#Education

School days, school days, dear old golden rule days; reading and writing and 'rithmatic... There are years and dollars spent on getting an education.  Learning to listen and reason and memorize and put it all together is a good part of all the time spent going to school.  There are quizzes and tests and exams.  These are to be expected in order for you and the teacher to find out how much you have learned.

All this is not just to make groves in your brain, but that knowledge is to be put to use.  A doctor needs to know math besides anatomy and physiology.   An engineer needs to know chemistry as well as physics.  Acquiring knowledge is a life-long exercise to be put to use, not stored in a briefcase.

There may be times when you think, "Boy, I have got it." Those algebra formulas were a mystery, then you finally saw the light and knew you were going to get an 'A' on the upcoming exam, but the problem was worded just a bit differently and you missed it.  Time to go back to the book!

There have been so, so many times that I have thought I had it when it came to understanding myself or God's way, but when it came to 'where the rubber meets the road', I failed.  In the spiritual realm there is more required that putting book learning in your head. You can memorize the whole Bible and it do you not one whit of good.  You can read the Bible every day and still come out a looser.  It is to be used not just known.  The basic requirement for using it is a willingness to obey it.  Jesus said, in John 17:7 "If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know of the teaching, whether it is of God..."  If Jesus' teaching is of God, it needs to be obeyed. Jesus was chiding Jewish leaders for not having obeyed Moses' law.  They had this law for more than a thousand years and supposedly revered it, but they had not taken it personally and obeyed it.  They had not gotten it.  They just thought they had.  They failed the test.  They did not recognize Jesus as the one God had promised  to send in those books they had read and studied for years.

It is time to take God seriously. He reveals Himself in the Bible and discloses His way to us.  It is up to us to take it in and take it personally and put it to work.

#Immunity

The human body is an amazing thing.  From the time a baby is separated from it's mother, it is on it's own. Nourishment comes through it's mouth and not the umbilical cord.  It breathes through it's nose.  It's immune system has received  a good start from it's mother, but now has to build on to that foundation.

It is so natural for babies to crawl before they walk and the floor is the place where that happens and floors are not always clean.  Babies put everything they can into their mouths, dirty or not, and sometimes unwashed  thumbs.  Try as they can, mothers cannot keep everything clean all the time, but perhaps that is a good thing.  A body gradually builds resistance to germs as it becomes exposed to them over time.  If all things were sanitized there would be no opportunity to build a strong immune system.  So, playing in the dirt and making mud pies and eating finger food is really doing a beneficial thing for the body.

It has been said that 'nail-bitters' may have a healthier immunity because of all the germs occupying space under the nails.  Exposing the skin to moderate amounts of sun creates Vitamin D on the skin and taking Vitamin D3 and C strengthens the immune system. The body has resources built in itself to fight invaders.  Physically speaking we are in good shape in this world, but then, there is the spiritual world and we need resources to survive in good health.

Jesus told his followers that they were to 'be in the world, but not of it' which means that while we live on this planet we are not to absorb the world's system into our lives. We are not to play in the mud.  We do have a spiritual immune system; "Christ in you, the hope of Glory" and resources to strengthen it.  The Word of God is better than Vitamin D3 to the soul.  A daily dose of God's Word will do wonders to give you the ability to fight invaders and shore up your faith and keep you healthy.

#INDEPENDENCE

Some mama birds have to push their little fledglings out of the nest when they are ready to fly on their on, but something is holding them back.  I was not one of those.  I was so ready to be on my own and be independent.  After graduating from high school and working just three months in a hospital as a lab technician, I decided to leave home and go to college.  There was no fear or worry, just great anticipation for life.  I don't remember seeking counsel from my parents or receiving any. I just bombarded ahead.

That was my style, full speed ahead.  It was my style with God, too.  I had become a child of God's at the age of 10 and knew He was my Heavenly Father, yet I kind of ignored Him. Growing up going to church twice one Sunday and once or more in the middle of the week had given me lots of sermons and memorizing of scripture and '"knowledge".  I was an independent believer.  But, God didn't want that kind of relationship.  He want a close, intimate, father-child relationship and after 15 years of waiting, He began a serious campaign to get me to want a closer relationship with Him.  It worked and I agreed with Him about what He was convicting me about and took steps to solve the problem, but the bad habits of independence are hard to break.

Some ten years later, I realized that I did not have that intimacy other Christians had with God and took a big leap and sought counsel from another Christian.  She recognized the problem immediately and told me that what I had done with God earlier wasn't to be just a one time thing, but was something that needed to be done daily,  This father-child relationship required frequent talking with one another and getting to know each other.  Of course, God already knows everything about me, but He is infinite and there are not enough hours on earth to get to know Him fully, so every little minute I spend reading His word and telling Him how I feel and asking Him to elaborate only helps me to understand this marvelous Father-God a little bit more.  The independent spirit has developed into a dependent spirit that acknowledges a great need know Him better and better and to love Him more and more and to obey and honor my Father-God.

"I need Thee, O, I need Thee.  Every hour I need Thee."  This is my theme now.

#ProperAttire

He didn't even say "I beseech you."  He just said, "be strong.....and put on..." Paul was writing a letter to the people that belonged to the church in the city of Ephesus.  He was concerned about their welfare and he knew what a wicked city they lived in.  He knew that they were struggling and that it wasn't an easy, just enjoy your days kind of life they faced.  They had to develop a different mind set.

He went on the tell them what exactly they needed to 'put on' and why.  He described it in a picture they were used to seeing - a soldier's armor.  Rome occupied most all the regions in Europe and the mid-east and soldiers were everywhere. The Ephesians saw fully armed Roman soldiers on every street corner.  It was a perfect idea to help these Christ followers see how they were to be properly dressed.

The first piece he mentioned to put on was the belt of truth. The belt a soldier wore around his waist held everything together. Jesus called Himself as 'The Truth'. Jesus will hold a soldier together. Next, was the breastplate of righteousness. This breastplate covered the main parts of a soldier's body and protected it. Jesus is righteousness personified. The next item was shoes. A Roman soldier's shoes had cleats on the soles to provide them with secure standing and walking. Paul called these shoes 'the preparation of the Gospel of Peace'.  Jesus gives the believer 'peace that passes understanding'.  Then, Paul tells them to take up the shield of faith.  Believers have faith in Jesus.  Then, Paul says to put on their heads the helmet of Salvation.  The helmet covered their mind and their spirit and protected the soul from harm.  Jesus is the savior.  He is salvation.  Lastly, they were to take up the sword of the Word of God.  Jesus is the Word become flesh.

Jesus is every piece of the armor we are urged to put on each and every day.  We are to be wearing this armor in order to pray at all times in the Spirit and to be on the alert because we are in a struggle with spiritual powers.  We can be strong and confident wearing this armor provided for us by God Almighty.  We can pray and prevent God's arch enemy from gaining ground.  We are in a battle with eternal consequences and today we can't just enjoy our days.  It is a fight to the finish.

#Lovingkindness

One of the gifts that was given to humanity is free will. Perhaps you don't think of having a free will as something to be cherished, but without it you would be just a robot.  There are times when I had the thought that it would be easier to be a robot when it came to making the choice of which hand bag I should choose when standing before rows and rows of absolutely lovely hand bags. Or, when I was at the grocery store and trying to decide menus for the week ahead and the shelves held soooo many delicious and nutritious vegetables.

There are times when I have felt very much like a robot when I was doing chores over and over again and I didn't even have to think about what I was doing because I had done it soooo many times.  It may take more time to think things through by not being a robot and we will be held accountable for the choices we follow through on, but I definitely do not want to be a robot.

We were given a free will by God who does not want a robotic response from people in regards to loving Him and trusting Him and obeying Him. The free will given to us is precious evidence of His loving kindness. Our will is ours alone. We do not have to ask for it or pay for it. It is a gift.

If we were robots we would not be held accountable to our doings. We could say that we were programmed and could not help acting the way we did. So, this wonderful gift carries with it a burden. We will reap the consequences of our deeds and words. We may try to explain away our doings by saying that the way we were raised influenced us or our environment caused us to act the way we did. That doesn't hold water with the Judge because we were given a brain as well as free will and we can think before we act or speak. We were not programmed.  Our life is in our hands to do with as we choose.

"I have set before you today life and death,the blessing and the curse. So, choose life in order that you may live and your descendants by loving the Lord your God, and by obeying His voice..." Deuteronomy 30:20

As long as you have a breath left, you are free to choose to come to God. You are free to believe His Word and choose life. Jesus, the Christ said that He was the Way, the Truth and the Life and that by believing in Him we would have Life. There will be eternal consequences as to your choice - Life or Death.

#Combat

Some may consider it pure arrogance or pure foolishness, the idea of wrestling with God.  There could be, possibly, another explanation.  The story of Jacob wrestling with the Angel of God is told in Genesis 32.  The background of this incident is a long story of deception and robbery and running for his life. Jacob had deceived his father, Isaac, to steal his twin brother's birthright. Then he ran to a far country where his uncle lived and worked for him as a sheep herder and married two of the daughters of his uncle and became very prosperous.  The time came when he felt he should return to his home, but he was afraid of his brother, Esau.  He made all the preparations he could to secure his family and all the stock he was taking.  He prayed to his God for protection and safety and started out.

Along the way the Angel of God confronted Jacob and so began the combat. Jacob hung on all night because he so needed the blessing he knew God had promised him. He ended up with his right hip out of joint and he walked with a limp the rest of his days, but he did receive the blessing.

Could it be that this man really knew his God?  Could it be that Jacob so trusted his God that he dared to call Him on the promise that had been made?  Could it be that the relationship Jacob had with his God was strong enough to demand that he more that just say a prayer, but that he get seriously involved?

Each born again child of God has a distinct relationship with their Father God and depending on how well you know Him determines the extent you will get serious.  For me, I see Creator God as my, I say, my Father.  I remind Him that I am His daughter bought with the precious blood of His Son, Jesus. I question Him.  I bring Him reasons why I am asking for the things I present to Him. Even though He is God Almighty, I know He is my Father and some may think I go too far and bring Him down from His throne by being so familiar with Him, but He is my Heavenly Father God and I am His daughter and I do act like a daughter with Him.

I haven't wrestled with Him, yet, but it has come mighty close at times.

"Call upon Me in the day of trouble and I will deliver you and you shall glorify Me."  Ps.50:15

#Hearing-aids

There were quite a few times in David's life when he was in pretty desperate circumstances.  He was a shepherd as a youth and had to face bears and lions who wanted an easy meal.  Some years later after he had been told by the prophet Samuel that he was to be king, King Saul went after him with all the forces a king could muster.  It is no wonder that David, who spent much of his time alone turned to God and talked with him about his fears.

The Bible tells us that God hears everything and nothing is hidden from Him. In Psalm 34 which is a prayer David wrote when he was being confronted by Abimelech who would have killed him, there are two verses that specifically say that he cried out to the Lord and He heard David's cry and saved him from his fears and troubles.  Verse 15 states that "the eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and His ears are open to their cry."  If God's ears can be 'open' they can also be 'closed'.

There is a fast-track to be heard and there is a fast-track not being heard. We get to know a little bit about the God of the Bible as we read it.  In 1 Samuel 8 the people of Israel had no earthly ruler over them. Other nations had kings which led armies, but Israel only had judges whom God would raise up and empower them to lead. At this time in their history the people became disgruntled with their prophets and judges and began comparing their country to others and decided God was too distant and judges were undependable and cried out for a king.  God told the prophet Samuel that the people had not rejected him, they had rejected God and for Samuel to listen to the people and appoint a king.  In verse 18 after Samuel had warned them of what a king would require of them, he states that under the rule of a king they may cry out to the Lord, but the Lord will not answer you.

What does it take for God to hear us?  God does not need a hearing-aid. He wants a contrite heart.  The definition of 'contrite' is the feeling of regret or remorse or sorrow over wrong actions or thoughts or words that go against God's standard.  That is the first step to knowing that God, not just hears us, but listens and upon listening always gives the very best answer.