"Because you are God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with heartfelt mercy, with kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another; forgive whatever grievances you have against one another. Forgive as the Lord has forgiven you. Over all these virtues put on love, which binds the rest together and makes them perfect. Christ’s peace must reign in your hearts, since as members of the one body you have been called to that peace. Dedicate yourselves to thankfulness. Let the word of Christ, rich as it is, dwell in you. In wisdom made perfect, instruct and admonish one another. Sing gratefully to God from your hearts in psalms, hymns, and inspired songs." Colossians 3:12
As a society we've put these values to rest. I see no mercy and kindness, just incessant attacks by the State and it's supporters in politics and the Jurassic press. Rush Limbaugh goes to the hospital and those people cheer and hope he dies. Sarah Palin, a mother that has stayed married and raised a family with her husband, has loving parents, got involved in her community and effected good change, is hated and vilified in the most vile ways. What kind of culture is it that promotes the suffering of others?
I don't want to chronicle all the ills our country is suffering. All I can do is know and practice the best I can the values Paul says we as Christians must live, expressed from our hearts. We can only influence the small circle around us...be the stone in the small calm pond that sends out ripples. The waters are turbulent now, so we must use bigger stones of kindness, meekness, humility and patience. That's very tough, because the people in power now, politics and press and popular culture see those as weakness and gives them the right to force their ideology of command and control on the rest of us.
I pray for myself that I can, this coming year, be meek (I'll need to write about what that means later, it's not what most people think it is), kind, patient, with love in my heart. It's hard, especially now, because Christians are under assault, as are people that want the freedom to make their own life choices without the intervention of the State.
This year for me, more Bible study, lots and lots of praise, lots and lots of worship, lots and lots of singing praises, and sharing as much Love as I can, and express Thankfulness.
2 comments:
Our duty as Christians is to avoid conforming to the rest of the world, to continue to engage the forces of darkness in battle, and expose them to the Truth..
Keep up the good fight!
~~My best friend Kelly's response she sent me in an email: "I too pray so often please God let me practice the fruit of the Spirit, let me love others like you love them. Let me know that my JOY is because I am yours! Let there be peace that only the Prince of Peace can cause to happen in my day. Father give me patience for others like you have for me. Let me be kind and good to those I would not. Help me to be faithful to you Father, to secrets that have been told to me, to my work, my friends, my family. Where I probably fail the most give me self-control in my speech, my eating, my thoughts. Then with you Holy Spirit the law has no power."
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