I saw something different as I was reading in the book of 1 Peter 5:6,7.
"Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you."
How many times have you heard these verses divided into two separate parts?
Rarely have I associated them as being connected with each other.
But what if they are?
What if humbling ourselves has a direct correlation
on whether we are able to cast our cares on Him?
How many of our cares are rooted in pride?
How many of our cares are concerns about how others perceive us?
According to the notes in my Bible,
the word 'care' comes from the word 'merimna'.
'Meiro' means "to divide" and 'noos' means "the mind."
When we have cares,
our mind is divided by anxious thoughts, burdens, and distractions.
A quote from my notes-"'Merimna' means to be anxious beforehand about daily life. Such worry is unnecessary, because the Father's love provides for both our daily needs and our special needs."
The verses before these exhort young people to submit themselves to their elders.
But then it goes on to say that we should all be submitted to one another and we should be clothed with humility because God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. If we humble ourselves under God's hand, then He will exalt us in good time.
If we were submitted to others, we wouldn't be prideful, would we?
We wouldn't be so worried about hiding our shortcomings from them.
Instead of waiting for life to humiliate us and worrying about hiding that humiliation,
we'd humble ourselves under God's hand and submit ourselves to others of like faith who are also clothed with humility.
Those clothed with humility aren't judgmental.
They know where they've come from and where they are going
and they just might take out a towel
and humbly wash our feet
if we humble ourselves enough to allow our feet to be washed.
The bottom line is this...
He cares for us.
That's why we submit to others.
That's why we humble ourselves.
That's why we cast our cares on Him.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Banqueting Table
Everyday, God prepares a bountiful table and invites us to feast.
It is up to us to eat.
If we need milk, there is milk.
If we need meat, there is meat.
We don't all need the same kinds of food.
He knows just what we need.
These are some of the wonderful words I ate today.
"My Strong Rock"-'Bow down thine ear to me; deliver me speedily; be thou my strong rock, for an house of defense to save me." Ps. 31:2
No sorrow of men is so deep and dark and bitter as to be without refuge, a rock, a safe retreat. My soul, however deep thy sorrow, however dark thy sin, however hopeless thy lot among men, the Man of Sorrows bore thy sin in His own body on the tree. He carried all thy grief. He is thy "Strong Rock." A strong, safe house, in which I am defended from myself, the world, the devil.'
"Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide myself in Thee. Amen."
(C.E.Hurlburt and T.C. Horton-'Wonderful Names of Our Wonderful Lord')
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"...(We) stagger beneath a weight which He would not feel. What seems to you a crushing burden, would be to Him but as the small dust of the balance. See! the Almighty bends His shoulders, and He says, "Here, put your troubles here." 'Come unto Me and I will give you rest.'
(Charles Spurgeon-'Daily Help')
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The fact is that the same moment which brings the consciousness of having sinned, ought to bring also the consciousness of being forgiven....We can only walk in this path by looking continually unto Jesus, moment by moment; and if our eyes are taken off of Him to look upon our own sin and our own weakness, we shall leave the path at once..."(Hannah W. Smith-'The Christian's Secret to a Happy Life.')
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Love each other as God loves each one of you, with an intense and particular love. Be kind to each other. It is better to commit faults with gentleness than to work miracles with unkindness."..."If we want others to become aware of the presence of Jesus, we must be the first ones convinced of it." (Mother Teresa-'No Greater Love')
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"We can cultivate an inner solitude and silence that sets us free from loneliness and fear. Loneliness is inner emptiness. Solitude is inner fulfillment," ..."if we possess inward solitude we do not fear being alone, for we know that we are not alone. Neither do we fear being with others, for they do not control us. In the midst of noise and confusion we are settled into a deep inner silence. Whether alone or among people, we always carry with us a portable sanctuary of the heart."
(R. Foster)
..."One who wants fellowship without solitude plunges into the void of words and feelings, and one who seeks solitude without fellowship perishes in the abyss of vanity, self-infatuation, and despair."(Dietrich Bonhoeffer)
"Therefore , we must seek out the recreating stillness of solitude if we want to be with others meaningfully. We must seek the fellowship and accountability of others if we want to be alone safely. We must cultivate both if we are to live in obedience."
(Richard J. Foster-'Celebration of Discipline' on 'Solitude' and quoting D.Bonhoeffer)
It is up to us to eat.
If we need milk, there is milk.
If we need meat, there is meat.
We don't all need the same kinds of food.
He knows just what we need.
These are some of the wonderful words I ate today.
"My Strong Rock"-'Bow down thine ear to me; deliver me speedily; be thou my strong rock, for an house of defense to save me." Ps. 31:2
No sorrow of men is so deep and dark and bitter as to be without refuge, a rock, a safe retreat. My soul, however deep thy sorrow, however dark thy sin, however hopeless thy lot among men, the Man of Sorrows bore thy sin in His own body on the tree. He carried all thy grief. He is thy "Strong Rock." A strong, safe house, in which I am defended from myself, the world, the devil.'
"Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide myself in Thee. Amen."
(C.E.Hurlburt and T.C. Horton-'Wonderful Names of Our Wonderful Lord')
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"...(We) stagger beneath a weight which He would not feel. What seems to you a crushing burden, would be to Him but as the small dust of the balance. See! the Almighty bends His shoulders, and He says, "Here, put your troubles here." 'Come unto Me and I will give you rest.'
(Charles Spurgeon-'Daily Help')
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The fact is that the same moment which brings the consciousness of having sinned, ought to bring also the consciousness of being forgiven....We can only walk in this path by looking continually unto Jesus, moment by moment; and if our eyes are taken off of Him to look upon our own sin and our own weakness, we shall leave the path at once..."(Hannah W. Smith-'The Christian's Secret to a Happy Life.')
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Love each other as God loves each one of you, with an intense and particular love. Be kind to each other. It is better to commit faults with gentleness than to work miracles with unkindness."..."If we want others to become aware of the presence of Jesus, we must be the first ones convinced of it." (Mother Teresa-'No Greater Love')
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"We can cultivate an inner solitude and silence that sets us free from loneliness and fear. Loneliness is inner emptiness. Solitude is inner fulfillment," ..."if we possess inward solitude we do not fear being alone, for we know that we are not alone. Neither do we fear being with others, for they do not control us. In the midst of noise and confusion we are settled into a deep inner silence. Whether alone or among people, we always carry with us a portable sanctuary of the heart."
(R. Foster)
..."One who wants fellowship without solitude plunges into the void of words and feelings, and one who seeks solitude without fellowship perishes in the abyss of vanity, self-infatuation, and despair."(Dietrich Bonhoeffer)
"Therefore , we must seek out the recreating stillness of solitude if we want to be with others meaningfully. We must seek the fellowship and accountability of others if we want to be alone safely. We must cultivate both if we are to live in obedience."
(Richard J. Foster-'Celebration of Discipline' on 'Solitude' and quoting D.Bonhoeffer)
Hertzler Doings-Mar 1-7, 2010
Mon-Home, working on budget-I love it!-wash-cleaning up.
Tues.- Met Lisa H. at Baine's for another good deep time of fellowship. She kept the tab open as her treat. She said she's always wanted to say, "Keep the tab open." I think it made us both feel rather grown up. Played 'Freeze Dance' with the 8-12 graders-something I normally do with the younger children. I play music and they move to it and freeze when I stop the music.
Wed.-Awake until about 3:30 this morning. "Safety Nets" are weighing heavily on me. I keep praying, asking God to put them in place. Phil and Philip left for Fla. to hunt wild boar with Bob W. at 3 this morn. Alli and Freeman went to the Babcock House in the eve. to celebrate their first year anniversary together. They went there on their first date a year ago. Didn't go to church in eve. Bushed. Watched American Idol with Alli and Freeman.
Thurs.-Happy 13th Birthday Susan! No snow this time around. We went into the hospital during a snow storm on the 3rd of March. All labor stopped when I got there but the doctor refused to let me go home in the storm. I had her the next day. She was always beautiful.
Michael home with sore throat, sinus congestion, and the tiredness of leftover mono.
Went to Farmville to run some errands. Met Candi for lunch at Mercks. Went to Lindsay's for a meeting with other women to plan events for the church women. Had Lindsay take a picture of me. She e-mailed it to me, and I e-mailed it to Angela, my health insurance consultant, when I got home. She called immediately and said how great I looked. She said I should get my paper work in. I felt guilty because I was eating pizza when she called. Good thing the phone doesn't have a camera. Hope to graduate this Sunday/Monday from the program. Philip called and said Phil shot a 250 pound wild boar. He sent the picture. This pig looks like a huge bear. It is longer than Phil strung up. He's bringing it home in coolers. Getting a sore throat. Susan signed up with Face book since she is now 13. Makes her so happy.
Fri.-Michael home again. Feeling a bit better but just laying around. Slept on easy chair last night since the exhaust fumes from the heater out in the barn (drying drywall) is deadly. Catching up on blogging and facebook and getting ready for Susan's party tomorrow. Throat getting better. Freeman packing and doing wash to get ready for his trip to Ireland. All his support money came in to the dollar. Phil shot another boar-175 lb. Alli and Freeman went to see Alice in Wonderland. (Allison Wonderland)
Susan and I watched 'The Silver Chair' and Michael went to work. Went to bed early. Slept 7 hours straight and then two more!
Sat.-Cleaned house. Freeman flying to Ireland today with Chi Alpha group. Susan cooked up pizza toppings. Went to Farmville and picked up Kelly G., Kelli S., Cassidy, and Sara. Took them shopping at Dollar Tree and Walmart. They bought big glasses at Dollar Tree and wore them into Walmart. Brought them back home and they took their things to the camper and went to the creek. Made their own homemade pizzas and acted crazy with silly string, water balloons and a prank phone call to a poor guy. Making Chex Mix for movie time. Kelli and Sara are leaving around 7 after they have some of Susan's birthday cake. Three brownie layers with Snickers and Reeses Peanut Butter Cup ice cream covered with Cool Whip. The Streams-PR, Lisa, and Alli, came to pick up Kelli and Sara. It's interesting- life. Every day, I learn something new, and everyday, there are more people to love. Who would have ever thought that the first person to greet Freeman(and the rest of our family) when we first came to New Life would be his future father-in-law? After that first day, Freeman said, "I don't know where you guys are going to church, but I know where I'm going." Cassidy, Susan, and Kelly watched a movie and then spent the night in the camper. Lindsay sent me a picture entitled 'Mine and Yours' or 'Yours and Mine.' It was a picture of my Freeman and her Adi hugging each other hard. So sweet.
Sun.-It was a cold night for the girls because Susan couldn't figure out how to get the heater working and they were too scared to come in the house in the dark. They got to sleep around 3 and woke up soon after 6. I made baked oatmeal with raspberries, blueberries, and black berries in it for breakfast. Good service at church. Anna came home here with Philip and Michael and Dan came later and they were playing video games in their room on this beautiful sunny day. Susan caught newts for her science class, I went to my cottage and read for awhile, and Phil slept. He is worn out from driving to Fla on Tues. and driving back on Sat. and hunting boar and preparing a bid for a job in the time between. Gil had a message on e-mail this morning that the team had arrived safely in Ireland. Judy didn't get to church to weigh me etc. so we're meeting at Charlie's parking lot tomorrow at 11 and she'll take my vitals before she treats me for lunch. We are celebrating her57th birthday and she wants to treat me to lunch since 'this is what makes her happy.' (Note to self-Achey and tired, joints sore. Wondering if Lymnes is acting up. Even the bump on my head where I got stitches when I was 16 is sore. Should stay off of corn for a week and see if that helps. Popcorn, my favorite, seems to give my joints pain.) Financial Peace class this eve. Taking Anna back to town with us. Busy Busy week ahead.
Tues.- Met Lisa H. at Baine's for another good deep time of fellowship. She kept the tab open as her treat. She said she's always wanted to say, "Keep the tab open." I think it made us both feel rather grown up. Played 'Freeze Dance' with the 8-12 graders-something I normally do with the younger children. I play music and they move to it and freeze when I stop the music.
Wed.-Awake until about 3:30 this morning. "Safety Nets" are weighing heavily on me. I keep praying, asking God to put them in place. Phil and Philip left for Fla. to hunt wild boar with Bob W. at 3 this morn. Alli and Freeman went to the Babcock House in the eve. to celebrate their first year anniversary together. They went there on their first date a year ago. Didn't go to church in eve. Bushed. Watched American Idol with Alli and Freeman.
Thurs.-Happy 13th Birthday Susan! No snow this time around. We went into the hospital during a snow storm on the 3rd of March. All labor stopped when I got there but the doctor refused to let me go home in the storm. I had her the next day. She was always beautiful.
Michael home with sore throat, sinus congestion, and the tiredness of leftover mono.
Went to Farmville to run some errands. Met Candi for lunch at Mercks. Went to Lindsay's for a meeting with other women to plan events for the church women. Had Lindsay take a picture of me. She e-mailed it to me, and I e-mailed it to Angela, my health insurance consultant, when I got home. She called immediately and said how great I looked. She said I should get my paper work in. I felt guilty because I was eating pizza when she called. Good thing the phone doesn't have a camera. Hope to graduate this Sunday/Monday from the program. Philip called and said Phil shot a 250 pound wild boar. He sent the picture. This pig looks like a huge bear. It is longer than Phil strung up. He's bringing it home in coolers. Getting a sore throat. Susan signed up with Face book since she is now 13. Makes her so happy.
Fri.-Michael home again. Feeling a bit better but just laying around. Slept on easy chair last night since the exhaust fumes from the heater out in the barn (drying drywall) is deadly. Catching up on blogging and facebook and getting ready for Susan's party tomorrow. Throat getting better. Freeman packing and doing wash to get ready for his trip to Ireland. All his support money came in to the dollar. Phil shot another boar-175 lb. Alli and Freeman went to see Alice in Wonderland. (Allison Wonderland)
Susan and I watched 'The Silver Chair' and Michael went to work. Went to bed early. Slept 7 hours straight and then two more!
Sat.-Cleaned house. Freeman flying to Ireland today with Chi Alpha group. Susan cooked up pizza toppings. Went to Farmville and picked up Kelly G., Kelli S., Cassidy, and Sara. Took them shopping at Dollar Tree and Walmart. They bought big glasses at Dollar Tree and wore them into Walmart. Brought them back home and they took their things to the camper and went to the creek. Made their own homemade pizzas and acted crazy with silly string, water balloons and a prank phone call to a poor guy. Making Chex Mix for movie time. Kelli and Sara are leaving around 7 after they have some of Susan's birthday cake. Three brownie layers with Snickers and Reeses Peanut Butter Cup ice cream covered with Cool Whip. The Streams-PR, Lisa, and Alli, came to pick up Kelli and Sara. It's interesting- life. Every day, I learn something new, and everyday, there are more people to love. Who would have ever thought that the first person to greet Freeman(and the rest of our family) when we first came to New Life would be his future father-in-law? After that first day, Freeman said, "I don't know where you guys are going to church, but I know where I'm going." Cassidy, Susan, and Kelly watched a movie and then spent the night in the camper. Lindsay sent me a picture entitled 'Mine and Yours' or 'Yours and Mine.' It was a picture of my Freeman and her Adi hugging each other hard. So sweet.
Sun.-It was a cold night for the girls because Susan couldn't figure out how to get the heater working and they were too scared to come in the house in the dark. They got to sleep around 3 and woke up soon after 6. I made baked oatmeal with raspberries, blueberries, and black berries in it for breakfast. Good service at church. Anna came home here with Philip and Michael and Dan came later and they were playing video games in their room on this beautiful sunny day. Susan caught newts for her science class, I went to my cottage and read for awhile, and Phil slept. He is worn out from driving to Fla on Tues. and driving back on Sat. and hunting boar and preparing a bid for a job in the time between. Gil had a message on e-mail this morning that the team had arrived safely in Ireland. Judy didn't get to church to weigh me etc. so we're meeting at Charlie's parking lot tomorrow at 11 and she'll take my vitals before she treats me for lunch. We are celebrating her57th birthday and she wants to treat me to lunch since 'this is what makes her happy.' (Note to self-Achey and tired, joints sore. Wondering if Lymnes is acting up. Even the bump on my head where I got stitches when I was 16 is sore. Should stay off of corn for a week and see if that helps. Popcorn, my favorite, seems to give my joints pain.) Financial Peace class this eve. Taking Anna back to town with us. Busy Busy week ahead.
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