2 Kings 23:25
Never before had there been a king like Josiah, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and soul and strength, obeying all the laws of Moses. And there has never been a king like him since.
The best there is, the best there was and the best there ever will be. That's putting that verse into more simpler words. I read this verse Saturday morning and I couldn't help but wonder why this was said about him. When you analyze the passages about him in 2 Kings, it is actually less than two chapters. Yet he was given such honor in the end. Why?
Well first of all, he restored the temple. He knew his priorities. he knew that its not strengthening the army or improving education or building more defenses that Judah needs. he saw the truth that the center of Judah's strength and protection is the Lord. With that, he saw the need to bring the people back to God by giving them back a place to worship.
The second impressive thing he did came when Hilkiah, the high priest found the Book of the Law. When it was read to Josiah, he tore his clothes in despair. He saw the situation for what it is, that they have not followed God's law. He showed an amazing fear for God. He didn't end up saying: "Uh oh, we messed up a bit, but oh well, God loves us anyway too much" but rather he saw the severity of their mistakes. He humbled himself for the people knowing what God can do and who God really is
Now this is what really impressed me. After he heard the Law and saw the mistakes of Judah, he immediately made reforms. He started by calling all the people and renewed the covenant. No, he did not single out just the leaders, he wanted everyone to be there, he realized it was a personal commitment not just for leaders or elders but every single Israelite. Then he went on a rampage after this. Starting from the temple he incinerated all worship that does not belong to the Lord then moving on to all other places of worship as well. He demonstrated such passion it shames me. In our own lives, can we actually do that? Starting from ourselves, can we eliminate all worship that is not for the Lord? Can we remove self-centeredness from our lives? Now in our group of friends or our family, are we zealous enough to share about Christ and keep him in focus so that it will only be Him who is receiving glory in those relationships? In our spheres of influence, have we used it to make sure Christ's name is known? I am guilty of not being able to do so but Josiah sure did a great job with this.
An amazing thing that Josiah did was in the altar at Bethel. He tore down the altar, burned down the shrine and burnt bones on the altar to desecrate it. So what? Well, what he actually did was prophesied during the time of Jeroboam in 1 Kings 13. What I saw in Josiah that he did what God designed him to do. I see that as a great thing. To be able to act according to your design made by the Creator is an honorable thing for me and best place to be and I saw that in Josiah. What a very blessed man to act according to his design. And what's great is he was designed to be good and meaning he actually lived a good life.
The last point I saw was really a good quality of Josiah. After all this elimination of sin, he didn't stop there. He celebrated Passover after so many years and did what the Israelites used to do. This just struck me. Sometimes we end up just taking out sin in our lives but not readying our selves for anymore sin. But what Josiah did is he went back to spiritual disciplines. After all the Passover reminds them of God's faithfulness. It's the same way with our spiritual disciplines. As long as we remind ourselves of our God and who He is, we won't let sin come back. And Josiah, the great king Josiah saw that.
Know who you need. See the sin for what it is. Eliminate the sin. Arm yourselves to combat sin. Simple concepts taught by the life of Josiah. Concepts I want to live by everyday of my life to glorify my Lord, my Father. Then maybe one day this can be said about Andre:
"Never before had there been a mining engineer like Andre, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and soul and strength, obeying all the laws of Moses. And there has never been a mining engineer like him since."
(2011 edit)
"Never before had there been a lawyer like Andre, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and soul and strength, obeying all the laws of Moses. And there has never been a lawyer like him since."
or even better:
"Never before had there been a husband like Andre, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and soul and strength, obeying all the laws of Moses. And there has never been a husband like him since."
Wherever you are, whoever you are, whatever you do, strive to be the best there is, the best there was, the best there ever will be in glorifying God.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Attractions
I guess for guys we encounter different attractions in our lives. It's funny how we can group them according to how they capture our heart and though how I name the type of attractions seem to be the same, it's actually different in purpose and how God placed them.
First would be the so-called "girl of my dreams". This would usually be the girl that you've dreamt of as a little boy characterized mainly by her physical characteristics that actually root down to his childhood desires and view of a girl. This would usually be a petite girl and femininity is evident in her. But she can be empty as well because her only basis is the fact that she is how we viewed a girl would be.
Next would be the "damsel-in-distress" where the guy lives out his dream to be the knight in shining armor. She is the type of girl who is submissive, dependent and loves to ask favors from you. She ends up to be someone you want to serve and her every smile brings you pure satisfaction... She sends you to a state of bliss where you feel that you are actually serving your purpose. But this girl usually just eats your manhood from the inside taking away your ability to lead and you cannot blame her for this because it was your choice to be tamed.
Of course there is the one called "Love of my Life" where you finally find someone who you give your heart to, your emotions and you actually commit yourself to. She is the one where you think you'll find security and you soon to eat her up to get it. You try to squeeze out everything from her so she will be perfect for you. Security in her seems unstable and the fear of losing her leaves you paralyzed. The only reason you say she is the love of your life is because you already made a new life with her at the center.
I say to you all, these are attractions that seem enticing at first but actually drains out your very soul. We love to give these terms but have we remembered the true love? God showed us real love when He died for our sins on the cross and He is the true love and with the woman she wants to be with you, He wants her to have the same love and you the same love for her. Real attraction is attraction defined by God which incorporates all aspects of the person as said by Pastor Nathan. We had always been seeking for the best for us but are we the best for them? Rather have we realized that it is the Giver we should seek and not the gift, have we been the best for God? So here I will present to you what God says in Proverbs 31 and my personal insights on who we should look for.
We call this one our "God's Best." She is the one God prepared for me, the one I could call a perfect fit. In every strength, in every weakness we would compliment each other seeing beyond the external and looking more on who the person is in God's eyes. It's being able to love without expectations just like God's unfailing love for us. She must also be a woman after God's own heart, having God as number one and only me as number two with a guarantee that there would be no number three or four. (romantically of course) She is the woman I can trust with my every word knowing no matter how wrong some things may say, she believes that God will change me and that it is a matter of testing only for me. She never leaves me and loves me consistently and loves God more than me forever. She is my treasure, God's promise to me, a wife for me and a woman who would not complete me but compliment me. For it is only God who can complete me and He is my true security. And all those other 3 types of attractions, all the positives they have, she has it, including a lasting beauty in my heart that would never fade. I am not afraid to wait for her, in fact I am willing to wait for the right time she would bloom. She stretches my faith as I know I can only put my trust for her on my Heavenly Father. He owns her and it is but a gift from God to have her. And as I wait for her, I do not wait with all anxiety but rather with full hope that my Lord has prepared for me His best. She knows what God wants to do with her life and she acknowledges God's plan for me as well. Those plans are not conflicting but rather are intertwined to make a combination serving God. She is concerned with me making sure that I have a proper view of myself which is how God views me as well. She is submissive but not helpless and her skills and knowledge are never less than excellent. But she chooses to go with her design and be a true woman. And she trusts God with all her heart that even without me, she will exist and looks at the eternal perspective which is truly important. She is the woman I can love now, I will love in the future and will be with for the time God gives us.
First would be the so-called "girl of my dreams". This would usually be the girl that you've dreamt of as a little boy characterized mainly by her physical characteristics that actually root down to his childhood desires and view of a girl. This would usually be a petite girl and femininity is evident in her. But she can be empty as well because her only basis is the fact that she is how we viewed a girl would be.
Next would be the "damsel-in-distress" where the guy lives out his dream to be the knight in shining armor. She is the type of girl who is submissive, dependent and loves to ask favors from you. She ends up to be someone you want to serve and her every smile brings you pure satisfaction... She sends you to a state of bliss where you feel that you are actually serving your purpose. But this girl usually just eats your manhood from the inside taking away your ability to lead and you cannot blame her for this because it was your choice to be tamed.
Of course there is the one called "Love of my Life" where you finally find someone who you give your heart to, your emotions and you actually commit yourself to. She is the one where you think you'll find security and you soon to eat her up to get it. You try to squeeze out everything from her so she will be perfect for you. Security in her seems unstable and the fear of losing her leaves you paralyzed. The only reason you say she is the love of your life is because you already made a new life with her at the center.
I say to you all, these are attractions that seem enticing at first but actually drains out your very soul. We love to give these terms but have we remembered the true love? God showed us real love when He died for our sins on the cross and He is the true love and with the woman she wants to be with you, He wants her to have the same love and you the same love for her. Real attraction is attraction defined by God which incorporates all aspects of the person as said by Pastor Nathan. We had always been seeking for the best for us but are we the best for them? Rather have we realized that it is the Giver we should seek and not the gift, have we been the best for God? So here I will present to you what God says in Proverbs 31 and my personal insights on who we should look for.
We call this one our "God's Best." She is the one God prepared for me, the one I could call a perfect fit. In every strength, in every weakness we would compliment each other seeing beyond the external and looking more on who the person is in God's eyes. It's being able to love without expectations just like God's unfailing love for us. She must also be a woman after God's own heart, having God as number one and only me as number two with a guarantee that there would be no number three or four. (romantically of course) She is the woman I can trust with my every word knowing no matter how wrong some things may say, she believes that God will change me and that it is a matter of testing only for me. She never leaves me and loves me consistently and loves God more than me forever. She is my treasure, God's promise to me, a wife for me and a woman who would not complete me but compliment me. For it is only God who can complete me and He is my true security. And all those other 3 types of attractions, all the positives they have, she has it, including a lasting beauty in my heart that would never fade. I am not afraid to wait for her, in fact I am willing to wait for the right time she would bloom. She stretches my faith as I know I can only put my trust for her on my Heavenly Father. He owns her and it is but a gift from God to have her. And as I wait for her, I do not wait with all anxiety but rather with full hope that my Lord has prepared for me His best. She knows what God wants to do with her life and she acknowledges God's plan for me as well. Those plans are not conflicting but rather are intertwined to make a combination serving God. She is concerned with me making sure that I have a proper view of myself which is how God views me as well. She is submissive but not helpless and her skills and knowledge are never less than excellent. But she chooses to go with her design and be a true woman. And she trusts God with all her heart that even without me, she will exist and looks at the eternal perspective which is truly important. She is the woman I can love now, I will love in the future and will be with for the time God gives us.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)