Angels
This morning I began to read Hebrews when I was spending time alone with God, and I was intrigued by how the author felt compelled to write about how Jesus was superior to angels. I began look up the verses about angels. I don’t know much about them, but now I know a little more. These verses are really incredible:
We know angels are sent to protect and serve God's people:
“For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.”Psalm 91:11-12
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in Heaven.” Matthew 18:10 There are specific angels for the “little children” of the kingdom.
“Are they [angles] not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?”Heb. 1:14
We know angels praise God:
“Bless the LORD, O you his angels, you might ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word!” Psalm 103:20 We have authority to call on the angels to bless God.
“And all the angles were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying ‘Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen!”’Revelation 7:11-12 AMEN!
We know that on the last day the angels will gather the elect:
“And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect for the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”Matthew 24:31
“So it will be at the close of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”Matthew 13:49-50
We know that angels are subject to God and do His bidding:
“Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me roe than twelve legions of angels? But how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so?” Matthew 26:3-54
“Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entrained angels unawares.”Hebrews 13:1-2
We know angels rejoice in salvation of men (they will not be saved), and angels will participate in the condemnation of men:
“Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”Luke 15:10
“And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God,”Luke 12:8
“That is why a wife ought to wear a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.” I Corinthians 11:10
“For surely it is not angels that he helps, but the offspring of Abraham. Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.”Hebrews 2:16-17
“The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and they will walk with me in white, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before His angels.”Revelation 3:5
What does this mean to us today?
Giving Blood
As many of you know yesterday Rebekah gave blood. She had never donated blood before, so she was very nervous. It wasn’t so much the needles as the concept of her blood, which she deemed necessary, leaving her body for a greater good. All morning people were walking out of the make-shift blood Clinique with large bandages.
She was a bit of a nerd about the whole thing, because she looked up how she should eat, and what she should drink. She avoided fatty foods including ice-cream, hamburgers, fries etc. and stocked up on green leaves, a bit of chicken, and whole grains.
At 2:45 she marched herself up to the IM room. Alex got a picture of her anxious face (we’ll have to wait until Alex wakes up to show you). She gets there and signs up, and then realizes that the line is so long she should run and get her Physics books so she can study. Being the good girl that she is she worked on preparing for the test she has this morning during the hour that they had her wait. It really wasn’t terribly long, but she was nervous.
Finally they call “Rebekah Long”. She gathers her belongings and marches to the blue cubical. The nurse was nice. Happily Rebekah’s iron was high enough to donate. She was a bit concerned, but her little blood drop sunk right to the bottom of the test tube. It pays off to eat green vegetation on regular basis.
When the nurse was done she marched over to a vacant cot. Sadly, the girl who was next to her didn’t have good veins and it took the nurse three tries and several friends, to realize that she couldn’t give blood. Rebekah was a bit mortified that the same nurse would be getting her all wired up. She tried to concentrate on Gilead, the book she brought with her.
The nurse moved over to Rebekah’s cot after about 15 minutes. She wrapped a tight black band around her arm, which wasn’t very nice. It was actually the most annoying part of the whole process. For some reason Rebekah hates tightness. Getting her blood pressure taken is never pleasant. The black band made it so that she felt her pulse, which added to the nervousness.
In no time the needle was in and Rebekah’s blood was coming out. It was a rather simple process really. She was to squeeze a little makeshift stress reliever every 5-10 seconds. It didn’t hurt, but it felt weird. To be honest she felt a little dizzy and nauseous. To her credit, she tried to be brave reminding herself of how minor this sensation was compared to the pain her mother has endured over the years. The book she brought to distract her was at a very sad part. The old pastor was concerned about the man his middle-aged wife might marry after his death. It almost brought tears, and of course we couldn’t have her crying that would cause unnecessary concern.
After about 8 minutes the worst was over and Rebekah was unhooked. It took the nurse long enough to get that stupid black band off. Whatever.
She was instructed to eat and drink something before she left, and to keep her arm straight to minimize bruising. Oh, and to refrain from caffeine and alcohol. *Whimper*
After 15 minutes of resting up, and witnessing 3 people passing out, Rebekah felt safe leaving. She walked back to her room with a sore arm, but a confident spirit that she had done a good thing. She thought, “People need blood. Jesus would have given blood if he could… wait, Jesus did give blood. He gave it the hard way.”
Well, that isn’t a very interesting tale, but it is a hallmark in her life, because Rebekah intends to give as faithfully permits. She was rightfully nervous. It’s not fun giving blood, though she’s told it gets easier every time, which is a nice thought.
She took some pictures to share with you, and now we’ll get back to studying. Rebekah has a Physics test this morning. Also, it was worth the effort to keep her arm straight, this morning no bruise, just a little red dot. =)
Hey, check out this cool website that Rebekah found during her nerdy research:
http://www.bloodcenters.org/aboutblood/bloodfacts.htm
thoughts
I would say Sunday morning is probably the hardest time of the week. When I’m home I get up around 7:30 and head downstairs to enjoy coffee with Mom and Dad. We usually talk about something and help the little people get their breakfast. It’s not that I was extremely helpful Sunday mornings, but there is something special about going to worship God as a family vs. a single college student. This morning I woke up at 7:30, not because I needed to but out of habit. I got dressed spent some time on my hair, and then went to breakfast by myself. Most of the campus isn’t up by 8:30 on a Sabbath morning. It was a lovely and peaceful walk from here to the cafeteria. When I got back to my room it wasn’t even 9 and so I decided to write a bit. I began thinking about my family and how they are bustling around making sure shoes are tied and outfits match. My Dad is practicing the Psalms for worship and my Mom is making sure Luke can go help her put out bulletins. What a crazy life. I miss it.
There is a glorious independence that comes with growing up, but there is also an element of loneliness that can only be dealt with in terms of Gods abiding presence. I love going to Rose Point and sitting in the college row. I just have a new appreciation for family after spending several Sundays without one; which is why I’m coming home next weekend.
“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!”
God is faithful. Enjoy worship.
Blessedness and Silliness are Getting Worse
Oh, where to begin. Ahh yes, yesterday afternoon Rebekah met with her friend Esther in the limestone Library. They had originally intended to work on their Education paper which is due in three weeks, but the pressure of tomorrow’s History exam brought them to a quick agreement that the paper could wait. Studying was more important.
After an hour of note comparing the girls started talking “real life”. Yes, most would say History is real life, and Rebekah would be one of them, usually. You must understand that ancient History isn’t the most personable time period. Swing dancing and roommate controversies are far more realistic than Ma’at and Filial Piety.
At four our little History student packed up her books and headed back to her room to spend the next 5 hours studying. She took extensive notes of the text. This should have been done earlier. Thankfully she wasn’t terribly behind. Rebekah took an occasional break to talk to a long-loved brother and to get her food in the cafeteria, though these were multi-tasked into her studious mode, she had her head in the books for so long that it got to the point where she was misspelling things like the word “died”. She wrote:
“Legalism dide with the Qin Dynasty… “
She stared at the word for a while trying to remember one was the past tense of the word “die”. She quickly flipped her pencil over, and pretending it never happened tried again. Spelling it the same way as before she took a deep breath and laughed. “Lord, what are you going to do with me?” Rebekah likes to talk to God about herself, because sometimes He’s the only one Who’s compassionate enough to just listen.
She did get it right the third time, just for the record. Died.
At 8:30 she took a relieving break to go to accountability group in Jenny and Emily’s room. The refreshment of godly fellowship was just the thing to put Rebekah back on track. God’s hand-selected few are far more valuable than any friends Rebekah could have imagined for herself. He is faithful.
One of the girls at the “meeting” was dear Gretchen who happens to be in World History 143. Rebekah had offered her friend the use of her notes, because she felt awful that there had been so much time invested in the pathetic pieces of paper. She hoped that someone else would benefit from her effort. In reviewing the notes Gretchen noticed that there were about five pages dedicated to the Greeks. She said, “Um, we aren’t studying the Greeks. “
It was true. Our little friend had spend two hours pain-staking taking notes on a chapter that wasn’t supposed to be read until next time. This time God’s compassion on miss finite was made manifest in the smiles and encouraging hugs of the cheerful girls around. “Well, you’ll be ready for the next test.”
*sigh*
At 10:00 Rebekah made a bee-line for the gym. The wonderful thing about her being a college student is she can pretty much run her own schedule. The Elliptical is her new favorite way to study. She plopped 35 pages of History notes on the panel and away she went; 45 minutes later we had a tired but happy Becca. The notes were read, and the body was red. Hehe.
Anyways, back in the room there was a bit of a shower, and some messing around with the ever-distracting world wide web. Then she came to a key decision. Would she make coffee and stay up until 3 studying, or would she go to bed and get up at 5?
Counsel was given from caring friends and Mothers to go to sleep. Since the coffee had already been made, Rebekah decided to leave it until the morning. A 4 hour waiting period would make it stronger anyway.
To bed she went.
Before the sun was awake, our Rebekah was bouncing around the room coffee and notes in hand. She was really quiet though because of her precious roommates were sleeping. Breakfast provided a bit of a scenery change for the Scholar. 7:30 she was back in the room and little Jenna and Alex were beginning to show signs of life.
Naturally, Rebekah sang “You are my sunshine,” to ease the morning ritual of getting-up. By now she was on her forth cup of coffee, and her notes were in her head as best as she could remember them. Jenna says, “You are crazy. Why are you talking 100 miles an hour?” She replied, “I’m not, you are just slow because you just woke up.” From her cozy place of rest Alex remarked, “No, you are talking 100 miles an hour.” Whatever.
It’s true that coffee has an amazing way of making even the best day even better. On her way out Alex was in such marvel at the workings of the brew that she asked Rebekah to show her how to work the new coffee machine. Her wish was eagerly granted.
On her way to class Rebekah reviewed notes and tried to thank God for the gorgeous morning at the same time. Such confusing prayers could never be interpreted by anyone but the Holy Spirit Himself. The Lord knows the heart, and thankfully He is compassionate.
Thankfully Dr. Graham is compassionate aswell. Rebekah accidently spilled her offee on her History test. She dashed the bathroom and cleaned up the mess, but he provided her a new test and a smile. Thanks Dr. Graham.
God only knows how Rebekah did on her test, but she feels good. Now, exactly why she feels good may have nothing to do with the test… as you may have gathered. Hopefully, the results will only reconfirm that God wants Rebekah to teach History.
Thanks for… being Rebekah’s friend. At least I hope you are her friend, considering you’re rereading this 983 word blog.
Love- can't get away from it
What does it mean? When Jesus said, “follow Me,” what did He mean?
I used to think it had to do with some sort of point system. If I do enough Quiet Times and don’t get too many “marks” then I would be following Him.
This summer I discovered my argument to be based on a fallacy. Jesus paid the price. There is nothing I have to do to get to heaven, but the privileges of being a Christian are endless. Following Him is simply being like Him, which is what we want when we are saved, amen?
What does it look like? What does it mean for me to be “in His steps”? Pondering this question can cause waves of guilt. The sins of omission are real, and I don’t like to think about them. I am sinning when I don’t love my neighbor. In History class we were discussing the Confusion’s motto: don’t do unto others what you would not have them do unto you. If that is what Jesus had said, then I would be off the hook most of the time. But He said do. He commands action and consideration. His love is an active love.
Now, sometimes I get carried away and I become overwhelmed with what it means to really follow Christ. The possibilities are endless and there is so much that I am not doing for Him. That is when I am reminded that God knows I’m finite. Unlike Him, I cannot take care of everyone and everything at one time. However, I am to take care with the time that He has given me. I am at Grove City College recovering from culture shock. These people are all my age and they don’t have the same needs that I am used to addressing on the home front. Yet, they do have needs. It is my job to assess the situation and then come up with a game plan. I am learning how to love in a new way.
When I was agonizing over where I should go to college I knew that I needed to get out of the house, but I couldn’t articulate why. Now I’ve realized that God wanted to teach me love in a new way. I am depending on Him in a way that I didn’t at home, because He is my Father- the only one I’ve got with me. I am looking to Him for counsel, comfort and compassion in ways that I didn’t at home because those needs where met through people in my life.
I am learning how to be loved by God in a new way, and now I need to learn how to love through God in a different way. There are hurting people everywhere. We all need love, but we receive it in differently.
The cool thing about following Jesus is that it’s never boring. There isn’t a formula that gets old after a while. Love has a multitude of forms and we just have to use them. What a thing to pursue, mastering love. We die and Jesus says, “Well done my good and faithful servant. You have mastered love. Enter glory.”
“In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.”
I John 4:10-12
I love that, that we can’t see God but we can see his love- in ourselves and in one another. It’s a great plan.
Housekeeping item:
I misplaced my student ID. I had it last night when I came to bed, and this morning I couldn’t find it to go to breakfast. I have a temporary one, but it costs 20$ to get a new one so I would like to find it.
Also, this is my 700th post. I suppose that's funfact not housekeeping. Lol.
Thanks
Thoughts on Romance when I should be reading Econcomics
There is something unique about the Christian account of creation. Several religions claim that god/gods made the world and the people in it, so how are we to know that the Bible is the accurate account? What is so specially about Moses’ version The Beginning?
When God made man he made him out of dust and then as Dr. Gamble would say, He kissed him. Theunromantic way of saying it: “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.” Imagine man laying limb in God’s hand and then God leans down to Adams face and breaths into him life. What a glorious moment when Adam first gazed into the face of God inches away from his own.
Next, Adam watched as the LORD planted a garden. Then, “The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.” God led man to his work. He took him and placed him in his domain. It was after they were in the garden that the first recorded conversation between God and man took place. God commanded,
“You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day you eat of it you shall surely die.”
Adam was standing in this bountiful garden, and God introduces his first law. Death is the punishment of disobedience, yet how did Adam know the meaning of death? We take for granted that we understand death. Adam had no experience with anything coming to an end.
Then, the Lord said, “It’s not good for man to be alone; I will make a helper fit for him.” Now, we would expect Eve to come into the picture now, but she does not. God makes the animals. He recognizes that man is alone, and it is not good, but he gives Adam some time to live alone. He brings Adam the animals and whatever Adam calls them that is their name. After the long processional of elephants, bears, penguins Adam still has not found a helper fit for him.
God likes us to serve Him and focus on Him before fulfilling the need that He already understands. It would have been easy for Adam to be naming these animals thinking that God has forgotten or made a mistake. God knew that Adam needed Eve, the Bible makes note of that early on. Adam needed to understand that before his own needs came his relationship and his service to God.
“So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on the man.”
Adam had had a long day: Meeting God, tending the garden, getting his first command, being lonely, naming the animals, and still not finding someone to fulfill his needs. God causes him to sleep. Had Adam been a control freak like some of us, he would have fought sleep. He would have demanded for answers. He would have agonized over his need for a helper and pointed to the animals saying, “they have helpers, why can’t I?”
God wanted Adam to rest in Him and trust Him. It was in Adam’s sleep that God made Woman.
“And the rib that the LORD had taken from the man He made into a woman and brought her to the man.”
God forms Eve. She is His last act of creating. She is not made from the earth like the man and the animals. She is made from Adam, and (as I Cor. 11 says) she is made for Adam.
Eve doesn’t get the kiss of life. God used living flesh to make her. When God had made woman He brought her to the man. Eve followed God before she met Adam. She had to trust Him. Remember that when God made man he “placed him in the garden”. Adam’s first priority was his work. When God made Eve, it she already in the garden, but He “brought her to man.” God guided Eve. He walked with her.
What a moment when Adam awoke from his rest to find Woman being brought to him. Perhaps the habit of a girls father bringing her down the aisle originated from this first wedding ceremony. Think of Adam’s face, it couldn’t have been too different from the grinning faces of the happy grooms we see in our day.
The first recorded words that man has ever spoken are a love song:
“This at last, is bone of my bonesAnd flesh of my fleshShe shall be called Woman,Because she was taken out of Man.”
God then makes an interjection in the story. Like a good film director would fade out of such a love scene, so God fades out to make the point that “Therefore, a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” Adam didn’t have a father and a mother, so this command was written for those of us who follow the example of the first marriage.
I would submit that any other creation text is not nearly this romantic nor this pure. God wrote Bible, and it’s lovely. There is so much to gain. I mostly speculate as you know. I have no authority to interpret Scripture other than the Holy Spirit opening my eyes.
It’s important for us to consider Adam and Eve. It’s the way it’s supposed to be. I’ve heard guys complain that it was easy for Adam because he didn’t have anyone else to choose from; Eve was made for him. Yet, God didn’t indulge Adam’s desire for Eve right away. He introduced him to the Animals first. Adam was naming the animals waiting for Eve to come up the line, but she didn’t. So Adam had to rest in the Lord. Then he found his wife. God brought her to him.
I’ve also heard girls say the Eve just woke up one day and got her man. It’s important for us to remember that God has to lead us. God has made us, and he will also lead us to the man he has for us. We need to follow Him.
The Bible is incredible. It’s romantic in a way that mortal authors cannot be. God’s word speaks to the heart. It shapes our very soul.
A Girl and Her Coffee
The clear Pennsylvania sky beckoned her to come and follow. What is a person to do when the sky looks so inviting? She reached up for it with all her might, but to no avail- other than some queer stares from fellow students walking past. Thankfully they were on their cell phones so they weren't really paying attention anyway.
She is happy tonight, our little Rebekah. She is reflecting on the good friends and family that God has given her here at school and back home... or wherever home may be for her friends. She is thankful tonight. She is thankful to the God who made the sky.
On her way back to her room she considered the amount of work to be done over the weekend. Then floor tiles seem to be saying, "coffee, Becca get yourself some coffee." She replied. No it's true. In a whisper, "I can't. I don't have a coffeemaker!" "We dare you." What does a girl say to that? If a floor tile dares you to make some coffee, then you just gotta. There’s no way around it.
Back in her room Rebekah scanned her surroundings. She had to be resourceful. There was no coffeemaker, but coffee doesn't need a maker, it just needs to percolate. She considered dumping out a teabag filling it with coffee and taping it shut. It didn't seem likely that the tape would last long enough.
Then she saw the Dora paper cups! "Jenna, can I use one of your cups?" She politely asked with a determination in her voice that Jenna had never heard before.
Thankfully, Jenna isn't terribly attached to her Dora the Explorer Dixie cups. She offered one up for the cause. A bobby pin was inserted into the bottom of the cup to make a sufficient hole. Using a paper towel liner Rebekah carefully scooped two tablespoons of her freshly opened Hazelnut coffee beans into the cup. Steaming hot water was poured over the dry coffee beans, and Eureka coffee dripped out the bottom into the awaiting mug.
*Smiles all around* Rebekah mixed in a bit of Alex's chocolate mint power. It wasn't necessary, but chocolate seemed to be desire worth satisfying.
Jenna announced that she hated coffee and chocolate. Although it’s true, Rebekah replied with a sigh, "Our friendship comes to a halting shriek right there."
Jenna laughed.
"Girl, you need some sleep. Shrieking halt?"
Rebekah smiled, she had her coffee- a good thing.
And, as the song goes, too much of a good thing, is a good thing.
She was Late to Class
This morning our darling little Rebekah decided to turn off her lovely alarm and get a bit more required sleep. She dreamed of lake houses and beautiful gardens. Suddenly, she was jarred from the enchanting paradise to ask the question, "what time is it?" Sure enough, it was 8:05 AM meaning she'd be a solid six minutes late to her History class. On a normal day she may have considered sleeping through class, but they have a big paper coming up and the Professor was going to talk about it this morning.
She didn't bother getting dressed. She just threw a
hoodie over her tank-top and slipped on a pair of jeans. She didn't get to the bathroom brush her teeth/hair, and apply some much needed makeup. She just whipped up something resembling a
flopsy ponytail, pulled the 'hopefully my glasses will cover' and headed off to class notebook in hand.
The first thing she said was, "good morning" to a man jogging by. He had an odd mustache. The world was beautiful, and she couldn't help laughing at herself. She is on her own, and that means there's
no one here to wake her up for class.
The moral of the story:
When dreaming of lovely
lakehouses and
spectaular gardens avoid the question, "what time is it?"
Back at School
Coming home this weekend was like jumping to a rushing after a long hot run and then trying to swim against the current. It was 100% refreshing. At the same time, it's 100% wonderful to be back here. I am tired, so this won't be long. The wedding went well. I love weddings. To quote Fiddler on the Roof "It gives us something to think about, something to drink about..." Yeah, that explains it.
It was good to worship at "my" church again. I love you. I am praying for you. My heart feels divided, soon I hope it just grows big enough to be all here and all home depending on where I happen to be.
I have some projects/papers due this week. I am looking forward to getting a move on this whole education business. The first week or so seems so... easy.
I want to take a moment to say that God is great. He is holy. He is awesome. He is wonderful. He is good. He is kind. He is merciful. He is just. He is generous. He is wise. He is powerful. He is present. He is perfect. He is the one and only God. We get to be HIS. We get to spend forever worshiping Him. We get to serve HIM on this earth. We get to know what He wants and do it with delight. We get to enjoy GOD.
Homework and Happiness
Tomorrow I am packing a bag to go home. It's a weird thought. I have lots of homework to do, but I'm putting it off for no given reason. I'm happy because I'm starting to get to know my place here. I'm beginning to pick up on where girls are at, and now I can address their needs. I'm happy because I get to read 30 pages in my History textbook. I hate textbooks, except for History. I love History. I'm happy because I have really yummy water to drink on a hot day. I'm happy because I had Education class this morning, and Dr. Mackey made me want to be a teacher all over again.
God has made it possible for us to enjoy life. I realize that there are hard times, but by enjoying Him we can enjoy the life that He has given us to live. It's lovely. What a God? What a love? What a life?
