Augustine of Hippo

I believe that Christians should celebrate their history and where good theology (and philosophy) came from. Today I am going to look at the life of Augustine of Hippo and how his work has impacted my walk with Christ. I believe that I am particularly drawn to Augustine because of his struggle with doubt.

In one of his most famous work, Confessions, we read a very gripping story of his wrestle to rid doubt from his life. He battled to understand what it meant to be autonomous in the face of an all-powerful God.   His deep intellectual discourse in this book set the foundation for all theology that followed it. This work alone has been studied for more than fifteen centuries. This book has personally impacted me because I battle the intellect of my finite mind against the infinity of God a lot. I also have had personal struggles with doubt.

As a church father, Augustine wrote some of the most definitive works on God. The Council of Nicaea and The Council of Constantinople defined for the church what the trinity is. However, Augustine truly shows us what the trinity is in his work City of God. 


I appreciate Augustine's work on Free Will, his philosophy of just war, his love of rhetoric and his beliefs about the sacraments. I encourage all Christians to read some of Augustine's works or at least a short bio about him.

Feeling Old

Today I am feeling quite old. Ten years ago I unpacked my things in 212 Evans 2 East at Indiana Wesleyan for the first time. I was unsure about that choice then. However, God is so faithful and it turned out to be the beginning of the best five years of my life.

Beth Moore Day 2: The Reign of Jotham and the Call of Isaiah

Day 2 is mostly about corrupt leadership and following the call of God to untie the cords of bad yolks. Jotham was a bad king, but Isaiah had to persevere and prophesy regardless of who the king was.

Beth says about our drive and ambition blinding us from God that, "At no time is our vision more capable of seeing God in His rightful place than when the focus of our former attentions have been removed from our sight." Whether we are worshiping a king or our pet, anything that stands before God in our priorities is wrongly placed. When that object of affection falls, we are forced to see God on the throne (where He belongs). God alone should be the number one priority in our lives. Isaiah knew that but Jotham was busy worshiping himself and pagan gods.

We must make a choice who will be King of our lives.

Sick of Being Sick

This is copied. I read it this morning to try to find some comfort in the midst of everything that is going on physically. Honestly, most of it was not great, as I am not a fan of the Psalms so much. However, I think that there is some fundamental truth in here that is good for all people who struggle with being sick in the body for weeks, months, even years at a time. 

Meaningful Hope for Christians With Chronic Illnesses

article by Cecil Maranville

Through the ages people have sought comfort from the Psalms, finding their messages as soothing as a loving touch. But for a person dealing with chronic physical or emotional pain, the Psalms present another level of comfort. In this article you will read an overview of those songs that relate to chronic pain, fatigue, depression, disability and anxiety. Bible

If you possess a strong belief in God and also endure a chronic illness, you probably have struggled with your faith. Why hasn’t God made you well? Without doubt, you have prayed for just such a miracle, as have friends and family. The fact that your physical pain remains month after month—or even year after year—may well have caused you heavy discouragement.

It is easy to assume that if one seeks to live by God’s will and loves Him, God will always relieve that one’s physical suffering. Yet, there you (or those you know and love) are—still bound by pain, disease or disability. Does the lack of physical relief mean that there is something wrong spiritually?

I would like to take you on a brief survey of the Psalms of the Bible to challenge that assumption. Many of us regularly read the Psalms for comfort and encouragement, but I wonder how many have noticed that several of these beloved songs, speak about people of faith who suffer from chronic illnesses.

First, think about this…

Many of us regularly read the Psalms for comfort and encouragement, but I wonder how many have noticed that several of these beloved songs, speak about people of faith who suffer from chronic illnesses.

Before looking into Psalms, let’s lay a little groundwork with two references from the second letter to the Corinthian Christians. In 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

, the apostle Paul assures his readers that they—these are Christians, remember—have the opportunity to experience spiritual comfort from God when they endure troubles. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” Therein lies a concept that is foreign to many: Christians can have enduring and chronic troubles.

You have to experience trouble before comfort means anything. Try a simple, perhaps silly, experiment to illustrate the point. Pick up a small child who isn’t upset or hurt, and begin to pat him or her on the back, softly speaking reassurances that everything will be all right. The child is likely to think you are a little strange! Do the same actions for a child who has fallen and gotten scraped, and comfort becomes meaningful—and appreciated.

You see the point. We all want to experience the comforting love of God, yet would rather avoid needing that comfort. Comfort, however, is meaningless if we have no need for it.

Within this passage are three plain messages:

*

Christians experience trouble.

*

God is fully aware of their suffering. (Why do we sometimes have difficulty in realizing that there are no secrets from Him?)

*

Instead of always removing that trouble, God sometimes chooses to give only spiritual comfort. That is a different course of action than many expect from God.

If physical relief were the most important thing for God to grant, He would certainly provide it! Of course, God does not bring troubles on us, but neither does He spare us completely from accident or disease. The health of the spirit is sometimes not attained, or even thought of, until the health of the body is lost. We have to conclude that spiritual comfort is therefore more important than physical comfort. Think about that statement.

The indisputable value of hurting

Paul also draws our attention to the understanding that Christians who suffer gain about others with all types of physical and emotional pain. Has someone who has never had pain ever offered you comfort? What about someone who has had severe pain?

Which person would offer more meaningful comfort? Which one would you seek out if you had to choose a helper again? It’s obvious that there is great training value in enduring troubles. You have to experience trouble before comfort means anything. Christians are supposed to gain experience with all kinds of difficulties, work their way through them with the comfort of God and His people, and then pass along sympathy, empathy, caring and comfort to other people who hurt.

People can provide support to those wrestling with the challenges of illnesses. Obvious acts of kindness include listening, reading aloud, providing or preparing meals, doing household chores, sending cards and many more that you could name. But genuine comfort is often communicated beyond words and actions through an attitude of understanding.

That depth of understanding comes only by having been through a similar challenge. It is priceless training, equipping the Christian to extend faith to those who truly need it.

In 2 Corinthians 4:7
, Paul draws an analogy between mortal men and jars of clay that hold a valuable treasure. The less you value the clay pot, the more you concentrate on what is inside of it. By contrast, the beautifully ornate container of a treasure becomes an item of worth in itself, and can distract attention from the true treasure inside.

His point is crystal clear. The spiritual health of a man is a treasure. His physical condition may be like crumbling old clay, but that will only highlight the infinitely greater value of a spiritually healthy mind, the inner treasure.

A treasure trove of consolation

If physical relief were the most important thing for God to grant, He would certainly provide it!

Now we’ll move into the Psalms. People through the ages have sought comfort from these ancient songs, as they are refreshing as a cool cloth on a fevered brow. For a person dealing with chronic physical or emotional pain, there is a multi-faceted message. What follows is a brief sketch of those songs that relate to chronic pain, fatigue, depression, disability and anxiety. Notice that spiritual comfort was available, even when physical comfort was delayed. I’ve used the New International Version for its thought-for-thought translation pattern that expresses the intent clearly.

Psalm 6: Notice the language with which the chronically ill can so easily identify: “I am faint…my bones are in agony. My soul is in anguish…I am worn out from groaning; all night long I flood my bed with weeping…My eyes grow weak with sorrow.” Sober thoughts of the possibility of death are seriously weighed. The song concludes with an uplifting sense of hope and relief of mind.

Psalm 8: Here’s a contrast between the frailties of man and the majesty of God. As Paul later wrote, when a man is frail, he can understand that contrast more clearly. That is a healthy mental or spiritual perspective.

Psalm 10: The author felt alone, helpless, overwhelmed by trouble and grief—all too familiar to one who has chronic pain! Again, he is able to find bolstering for his spirit, although not necessarily for his body.

Psalm 11: This author writes of God being a safe place for him, like a bird can take to the air and fly high above any threat. These are comforting, releasing thoughts.

Psalm 13: This author felt abandoned, struggling with his gloomy thoughts, unable to make sense of his awful trials. He was depressed every day. The song ends with his recapturing a confidence that things will be OK; he’s cheerful, even feels like singing! These are thoughts of coping. It doesn’t mean the difficulty ended.

Psalm 23: This classic song speaks of walking “through the valley of the shadow of death,” or alternatively, “through the darkest valley,” without anxiety! It declares that a person can be restored, refreshed in spirit, while greatly challenged physically.

Psalm 25:16
 17: This writer expresses his loneliness, depression, suffering and stress overload in the context of drawing spiritual courage.

Psalm 31:7
, 9-10: In these few verses, we glean a picture of a person who is anguished or torn up, overwhelmed both mentally and physically. Note the chronic nature of the affliction, lasting a period of years. His choice of words, “my bones grow weak,” graphically portrays chronic fatigue.

Psalm 32:3
 4: Here’s yet another chronic ailment that causes the author to say “my bones wasted away”—another description of fatigue. So also is the analogy of chronic illness that saps his strength like oppressive summertime heat and humidity drains one’s energy.

“Crushed in spirit”

Psalm 34:4
, 6, 8, 15, 17 19: This person is burdened with many anxieties and fears—“complexes,” we might say today. He has multiple trials of life and feels like he needs a safe place to crawl into and get away from everything. His troubles, too, are chronic. Note how he feels brokenhearted, “crushed in spirit.” How descriptive! We are told in plain language that a right living man can have many troubles.

Christians are supposed to gain experience with all kinds of difficulties, work their way through them with the comfort of God and people, and then pass along sympathy, empathy, caring and comfort to other people who hurt.

Psalm 38: This song is incredible! The subject has wretched health, is chronically fatigued and overwhelmed by a sense of guilt, all at the same time. (He directly associates immoral conduct with his physical problems. Sometimes diseases are caused by immoral behavior. It is healthy to look at oneself to see if any conduct needs to change. It is unhealthy to beat oneself up looking for some evil cause of an illness, because often there is none.) He tells of festering, unpleasant sores, depression lasting days on end and searing back pain, all without any kind of support group. What did he do? He prayed and thereby went after the one kind of health still available to him, a healthy mind.

Psalm 41: This psalm speaks of God’s special concern for the physically weak, and how the sick person is sustained while on his sickbed. A “bed of illness” may imply a chronic illness. Here is an indisputable demonstration of how God can and does strengthen the mind, when He sometimes allows the body to weaken.

Help for enduring difficult trials

Psalms 42, 43, 57 and 63 all have messages about chronic illness, similar to those already analyzed. But there are still some unique messages in other songs.

Psalm 72:12
 14 speaks of strengthening and encouraging the mind of the helpless, the afflicted (by disease or other troubles) and the victims of violent crimes.

Psalm 77 is a record of sleepless nights, long hours of self analysis and growing discouragement. The author speaks of the positive use of meditation to get back to strong spiritual health.

Psalm 84 is a beautifully written poetic expression of the restful, healthy result of a strong spirit.

Psalm 88:15-18




 mentions one who has been stricken with a life threatening illness since childhood. He is both fatigued and depressed. For some reason, he has neither friend nor relative to comfort him. Soberly, there is no positive upswing in mental outlook at the end of this song. Could it be a message that sometimes there are long periods of trial?

Psalm 102: This person sings of enduring a prolonged difficulty. He’s stressed out. The days blend without meaning. His bones are said to burn with pain. His appetite is gone due to discouragement, and he’s reduced to skin and bones. Sleep patterns are poor, and he cries often. Yet even he has an unquenchably positive outlook on the future.

Psalm 119: The powerful, uplifting message of this song is a favorite of many readers of the Bible, but perhaps they have missed the chronic illness language.

“I am laid low in the dust” (verse 25). “My soul is weary with sorrow” (verse 28). “My comfort in my suffering” (verse 50). “Before I was afflicted” (verse 67). “It was good for me to be afflicted” (verse 71). “My soul faints with longing for your salvation [rescue]” (verse 81). “My eyes fail, looking for your promise. I say, ‘When will you comfort me?’” (verse 82). “I am like a wineskin in the smoke [shriveled up]” (verse 83). “I have suffered much” (verse 107). “Trouble and distress have come upon me” (verse 143). “I rise before dawn and cry for help” (verse 147). “My eyes stay open through the watches of the night” (verse 148). “Look upon my suffering” (verse 153).

Forerunner of our Savior

Psalm 22: These are the deeply personal thoughts of a physically tormented man. He is sleepless, hopeless, abandoned by friend and family alike. His energy is drained. His joints ache, his courage is melted, and he has generalized pain. He concludes with a positive swing in attitude of mind to a sense of hope. But again, it is in the mind that the hope has come, not the body. While likely reflective of real-life experiences of an earlier servant, this is also a prophecy of the sufferings of the Messiah, which ended in His physical death. We’re reminded again of the fact that Christ both suffered and learned from it.

We are told in plain language that a right-living man can have many troubles.

Because of its special significance, I saved Psalm 22 for last. If the perfect Son of God could suffer physically, can there be any argument with the fact that any right-living man or woman may also endure unrelieved pain? Jesus said of Himself that His purpose was to bring relief for those in need of physical health, but also for those in need of spiritual health. Lacking full understanding, many people—even religious ones—assume the two types of relief are equal in importance. That’s an incorrect assumption. The supernatural restoration of physical health often served only to demonstrate that it is possible to obtain an infinitely greater treasure, the health of the spirit.

There is no biblical justification for the idea that all people of faith are quickly relieved of all trouble or suffering. There is a solid promise that God never leaves His people, even if they feel alone, and that they can always find peace of mind or health of the spirit.

Sick isn’t synonymous with sin

Think about the remarkable personal stories of servants of God. We read of people who felt like they needed a safe place to crawl into and hide from overwhelming problems; frustrated, discouraged and depressed people; some who struggled with anger; many who were fatigued and stressed out, with aching bones or joints, and sleepless nights. In short, many servants of God who had chronic illnesses.

Jesus said of Himself, that His purpose was to bring relief for those in need of physical health, but also for those in need of spiritual health.

I hope you are able to draw much encouragement by reading and identifying with these heartrending personal stories of the intimate thoughts, hopes and fears of right-living people with a chronic illness.

And I hope that two things are abundantly clear:

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A person can have a sick body and at the same time be “in good standing” spiritually.

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Regardless of poor health—and maybe even because of poor health—a person can find mental and spiritual health through God.

The life experience of countless Christians, past and present, tells you that it is true.

Beth Moore Day 1- The Reign of Uzziah

Key Verse: "After Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall." 2 Chronicles 26:16

In day one Beth Moore concentrates on the downfalls of becoming prideful. In my experience, pride comes to most people in one of two ways. Either we think we are too good and don't need God. Or we believe we are too bad and God won't accept us. Now some people think the second form of pride I list isn't pride at all. But isn't it just saying that they know more than God does? That is definitely pride. Pride puts us in the position of being God. Beth's best quote on pride is, "pride slights Him, but it destroys us."

Beth makes another great point; pride leads to captivity. I have a hard time with pride over my intelligence. Most of the time I feel like it is the only thing going for me-- it is dangerous because it makes me self-reliant. Self-reliance is a form of captivity because it takes me away from letting God be God.

Water

I went outside to talk to Joey and watch the marching band. When I came, I was THIRSTY! I was also hot and sweaty but that is not the point. I needed water, not pop, not juice and definitely not milk.

Jesus calls himself the living water. When we are thirsty and drink in the things of the world we become thirsty again. However, when we plunge into the living water we will thirst no more.

I hit the drinking fountain like my life depended on it. It was refreshing, but nearly as good as a fresh soaking of living water. I pray that you will encounter the risen Christ today.

Walking

I walked to school this morning. The path is planned out as soon as I leave the house. I wish the journey I am walking right now had such a definite beginning, middle and end.

Spiritual Bulimia

Shane Claiborne in his book Irresistible Revolution said,  "[I had] spiritual bulimia... I had gorged myself on all the products of the Christian industrial complex but was spiritually starving to death. I was marked by an over consumptive but malnourished spirituality, suffocated by Christianity but thirsty for God."

In the world of fast-paced, technology driven enterprise we are inundated with options. We can (as Burger King would say) have it our way. Following Christ is no different. From music to books, Christian tshirts to bumper-stickers we can be filled with things that are "christian." We can do every Christian study, listen to only Point of Grace, Matt Maher and Chris Tomlin and still miss God altogether. We can fill ourselves up with Benny Hinn, Joyce Meyer, Beth Moore and even Shane Claiborne and still be hungry for God. We can say the rosary, sing the doxology and recite liturgy and still puke up curse words and hate.

We need to slow down, study scripture and seek God alone to quench our thirst that nothing else will satisfy. We need to sit under good Bible teachers and preachers instead of feel good, warm and fuzzy leaders. We need to be confronted with Truth instead of comforted with lies. We need to radically follow Christ instead of being subdued pew-sitters.  We should loath our own apathy and reject it at it's root. We should shout about our redeemer and not cower for fear of disapproval. Lumbering through life can be replaced with striding confidently in the life Christ offers.

Serving a microscopic god has no place in Christianity. Our God is colossal, the maker of the universe. I need to take every word I wrote to heart today. I pray that we all learn what it looks like to follow Christ as genuine disciples.

Relationships

Today I am plagued with another question: Why did God create us as relational creatures? Humans, by nature, are selfish, broken, hurtful and sinful. That makes me sound really negative. Humans can be loving, kind, compassionate, trustworthy and helpful too. However, it seems that no matter who you are in a relationship with they will eventually hurt you or you will hurt them.

Parents disappoint a kid who trusted in a promise. Friends get frustrated and walk away shaking their heads. Significant others forget anniversaries. A coworker lies to protect themselves. Siblings decide that they are better off on their own. None of these people set out to hurt the others... it just happens. So why, oh why, do we need to be in relationships with other people? Why can't we be self-sufficient? Why did God make us interdependent? 

Even though it pains me to answer this question, I do have somewhat of an answer.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

⁹ Two are better than one,
    because they have a good return for their labor:
¹⁰ If either of them falls down,
    one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
    and has no one to help them up.
¹¹ Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
    But how can one keep warm alone?
¹² Though one may be overpowered,
    two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Does this make it any easier to be in quality relationships with people? No, not really. I wish it did. I wish that, especially those who profess Christ as savior, would treat people better. I wish I treated people better. I wish, as a Christ follower, I did a better job of showing His love to people. 

Someone told me that broken people do broken things and hurt people, hurt people. I think this is partially true but mostly just an excuse for bad behavior. People who are hurting do not have to hurt people in return. On the other hand people who feel like they have their lives together don't need to act better than broken people. We are all in this together and we would all be a lot better off if we were just a little nicer.

Knowing Your Season

In Indiana, it is usually pretty easy to tell what season it is. We have four very different seasons. Although it is still summer, you can feel fall creeping in-- school has started, young men are chasing the pigskin under Friday night lights, mornings are cool and people are planning bonfires. Fall will cool into winter, which will give way to spring and warm back into summer. Seasons come and go. 

The seasons of life don't flow so nicely as seasons on a calender. The writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us of the ebb and flow of life

 Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

There is a time for everything,
    and a season for every activity under the heavens:

²     a time to be born and a time to die,
    a time to plant and a time to uproot,
³     a time to kill and a time to heal,
    a time to tear down and a time to build,
⁴     a time to weep and a time to laugh,
    a time to mourn and a time to dance,
⁵     a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
    a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
⁶     a time to search and a time to give up,
    a time to keep and a time to throw away,
⁷     a time to tear and a time to mend,
    a time to be silent and a time to speak,
⁸     a time to love and a time to hate,
    a time for war and a time for peace.

Am I planting? Am I uprooting? How do you know when healing's season is complete? Is it ever complete? What should I build? When and where should I build it? What pebbles need to be scattered? Should I be embracing something that I am not? Should I give up something that I am holding too dearly? Weeping, laughing, breaking, building, love, hate... there is a season for it all. But how can we be sure we know our seasons?

We can pray and ask God for direction. However, we (well at least I) can be resistant to the hardest seasons God brings to my journey. It is not fun or simple to have a season of mourning or weeping... TRUST ME. We could just roll with how we feel, but we may miss what God is trying to lead us into and through. My season right now is probably a mix of all those things.

Exhaustion

Jesus said, "Come to me all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle..." (Matthew 11).

Today, I am exhausted. Physically, emotionally, mentally, every way... just worn out. This first week back to the grind has kicked my butt! I am thankful for the promise that when I am spiritually exhausted Christ will give me rest.

When I get home this afternoon, I fully plan on taking a nap. Luckily, Christ can refresh me and give me rest prior to my physical rest.

Words

Words have the power of life and death. Last night's Bible Study was a great minder of this truth. Words stick with us... sometime for our whole life. Occasionally, you just have to decide which words you are going to believe and which words you are going to try to put behind you.

Intro Beth Moore's Breaking Free

I started Beth Moore's "Breaking Free" last spring. I have yet to finish it; however, I am going to spend some time over the next few months giving you a view of what each day said and meant to me. This is what Life Point Ministries has to say about the book, videos and Bible study. 

Breaking Free: The Journey, The Stories - Member Book by Beth Moore leads you through a study of the Scriptures to discover the transforming power of freedom in Jesus Christ. Themes for this study come from Isaiah, a book about the captivity of God's children, the faithfulness of God, and the road to freedom.

This in-depth women's Bible study draws parallels between the captive Israelites of the Old Testament and New Testament believers in Jesus as the Promised Messiah. Beth looks at the Book of Isaiah through the lives of the kings who ruled during the prophet's ministry. These kings exemplify many of the obstacles to freedom with which we must deal. Using Scripture to help identify spiritual strongholds in your life, no matter how big or small, Beth explains that anything that hinders us from the benefits of knowing God is bondage.

Join Beth Moore on a Bible journey unlike any other. God intends for you to know and believe Him, glorify Him, experience His peace, and enjoy His presence. Breaking Free is Beth's life message that she wants to share with you. Taped live at Franklin Avenue Baptist Church in New Orleans, this study includes testimonies of how women like you have found freedom and have been delivered from personal captivity.

This has been extremely difficult for me to journey through and I hope to share part of what God has done through it. 

Faith, Friends, Colleagues

My faith makes me different from some of my friends, but I notice this more with my colleagues. Yesterday, the superintendent went around to each room, in all four schools, to pray with any staff that wanted to. I REALLY appreciated this gesture. However, some people weren't as thrilled about it as I am. Steve Clason is a good boss but yesterday he showed that he is a great man and a believer in the face of what people think can and cannot be allowed at a public school. I am appreciative of his commitment.

Prepare

As I prepare for another year in the classroom, I am so incredibly grateful that Jesus has already prepared a way for me to go... that is all I have to say about it.

New People

Sometimes meeting new people is God's way of saying that He is with me and wants me to continue the process.

Music Geek

I am a music geek. Days like today, I always think of Point of Grace's song "Blue Skies." Even in the times of dark and doubt, God is still the hope. 

On days of gray when doubt clouds my view
It's so hard to see past my fears
My strength seems to fade and it's all I can do
To hold on 'til the light reappears
Still, I believe though some rain's bound to fall
That You're here next to me and You're over it all

Lord, the sky's still blue, for my hope is in You
You're my joy, You're the dream that's still alive
Like the wind at my back and the sun on my face
You are life, You're grace
You are blue skies, You're my blue skies

When nights are long seems the dark has no end
Still we walk on in light of the truth
For waiting beyond where the morning begins
Is the dawn and You're mercy anew
Oh, to believe we're alive in You're love
There is so much to see if we keep looking up

Lord, the sky's still blue, for my hope is in You
You're my joy, You're the dream that's still alive
Like the wind at my back and the sun on my face
You are life, You're grace
You are blue skies, You're blue skies

You fill the Heavens with hope and a higher love
A picture, a promise for life

Lord, the sky's still blue, for my hope is in You
You're my joy, You're the dream that's still alive
Like the wind at my back and the sun on my face

You are life, You're grace

And the sky's still blue, for my hope is in You
You're my joy, You're the dream that's still alive
Like the wind at my back and the sun on my face
You are life, You're grace
You are blue skies, You're blue skies
You are blue skies

Chapters

Life is full of chapters. It is difficult to finish chapters sometimes. It is difficult to put a period on a sentence that you aren't quite ready to finish. However, when one chapter comes to a close another one begins and the story goes on. Luckily, God goes before each chapter, is in each chapter and makes each sentence write a story that is worth reading.

Peter

I must be honest, writing today is difficult and a bit emotionally demanding. My stress level is at a place that I can't manage as well as I would like. My emotions are a bit askew. I am trying very hard to be more positive, choose life and keep to a plan. 

Today I want to address my favorite Bible character. Peter. Peter had the audacity to say that he would never deny Christ and ended up denying him three times in Christ's deepest hour of need. In those three denials we see the struggle of Peter. Later, on a beach Jesus asks him three times if Peter loves him. Three denials, three professions of love and Peter was restored. He was the Rock. He was the one in whom Christ would build the church. Peter ended up preaching at Pentecost. 

Peter is my favorite because he failed, he was restored and he walked in the power of the spirit. What hope we all have. 

What God Sees

A few weeks ago at Bible Study, we talked about what God sees when He looks at us. There were a few that gave their opinions but I just wrote mine down and had Michelle read it. She told me to blog about it and here we are.

This is what I jotted down on the note I passed to Michelle, "When God sees us He is only looking at the blood of Christ because he cannot look upon sin; however, when Christ looks at us He sees what we can be through him, and the Holy Spirit convicts us of the things in us that we don't want Christ to see." I don't really have anything else to say about it. Sorry.

Pondering or Wandering?

It seems that as much time I spend in thought I also spend wandering down rabbit trails. Theology is extremely important to me; however it is sometimes easy to get lost in my pondering and wind up wandering around a forest of thought. Perhaps I have named this blog incorrectly.

Luckily for me God sees past my wandering mind and sees the pondering heart that is trying to find all of Him. Jesus often taught in parables, this made people think about the implications on their own. The Holy Spirit often shows up in the middle of my most random wanderings to bring me to the heart of Christ where true freedom is found. So whether I am truly pondering or just wandering around in a vast theological domain I am happy that Christ is there too.

Rest, Renewal, Return

Well, folks, I am back. Summer is over for me basically; therefore, weekday blogs are returning daily. Summer was supposed to be a time of rest and renewal and I cannot say that completely happened. I am, however, glad to be returning to "real" life. God shows us the rhythms of rest and work in scripture and for that I am very thankful. Rest is important but so is work.

Hope that all of you had a great summer!!