Wednesday, September 15, 2004
Sunset
"I love you without knowing how, when or from where. I love you simply without problems or pride. I love you in this way because I don't know any other way of loving..." Sonnet XVII by Pablo Neruda
Now what?
THE HOUND OF HEAVEN
By Francis Thompson
I fled him, down the nights and down the days; I fled him, down the arches of the years; I fled him, down the labyrinthine ways of my own mind; and in the mist of tears I hid from him… He tried romantic love, he tried the love of children, he tried nature, while still with unhurrying chase, and unperturbed pace, deliberate speed, majestic instancy, came on the following feet… at last the hound chases him to earth. He hears a voice around him, "Like a bursting sea," which says: "All which I took from thee I did but take, not for thy harms, but just that thou shouldst seek it in my arms, all which thy child's mistake fancies as lost, I have stored for thee at home; Rise, clasp my hand, and come!"
"Not for thy harms." Like a skilled surgeon, God may have to hurt us, but he will never harm us, his object is wholeness.
I have learned that nothing can be more satisfying than being consumed by His great love. Amidst all that is happening, in quietness and TRUST will be my strength. Four years ago, I confessed to surrender my ALL to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. I am His, my heart, mind, body, soul & strength. I cannot give my heart away, for it is not MINE to give. From glory to glory, I'm learning to use His tools in order to raise up women after His own heart.
Wisdom is simply the ownership of insight.
Eugene Peterson describes wisdom as "the art of living skillfully in whatever actual conditions we find ourselves."
I like to think that the relationship between wisdom and romance is like the one between a string and a kite. Romantic love is the kite that catches the wind and tenaciously heads for the sky; wisdom is the string that tugs downward holding it back. The tension is real, but healthy.
It's not enough to have romantic feelings. Anyone can do that! Long-lasting romance needs practical, common-sense wisdom that knows when to let the wind of feelings carry us higher and when to pull back. When to express our emotions and when to keep quiet. When to open our hearts and when to rein them in.
John Calvin wrote, "The evil in our desire typically does not lie in what we want, but in that we want it too much."
Time is God's way of keeping everything from happening all at once.
By Francis Thompson
I fled him, down the nights and down the days; I fled him, down the arches of the years; I fled him, down the labyrinthine ways of my own mind; and in the mist of tears I hid from him… He tried romantic love, he tried the love of children, he tried nature, while still with unhurrying chase, and unperturbed pace, deliberate speed, majestic instancy, came on the following feet… at last the hound chases him to earth. He hears a voice around him, "Like a bursting sea," which says: "All which I took from thee I did but take, not for thy harms, but just that thou shouldst seek it in my arms, all which thy child's mistake fancies as lost, I have stored for thee at home; Rise, clasp my hand, and come!"
"Not for thy harms." Like a skilled surgeon, God may have to hurt us, but he will never harm us, his object is wholeness.
I have learned that nothing can be more satisfying than being consumed by His great love. Amidst all that is happening, in quietness and TRUST will be my strength. Four years ago, I confessed to surrender my ALL to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. I am His, my heart, mind, body, soul & strength. I cannot give my heart away, for it is not MINE to give. From glory to glory, I'm learning to use His tools in order to raise up women after His own heart.
Wisdom is simply the ownership of insight.
Eugene Peterson describes wisdom as "the art of living skillfully in whatever actual conditions we find ourselves."
I like to think that the relationship between wisdom and romance is like the one between a string and a kite. Romantic love is the kite that catches the wind and tenaciously heads for the sky; wisdom is the string that tugs downward holding it back. The tension is real, but healthy.
It's not enough to have romantic feelings. Anyone can do that! Long-lasting romance needs practical, common-sense wisdom that knows when to let the wind of feelings carry us higher and when to pull back. When to express our emotions and when to keep quiet. When to open our hearts and when to rein them in.
John Calvin wrote, "The evil in our desire typically does not lie in what we want, but in that we want it too much."
Time is God's way of keeping everything from happening all at once.
Tuesday, September 07, 2004
something to inspire you
Something to think about
Why Does God Wait?
By Max Lucado
Why does God wait until the money is gone? Why does he wait until the
sickness has lingered? Why does he choose to wait until the other side
of the grave to answer the prayers for healing?
I don't know. I only know his timing is always right. I can only say he
will do what is best. "God will always give what is right to his people
who cry to him night and day, and he will not be slow to answer them."
(Luke 18:7)
Though you hear nothing, he is speaking. Though you see nothing, he is
acting. With God there are no accidents. Every incident is intended to
bring us closer to him.
Can I give a great example? The direct route from Egypt to Israel would
take only eleven days by foot. But God took the Israelites on the long
road, which took forty years. Why did he do that? Read carefully the
explanation.
"Remember how the LORD your God has led you in the desert for these
forty years, taking away your pride and testing you, because he wanted
to know what was in your heart. He took away your pride when he let you
get hungry, and then he fed you with manna, which neither you nor your
ancestors had ever seen. This was to teach you that a person does not
live by eating only bread, but by everything the LORD says. During these
forty years, your clothes did not wear out, and your feet did not swell.
Know in your heart that the LORD your God corrects you as a parent
corrects a child." (Deut. 8:2-4)
Look what God did in the desert. He took away the Israelites' pride. He
tested their hearts. He proved that he would provide for them. Did God
want the children of Israel to reach the Promised Land? Of course. But
he was more concerned that they arrive prepared than that they arrive
soon.
It reminds me of the often-told story of two maestros who attended a
concert to hear a promising young soprano. One commented on the purity
of her voice. The other responded, "Yes, but she'll sing better once her
heart is broken." There are certain passions only learned by pain. And
there are times when God, knowing that, allows us to endure the pain for
the sake of the song.
Why Does God Wait?
By Max Lucado
Why does God wait until the money is gone? Why does he wait until the
sickness has lingered? Why does he choose to wait until the other side
of the grave to answer the prayers for healing?
I don't know. I only know his timing is always right. I can only say he
will do what is best. "God will always give what is right to his people
who cry to him night and day, and he will not be slow to answer them."
(Luke 18:7)
Though you hear nothing, he is speaking. Though you see nothing, he is
acting. With God there are no accidents. Every incident is intended to
bring us closer to him.
Can I give a great example? The direct route from Egypt to Israel would
take only eleven days by foot. But God took the Israelites on the long
road, which took forty years. Why did he do that? Read carefully the
explanation.
"Remember how the LORD your God has led you in the desert for these
forty years, taking away your pride and testing you, because he wanted
to know what was in your heart. He took away your pride when he let you
get hungry, and then he fed you with manna, which neither you nor your
ancestors had ever seen. This was to teach you that a person does not
live by eating only bread, but by everything the LORD says. During these
forty years, your clothes did not wear out, and your feet did not swell.
Know in your heart that the LORD your God corrects you as a parent
corrects a child." (Deut. 8:2-4)
Look what God did in the desert. He took away the Israelites' pride. He
tested their hearts. He proved that he would provide for them. Did God
want the children of Israel to reach the Promised Land? Of course. But
he was more concerned that they arrive prepared than that they arrive
soon.
It reminds me of the often-told story of two maestros who attended a
concert to hear a promising young soprano. One commented on the purity
of her voice. The other responded, "Yes, but she'll sing better once her
heart is broken." There are certain passions only learned by pain. And
there are times when God, knowing that, allows us to endure the pain for
the sake of the song.
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