It’s Something Only God Sees

“I had always felt life first as a story—and if there is a story there is a storyteller.”

G.K. Chesterton.

We are characters living out subplots, our life-stories, within God’s Story.

I began this morning considering Simon Peter and King David. Their stories are alike. David lived before Christ’s time, Peter lived during and after Christ’s time.

Both of them were known for delighting God.

They were nobodies when God chose them. David, a youth tending sheep had been overlooked and discounted by his own father and brothers when the Prophet Samuel came looking for God’s future king to anoint. Peter was an outspoken, impulsive fisherman the day Jesus made him one of His closest friends. To Peter Jesus handed the keys to the Kingdom of heaven.  Accepting a leading role, Peter helped Jesus usher in God’s Kingdom on earth.

What made God choose such unlikely characters anyway?  David became the most beloved king of Israel, the nation claimed by God to be his own people. He was such a significant person in God’s larger story.   Jesus identified himself as the expected “Son of David.”

Peter, whom Jesus nicknamed “the rock” was the first stone (the first to believe Jesus was Messiah and Son of God) to be laid in the foundations of the Spiritual Temple of God made up of all believers in Jesus.

David and Peter were put in leadership roles. Both carried the kingdom of God forward. And, yet, both of them were a mess at times. They sinned. They disappointed God. They were unworthy of the favors given. Sometimes they walked beside God in the Light, other times they chased shadows.  They didn’t merit the Lord’s love, calling, or gifts. But God saw something about them that much affected Him.

God chose them because of something only God sees.

The Lord chose David and Peter because of their hearts. That was the real attraction. God proclaimed that David was a man after His own heart. Jesus said many endearing things about Peter.  He is the only man who walked on water with Jesus and was the first to use Jesus’ healing powers with words of his own mouth.

What affects God most when He sees us? Our hearts.

These thoughts are helping me to put my priorities in order at the start of this new year. I pray the Lord will look at my heart and help me put the foolish things behind me in order to enjoy walking in the Light beside Jesus, and to even walk on water with Him this year.  My desire is to realize that my little life can be like David’s or Peter’s—this is my time in history to do my little bit for Him and His Kingdom. But, mostly, it is my time on earth to appreciate the Lord’s love, care, and favor.  I want to live the Story God sees for me. If I live out of my heart, it’s what only God sees, but it is what He likes.

Priority One: Delight myself in the Lord.

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Once Upon A Time – The Fullness of Love was Born

At first sight, Miriam shares her joy . . . 

I loved Yeshua so much I cried. He was mine. He came from God, and he was mine.

I studied his fingernails, each one so tiny and delicate. I marveled at his eyelashes, so beautiful against his face. His nose, his chin, everything about him was perfect. Curled little fists, I easily opened them to examine baby-soft palms. His mouth, a flower bud, puckered while he slept.

How many times I kissed his head I don’t know. I couldn’t deny my lips from his crown of fine hair.

His newborn smell was like no other scent. I had heard my women relations speak of it, of how a new babe’s smell steals the mother’s heart and binds her fast. I was his long before this. But, by all that is holy, holding him in my arms, well, I never knew love could feel so wonderful and strong.

He brought his finger to his mouth and began sucking it so hard it made smacking sounds. This thrilled me and I realized I should nurse him. When I tried, he preferred his finger. This, too, amazed me; he had a mind of his own, even while he slept, and only minutes old.

I thought to wake him so he would properly nurse. “Come on, little one! Come on, precious, open your eyes! Come on.” I moved him this way and that way until he began to stretch his small body, arms reaching above his head. His voice squeaked and he squeezed his eyes tighter, all of this part of the stretch. Then his eyes fluttered open and he was awake.

Are you looking at me? I gasped with delight, but the words were silent in my head. “Shalom, little one. Shalom. I’m your mama.” I touched the tip of his nose with my finger. He blinked.

My mind filled with joy. Adonai, Elohim, he is straight from heaven, straight from heaven! You are the Holy One of Israel and you have done a wonderful thing to me.

I brought him to my breast and his head trembled in search for the nipple. Then, with sudden discovery, he hungrily latched on. I was been made for him. I gazed at him and listened to his sucking sounds. I held more than a miracle close to my heart; he was Heaven’s surprise and promise.

He – is – wonderful.

***

Scriptures to Meditate upon this Season of the Year:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God,
and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning with God.
All things were made through him,
and without him nothing was made that was made.
In him was life, and the life was the light of men.
And the light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness did not comprehend it.
John 1:1-5

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given;
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called Wonderful Counselor,
Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and peace
there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with
justice and righteousness from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord will accomplish this.
Isaiah 9:6-7

“Do not be afraid, Miriam; you have found favor with God.
You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Yeshua.

He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.

The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,
and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

Luke 1:29

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Fools for God

Sometimes my beliefs seem crazy. What Christians believe have the surface appearance of really farfetched tales of fiction. I sense this sometimes when speaking to one of my grandchildren about heaven and hell, creation, angels and demons, and more. Stranger than that are the people of biblical record. One man built an ark before the world was purposely flooded by the Creator. A reluctant preacher spent three days inside a whale because he refused God’s call to warn the people in a certain city. A donkey talks to a prophet while an angel nearly runs him through with a sword for being uncooperative. Really?

If any of these examples were in headline news today, we’d scoff. What would you think if you heard an undefeated, famous weight lifter with a long ponytail say that he’d lose all his strength from a haircut? We’d call him a nut case for sure.

And, what about the BIGGEST one of all? Jesus, the only man-God to grace our planet. You’ve read the Scripture that forewarns this one as a fool’s Reward, right?
[ Christ Crucified Is God’s Power and Wisdom ] For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (1 Corinthians 1:18)

Therefore, we “fools” can be ecstatically thankful that God left His throne to live among us before He died on a cross to save us. We claim His shed blood makes us as white as snow. We hear God’s voice and are members of a spiritual family with a King and a Kingdom to belong to. One day we plan to celebrate a wedding feast with the majestic, glorious Bridegroom, the Love of our hearts and lives. Yes, this is what it means to be a fool for Christ.

Praise our wonderful God, the rewarder and Reward of our faith, for He has given us unquestionable proof and EVIDENCE for all we believe.

Earth’s past, present, and future is a book God is writing; it’s a Divine Drama of love, romance, adventure, conflict, sacrifice, complete with a Hero and happy ending.

When I was in third grade I heard my first lesson of faith. The teacher wrote on the chalk board the following:

Question: Why did God make you?
Answer: God made me to know Him, to love Him, and to serve Him in this world, and to be happy with Him forever in the next.

I didn’t know at the time that God would pursue me relentlessly the rest of my life. It would be a while before I would learn about His relationship and plans for people on earth, with Israel in particular as a major part of the plot, of the unfolding revelation of Himself and His desires. He wants our hearts.

Faith was never meant to be rules to follow or doctrines and truths to grasp. It’s a crazy, wild love affair. It’s funny how God operates. He confounds those who are wise in their own eyes and gives depth of wisdom to the simple. So, fools rush in!

 

I tried to upload a document for EVIDENCE of our faith: THE JEWISH MESSIAH- Prophecies of the Bible and How Jesus Fulfilled Them. However, it didn’t work on this blog site. If you go to http://www.mmontreuil.wordpress.com – you’ll see the same blog post “Fools for God”  and at the bottom of the page is a link to a pdf file.

 

Or, send me an email and request it from me.     [email protected]  

Then pass it along to anyone or everyone you know. It is especially convincing for Jewish people that Jesus (Yeshua)  is the long-awaited Messiah.

 

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