January 11, 2012
Nothing can make a morning more beautiful than the sun
shining on green dew kissed grass and air that is so clean and crisp it seems
to swirl down into your lungs and refresh your very being. A time of prayer and a fresh Word from the
Lord will begin a day of real thanksgiving from the heart.
This morning as I continue the study of James, and 4:14 states, “
It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time and then vanished away.” He is speaking to about life and plans we
make for our lives. I have heard the
verse all my life but this morning the Holy Spirit opened up my heart to the
real truth in the analogy given by Beth Moore.
“Picture someone exhaling a warm breath of air into the freezing cold. There it is.
Then it is gone."
James tells us not to say we will do this or that tomorrow,
but we ought to say, “if the Lord will we shall live, and do this, or that.” Then
Beth suggested we just look at the words if the Lord “will we shall live.”
Following this thought we go to Ephesians 1:5
“Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to
himself, according to the good
pleasure of his will.”
Wow! Brother Dean made the comment the Word sometimes had rhythm
like a song and I had experienced that very thing that same Wednesday morning
in my study. As I read some verses in
Ephesians it was like a melody began to play in my head. I wanted to hold up my hand and tell him during our class time, but
since the verses would not readily come to my mind I thought maybe the Lord
would just let that be my revelation.
“This life goes fast.”
“Dr. Dan McCartney’s commentary on James 4:14 answered the question, what
is your life? “It is a wisp.” Beth Moore
follows in her comments that we never forget we were significant enough in God’s
eyes to offer the life of His one and only Son.
“The metaphor is about our length of time here.”
“When circumstances here are tough, we can
find comfort and courage in the verses about life’s brevity. We can think to ourselves, In the eternal
scheme of things, He’s only asking you to do this hard thing for a few
minutes. You can be faithful. It’s not that long!” Every new day is willed by God.” “We live
because the Lord wills.”
All of the information is not in the same order of the
lesson as in “James Mercy Triumphs”, however it is how it played out in my head
after I studied it. As the last thought
is stated, “You don’t even know what tomorrow will bring” (James 4:14), but He
indeed does. We have all sorts of plans
jotted on our calendars pertaining to the next year, but they’re mostly based
on theory. He is the only day-timer
based on certainty. That’s one reason
why spending time with God in His Word in the morning is so vital. He wants to prepare us for the reality of our
upcoming day."
For me life is but a
breath of warm air exhaled into the freezing cold, but it is by His will that I
live each day. It has gone so fast. I took it for granted. I just want to hold each second in my hand
and make it count now for him. Oh! How I
wish I had done more in the past sixty seven years of my life to honor Him.
My humanity astounds me.
“You can’t live it.” My mother’s
words ring in my ears. Oh how right she
was. Each time I face an issue that may
begin with all the good things I have studied and planned to practice, suddenly
without warning, the phone rings. I answer
the call. I begin to speak with a new
heart and my words are those I believe my Lord would have me to speak, then
Pride comes holding rejection by the hand and just as that wisp that I am fades
away, I begin to react and my reactions are back to the old man inside of
me. It is the flesh Paul speaks of when
he said, It is not that I would do but that I would not do that I do. It does not bring me comfort, it makes me
angry with myself. Why Lord can’t I just
win one time over these things that are so ingrained in my character that it
makes me want to spue myself out as well as have you spue me out of your mouth?
As I prayed for forgiveness, the study of yesterday entered
my mind. Perfection, the tongue that
cannot be bridled and my imperfection all spin in my mind. I loved the study on the word
perfection. The English meaning of the
word is more like integrity I read. The meaning
of perfection is whole, consistent, complete, authenticity, as suggested by
scholars. Melissa Moore Fitzpatrick
speaks of this in her comments. I
thought of myself and my desire to have perfection. I want the perfect house, the perfect yard,
to be the perfect mother, the perfect wife, the perfect friend, the perfect child of God. And each time I fail that idea shatters right
before my eyes. I grieve in my heart
when Pride rears it’s ugly head. I
despise myself when rejection flings itself in my face and I stand up and fight
back with all my strength.
Oh my God,
how I praise your dear name that you said I could come before you and ask for
forgiveness and you would give it to me.
Although when I share myself with others in a blog or on
Face Book my motives are to perhaps touch their lives through something that has
touched mine. Usually something in the
study will catch my eye that seems like that would be the perfect answer to something
someone else may be going through; perhaps a difficult time and even though it
pertains to me I want to share it with them.
I may fail and I may indeed run and try to fix something again in my
flesh, however it is my endeavor that I write these things and if the Lord
wills then He will touch that heart that needs it. All I have to do is be an instrument he uses
to perform His will. Face Book may be a
stage, but the only actions I want to present are those the Lord would have me
to do. I remember that it is the motive that He looks at. I only pray others will perceive my
motives are genuine and that I would not be a shame to the Lord.
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