Think On These Things ~ Psalm 119: 9-16

How can a young man keep his way pure?

By guarding it according to your word.

With my whole heart I seek you;

let me not wander from your commandments!

I have stored up your word in my heart,

that I might not sin against you.

Blessed are you, O LORD;

teach me your statutes!

With my lips I declare

all the rules of your mouth.

In the way of your testimonies I delight

as much as in all riches.

I will meditate on your precepts

and fix my eyes on your ways.

I will delight in your statutes;

I will not forget your word.

Psalm 119: 9-16

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A Monday on a Tuesday

We were out of town this past weekend and came back on Monday so yesterday sort of functioned as my Monday complete with accidentally pulling my blinds down off my bedroom windows, Claire dropping a whole watermelon on the floor (a surprisingly loud thump considering how big the juicy splatter was) followed by me dropping a brand new bag of cat food all over the laundry room.

Sigh. Some days are just like that I guess. But you know what? It was still a good day. I mean, you know how sometimes a Monday sort of day happens and it makes you want to just climb back into bed and hide under the covers? Thankfully it wasn’t like that. Instead it was just a day full of some ridiculousness.

Oddly enough I found myself contemplating how love covers a multitude of sins. Not because any of those Abbott and Costello incidents were sinful, because obviously they weren’t, but it would have been easy to let any one of those things derail the day and my whole attitude.

We face the same thing within our relationships, don’t you think? Little incidents come up that can really put a kink in our day and cause serious frustration within a relationship but we can choose to not let it affect us that way. Here is something I have learned about myself. If I am struggling with covering the sin of someone in my world I have forgotten the times that I needed my own sin covered and I can tell you that is a bad place to be. One really good way to combat bitterness and pride is to be humble and recognize my own need for mercy and grace.

Even when it’s not just some kind of comedy routine that we’re experiencing. Even when we are suffering very real wounds at the hands of someone else’s actions. We aren’t told to only cover the small incidental sins. We are admonished to continue to love one another earnestly because love does cover a multitude of sins. Ours is to keep loving each other because love has already covered sin and will continue to do so.

We can never run out of grace.

Later on I was editing some pictures I had taken of a couple of butterflies in the backyard and remembering how excited I was to have captured a butterfly in flight above a flower. As I went through the images my attention was caught by some shots that showed the wings in all of their ragged beauty. They weren’t in pristine condition but showed wear and tear, literally.

I’m not really sure what the connection is between what I had been pondering earlier and that little butterfly but somewhere I found something comforting in seeing how it had flown from flower to flower despite its jagged edges. It was not diminished by the signs of its suffering and neither are we when we choose to suffer the wound and cover the sin.

Think On These Things ~ Ecc. 3:1-8

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under 

heaven:

a time to be born, and a time to die;

a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;

a time to kill, and a time to heal;

a time to break down, and a time to build up;

a time to weep, and a time to laugh;

a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;

a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

a time to seek, and a time to lose;

a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

a time to tear, and a time to sew;

a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

a time to love, and a time to hate;

a time for war, and a time for peace.

~ Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Think On These Things ~ Hebrews 2:1-13

Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution,  how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.

For it was not to angels that God subjected the world to come, of which we are speaking. It has been testified somewhere,

“What is man, that you are mindful of him,
    or the son of man, that you care for him?
You made him for a little while lower than the angels;
    you have crowned him with glory and honor,
    putting everything in subjection under his feet.”

Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him.  But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering.  For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying,

“I will tell of your name to my brothers;
    in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.”

 And again,

“I will put my trust in him.”

And again,

“Behold, I and the children God has given me.”

Think On These Things ~ I Peter 2:1-5

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. 

Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—

if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God 
chosen and precious, 

you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a 
holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus 
Christ.
I Peter 2:1-5

Think On These Things ~ Proverbs 21:21

Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness will find life, righteousness, and honor.
Proverbs 21:21