  Why do I choose against life, fullness of joy inexpressible, rejoicing, peace, rest, slathering my soul with His life-giving love for the embellishment of that which will fade, is deceitful, vain, withering each moment more, will break down, bruise, and bleed?  And I wonder at His seeming silence, . . . . .  my coldness and lack of responsiveness toward Him And His command. I wonder that I balk at His goodness and grace when I have hewn out broken and cracked sisterns rather than revel in the endless Life-spring for my sustenance.  Soul thirsty - desperate to be filled with His grace.   And. He. fills.  He. overflows. my. cup.

"B y sending his own Son, in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin , he condemned sin in the flesh," Rom. 8:3 By sending his own Son . . .      Linger long on this. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .      I read on a church sign that, when Christ came, the inconceivable God was conceived in a virgin's womb. The dictionary states that 'to conceive' can mean 'to form,' 'to form an idea or opinion,' or 'to express verbally.' The eternal spirit God was formed in a virgin's womb. "and the Word became flesh ." Jn. 1:14   "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard , which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life." (1 Jn. 1:1)       The verbal words of God were spoken by the Word "who, existing in the form of God, counted not the being o...

T he Holy Spirit - who is He and what does He do? Wow. These ares no mere theoretical, abstract questions. An understanding of their answers frees us to live lives that please God. Period. "Apart from me you can do nothing," Jesus said. The Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of the Lord. In seeking to develop a Bible study for ladies in Poland, I have turned to Romans 8. Not accidentally, this is the one chapter in the Bible that has more references to the Holy Spirit than any other chapter - it has the highest concentration of references to Him. I have begun to study out who He is and what He does. I hope to post my findings as I go. Meditate on these two thoughts: "Apart from me you can do nothing." and "for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure."  I would love to read your thoughts on these truths and what God has taught you from them.   

   W hat do you do when you've fallen flat on your face, after tripping over the same speed bump that you've run over so many times before, when you've fallen again to the lie that God is not enough to satisfy? How do you respond when God reminds you that you are a jar of clay? That you don't need people as much as you. need. Him.      You thank Him. You thank Him for showing you the reality of what is really under the trash can of your heart. You thank Him for His grace that again forgives, forgets, does not deal with you as you deserve, picks you up, and helps you try again - immediately . You praise Him that you don't need to re-earn His favor once you've fallen - it's right there - not a second late, in fact, it never left. The fellowship was broken, but not the relationship. "Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven , whose sin is covered . Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity , and in whose spirit there is no...