Monthly Archives: April 2021

Christian Soapbox

Mi Preciosita

1 Comment

Andrea, I know the Scriptures, or at least, I thought I knew the Scriptures, but with you passing away yesterday (4-21), the apostle Paul was right when he wrote…that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart ( Romans 9:2 ).

It’s almost been a year since my sister Mercedes’ passing, and I have another sister going through Chemo (Ashley).

I do not have words… or… the words that I do have… just don’t seem to measure up the experience of unceasing grief that I feel. It just doesn’t make sense to me yet, but as I process through this with God and loved ones, the more I learn and understand the meaning of, “Jesus wept.”

John 11:32 Therefore, when Mary came where Jesus was, she saw Him, and fell at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” 33 When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled, 34 and said, “Where have you laid him?” They *said to Him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Jesus wept.

I’m so thankful for how you were a sister to my wife. I still have much spanish to learn, but what spanish I knew and understood while seeing you care for your family when in Mexico, was beautiful. I’m so thankful to know with confidence your love for God, and relationship to our Lord, Jesus Christ. You desired and requested prayer, and prayer you received. As I seek and read through the Word of God to try and make sense of this… by prayer, I’m receiving more truth about love, and what it means to love as you exemplified in your behavior.

I’ve learned a Psalm, Psalms 116:15:

Precious in the sight of the Lord
Is the death of His godly ones.

As long as our Lord is patient for the salvation of souls, not desiring for any to perish, the death of His Godly ones is precious. Andrea, you are precious in His sight.

Lord willing, we will be on our way to Mexico here soon for a week to mourn and celebrate your life as we wait upon the Lord. You’re loved.

Your brother-in-law,

—Nathan

Christian Soapbox

I Die Daily Devotional | 4-21-21

Leave a comment

Today’s daily devotional will be different as you will see. The reason is quite simple, really; when there are more than enough variables within ones life at a given time to process, the system slows to refresh while updating until it finally updates or crashes, unless there is an upgrade to handle the load; that is what I feel like is happening to me presently, but I also recognize that it’s a part of the rhythm of maturation; a part of acquiring wisdom and understanding.

3 When I was a son to my father,
Tender and the only son in the sight of my mother,
4 Then he taught me and said to me,
“Let your heart hold fast my words;
Keep my commandments and live;
5 Acquire wisdom! Acquire understanding!
Do not forget nor turn away from the words of my mouth.
6 “Do not forsake her, and she will guard you;
Love her, and she will watch over you.
7 “The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom;
And with all your acquiring, get understanding.

Sometimes I feel like fighting God, not to win obviously, but to change who I am for the man He makes me to be, and to understand Him more intimately.

I was recently in 2nd Samuel 6:

6 But when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out toward the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen nearly upset  it. 7 And the anger of the Lord burned against Uzzah, and God struck him down there for his irreverence; and he died there by the ark of God. 8 David became angry because of the Lord’s outburst against Uzzah, and that place is called Perez-uzzah to this day. 9 So David was afraid of the Lord that day; and he said, “How can the ark of the Lord come to me?” 10 And David was unwilling to move the ark of the Lord into the city of David with him; but David took it aside to the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. 11 Thus the ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite three months, and the Lord blessed Obed-edom and all his household.

After reading that passage about David becoming angry with God, I felt like I could relate for reasons different than David, but similar in the context of… 9 So David was afraid of the Lord that day; and he said, “How can the ark of the Lord come to me?” …that question, “How can the Holy Spirit of grace through faith in Jesus Christ come to me?” And so like David who left the ark of the Lord at the house of Obed-edom for three months, am found to be in a similar place of unwillingness to move until it’s time to retrieve the “ark”.

12 Now it was told King David, saying, “The Lord has blessed the house of Obed-edom and all that belongs to him, on account of the ark of God.” David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom into the city of David with gladness. 13 And so it was, that when the bearers of the ark of the Lord had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fatling. 14 And David was dancing before the Lord with all his might, and David was wearing a linen ephod. 15 So David and all the house of Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouting and the sound of the trumpet.

I die devotionals, Nathan Dooley

For I give you sound teaching | P4-V2

Leave a comment

A Father’s Instruction

Proverbs 4; I die daily devotional.

1 Hear, O sons, the instruction of a father,
And give attention that you may gain understanding,
2 For I give you sound teaching;
Do not abandon my instruction.
3 When I was a son to my father,
Tender and the only son in the sight of my mother,

What I perceive from the Holy Spirit blessing me with sound teaching is principles of which increase my understanding kingdom knowledge, how I ought to conduct myself in this world, and as the understanding of such principles by wisdom set in, the process of discipline over time will equip my spirit with power to overcome through faith in the knowledge of the truth against that which means to steal, kill, and devour my soul—the ruler of this world—1 John 2:15 Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. 17 The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.)

And so what does wisdom teach you upon learning the instruction of God our Father?

Wisdom instructs me … “…do not abandon the instruction of these principles” that manifest by my obedience to the law of faith, liberty (I think) is governed by God through the inspiration of His Word, that which guides me—and I believe you as well, reader—in the way out of darkness as lights that shine for those asleep in the darkness of this world; if you’re familiar with The CHOSEN series, in season 2 (without spoiling too much) you’ll hear one of the apostles refer to people without Jesus as “sleepers”. There are sleepers that are desperate to be awakened from their sleep to see with hope that only make sense in the revelation of Jesus Christ, souls’ truly born again, or who I might regard as … “the true-borns“; there are those who might claim to be awakened although still very much asleep, and on the brink of death, wolves disguised as sheep in the midst of the herd.

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

Below You can *click* on your answer and *submit* to see the vote; it is not an ‘ad’ or ‘sponsored item’, just a way for us to engage together, try it…

COMMENTARY

Chapter 4

Matthew Henry (P4-V2) Commentary
II. For what end they were written (v. 2-4), not to gain a reputation to the author, or strengthen his interest among his subjects, but for the use and benefit of all that in every age and place will govern themselves by these dictates and study them closely. This book will help us,

  • 1. To form right notions of things, and to possess our minds with clear and distinct ideas of them, that we may know wisdom and instruction, that wisdom which is got by instruction, by divine revelation, may know both how to speak and act wisely ourselves and to give instruction to others.
  • 2. To distinguish between truth and falsehood, good and evil-to perceive the words of understanding, to apprehend them, to judge of them, to guard against mistakes, and to accommodate what we are taught to ourselves and our own use, that we may discern things that differ and not be imposed upon, and may approve things that are excellent and not lose the benefit of them, as the apostle prays, Phil. 1:10.

RESOURCE

Proverbs 4 (NASB)—blueletterbible.org | biblegateway.com