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Saturday, September 18, 2010

Lamentations 3:22-24, 1 Corinthians 15:42-49, Luke 8: 4-8, 11-15

Lamentations 3:22-24
22 Yahweh’s love abides unceasingly.
His compassion is never consumed;
23 every morning it is renewed.
And his love remains ever faithful.
24 “My portion is Yahweh,” says my soul.
“On him shall I rely.”

Beloved, Your love and Your mercy is everlasting. Every morning I experience the sweetness of spending time alone with You. You strengthen and console me, You forgive me and counsel me, You reveal Yourself to me and You permit joy to bubble like a spring withing me giving me new hope, grace and courage. You help me overcome my weaknesses.  Truly Beloved, You heap blessing upon blessing and grace upon grace.  Thank You.


1 Corinthians 15:42-49
42 It is the same with the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in decomposition; it will be raised never more to die. 43 It is sown in humiliation, and it will be raised for Glory. It is buried in weakness, but the resurrection shall be with power. When buried it is a natural body, but it will be raised as a spiritual body. 44 For there shall be a spiritual body as there is at present a living body. 45 Scripture says that Adam, the first man, became a living being; but the last Adam has become a life-giving spirit.
46 The spirit does not appear first, but the natural life, and afterwards comes the spirit. 47 The first man comes from the earth and is earthly, while the second one comes from heaven. 48 As it was with the earthly one, so is it with the earthly people. As it is with Christ, so with the heavenly. 49 This is why, after bearing the image of the earthly one, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly one.

Beloved, all that St. Paul says with regard to the resurrection of our bodies is absolutely wonderful.  Even so my Lord, time spent alone with You in prayer, absorbed in You, loving You and being loved right back - is in a way like dying, dying to self and coming alive in You.  Being invigorated by Your Holy Spirit and being formed in Your image little by litte each day in my soul as my body ages.  




Luke 8: 4-8, 11-15
4 As a great crowd gathered and people came to him from every town, Jesus began teaching them through stories, or para­bles, 5 “The sower went out to sow the seed. And as he sowed, some of the grain fell along the way, was trodden on and the birds of the sky ate it up. 6 Some fell on rocky ground, and no sooner had it come up than it withered, because it had no water. 7 Some fell among thorns; the thorns grew up with the seed and choked it. 8 But some fell on good soil and grew, producing fruit – a hundred times as much.” And Jesus cried out, “Listen then, if you have ears to hear!”
11 Now, this is the point of the parable:
The seed is the word of God. 12 Those along the wayside are people who hear it, but immediately the devil comes and takes the word from their minds, for he doesn’t want them to believe and be saved. 13 Those on the rocky ground are people who receive the word with joy, but they have no root; they believe for a while and give way in time of trial. 14 Among the thorns are people who hear the word but as they go their way, are choked by worries, riches, and the pleasures of life; they bring no fruit to maturity. 15 The good soil, instead, are people who receive the word and keep it in a gentle and generous mind, and persevering patiently, they bear fruit.

How terribly sad verse 14 is.  You gave us everthing, You poured Yourself out for us.  Bits of Your flesh were torn out when Your precious Body was flayed with the scourge.  Every drop of water and blood drained out of your Body.  For three long and horrible hours on the Cross you struggled painfully to draw breath while you asphyxiated.  It was a slow and tortuous death.  What a great price was paid for our redemption and despite Your perfect sacrifice if we still do not bring any fruit to maturity then it is a tragedy that makes heaven and earth weep.

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