reading reflections
functional deism
by liv on Oct.13, 2009, under quotes, reading reflections
Either I’ve been completely oblivious to it or so inundated with it that I have become numb to it.
It seems “normal.”
I think if you and I were honest with one another about where were we’d been, we’d soon learn that while we have said (or maybe are saying, currently) we believe in God…we have lived life as if we were functional deists. Yes, God is there. Yes, I believe in His existence. Beyond that….I. Don’t. Care.
Hosea 3 “The greatest story ever told”
by liv on Aug.04, 2009, under reading reflections, what i'm learning
And the LORD said to me, “Go again, love a woman who is loved by another man and is an adulteress, even as the LORD loves the children of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love cakes of raisins.” So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a lethech of barley. And I said to her, “You must dwell as mine for many days. You shall not play the whore, or belong to another man; so will I also be to you.” Hosea 3:1-3
Even though this chapter is 5 verses long, it is packed with rich and profound reflections that point so clearly back to Christ. In short, it speaks of the reality of Jesus’ death on the cross and the implications that it has for all of us, especially believers.
Hosea 2:2-25
by liv on Aug.03, 2009, under reading reflections, what i'm learning
“For their mother has played the whore; she who conceived them has acted shamefully. For she said, ‘I will go after my lovers, who give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, my oil and my drink. Therefore I will hedge up her I will build a wall against her, so that she cannot find her paths. She shall pursue her lovers but not overtake them, and she shall seek them but shall not find them. Then she shall say, ‘I will go and return to my first husband, for it was better for me then than now.’
And I [the Lord] will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know the LORD.” Hosea 2:5-7, 19-20
It’s crazy to think that Hosea knew what would become of his wife long before it ever happened. The Lord’s revelation is never easy and I can’t imagine how hard it would be to not only walk through it but more than that– to love her despite everything.
Hosea 1:1-2:1
by liv on Jul.28, 2009, under my thoughts and heart..., reading reflections
When the LORD first spoke through Hosea, the LORD said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the LORD.” So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son. v. 1:2-3
Have you ever wondered what kind of man Hosea was? I mean, seriously. For God to tell you, “look, I want you to marry this woman and she will become a whore. She will give birth and then she will leave you. She will leave you in hopes of finding something better, something different. She will never be satisfied. While she does this I want you to love her. I want you to care for her from afar. I want you to reflect the kind of love that I have and will show to the people of Israel….’
Ruhama: She has received mercy…
by liv on Jul.27, 2009, under my thoughts and heart..., reading reflections
When I signed up to be an R.A. I never thought I would be placed on a hall that didn’t have a name. Never, in a million years, did I think that I would be responsible for naming a hall. Hall names are forever. Seriously. They make up the identity of the hall, the reputation of it throughout campus. Nope, I didn’t think that job would be mine nor did I want that kind of burden. What if my kid comes here and finds out that I named the hall…
give me life
by liv on Jul.09, 2009, under reading reflections
Give me life
by calling me to die
Give me life
by calling me your own
Give me life
by loving me beyond my failures
Give me life
by saving me to yourself
Give me life
by being all that you are, to me.
Inspired from Psalm 119:154-159
Repentance That Sings
by liv on Jul.30, 2008, under reading reflections
I think I mentioned to you before that I am reading Holiness By Grace by Bryan Chapell with the youth staff at Park Cities Presbyterian Church. This past week we had to read chapter 3 which talks about Repentance (cue title). In the beginning I wasn’t really getting into it as much as I would have liked but by the end of it I loved it. Chapell is so wise and has some great, great insights into what repentance looks like for the believer as well as the unbeliever.
He starts off with saying that, “true repentance starts with recognition of the holiness of our God” (p. 72). Our focus has to begin with this because we have to begin to comprehend the vastness of his goodness and how small and wicked we are in light of Him. This is where a truly repentant heart should begin… (continue reading…)
