SpoonfulOfDreams

He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him. Psalm 126 v6 I almost read this psalm by accident as I had started reading Psalm 125. However as R.E.O White* pointed out, in the NIV Commentary, 126 recalls Psalm 85 which I have just studied. The Psalms have never been a focus of inspiration for me. They can't be said to be contemporary nor are they a reliable source of theology. "The Lord is my shepherd", sounds wonderful but what does that mean to me? But now I'm reading the Bible as a book that cross-references itself from beginning to end. It's fascinating to read each passage as if looking through the fragment of a shattered window. As you look closely through each shard you see the same picture that you would from a single pane but from a unique angle. To read Psalm 126 simply as one of the songs of ascents as they are collectively known (120 through 134) is to lose its significance. What it does is pre...

Love and faithfulness meet together; Righteousness and peace kiss each other. Psalm 85 v10 Though not stated, this psalm appears to refer to the exiles from Babylon and the conditions in which they find themselves. They had been exiled for turning their back on God and for over 50 years were forced to live in a country that was alien to them in every way. Yet on account of his faithfulness (not their righteousness), God brought them back to their homeland. What God didn't do was fix the mess they'd left behind. It was one thing to look back at the glory they had squandered; it was another to honour God's grace and repay him for giving them a second chance. "You expected much but it turned out to be little" , says Haggai the Prophet. Why? "Because of my house, which remains a ruin" . How often have we heard, "I will do anything you want if you will do this for me", only for that person to renege on their pledge once they have what they want. Tru...

Your average family photo has a group of people smiling into the camera. You can usually identify the year, give or take a few, by the décor, hairstyles and clothes but beyond that it's not very enlightening. The snap that stands out usually, as we say, captures the moment. A freeze frame, its not so much a statement as a scenario that invites you to answer all the questions that it poses. What is that person thinking? What came before? What happens next? The moment is the subject and everything else is incidental. Life is rarely rehearsed, though we would often like to take a peak at the script, but is usually posed. We think about how we dress, days are usually planned to some extent, we have protocols for how we interact with others, especially those we don't know and surprises are not often welcomed unless they are ones we would have approved of had we been informed. It's normally in times of crisis that we find ourselves frozen in a perpetual moment. These moments are ...

I can fully understand why people turn to drink. Life is sometimes like standing on a thin ledge, looking into an abyss. There is no way forward, you can only sidle along the ledge that appears to narrow in the only direction you can take. There are two options: to fall into the darkness or make your way along the ledge. The simplest option is to give up and fall but you can't change your mind once you have made that decision. On the off chance that, by some miracle, another alternative should present itself you have left yourself no recourse. The ledge is the best option only because it's the least bad. There's no telling when it will give out or how many sideways steps will be required to get you to safety. There seems a third option though it's no option at all. When there's no real alternative you're forced to escape reality and find refuge in the havens of the mind. When the storm steals every semblance of peace and stability you must find a harbour to rega...

The Message of Ecclesiastes "Meaningless! Meaningless! Says the teacher." So begins the book of Ecclesiastes. The teacher opens himself up to all that life has to offer - no holds barred - and comes to the conclusion that there is no meaning in anything we experience or accomplish. From dust we come; to dust we return. On the surface it appears to be a rather pessimistic view of the world. The feel good factor eludes us as he concludes that the whole duty of man (humanity) is to 'fear God and keep his commandments'. Not what you'd call 'a laugh a minute'. Unfortunately, by taking the pessimistic view we deny ourselves the opportunity of discovering the keys to unlock the very meaning the teacher appears to despair of. We've been drawn into the dragon's cave, dark and dank, with scattered remains of those who came only to plunder his treasure. But hidden amongst the gloom are sparkling gems that provide the keys we are looking for. It's a year s...

How can I repay the LORD for all his goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of Salvation And call on the name of the LORD Psalm 116 vv12&13 Psalm 116 begins, "I love the LORD, for he heard ... my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me I will call on him as long as I live." The psalmist cries for help, acknowledges his deliverer and wants to know how he can show his gratitude. To become a disciple of Jesus is to be called to service but where does our motivation come from? Jesus doesn't promise a long life, fame or fortune; in fact he promises trouble and persecution. "Escape from the frying pan", he cries, "I have a fire waiting for you!" When people ask for work they often list their qualifications and aspirations and will explain how working for you appeals to them. They seem to think that telling you what they want will make then attractive as employees but fail to grasp that its what they can give to you, not what you can give to them t...

Its no accident that when God created vulnerable creatures he made millions of them and taught them the dance of life. By moving in unison and in a coordinated formation he made them appear to be one large unit behaving in a way that makes sense to them but confuses the enemy. For a hungry shark a shoal of fish presents an opportunity of abundance but if he falls for the trap of thinking there are many fish to catch he will overstretch himself and in his misguided strategy he will simply be overwhelmed and end up with nothing. Fortunately for the shark he was not endowed with intelligence. Instead God gave him cunning. The shoal has no fear of the shark. At worst it will deplete her numbers by a few; at best it will give up in frustration. But the individual fish has no such luxury. By shear weight of numbers it is more likely to survive than perish but one on one with a shark, who has little appetite for the dance, it has no chance. The whale on the other hand - who has intelligence, ...

"Sorrow is better than laughter, because a sad face is good for the heart. The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning but the heart of the fool is in the house of pleasure." Book of Ecclesiastes chapter 7. "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." The Gospel of Matthew chapter 5. There's a difference between being sad and morbid. You will also notice the difference between those who have their own iCloud and those who carry a sadness that speaks of experience and depth. In Paul's second letter to the Corinthians he begins by praising the God of all Comfort who comforts us in order that we can comfort others. We all wonder why there is so much suffering in the world but little is to be gained by wishing it were not so; if it is to be part of life then we can at least be dressing its wounds. And if the best qualification for tending to the hurting is to understand their pain then so be it. The morbid person, on the other hand, sympath...