IDIOSYNCRASY!

Idiosyncrasy could easily be a Word Of Week on any Wednesday for me. 

Wednesday PM is a note-taking time for H2H Bible Study. 

Peculiar. Unique. Maybe tending a little toward weird.

I write. When I write I vary colored pens with varying point sizes.

Pencils are necessary, especially for note-taking. NOT mechanical.

#2 lead. Ticonderoga comes to mind.

It's not so much the brand as the sharpness of the pencil. At least I don't have a Montblanc compulsion.

But God.....allows me my uniqueness. A note in my travel Bible reminded me. 

"Life without God is like an unsharpened pencil....it has no point."

Life is worth nothing without testifying to the good news of God's grace. (Acts 20:24) 

That my friends is my idiosyncrasy!

You can write it in pencil as long as the point is sharp!

SOVEREIGNTY!

How did you start your day today?

If you started with a cuppa self-sovereign-TEA, I hope you spit it out!

Paul David Tripp's New Morning Mercies ON Wednesday (3/22) reminded me that too often our behavior can replicate that of our toddlers. Me first. Mine. 

We can be our own worst enemy. We need to be rescued from ourselves!

More of Thee ........less of me!

We need to appropriate more of God's grace.

• Grace gives us hope.
• Grace decimates our delusions of self-sufficiency.
• Grace works on our behalf.
• Grace helps us submit to the true Sovereign God of all grace. (1 Peter 5:10)

Grace rescues us from us.(Tripp, New Morning Mercies, 3/22)

"sen-TEA-ment"

But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself....(Acts 20:24, KJV)

Sipping my morning brew from a cuppa with much sentimental value had warm nostalgia tugging at me as I began my Tea With Thee time. Certainly, there is a place for sentimentality in our lives. My "stuff" reflects my sentimental nature. I have LOTS of sentimental "tea" items.

But God....through today's My Utmost for His Highest entry, "Could This Be True of Me?" (3/4) got my attention. "It is easier to serve God without a vision (or call) because then you are not bothered by what God requires." Oswald Chambers likened such behavior as "actions guided by common sense, veneered over with Christian sen-TEA-ment."  Not focusing on "what God requires." Service for the Lord is NOT a place for sentiment. Sentiment can give a distorted spiritual picture. More me than Thee. Just a veneer to make my service look pretty.

Chambers' entry spoke to my heart because I am so influenced by my emotions and feelings----that it can become a detriment. Plus, I'm pragmatic to the core and both emotions and practicality can be a deterrent to "abandonment to God." (Chambers)

May I pray, as Chambers concluded. "Lord may I not consider if I am of use but may I only consider that I am Yours. May I serve You and do only what you require---act with justice, love kindness and walk humbly with you, O God." (Micah 6:8)

Saturday Question

Okay, I know it’s Sunday. But…..I was too tired to post when I got home last night from a glorious “get-a-way” with girlfriends….but God has had me querying myself thru the week,  and a BIG question came forth for consideration.

Am I hammering homiletics?

Answer: Yes, sad to say, too often I do.

In other words, am I always just “preaching” at friends and family or am I living the “gospel life”? As all folks know, actions indeed speak louder than words. If I am just viewing others thru legalistic lens, the lifestyle I reflect would be more of hammering and very little of grace. “Hammering” might easily be construed as disdain rather than love. 

If God views me thru the love lens of grace, shouldn’t I extend that to others as well?

Answer: Yes. A resounding YES!  I need to testify in actions as well as words to the “good news of God’s grace.” (Acts: 20:24)