If you want to be rich, give.
Consecrated and Profitable
What kind of vessel am I if I murmur and complain about what I am to do or hold?
But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver,
but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.
If a man therefore, purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto
honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto
every good work. II Timothy 2: 20-21
But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver,
but also (utensils) of wood and earthenware, and some for honorable
and noble (use) and some for menial and ignoble (use). So whoever
cleanses himself (from what is ignoble and unclean, who separates
himself from contact with contaminating and corrupting influences)
will (then himself) be a vessel set apart and useful for honorable and
noble purposes, consecrated and profitable to the Master, fit and
ready for any good work. II Timothy 2:20-21 Amplified Bible
My mug doesn’t complain about what I put in it:
coffee, cocoa, hot water & lemon …
Sometimes I use the mug as a prop for a dish or a pan,
it still doesn’t mind.
It waits for whatever use I choose for it.
Why is it so hard to accept and wait?
I know God has said ‘My ways are not your ways;
and my thoughts are not your thoughts’.
If I determine to follow the direction of the scripture:
to cleanse and separate myself
from the unclean and the contaminating influences;
perhaps then I, too, can wait …patiently….ready …
‘for any good work.’
September 19, Evening tidbit
You are what you eat. So if you eat chocolate, you’re smooth, sweet, loved and maybe a little nuts.
Vessel of Honor
May I be a vessel of honor for the Lord to use to pour out of the abundance of the fruit of the Spirit love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance.
Galatians 5:22-23
…the fruit of the (Holy) Spirit (the work which His presence within accomplishes) is love, joy (gladness), peace, patience (an even temper, forbearance), kindness, goodness (benevolence), faithfulness, Gentleness (meekness, humility), self-control (self-restraint, continence) Galatians 5:22-23 AmplifiedBible
Just a vessel,will no will of its own, just used to pour a little here, a little there, smoothing and calming as the Master directs.
To Be Christ’s Vessel
What is a vessel? A utensil for holding something
I have many mugs. I choose which mug I want to use for my coffee, my tea or to cool bacon drippings. The mug doesn’t help decide or advise how it is used. The mug doesn’t call for special attention. The mug hangs on its hook until called for duty.
Whose vessel am I?
And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vainglory, provoking one another, envying one another. Galatians 5:24-26
And those who belong to Christ Jesus (the Messiah) have crucified the flesh (the godless human nature) with its passions and appetites and desires. If we live by the (Holy) Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. (If by the Holy Spirit we have our life in God, let us go forward walking in line, our conduct controlled by the Spirit.) Let us not become vainglorious and self-conceited, competitive and challenging and provoking and irritating to one another, envying and being jealous of one another. Galatians 5:24-26 Amplified Bible
I must remember:To be Christ’s vessel I must be willing to crucify self, so that the emphasis is on the contents, not the vessel.
Today’s Writing Prompt: Warning
If you wore a WARNING sign that could be read by everyone who meets you and would warn them of something they should know about you, what would it say?
Beware of flying foot, destination mouth.
It’s hard to eat crow with foot in the mouth.
It Was
Moving on is about accepting what happened, not absolving it… You will mourn. Moan and groan and grieve. You are supposed to cry about these things. Kathryn L. Robyn
September 11, Essay Hug, Love, Live
2Timothy 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
The simple question continues to echo through my mind hours later.
“What is it, Mommy?” my nine-year-old daughter, Katherine, asked. “What
is it that makes some people do something so awful! What is it?”
The day was dawning as she questioned me. We were standing in
our front yard, the sky turning from grey to blue as we prepared
to take her to school. She looked up at me, her deep blue eyes
round, her innocent face expectantly waiting for an answer. Her
expression said “Mommy will know the answer. My Mommy can
take care of anything.”
I paused, looking towards the sky. The same sky that had just
carried passenger planes turned weapons of destruction plowing
into American targets. Targets I had seen personally. Targets I
could remember being built as a child in New Jersey. Targets that
are visual icons of New York and Washington, DC.
“Fear. Hatred. Misunderstanding. And the desire to keep people in
fear, hatred and misunderstanding.” I looked at my daughter, who
at nine is wise beyond her years. She was slowly nodding. I
continued: “People know if you are afraid, you can not feel love.
If you can not feel love, you can not feel peace. These people do
not want us to feel peace or love. They want to control us. We
won’t let them do that, though, will we?”
In a very short conversation, Katherine had brought my resolve
firmly back to me. She reminded me of a very important lesson
that lives deep within me. In the moments after I heard of the
devastation that was occurring so close to where I had grown
up, I was frightened to the point of near hysteria. I paced,
frantically worried about my children, my friends, my safety, my
country, my world.
Katherine reminded me that I could not feel fear AND feel love
at the same time. As I listened to reports from survivors, I heard
gratitude in their words. I heard an unusual peace. I heard light
among the tragedy.
We can love as we grieve the senseless loss of so many lives. We
can love as we pray. We can love as we donate time, blood and
money to the Red Cross and other charitable organizations. We
can love as we talk to complete strangers as we sort out our own
feelings about the tragedy. We can love as we hug our children,
friends and neighbors. We can love as we take an extra moment
to simply feel grateful for each breath. For each moment. For each
person whose lives we touch positively. We can love as we put
one foot in front of the other. We can love as we choose to trust.
We can love as we serve our fellow world citizens.
Later this afternoon I was with Emma, my four year old daughter at
the park. She came to me and I gave her a big hug. She looked at
me and stated simply: “A plane flew into a building. Lots of people
died. Lets talk about it”.
So we did. Plainly and with the vocabulary of a preschooler we
talked about what had taken place in New York City. She went
back to playing.
She returned to me and said, “Mommy, give me a nice big hug so
the bad guys can’t get me.”
So I did. Hug. Love. Keep the bad guys away. And when the bad
guys come anyway remember to hug. To Love. To trust. To feel
peace deep within you.
Hug. Love. Live.
July 07, 2005 Julie Jordan Scott
Thoughts of Grace 