Do You Ever Feel As Though The Bible Is Talking Directly To You?

Hello!  According to Facebook, it’s been 13 days since I have last written a blog.  Facebook assures me that my 2435 followers would love to hear from me so, without any further ado, here goes!

What have I been doing these last 13 days, you might wonder?  Hmn.  Good question!  Well, I’ve been enjoying the beautiful October weather our Good Lord has been providing.  I got a new vehicle.  I have been celebrating my 53rd birthday, went shopping for craft items that may or may not ever get used {Sidebar:  I asked my gson the other day as we gazed upon my closet of supplies if he ever thought I’d use them all.  “Maybe if you stop buying more, you could use what you have, and then in a few years, maybe then you could buy some more.”}.  I’ve been doing a lot of pondering, plotting, and planning.  I’ve even done some Bible studying in the Book of Jeremiah that has had me considering--but more about that later.  

So, long story short, I’ve been wandering about.  Imagine then my surprise when today’s reading from Jeremiah 31:22 seemed to jump right out at me.  Can you believe that God would use His Word to speak to me?  I know, right?  Hey, I may have just turned 53 but there are still some things that have the power to blow my tiny little mind!

How long will you gad about,
O you backsliding daughter?

Another verse that jumped right out at me this morning while reading was this one from Jeremiah 30:2 that states:  “Thus speaks the Lord God of Israel, saying: ‘Write in a book for yourself all the words that I have spoken to you.’”  It was as if an affirmation for me to get back to blogging was being spoken to me by God Himself!  Ha!  So it wasn’t just the couple of folks who let me know they’d been missing my writing:  God too was telling me to write.  

So, just to be clear, let’s review for a moment.  I’m to stop gadding about and I am to write in a book.  Does that sound right to you out there?  I think so too!  Now, before you get to reaching for that mouse to delete this (because you think I am going to write that book right now) or move on to your next great adventure, I assure you that I am almost through for this blog. Hang with me one more moment or two?  Thanks!

Sometimes a word will strike a chord with me and keep resonating in my mind.  For the past couple of weeks that word has been “consider.”  Consider means “to think carefully about (something), typically before making a decision.”  Synonyms for consider include:  think about, contemplate, reflect on, examine, review, mull over, ponder, deliberate on, chew over, meditate on, ruminate on, assess, evaluate, appraise, size up (thanks Google for the assist there!).  Another reiteration that I am on to something is the fact that another verse from Jeremiah that I read this morning stated:  In the latter days you will consider it (30:24).

Consider what, you might ask.  Me too!  But then...then instead of asking, I’ve been taking moments--several of them!--and...considering.  I’ve been considering the beauties the Lord has provided.  I’ve been considering the upcoming presidential election.  I’ve been considering my church and the people in her and the pastor who preaches there.  I’ve been considering my family, my purpose, myself.  I’ve been considering so many things and while it may seem to the outside world that I have just been gadding about, the truth of the matter is that I am trying to be more considerate about what I write, consider who is reading these blogs, and mostly?  Mostly I’ve been trying to consider if the words I write are honoring God or promoting my own agenda--which I didn’t really think I even had but (you guessed it!) I’ve been considering that too!

As I close this blog today, I ask you to join me in considering.  Remember the definition I wrote above?  Consider means to think carefully about (something), typically before making a decision.  Friends, sometimes we act too hastily and we just need to take a minute, a breath, a prayer and consider whatever is on our hearts and minds and think carefully before it comes out of our lips (and fingertips, in my situation).  We need to pause, to be still, to contemplate, and to seek the Lord’s guidance in all that we do--even the things that seem harmless and not worth bothering Him over.  Typically, those are the things that come back to bite us, aren’t they?  Mmn hmn.

Let’s pray!

Dear Father, as I consider so much of what is billowing through my head, I can’t help but again ponder on what the psalmist wrote so long ago:  

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,
What is man that You are mindful of him,
And the son of man that You visit him?
For You have made him a little lower than the angels,
And You have crowned him with glory and honor.

How You took the time for me still is a mystery, Lord, and I shall spend the rest of my life considering the love that You have for mankind.  My prayer today is that I may look at the world through the eyes of Christ.  May I see Your people the way He looks at them.  May I appreciate the beauty You Three created.  May I love in a manner that reflects that not only do I consider the example set before me, that I am a doer of that example and not just one who writes about it.

Thank You for Your love, tender mercies, and the infinite longsuffering You extend to me, Father God.  I love You and yearn to please You.  In the name of Jesus Christ, may I seek You before making my own plans is my sincere desire today.  Amen.