I am grateful to have those mirrors up in the exercise room (previous post). Knowing that I was long procrastinating on doing that work has been nagging in the background. I am grateful for You showing me how to handle them successfully.
But many who are first will be last and the last first.
Mark 10:31
Me: Good morning, Father!
Abba: Good morning, Jon!
Me: Would you tell me what Jesus was saying in Mark 10:31? This comes after the story of the “rich young ruler” who went away downcast, and then Jesus talked with His disciples about the difficulty of saving the rich.
Abba: Consider the context. The rich can be considered those who are “first” in position, authority, influence, responsibility, and so on. Why are they last in finding a relationship with Me? Because following Me requires putting me first instead.
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
Matthew 6:23
There is a place to operate in authority, influence, and responsibility. Properly, these things are added by Me to the one who is wholly given to Me for My own purposes. Otherwise, they will block finding a vital relationship with me. The one who is seeking these things on his own is serving those things and his own desires.
Contrary to that, there is this that David found:
Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
Psalms 37:4
Read that to mean I will fill your heart with My desires.
Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure,’
Isaiah 46:10
Six Mirrors (plus a partial) Up
We ordered these mirrors five years ago, and they have been leaning up in the front of the garage in their crates, ever since they were delivered. Mainly because I couldn’t quite figure out how to handle them. They are 4’x8′ quarter inch glass and weight a little over 100 pounds each. Does putting those up in the exercise room qualify as exercise?
After breaking the first one, this homemade glass cart came into existence, which enabled moving them from the garage to the exercise room in one piece.
Homemade Glass Cart
The glass cart is pretty obviously composed of two piano dollies and some scrap lumber. There is a piece of 3/4″ plywood tying the two together at the bottom. The lumber laying on the cart in the picture was a 2×6 that I ripped in half and then cut a dado slot halfway through from the edge. By placing those on each long edge of the mirrors, they were stiffened enough that they could be stood up longways without breaking over my head. I used a couple of lengths of perforated plumbing strap to tie the stiffeners together so they would not slip off the edge while raising each mirror. The strap was wrapped around to the outside edge and screwed with a single #6 by 1″ drywall screw. A longer drywall screw would possibly have touched the mirror, so short is important.
Without ever having measured, I had it in my head that the ceiling was higher than eight feet. Based on that assumption, I had made nice baseboards with a quarter-inch dado for the mirrors to sit in. Only after moving in the second mirror, did I discover my error. The baseboards had to be removed because the ceiling only allowed about one-half inch of clearance for the eight-foot mirrors if they were sitting directly on the carpeted floor. I will reinstall them after I cut them down to fit where the mirrors are not. I am grateful for that half-inch of clearance.
Based on my error about the height, I had bought sliding mirror clips. That proved to be unworkable because of the tight fit. The tops are held to the wall by a cleat screwed into the ceiling. (Instead of sheetrock, the room is sheeted with oriented strand board that was sealed with oil-based barn paint. The exercise room is framed inside a pole barn with six-inch insulated walls.)
If you look closely on the right side of first picture, you can see a 58″x26″ mirror horizontal near the floor. This is the largest piece left from the broken one. My wife thought that would help her with floor work on the mat. I now have lots of smaller mirrors salvaged from the broken one. Not sure what to do with those, but cutting it up in to usable sections seemed better than throwing the bulk of it away.
The original plans had to be modified as the project went along and I discovered that my plans were not going to work as anticipated. I will admit, I am happy to have this done (finally). I come back to the quote from Isaiah that I opened with, Only He has flawless plans. The rest of us are wise if we align with His plans.
I am grateful for help with how to get the modifications to the exercise room done!
Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!
Ps 27:14
Me: Good morning, Father!
Abba: Good morning, Jon!
Me: The order of this exhortation is perplexing. Does it mean be of good courage and then you will strengthen?
Abba: The phrase has the call to wait on Me as two book ends. One who waits on Me is recognizing his own inadequacy to the task.
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Joshua 1:9
Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Hebrews 13:5
And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”
Deuteronomy 31:8
One who does not wait on Me is forging ahead relying on his own devices and strength rather than counting on My omnipotence (and omnipresence).
Look at all of Psalm 46:
I AM your refuge and strength. I AM a very present help in trouble. I AM the river that makes glad. I AM your protector. I AM with you.
Be still and know that I AM God. Come, behold the works of the Lord.
If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.
John 15:7-8
Wait upon Me.
Me: Thank You Father! I love You!
Abba: You are welcome! I love you!
Homemade Glass CartFirst 4’x8′ mirror (weight 100 pounds)Second Mirror – Not a perfectly-aligned retroreflector
Since I need to get into the beehives today, I am grateful for the cooler morning! (74°F now, 84°F predicted)
Speak these things, exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.
Titus 2:15
Me: Good morning, Father!
Abba: Good morning, Jon!
Me: When I read this passage in Titus 2 this morning, I wondered how to understand ‘authority’ in this context. Also, when Paul told Titus, “Let no one despise you”, how does one have any control whatever of what another will think about what we say?
Abba: First, the word “authority” in Titus 2:15 is preceded by “with”. That is, Paul was exhorting Titus on the way he delivered the message.
For if the trumpet makes an uncertain sound, who will prepare for battle?
1 Corinthians 14:8
In that First Corinthians Fourteen context, Paul was talking about speaking in tongues; whether about revelation, knowledge, or prophecy, but the principle holds. For a message to connect with the hearer, it needs to be clear. I AM always looking at the heart. I know every thought and intent (Hebrews 4:14, Genesis 6:5). Not so, either Titus’ hearers, or yours. How quickly one will abandon a plodding tome produced by an unskilled author! (No coincidence that the words author and authority derive from the same root.) So, to summarize, this part of Paul’s message to Titus is about effective delivery.
Further, tying to the idea of not letting anyone despise; the author, teacher, pastor, preacher, prophet or other orator who would influence – especially about the Gospel, where the stakes not merely temporal – has responsibility to find ways to reach his audience.
Romans 10:17, which you committed to memory from the King James version, is “So then, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Notice in the Greek, the last word is Χριστοῦ (Christ) and “word” is ῥήματος (rhēmatos, the spoken word).
The opening of the first chapter of the Gospel of John reveals Jesus as the incarnate Word of God. There the word is Logos. We are to fill our mouths with the spoken word of the incarnate Word. Therein is true communication possible.
Look more carefully at Jesus’ commission:
And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
Matthew 28:18-20
Notice: Authority. It belongs to Him.
Neither Titus, nor you can fulfill the commission except by delegation of His authority. You are a steward, responsible for His purposes, rightly operating only under His authority and for His purposes.
Listen to Jesus. See His example. Observe His attitude.
I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.
John 5:30
If Jesus knew that any activity not anchored in conversation with Me would be so ineffective as to qualify as “nothing”, how should you expect something different? Jesus, in that same commission, promised to be with you. If the conversation is not active, if not vital and alive, the lack is not on His side.
Now, to go back to what Paul meant telling Titus to “let no one despise you”. In John 5:30, when Jesus says, “as I hear, I judge”, He is not talking about pronouncing Judgement on unrepentant men (though the time for that is certainly hastening), He was talking about judging how to proceed to accomplish My will, in each and every varied case. Only I AM holding knowledge of the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10). I AM not going to override the will. However, I AM the One who knows what may resonate, and the moment in which the word of the Word may break through.
Me: Thank You, Father! I love You!
Abba: You are welcome! I love you!
Photo by Ahmed Allam on Pexels.comBees removing their own heat from the hive to maintain internal temperature for the developing brood.
