The mind takes in and processes information. But it remains, for the most part, indifferent. It is your mind that tells you it is now 2:00 A.M. and your daughter has not returned, for the car is not in the driveway. Your heart wrestles with whether or not this is cause for worry. The heart lives in the far more bloody and magnificent realities of living and dying and loving and hating. That’s why those who live from their minds are detached from life. Things don’t seem to touch them very much; they puzzle at the way others are so affected by life, and they conclude others are emotional and unstable. Meanwhile, those who live from the heart find those who live from the mind . . . unavailable. Yes, they are physically present. So is your computer. This is the sorrow of many marriages, and the number one disappointment of children who feel entirely missed or misunderstood by their parents.
Yes, the heart is the source of our emotions. But we have equated the heart with emotion, and put it away for a messy and even dangerous guide. No doubt, many people have made a wreck of their lives by following an emotion without stopping to consider whether it was a good idea to do so. Neither adultery nor murder is a rational act. But equating the heart with emotion is the same nonsense as saying that love is a feeling. Surely, we know that love is more than feeling loving; for if Christ had followed his emotions, he would not have gone to the cross for us. Like any man would have been, he was afraid; in fact, he knew that the sins of the world would be laid upon him, and so he had even greater cause for hesitation (Mark 14:32–35). But in the hour of his greatest trial, his love overcame his fear of what loving would cost him.
Emotions are the voice of the heart, to borrow Chip Dodd’s phrase. Not the heart, but its voice.
Waking the Dead , 41-42)
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Monday, July 6, 2009
King Josiah
Read 2 Chronicles 34-Josiah leads Judah into righteousness.
INSIGHT
It is almost impossible to imagine the Law could have gotten lost in Jerusalem. How could that have happened? The whole nation is to worship the Lord; the dominant building in Jerusalem is the temple. Israel's entire history revolves around the giving and preservation of the Law. How can this happen? Neglect has a poor memory. How quickly we can drift from the Lord in just a short time of spiritual staleness. Consider our nation. The moral fiber we had 20 years ago is nonexistent today. People are people. Israel drifted the same way—but for a longer time. This ought to serve as a warning to us; the same can happen to us as individuals.
PRAYER
The Lord will guard and care for the heart that follows Him and is filled with praise:
Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me!
For my soul trusts in You;
And in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge,
Until these calamities have passed by. . .
I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples;
I will sing to You among the nations.
For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens,
And Your truth unto the clouds.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
Let Your glory be above all the earth (Psalm 57:1, 9-11).
Pause for praise and thanksgiving.
Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:
Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
The God of my salvation,
And my tongue shall sing aloud of Your righteousness.
O Lord, open my lips,
And my mouth shall show forth Your praise (Psalm 51:14-15).
Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind.
Now pray this affirmation to the Lord:
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6).
As you make your requests known to the Lord, include:
"Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom,
Thanksgiving and honor and power and might,
Be to our God forever and ever. Amen" (Revelation 7:12).
INSIGHT
It is almost impossible to imagine the Law could have gotten lost in Jerusalem. How could that have happened? The whole nation is to worship the Lord; the dominant building in Jerusalem is the temple. Israel's entire history revolves around the giving and preservation of the Law. How can this happen? Neglect has a poor memory. How quickly we can drift from the Lord in just a short time of spiritual staleness. Consider our nation. The moral fiber we had 20 years ago is nonexistent today. People are people. Israel drifted the same way—but for a longer time. This ought to serve as a warning to us; the same can happen to us as individuals.
PRAYER
The Lord will guard and care for the heart that follows Him and is filled with praise:
Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me!
For my soul trusts in You;
And in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge,
Until these calamities have passed by. . .
I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples;
I will sing to You among the nations.
For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens,
And Your truth unto the clouds.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
Let Your glory be above all the earth (Psalm 57:1, 9-11).
Pause for praise and thanksgiving.
Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:
Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
The God of my salvation,
And my tongue shall sing aloud of Your righteousness.
O Lord, open my lips,
And my mouth shall show forth Your praise (Psalm 51:14-15).
Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind.
Now pray this affirmation to the Lord:
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6).
As you make your requests known to the Lord, include:
- Others to see Christ in you
- The Lord of the harvest to send forth laborers into His harvest
- Your activities for the day
"Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom,
Thanksgiving and honor and power and might,
Be to our God forever and ever. Amen" (Revelation 7:12).
Saturday, July 4, 2009
A little help with your prayer times!
Today we are going to break into God's heart by reading the Warfare prayer by John Eldredge. So read it and read it again over BridgePointe. How you do that is in place of saying me or I put in them or BridgePointe family and think of us as you pray. God says that we have the power of life or death in our words. Lets bring some life and protection to our brothers and sisters today.
If you dont have the prayer go to the link below and click on it.
http://bridgepointechurch.org/357339.ihtml
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