From my mom...
"The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. The sun shall not smite you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. "
Psalm 121
This was one of my dad's favorite Psalms and I read very often.
Wishing you all a very happy and healthy Thanksgiving.
Friday, November 27, 2009
Monday, November 9, 2009
Week by Week #2
Well it has taken me more than three whole years to restart this and hopefully it won't be another three till the next one. I'm going to make this a bit simpler. At least one day a week, I'll post a daily Bible passage and my reaction to it. Simple right? We'll see how I do. Respond and add to it as you have ideas.
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Matthew 15:1-20.
What comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart.
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Jesus always seems to have words for the hypocrites. Striving not to be like the scribes, Pharisees, etc., I've created a strict "no hypocrisy" policy for myself. Even though I recognize that I fall short, it sets my on a good path. Or does it? As Christians, we have taken on the challenge of loving God and our neighbor as the ultimate law and often feel righteousness at not being bound by specific dietary, behavioral or other social laws. Have we figured this out?
I know that I haven't. Sometimes, I use my righteousness as a weapon to demonstrate some kind of moral superiority over others. I try my best to be aware of this, but I recognize that I have not conquered this yet. In fact, my most common hypocrisy is my claim that I have figured out the balance between seeking Christian righteousness while acknowledging God's grace in my life. Sometimes, I think that I've figured out exactly how hard to push, when to pray, how to pray, what to say to others, etc. Even though my code does not take the form of laws, expressing my Christian principles is not always positive, coherent or helpful to me or others.
------------------------------------------------
Matthew 15:1-20.
What comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart.
-------------------------------------------------
Jesus always seems to have words for the hypocrites. Striving not to be like the scribes, Pharisees, etc., I've created a strict "no hypocrisy" policy for myself. Even though I recognize that I fall short, it sets my on a good path. Or does it? As Christians, we have taken on the challenge of loving God and our neighbor as the ultimate law and often feel righteousness at not being bound by specific dietary, behavioral or other social laws. Have we figured this out?
I know that I haven't. Sometimes, I use my righteousness as a weapon to demonstrate some kind of moral superiority over others. I try my best to be aware of this, but I recognize that I have not conquered this yet. In fact, my most common hypocrisy is my claim that I have figured out the balance between seeking Christian righteousness while acknowledging God's grace in my life. Sometimes, I think that I've figured out exactly how hard to push, when to pray, how to pray, what to say to others, etc. Even though my code does not take the form of laws, expressing my Christian principles is not always positive, coherent or helpful to me or others.
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