In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the LORD. And in Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit. Ephesians 2:21-22.

He would not drink it, but poured it out to the LORD. 2 Samuel 23:16.

And continuing our 351 Old Testament prophecies, promises of God, fulfilled in Jesus Christ, we come to number 132: He would teach in parables. Psalm 78:1-2: Listen, O my people, to my instruction; incline your ears to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of old. And, Matthew 13:34-35: All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables, and He did not speak to them without a parable. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: “I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden since the foundation of the world.”

I loved this in Hearing God by Dallas Willard: “This dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit helps renew our minds so we are able to “discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2 NRSV). Hearing God becomes a reliably clear and practical matter for the mind that is transformed by this washing of the word.” And from Devotions for Women by Ann Spangler, she wrote sharing what Kenneth Bailey wrote about a young Latvian woman raised in communism who had come to faith not by anything her family taught her as they were all atheists: “At funerals we were allowed to recite the LORD’S Prayer. As a young child I heard those strange words and had no idea who we were talking to, what the words meant, where they came from or why we were reciting them. When freedom came at last, I had the opportunity to search for their meaning. When you are in total darkness, the tiniest point of light is very bright. For me the LORD’S Prayer was that point of light. By the time I found its meaning I was a Christian.” And the LORD’S Prayer: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation. But deliver us from evil. Amen.

I can’t imagine the darkness of living without knowing Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit. His love reminds us He is good and His goodness draws us to His love. Last night I was thinking about what Jesus meant when He told the disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.” (Matthew 16:24). Jesus was facing death by crucifixion – the way of the world choosing anger and hate and judging born in that confusing mix. The cross He chose to bear was the way of God’s love. Taking up our own cross as we follow Him and His way of love is letting go of anger and hate and trusting God for all judgment needed. And that is hard! The way of the world is harder. When I see that same anger and hate in our world today and in my own heart, I need to look instead at His love and not look away. How can we begin to do that if we don’t trust Him to help us follow faithfully? That tiny point of light lights the way. He gives understanding as we turn to Him. “When you are in total darkness – the tiniest point of light is very bright.” His love is that point of light and the darkness cannot overcome it. That is how God’s goodness has endured. His love reminds us He is good and His very goodness draws us to His love where all healing begins. Last night on PBS they showed women living today in Afghanistan under increasingly strict Taliban rule. The laws against women are growing and if they had their way all of womens bodies except for one eye showing would be covered. No education of girls over the age of 12 is allowed. They are beginning to fight against that darkness and are realizing they may need to give their own lives so other girls and women can go forward. Can we see how dark the darkness is? How those women – and those men – need the light of God’s love.

***SPIRIT OF THE LIVING GOD – Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me. Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me. Break me, melt me, mold me, use me. Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me. Daniel Iverson, “Spirit of the Living God,” (Birdwing Music, 1935).***