My soul thirsts for you

"O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water." - Psalm 63:1

Every time I meditate upon the psalms of David and witness through his writing the turmoil of his soul, I can't help but be stricken by his heart. The longing and desire that he possessed for God and knowing God and being brought near to God and rejoicing in God and finding his only satisfaction in God and feeling God despite his afflictions, is astounding.

Utter dependance on someone in an unbiblical worldview can be seen as a sign of weakness, but these states of mourning are so vital in the Christian walk. Just look at David. The man after God's own heart was one of the most consistently broken an needy men throughout the history recorded in the Scriptures. Our Ultimate Example, the Lord Jesus Christ himself, stated that the blessed are those who are poor in spirit, meek and who mourn over sin and severed relationship with God (Matthew 5:1-11).

The human soul is made to connect with God on a much higher level than our body is to connect with physical gratification. We will only ever find the true source of enjoyment in life in a relationship with the Creator of the universe, the almighty God, through His Son, Jesus Christ, by the Holy Spirit. Praise be to God for opening the eyes of our hearts to this glorious, intimate, joyful relationship that can be entered into through the blood of Christ.

The best friendship around

"The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant."

- Psalm 25:14

What a privilege it is to be called a friend of God! Let that fact just sink in: that those of us who have turned from ourselves and placed our faith in Christ for salvation, have become friends of God through his reconciling sacrifice. To those who acknowledge God's sovereignty and our utter dependence upon him for anything good in our lives, very much including our redemption, he makes his covenant known. He has removed our hearts of stone and given us heart of flesh with which to FEEL the new covenant, and not just hear and dismiss it.

Thank you Jesus for your unchangeable character and friendship that doesn't spoil or fade.

Thanks be to God

Lord, thank you for your Son, Jesus Christ. Thank you that you humbled yourself, and became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Thank you for tearing up my record of debt, and replacing it with your spotless one. Thank you for performing a miracle among your people, by removing from them their hearts of stone, hearts that look at your cross and feel nothing, who look at their sin and feel nothing, who hear the gospel of the good news and feel nothing, who receive blessing after blessing, day after day, and feel nothing. Thank you for putting a new heart of flesh within us, one that breaks over sin, yet rejoices in your finished work.

Thanks be to God.

A late night thought

As I sit on my sofa late at night, I think about the absolute absurdity that is God's love.

Think about it.

God himself, the Triune Creator, who forged the heavens, the earth, stars, hummingbirds, taste buds, sex, human emotions and the intricacies of the human body, humbled himself by becoming nothing, a mere human, that he might die, bearing our iniquity in a divine, sufficient transaction: our sin, for his righteousness.

How is that fair? When could that ever be labelled as fair? I, Cody, a sinner just like everyone reading this blog, who for so long has ridiculed the God of the Bible by disobeying His commands every single day and turning away from his supremacy and sufficiency and to my own sinful desires. But that is not the end of the matter. I have been reconciled to God. And this not of my doing. It is a gift of God, so that I may not boast.

Jesus paid it all,
All to Him owe,
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.

Praise God forever for His abounding, steadfast, reckless, exemplary, joyful, sobering, miraculous love. May we never, ever neglect the cross, but when we do, may God swiftly bring us back to the foot of the tree on which our dear Saviour died.

A God-pleasing despair

Do not despair if you feel the flesh battling against the Spirit or if you cannot make it behave. For you to follow the guidance of the Spirit in all things without interference on the part of the flesh is impossible. You are doing all you can if you resist the flesh and do not fulfill its demands.

When I was a monk I thought I was lost forever whenever I felt an evil emotion, carnal lust, wrath, hatred, or envy. I tried to quiet my conscience in many ways, but it did not work, because lust would always come back and give me no rest. I told myself: "You have permitted this and that sin, envy, impatience, and the like. Your joining this holy order has been in vain, and all your good works are good for nothing." If at that time I had understood this passage, "The flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh," I could have spared myself many a day of self- torment. I would have said to myself: "Martin, you will never be without sin, for you have flesh. Despair not, but resist the flesh."

I remember how Doctor Staupitz used to say to me: "I have promised God a thousand times that I would become a better man, but I never kept my promise. From now on I am not going to make any more vows. Experience has taught me that I cannot keep them. Unless God is merciful to me for Christ's sake and grants unto me a blessed departure, I shall not be able to stand before Him." His was a God-pleasing despair.

-- Martin Luther, Commentary on Galatians

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Martin Bashir vs. Rob Bell.

A really good interview from a solid journalist.

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A prayer for Japan.