Strength

O my Strength, I will watch for you,
for you, O God, are my fortress.

My God in his steadfast love will meet me;
God will let me look in triumph on my enemies.

[Psalm 59.9-10]

Night to Day

Emptiness empties within
And panged arrows and spears
Pierce the crumbling spirit
Tumbling breaking overwhelmed
Storms of destruction
Soul whispers - come save me

Deception of my son
Burdens me
Conspiracy of my brother
Breaks me

I thought I was
Promised Life
For the soul who sins
shall Die
So why
Is death upon my breath

You promise and I
Cling

The refuge will arrive
Dark will give way
To light
Night, to day

- Nathan Albiston [Collected Writings]

On Mission

Joining the mission of God,
the church is sent
with the gospel of the kingdom
to call everyone to know and follow Christ
and to proclaim to all
the assurance that in the name of Jesus
there is forgiveness of sin
and new life for all who repent and believe.

The Spirit calls all members
to embrace God’s mission
in their neighborhoods
and in the world:
to feed the hungry,
bring water to the thirsty,
welcome the stranger,
clothe the naked,
care for the sick,
and free the prisoner.
We repent of leaving this work to a few,
for this mission is central to our being.

[from Our World Belongs to God]

Why Should I Fear in Times of Trouble

Why should I fear in times of trouble,
when the iniquity of those who cheat me surrounds me,
those who trust in their wealth
and boast of the abundance of their riches?

Truly no man can ransom another,
or give to God the price of his life,
for the ransom of their life is costly
and can never suffice,
that he should live on forever
and never see the pit.

But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol,
for he will receive me.

[psalm49]

Thoughts on Today's Reading

[The Reading]

Luke 9:60-62 [The Cost of Following Jesus]

And Jesus [13] said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” 61 Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” 62 Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

It gets really uncomfortable when the faith and life demand by Christ simply doesn't match the faith and life that I have. It makes me wonder...what we view as 'radical' Christianity is really just 'normal' Christianity in the eyes of Jesus. And what we view as 'normal' Christianity might actually be...repulsive.

The words in Luke 9 are really hard to swallow no matter how many times one reads them: "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God"

First, it can be really hard to even put one's hand to the plow in the first place. There are so many sinful and even seemingly innocuous distractions day to day. We may lack motivation, energy, time - whatever. As a result, we really just work on our own kingdom and build our own castles.

Second, even if we put our hand to the plow, it's guaranteed to be hard work. Kingdom work is never intended to be an easy alternative to whatever occupied one's time before. Indeed, one should expect it to be difficult.

Third, once those difficulties hit, disappointments come, and discouragement becomes overwhelming, we are to keep our eyes fixed ahead and not look back to the life we once had before, or the life we could be living otherwise. I initially thought that this would really be a battle of discipline and will. One can will himself to keep his eye fixed on kingdom work. One can discipline himself to stay the course. Yes, that is true. But I realized, that the ultimate motivation and cause of one being able to keep one's eyes fixed ahead is not merely discipline but desire.

The only way we, as Christians, will be able to keep our eyes fixed on Christ and not turn to the world is if we find more beauty in Christ than than in the world.

Oldie but a Greatie

Lord, high and holy, meek and lowly,
Thou has brought me to the valley of vision,
Where I live in the depths but see Thee in the heights;
Hemmed in by mountains of sin I behold Thy glory.

Let me learn by paradox
That the way down is the way up,
That to be low is to be high,
That the broken heart is the healed heart,
That the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit,
That the repenting soul is the victorious soul,
That to having nothing is to possess all,
That to bear the cross is to wear the crown
That to give is to receive,
That the valley is the place of vision.

Lord, in the daytime stars can be seen from deepest wells,
And the deeper the wells the brighter thy stars shine;

Let me find thy light in my darkness,
Thy life in my death,
Thy joy in my sorrow,
Thy grace in my sin,
Thy riches in my poverty,
Thy glory in my valley.

[The Valley of Vision]

Google say what

Don't ask why, but I was typing in "Is it safe to swallow a goldfish"

The screen shot from "Is it safe to s_"


After I continued typing in my search term it got worse. But I won't paste that here.