Angels In The Marketplace

Angels In The Marketplace

Sometimes I see angels standing 
in the marketplace.

And sometimes I see you
and someone 
is trying to convince you to build 
a house here, on Earth,
but you are not really meant for that. 

This other world hopes for your delight 
and contains all the ingredients for it. 

            Interesting thought by Hafiz, that "the other world contains all your ingredients for delight". For many I have heard that this notion is exactly what provides them with great hope and comfort about the trials of this imperfect world. Two bible verses recommended in church today to deal with suffering were:

James 1:2-4 (NIV): "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."

Romans 5:3-5 (NIV): "Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us." 

God is God, Steven Curtis Chapman

Heart Has Held

My heart has held that which can never be touched. 


       Today I became a Christian, and though it took prayerful meditation and some reading of all the religions of the world (just to be sure), I would attribute the catalyst of my conversion to music. The Christian music I hear is so uplifting and so encouraging, it makes me want to go to the mountaintop. Below is a song I find near to my heart now, "Come Let's Go Up The Mountain/Fly Me Like The Wind" by MorningStar Ministries.
       I read on Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry something that changed my heart as well. It was more of the logical convincing that I needed. After reading it, I realized I often appealed my worth based on my own "goodness": "You must trust in what Jesus did on the cross to forgive you of your sins and not trust anything else, not even your own sincerity. That's right, sincerity isn't good enough. Why? Because sincerity is an appeal to God based on the goodness of your own heart. If you're appealing to God based on the goodness of your own heart, then you're being prideful. Sorry, salvation is either based on Christ alone, or it is not."

Link To "Come Let's Go Up The Mountain/Fly Me Like The Wind"

A Royal Event: Existence

We all help to host a royal event: Existence. 

            Today I took a liking to the song, "Testimony of Grace", it's a song about the stories of those who have come to know God. Since it's Sunday, take a listen.

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The Experience of God

The experience of God can so easily deepen and change. 

          This is so true, our relationship with God (and it should be a relationship) will evolve, change, grow, deepen, and be born anew. We will bring to the table the fellow believers we meet as well as the ones who challenge our beliefs. We will bring to the table the moments we felt close to God and the moments we felt terribly in this world. In doing these things, in living this life, we can only expect our experience of God to be different than when we started out, but God has been sovereign, working in our hearts throughout.

      I found this on the blog, Desiring God: "And the reality is, even if you don’t have a formal, written life plan, you have a life plan in your head. We all do. You have an imagined future in your head. You want to have a family, have kids, get a college degree, start a business, travel to Europe, etc. You get the point. I don’t have a formally stated life plan, but I want to accomplish certain things. I want to attain a certain level of comfort and stability for me and my family. I want my life to actually mean something. To reference a well-known author who seems to get quoted a lot on this site, I don’t want to waste my life. Now don’t get me wrong: I’m all for planning. Without plans, little of enduring value gets accomplished. Those who fail to plan, often find themselves binge watching on Netflix. But the reality is, there are many times when God intentionally messes up my life plan. And that’s a really good thing." 

He Knows My Name (2014), Francesca Battistelli