We hurts with those who are hurting

So all this week we have been trying to get our oldest daughter, AG, to feel better.  She has the flu, unfortunately.  No, it isn’t H1N1 or anything, but it is the flu none the less.  I absolutely hate seeing her in pain and not feeling well.  This has been going on since Friday evening.  As I sit and watch her either sleep peacefully or watch TV while she is awake, I cannot help but think of the way that God the Father watches us.  I know that it may seem like a stretch to some people, but my relationship with AG is a reflection of God the Father’s relationship to me.  I know that the Bible says that God hurts with us in our suffering.  I hurt with AG as she has been going through the flu.  I wonder how incredibly more upset God is as he sees us suffering in the world be it through our own miscues or be it because of something else in this sinful world.  I just know that, as a father, I simply cannot stand it to see my little girl hurting, and I also know that my love and concern for AG is dwarfed by the love that God the Father has for me.  Therefore, I know that God is concerned with the suffering that we experience while here on earth.

However, I also know that God’s grace is made new every morning.  We can rest assured in the fact that God is still in control, and He is still on His throne.  Just as our spiritual strength is renewed every morning by God’s grace, I pray that the morning will bring renewed strength and wellness for little AG.

“Then we will see the glory of the Lord, all eyes will see…”

I have begun reading a book entitled “Engaging With God: A Biblical Theology of Worship” by David Peterson for one of the courses I am taking this semester at seminary.  I have been challenged and uplifted by this book in just the first few chapters.  I love the way that Peterson thinks and articulates his thoughts.  On page 100 he writes, “New-covenant worship is essentially the engagement with God that he has made possible through the revelation of himself in Jesus Christ and the life he has made available through the Holy Spirit.”  I love that thought.  So often we think about what we, as humans, can bring to the table in worship.  However, in all truthfulness worship does not even originate within us.  We worship because God allows us to do so.  We have nothing to offer on our own, and the only way that we ever have anything to offer back to God is because he gave it to us to begin with.  When we come into worship we have nothing of our own to offer back to God, but rather we give back out of the overflow of what God has filled us with.  On page 101 Peterson writes, “God’s presence and God’s glory…are fully and finally experienced in Jesus Christ.”  The Old Testament understanding that the presence and glory of God dwelt only in the tabernacle or temple was done away with in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.  As Jesus is revealed to us, the very glory of God is revealed to us as well.  Think, then, of the implications of knowing Christ ever more intimately.  We begin to understand the glory of God more intimately as well.

We didn’t start the fire. It was always burning since the world’s been turning.

In case you have not heard, I finally got a firewood rack for the back patio.  It came yesterday evening, and I put it together and Kim and I filled it up.  I really like it.  It came with a cover that fits it perfectly, and it looks really nice and neat on the patio.  It will really be nice to have all of the wood up off the ground and away from the side of the house.  All but a few fires worth of wood fit on it, so we still have a little pile of wood on the ground.  But that is okay, I guess.  I am just really glad that all of our firewood is in one location that is up off the ground and away from the house.  It looks really neat and clean.  I am so ready for some fireplace weather.  I love the fall.  It is my favorite time of the year for weather.

Today is also a happy day, because my best friend David got engaged this morning.  I am so happy for him and Katy.  I really look forward to his wedding and being a part of their new life together.  I wish them all the best for sure.

I hope that everyone has a great rest of the day, and enjoy some time in corporate worship tomorrow.