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Set me free
Thoughts set on what spirit desires
Obligation to be children of God
Present sufferings not worth comparing
Spirit intercedes
In all things, God works to the good
Glorified by God
Nothing shall separate us from God
A stop sign has eight sides. “Stop Sign” has eight letters.
Romans 8
1Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. 3For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, 4in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.
5Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their thoughts set on what the Spirit desires. 6The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; 7the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.
9You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. 10But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. 11And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.
12Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation—but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. 13For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, 14because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
Future Glory
18I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. 20For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.
22We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? 25But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
26In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 27And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.
More Than Conquerors
28And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
31What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
You know when people say they hear voices we usually lock them up “cuz they crazy.”
So instead of saying: “God told me to” I’m going to say: “For some strange reason I felt like going back and reading 1 Corinthians 13 again.”
A few weeks ago in Sunday school we talked about 1st Corinthians and how Paul’s letter to the church was full of instructions and admonishments. Except for chapter 13. The 13th chapter is da bomb in the letter.
Anyway, I felt a strong need to go back to this scripture; it was like God was saying “I got something to show you.”
When I reached verse 4: “Love is patient, love is kind, etc…” I realized these verses could be used to test yourself. Just put the verses into question form:
- Is my love toward my coworker patient?
- Is my love for the rude telemarketer kind?
- Is my love envious of my neighbor who just got a new car?
- Does my love boast?
- Is it proud?
- Is it rude, self seeking, angry and unforgiving?
I wish I could say I passed the test. I wish I could say I got some of them right. Maybe one or two if the grading was lenient. Try it yourself, honestly. It doesn’t feel too good.
Then, before I got really depressed, I read the last verse: “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
Love is the greatest because it is the only one that is permanent.
Someday Christ will convert our faith into sight. Once you have proof of something, belief is no longer necessary. Fact replaces faith.
The same can be said of hope. Someday Christ will provide everything you have truly hoped for in your heart. Once you have it; no need to hope for it anymore.
But love is everlasting. There is no replacement. It can change though. When we start getting the correct answers to the questions above “perfection comes and the imperfect disappears.” “Then we will see clearly, face to face.”
This concludes your Tuesday school lesson for this week. I just couldn’t wait until next Sunday.
BRAINS GONE HAYWIRE.
| Haywire – Strong wire used to bale hay or straw. But, when things aren’t working properly fixing it with haywire is common. It is available and cheap. Unfortunately, if overused, breakdowns still occur and thus go “Haywire.” |
An electric train is moving north at 100mph and a wind is blowing to the west at 10mph. Which way does the smoke blow?
If you sit in a bathtub it’s spelled “S O A K” If someone tells a funny story it’s spelled “Joke.” What is the white of an egg spelled? E G G W H I T E
Who’s biggest: Mr. Bigger, Mrs. Bigger or their baby. The baby is a little bigger.
Appearances can be deceiving. Looking closer reveals the truth.
I am reminded of the movie “The Lion King” and part near the end when Simba has run away and tried to forget the horrible death of his father and the guilt he felt because he thought he was responsible.
Rafiki, the wise, old baboon, councils Simba to try to help him find his place in the world. But Simba, in his grief over the death of his father has purposely cut off the memories. In doing so, he has also forgotten how powerful, majestic, and wise his father was.
Rafiki leads Simba on a wild chase until they reach a pond where the water is clear and still. Rafiki has Simba look at his reflection in the water, telling him it is truly the reflection of his father living in him. Simba backs away disappointed because he just sees the reflection of himself. Then Rafiki utters the two key words of the entire film: “Look Closer.”
As Simba looks again at his mirror image, a magical epiphany occurs. His father, Mufasa, appears in the water and rises up until he is in the clouds of a passing storm. Mufasa tells his son that he has forgotten him and Simba’s place in the circle of life. The scene ends with Mufasa echoing the words: “Remember who you are.”
I want us to focus on Rafiki’s instruction to “Look closer.” At first glance Simba sees only himself, a lost, scared runaway and a failure. By “looking closer” the Lion King finally sees his destiny and returns home to rule the land as he was meant to be.
For us, in our whirlwind we call life, we see, hear, and experience many things which at first appear one way but then take on new meaning once we’ve focused and see clearly. We’ve discovered the truth.
We all make judgments about other people and various situations and make those evaluations very quickly. This is our natural reflex designed to protect ourselves should a dangerous predator or event present itself. Our brains switch to survival mode in an instant.
Our blood supply is quickly channeled to our vital organs, muscles and our brains. The brain secretes adrenaline to boost our visual acuity, sense of smell, and provide additional energy to our muscles. Our breathing becomes faster delivering more oxygen to the brain to increase problem solving skills and to make the decision to fight or fly. The body is ready to do either.
But if we make all our decisions based on our animal survival instincts we tend to make the wrong choices. Most of our thought processes don’t involve life or death situations. A more careful, thoughtful approach is better. “Looking closer” helps us better understand each other. Listening better, observing body language, and noticing other visual cues provides far better information. Information that is close to the truth.
By basing our thoughts and judgments on the way things really are enables us to make better choices. Jesus knew this. In John 8, when the Pharisees brought the adulterous woman out before the people and Jesus they pressed him for a quick judgment on the woman. Jesus simply bent down and started writing on the ground with his finger. When Pharisees pressed him for an answer, he stood up and said “Let him who is without sin, cast the first stone.” Jesus passed judgment on the Pharisees not the woman.
The disciple Peter was prone to acting on impulse. Peter wanted to prevent the crucifixion yet Jesus rebuked him with the ultimate insult “Get thee behind me Satan.” Peter wasn’t thinking big picture.
When I took the CPA exam, right after the Mesopotamians invented it in 8,000 BCE, the people who wrote the exam questions loved to trick us with all sorts of clever traps. The most common trick was to write a multiple choice question and give the financial information in such a way that the test taker was led to do the computation quickly but incorrectly. Then, those wicked question writers would figure out what the quick incorrect answer was and make it the first choice A. The CPA candidate, thinking they had calculated the problem correctly, moved on to the next and never knew they’d been tricked.
I was fortunate enough to have an exam tutor who taught us that questions that seemed simple and had A as the “correct” choice were frequently trick questions. In the words of wise old Rafiki “Look closer.”
Give some thought to the idea that, unless there is life or death at stake, first reactions are usually wrong. Thoughtful consideration brings proper response.
Cool Morning Glory,
Warm Solar Peak,
Hot Short Shadows,
Mild Orange Melancholy,
Early Cold Stars.
Which would you choose: Immortality or Knowledge of right and wrong?
Genesis 2:9
What is in the middle of the Garden of Eden? The tree of knowledge of good and evil. And the Tree of Life.
Adam and Eve choose to die. But they received the knowledge of good and evil just in time to realize they were naked and had made a big mistake.
Since Eve had no “Knowledge of Good and Evil” how was she supposed to know that eating the fruit of the TOTKOGAE was wrong? She was only told that eating the fruit was forbidden and that she would die. She was not told it was evil.
Notice that God did not tell them to avoid the TOL. He said they could eat from any tree in the garden except the TOTKOGAE. This appears to include the TOL.
New question: Would you choose eternal life with God or to know what happens in the future including when you’ll die?
Think of it this way: We know what has transpired in the past and we know what’s happening now; wouldn’t it be great to know what’s going to happen?
But what if the future of this life is nothing but more of the same. Sure, things change, but isn’t this life an endless cycle of birth and death, good things happen – bad things happen, there’s war and peace, joy and sorrow, richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, til death do us part. Can’t have peace unless there’s a war now and then to keep us from being bored. We don’t really know what it is to be rich unless we know what it’s like to be poor. Even in some wedding ceremonies, a time of joy, we like to mention death to spice things up with a little sorrow.
Trees of the Bible:
Tree of Life
Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil
Noah’s Ark: Gopher wood, possibly a cedar/cypress laminate for strength.
Aaron’s staff: Magical. According to legend, the staff came from one of the branches of the TOTDOGAE.
David’s staff: 1 Samuel 17:40 Took it with him to meet Goliath.
23rd Psalm Thy rod and thy staff
New Testament
Manger – wooden trough to eat out of. Remember what Jesus said at the Last Supper; take eat, this is my body. Drink this is my blood, shed for you
Fig trees
Zacheus and the sycamore
Cross
Tree of Life in Revelation
The Secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, not to worry about the future, nor to anticipate troubles, but to live the present moment wisely and earnestly.
“Present moment,” because that is the only moment for us to live. If you miss the present moment, you miss your appointment with life. Buddha said life is available only in the present moment. “Wonderful moment,” that is life that you touch. Suddenly happiness becomes possible.
Spiritual awakening starts by questioning our life’s purpose. Who am I? Why am I am here? There has to be more but what? What is this all about? Why am I being pulled into this search for myself? A spiritual alarm clock is going off that YOU can no longer ignore. It is time to watch for synchronicities and listening carefully to your intuition and your heart.
There is something wonderful that happens when we are connected with the universal flow of life. All the clues over a period of time, in and of themselves mean little. At the point of realization, quantum awakening happens and everything you have experienced makes complete sense with an utter clarity that you are forever changed.
Body and Emotions
The body itself is a dynamic system that reflects our thoughts, emotions and feelings and can be correlated to physical discomforts, illnesses and diseases. Our emotions have a direct correlation to all of life’s experiences. Starting as children we learn through experiences the various behaviors which program us with feelings and emotions. Psychologists have determined that early childhood is a pivotal time for emotional development and that we learn very early in our lives how to cope with our surroundings and adapt in some form the reactionary attitudes of our parents. These behaviors carry through childhood into adulthood. We shall analyze behaviors in the following Wisdoms.
Our emotions are one of the greatest sources of personal power and energy. Emotional states are based upon the stimuli that we perceive at any given moment. We react to others in ways we associate with previous emotional responses. If we can be aware of our emotions and understand how we came to feel that, we will understand more of our true selves and not an old out-dated perceived notion of who we think we are. We can take great strides in our spiritual development by understanding our emotions. But what of the body’s reactions to these emotions?
The body remembers emotions and traumas even though we may not consciously be aware of it. We may develop subconscious and psychosomatic illnesses when specific situations arise. Perhaps one may harbor a deep emotional trauma that is connected to a shoulder, knee, or other body area and cause pain when the subconscious aspect is triggered. In some circumstances, the physical body may be suffering from past-life physical and emotional traumas harbored as a karmic ailment for various reasons. In other situations, the body reacts as a learned response as in blood pressure rising, head aches, becoming nauseous, fainting, rashes and hives.
Thoughts are truly amazing energy packets. If thoughts and emotions create illnesses, then thoughts and emotions can create wellness and harmony. One of the numerous and most notable study was conducted by Dr. Davidson who studied the effects of Buddhist practices and the brain. He found within the brain’s neurological circuits in those that meditated were better equipped to handle emotions and behaviors to make them happier and calmer people.
The links between emotional states and well-being to physical attributes and wellness is ever increasing by modern studies.
“Science has discovered startling new possibilities regarding how we think, feel, love, heal and find meaning in our life…research suggests that the heart thinks, cells remember and that both of these processes are related to an as yet mysterious, extremely powerful, but very subtle energy. Science may be taking the first steps to understanding more about the ancient shamans/healers/leaders – the energy of the human spirit and the coded information that is the human soul.”
Putting all the pieces together.
Have you ever put together a jigsaw puzzle without knowing in advance what the completed puzzle looked like? I think you’d agree that it would be more difficult but not impossible.
Now what if some of the pieces were missing? You wouldn’t know until all the other pieces were assembled that your final result would be incomplete.
What if someone mixed in pieces from another puzzle, that looked like they’d fit in this one? Now the challenge is getting quite complex. And not much fun either.
Finally, what if other people kept coming and taking apart what you had already put together? And you’re constantly being distracted by others around you who are playing bingo, Monopoly, Texas Hold ‘em Poker, and other pastimes. Oh, and did I mention there’s a time limit? Did I mention a grand prize if you complete the jumbled image?
Given these circumstances and difficulties, I think most people would eventually give up, out of frustration. They’d say things like: “Why am I doing this? This isn’t fun. Or I don’t even know what the grand prize is but it’s not worth all this trouble. I need help.”
Suppose that help is available. Suppose you could have someone come stand beside you and assist in finding the missing pieces, winnow out the parts that don’t belong and show you how to visualize what the finished picture looks like. Plus, they can teach you how to maintain your focus so you’re not distracted and no one can undo what you’ve worked so hard to achieve.
By now you know I’m using the jigsaw puzzle as a metaphor for our lives. And yet it is a poor comparison. Our lives are far more complicated. And so much more is at stake.
The grand prize is a sense of contentment and happiness. It is a feeling of being in control and on the right road toward the right destination. We each have the potential energy it takes to make this journey. Yet few of us actually are able to tap into this enormous energy source all the time.
I freely admit that I don’t have all the answers. No one does. There is no guru, therapist, coach or self help book that can tell you what the answers are. But I do believe that within each of us is a blueprint to help us build our lives the right way. If we can gather enough courage and commit enough time and resources to opening the door to self discovery, we can find this blueprint and begin to construct our life puzzle. Knowing what the completed image looks like, placing each piece in its correct location and letting nothing deter you from this journey is what brings us the grand prize of joy and contentment.
Giantoaktree Wisdom 