Spiritual Ponderings

Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six. (Revelation 13:18) Something riveted my attention this morning and caused me to take a much closer look at this mysterious idea of the 'mark of the beast' again. I know that there are thousands of ideas already being promoted about the meaning of this, but that does not give me reason to not be responsible for personally investigating this and listening to the Spirit's guidance on what may be true about this most important subject. Complacently relying on what some particular church or popular teacher has decided about this topic without bothering to dig for truth actively for myself is an abortion of integrity. I am accountable personally to God for what I believe above any other loyalty to anyone else. What got my attention was the text chosen to go along with today's reading in My Utmost For His Highest . ...

After awakening this morning I began praying as I often do in the morning before I get out of bed. When I said 'I worship You' to God, the thought began to circulate again in my mind, 'What really is worship?' This curiosity to explore, understand and really experience genuine worship is something that has still remained largely unsatisfied in my mind for years. Though I believe I do know much more about what worship is and looks and feels like than I used to know, somehow I sense I am still possibly missing to a great extent grasping the real essence of how to enter into really life-transforming, genuine worship that will connect me deeply with the heart of God like I was designed to experience. I feel the need to again explore this more intentionally and not just settle for what I have already heard from others or even what I have already gleaned from my own observations over the past few years. I want to not just know about worship, not just understand it better in...

And the Lord made up to Job for all his losses, after he had made prayer for his friends: and all Job had before was increased by the Lord twice as much. (Job 42:10 BBE) I realize that this text could easily be misapplied as some sort of formula to follow to expand one's base of wealth. But there is a very important principle in this verse that I need to appreciate and benefit from in my own present circumstances. I believe that God's statements and laws and ordinances are all either based on or are explanations of basic principles of reality that God has established in creation. Far from being arbitrary, God's laws are best understood as being the rails upon which we can travel at much higher speeds and which will guide us safely to where we are designed to go. Job went through a great deal of learning and maturing during the saga described in the book by his name. He had a level of trust in God that was advanced enough that God took a huge risk in wagering a bet with...