David and Goliath and the Seed

The pinpricks of light has expanded to the noonday sun!

Hope is real.  Why do I have hope?  Because of Jesus Christ!

In the biblical story of David and Goliath, it is always rendered as us being David.  With courage given by God, we step up to our Goliaths, and through His provision and strength, we overcome the Goliath that taunts and threatens our peace.

However, this weekend, there are two stories that have renewed my hope in the Living Lord.
I am the Israelite army that is so disheartened and afraid of Goliath.  I stand without hope of victory.  In the midst of this obvious defeat, steps a figure that seems to be of little consequence.  A young boy named David.  He is a shepherd.  He is not a warrior.  Yet, when he hears the taunts of Goliath, he stands and confronts this giant.  He comes in the name of the Lord of Hosts.  Then, through an act that doesn't seem very wise, he uses a sling to slay the giant!

Parallel this to our story.  I already mentioned that I am the Israelite army.  I am afraid and hopeless.  Yet, my Hero came, not with trumpets or glory, but as a small boy, a baby boy that was born in a shelter for sheep and cows.  His bed was a feeding trough.  He was visited by the shepherds, and then the three wisemen of the east.  Jesus Christ came as a baby, born of a virgin.  He grew up and was sinless.  Then through an act that didn't make sense to those who followed Him as their leader, He was crucified on the Cross.  On it, right before He gave His last breath, He cried out, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" meaning, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?"  and then, "It is finished."


What was accomplished through His death?  The very victory that was promised from the beginning of creation in Genesis 3.  He crucified in His flesh all our sins.  The punishment was paid in full by Him.  I no longer hold that debt.


But, that's not all.  Through His resurrection, He was victorious!  He is God.  If He didn't rise from the dead, as He had promised, as the entire bible had promised, all our hopes would have died with Him.  But, because He rose from the dead, our hopes are alive with Him!


So, David who triumphed over Goliath, parallels Jesus who triumphed over death.
He is my hero.


As for the Seed, the Seed is the Gospel.  What you just read, about Jesus' death and resurrection for your sins, is the Gospel.  The Good News.  It certainly is good news.  We were once enemies of God, headed for hell as the only rightful punishment for our sin.  However, Jesus took our place and gave us His righteousness so that we can have a relationship and a fellowship with God!


That doesn't come from our good works.  That doesn't come from our choices or our wills at all!  It doesn't come from us.  From the start to finish, it is all God's work.  Let that sink deep into your heart, and as a plant sends out roots and a shoot, that grows into a plant and then develops even bigger into a fruit/seed bearing tree, let the Gospel dig deep into your heart, so that you too may bear fruit.  Fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.


Like a seed, it must die before it can be alive.  My old self with its sinful will and wants must be crucified with Jesus.  Then, His fruit can come alive in me.  It is not an instantaneous change, but takes time.  It is a process that will take the rest of my life.


However, I rest in the knowledge that God is good, He is all powerful, and He loves me through and through.  He will also not keep me here on this earth a minute more than I have to.  So, until I go to heaven, I have the privilege to be a servant of God here on earth.  


What is my purpose?  What is my the reason I am here?  I am not sure, but what I am sure about is, I am to be diligent with what He has given me.  Therefore, I will work diligently at my task, whether it be at work or home or church.  Yes, this means changes to my habits~ but that too God will enable me as I obey Him more and more~ 


Each day is a brand new adventure, with a lot of love notes from God my Father.  The beautiful clouds, the flowers, the joy of friendship.  All these are memos of God reminding me of His love!


:)  I am blessed to be in His arms of Love.  

First Contact

So, in the previous post, the girl wasn't supposed to even dare contact the boy.

Well, the girl contacted the boy.  More specifically, left a voicemail on his cellphone.
That night, the boy called to leave a voicemail on her cellphone.
Then, the girl called to leave a voicemail on his cellhphone.
Tonight, the boy called to leave a voicemail...

There's a pattern here.  ...

Well, life as I know it is no longer~
Colors seemed to have faded.  Joy seems to recede when just within reach.
I look up into the night sky and am thankful that I see a lone star, shining with all its might.
Even that pinprick of a light casts away the dark, just enough for its light to reach my eyes, from so far away.

That is why it is important to remember what we are thankful for.  This is our light in the darkness.  Otherwise, the dark will devour.  I can feel the dark and feel its dread.  Somehow, it is no longer an absence of light.  It is now a nothingness that can be oppressive.  How do I explain that?  It is a nothingness that obliterates.

As in the Neverending Story, the Nothing comes to destroy.  It devours everything in its path.  What is the hope?  The hope is that faint glimmer of light within the Princess's hands.  That spark is all it takes for hope to thrive.

So, to be thankful is to hold that spark of hope in your hands.  That's just the beginning, and its enough to know it is not the end.

Thankful...

To be thankful is to be blessed.

I am thankful, yet it still pains me to feel sooo alone.
Sigh~  It's hard to put it in words, but for my sanity and well-being, I will try to pour out my heart here.

It's a simple story of girl who is so lonely, she goes on the wide world web and meets a boy.  Boy is friendly and soon starts talking everyday.  Everyday leads to every couple of times a day.  Just talking on the phone isn't enough.  Email, chat, facebook, voice messages, skype and talking late into the night are all the ways they communicated.  However, there's the fact that this boy lives 1400 miles away from girl.  All the way in Texas.  So, each night, though for a short time on the phone, that distance was 0, every time they said "Good night" and "Amen" after prayers, when they got off the phone, that distance stayed the same.

The boy gave up a lot of sleep to talk with girl.  Two more hours and then some.  Boy was a knight in shining armor.  Boy's words were a place the girl could settle into, safe and sound.  Boy even proposes with a diamond ring.  Boy and girl are dreaming of a future together~ planning their wedding and getting ahead of themselves.  There is joy in being together.

Until, that is, when God revealed to girl, boy isn't the best.  He is good, but he isn't the best.  Doesn't the girl want what is best?  Yes, but to do that, she must let go of what she has now.  There's no guarantee that the best is another man.  Maybe it is to be alone.  Girl won't find out until she's on the other side.  Until then, she must try to work out her anguish, anxiety and loneliness in any way she can.

Girl misses boy, but dares not contact him.  She cares for him in her own way.  She also knows how needy she is.  So needy that she is almost willing to give up on the best to have what is good and what is in front of her now.  That's dangerous.  That's settling.  That negates all the hard things she had to do to obey God.  That would be saying to God, "I know what's best, better than You."  That's just not true.

So, though girl is fading away and in pain for lack of companionship~ girl is determined to do what is right.
Hard.  But life isn't really easy, is it?  Everything is hard.  Living is hard.  Staying alive is hard.  But what is even harder than living is, dying.  It is very hard to die.  Especially for a scaredy cat.  Girl thanks God for that.  Girl looks up to see the beautiful clouds and the twinkling stars.  Girl sees hope, yet it is a constant battle to keep eyes looking upward.

So, though girl is missing boy, girl cannot go back to boy.  Girl wants to do what is right.

Why Movies touch our souls~

Today, I watched "Tangled"
Beautiful beyond words!

As I sat there watching the movie unfold before my eyes, my heart ached at what I saw and the truth of what was being said.  I don't want to ruin it, so I will simply say this:  We are each beautiful and precious.  We have something to offer to this world.  However, there are people who deceive and hide that truth, feeding us lies and keepings us locked up in our towers.  In the end, the life we live is our own.  In the end, we must make choices that seem very difficult, but with friends close by, even the most scariest adventure becomes exactly that: an adventure!

To Thank

Thanksgiving is a day of thanks.
How much our lives would be better if we spend more time
thanking than griping.
Thanking for what we have,
for where we live, for who we are.

Thanksgiving is a day to remember.
It's not all about self, though there is some self-indulgence~
To thank is to extend outside of self.

Stretched beyond all measure,
Not sure if you will be okay.
But in the end, it's not really about you, or me.
It's really about thanking God for what He's done.

World at peace if we can hold to these things:  Love, peace and forgiveness.
But in this fallen world~  Sigh~ one can only imagine and dream....

But to come back~
Thank you for stretching me, though it hurts so much!
Thank you for reaching out to me, though it frightens me so!
Thank you for loving me, though at times I take you for granted.
Thank you for Jesus, without Him, I am forever lost~
Thank you and good night~

First ever

Oh My~

This is my first ever blog entry that isn't linked with anything else...  Hmm~  interesting!

I like it!

Well...

I start...

Thoughts, random thoughts, up to no good.
Causing me pain and lots of sorrow.
Maybe that is why I continue to brood,
and can't wait until tomorrow.

Morning mists start to curl and swirl.
My thoughts cause my head to whirl.

Up to no good, these thoughts of mine.
I long for the day where no cares will touch
My heart but only joy in the Divine~
and until that day comes.... tough!

.... a humble start, but very intriguing!