The story of Saul is like a reality TV show, only it happened thousands of years ago! ;-)
The point of today's devotional is to follow this simple verse no matter what position you have in life (Mark 12:30):
And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.
How much simpler does it get? Walk humbly with your God. If you truly love him, he will help you love yourself appropriately. By appropriately, I mean to love yourself enough to take care of yourself and others, but not too much where you are "full of yourself" like Saul of the Old Testament Israel!
Lord, you build me up only to remind me to remain humble.
Witness Wednesday
Wow! God has been talking to me this week! I am exhausted! hehehe To give you an example of how God works, he told me not to attach my iPod to the stereo in my Escape after I returned from Vegas. I have been listening to the local Christian radio station instead of my iPod. On the way home last night, I heard a new song that touched me so deeply that I almost had to pull over to the curb! It is called Blessings by Laura Story. Here are the lyrics:
We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things
'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise
We pray for wisdom
Your voice to hear
And we cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt Your goodness, we doubt Your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
All the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe
'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
And what if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise
When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know the pain reminds this heart
That this is not, this is not our home
It's not our home
'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
And what if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching(s) of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy
And what if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are Your mercies in disguise
I bought the track on iTunes and then bought the performance track as well. I sang through it many times last night, but couldn't get through the whole song without breaking down into tears. I have been praying for what to do with some things in my life. The song describes exactly what I have been going through. I have to be honest. I have been doubting. I forgot all the promises in God's Word when it comes to some areas of my life and desires of my heart.
There are many amazing lines in this song to me. One favorite is the last line of the first verse:
"Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things" How many times do we dwell in the land of "lesser things"? I will think and pray about that this week. I hope you will too.
Other Stuff
I dropped by the R Bar for a little while last night to hang out with my coworkers. I rarely do that, so I wanted to make the effort. We had a nice time. It was a nice night for it.
I did a few things around the house when I got home. I put the first coat of paint on the wall in the basement. I decided to paint the whole thing the dark brown color that I have in my bedroom. It matches the paneling down there very well. I initially planned to paint one section of the wall the brownish taupe color that I have in most of my house. I decided against that. I will try to put the second coat of paint on tonight after my Disciple 1 (D1) class. We are supposed to have a short class tonight.
Yes, D1 starts tonight and runs through May. Yes, I said May! We have a few breaks for holidays. I am looking forward to the class. We will probably read about 75% of the Bible during the class! I purchased the NRSV (New Revised Standard Version) of the Bible for my iPad the other day in preparation. I used a different version in the D2 class. This one will be an easier read. I also found a couple of commentaries that may be of use. Very cool.
I looked at my schedule for the next few weeks. Whew... Fall has fallen! I like being busy, though, so I am looking forward to it. I plan to work out at the gym tonight before having a quick supper and going to the D1 class at church.
Hang in there, my friends! I will be upbeat and steady. That is what I do...
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