MEASURING UP!

Measuring kids height on the side jambs of an upstairs door was a part of "growing up" at our house. These days it has extended to spouses and grands.

Often kids' friends would measure as well---some "cheating" to make them selves "taller." Years later these friends have brought their kids in to measure on the door & boast of their own measurement. Teddy. Tony. Katy. Stephanie.

What fun---especially when their own kids (Evan) see the discrepancy of height at the tippy-top of the side jamb compared to their true measure.Then they add their own measurements to compare to dad's "correct" one.

  

Measurements are a part of many aspects of life beyond physical to academic or career success, sports' prowess....even spiritual growth. What about righteousness? Could any of us measure up. 

NO is the answer. Paul David Tripp says it best.......Jesus has measured up on your behalf! (New Morning Mercies, January30)

R - WORDS STILL RUMBLING

Monday's Prayer for Revival group's passage was Titus 3:1-8.

The very first word was Remind----that started those "R"s rumbling in my head again. Part of the reminder from Titus was "be ready!" God had my attention first with remind and I was rapt when a few words later, ready appeared. Rapt. (Was my rapt fascination about to "rapture" me.) BTW, Webster has rapture as an "archaic" term.....he must not have ever gone to my church. But I digress.

More R words that readily jumped off the page, into my heart and out through my praying mouth were righteousness, regeneration and renewal. Repentance was in my marginalia. I think my most comforting "r" word was an adverb, (v.6), referring to God's  richly pouring out on us the Holy Spirit...richly (ESV) ie. abundantly, (NKJV) freely, (NIrV) generously (NLT)

After listing readiness ways in the first 7 verses, verse 8 states, "The saying is trustworthy..." Of course it is, it's God's word. Let's all REST in that truth! 

Thanks to Lisa Dufur who shared her "R" appreciation for the original R word entry, RRRRRRRRRR with some useful "u" words. Would love for others to share as well. (underlines are mine)

I read it and I loved it.  Love the U words too. Where do you get these cool ideas to worship and remind us of his Unfailing love for us? It helps Us Understand his Unlimited power which is so Uplifting. 

WOW WEDNESDAY

WOW---Words of Wisdom---Written on Wednesday.
Words that speak to me from the marginalia of my Bible.

• Desire a life measured more by kindness than competency. (source unknown)
• A sick bed can often teach more that a sermon. (T. Watson) 
• Jesus needs to photo bomb "selfies." (C. Huffman)
• What one pays for and prays for reveals much about their character. (4/7/18) 
• (_____'s) life demonstrates that forgiveness frees us from the burden of living in a prison of our own making. (Carol Kent)
• Sin is a righteousness problem---unrighteousness or self-righteousness. ( C. Huffman)
• God did not come to get man into heaven but to get God back into man! (? via Rad Andrews)

Words that continue to WOW me this Wednesday. Why not start a list of your own!

COOKING UP LEFTOVERS

Friday's blog entry concerned "new" to me words....and phrases! They kept stewing in my mind. I cooked them up much as I'm doing our food leftovers for tonight. Trying to use them in a palpable way.

So...today as I turned the corner from West Street to Poplar Avenue, I did a double take at a "new" to me restaurant with a "new" to me offering.

RIGHTEOUS CHICKEN!*

I recognize that righteousness is a little scarce among humanity these days. Our pleasure-seeking, self-serving culture seems to have given up watching out for his fellow man. 

For me, the good I want to do tends to not be what I do. (Romans 7:15)

But a chicken? Righteous?

I have no idea what a righteous chicken is! Can you just  pick it up at the drive-thru?

If any of you blog readers have a clue, let me know. I might need to add righteous chicken to our Monday night menu. 

I've got some roasted chicken I can heat up---I just don't know the recipe for righteousness.  

Apart from God's word that is----righteousness meant for humans, not chickens!

Oddly enough, I ran into the new owners at lunch today (3/8/18) across the street at West Street Dinner. I asked what righteous chicken was and they said come in and we'll show you! I'll keep you posted once I take them up on the offer. Not sure why they were at a competitor's establishment. Maybe they ran out of righteous chicken. and were looking for an ordinary substitute.

CHOOSE: A HEART OF RIGHTEOUSNESS

Choose righteousness and when that seems impossible....
GO right to the heart of the matter----choose the One who is righteous.

...He will be called the LORD, our Righteousness. (Jeremiah 23:6)

Do I hear an AMEN!

Rec-TEA-tude

But you, as a person dedicated to God, keep away from all that. Instead pursue righteousness, godliness, faithfulness, love, endurance, and gentleness. 1 Timothy 6:11, NET Bible)

 Pursuit of righteousness. Righteousness---synonymous with rectitude.

Rectitude was the word I heard last night from the monotone ”reading” voice on my audio iBook. It’s the word I remembered this morning as I struggled to awaken after a “short” night of sleep.

The struggle started last night as I was still awake in the wee hours because sleep had alluded me….probably because I had continued page turning in a book whose topic greatly disturbed me.*

One of my insomnia tactics is to listen to a work of non-fiction read by a monotonous voice in order to push out thoughts that are keeping me awake, thus lulling me to sleep. Even as I was lulled to sleep, that word, rectitude, stayed with me.

Strong moral principals to guide my loved ones’ thoughts and actions are always upper most in my desires for their lives. However, I know that rectitude cannot be legislated.....but it can certainly be modeled in the early years and prayed for in the latter.

A cuppa rec-TEA-tude.

May my children and their spouses sip such and serve it to their own children tempered with the milk of God's word and the fruits of righteousness.