Good morning - all you early risers!!! Today is a good day. My parents come home from being gone for 2 months to Kenya. (I dont' think I said that right - must be too early.)
Anyway, I have missed them but I know they have had a good time. I don't think they realize what kind of weather they are coming to - snow and cold - but their house is warm and it is home. It is always good to come home!!!
Many of the verses in this chapter deal with friendship and relationship. One that is quoted a lot is vs 17 "Iron sharpens iron so a friend sharpens a friend." That's if you can survive the sparks! Sometimes the "friend" you live with feels like iron and there are seasons when you know you are sharpening each other!!! I have friends like this - and they have been my friends for years. God uses those friendships to keep me true and sharp and not dull and useless. I love them and they love me and they are truly sent to me by God.
Another verse that struck me was vs 21 "Fire test the purity of silver and gold, but a person is tested by being praised (or by what they praise as some translations say)". I remember hearing the phrase "the greatest test in your life is the test of success." I imagine this proverb speaks to the same thing. But it also speaks to what we praise ourselves for being or doing. The moment we say we are "the best........" there is a test. Even if we say those things about our church....."LCC is the best..........". We aren't the best anything - it is all by the Grace of God that we are good at anything!!! Even an accomplished pianist or soloist or artist.......hard work and giftings from God make them great!
You sure learn a lot about human nature as you read these Psalms.
Hope your Monday went great and your Tuesday is even better.
5 comments:
Pastor Susan, it will be good to have your mom and dad home...we've missed them, too. Yes, iron sharpening iron is not always a pleasant time in relationships...but knowing our friend's heart (or our spouse's heart or God's heart) helps the process. The other scripture I like about friendship is vs.8 ... "Just as lotions and fragrance give sensual delight, a sweet friendship refreshes the soul." We all know the feeling of putting lotion on our winter-dried bodies ... it seems as though I can feel my skin literally drinking in the moisture of the lotion...and the sweet scent of the lotion affects our soul. The same is true with friendship...there are times our souls are weary and just spending time with a dear friend brings refreshing to our emotions, our mind, and our will.
However, one verse stands out to me every time I read this chapter ... vs. 19..."Just as water mirrors your face, so your face mirrors your heart." Ouch! If I could, I could have this verse imprinted on my contacts so every time I look out through my contacts I would be reminded about my face...what is it reflecting? ...my heart (my spirit man) or my soul (my mind, will, and emotions). My spirit man is to rule and reign over my soul; so no matter what issues my soul is dealing with, my face can and should reflect what's in my spirit. My prayer daily is "Lord, by your Holy Spirit, set a watch over my mouth, my attitude, and my actions so that I don't sin against you." God will do this, but I still have a will and must choose what I speak, what my face portrays, and my actions. Thank God for His grace and mercy.
Early risers, yes. I am normally a very early riser, but not these last few days! I have been fighting a wicked cold and I have had to stay in bed a little longer than normal. yuck!
I also love these verses about relationship. A couple more in addition to the ones you pointed out, Pastor Susan, are "Faithful are the wounds of a friend...." (v. 6), "Ointment and perfume delight the heart, and the sweetness of a man's friend gives delight by hearty counsel." (v. 9) These ones are special verses for me. I feel blessed that I have close friends that love God that I have had in my life for years. We don't talk extremely often, and a couple of them spend most of their time outside the US on the mission field, but when we do talk we can spill it all and tell it like it is and start where we left off. It is true....true friendship is like ointment and perfume to my heart. There are few people in my life that speak the truth and wisdom into my life so much so that it not only keeps me accountable, but also helps keep my heart right. They give wise, wise counsel and I sure need that sometimes. If I didn't know they love me, some things would be hard to hear, but I do the same with them. It is true, the wounds of a friend are faithful.....and iron sharpens iron and all that, wisdom in the counsel of many....etc. I also love that in the same breath as truth and hearty counsel is encouragement and I love that every time we are on the phone we never get off without praying for each other. One of the coolest things is after years seeing God's faithfulness as He has answered things we have prayed for together. That has been awesome. I don't think any of us can make it all alone and I don't think we are meant to make it all alone! These are awesome verses.
Pastor Kirsten, i hope you feel better soon!
One of my favorite verses in the Bible that, not being a morning person, i love to quote: "If you wake your friend in the early morning by shouting 'Rise and shine!' it will sound to him more like a curse than a blessing." I know it's not actually a curse, and any of you are welcome to send a morning greeting my way! (i needed this verse today when my family woke me up "early"!!)
Heather, I was going to write that I would call you tomorrow at 6... hehe...I can be so mean! But then I remembered that soon enough, you are going to have your own little alarm clock going all night long! And on this there is no snooze button!!!! I know because I'm living the dream/nightmare currently. I'm a morning person when I get a chance to actually sleep at night.
Kirsten - call if you need soup! (or something that I actually know how to cook)
Grandma - welcome home! Hope you start blogging again!
I was going to write about Proverbs, but I've wasted my time and now have a baby crying. I agree with all of your comments, though!
That is funny. Heather will soon have her own alarm clock that shouts "rise and shine" every two hours all night:). It is a blessing though. I have been craving soup. That sounds good. Nothing else has sounded good this whole week. I love reading everyone's comments on the blog.They are awesome.
Post a Comment