Embrace the Within no. 76

"To love to preach is one thing—to love those to whom we preach, quite another."

Richard Cecil

My morning prayer over the past few days has been one of simple humility, “Lord, work on my heart.” My heart needs to SHEMA when the Spirit is telling me something from Adonai. And oftentimes I do not SHEMA as well as I should. And if my heart was better aligned to listening to the Spirit, then this walk would be a lot easier.

So, every day I pray that my heart will not only always be on YHWH BUT I will also listen when YHWH speaks through His Word, His Truth, and His Spirit.

The more I move forward in the Way of the Lord, the more I see so many things in which I am deficient. So many things I need to keep working and building and refining and polishing and perfecting. And I know that this process will never end on this side of eternity. I know that I am striving for something that I can never possibly achieve on this side of Eden.

That’s not going to stop or deter me. I am not going to give up on working toward that ideal presented in Christ. No matter that I will always have something else to work towards every day. Because every day I get to choose to pick up that mantle of discipleship, every day I get to choose to be an ambassador for His Kingdom, every day I get to choose to live the Way of the Lord. I get the opportunity to represent the Way of the Lord here among my neighbors. And that is not an opportunity I should take lightly or dismiss. That is an opportunity with the most important consequences.

After decades of teaching and working in a broken nation, I know the only way to unburden myself is in the Truth of love for my neighbor. And the only way to arrive at love for my neighbor is through an increasing love for YHWH. I cannot love my neighbor fully without his Grace and Truth. So, that simple prayer of humility works wonders for me this week. As I follow forward in the word for the week, “Humble”. I pray that we all find humility to the Father and stop acting like the Elder Son.

“Now his elder son was in the field: and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called one of the servants, and asked what these things meant. And he said unto him, Your brother is come; and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has received him safe and sound.

And he was angry, and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and intreated him.

And he answering said to [his] father, Lo, these many years do I serve you, neither transgressed I at any time your commandment: and yet you never gave me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends: But as soon as this your son was come, which has devoured your living with prostitutes, you have killed for him the fatted calf.

And he said unto him, Son, you are ever with me, and all that I have is yours. It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this your brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found”

(Luke 15: 25-32 NMV).

Shavua tov. Shalom to your home. Bless your being. The reign of YHWH is now. Be a blessing to YHWH and others.

#ThinkBetter #BeBetter #NoGodsNoMasters #NoKingButChrist #MyNepheshMyChoice #ChristsLifeMatters #EmbracetheWithin #NotMyWayYHWH #GodKnows

Embrace the Within no. 75

"If we love God we’ll love His children."

A. W. Tozer

I get caught up in my old way of thinking a lot during the day. It’s automatic that when someone asks me a question that I fall back into my mundane and secular old way of answering those questions. And that needs to stop. I need to stop reacting and responding to questions like the old me would and truly embrace the response the new me is really walking.

A lot of times I can see in retrospect what I should have said. How I should have answered that question. BUT I am not fully adapted and changed into the new person that answers in the way I should. And that isn’t fair to God or His image bearer with whom I conversing. My love for God and my neighbor should manifest in saying the correct things. My love for God and my neighbor should manifest in speaking the Truth. And all too often I do not speak the whole Truth. I sometimes only speak the partial Truth.

And part of the Truth is not going to get anyone anywhere. A partial Truth is getting us where we are yesterday and today. A partial truth leads to incorrect doctrine and folks saying things that are heretical. And there are whole systems of belief inside what is supposed to be the Lord’s assembly that are based upon heretical ideas. Sha’ul called out in one of his many letters to the church in Corinth reminded us to, “take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock to them that are weak” (1 Corinthians 8:9 NMV). And a lot of what is passing as doctrine is helping new believers stumble and fall rather than support and elevate their faith.

There is too much doctrine and not enough love. There are too many arguments over minor things when we can’t even get the bigger things figured out. When we can’t love our God and our neighbor first, then we should work on that a lot more than whether we are going to allow dancing and instruments in church. When we can’t love our God and our neighbor, then what is the point in getting any of the rest of it right? We already forgot the most important part.

So, I am going to work on loving my God and my neighbor better. I am going to work on being a better ambassador as I walk on this side of eternity. I am going to walk in the Way of the Lord and let doctrine and minutia to the folks that have it all figured out. Because I don’t have it all figured out. And I don’t foresee having it all worked out on this side of eternity. Life is a work in progress.

Shavua tov. Shalom to your home. Bless your being. The reign of YHWH is now. Be a blessing to YHWH and others.

#ThinkBetter #BeBetter #NoGodsNoMasters #NoKingButChrist #MyNepheshMyChoice #ChristsLifeMatters #EmbracetheWithin #NotMyWayYHWH #GodKnows