"UNITY BEGINS WITH TWO"

Good Evening to All!

I'm definitely getting a late start on posting. For some reason all I wanted to do today was sleep! I guess it's the heat.

Tonight's devotion finds me thinking about marriage commitment (or the lack there of).

Some Pharisees wanted to test Jesus. They came up to him and asked, "Is it right for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"

Jesus answered, "Don't you know that in the beginning the Creator made a man and a woman? that's why a man leaves his father and mother and gets married. He becomes like one person with his wife. Then they are no longer tow people, but one. And no one should separate a couple that God has joined together."

The Pharisees asked Jesus, "why did Moses say that a man could write out divorce papers and send his wife away?"

Jesus replied, "You are so heartless! That's why Moses allowed you to divorce your wife. But from the beginning God did not intend it to be that way."
Matthew 19:3-8 CEV (Contemporary English Version)

Fast food and microwaves give way to the thinking that everything should be instant, easy and convenient. Marriage is not that way, and never has been, I'm sure. God made us each with different personalities and this causes complexity.

Marriage is something that takes a lot of work, commitment, and patience. Especially nowadays when the frame of mind is "oh well, if we don't get along we can always get a divorce". It seems like people are setting themselves up to fail when having that attitude. Granted, a lot has to do with the reason for getting married in the first place. I am a prime "example". It took me 3 marriages for it to work. My present hubby and I have been together for 25 years as of this past July 4th. Even in the beginning this marriage was rocky. When two strong personalities get together, the union takes a lot of give and take from both partners.

It seems as though people don't want to work at it anymore. They would rather either go through one of those "online dating services" that compare your personalities and find your date for you, then hopefully it's the right match and you get married and live happily ever after, or they go into the marriage with an "escape route" already mapped out just in case.

The legalistic Pharisees continually tested Jesus and challenged Him to answer their trick questions. In the passage above, Jesus doesn't dwell on divorce, but speaks to the heart of marriage and the mindset of couples who want to stay together. We need to leave our birth families as our prime emotional connection to be free to develop new bonds. Two individuals must get to know each other well enough to become of the same mind. They are to be united, or yoked. Oxen yoked together learned to move together in the same direction. In marriage we need time and practice with one another to develop a lasting attachment.

Divorce means a turning away, or apart, from one another. When one or both spouses start to move away in mind or spirit, they pull and tear apart the oneness. God doesn't want couples breaking apart. He designed marriage, and he is still the glue to join a man and woman in unity. Nurture your togetherness with listening, dating, encouragement, and unselfish acts of kindness.

For some reason, it seems as though people would rather take the "quick fix" of divorce (no matter who it hurts namely the children), then going to God and sincerely asking for His help. After all, He created us, He created marriage, and He IS love. If we would give Him a chance and listen to what He tells our spirits and abide by it, I have faith that a lot of heartache and marriages would be saved and revived. Remember, God is a Miracle Worker.

Usually, instant food, fast food and microwaved food is not nearly as tasty as food that is patiently prepared with time and effort. The same with relationships.

Ref. "The 365 Most Important Bible Passages for Women" by Faith Words.

Good Night to All and May God Bless.

IS COMMITMENT A SCARY WORD TO YOU?

Good Evening to All!

I got to thinking about this last night. I sometimes like to throw in colored type in my posts and it just dawned on me last night that they could be misconstrued as "links". Hopefully the words which I "colorize" will be noticeably not links. Please do not get upset if you click and nothing happens. I very rarely post links unless I'm doing a book review or thanking someone for something. Then I will post their links, but they will not be bolded.

The Answers to yesterday's Bible Trivia Questions are as follows:

1. Pharaoh, at the time Joseph was in Egypt . (Genesis 40:20)
2. The one at the court of Persian ruler Ahasuerus; The winner was Esther. (Ester 2)
3. Stephen (Acts 6:7-8:2)
4. The dream of Abimelech, in which he was told to return Sarah to Abraham. (Genesis 20:3-8)
5. The war of the kings of the north, led by Chedorlaomer, king of Elam. ( Genesis 14)
6. Noah, who planted a vineyard after leaving the ark. ( Genesis 9:21)
7. In the temple at Jerusalem; it was a chest, ordered by King Joash, who had a hole bored in the lid to keep priests from stealing funds. (2 Kings 12)
8. Eutychus, who dozed off and fell out of a window during Paul's sermon. (Acts 20:9)
9. "Be fruitful and multiply". (Genesis 1:28)
10. Abraham bought the Cave of Machpelah as a tomb for Sarah. (Genesis 23:3-20)
11. Jeremiah's scroll, sent to King Jehoiakim, was burnt piece by piece as it was being read to the king. (Jeremiah 36:21-23)Image via Wikipedia
12. Absalom led an attempt to overthrow his father, David. (2 Samuel 15-18)
13. Esther, whose real name was Hadassah. (Esther 2:7)
14: Cain (Genesis4:17)
15. Nimrod (Genesis 10:9)
16. Cain (Genesis 4:8)
17. Ruth
18. Abraham (Genesis 20:7)
19. Cana John 2:1-11)
20. The river turns to blood (Exodus 7:14-24)

*********************
Have you ever thought about the word "commitment"? Are you one of those people who think there are different levels of commitment? I mean, really think about it. One of the definitions of commitment is "the act of committing or pledging or engaging oneself. Another is a pledge or promise; obligation; involvement. I have always heard "a promise is a promise. You don't just "sort of keep your promise, you do it whole-heartedly. If you obligate yourself to do something, You don't do a partial job, you finish it. That is commitment.

There are no variables here you are either committed or not. I have heard many times, the question, "how committed are you to this project, person, etc. That doesn't make since. Either you are or your not. In other words what this word says to me is "all or nothing".

I know you're probably wondering what is this crazy woman getting at. Well, we had a fantastic service this past Sunday at church. We had a wonderful and insightful Sunday School lesson and it carried right through into the Worship Service. I would like to tell you just SOME of what I learned.

C O M M I T M E N T: Hanging on when others have let go.
C O M M I T M E N T: Demands action. It cannot be divorced from responsibility.
C O M M I T M E N T: Limits choices because it is exclusive.

There are many examples of committed people in the Bible, so let me name just a few.
1. Peter - was crucified and hung upside down .
2. Paul - was run out of town, beaten, stoned, starved, imprisoned, and eventually killed for his commitment to Christ.
3. Daniel- was thrown in the lion's den for his commitment to God.

Following Jesus - This commitment demands a choice.
To talk about Jesus is meaningless without a "walk with Him". In other words, if we are going to "talk the talk", then we need to "walk the walk". Otherwise people who are watching us will get the wrong impression of being a Christian. Not only that but we will have to account for our actions on judgment day.

Seven Signs to see if I'm (we) are Committed to God -These do not "help" you become committed, they are to check ourselves to see if we "ARE"committed to God.
1. Possess an extraordinary spirit ( the Holy Spirit). People will definitely notice there is something different about us in the way we talk, act, and carry ourselves. (Dan. 6:3)

2. No ground of accusation of evidence of corruption. (1 Tim. 3:2) Now I understand this verse is referenced in the context of a "bishop or elder of the church" . It also talks about being "blameless". Blameless in this sense according to the NKJV says that the idea of blameless is not that a person is sinless, but that he displays mature, consistent christian conduct that gives no reason for anyone to accuse them of anything.

3. Faithful. Can God trust me to do what He asks of me? (Dan. 6:4)

4. Live according to God's will. (Dan. 6:5) Be obedient to God's Word. Heb. 10:25, Acts 1:8, Ephesians 4:12, Philippians 2:3-4, Mal. 3:10.

5. Pray continually, despite the consequences. (Dan 6:10) No one says we have to make a spectacle of ourselves and "show everyone how we pray". As a matter of fact, we aren't supposed to. what He is talking about is praying when we can, to ourself, and even having a prayerful spirit.

6. We are under God's hand of Protection. This is not to say that bad things will not happen, just that God will see us through them. (Dan. 6:22)

7. We affect others with our commitment. (Dan. 6:26-28)

Daniel's commitment won the King over and showed the power of God

ONE COMMITTED PERSON CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

1. Daniel - Changed a nation
2. Moses - Led the Israelites out of Egypt
3. Esther - Saved Her nation

I hope you will indulge me, Tomorrow, I would like to continue along this line and tell you about Sunday's Worship Service. The worship and the message were phenomenal.

A little humorous note to end on... pertaining to the subject of Prayer being taken out of school. "As long as there are 'tests' , there will be prayers in school!"

Good Night to All and May God Bless