I'm reading the book of Jeremiah and it has been such a help to me the last few weeks. When I read of Jeremiah's life of being a prophet and all he went through to speak the word of God and warn the people it humbles me. The Kings and most of the people wouldn't listen to him, burned his writings and threw him in prison yet Jeremiah kept obeying and living for God.

Once, near the beginning of his ministry he was complaining to God about the prosperity and oppression of the wicked. God spoke strongly to Jeremiah, telling him he must be strong. He said:

"If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Yahweh rebukes Jeremiah's impatience, showing him by two proverbial sayings, that there were still greater trials of faith in store for him. Prosperous wickedness is after all a mere ordinary trial, a mere "running with the footmen;" he will have to exert far greater powers of endurance.

And if in the land ... - Rather, "and in a land of peace thou art secure; but how wilt thou do amid the pride of Jordan?" if thou canst feel safe only where things are tranquil, what wilt thou do in the hour of danger? The "pride of Jordan" is taken to, mean the luxuriant thickets along its banks, famous as the haunt of lions (compare Jeremiah 49:19; Jeremiah 50:44; Zechariah 11:3). What will the prophet do when he has to tread the tangled maze of a jungle with the lions roaring round him?

If small things disturb our faith - what will we do when worse things befall us? I'm glad I have the example of Jeremiah; I know it will help me throughout my life.

It is Never too Late.

I read a true story recently where a man went to take communion at his church  and afterwards said to his wife. "Everything I have done is worthless." He died of a heart attack two days later. He was an author of novels, screenplays and short stories. He was well known, rich and admired. But I think the Spirit of God spoke to him at church that day. I think this man saw his life as it truly was in the eyes of heaven. 

What he said brought Solomon to my mind. He had tried everything, tasted everything, experienced everything and yet...
"Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun." Ecclesiasties 2:11

The author's wife said later that he was in the middle of writing a novel and had told her what the last words would be, "...I believe in God."

I don't think we need to despair if we look back on our lives and find we have wasted most of it or done nothing worthwhile. Of course it would be better if we had done some good, but it shows the mercy and loving kindness of God that he will accept us just as we are at each step of our life.

Paul says in 1 Corinthians 3:11-15

"For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials--gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work.

If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames."

Not Well.

Dear Friends, I've had to stop some medication I was taking because of the side-effects. I'm going to the doctor soon to get something different. Anyway, my mind feels overwhelmed and scattered. I'll have to take a break for awhile. I've also taken a break from my other blog because I need time to work on a comic strip I'm creating. I'm really sorry, I'm just a mess right now - but I know God will help me get better.

"This is what the Lord says: Let not a wise man glory (or boast) in his wisdom, let not the strong man glory in his strength, let not the rich man glory in his riches. But let him who glories, glory in this - that he understands and knows me. That I am the Lord who practices loving kindness, justice and goodness in the earth. For I delight in these things."
Jeremiah 9:24

Wisdom, power and riches. These are things of this world that are greatly admired by most. But to focus on these things, to rely on these things is futile. 

Understanding and knowing God. It is a lifelong quest that has the fantastic ending of living with him forever. 

The Power of Love.

Martin Luther King Jr. on Love:

Now there is a final reason I think that Jesus says, "Love your enemies." It is this: that love has within it a redemptive power. And there is a power there that eventually transforms individuals. Just keep being friendly to that person. Just keep loving them, and they can’t stand it too long. Oh, they react in many ways in the beginning. They react with guilt feelings, and sometimes they’ll hate you a little more at that transition period, but just keep loving them. And by the power of your love they will break down under the load. That’s love, you see. It is redemptive, and this is why Jesus says love. There’s something about love that builds up and is creative. There is something about hate that tears down and is destructive. So love your enemies. (from "Loving Your Enemies")” 
― Martin Luther King Jr., A Knock at Midnight: Inspiration from the Great Sermons of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.

Augustine

"Love, and then do what you please." Saint Augustine.

I take this to mean that if we have God's love in our heart we will be pleased to do good. "God is love," the Bible says. Love only does what is good.

Human love is not perfect however. I know I indulged my children sometimes because I loved them. I have loved men who mistreated me. I love chocolate, even though it makes me sick.

Love. It's a complicated thing. God's love is so far above and beyond human love; all we can do is pray he will fill us with it every day.

Someone once called Jesus "good". Jesus said, "No one is good but God alone."(Mark 10:18) He was trying to tell this man that in ourselves there is nothing good. Not truly, purely good. Without God we can love, but not perfectly - not in the right way. Our selfishness always gets in the way.

If we want true love in our hearts - it must come from God.

"We Are Not Saved."

"The harvest is past, the summer has ended, and we are not saved." Jeremiah 8:20

Is there a sadder verse than this one? It relates the condition of the Jewish nation just before being overrun by the Babylonians. They had asked for help from Egypt and it had not come.

God had been warning them for years to turn from their wicked ways of harming the poor, widows, orphans and killing their children in human sacrifice. They didn't listen. They weren't sorry for what they were doing and refused to stop. Therefore God sent the King of Babylon to destroy their city and take them prisoner.

This verse could also be the thoughts of those who have ignored God and religion and have live lifed for themselves. They refuse to listen to God's voice in their hearts and minds and when the end of this world comes and Jesus returns they will say, "We are not saved."

If they only knew how wonderful it is to have God in their lives! If they only knew how he helps us in every area of our lives and can give us peace and happiness in the middle of suffering. Perhaps people look on God as an interruption to their lives, or think of a Christian life as being boring. Nothing could be farther from the truth. A life with God is very exciting!

I read this verse the other day and keep having the image in my mind of being held in God's everlasting arms. The commentary said some beautiful things about this verse, which I have shared below.

"The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms."

Deuteronomy 33:27

"...and underneath are the everlasting arms; that is, of God, which are the support of his people, and their protection, safety, and security; such as the arms of his everlasting love, which encircle them, and compass them about as a shield; his everlasting covenant, which is immovable, and in which they ever remain; eternal redemption and salvation, wrought out by Christ, which secures them from destruction; and everlasting power, by which they are kept and preserved as in a garrison; and everlasting consolation, which flows from all this: and so the arms of Christ, or his almighty power, are under the world, to uphold it in being; and under his church, to support it, on whose shoulders the government of it is; and under particular believers, whom he carries in his arms, embraces in his bosom, bears them up under all their afflictions and temptations, trials and exercises; nor will he ever suffer them to drop out of his arms, or to be plucked from thence:"

http://bible.cc/deuteronomy/33-27.htm

The Power.

I just bought a book by Joyce Meyer called, "The Secret Power of Speaking God's Word." It has already been a great help to me. Joyce says that by speaking God's words aloud we are strengthened and the evil angels must leave us.

The Bible verses are listed by topic such as: Courage, Depression, Forgiveness, Peace, etc. She also writes each verse as though you yourself are speaking it.

As an example:

"I am gentle and forbearing with others and if someone has a complaint against me, I readily pardon him; even as the Lord has freely forgiven me, so must I also forgive." Colossians 3:13

"He heals my broken heart and binds up all my wounds." Psalm 147:3

"I'm sticking with God. I say it over and over again - He is all I have left. He proves to be good to me and to all who passionately wait and diligently seek him. It's a good thing to quietly hope for help from God."
Lamentations 3:24-26

This is something I posted Oct.30, 2010

I used to wonder what it meant to "grieve the Holy Spirit".  I thought this was a good explanation, although it may mean more than this.

Ephesians 4:29-32

"And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you."


This is an excerpt from "Our Journey," by James Macdonald


"When you gave your life to Christ, the Holy Spirit came to live with you. Now he's never leaving. When Jesus says, "I will never leave you or forsake you," he's talking about the ministering presence of the Holy Spirit in your life.

In Today's passage, where it says, "do not grieve the Holy Spirit, by whom you were sealed, the point is that the Holy Spirit can't go anywhere. He's not leaving. Everywhere you go? He goes. Everything you say? He hears. Everything you feel? He bears with, and when we are unforgiving, we grieve the Holy Spirit.

The word grieve there is lupeo; it means to wound or to injure. We grieve the Spirit of God when we hold back forgiveness and cultivate bitterness in our heart. The Spirit of God who came to be resident within us can't go anywhere. So he has to live with these damaging, destructive, sinful choices that we make to hang on to our injury and disappointment with people instead of displacing it and releasing it through forgiveness.

We don't live alone. Considering our internal companion should give us continual motivation for the way we live."

He Shares in Our Sorrows.

God doesn't ask us to go through anything that he hasn't gone through himself. He came as a man, suffered terribly and died. In addition to this is, "Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows." Isaiah 53:4

 All the grief we feel here on earth he feels with us. 

Daily Light on the Daily Path
Anonymous

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MARCH 15 MORNING

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Perfect through sufferings.—HEB.2:10.

My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry here, and watch with me. And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.—And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow.—Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none.—I looked on my right hand, and behold, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul.

He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Matt.26:38,39. -Luke 22:44.Psa.116:3.--Psa.69:20. -Psa.142:4.Isa.53:3.

http://christianbookshelf.org/anonymous/daily_light_on_the_daily_path/march_15_morning.htm