a piercing burning that goes straight to the core
of the deepest levels of who I am and what I long for
Oh Lord, it hurts
coming suddenly and unexpectedly
a sudden boiling swirling typhoon of the soul
the pain of what I deeply wish and long for
but has not been granted
what I think would make things better
would make me better
what you have not given at this time
and quite possibly might not give
Oh Lord, I don't want this green poison in me
choking out you and blinding me toall the good you have so graciously given me
1 Corinthians 4:7-8The Message (MSG)
7-8 For who do you know that really knows you, knows your heart?
And even if they did, is there anything they would discover in you that you could take credit for?
Isn’t everything you have and everything you are sheer gifts from God?
So what’s the point of all this comparing and competing?
You already have all you need.
You already have more access to God than you can handle.
Without bringing either Apollos or me into it, you’re sitting on top of the world—at least God’s world—and we’re right there, sitting alongside you!
And even if they did, is there anything they would discover in you that you could take credit for?
Isn’t everything you have and everything you are sheer gifts from God?
So what’s the point of all this comparing and competing?
You already have all you need.
You already have more access to God than you can handle.
Without bringing either Apollos or me into it, you’re sitting on top of the world—at least God’s world—and we’re right there, sitting alongside you!
"Isn't everything you have and everything you are sheer gifts from God?"
Yes, everything, everything is a gift from you
You are the source of all life, all goodness, all everything that I need
You give different gifts to different people at different times in our lives
stop comparing
we all need you, desperately and deeply
we all receive from you, deeply and generously
What you want most to give, is YOURSELF
What I need most right here and now is YOU
You alone can cool the burning
You alone can fill to the brim and even overflowing with your love
your care, your goodness, your peace, your kindness, your self-control
your hope, your joy
Galatians 5The Message (MSG)
The Life of Freedom
5 Christ has set us free to live a free life...
13-15 It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows.
For everything we know about God’s Word is summed up in a single sentence: Love others as you love yourself. That’s an act of true freedom. If you bite and ravage each other, watch out—in no time at all you will be annihilating each other, and where will your precious freedom be then?
16-18 My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit. Then you won’t feed the compulsions of selfishness. For there is a root of sinful self-interest in us that is at odds with a free spirit, just as the free spirit is incompatible with selfishness. These two ways of life are antithetical, so that you cannot live at times one way and at times another way according to how you feel on any given day. Why don’t you choose to be led by the Spirit and so escape the erratic compulsions of a law-dominated existence?
19-21 It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on.
This isn’t the first time I have warned you, you know. If you use your freedom this way, you will not inherit God’s kingdom.
22-23 But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.
23-24 Legalism is helpless in bringing this about; it only gets in the way. Among those who belong to Christ, everything connected with getting our own way and mindlessly responding to what everyone else calls necessities is killed off for good—crucified.
25-26 Since this is the kind of life we have chosen, the life of the Spirit, let us make sure that we do not just hold it as an idea in our heads or a sentiment in our hearts, but work out its implications in every detail of our lives. That means we will not compare ourselves with each other as if one of us were better and another worse. We have far more interesting things to do with our lives. Each of us is an original.
Dear Lord,
there is so much in this passage that I need to hear and deep down absorb.
please help me to receive your words
to trust and receive you into our deepest parts
whatever pain we are experiencing right now
you want to set us free to know your love for us deeply truly
and to be enabled to love others
help me right now where I am today to receive the gift of your love
of your Holy Spirit
to let your fruit grow in my life and let go of all I am clinging to to try to desperately meet my deep need of you
you give me yourself
you hold nothing back
you intend good for me
fill me with you
and your love
enable me to love
you are the greatest gift
i love you Lord
amen
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