Luke 2:19,51

Mary treasured these things and thought about them.

She is a good example to us, to treasure and think about God and His word.

Think about every word you read.

Read His word and books about Him for the purpose of transformation into Christ, not just information-gathering. There is a vast difference.

Think about God in every encounter today.

Listen to Him in every situation.

Is everything that happens to us or that we experience merely “second cause”? As in, human cause only? Or is it all “First cause”? Is God behind it all? Allowing it, if nothing else? Or maybe the better question to ask would be: Is God ever active in what happens here on earth now? Is God in control? Perhaps He is waiting for us to call on Him in many situations, waiting on us to act in His authority, for that is how He most often operates–in His power through surrendered, petitioning humans that He made in His image, that He desires to be one with, in desire and action.

(I want to be careful and sensitive here. There are many evil things which I do not believe to be God’s will. Why would Jesus have us pray “Thy will be done” if God’s will always happens? Also, I know good people who have prayed in earnest for healings of some type that were not answered affirmatively. Let me be clear that I do not claim to understand it all when it comes to God’s will, first and second causes.)

If everything is second cause we have much reason for frustration. And not much reason for hope in this life.

It’s difficult to say how it all works, but what if we at least went to God about everything? What if we looked to Him, listening for Him in every single situation, every stressor, every annoying person, to discover what He would teach us? If we are but willing to hear?

Would this not be better? Better than the approach that life is random and sucks much of the time?

Is God infinitely good? Does He know what He’s doing? Does He care? Is everything going ultimately toward goodness?

What if we lived as if the answer to all those questions was a confident YES?

We get bogged down looking thru the pinhole with our tiny vision, not knowing, not trusting at times that God is up to so much more. It’s like the Tourniquet album title, Microscopic View of a Telescopic Realm. For parents, it is just like our children who can’t see the whole picture, the reasons behind parents’ discipline and decisions. So we, like children, get upset because we want what we see right in front of us right now–what we see thru the pinhole. And as parents, how much we desire for our children to trust us, to understand that we see much more than they do right now. We long for them to know in their little hearts that we want so much good for them. Good that is light years beyond top grades and winning teams. Good that is from the heart, springing forth from the Love that put us all here in the first place.

The First Cause.

Proverbs 16:6

Love and truth…is there anything more powerful?

May we love everyone unconditionally and in the truth of YHWH.

Unconditional love always encourages. Truth confronts when necessary, because it loves. Truth calls out destructive thought and action. It warns a friend if they are in a burning building, not to be a butt hole, but because of genuine care for their well-being.

I believe Will Ferrell said it best in Semi-Pro:

We have one rule here. What is it??

E.L.E.

That’s right, E.L.E.

EVERYBODY LOVE EVERYBODY!!!!!