The Better Part, week #56

 

This week's FB posts:

The Better Part, Day # 262:

 

 

I'm studying for next Wednesday on the blog the passage in Matthew with the official with the dead daughter, the woman with the flow, and the 2 blind men. And it struck me: None of them said, "Lift this curse of death/illness," or "strike down this sin that caused this". They all asked the same thing- "Heal me; make me whole." And their prayers were answered. And I thought about how I pray about MY sin; always "remove this sin", never, "Lord, make me whole." Another case of seeing things the way God does, and trying to follow it in prayer.

 

 

 

The Better Part Day #263:

 

A couple days ago, Franklin Graham asked for prayer for Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Not because he supports his warlike actions, but because a) All leaders are in God's hands, and B) to ask God to give him wisdom and desire to keep from starting a war in Ukraine.

 

I might have known that within hours, liberals who never picked up a Bible in their lives were wondering if he had lost his mind or turned traitor against the USA. Um, guys, the answer is c) He did what Jesus tells us to do: Pray for our enemies, pray for all men, Pray for the leaders in this world.

Those of you that THINK you know the Bible, you might want to get a better handle on what it teaches before you criticize.

 

The Better Part, Day #264:

 

I recently started a new read of the book of Job, and something caught my eye which hadn't before. It involved 2 things that Eliphaz first told Job:

 

The first- Job 4:3 Behold, you have instructed many, and you have strengthened the weak hands.

Job 4:4 Your words have upheld him who was stumbling, and you have made firm the feeble knees.

Job 4:5 But now it has come to you, and you are impatient; it touches you, and you are dismayed. 

 

Just like Satan said- take God's hedge around him away, and see him fall apart. Because Job knew how to check all the boxes, but he didn't Know God! However, his mistake was the same one that Eliphaz would make next:

 

Job 4:6 Is not your fear of God your confidence, and the integrity of your ways your hope? 

 

See, here lies the problem: As long as it was something that Job could DO- prayers, sacrifice, etc- he could CONTROL his relationship with God. This is why he wanted so badly to talk it out with God, present his case- and the idea that God was a near-equal, someone he could convince- was why God let Satan do what he did in the first place.

 

God doesn't want us to "do" to be right with Him. He wants us to humble ourselves.

 

 

 

The Better Part, Day #265:

 

Jos 1:16 And they answered Joshua, "All that you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go.

Jos 1:17 Just as we obeyed Moses in all things, so we will obey you. Only may the LORD your God be with you, as he was with Moses! 

 

As David Jeremiah mentioned today, Joshua must have had some "Yeah, sure"s going through his mind when he heard the part about obeying him like they did Moses. The lesson here, just like I believe it is in Job, we aren't as good, holy, etc. in the eyes of others as we are our own- including God's. It makes me wonder if God's whole soliloquy about Job to Satan was a little tongue in cheek- just enough truth to get Satan going, but nowhere near the whole picture. 

 

Of course, the fun part of that was, Satan's anger accomplished making Job exactly what God said he was- and Satan never caught on (?)!