Just writing some passing thoughts I want to give more thought to-- 1. Discernment---a gift of the Spirit we need to seek fervently. a. When we ask God for gifts of the spirit, are we mature enough in Him to handle them correctly? (example): If my child asked me for a b-b-gun at age 4 or 5 would I consider him/her mature enough to be trusted to use it correctly? Anxious as I am to give him/her an important tool, would I realize I must first train him/her to handle it with wisdom and proper use? b. Would I counsel him/her to take seriously their responsibility to realize it is a tool to benefit the whold "family" and not for their personal pleasure or "ego"? c. Would I advise them to not allow themselves to feel superior just because they have this special gift--not to "mock" others who have not grown to that maturity yet?
Sometimes I am troubled by some comments by "well-meaning" people who give the impression that they must "set everyone else straight" I would like to advise them that the Holy Spirit already has that office filled and is not needing anyone else to do His job for Him! He knows exactly where that other person is coming from and what action to take to correct and direct them--He does it with truth, love and firmness that no human is capable of. If He chooses to put us in the "witness chair" to help show someone the way, He will tell us exactly, when, where, how, and what to say! (or He may use us to say or do something as a witness when we are not even aware that is what is happening!)
I envision a picture of the human body's function--so intricately and wonderfully designed! However if we feed it the wrong fuel, we can do a lot of damage and even destroy it! When cells begin to attack and consume other cells, a process of self-destruction of the whole body takes place. I am not trained in any deep knowledge of these processes, but I believe I have read that this is the way cancer begins. Makes me think of the Body of Christ and our responsibility to protect one another rather than attack one another!
Things I’ve learned (and am learning) on my journey of life:
Patience: This could easily take pages to express, but I will only touch on a few of the unforgettable lessons--
First, as you may already suspect, patience is a long process that , as far as I know, has no “shortcuts” At the beginning of our journey we usually have the attitude “Lord, give me patience, and give it to me NOW”! .. However, the Word says in Romans 5:3-4 “…We glory in tribulations (tests and trials), knowing that tribulation worketh (produces) patience, and patience, experience, and experience, hope…” Just as fruit is first bud, then blossom, then immature fruit, then at last , the desired fruit we expect! Just as fairy tales make life sound so simple and magical, unsound doctrine and teaching can sound so desirable. Yet, when tested and tried and lived out, we find out it simply won’t pass the testing time!
I decided to do a little experiment to see what a blog-site would be like--realize-I'm a novice!! LOL!!
ReplyDeleteinteresting project! Thanks Karla for the "starter advice"! So far, so good!!
ReplyDeleteseeing what can be done on this web-site--experimenting:)
ReplyDeleteJust writing some passing thoughts I want to give more thought to--
ReplyDelete1. Discernment---a gift of the Spirit we need to seek fervently.
a. When we ask God for gifts of the spirit, are we mature enough in Him to handle them correctly? (example): If my child asked me for a b-b-gun at age 4 or 5 would I consider him/her mature enough to be trusted to use it correctly? Anxious as I am to give him/her an important tool, would I realize I must first train him/her to handle it with wisdom and proper use?
b. Would I counsel him/her to take seriously their responsibility to realize it is a tool to benefit the whold "family" and not for their personal pleasure or "ego"?
c. Would I advise them to not allow themselves to feel superior just because they have this special gift--not to "mock" others who have not grown to that maturity yet?
Sometimes I am troubled by some comments by "well-meaning" people who give the impression that they must "set everyone else straight" I would like to advise them that the Holy Spirit already has that office filled and is not needing anyone else to do His job for Him! He knows exactly where that other person is coming from and what action to take to correct and direct them--He does it with truth, love and firmness that no human is capable of. If He chooses to put us in the "witness chair" to help show someone the way, He will tell us exactly, when, where, how, and what to say! (or He may use us to say or do something as a witness when we are not even aware that is what is happening!)
ReplyDeleteI envision a picture of the human body's function--so intricately and wonderfully designed! However if we feed it the wrong fuel, we can do a lot of damage and even destroy it! When cells begin to attack and consume other cells, a process of self-destruction of the whole body takes place. I am not trained in any deep knowledge of these processes, but I believe I have read that this is the way cancer begins. Makes me think of the Body of Christ and our responsibility to protect one another rather than attack one another!
ReplyDeleteREFLECTIONS
ReplyDeleteThings I’ve learned (and am learning) on my journey of life:
Patience: This could easily take pages to express, but I will only touch on a few of the unforgettable lessons--
First, as you may already suspect, patience is a long process that , as far as I know, has no “shortcuts” At the beginning of our journey we usually have the attitude “Lord, give me patience, and give it to me NOW”!
.. However, the Word says in Romans 5:3-4 “…We glory in tribulations (tests and trials), knowing that tribulation worketh (produces) patience, and patience, experience, and experience, hope…” Just as fruit is first bud, then blossom, then immature fruit, then at last , the desired fruit we expect!
Just as fairy tales make life sound so simple and magical, unsound doctrine and teaching can sound so desirable. Yet, when tested and tried and lived out, we find out it simply won’t pass the testing time!