notes from lisa...

 I don't know why, but today seems to be a day of Scripture revelation. Not complaining at all , but feeling inadequate--and knowing that I haven't really understood the magnitude of some verses (that I thought I understood) is humbling, as it should be.  Clearly, we’re ALL "seeing through a glass darkly" for now. In these non-glorified, dying bodies we will never grasp every bit of Scripture. We need changed bodies and souls to comprehend all of it. However, if you KNOW the Subject of the Bible...and not just the words of the Bible, then you can know more--a lot more .  God has and will (continue to) reveal some great and precious promises to His children--those who are born again AND seeking His truth, with the help of the Holy Ghost. "...He will teach you all things" [John 14:26]. Without the Spirit alive in our hearts, the Bible becomes a book of rules and regulations--and that is how we will treat the Bible in our interactions with people. With the ...

     Most, if not all of us have traditionally been taught that God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for sexual immorality. That is not quite accurate. [Ezekiel 16:15 is a really good example of the sequence of sin]--that the beginning of sin is pride , arrogance and not caring for or about "your sister". Read, slowly Ezekiel 16:48-59, *verse 56, NKJV].       What I think we miss with this simplified reason for the destruction of sin (in us) is that all sin has a root. If we deal with the root it will positively impact the health, growth, and well-being of the entire organism--whatever or whomever that may be. Sodom and Gomorrah didn't start out with sexually deviant behavior... no one does . We have to first think that we know what's best for us--only then, will we do anything to achieve and maintain our comfort. That’s pride. " Anything " is all the sin that we struggle with; not understanding that, sins are a symptom  (of something much deep...

 I'm not sure Jesus would approve of the way we treat our neighbors.  I think Fred Rogers was onto something with his little song, "Who are the people in your neighborhood...they're the people that you meet each day...". But, our neighborhood is global, and our neighbors include all of humanity --"even unto the ends of the earth". It's easy to lose track of that fact, when you can't see and may never know someone.  Still, if we recognized the world as a neighborhood and everyone in it as our neighbor--because we are ALL "made in the Image of God and after His Likeness ". Each person is the apple of God's eye. I love what Max Lucado wrote: "If God had a refrigerator, YOUR picture would be on it". We seem to have trouble making the connection between ourselves and others who may look, speak different than us--or have cultural differences that we may not share or understand. When we forget that those people who may be very dif...