From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart is faint. Lead me to the Rock that is higher than I. Psalm 61:2.
We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:5.
But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “Let him who boasts, boast in the LORD.” 1 Corinthians 1:30-31.
And continuing our 351 Old Testament prophecies, promises of God, fulfilled in Jesus Christ, we come to number 195: Called Jesus – Yeshua. Isaiah 12:2: Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; for the LORD God is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation. And, Matthew 1:21: She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.
In the second Scripture verse above, in Hearing God by Dallas Willard, he wrote: “Consider picturing 2 Corinthians 10:5 in a positive way. Instead of seeing yourself scolding or spanking your destructive thoughts to make them conform to Christ, see yourself exposing your darker thoughts to the “light of life” (John 8:12; see also 1:9; 1 John 1:5). Or see your broken perceptions as branches pruned from the vine and thrown away so that your fruitful thoughts can gain nourishment from the vine (John 15:1-8).”
In our Friday Zoom Retreat this morning, we did a Visio Divina, where we looked at a photo from the vantage point of the peaks of a dark mountain range in the foreground jutting above the cloudbank filling everything and obscuring what was below them, with the clear, intense yellow of sunset light just above the clouds in a thin layer transitioning to orange and then purple and green to a deep blue filled with distant stars. And in the far distance the Milky Way shooting upward to the top of the photo. The Milky Way was both light lighter than the clouds and shadow areas dark like the mountains before us. In the midst of the dark areas were sparks of intense clear purple light. Then we shared what Jesus was showing us personally and it was uplifting and highly individual and beautiful. Just like all of creation. In Visio Divina, we take the time to notice and ponder and wonder at all that God is doing. Can we take time today to notice the blessings right before us? Because….
….We today are bogged down in ideas generated by politics and the amazing thing is, we believe them fiercely and think what we believe is what is real. And Creator God came to live among us in the Son and He gave us the gospel and it has nothing to do with politics nor did it have anything to do with the religious traditions of that day. Jesus gave us the gospel of God and said the kingdom of God was near – Him in person with us – and to repent and believe the good news. And seeing that image in our Visio Divina, I couldn’t help but see the battle between light and dark, between good and evil, and yet, living on our small planet, a mere speck in our own galaxy with that pure, beautiful light of that sunset above the clouds – just one small band of light, that is real! Can we be humbled and give thanks that we are so loved that our Creator came to show us His love which is the gospel message? Light and dark. Truth and politics. I echo the prayer we each had this morning. Look up! Look away from all that blinds us to God’s love for us. See your hope in God who holds all things together, including us, in ways we cannot see or fathom but that He knows.
***APPRENTICE PRAYER – Jesus, I love You! Father, I adore You! Holy Spirit I rely on You! Thank You, Jesus, for Your cross. Thank You, Father, for Your eternal love. Thank You, Holy Spirit, for Your presence and power. Holy Trinity, I praise You. LORD Jesus, You’re my teacher. I seek to live as Your apprentice in all that I do today. My life is Your school for teaching me. I relinquish my agenda for this day, and I submit myself to You and Your kingdom purposes. In all situations, I abandon outcomes to You, praying, “Your will, Your way, Your time.” Dear Father, I ask You to ordain the events of this day and use them to make me more like Jesus. I ask and trust You, Sovereign LORD, that You won’t let anything happen to my family or me today except that it passes through Your loving hands. So no matter what problems, hardships, or injustices I face today, help me not to worry or get frustrated, but instead to relax in the yoke of Your providence. Yes, today I will rejoice because I am in Your eternal kingdom, You love me, and You are teaching me. My Creator and Redeemer, I devote my whole self to You. I want to be all and only for Jesus. Today, I love You with all my heart, all my soul, all my mind, all my strength, and all my relationships. Today, I depend on You, Holy Spirit – not my own resources. Help me to keep in step with You. Today, I look to love others as You love me, dear God, blessing everyone I meet, even those who mistreat me. Today, I’m ready to lead people to follow You, Jesus. Amen.***Bill Gaultiere, “The Apprentice Prayer,” soulshepherding.org.***
