Devotions Archive Archive: 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 Search Archive Print This Article Beautiful things Monday, March 13, 2017 From Luke 6 Jesus said to his disciples, "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Give and gifts will be given to you, in good measure packed together, shaken down and overflowing will be poured into your lap. Above all, re-cognize how much God loves you. His mercy extends immediately and without condition into the darkest corners of my life. My secrets are not secret from him. I can run to the far side of the sea, and he is there. Above all, that judgment you put on yourself is not God's judgment. That self-condemnation is not God's condemnation. When I don't forgive myself, God stands with me and waits, stands by me and whispers ... "Let me love you, David." What does this love look like, how does it feel? It feels like a gallon of honeyed grain, poured on out above my head. My hair is full of it. My eyebrows are full of it. I am licking it off my lips. It's dripping down inside my shirt, and it makes me ... laugh. My cup overflows. O, how happy you have made me. I don't always ... laugh. When I'm caught up in my guilt and my inadequacy, I want to get away. I want to take a bath and wash off God's love. It's inconvenient and sticky, and I'm not sure it's edible. It seems to change overnight and lose its color. But then, the next morning, there's more. Some of us have some stories about human love. Every one of us is part of God's story, the one they tell at campfire to each other, the Father, Son and Spirit. "Did you hear the one about David, the day he almost drowned right after passing his junior life-saving test? He felt pretty dumb, diving off his friend's shoulders in shallow water. The lifeguard who came to rescue him had been in class with him. "Still, he always returns to the water. It's great to watch him, year after year, swimming along with the fishes." What are the stories God tells? Not the ones we think he does, about our floundering and our failures. When I get that through my head, there isn't anything I wouldn't tell him. What a friend we have. Yesterday at church our teacher Greg capped his talk with a music video of Gungor's song, "Beautiful Things." Take a look. Let the angel take your picture. Let yourself be loved. When I know you love me, Lord, then I know I can love too, and that old judging and condemning just fades away. Mercy reigns. Nothing is more momentary than my sin, and nothing is more final than your forgiveness. Every day, let me say so. "; Add      Edit    Delete