The Imagination of Your Love

Where does your Love take you? Does it send you on whimsical cascading moments of refreshing day dreams? Does it cause tears of anguish because of moments of "good-bye" and parting for awhile: or does it make room for even more uncontrollable tears as parting may last even longer? Does it take you to incredible bursts of protective anger that would even give of its own life to protect the object of your Love? Does it have its breath ripped away in moments where fear senses an unknown threat that may sever you from the one you long for? Does it rest as it patiently waits for the rays of the morning sun to reveal that all is well and fear was unfounded?

Where does your Love take you when your brothers and sisters falter? Does it dole out unimaginable accusations and disappointments because of the impact of the breach that has disrupted your peaceful life? Does it have you weeping as you drop your stones of judgment? Does it leave you stranded and all alone with your confusion and shame for their situation? Is your Love able to carry you to the Throne of Grace where you cry out to find help in their time of need?

Where does your Love take you? Notice the word "Love" has been capitalized and emboldened.This was not only to draw your attention to the word, but it was to personify the word. We all need Love whether we admit it or not. The first step to knowing real Love is admitting our souls are bankrupt and lost in the midst of "forming and framing" Love in our own image. WE DON'T NEED ONE MORE BREATHLESS IDOL IN OUR LIFE. This "forming and framing" - the imagination of the heart - needs to cease . If you trust in the work of your own hands your love will soon reveal itself as dead and powerless because of your lack of resources. We can't save ourselves...we need a Saviour.

"Behold what manner of Love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God; therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not." I John 3:1 - WOW! An invitation to rob the world of an intimate knowledge of us, while we bask in the glory of this new found family of the Father. Focus your perceptions, your imagination, your framing and forming on learning of Him ... And you will be joyfully amazed at where your Love takes you.

Don't keep spinning your wheels while tolerating your idolatry until you are so set in it that you are an embarrassment to yourself and those around you ... look at the old men mentioned in Ezekiel and how pitiful there thinking had become:

Ezekiel 8:12 - "Then said He unto me, Son of Man, hast thou seen what the ancients of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the chamber of his imagery(idols)? For they say, the LORD seeth us not, the LORD hath forsaken the earth." (How shallow they look in their self made halos sporting their powerless hypocrisy). Is this where you want to be?

How about this for a promise to take advantage of ? "Thou wilt keep him in perfect (shalom) peace (shalom), whose mind (framing and forming - imagination) is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee". Isaiah 26:3 - "PERFECT PEACE" - this is an amazing concept within the promise...this is an expression of true, tangible, lasting, complete, holistic, satisfaction that can be totally renewable moment by moment. This is that satisfaction that is offered to those who continually lean and rest their imaginations in the business of trusting Him. WE NEED A LIVING LOVE THAT WILL GIVE US NEW BREATH EVERY DAY ... Don't tolerate any breathless love in your life ... BREATHE!!!

BUT WAIT! - Stop your rebellion - take inventory of your misery, write off the garbage that has no place in the heart of a Jesus lover, quit coddling your sin and cast it as a deadly contagion before the Great Physician. Now trust Him for His strength to move you in agreement with your Love: Jesus. Live Openly for Him.

HLFA,

Jeff

Tolerance or Cover Up

I was pounding out a technical bulletin in my office at work earlier this week, when one of my co-workers called me and said, "Come, you've got to see this. We are not quite sure what it is!" I had to move quickly because of the tone of his voice though I wanted to hesitate because of not knowing what I was going to find. Just outside the back door of our plant, on one of the small concrete walls that separates the grassy back space of the plant from the small set of concrete stairs that lead to the back door (from the outside) ... was the strangest "creature" I had ever seen making its way from out of the grass and across the top of the wall. First glance ... a baby snake or an immensely long and flat snail ... but that was what everyone that had gathered their had surmised at first. Challenged to look more closely, we found a small snaking army of maggot-like micro worms, all different sizes moving together as a slimy slithering unified force. While not distracted they would continue forward, if their ranks were broken they would pull together and then continue on. I took a picture and returned to my office ... later when I asked what happened to the creature, I was told that once they determined it to be an army of death munching worms it was destroyed. No funeral, no burial, no remorse ... just total annihilation.

As God woke me up this morning, He started me thinking about "wickedness" due to the remembrance of this miniature army of death. Words like sin, iniquity and wickedness carried the weight of God's foreboding judgment into my nocturnal thought patterns. And even though God is not standing around ready to "tromp" on anyone who chooses sin, the penalties or consequences still remain and there will be a personal "payday". "It is appointed unto men, once to die, but after this the judgment" ... "So then everyone of us shall give account of himself to God". "And the smoke of their torment rose up forever and ever". Hey folks ... WAKE UP!! "For the wages of sin is (still) death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our LORD."

The history of Israel, during the time of "Moses" was so much like our wandering through this world, that it seems we best walk circumspectly keeping the words that God has told us about them, close to our heart. In Deuteronomy 9 ... Moses reminds the people of their rebellious choices that had God ready to destroy them at any moment, but Moses stood in the gap. Does that mean that no one died? Thousands died... a whole generation died wandering in the wilderness.

Deut. 9: 22, 23 - "And at Taberah, and at Massah, and at Kibrothhattaavah, ye provoked the LORD to wrath. Likewise when the LORD sent you from Kadeshbarnea, saying, Go up and possess the land which I have given you; then ye rebelled against the commandment of the LORD your God, and ye believed him not, nor hearkened to his voice." Moses reminded them throughout this Chapter of his intercession that kept them from total annihilation. Moses stood in the Gap.

The Church is suffering today from an army of sinful choices and forbidden pleasures that similar to an Army of Maggots will attach themselves to anything rotting in our lives. We have become tolerant of way too much wickedness, and the infection is spreading deep. We come across as tolerating sin because "we love" the sinner, and don't want to make him mad (he may turn from Jesus). We even use the battle cry "Love God, Hate Sin". BUT in reality...Will we let go of the garbage we coddle for the sake of the Kingdom? Will we annihilate the death army within our hearts instead of making excuses and keeping this monster growing within our hidden, wicked foster care? Are we tolerating sin in others because we don't want to Judge our own sin sickness? We spend too much time discussing, debating, studying, justifying, and putting on pious penitent airs in our beggarly Bible gatherings, when we should be confessing and forsaking our sin; so we can truly pray with power as we move ahead with Godly brokenness over the peril of our "brethren in bondage" and "the lost without Christ".

Tolerance, How far should I go? To the Cross ... Behold what manner of love!! Hate Sin because of where it took Jesus ... for us.

HLFA,

Jeff