...God is ALWAYS closer.
To the choirmaster. Of the Sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. A Song. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
(Psa 46:1)
WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT. Do not click on this link if you do not want to see a lamb being slaughtered.
I just ran across this video of a Jewish Ritual remembering God's work of grace in delivering them from bondage in Egypt. It seems to me that, given our contemporary western social setting, we can often find ourselves struggling for a practical vision of the cost of sin on life.
"In all that unimaginable vastness of space there has to be other life out there. Life, of course, that must somehow resemble man. It would be foolish to think otherwise."
The Spiritual Man:
"When I look into the clear night sky, I see myself in relation to my creator with amazing clarity. Even in all that unimagible vastness, there is no room for any other than God, and yet he's secured a place for me right here."
Which man is the fool and which man is the wise?
Bonus question: Do you think that the fairly well known fellow named David had this spiritual view in mind when he wrote Psalm 8 (very likely as a young man, shepherding his flocks in the field.)
Wow, this is astounding technology. I'm sure there are still many bugs to work out, but to have actual working models...?
Just too cool not to link.
It's a little long, but stick with it if you can. It'll be worth your while.
Please see this article from the Christian Science monitor. I found it through a blog that I often visit (TeamPyro). You can read what they have to say about the article here.Unfortunately, I can't say that I disagree with many of the author's points. Several statements in particular really stood out to me:"Ironically, the billions of dollars we've spent on youth ministers, Christian music, publishing, and media has produced a culture of young Christians who know next to nothing about their own faith except how they feel about it. Our young people have deep beliefs about the culture war, but do not know why they should obey scripture, the essentials of theology, or the experience of spiritual discipline and community.""Two of the beneficiaries will be the Roman Catholic and Orthodox communions. Evangelicals have been entering these churches in recent decades..." (Did you know that? I certainly didn't. That's actually the exact opposite of what I thought.)'Evangelicalism needs a 'rescue mission' from the world Christian community. It is time for missionaries to come to America from Asia and Africa. Will they come? Will they be able to bring to our culture a more vital form of Christianity?" (I agree with this sad statement. Talk about "the last shall be first...")"Despite all of these challenges, it is impossible not to be hopeful. As one commenter has already said, 'Christianity loves a crumbling empire.'""We need new evangelicalism that learns from the past and listens more carefully to *what God says about being His people* in the midst of a powerful, idolatrous culture." (Emphasis mine. Amen and amen!)What do you guys think?
Do you sincerely hate the sin in your life and around you as much or greater than how much you rejoice about heaven?
How much do you even think about your sin? (When it's not acute, that is)
Depending on how you answer I would like to ask you two more things: Does the Lord actually know you? If so, or at least if you think so, then what sin is there in your life that you're trying to pretend isn't?
