The Ultimate Bling

A special friend of mine became engaged this past weekend.  When engagement and marriage are pending, tradition has it that the gentleman will present his bride-to-be with a precious ring, followed up by a second precious ring on the wedding day.

Did you know that God has an amazing set of precious and semi-precious stones that he is preparing for his bride?  That would mean us; those of us who are Christians.

"And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband...Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper...and the city was pure gold, like clear glass.  The foundation stones of the city wall were adorned with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation stone was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst.  And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the gates was a single pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass." (Excerts from Revelation 21)

God is preparing to adorn us, his bride, with the ultimate bling.  Tomorrow, we will discuss the wedding dress!

 TV~
They were longing for a better country--a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. [Hebrews 11:16]

Patience, Acceptance, Hanging in There

This was on a card that I received recently:

"Love has little to do with moonlight and balconies
    and everything to do with patience, acceptance, and hanging in there.

Love can't always move mountains or change the world overnight,
     but it can open its arms at the end of a long, bad day
       and welcome you home to true belonging."

If while we were still sinners, Christ died for us, then surely He can enable US to open our arms to those around us, while they are still sinning.

TV~
Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. [I John 4: 10,11]

Only God

It is easy to think that a relationship will bring us fulfillment.  Yet no one person can ever meet all of our needs.

If we enter into a friendship or romance in a self-centered way, saying, "This person will love me the way I deserve...,"  we will be sorely disappointed.   "O put not your trust in princes, nor in any child of man, for there is no help in them." (Psalm 146:3) 

TV~
For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust... [Psalm 71:5]

31

I'm thinking of the number 31 today.  Proverbs 31 hails the ideal married woman (who had servants to help her, I might add).  Judges 5:31 says, "Those who love Him are like the sun when it shines in its strength."  May 31 is the anniversary of a certain couple.

"What marriage offers - and what fidelity is meant to protect - is the possibility of moments when what we have chosen and what we desire are the same.  Such a convergence obviously cannot be continuous.  No relationship can continue very long at its highest pitch.  But fidelity prepares us for the return of these moments, which give us the highest joy we can know; that of union, communion, atonement (in the root sense of at-one-ment)... "                                         Wendell Berry, The Art of the Commonplace: The Agrarian Essay

TV~
 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.            [I Peter 4:8]

Persist

Christ becomes more real to the one who persists in the cultivation of his presence. (Streams in the Desert)

TV~
Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. [James 4:8]

Ever-present Presence

When we walk with God, we can be confident of his continued presence with us.  Psalm 139 assures us of this:

Where can I go from Your Spirit?
  Or where can I flee from Your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, You are there;
  If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there.
If I take the wings of the dawn,
  If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea,
Even there Your hand will lead me,
  And Your right hand will lay hold of me.

Yet there were two people who lived apart from the presence of God.   

"And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD..."  (Gen. 4:16) 
For Cain, it was a direct personal choice after God placed consequences upon him for murdering his brother.

"But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul..." (I Samuel 16:14)  For Saul, it was a direct choice of God, after Saul repeatedly ignored the instructions given him. 

Either way, the life of each man seemed desperate and desolate as they continued from day to day in a spiritual void.

TV~
...In thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.
[Psalm 16:11]

Fatima's Feet

Flip-flops have become a daily standard of footwear, along with having pretty feet to slide into those flip flops.  Nail salons on every corner provide affordable pedicures thus making them a regular standard among the mainstream population.  The scriptures talk about beautiful feet. "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him... that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!" (Is. 52:7)

I was told recently of a Christian woman named Fatima who, upon meeting new people, will ask them directly if they believe in Jesus.   The scriptures say that people like Fatima have beautiful feet.  And it has nothing to do with the date of her last pedicure.

TV~
...he that winneth souls is wise.  [Proverbs 11:30]