If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things…God may be praised through Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 4:11.

I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth…nor any created thing…shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39 NKJV.

I loved this from You Are The Beloved by Henri Nouwen: “While realizing that ten years ago I didn’t have the faintest idea that I would end up where I am now, I still like to keep up the illusion that I am in control of my own life. I like to decide what I most need, what I will do next, what I want to accomplish, and how others will think of me. While being so busy running my own life, I become oblivious to the gentle movements of the Spirit of God within me, pointing me in directions quite different from my own. It requires a lot of inner solitude and silence to become aware of these divine movements. God does not shout, scream, or push. The Spirit of God is soft and gentle like a small voice or a light breeze. It is the Spirit of Love.”

And in our chapter, Amos 2, Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit, speaks to the nation of Moab and then to Judah and then to Israel. Why? Because they, like us, chose a way completely opposite to the way of life lived with God. Can we truly not see? Not without the Holy Spirit helping us. This is what the Lord says: “For three sins of Moab, even for four, I will not relent. Because he burned to ashes the bones of Edom’s king, I will send fire on Moab that will consume the fortresses of Kerioth. Moab will go down in great tumult amid war cries and the blast of the trumpet. I will destroy her ruler and kill all her officials with him,” declares the Lord. v. 1-3. And then God speaks to Judah and then to Israel because they had the knowledge of God and chose to turn away. This is what the Lord says: “For three sins of Judah, even for four, I will not relent. Because they have rejected the law of the Lord and have not kept His decrees, because they have been led astray by false gods, the gods their ancestors followed, I will send fire on Judah that will consume the fortresses of Jerusalem.” This is what the Lord says: “For three sins of Israel, even for four, I will not relent. They sell the innocent for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals. They trample on the heads of the poor as on the dust of the ground and deny justice to the oppressed. Father and son use the same girl and so profane My holy name. They lie down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge. In the house of their god they drink wine taken as fines.” v. 4-8. And because we need reminding of all God has done for us when we turn away from Him…“Yet I destroyed the Amorites before them, though they were tall as the cedars and strong as the oaks. I destroyed their fruit above and their roots below. I brought you up out of Egypt and led you forty years in the wilderness to give you the land of the Amorites. I also raised up prophets from among your children and Nazirites from among your youths. Is this not true, people of Israel?” declares the Lord. “But you made the Nazirites drink wine and commanded the prophets not to prophesy. Now then, I will crush you as a cart crushes when loaded with grain. The swift will not escape, the strong will not muster their strength, and the warrior will not save his life. The archer will not stand his ground, the fleet-footeed soldier will not get away, and the horseman will not save his life. Even the bravest warriors will flee naked on that day,” declares the Lord. v. 9-16. How many super heroes do we herald and our kids play with their toys? Powerful figures using strength and violence to destroy the “enemy”. In reality, each country was overrun and their people left taken captive by those still more powerful.

Sometimes I see a color that I find utterly beautiful. And I give thanks because Creator God created color and not just one color or shade of one color but think of all the colors and varying shades of each one! That’s just color that surrounds all of us in the beauty God created. Everything we have comes from Him because He created. Once you take the time needed to consider everything around you that you love, how can you not allow your heart and soul to be opened to God? As you do, a whole world that is good opens up and you understand possibility comes with loving and obeying God. The possibility of love and joy and hope in everything good that God makes possible. Contrast that goodness with the warnings against what was being done then…and now…and we begin to see. There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death. Proverbs 14:12. It led to their destruction. It always will. That’s why God warns us against choosing that way of the thief, the father of lies. But God never leaves us with a negative. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. John 10:10. We see the evidence of the thief, the father of lies, in this world broken by sin. We have reached a point in this world where we can’t trust what we read or see because lies have become so pervasive everywhere. Violence has become so pervasive and commonplace we can’t take it all in. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy…but Creator God, the Son, came that we may have life, and have it to the full! Lift up your eyes and take in the beauty of color and the creation God made. And be still. Give thanks to Almighty Creator God and ask Him to come and be with you. And listen. Let the unhurried rhythms of creation speak to your heart and soul and find the peace you find with God that He always intended for us. In His peace, you find His love for you and me. In His love, you find hope for all He is doing right now in the midst of all you see. He helps us see what is true and good. It is so beautiful you won’t want to turn away. It will help you as you navigate in this world of ours because you will realize Creator God IS…and His will for our good will be done in His wisdom, His love and His timing. His heart of love is for each of us and it takes God’s good timing to accomplish fully. Take heart and trust in God who loves us. He is worth everything!!