conversations, meditations, reflections
Posts tagged Add new tag
Sharing in Father’s Affection (notes from a podcast, and my thoughts)
Jun 5th
May 22, 2009
So I took notes from another podcast (from The God Journey: “Sharing in the Father’s Affection” … at Lifestream.org) and then added some thoughts of my own. I’d like to share them here!
We have a Father who loves us more than we could know… and if we could sort that out it would totally change out we treat each other…. Some say we should figure out how Jesus loved individual people and then treat people like that – but what is needed is not actors and actresses but transformed people who live loving! How is Jesus loving me? Figure that out [ Accept it, live in His love! ] and then you can love others. “A new command I give you, that you love one another.” Paradigm shift from the old command to love the Lord your God and to love your neighbor as yourself: not really a command – but a reality that starts with His love for me: I love others the way He loves me.
John 15:15 “I no longer call you slaves…” — reflects back to the old covenant. Master to slaves, King to subjects. Jesus resoled our sin and shame on the cross – now we are friends of Jesus, sons and daughters of God – and brothers and sisters with each other. Friendship: “Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friend” (even if they don’t give back!). Not the mutual accomodation of self-need, self-benefit… but the love of the Father. His love is all about you: other-focused. Jesus did not have our self-focused nature – and so His love transforms the ones who are loved. If you’re loving to not feel guilty [ or to not be rejected or punished or whatever] – it’s still about you, not about the one you are supposedly loving – that’s still slave love.
When you are other-focused, you aren’t afraid of what others think, or afraid of anything else: 1 John 4: 16, 18 “Perfect love casts out fear” … when I get a sense of Father’s affection for me and I start to live that alongside other people, that transforms me. All my joys and all my pains are somehow in God, and He always cares for me – I don’t have to look out for myself because my Father does that for me every day. [ Now I am freed from myself - and can other-focus, living love to them, alongside/with Father]
Romans 8:15 … old covenant: based on fear: performance-based relationship – it couldn’t transform you. But now you have the spirit of sonship! Free affection – transforming – so we learn to love as He loves. How a baby looks at it’s mommy or daddy: That’s how Father wants you looking at Him: mama! dada! … delight! [ I have been spending so much time with my grandson and his mommy and daddy lately - and oh! I see that love and joy between them!]
Living God’s love is not an intellectual conclusion – but a life lived: experiential. Worship is good: but what Father wants most from us is affection for Him: the delight of children. We need to be like infants totally dependant [ trusting, loving, adoring ] upon our parent [ believing He is perfect, that His love doesn't fail, that He'll always love us unconditionally, that He is totally all-wise, unfailing, keeps His promises, is unlimited - which of course He is, always... unlike us human parents....]
Don’t live in the orbit of your own self-preference. If anything, it’s our brokenness that makes us most endearing to our Father. God saw you at your most brokenness, sinfulness, rebelliousness – and He loved you with pure Father love … let that Father love transform you. In the new covenant Jesus changed the way God and humans relate. God never loved you for a reason – He just loves you with great affection [ because He is love!] . Get to know your neighbours, not to convert them, but in the course of a real relationship because God loves them – and you love them too because He loves you and you’ve been transformed by His love. Talk to people, but just see where God takes it. You don’t have to purposely “bring up the spiritual”… often they will, themselves, or the direction the conversation takes will naturally lead to it… and if it doesn’t come up, leave it with Father.
Until you know Father’s love for you, you’ll have no idea how to love others – your relationship with Him must be first! Your little baby hand in His big Father hand.
Father, make this real in my life today – win me with Your affection and transform me with Your love!
out of commission… thanks!
Apr 12th
April 11, 2009
Interesting… You also sent me (finally) to the Godjourney (www.thegodjourney.com) podcasts after ___ posted a link to it yesterday on fb… I listened while scanning photos… and You clearly answered my questions about feeling “alone” with “the church group” … wow, thank You!
I can see now how You “took me out of commission” for a whole variety of reasons…
- time to de-church (like de-school)
- time with my kids
- make me realize that that job (which was tempting as it seemed to be a “passport” to the Island and buying a house) isn’t what You want for me.
- You made me ready to listen to those podcasts (which I have been resisting for a good two years nearly!) (because I “don’t like to listen” … to “religious programming” … hmmm… just realized that! Somehow it’s tied up in my mind with “having to listen to” endless sermons/ preaching at me/ forced learning/ teaching jammed down my throat/ etc.
- etc!
I realized so much, listening to those podcasts (running in the background as I uploaded those great old pictures!) (I liked that… I even ran some parts over again, not wanting to “miss” things that caught my attention).
I think I was getting “hung up” on church structure and stuff, and losing track of real relationship with You. Thank You for this time of pain and discouragement that has made me realize how lonely and frustrated I’ve become… because of being distracted from “that good thing – You”… like Martha… oh Lord God, Papa… and Jesus and Sarayu… I want to be Mary sitting at Your feet.
One of the podcasts was talking about leaders, and how the leaders You choose just naturally fulfill the roles You prepare them for and lead them through. They don’t need special training and positions and job titles and pay cheques to somehow validate what just IS in their life, because they are walking with You where You lead and provide and empower (in-power?!?).
I still find myself thinking, “I have to do something to serve God, to be a good Christian, to make the church people – and my family, even – happy… and apparently, to make You happy, by extension…”
But I don’t. I just need to be sitting at Your feet… and You will use me along the pathway of Your love, our love, our relationship, in the daily pathways of life… like Mary anointing Your feet in love and humbleness… and being remembered forever for her simple deed of pure, unadulterated love for You!
Yesterday I was sitting at Your feet, with Your people (via podcast!)… the two guys in the conversation, and also the crowds listening in, and the email responses that they read and discussed, and the testimonies / stories of peoples lives beings changed by Your love, by their journey with You, in Your love!
I was to re-listen… and listen to other podcasts from the Godjourney (when You so lead)! Here are the notes I took yesterday: (about loneliness when one is freed from the system):
- There is a shepherd attending to His flock… and He knows where they are out there… and He is doing a good job.
- Wake up every day and ask God, “How do You want me to live with love today?” Just be engaged with whoever God sends along.
- Stop looking for a package. God just want to put people in front of you.
- God knows how to connect the parts of His body – it is God who builds the body!
- Community is a gift from God (… and He gives good gifts to His children who ask Him… and I actually don’t think I’ve asked! Father, please provide Your community for me… and please help me to “live with love today,” being engaged with whoever You send along, sharing our journey, and Your/ our/ my love!)
…. Later… so I just emailed a friend… and then phoned her… and she told me that You are showing them that the blood of Jesus covers our body as well as spirit and soul… and that we don’t need to accept satan’s physical oppression… and it was You telling me, “This is what I’m showing you! Just ask and I will heal. Just ask and I will bring community. Just ask and I will clear your mind, and you will be able to do whatever I bring your way.” It’s like You are bringing them that taped message, and asking them to act on it – which You are bringing me a healed body and mind and spirit … and using them to explain to me how that all happened/ worked! Wow… cool!
bits and pieces of my life!
Mar 8th
March 7, 2009 (yep, part 3)
So I did most of my reading… and scanned those slides… and read and copied highlights from some more interesting Edgenet articles… In the midst of all that there was a wild snd wooly, whirly-swirly-almost-whiteout snow storm… which stuck for an hour or so, but has mostly now melted! Oh, and I made lunch too.
….. Okay so I just finished my daily study chapter (in Deuteronomy at the moment). I am so relieved that we are not “under the law!” What an awesome gift and privilege to be free of all that! Thank You, Jesus!
Oh, I was going to mention earlier, when I was writing about my dream praying, that I told hubby about it when he came home from work… and he said that at one time, years ago in Inuvik, he prayed in his dreams for 2 full weeks… and that people were coming up to him and telling him he was glowing. That was cool!
Check it out! The sun is trying to shine again. Well it is March, after all… can’t make up it’s mind whether to be winter or spring!
Well eventually I went out for a nice walkabout, and after I came home I had a nice long phone chat with my daughter… and printed out some stuff that I want to be able to check out again and think about… and oh, I worked on catching up emails again, since I noticed my inbox had 40 items in it… time for some weeding… and answering!
…. next morning (March 8th)…
So I actually finished up a bunch of emails, got down from 40 to 12! Put supper on about 6:35 pm and then watched the end of a house selling program (totally vacuous) while it cooked… and then a documentary on the whole issue of commercialism in schools… interesting to a degree, mildly thought provoking (a huge issue in the States apparently, but we Canadians put our foot down hard when its more obvious form tried to rise up a few years back… or did we? … when I come to think of all those “free handouts/ lesson plans” in Home Ec especially… and the “Milk run” and other similar school events that are clearly corporate-sponsored… they’ve been “handy” but now I’m wondering, “At what cost?” (and where does it end, as school “needs” – and/or wants – rise, and school dollars drop…
or is it… ummm… like church “troubles” … maybe an opportunity to actually reassess what schools ARE and DO and truly NEED…. could be a golden opportunity to actually open a huge “kettle of fish” eh… (What WAS that program? Oh yes, CBC Cross-Currents, I think).
