Daily Archives: December 12, 2009

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"It's the supreme art of the devil that he can make the law out of the gospel. If I can hold on to the distinction between law and gospel, I can say to him any and every time that he should kiss my backside. . . . Once I debate about what I have done and left undone, I am finished. But if I reply on the basis of the gospel, 'The forgiveness of sins covers it all,' I have won."

-- Martin Luther

The sermon...(color me frustrated) on the Sabbath.  I heard on "Issues Etc." that one way to critique a sermon is to count the number of times that "Jesus" is mentioned.  This sermon:  ZERO.

The point the pastor made was that God used the Sabbath to show us that we (humans) need a rhythm and rest and we should follow God's example because of our health and well-being.

Yes...I agree...BUT...

It should have the OPENING...not the conclusion.

We follow the Sabbath commandment, not  only because of our health and well-being (and because it's a commandment)  -

we should also keep it at the forefront of our minds, our souls, our hearts...that God have us the Sabbath Law as a foreshadowing of things to come.

(That matter of first importance)

Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures.

Because of Christ's finished work on the cross, we no longer depend on the works of the Law for our salvation.

Christ IS our Sabbath rest.

Not only that, but those who are found in Christ should reflect on the Sabbath and use that time to reflect on our future...the eternal Sabbath.

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I am certainly in a very different place than I was a year ago.  Oh my....how different.

I usually set a few goals (only to have them fall aside pretty early.

Yesterday I watched Harry Potter (the first one) for the first time.  Harry was looking into that mirror, in which he saw his parents (who had been killed when he was a baby)

The headmaster came up behind him and told him that men had wasted their lives staring into that mirror...gone mad even.  It showed their deepest desires.

"It will not do to dwell on the dream...and forget to live"

My goal for this coming year is to not forget to live.  I'm not going to wait around for life to change for me...I could waste my life waiting for that change.

  • I've signed up for 2 classes (the Philosophy of Religion and Orientation to Deafness) - both are book classes, not art classes so I think I'll be good.
  • See an academic counselor about transferring my credits to Grand Valley.
  • Be outdoors more, enjoy creation.
  • Cut my blogroll down and spend less time on line
  • Remember my books and crafts

Enjoy the life that God has for me right now.

There's more...

When the kids lived here the living room was "theirs" - they watched tv and played video games and if what they were watching didn't appeal to me (most of the time) I stayed in my office or bedroom and watched tv there or played on the computer.

Now...the whole house is mine and I'm going to use it.  I changed the furniture around in the living room, got a new reading lamp and (darn it) I'm going to enjoy my house.  I'm going to learn how to use the DVD player on the big TV.

I'm going to read in my big comfy couch.

Above all...I need to shake this depression that grips me...the loss.  Stagnation sucks - depression sucks worse.