Fatal Distractions

Psalm 1:1-3

"Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. "

I absolutely love to read books! For most girls, this extreme fetish is more directed towards shoes and purses; however I am not the typical girl. I am sure my friends would agree that I am not typical in any way, but that is a discussion for another day. But my fetish is books! I love the smell, I like reading insight from other's perspectives. I like writing all over them when I agree or disagree. I just love books. No matter how much I love to read though I hardly ever find enough time in the day to read the books that I am currently reading. Today though was a rare day. As a random winter blast has blown in, now that spring has just begun and as the rain continued to drizzle, I packed up my books and headed to Starbucks. I cannot describe how refreshing it was to sit on the dirty Starbucks sofa chair, kick back, drink some wonderful Starbucks coffee and read.

I then went home to get ready for the day and headed to the church office to spend some time working. However, somehow I found myself searching for books to buy online, in which I did purchase a few. But even after my purchase, I continued to browse off and on. Searching for anything and everything and wanting it all. But then suddenly I was struck with the question of why I was so interested specifically in wanting to purchase all of these books. I honestly don't think there is anything wrong in and of itself with loving books. Books can offer a lot of wisdom. They can provide insight into certain situations and topics that a person could possibly not obtain any other way. However, books along with anything else in our lives can become harmful if we allow it. If I am not careful I can get so distracted by books that the Bible gets pushed further and further away. Instead of seeking truth from The Truth, I instead start searching for answers from other sources.

The Bible does not say "blessed is the man whose delight is in people, or books, or shoes or friends... or anything else that you can put into that sentence. These things that fill our thoughts and time I would call "fatal distractions." It instead states that blessed is the man whose delight is in the law of the Lord." He does not only read it and moves on to other things, but instead he meditates on it. And he doesn't just meditate on it for a quick five but instead he meditates on it, day and night. In the beautiful simile used here, it is the "law of the Lord" that gives life.

How often do we spend our time doing other things, and filling our time with other things, these fatal distractions and looking for answers and comfort in other places. For some reason, to my embarrassment to admit, maintaining a practice of meditating both day and night on Scripture has always been a struggle. However it is so vital. It is so vital because it is at the core of loving the Lord and fruit bearing. And this is why we are here.

In Awe of God’s Majesty.....

Ps 19:14 “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.” NIV

As I took a closer look at Psalm 19 last week I noticed something that David expresses that I believe is so true. At the beginning of Psalm 19, David begins to describe God’s magnificent creation describing the heavens and the sun. He then moves on to discuss the law of the Lord and how perfect it is. He uses such eloquent words that are so rich as he states in verses 9-10, “The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of the LORD are sure and altogether righteous. They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb.” And because he seems to realize how amazing God’s law is he then responds by begging of the Lord’s forgiveness...and then he ends with a prayer that he may be pleasing in his sight.

Wow – I’m still in awe of this amazing song of David. And it is such an example of how our own response should be to the Lord. A view of his amazing creation leads us to realize how omniscient He is. A look at His creation we see how awesome and big our God is. With this realization and insight it leads us to only one response - a knowledge that His ways are pure and right. And wow, if God’s law is pure and “sweeter than honey”, it can only lead us to a pure desire for forgiveness, realizing that we will never be able to save ourselves and be able to compare to God’s infinite wisdom.

Just as David so well described - in awe of God’s majesty and who He is, all I can do is fall to my knees.

Packed Boxes and a Thankful Heart

As I sit here in my apartment, I look around and I’m surrounded by boxes. It’s so weird to think that I’m actually moving. It’s hard to believe that I’m really done with seminary, and that I’m about to move on to what God has next for me. Transition is always hard for me. I have never liked the in-between, however I often find myself here. When I came here to Fort Worth, I was only 21 and I didn’t know anyone. And now my life is so full that I can’t imagine leaving it all behind. The Lord has been so good to me and He has shown his faithfulness time and time and time again. In some ways I feel that I am leaving work unfinished. But I also realize that if God is moving me, then he will use someone else to finish the task. The first two years here were so incredibly hard, but God has been so good to me, to give me a church that I love and friends that have abundantly blessed my life. There are no words to say to my family who have been there for me to support me and pray for me. I know I could not have made it without them. My heart is so full, there are no words. I think I can share in the same words that Paul wrote to the Philippians when he wrote in Philippians 1:3-11,

“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God's grace with me. God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ-to the glory and praise of God.”

So in my absence of words of expressing my gratitude, all I can say is thank you. Thank you to the Lord for the incredible life that you have blessed me with. Thank you for salvation, and for Your faithfulness and love. Thank you to my family who have been so supportive, and have stood in the gap through prayer during the hard times. And thank you to all of my amazing friends who have supported me and made me laugh. You are all beyond what I deserve. Thank you!