You Using That Mirror?

You awake?  If you are (of course you are because you wouldn't be reading this in your sleep), let me ask you a question.  
How does your face look this morning?   Some might be quick to say, "Well Beautiful, of course!" Others would just grunt, turn over and go back to sleep. 
What if you wake up and you "feel" ugly.  Or, perhaps you feel a large pimple growing on your forehead.  What would you do????  You'd  get up and go take a good long look in the mirror to see what was actually going on.
Even if you were the one who says, "I feel beautiful!"  You would still at some point check out the mirror before leaving your house wouldn't you? You wouldn't go on how you felt alone.... correct?
Well..... how many times do we wake up in the morning feeling less than optimum in our soul?  (Honestly, this is usually the lowest point in my day)
But..... what do we do... We get up....  and get ready to face the world with that egg on our "soul face".  Our spiritual eyes having this greenish/yellow crud around our eye lids.  Our inner-man  breath smells of onion, garlic and night time breath. 
Stop!  If we can take 30 minutes (or longer for some--- and some of my brothers should take a little longer)  to get your outer man ready to face the world..... Shouldn't we also take some time to get our inner man ready as well?
The correct answer would be........... Yes!

How does one do that?
I am glad you asked.... because it just so happens that I was thinking about that exact subject this morning.
The Bible tells us in James 1:23 that God's word is the mirror for our soul/spirit.
We can't truly look at our souls with our natural eyes... We need a "supernatural" kind of mirror.  Something that when we put it in front of us.... we can see exactly what we look like. 
So...... take a passage from the word of God and look at it like a mirror.  What you see in the word (the mirror) is the truth.  It shows you what your spirit man looks like.  (Our soul perhaps.... ummmmm... not so much)!
But there is hope!  (the discussion of the differences and functions of our soul and spirit will have to wait for another time)
One last point to ponder:  2 Corinthians 3:18
 And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate  the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
As we spend time pondering God's word and spend time being aware of His Presence, we actually see what our spirit man is like.  As we see what our spirit man is like .... then our soul part is changed into that same image. 
Breath mint anyone?   :-)

Without Form AND Void

How many can say this describes me either right now or at least some days?
Genesis 1:2  Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep...........
Yep.... me to the tee some days!
But look at the 2nd part of that verse..
.........  and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
It seems to me that God searches out those things that are void, dark, hopeless, down and out and starts hovering......... planning...... interjecting His love.... speaking His creative loving words........ hovering some more....  revealing.......slowly.......... drawing........ creating.......
Now.... if you think you got it all together.... that's just fine.... you can go on with your fine self......... Not me..... I want the "hovering of the Holy Ghost" over me....
Hover... hover.... hover.. hover...  a little closer...... a little deeper...... (Not a song.. but should be)
Be blessed this day..... and listen.... see if you can sense or even hear the hovering of the Holy Spirit over your life today.

Peace Forfeited No More

This hymn comes to my mind this morning.... Oh what peace we often forfeit.  Oh what needless pain we bear.

I think our concept of prayer needs updated.  My default picture of prayer is one of the old saints on their knees kneeling at an altar and just crying out and moaning their requests over and over as if God was deaf.  

My practical application of prayer is..... me.... sitting in my sling back chair in my bathroom so as not to disturb my wife and casually spending time with the God Who loves me.  Conversing back and forth.  Sometimes quiet sometimes not.  To me... this is prayer.

Back to the hymn.... last night going to bed.. .there was some unrest in my soul.  For what reason?  Who knows?  But I fell off to sleep.  Woke up this morning still experiencing this unrest.  Listening to several youtube messages from some of my favorite Bible teachers... Still the unrest remains.

Finally, I get up and go to my quiet place (the bathroom) and open up my laptop to start journaling my conversations with God (I use this technique a lot in my quiet time.. for me, it is greatly effective). Within minutes... the peace comes.  The unrest is washed away.........    and the words to this hymn waft through my mind and soul........"All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer".

Do you want Grace with that?

Facing something BIG today?

Grace...... I have always thought of grace as the thing we need to cover our sins.... that is part of it.

But..... did you realize that grace also entails:  a way of moving that is smooth and attractive and that is not stiff or awkward;   a controlled, polite, and pleasant way of behaving.   Also: a virtue that comes from God.

Thus explaining Hebrews 4:16  Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

I have always thought of this verse pertaining to temptation or when going through a hard time. But this verse also has an element of accomplishing the things that we need to accomplish.  Big or small.

God has such an abundance of grace that His throne is called "Throne of Grace" (look at verse 16 again)  I must say that I have not gone to the throne to get all the grace I have needed in the past!     But..... watch me get every bit I can from here on out!

Thank You God for Your grace!!!  (Grace please!!!!!!   :-)       )

My mantra for today.. "I'll have grace with that!"

Grace is represented by the manna that the children of Israel were given in the Book of Exodus while they traveled through the desert. They didn't work for it. They were given it. They were given just enough for the day. They couldn't keep it from yesterday because it would rot. They couldn't gather extra for tomorrow. There was just enough for today.

So... I am going to get enough for today.... but I'm going back for seconds!!!!! (and thirds)!