“But God’s infinitude belongs to us and is made known to us for our everlasting profit. Yet, just what does it mean to us beyond the mere wonder of thinking about it? Much every day, and more as come to know ourselves and God better. Because God’s nature is infinite, everything that flows of it is infinite also. We poor human creatures are constantly being frustrated by limitations imposed upon us from without and within. The days of the years of our lives are few, and swifter that a weavers shuttle. Life is a short and fevered rehearsal for a concert we cannot stay to give. Just when we appear to have attained some proficiency we are forced to lay our instruments down. There is simply not enough time to think, to become, to perform what the constitution of our natures indicates we are capable of. How completely satisfying to turn from our limitations to a God who has none. Eternal years lie in His heart. For Him time does not pass, it remains; and those who are in Christ share with Him all the riches of limitless time and endless years. God never hurries. There are no deadlines against which He must work. Only to know this is to quiet our spirits and relax our nerves. For those out of Christ, time is a devouring beast; before the sons of the new creation time crouches and purrs and licks their hands. The foe of the old human race becomes the friend of the new, and the stars in their courses fight for the man God delights to honor. This we may learn from the divine infinitude. But there is more. God’s gifts in nature have their limitations. They are finite because they have been created, but the gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus is as limitless as God. The Christian man possesses God’s own life and shares His infinitude with Him. In God, there is life enough for all and time enough to enjoy it. Whatever is possessed of natural life runs through its cycle from birth to death and ceases to be, but the life of God returns upon itself and ceases never. And this is life eternal: to know the one true God, and Jesus Christ whom He has sent. The mercy of God is infinite too, and the man who has felt the grinding pain of inward guilt knows that this is more than academic. “Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.” Abounding sin is the terror of the world, but abounding grace is the hope of mankind. However sin may abound it still has it limits, for it is the product of finite minds and hearts, but God’s “much more” introduces us to infinitude. Against our deep creature-sickness stands God’s infinite ability to cure. His love is measureless. It is more: it is boundless. It has no bounds because it is not a thing but a facet of the essential nature of God. His love is something He is, and because He is infinite that love can enfold the whole created world in itself and have room for ten thousand times ten thousand worlds beside." From "Knowledge of the Holy" AW Tozer 1961.
“But God’s infinitude belongs to us and is made known to us for our everlasting profit. Yet, just what does it mean to us beyond the mere wonder of thinking about it? Much every day, and more as come to know ourselves and God better. Because God’s nature is infinite, everything that flows of it is infinite also. We poor human creatures are constantly being frustrated by limitations imposed upon us from without and within. The days of the years of our lives are few, and swifter that a weavers shuttle. Life is a short and fevered rehearsal for a concert we cannot stay to give. Just when we appear to have attained some proficiency we are forced to lay our instruments down. There is simply not enough time to think, to become, to perform what the constitution of our natures indicates we are capable of. How completely satisfying to turn from our limitations to a God who has none. Eternal years lie in His heart. For Him time does not pass, it remains; and those who are in Christ share with Him all the riches of limitless time and endless years. God never hurries. There are no deadlines against which He must work. Only to know this is to quiet our spirits and relax our nerves. For those out of Christ, time is a devouring beast; before the sons of the new creation time crouches and purrs and licks their hands. The foe of the old human race becomes the friend of the new, and the stars in their courses fight for the man God delights to honor. This we may learn from the divine infinitude. But there is more. God’s gifts in nature have their limitations. They are finite because they have been created, but the gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus is as limitless as God. The Christian man possesses God’s own life and shares His infinitude with Him. In God, there is life enough for all and time enough to enjoy it. Whatever is possessed of natural life runs through its cycle from birth to death and ceases to be, but the life of God returns upon itself and ceases never. And this is life eternal: to know the one true God, and Jesus Christ whom He has sent. The mercy of God is infinite too, and the man who has felt the grinding pain of inward guilt knows that this is more than academic. “Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.” Abounding sin is the terror of the world, but abounding grace is the hope of mankind. However sin may abound it still has it limits, for it is the product of finite minds and hearts, but God’s “much more” introduces us to infinitude. Against our deep creature-sickness stands God’s infinite ability to cure. His love is measureless. It is more: it is boundless. It has no bounds because it is not a thing but a facet of the essential nature of God. His love is something He is, and because He is infinite that love can enfold the whole created world in itself and have room for ten thousand times ten thousand worlds beside." From "Knowledge of the Holy" AW Tozer 1961.
This exchange takes place before the ‘last supper’ that Jesus had with his Disciples before he faced the cross. John records with beautiful detail that a deeply contemplative Jesus rose from his seat and began to prepare himself and a basin of water to wash his disciples feet. The disciples were perplexed… Peter exclaimed "You shall never wash my feet!” Peter didn’t say this out of pride or ignorance. I think Peter had a revelation that Jesus was the Son of God - not a man confined to the dust of the earth, but 100% otherworldly, spiritual, eternal, born of God the Divine. The living expression of divine inspiration. He was aghast that such a man, such a prince, such a force would ever stoop so low as to wash his soiled feet. But Jesus knew that what he was about to endure and overcome on the cross would change their lives forever. He wanted to SHOW his friends the extent of his grace and love, how he wanted to mix into them and become a part of their lives. He was weaving a story of continued grace… Jesus answered, “Peter you don’t understand what I am doing, but someday you will… If I do not wash your feet, you cannot share companionship with me.” Peter, now filled with recognition, begged “then not just my feet Lord, but wash my head and hands too.” Relationship with Christ is two-way, just as all relationships are. You cannot receive redemption unless you allow Jesus to give it to you. It’s a miraculous and divine exchange. Jesus wanted to wash their feet. Feet that had walked down many different roads; some clean, others filthy. Journeys of hard work, alleyways of despair, mountains of challenge, valleys of heartache, fields of delight, and roads of progress... Whatever had held up their lives and coloured them in any way, Jesus wanted to baptise, refresh and renew, wash clean and restore; not just their feet, but their lives weary from the journeys of living. Peter wanted all in with Jesus - he wanted his whole life, not just his footsteps, but his thoughts and actions too, to be bathed in the power of Christ… He didn't yet know that Jesus blood would be poured out. That Jesus death, burial and resurrection would ignite redemption within him and set him free from the bonds of his sins past, present and future. But even from the moment of redemption - a full body bathed and cleansed with the power of Christ - we still walk in a world tainted by hate, lust, despair, fear… things contrary to the presence and person of Jesus. Things that move in opposition to his divine nature and grace. We need to come to him daily to reconcile the things we pick up along the way; the soiling of the world that wants to infect our hearts with its disease. Jesus was showing his friends this. They would understand in time that he is not a distant saviour, but a personal, all involved, not afraid of a little dirt or caked mud kind-of-Saviour. The kind we desperately need. If Jesus is leading you down paths that you don’t understand… trust him. He knows what he’s doing - the story he writes is involved, beautiful and complete… let it unfold. There is grace for the journey now and always.
This exchange takes place before the ‘last supper’ that Jesus had with his Disciples before he faced the cross. John records with beautiful detail that a deeply contemplative Jesus rose from his seat and began to prepare himself and a basin of water to wash his disciples feet. The disciples were perplexed… Peter exclaimed "You shall never wash my feet!” Peter didn’t say this out of pride or ignorance. I think Peter had a revelation that Jesus was the Son of God - not a man confined to the dust of the earth, but 100% otherworldly, spiritual, eternal, born of God the Divine. The living expression of divine inspiration. He was aghast that such a man, such a prince, such a force would ever stoop so low as to wash his soiled feet. But Jesus knew that what he was about to endure and overcome on the cross would change their lives forever. He wanted to SHOW his friends the extent of his grace and love, how he wanted to mix into them and become a part of their lives. He was weaving a story of continued grace… Jesus answered, “Peter you don’t understand what I am doing, but someday you will… If I do not wash your feet, you cannot share companionship with me.” Peter, now filled with recognition, begged “then not just my feet Lord, but wash my head and hands too.” Relationship with Christ is two-way, just as all relationships are. You cannot receive redemption unless you allow Jesus to give it to you. It’s a miraculous and divine exchange. Jesus wanted to wash their feet. Feet that had walked down many different roads; some clean, others filthy. Journeys of hard work, alleyways of despair, mountains of challenge, valleys of heartache, fields of delight, and roads of progress... Whatever had held up their lives and coloured them in any way, Jesus wanted to baptise, refresh and renew, wash clean and restore; not just their feet, but their lives weary from the journeys of living. Peter wanted all in with Jesus - he wanted his whole life, not just his footsteps, but his thoughts and actions too, to be bathed in the power of Christ… He didn't yet know that Jesus blood would be poured out. That Jesus death, burial and resurrection would ignite redemption within him and set him free from the bonds of his sins past, present and future. But even from the moment of redemption - a full body bathed and cleansed with the power of Christ - we still walk in a world tainted by hate, lust, despair, fear… things contrary to the presence and person of Jesus. Things that move in opposition to his divine nature and grace. We need to come to him daily to reconcile the things we pick up along the way; the soiling of the world that wants to infect our hearts with its disease. Jesus was showing his friends this. They would understand in time that he is not a distant saviour, but a personal, all involved, not afraid of a little dirt or caked mud kind-of-Saviour. The kind we desperately need. If Jesus is leading you down paths that you don’t understand… trust him. He knows what he’s doing - the story he writes is involved, beautiful and complete… let it unfold. There is grace for the journey now and always.
Part Two There’s a tension in life that begs “there must be something more than this, more than what I have right now...” Part of it comes from not living in the moment and seeing how truly incredible the gift of life is. And the other part comes from a place that is hardwired into every human being. There’s an eternal thread weaved through us all, a connection to another world, time and space... Our Maker left His mark within us. We are flesh of his making, born of his infinite spirit. I feel this strange homesickness for a land I’ve never seen. I sense it beneath a sky burgeoning with stars, when the earth is warm beneath my feet, when the ocean rains it possessive love upon the shore; I hear it in the songs my kids sing and feel it within the kind help from a stranger... This eternal thread, hidden yet unavoidable, rides upon the melodies of life and sings into our hearts, making them yearn for something all at once familiar and strange. Eternity in the heart of EVERY man and woman, the fingerprint of God, the way home... Below is a beautiful poem written about this tension, I hope it touches your heart as it does ours. MUSIC Anne Porter When I was a child I once sat sobbing on the floor Beside my mother's piano As she played and sang For there was in her singing A shy yet solemn glory My smallness could not hold And when I was asked Why I was crying I had no words for it I only shook my head And went on crying Why is it that music At its most beautiful Opens a wound in us An ache a desolation Deep as a homesickness For some far-off And half-forgotten country I've never understood Why this is so But there's an ancient legend From the other side of the world That gives away the secret Of this mysterious sorrow For centuries on centuries We have been wandering But we were made for Paradise As deer for the forest And when music comes to us With its heavenly beauty It brings us desolation For when we hear it We half remember That lost native country We dimly remember the fields Their fragrant windswept clover The birdsongs in the orchards The wild white violets in the moss By the transparent streams And shining at the heart of it Is the longed-for beauty Of the One who waits for us Who will always wait for us In those radiant meadows Yet also came to live with us And wanders where we wander.
Part Two There’s a tension in life that begs “there must be something more than this, more than what I have right now...” Part of it comes from not living in the moment and seeing how truly incredible the gift of life is. And the other part comes from a place that is hardwired into every human being. There’s an eternal thread weaved through us all, a connection to another world, time and space... Our Maker left His mark within us. We are flesh of his making, born of his infinite spirit. I feel this strange homesickness for a land I’ve never seen. I sense it beneath a sky burgeoning with stars, when the earth is warm beneath my feet, when the ocean rains it possessive love upon the shore; I hear it in the songs my kids sing and feel it within the kind help from a stranger... This eternal thread, hidden yet unavoidable, rides upon the melodies of life and sings into our hearts, making them yearn for something all at once familiar and strange. Eternity in the heart of EVERY man and woman, the fingerprint of God, the way home... Below is a beautiful poem written about this tension, I hope it touches your heart as it does ours. MUSIC Anne Porter When I was a child I once sat sobbing on the floor Beside my mother's piano As she played and sang For there was in her singing A shy yet solemn glory My smallness could not hold And when I was asked Why I was crying I had no words for it I only shook my head And went on crying Why is it that music At its most beautiful Opens a wound in us An ache a desolation Deep as a homesickness For some far-off And half-forgotten country I've never understood Why this is so But there's an ancient legend From the other side of the world That gives away the secret Of this mysterious sorrow For centuries on centuries We have been wandering But we were made for Paradise As deer for the forest And when music comes to us With its heavenly beauty It brings us desolation For when we hear it We half remember That lost native country We dimly remember the fields Their fragrant windswept clover The birdsongs in the orchards The wild white violets in the moss By the transparent streams And shining at the heart of it Is the longed-for beauty Of the One who waits for us Who will always wait for us In those radiant meadows Yet also came to live with us And wanders where we wander.
Part One This scripture follows Ecc 3:1 “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven.” There is an ebb and flow to life that’s out of our control. We can try to hold onto summer with all our might and delay the onset of the cold... but we cannot hold back the frost, we cannot hinder summer from the continuation of its journey. Time passes with no mans help or hindrance and winter will surely come. Many of us spend time counting down the days until such and such happens, or until this season passes... we dream of what could happen, good or bad... We obsess over what is ‘not yet’, and by doing so, we miss the beauty of the ‘now.’ Beauty resides in the journey, and it’s the journey that makes the destination beautiful. When I was a student, I just wanted school to be over and completed. Once I graduated, I understood that that moment was the accumulation of my years of learning and studying. The event did not complete my schooling, but the years of learning culminated in the moment of completion. I could not have graduated from High School unless I journeyed through it. You may be in the midst of tragedy, or on Cloud 9, so diverse are the seasons... but wherever you are, keep on moving. Learn and grow. Take the time to appreciate this moment... even if it’s painful and full of heartache, let the pain do a deep work within you, ushering in healing. Then allow the moments of awe and wonder to fill you with grace and humility, strengthening you for the seasons ahead. Ps 100:5 (MSG) says, “God is sheer beauty, all generous in love, loyal always and ever.” He has made everything beautiful because he is here through and in everything. Never absent, loyal to the core. Beauty pours out of him regardless of the times. Just as the sun rises in both summer and winter, God brings out the beauty in and through every season of our lives. Don’t rush, breathe in this moment, soak up all that it can teach and reveal to you. Allow God to unveil his beauty in both heartache and triumph.
Part One This scripture follows Ecc 3:1 “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven.” There is an ebb and flow to life that’s out of our control. We can try to hold onto summer with all our might and delay the onset of the cold... but we cannot hold back the frost, we cannot hinder summer from the continuation of its journey. Time passes with no mans help or hindrance and winter will surely come. Many of us spend time counting down the days until such and such happens, or until this season passes... we dream of what could happen, good or bad... We obsess over what is ‘not yet’, and by doing so, we miss the beauty of the ‘now.’ Beauty resides in the journey, and it’s the journey that makes the destination beautiful. When I was a student, I just wanted school to be over and completed. Once I graduated, I understood that that moment was the accumulation of my years of learning and studying. The event did not complete my schooling, but the years of learning culminated in the moment of completion. I could not have graduated from High School unless I journeyed through it. You may be in the midst of tragedy, or on Cloud 9, so diverse are the seasons... but wherever you are, keep on moving. Learn and grow. Take the time to appreciate this moment... even if it’s painful and full of heartache, let the pain do a deep work within you, ushering in healing. Then allow the moments of awe and wonder to fill you with grace and humility, strengthening you for the seasons ahead. Ps 100:5 (MSG) says, “God is sheer beauty, all generous in love, loyal always and ever.” He has made everything beautiful because he is here through and in everything. Never absent, loyal to the core. Beauty pours out of him regardless of the times. Just as the sun rises in both summer and winter, God brings out the beauty in and through every season of our lives. Don’t rush, breathe in this moment, soak up all that it can teach and reveal to you. Allow God to unveil his beauty in both heartache and triumph.
To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for his own glory. - Isa 61:3 (NLT) Matt 9:15 says,“When you’re celebrating a wedding, you don’t skimp on the cake and wine. You feast. Later you may need to pull in your belt, but not now. No one throws cold water on a friendly bonfire. This is Kingdom Come!” Jesus was telling some guys who were caught up in religion (people who relied on fulfilling 'the law' to please God) that the old ways of finding God weren’t necessary anymore. He likened it to going to a wedding and weeping and mourning for the Bridegroom. I was a wedding singer (yep...you can picture me just like Adam Sandler with an 80’s haircut) for about 9 years and I saw a lot of crying at the ones I played at… but it was never ‘sad’ crying. They were mostly tears of joy, and by the end of the night they would almost always turn into laughter and fun; singing, dancing and joy! A new life for the happy couple was just beginning and it was an occasion to celebrate. Through Jesus, God was doing something completely new. He was signalling a new beginning for every person on the planet. The old ways of animal sacrifice and obedience to the law in order to have relationship with him were being transformed into a 'once for all’ event. The old life was not just the old way of doing things (law and sacrifice) but also the old way of living. Rather than constantly being at arms length with God (by sin-nature - the old way) and trying to work your way into his favour, Jesus tells us that we are already ‘in’. There’s no need to work for it or prove it anymore - we just need to believe it and walk it out. The New Way. 2 Corinthians 5 says it so well; “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ.” This ‘new life’ is cause for celebration. Living on the outer at arms length with God, separated, is hard and heartbreaking work. You’re always wondering “Am I good enough?” and living in fear that you won’t be. But when you’re close, when you realise that you are accepted in the beloved, his love moves in and casts out all fear. No need for anxiety. No need to maintain or prove your position. He turns our mourning and desperation into beauty and blessing. That's not to say that we won’t encounter hardships and tragedy along The Way. It means that through whatever we face, he is right there with us weaving his strength and peace into our lives through each and every circumstance and situation we face along The Way. Grace and love in abundance. So through all things he crowns us with beauty and strengthens us to lift our heads. Every moment is a new moment, a marriage between you and the divine, a crowning of beauty and an opportunity to sink the roots of our life deep into his love.
To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for his own glory. - Isa 61:3 (NLT) Matt 9:15 says,“When you’re celebrating a wedding, you don’t skimp on the cake and wine. You feast. Later you may need to pull in your belt, but not now. No one throws cold water on a friendly bonfire. This is Kingdom Come!” Jesus was telling some guys who were caught up in religion (people who relied on fulfilling 'the law' to please God) that the old ways of finding God weren’t necessary anymore. He likened it to going to a wedding and weeping and mourning for the Bridegroom. I was a wedding singer (yep...you can picture me just like Adam Sandler with an 80’s haircut) for about 9 years and I saw a lot of crying at the ones I played at… but it was never ‘sad’ crying. They were mostly tears of joy, and by the end of the night they would almost always turn into laughter and fun; singing, dancing and joy! A new life for the happy couple was just beginning and it was an occasion to celebrate. Through Jesus, God was doing something completely new. He was signalling a new beginning for every person on the planet. The old ways of animal sacrifice and obedience to the law in order to have relationship with him were being transformed into a 'once for all’ event. The old life was not just the old way of doing things (law and sacrifice) but also the old way of living. Rather than constantly being at arms length with God (by sin-nature - the old way) and trying to work your way into his favour, Jesus tells us that we are already ‘in’. There’s no need to work for it or prove it anymore - we just need to believe it and walk it out. The New Way. 2 Corinthians 5 says it so well; “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ.” This ‘new life’ is cause for celebration. Living on the outer at arms length with God, separated, is hard and heartbreaking work. You’re always wondering “Am I good enough?” and living in fear that you won’t be. But when you’re close, when you realise that you are accepted in the beloved, his love moves in and casts out all fear. No need for anxiety. No need to maintain or prove your position. He turns our mourning and desperation into beauty and blessing. That's not to say that we won’t encounter hardships and tragedy along The Way. It means that through whatever we face, he is right there with us weaving his strength and peace into our lives through each and every circumstance and situation we face along The Way. Grace and love in abundance. So through all things he crowns us with beauty and strengthens us to lift our heads. Every moment is a new moment, a marriage between you and the divine, a crowning of beauty and an opportunity to sink the roots of our life deep into his love.
In John 16, Jesus explains to his disciples that they will face trials and troubles. They’ll be persecuted and maybe killed all in the name of God. It’s an interesting situation. A man who it was ‘assumed’ would bring physical peace and order to the world, offered none of that. Instead, Jesus explains throughout the Gospels time and again that we will experience troubles and trials. We cannot be immune to the things that have grown wild in this sin-polluted world. The point is not, and has never been, a trouble, conflict-free life. Yet, we fight trouble and conflict like it is the enemy. We get so easily distracted by the differences we find in each other and focus all our energies on proving people wrong, fighting their lifestyles and choices, arguing and fuelling hatred into the world. Trying to come out on top. Win. Dominate. (Anyone who commits a crime needs to be made accountable for their actions, I’m not saying we turn a blind eye to evils’ perpetrated). There are spiritual undertones to everything we face. Evil is present in people because evil is present. Love is present in people because love created all things in existence - the essence of the Divine, of Jesus, is love, and he is in and through all things. The word overcome means “to carry off a victory; to be victorious.” (Strongs Concordance). Like we said earlier, it was assumed that the Messiah would be a warrior, someone who would vanquish the enemies of their nation and restore them and their political and national power. Jesus had a different kind of victory in mind. He didn’t vanquish Rome; he didn’t obliterate the ‘enemies’ of Judaism, or kill to conquer... He carried out victory through personal sacrifice. When he died, when his blood soaked down the cross, and his body was buried in the earth, he was once again joined to the very fabric of creation. Heaven and earth became one, joined by sacrifice, sealed in blood, never to be separated again. Col 1:19-20 says, “God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him [Jesus], and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.” He didn’t overcome the world by dominating and killing others, rather he died in order that we might come alive, that we might wake up and see him in his fullness, become aware of the Divine permeating the natural and his presence as thick and near and close as our own blood pumping through our veins. He has overcome the clutches of darkness in our world through resurrection. Life. love. Not separating heaven and earth, but divinely joining it and waking us up to the grand mystery that is right before us and within us each and every day. When you see evil around you, TAKE HEART - Take a hold of your heart, steal yourself away from anxiety and despair, fear and hate, and choose LOVE. Awaken faith. Fight evil not by standing against each other, vanquishing and dominating and dividing, but by standing in love beside one another. Urging others to wake up and come alive to the grace and hope of Jesus. “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” Paul, Eph 5:14 (NIV).
In John 16, Jesus explains to his disciples that they will face trials and troubles. They’ll be persecuted and maybe killed all in the name of God. It’s an interesting situation. A man who it was ‘assumed’ would bring physical peace and order to the world, offered none of that. Instead, Jesus explains throughout the Gospels time and again that we will experience troubles and trials. We cannot be immune to the things that have grown wild in this sin-polluted world. The point is not, and has never been, a trouble, conflict-free life. Yet, we fight trouble and conflict like it is the enemy. We get so easily distracted by the differences we find in each other and focus all our energies on proving people wrong, fighting their lifestyles and choices, arguing and fuelling hatred into the world. Trying to come out on top. Win. Dominate. (Anyone who commits a crime needs to be made accountable for their actions, I’m not saying we turn a blind eye to evils’ perpetrated). There are spiritual undertones to everything we face. Evil is present in people because evil is present. Love is present in people because love created all things in existence - the essence of the Divine, of Jesus, is love, and he is in and through all things. The word overcome means “to carry off a victory; to be victorious.” (Strongs Concordance). Like we said earlier, it was assumed that the Messiah would be a warrior, someone who would vanquish the enemies of their nation and restore them and their political and national power. Jesus had a different kind of victory in mind. He didn’t vanquish Rome; he didn’t obliterate the ‘enemies’ of Judaism, or kill to conquer... He carried out victory through personal sacrifice. When he died, when his blood soaked down the cross, and his body was buried in the earth, he was once again joined to the very fabric of creation. Heaven and earth became one, joined by sacrifice, sealed in blood, never to be separated again. Col 1:19-20 says, “God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him [Jesus], and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.” He didn’t overcome the world by dominating and killing others, rather he died in order that we might come alive, that we might wake up and see him in his fullness, become aware of the Divine permeating the natural and his presence as thick and near and close as our own blood pumping through our veins. He has overcome the clutches of darkness in our world through resurrection. Life. love. Not separating heaven and earth, but divinely joining it and waking us up to the grand mystery that is right before us and within us each and every day. When you see evil around you, TAKE HEART - Take a hold of your heart, steal yourself away from anxiety and despair, fear and hate, and choose LOVE. Awaken faith. Fight evil not by standing against each other, vanquishing and dominating and dividing, but by standing in love beside one another. Urging others to wake up and come alive to the grace and hope of Jesus. “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” Paul, Eph 5:14 (NIV).
NOTE TO SELF - PART 1 What notes do you write to yourself? In your head, or on paper, or type on a screen? What words do you utter when you: - look in the mirror - make a mistake - get stuck in traffic - right before sleep - as you wake - in the shower - on a walk - achieve something great - at a party - are paid a compliment That's your inner dialogue. You talk to yourself all the time. Some of us embrace it more than others. And only some of us take control of that internal chatter. In the last few lines of his letter to the Philippians, Paul told his friends to: “Keep your thoughts continually fixed on all that is authentic and real, honorable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind…" (Phil 4:8 TPT). To which, if you’re like me, we try to focus on authentic and real, honorable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind things outside of ourselves. Like God and angels and Mother Teresa and Justin Trudeau. How often do you think 'authentic and real, honorable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind' things about yourself? From my experience, our notes to ourselves more often than not seem to be quite critical, if not nasty. Words have the power to breathe life into us. But like most things, they have a shadow side: they also have the ability to deflate, defame, diminish and demoralize (D is such a dark letter…). I’m not talking about “fluffy" self-talk where everything is awesome, nothing is our fault, we’re more important than the rest, and we’re told we're the fairest in the land. I’m addressing our inner narrative. Because Paul told us to keep our thoughts continually fixed on… you get it, right? And that’s not only thoughts about others and God and things. I grew up believing that to think of holy things is to think about God, not about self. But we are entangled with the eternal, and how we treat, think about, and talk to ourselves, is where it all begins. Life flows from the heart, right? (Prov 4:23). And guys, this isn’t a “women's” topic. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics Causes of death report in 2015, here in Australia, eight people take their lives every single day, and six of those will be men. This is beyond gender. Take note of what you speak over, into, through, around, and directly to your ‘self.’ Are they words of life? Or do they sound a little Darth Vaderish? "Most of the problems of life that be, Are caused by the tone of speech only, It is never what is said in reality, But how it’s said that causes harm truly.” Munindra Misra, Eddies of Life. Tone and language are besties. "Authentic and real, honorable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind” begin in the unseen, the smokey world behind the layer of this material one. They are a tone, a cadence, a resonance. Your words make ripples in the world and tone is part of what makes them land where they do. If you’re like me, you would have found yourself in seasons, places, and times, where your words and tone have been anything but gracious and loving. How do you change it? Is it all in the mind? Is it all about affirmations? Intentions? Attitude? Can you just pray it away and leave it up to God? It takes practice and grace, but you can rewrite the notes you send to yourself, not just the words, but the weight of them, too. The tone. Paul finished his sentence above with: "And fasten your thoughts on every glorious work of God, praising him always.” NOTE TO SELF: of which you are most glorious.
NOTE TO SELF - PART 1 What notes do you write to yourself? In your head, or on paper, or type on a screen? What words do you utter when you: - look in the mirror - make a mistake - get stuck in traffic - right before sleep - as you wake - in the shower - on a walk - achieve something great - at a party - are paid a compliment That's your inner dialogue. You talk to yourself all the time. Some of us embrace it more than others. And only some of us take control of that internal chatter. In the last few lines of his letter to the Philippians, Paul told his friends to: “Keep your thoughts continually fixed on all that is authentic and real, honorable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind…" (Phil 4:8 TPT). To which, if you’re like me, we try to focus on authentic and real, honorable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind things outside of ourselves. Like God and angels and Mother Teresa and Justin Trudeau. How often do you think 'authentic and real, honorable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind' things about yourself? From my experience, our notes to ourselves more often than not seem to be quite critical, if not nasty. Words have the power to breathe life into us. But like most things, they have a shadow side: they also have the ability to deflate, defame, diminish and demoralize (D is such a dark letter…). I’m not talking about “fluffy" self-talk where everything is awesome, nothing is our fault, we’re more important than the rest, and we’re told we're the fairest in the land. I’m addressing our inner narrative. Because Paul told us to keep our thoughts continually fixed on… you get it, right? And that’s not only thoughts about others and God and things. I grew up believing that to think of holy things is to think about God, not about self. But we are entangled with the eternal, and how we treat, think about, and talk to ourselves, is where it all begins. Life flows from the heart, right? (Prov 4:23). And guys, this isn’t a “women's” topic. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics Causes of death report in 2015, here in Australia, eight people take their lives every single day, and six of those will be men. This is beyond gender. Take note of what you speak over, into, through, around, and directly to your ‘self.’ Are they words of life? Or do they sound a little Darth Vaderish? "Most of the problems of life that be, Are caused by the tone of speech only, It is never what is said in reality, But how it’s said that causes harm truly.” Munindra Misra, Eddies of Life. Tone and language are besties. "Authentic and real, honorable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind” begin in the unseen, the smokey world behind the layer of this material one. They are a tone, a cadence, a resonance. Your words make ripples in the world and tone is part of what makes them land where they do. If you’re like me, you would have found yourself in seasons, places, and times, where your words and tone have been anything but gracious and loving. How do you change it? Is it all in the mind? Is it all about affirmations? Intentions? Attitude? Can you just pray it away and leave it up to God? It takes practice and grace, but you can rewrite the notes you send to yourself, not just the words, but the weight of them, too. The tone. Paul finished his sentence above with: "And fasten your thoughts on every glorious work of God, praising him always.” NOTE TO SELF: of which you are most glorious.