Playful.Friends

   One of my favourite things on earth has to be clouds. There's just something about them. Its like they have an attitude of their own that is playful and carefree, kinda like children. Not a worry in the world, no limitations to its imaginations, being whatever it wants to be. 

   Today I'm reminded of a simple joy that only happens with clouds and with big help of the sun. RUNNING SHADOWS, or at least thats what I'd describe them as. 

   You know when its a clear day and your walking/driving somewhere and then out of nowhere you get jumped by this big shadow. Sometimes it comes from behind you and sometimes it comes along side you. It is almost as though they are saying, "come play... catch me".

   To some of you, this post might sound gay, but to me, I feel like a kid again. Like a child who is discovering more and more about this amazing home called earth. The place made for us and then given to us to enjoy.

   Which reminds me of another natural awesomeness that simply excites me but I've only encountered once. It's when you're walking/driving and on one side there is rain while on the other, the sun is out. TWO weather patterns, one location, both at the same time. AMAZING! I clearly remember when it happened to me, I was driving and it started raining on the right side of my car, while my car wasn't getting wet at all. The front wasn't raining and it felt like the rain was taking a drive with me. How awesome is that!? Having a memory like that makes me feel special and loved. 

   I'm looking out for more encounters with my playful friends.

In between death & life

What is it like being in between?

Today, I’m thinking about what it would possibly be like in between Jesus death and His resurrection.

Lets go back and put ourselves in the disciples shoes.

Here we are, at a point where the Savior which we believed with all of our hearts that He had come to save us all and restore us all. We would have been sitting on thrones in a few years time ruling with Him because we were His disciples and He was our King. (You have to understand that his is before they have become fully aware of the things of the spirit and were still relying on the tangible rather than the intangible).

Our hope, the one we trusted and depended on with everything is now dead. If we were in Peter’s shoes, the guilt and shame would be worse because the last thing we did to Him was deny Him.

The big talk of “I’ll go to the grave with you” will now be playing in your mind with words like, “You little coward”, “such a chicken” or “what and idiot you are saying things you don’t mean, hypocrite!”.

So here you are sitting around the table, hiding from the authorities, having all this playing in your head.

I bet there wasn’t much conversation going on in the room. If there were, some of the topics I can think of would be, “What just happened?”, “Was any of this even real?”, “How could we have been so stupid?”, “What do we do now?” or “How do we get out of this mess?”.

Imagine that, walking with God, putting your trust, your hope, your future… your entire life in Him.

Then He dies, and everything that was in Him felt like it died with Him. It is all gone now… lost in time and space.

Can you relate? Remember the time when you decided to trust in God and for some reason He didn’t come through? He “died” or “went silent” or was nowhere to be found, and you’re sitting in your room, in your car or in a park, disappointed, hurt and stunned by what just happened, trying your very best to figure something out and to get out of this. I know I can.

The joy of this significant part in the history of human existence is that there is tomorrow. Now in hindsight, let me tell you that there is tomorrow, and tomorrow and the days after will be brighter than it is today.

Tomorrow, we see an empty tomb, tomorrow, He is alive again, tomorrow, He meets us by the road, tomorrow, He walks through that wall and greets us, tomorrow, He comes through and you know He is good for it.

So can I say to you, don’t be discouraged, don’t loose hope, don’t let go, for there is tomorrow.

This took place more than 2000 years ago but the story repeats itself in the lives of people all over the world. The characters might have change and the situations might be different but the condition of the heart and the outcome of the story remains the same. Just hold on and wait for tomorrow, you WILL see Him again and He comes with everything He has promised.

Don’t get disappointed with Him, don’t loose hope, don’t give up or give in, don’t loose trust… the shock will fade away quicker than you realize. He is good and is not out to get you or teach you a lesson. He is doing something, we just don’t see the way He does.

Have hope, it will help you get through the day.

Father, I pray for those who need hope today to carry them through to tomorrow. Let their eyes be focused on you and remind them Holy Spirit of the promises spoken over their lives. I know You are good and everything is for their good, even if they don’t understand it. I speak hope into each person reading this in Jesus name. Amen.

Call on Jesus, even if you don’t know who He is, He knows who you are. You can talk to Him like you would anyone, He listens and He is anxiously waiting for you to talk to Him.

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Ironic

The origin of my name is from Jeremiah and I just found this on wikipedia:
"Jeremiah is also famous as "the broken-hearted prophet" (who wrote or dictated a "broken-hearted book", which has been difficult for scholars to put into chronological order), whose heart-rending life, and true prophecies of dire warning went largely unheeded by the people of Israel."

How ironic...

Yet my name does mean "Appointed by God". If being appointed by God means I have to be heart-broken a lot, then I say *breathes deeply* "OK, here I am. Take me through it...". After all, His grace IS sufficient for me!

I also found out that Jeremiah had the gift of celibacy (through my bibles commentary), something I didn't inherit along with that name. LOL.

With.the.end.in.mind

I just got my MRI scan images back today and when I looked at it I thought, "Wow... this is so cool. Its beautiful."

It is the first time I was seeing what was beyond my skin and flesh. My bone, its structure, the parts that hold it together, some of the organs around it... No wonder God saw it and said that it was good.

Then I remembered the process and experience of going through the scan. The waiting, staying still, not being able to move, the cold, the vulnerable feeling... I was fascinate by the whole thing at the start and then fell asleep for certain amount of time and rested. Then waking up again and feeling even more uncomfortable because of the duration involved in the scan.

All that to see what is beneath the skin, the beauty that God calls good, hidden under my skin.

I almost immediately thought about my life now and the journey I've embarked on. Meditating on it, if put parallel to each other, this (the MRI experience) would be identical when superimposed upon my journey.

"The wait" as I would call it, will be uncomfortable, I'll have to stay still as much as I want to move, it will at times feel cold, I'll be vulnerable to my emotions, thoughts and desires with God and others (at times)... there will be seasons when this part of me will be asleep and also uncomfortable when it awakens/for the duration it remains awake.

And then I remember the end product, to be able to see the beauty, the wonder of it, what was beneath the surface... what God called GOOD.

"Sometimes you have to tear things down to build it back up again."
-from the movie Joshua.

While.I'm.Waiting

While I'm Waiting
by John Waller(OST Fireproof)

I’m waiting
I’m waiting on You, Lord
And I am hopeful
I’m waiting on You, Lord
Though it is painful
But patiently, I will wait

I will move ahead, bold and confident
Taking every step in obedience

While I’m waiting
I will serve You
While I’m waiting
I will worship
While I’m waiting
I will not faint
I’ll be running the race
Even while I wait

I’m waiting
I’m waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I’m waiting on You, Lord
Though it’s not easy
But faithfully, I will wait
Yes, I will wait

I will serve You while I’m waiting
I will worship while I’m waiting
I will serve You while I’m waiting
I will worship while I’m waiting
I will serve You while I’m waiting
I will worship while I’m waiting on You, Lord

- Waiting is an active process, not a passive one. -

Death "til death do us part"

Someone once said that men usually die faster than the woman (forgive me if my facts aren't accurate) and added that in marriage, men have to die for the women.
Now ease up and don't get big eyed on me just yet, I'm not talking a literal death. In Eph 5:25 it says, "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her...".
Right now as I type this I am actually putting to death myself for the sake of a woman who I see as my wife. If you're asking "why are you doing this? You are not married, you're not even engaged...", I draw your attention to Jesus and the church. He is referred to as the bridegroom and we the church His bride. He wasn't married, there's no mention of engagement, the bride still had the option of turning away and rejecting Him... yet with all that He laid down His life for her. It wasn't an easy thing to do, but love stirs a man to give. It is how men were made, to give, while a woman receives. Men in giving receives and this maybe a little hardcore for some, but sex is a brilliant example of it (don't let your thoughts wander too far now, and I will not elaborate any further on this example, it could get too graphic).
My desires, urges, wants, needs, longing, craving, hunger, burning passion, whatever you wanna call it, has to die for now. If you are asking what is the purpose of this, Eph 5:26-27 says, "...that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church (bride), not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.".
In today's world, great love is potrayed in the death of one person for the sake of another.
As this blog is titled 'Life in Death', I choose death so that there may be life. After all God has the power to resurrect, Jesus died to give life to all and then He himself was resurrected and given back the life that He laid down. There is always hope in God.