I have awoken naturally at 5:00 am and feel rested.
Disappointed that Brenda was voted off Survivor last night after she won
reward, gave it to her four friends and trusted Dawn in the immunity challenge.
It is a dog-eat-dog competition where clearly the best people do not win.
However, it is fascinating to watch the decisions unfold.
I have about 8 new books to be reading. Yesterday I got
the 2012 Annual Conference journal in the mail, the day before I received 3
books on the Holy Spirit from Ethel Snooks, including two by Dennis Bennett,
and there are 4 books I am reading for the Bishops Week gathering. Falling Forward by Richard Rohr is a
great read about “spirituality for the two halves of life.”
Leviticus 20 – “You must be holy, for I, the Lord, am
holy. I have set you apart from all other people to be my very own.” (Verse 26)
This chapter spells out the consequences
for violating the laws God has given to his people, which distinguish them from
their surrounding neighbors. It is in this chapter, verse 9 that it says “anyone
who dishonors father or mother must be put to death. Such a person is guilty of
a capital offense.” This is so very severe. God spells out the death penalty
for sexual sins, and excommunication for other sins. “I will also turn against
those who commit spiritual prostitution by putting their trust in mediums or in
those who consult the spirits of the dead.”
I see the wisdom of God in keeping His chosen people from
the detestable practices of their neighbors. I also am thankful that I live in
this era, in which grace and mercy are dispensed more readily than judgment. Grace
cannot be truly experienced without law and judgment, and I grasp the authority
and will of God requiring obedience and surrender.
Today is the 5th anniversary of the death of
my father. He died on Mother’s day in 2008, which was also their 55th
anniversary. 60 years ago today my parents were married in Los Angeles. I am
thankful for my parents, and honor their memory and their lives, thankful for
the care and sacrifices they made in raising me and establishing me on the path
of this earthly journey.
Dennis Bennett wrote Nine
O’clock in the Morning as his spiritual autobiography. This is my favorite
form of literature, and I look forward to reading this book over the next few
days. I am also reading a biography about the great physicist Albert Einstein
which stretches me to think about concepts and a lifestyle different from my
usual thought pattern.
Guide me today, most holy Lord as I serve You, living a
set apart life, filled with Your Holy Spirit and giving myself to others as you
modeled during Your brief earthly journey.
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