Spiritual Ponderings

Something rather strange-sounding is beginning to emerge in my attention. But it is probably only strange because I, like all everyone else on this planet, was born with inverted assumptions about what is 'normal'. What is bringing this to my attention right now is that I am facing some deadlines in my business that tend to impose themselves on my heart as sources of potential discouragement. I say 'potential' precisely because that totally depends on what I choose to use as my reference of reality. You see, if I view my situations the way I often have done and the way pretty much everyone around me views it, then it appears that things might be looking rather desperate for me meeting my goals for this month. And since meeting my goals requires much more interaction in the arena of interpersonal relationships, especially establishing new ones which does not come very natural or easy for me, my heart is under pressure to begin allowing thoughts of failure and fear an...

If you love those who love you, what reward do you have? (Matthew 5:46) Not too long ago I remember writing about this issue of rewards as far as heaven is concerned. I began to realize that the rewards that Jesus talked about were likely very different in nature than what we typically think of in regards to reward. Because we associate rewards with selfish things that we want like material possessions or elevated social status or power, we usually translate those motives right into our assumptions about what God might mean when He speaks of rewards. But if we would be more careful to examine our own assumptions and motivations when we think of heavenly rewards we would begin to realize how much our own sinful thinking has contaminated our ideas of the nature of rewards that we will receive in heaven. In fact, it might even have the effect of diminishing our desires for heaven if we really knew the true nature of the rewards we will receive there until our hearts are more in line ...