Growth in Christ (recovery from chaos)


No one sins all the time.  That’s just not physically possible.  Every man has a lucid moment from time to time, at least.  And because of the weakness of the body, sleep must come.

When you have those lucid moments, make the best of it.  Search out the message of the Gospel, and do it quickly.  Just as the chaos of sin cannot last forever, our lucid moments pass even quicker. 

Just as a man who wakes after a night of heavy drinking finds himself pondering what happened and why, such thoughts are signs of a lucid moment.  Treat them as a welcome friend.

Raise whatever faith you have to the surface of your conscience, and believe.  You may not have the answers.  But then is the time to approach the One who does.  And if growth is to become a part of our experience, the answer must be found in the Christ of the Living God, Jesus.

Every man is like a disturbance at the bottom of the sea.  At birth the seafloor rises in a certain place.  Then as the man grows and does the good things of God, his disturbance becomes a mound.

If the man will train his soul to listen to the words of God, eventually the nature of what he, is breaks the surface of the waters.  This “breaking forth”, lends itself to all manner of Life.

Dust in the air settles between the cracks of rock.  Storms whittle down the sharp edges, causing the filings to fill in the gaps.  The birds of the air come and deposit a few seeds.  In time, the man becomes more then a disturbance in the sea; by his nature he lends himself to the utility of the heavens.

The growth at the bottom begins when the lucid moments of a man are captured for “Good” intent.  I will admit that there are far more mounds that never break the surface of the sea, than are those who become useful to God.

And don’t we see this played out in creation, in the fact that there is more space of water on the earth than land exposed to the air.  More places for slime and few places of dazzling beauty.

But now in the emergence of the man above the surface of the waters, there comes many a travail.  Parts of the exposed land occasionally break off and fall back into the sea.  Part of the work is wasted.  But that should not stop the land from taking its rightful place.  And what broke off was not firmly committed to what must become.  Good riddance, c’est la vie.

If the use of your lucid moments has allowed you to rise above the nature of man, use them all the more as you aspire to become a place of Life.  Why remain a desolate island?

Do not let your failings cause you to plummet down under the waves.  The target here is to work diligently to produce more lucid moments than moments of chaos and decay.

If you will apply the forgiveness of Christ, as it is found in the Bible, you will find your self overcoming guilt, and far more quickly.  This does not erase what was lost.  But certainly provides more vertical growth.  And every square inch of attainment offers more potential for Life.

If you believed at the outset, if that belief has caused you to break into the air, why can’t that belief cause you to reach for the heavens?

Those who shrink back because of the storms of life, will not find themselves pleasing the soul of Jesus.  But those who believe that he cannot lie, will prosper according to the wisdom of God.  Lucid moments of righteousness will begin to grow in the place where before was nothing but chaos.

Think diligently on these things.  Apply this with diligence.  And you will find yourself growing in Christ exponentially.

When you find yourself having sinned before the Lord, in the ways you had learned and the habits you had developed, grab a hold of your belief which you had at first.  And do not delay!  When the next lucid moment comes to your mind and heart take hold and grow!

I could have held the following for another post.  But it fits so seamlessly here.

Many think that they should punish themselves after a moment of insane chaos, called sin.  Such self abuse may or may not be useful.  And I have come to understand that sometimes self abuse is only a continuance of the sin we have just committed.

It is necessary to let Jesus be God.  Who could possibly know better what is necessary and useful after restoration of lucid thought?  Should it be the one who is prone to moments of insanity, or the One who knows the very elements of righteous eternity?

I cannot speak about this to those who have not developed a relationship of communication with the Holy Lord.  A man cannot rely on his own heart to determine what should be done next.   It was, after all, your wicked heart that caused the sin and decay to abound.  Is it reasonable to trust your judgement now?

And what has been the outcome for others may not apply to you.  Prayer is necessary.  With a calm heart full of belief, wait and listen.  In reverant prayer, confess your situation to God.  Ask Him to show you what you must now do.  He will certainly respond.

Be careful not to let anxiety overwhelm you.  Anxiety is a form of self abuse.  And the best of lucid moments teach us to be at peace and trust the Living God in Christ.

If you want biblical proof of these things.  Read the story again of what David did following his sin with Bathsheba.  Take special note of how he received the judgment of God against him for his child of sin.  How is it possible that we should be any different?

By His Grace

The Stream


A mountain stream in the canton Grisons (Graub...
Image via Wikipedia

What a curious place I’ve come to rest.

The hills and valleys behind me speak of a journey to here.

I sit beside a stream today and observe what lay below.

The waters have the appearance of moving.

Yet they only writhe with life.

Shimmering in the shafts of sunlight caused to be by the One who made all the earth.

I listen in the cool of the day. 

And I watch with wonder and concern.

Listen to the noise the stream makes.

A certain babbling and an occasional whisper of intelligence.

I hear the name of God called out.

But it’s not the name I’ve come to know.

Once in a while a hand lifts up, as if asking for help from somewhere.

But no help arrives, and no notice is given.

The banks of the stream are high and have worn themselves steep over time.

“This far you shall come and no more” is written on the banks.

This stream is not a stream of water. 

And the source of it’s birth is never found.

For the stream is the parade of humanity;

That brood of souls which wanders through eternity according to a clock.

I have tried to speak to them.

But my language is not understood.

How desperate I became, from time to time,

Yet they would not hear.

Looking left and right, I seek another to share this vision.

But there is none to be found.

For I have arrived in this place in the forest alone,

But for the Glory of God in Christ which led me here.

So I whisper in His ear the sights I perceive.

And how limp my bones have become.

For those who constitute the waters below are destined to dry up

When they reach the arid sands, yet unknown.

It is He who leads which will lead them out.

But they do not know His ways.

Their hands are busy praising their own works.

As the Leader has promised would be so.

Even so, “Come Lord Jesus!”

Come in all Your splendor!

The Holy Will of the Father must be accomplished!

Regardless the plight of those who hate the Light,

The Holy Will of the Father must be accomplished!

Amen, Amen, and Amen!

By His Grace.

You Obey as You Love Me.


Granite

Image by smiling_da_vinci via Flickr

As I walked along the path prescribed, I listened to the One above.  He walked along the top most part of the walls which encased my way.  The walls are built of every material known to man.  And as I looked up them, the materials became mixed together to form harder and more awesome materials. 

I remembered the day the Lord told me to climb to my left.  I looked at the mountain of sand and thought, “How could my tiny legs ever surmount that mountain of sand?”  I remembered how hard it is to walk in sand.  But the Lord told me to climb.  And, since I was desiring Him, I climbed.  Having reached the top of that mountain of sand, I thought to myself, “That was the task?  But it seems so simple now”. 

There have been many “climbings” since then.  And each one appears to be impossible at first.  But when the climb is accomplished, the task appears to be much like an evening stroll down a shaded and level path.  But it’s the initial view that is daunting. 

These climbs appear to be more and more difficult.   And the recent one was worst of all.  But isn’t that what I’ve said about every one of them?  The wall became like steel mixed with granite.  The mix was like nothing I had ever imagined before.  The surface of the wall was smooth as glass.  And the height was beyond my ability to see.  He said to me, “Climb this wall on your right”. 

Every time I tried, I would lose grip and come back down to the place of starting.    One day, after He had bid me climb again, I asked Him, “Why can’t I seem to obey what you ask?  You do not lie.  And there is no guile in You.  So why can’t I obey?”  His response was interesting and simple.  “You don’t Love Me”, He said.  “If you love Me you will obey My every command”.  This set me back a bit.  I pondered this for days.  Then it came to me.  I have been trying to do this so that I can accomplish His commands for myself.  Now I see it!  I will love Him! 

I thrust out my hand toward the wall with a vengeance.  My teeth set against each other hard.  My eyes blazing with intent.  And to my surprise, my hand penetrated the wall up to my knuckles.  I had a hand hold!  Up I went.  Hand over hand.  And my feet penetrating the glassy mix of stone and steel.  Sweat became like rain.  But my heart did not tire. 

I have reached the top now.  I know there are more climbs to endure.  But the key to this one was astoundingly simple, yet impossible to detect.  When I love Him, I can obey with ease!

By His Grace.