The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows). John 10:10 Amp
It is true that life is short, but a morbid contemplation of how quickly it passes misses the point of why we are alive. God created each of us to be artists and the hours we are given are the colors He chose for us to use. Yes, some folks have been given far brighter hues than us, but don’t let that discourage you. Their daisy chain may only need robin’s egg blue for the sky and white and yellow for its petals, but your sunset, will demand all those darker shades, that God has dabbed on your palette. Every morning God hands each of us a blank canvas and places a brush in our hands. So, let’s begin today with flair, sketch out a design of doing and plan a portrait of praise. The colors we have, whether shocking and stark or gentle and subdued can all be brushed on to His glory. For He is the great Master Artist and He has painted us into existence and included us in His design to give Him praise forever!
So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: Romans 12:5-6 a NKJV
I always look forward to the insights that Beth Allison shares over on her blog Lessons From a Lab I, on the other hand get to learn a few things from my Washburn. Now I freely admit that the photos Beth shares of her doggie friends, Adi and Summer are far cuter, than my guitar, but God uses what we each of have to teach us His truth, and it was kind of neat how changing and tuning six strings yesterday reminded me of today’s verse.
First, every string is different. Each of us requires our own individual amount of tension if we are going to sound our note. When we go around expecting others to be singing the same as us, we will not only be sorely disappointed, but we will also miss out on enjoying being ourselves. Some folks are low and slow, like Brother Low E, and others are temperamental and creative like the Mr. B-string, (whose soulful pitch sounds wonderful but goes out of tune the fastest!)
Secondly, each string has its own time and place to be playing during the song. Sometimes the lower strings remain silent, while the highest notes are trilling away, and yet they cannot leave the fretboard in a huff, demanding more attention. They must patiently wait their turn to become the baseline, that will help me to transition from the verse to the chorus. Yes, there are happy tunes when everyone gets to alternate in upbeat joyful praise, but best of all, are the moments when they join together in a final harmonic ring!
Last, I learned that the place assigned by the world to my strings is the exact opposite of how I relate to them. You see, Brother E, who is my lowest note is called my sixth string, and High E, who is his little sister, is called first. Though she may put on airs, when others call her the finest string of all, I would remind her that, from the musician’s point of view, it is the lowest string who is closest to me and nearest to my heart. But whether we are first or last, the most wonderful thing is that we are all his instrument, who He created and tuned to play a song of praise to Him today and forever!
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 ESV
Though the maximum security, Altiplano jail was constructed with high walls, plenty of razor ribbon and a high tech security system, in 2015, Mexican Drug Lord Joaquin Guzman, made headlines by breaking out. When the astonishing details were revealed, we learned that he had escaped through a tunnel his associates had dug, complete with lights, ventilation and a rail system that led to a building project, almost a mile away.
But Jesus offers us a freedom that is far better than the one which Joaquin Guzman experienced (After all he was captured just 5 months later). The freedom that Jesus gives is one for which He paid a price far higher than Guzman had paid his workers to build the tunnel. Jesus suffered and died a terrible death on the cross, paying for our escape with His own blood. But sadly, there are times when we Christians sometimes dig a tunnel with our bare hands, that leads straight back to the maximum security prison of sin. We speed along the rail system of selfish choices that ends in the small dark cell block of separation from God. But today’s verse tells us that does not need to be the end of our story. All hope is not lost, because if we will simply turn to Jesus, confess our sins and ask forgiveness, He is faithful and just to forgive us again and again, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness and restore us to the freedom of heaven where we will live with Him forever!
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