Gelassenheit-An old German word, not easily translated into English. It comes from an old Anabaptist tradition meaning "yieldedness," "letting go," "total surrender," "abandonment, having all things in common," first to God, and then to the brotherhood of believers that we choose to live our lives among. The first part, seems, at times, to be easy. We all want to surrender ourselves to God, don't we? The second is more difficult. What does it mean to be surrendered to the brotherhood? And how is this in turn a surrendering to God?
Over the years Gelassenhiet among the brotherhood has been abused. In what was called the shepherding movement, individuals gave up all of their decision making process to others. Shepherds had absolute control of the lives of their sheep. This is not right, nor is it godly. To be surrendered to the brotherhood is not to give up the right to make decisions, it is to live in concensus, listening to the wisdom of others who have your best interest at heart. It means being responsible for yourself, and for and to, the brotherhood.
This is not at all an easy process. Human nature gets in the way. I want to surrender, and I want control. It is a power struggle within my own spirit. But, it doesn't mean that I always have to agree. It means that I have to be "willing" to walk the road with others, listening and sharing God's truth.
I don't always agree with my church or my pastor, but I must be committed to a covenant relationship with the brotherhood of which every member is a part. It is by gelassenheit that a true disciple is recognizable. Although learned men have suggested many possible English words to express the meaning of gelassenheit, it is in living among others that German word finds its truest meaning. The following phrases will give the reader some idea of what the early Anabaptists meant when they used the term:
self -surrender,
self-abandonment,
resignation in God’s will,
the readiness to suffer for the sake of God,
A letting go,
peace and calmness of mind.
It is all about community. A community of love and forgiveness is possible only by overcoming all selfishness. Those who unite in the same faith and who have a pure conscience before God and man form a brotherhood. Members of a brotherhood do not readily distinguish between the group and the individual. The spirit of gelassenheit welds the two together. Gelassenheit refers to an attitude that is ready to yield, abandon, or surrender personal selfish desires before God and the brotherhood.
This then is my own understanding of gelassenheit. "When we truly realize the love of God, we will be ready to give up for love’s sake even that which God has given us. " Hans Denck
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Let Justice Roll Down Like A River
Seventy years ago, almost to the day, my maternal grandmother Suzanna Regier (nee: Mueller) died an untimely death. While still a young woman, the hardship of the Canadian west took its toll. Subsequent to her death my grandfather (Peter Abraham Regier-an Old Colony Mennonite) was for some unknown reason banned by the Old Colony Church (perhaps he was somehow blamed for her death), and he took it out on everyone around him. The Shunning which followed was so severe that when I spoke to the son of his brother Isaac, he had these words to say, "Of this Abram, Isaac, and Gerhart Regier (my grandfather's older brothers), I have some knowledge, but of the Peter Abraham Regier I have no memory." My grandfather, purged from the memories of the next generation.
At about the time that I began to Blog, several things happened simultaniously: I returned to full time work, I made contact with a cousin with whom I had not spoken in forty-five years; and we began to speak of a Regier-Mueller family reunion, I began to think on the possiblilities and potentials of restoration. My grandfather made his peace with God, on October 31, 1962, as in the presence of my mother and her youngest sister, he lay dieing. Grandfather died that day, at peace with God, and as Martin Luther once wrote: "Death puts an end to all the claims of the Church; even the dying are already dead to the canon laws, and are no longer bound by them." I began to think of the possibilities.
While speaking with a pastor in La Crete, AB, where the Old Colony finally rested, about the possibility of "lifting the ban," he quoted this significant passage: This is what the LORD says: "When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:10-13 (NIV)
At about the time that I began to Blog, several things happened simultaniously: I returned to full time work, I made contact with a cousin with whom I had not spoken in forty-five years; and we began to speak of a Regier-Mueller family reunion, I began to think on the possiblilities and potentials of restoration. My grandfather made his peace with God, on October 31, 1962, as in the presence of my mother and her youngest sister, he lay dieing. Grandfather died that day, at peace with God, and as Martin Luther once wrote: "Death puts an end to all the claims of the Church; even the dying are already dead to the canon laws, and are no longer bound by them." I began to think of the possibilities.
While speaking with a pastor in La Crete, AB, where the Old Colony finally rested, about the possibility of "lifting the ban," he quoted this significant passage: This is what the LORD says: "When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:10-13 (NIV)
Seventy years. It can't be a coincedence. Now, I hope to have the church once again extend the right hand of fellowship, as I stand proxy for Peter Abraham Regier. While death has put an end to the claims of the church, we the church are bound by the generational curse caused by choices that grandfather made after the death of his dear wife and the ban which followed. Peter Abraham Regier rests in the arms of Abraham. "Christ took away the curse the law put on us. He changed places with us and put himself under that curse...Christ did this so that God's blessing promised to Abraham might come through Jesus Christ to those who are not Jews. Jesus died so that by our believing we could receive the Spirit that God promised...You were all baptized into Christ, so that you are all clothed with Christ. This means that you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus...You belong to Christ, so you are Abraham's descendants. You will inherit all of God's blessings because of the promise God made to Abraham" (Gal. 2:13-14, 26-29-NCV). If it is true for you and I, it is true for Peter Abraham Regier. The curse is broken, the strong man has been bound. He is free, and whoever the Son makes free is free indeed! All that remains is for the church to bind that which is already bound in heaven, and to loose that which is already loosed (Matt. 18:18).
It may be a technicality, but Jesus goes on to say, "I tell you, you must forgive him more than seven times. You must forgive him even if he wrongs you seventy times seven" (Matt: 18:22). The sevens are remarkable: 70 years since Suzanna's death, 70 years in Babylon, Forgiveness 70 times 7. True, there are consequences to our actions, and Peter Abraham Regier lead a life marked with guilt, shame, and bitterness. But, God has forgiven us that we might be enabled to forgive him. Isn't that what Jesus taught us, "Forgive us as we are forgiven?" It may be a technicality, but it is a technicality with power, to bind and to loose in the world of our experience, that which is bound and loosed in the courtroom of heaven. "Let justice roll down like a river, and goodness and goodness like a never-ending stream"(Amos 6:24). Join me as I pray for the restoration and reinstatement of Peter Abraham Regier. Who knows where it might lead, and what glories are in store for the three and four generations that have followed him. Who knows what the river might bring. "This water will flow to the eastern areas, and will go down into the Jordan Valley. When it enters the dead sea, it will become fresh. Everywhere the river goes, there will be many fish. Wherever this water goes the Dead Sea will become fresh, and so, where the river goes there will be many living things" (Eze. 47:8-9-NCV).
Grace and Peace from Arnet, proud seed of Abraham and grandson of Peter Abraham Regier and Suzanna Mueller, hoping and praying for restoration, grateful for my own.
Friday, October 12, 2007
Finish the Work-Do It Now
"My work is to do what the one who sent me wants me to do, and to finish his work" John 4:34.
Four verses later, Jesus says to his disciples:
"I sent you to harvest a crop you did not work on. Others did the work and you get to finish up their work" John 4:38
Feeling Overwhelmed? Take These Tips from Nehemiah by Todd Lake:
A child once drew a picture of a tiny boat on a raging sea and wrote underneath:
"Dear Lord, be good to me. The sea is so wide and my boat is so small."
Nehemiah knew that feeling when God told him to rebuild the destroyed and demoralized city of Jerusalem. Nehemiah was working for a foreign king in a city a thousand miles from home. Not one thing on his resume pointed to his starting from scratch to restore a ravaged city and its people. But he eventually revived both the city and its people. How he faced his stiff odds reveals several important steps to how we can conquer ours.
First, though it seems counterintuitive, Nehemiah acknowledged that he was unequal to the task. Admitting that he was weak and sinful, he fasted and asked God for success—and that not for his own sake. Bruce Wilkinson's bestseller, The Prayer of Jabez, similarly encourages readers to ask God for success in bold undertakings. Some people worry that such a prayer encourages selfishness, but Nehemiah's prayer led to his leaving the safety of Susa for the ruins of Jerusalem … and Bruce Wilkinson and his family sold their U.S. home and moved to Africa to help address the AIDS crisis.
Second, Nehemiah used his connections to get started—he appealed to the king for safe passage to Jerusalem and for financial support. Habitat for Humanity's founder Millard Fuller says the best way to gather resources for God's work is to boldly ask people to supply them.
Third, Nehemiah regularly met with a small group of people who cared about getting the job done. He avoided the common mistake of thinking that personal responsibility equals individual responsibility. God may have called Nehemiah; but Nehemiah says with holy boldness, "I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, and the rest that were to do the work." He knew it would take many people to conquer an otherwise impossible task.
Finally, Nehemiah knew that any task worth doing is worth doing poorly … at least on the front end. His critics mocked: "Will they restore things? Will they finish in a day? That stone wall they are building—any fox going up on it would break it down!" But Nehemiah was not building a wall; he was building a community of coworkers. After considerable labor, the wall was only "half its height," but Nehemiah's team was more than halfway to becoming people able to accomplish everything God asked.
Nehemiah's task would have remained overwhelming had he not turned from his own strength to God's, turned to those with resources, turned to potential co-laborers, and turned a deaf ear to critics … in the high calling of his daily work.
"And you child, will be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins" Luke 1:76-77
So, finish the work. do it now.
Four verses later, Jesus says to his disciples:
"I sent you to harvest a crop you did not work on. Others did the work and you get to finish up their work" John 4:38
Feeling Overwhelmed? Take These Tips from Nehemiah by Todd Lake:
A child once drew a picture of a tiny boat on a raging sea and wrote underneath:
"Dear Lord, be good to me. The sea is so wide and my boat is so small."
Nehemiah knew that feeling when God told him to rebuild the destroyed and demoralized city of Jerusalem. Nehemiah was working for a foreign king in a city a thousand miles from home. Not one thing on his resume pointed to his starting from scratch to restore a ravaged city and its people. But he eventually revived both the city and its people. How he faced his stiff odds reveals several important steps to how we can conquer ours.
First, though it seems counterintuitive, Nehemiah acknowledged that he was unequal to the task. Admitting that he was weak and sinful, he fasted and asked God for success—and that not for his own sake. Bruce Wilkinson's bestseller, The Prayer of Jabez, similarly encourages readers to ask God for success in bold undertakings. Some people worry that such a prayer encourages selfishness, but Nehemiah's prayer led to his leaving the safety of Susa for the ruins of Jerusalem … and Bruce Wilkinson and his family sold their U.S. home and moved to Africa to help address the AIDS crisis.
Second, Nehemiah used his connections to get started—he appealed to the king for safe passage to Jerusalem and for financial support. Habitat for Humanity's founder Millard Fuller says the best way to gather resources for God's work is to boldly ask people to supply them.
Third, Nehemiah regularly met with a small group of people who cared about getting the job done. He avoided the common mistake of thinking that personal responsibility equals individual responsibility. God may have called Nehemiah; but Nehemiah says with holy boldness, "I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, and the rest that were to do the work." He knew it would take many people to conquer an otherwise impossible task.
Finally, Nehemiah knew that any task worth doing is worth doing poorly … at least on the front end. His critics mocked: "Will they restore things? Will they finish in a day? That stone wall they are building—any fox going up on it would break it down!" But Nehemiah was not building a wall; he was building a community of coworkers. After considerable labor, the wall was only "half its height," but Nehemiah's team was more than halfway to becoming people able to accomplish everything God asked.
Nehemiah's task would have remained overwhelming had he not turned from his own strength to God's, turned to those with resources, turned to potential co-laborers, and turned a deaf ear to critics … in the high calling of his daily work.
"And you child, will be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins" Luke 1:76-77
So, finish the work. do it now.
Monday, October 8, 2007
My Soul Magnifies the Lord
"Then Mary said, my soul praises the Lord; my heart rejoices in God my Saviour, because he has shown his concern for his humble servant girl. From now on, all people will say that I am blessed, because the powerfu One has done great things for me. His name is holy. God will show his mercy forever and ever to those who worship and serve him. He has done might deeds by his power. He has scattered the people who are proud, and think great things about themselves. He has brought down rulers from their thrones and raised up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away with nothing. He has helped his servant, the people of Israel, remembering to show them mercy as he promised to our ancestors, to Abraham and his children forever" (Luke 1:46-55-NCV).
Mary's song is purest praise. She realizes and accepts the promises of God intensely and personally. Let us discover ourselves, with her, in direct relation to the promises of God. "There is no God like you. You forgive those who are guilty of sin; you don't look at the sins of your people who are left alive. You will not stay angry forver, because you enjoy being kind. You will have mercy on us again; you will conquer our sins. You will throw away all our sins into the deepest part of the sea. You will be true to the people of Jacob, and you will be kind to the people of Abraham as you promsied our ancestors long ago" (Micah 7:18-20-NCV).
How grateful I am, to be part of a community of people who know how to praise, who have so many ways and find so many occasions to express glad gratitude. My soul magnifies the Lord! Happy Thanksgiving.
Mary's song is purest praise. She realizes and accepts the promises of God intensely and personally. Let us discover ourselves, with her, in direct relation to the promises of God. "There is no God like you. You forgive those who are guilty of sin; you don't look at the sins of your people who are left alive. You will not stay angry forver, because you enjoy being kind. You will have mercy on us again; you will conquer our sins. You will throw away all our sins into the deepest part of the sea. You will be true to the people of Jacob, and you will be kind to the people of Abraham as you promsied our ancestors long ago" (Micah 7:18-20-NCV).
How grateful I am, to be part of a community of people who know how to praise, who have so many ways and find so many occasions to express glad gratitude. My soul magnifies the Lord! Happy Thanksgiving.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
The Signs of the Times
"Hypocrites, you know how to understand the appearance of the earth and sky, why don't you understand what is happening now?" (Luke 12:56).
Back in May I had the pleasure of listening to Leonard Sweet talk about semiatic awareness. "Hypocrites, you know how to understand the appearance of the earth and sky, why don't you understand what is happening now?" For some days, I was gainfully aware of the signs that were happening all about me, and I began to hear God's voice. But, as life moved in around me, I fell into what Sweet called semiatic breakdown, and I failed to listen to what God was saying. I almost missed the boat.
In Luke's gospel, an angel appears to Zachariah, and says "Zachariah, don't be afraid. God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give birth to a son, and you will name him John. He will bring you joy and gladness, and many people will be happy because of his birth. John will be a great man for the Lord. He will never drink wine or beer, and even from birth, he will be filled with the Holy Spirit. He will help many people of Israel return to the Lord their God. He will go before the Lord in spirit and in power like Elijah. He will make peace between parents and their children and will bring those who are not obeying God back to the right way of thinking, to make a people ready for the coming of the Lord" (Luke 1:13-17). And, Zachariah has a semiatic breakdown.
"How can I know that what you say is true? I am an old man and my wife is old too" (Luke 1:18). Zachariah, like me, had failed to see the signs all about him. It is better, says Eugene Peterson, to be silent than to weary God with skeptical questions. We are not responsible for figuring out how God will fulfill his promise; our assignment is to wait expectantly in faith and hope. Watch for the signs and listen.
You see, the signs are all about you. "I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and His incomparably great power for us who believe"... (Ephesians 1:17-19). Open your eyes.
I do not know wholly what God is doing, but he has given us a house and he has renewed my interest in things Anabaptist; and I am not responsible for figuring out just what God is up to, I am responsible for waiting expectantly in faith and hope. God is not done yet. Something is happening here. I am once again filled with semiatic awareness. The signs are all about me.
"Be dressed, ready for service, and have your lamps shining. Be like the servants who are waiting for their master to come home from a wedding party. when he comes and knocks, the servants immediately open the door for him. They will be blessed when their master comes home, because he sees that they were watching for him. I tell you the truth, the master will dress himself to serve and tell the servants to sit at the table, and he will serve them. Those servants will be blessed when he comes in, and finds them still waiting, even if it is midnight or later. Remember this: if the owner of the house knew what time a thief was coming, he would not allow the thief to enter his house. So, you must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at a time when you don't expect him" (Luke 12:35-40).
Watch and be ready to move. "Don't fear. little flock, because your Father wants to give you the kingdom" (Luke 12:32). God is in the house.
Back in May I had the pleasure of listening to Leonard Sweet talk about semiatic awareness. "Hypocrites, you know how to understand the appearance of the earth and sky, why don't you understand what is happening now?" For some days, I was gainfully aware of the signs that were happening all about me, and I began to hear God's voice. But, as life moved in around me, I fell into what Sweet called semiatic breakdown, and I failed to listen to what God was saying. I almost missed the boat.
In Luke's gospel, an angel appears to Zachariah, and says "Zachariah, don't be afraid. God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give birth to a son, and you will name him John. He will bring you joy and gladness, and many people will be happy because of his birth. John will be a great man for the Lord. He will never drink wine or beer, and even from birth, he will be filled with the Holy Spirit. He will help many people of Israel return to the Lord their God. He will go before the Lord in spirit and in power like Elijah. He will make peace between parents and their children and will bring those who are not obeying God back to the right way of thinking, to make a people ready for the coming of the Lord" (Luke 1:13-17). And, Zachariah has a semiatic breakdown.
"How can I know that what you say is true? I am an old man and my wife is old too" (Luke 1:18). Zachariah, like me, had failed to see the signs all about him. It is better, says Eugene Peterson, to be silent than to weary God with skeptical questions. We are not responsible for figuring out how God will fulfill his promise; our assignment is to wait expectantly in faith and hope. Watch for the signs and listen.
You see, the signs are all about you. "I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and His incomparably great power for us who believe"... (Ephesians 1:17-19). Open your eyes.
I do not know wholly what God is doing, but he has given us a house and he has renewed my interest in things Anabaptist; and I am not responsible for figuring out just what God is up to, I am responsible for waiting expectantly in faith and hope. God is not done yet. Something is happening here. I am once again filled with semiatic awareness. The signs are all about me.
"Be dressed, ready for service, and have your lamps shining. Be like the servants who are waiting for their master to come home from a wedding party. when he comes and knocks, the servants immediately open the door for him. They will be blessed when their master comes home, because he sees that they were watching for him. I tell you the truth, the master will dress himself to serve and tell the servants to sit at the table, and he will serve them. Those servants will be blessed when he comes in, and finds them still waiting, even if it is midnight or later. Remember this: if the owner of the house knew what time a thief was coming, he would not allow the thief to enter his house. So, you must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at a time when you don't expect him" (Luke 12:35-40).
Watch and be ready to move. "Don't fear. little flock, because your Father wants to give you the kingdom" (Luke 12:32). God is in the house.
Monday, October 1, 2007
The High Calling
"Nothing is impossible with God," says the angel Gabriel to Mary, the young woman whom God had chosen to bear his Son (Luke 1:37).
Mary needed encouragement. The angel had just told her that she was going to be the mother of the Son of the Most High God, the Redeemer of the people of Israel, the Messiah whom they had been anticipating for centuries, and that she was going to become pregnant without ever having sex. Mary must have been thinking, "Yeah, right, and how will that happen? Impossible."But the Angel anticipated her doubt with a promise, "No word is impossible with God." And this was the word of God. By God's grace, Mary chose not to doubt and moved into a totally unexpected, unanticipated, and amazing journey. She wasn't the first woman in the Bible to have a miracle child, though other miracle babies had human fathers. God created life from barrenness in biblical mothers such as Sarah, the mother of Isaac, Hannah, the mother of Samuel, and Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist. Throughout Scripture, God proves to be far more creative than our imaginations, and he is in the business of creating something out of nothing. Including the world. When it seems impossible, get ready for God to work. Sometimes in our lives, we are confronted with a blocked path, a resounding "No," an impossible relationship that we cannot do anything to fix. We are tempted to get frustrated, desperate, angry, and sad. But just like barren women, we can turn to the One who creates life itself. As we follow him, our feelings of frustration and anger are replaced by hope and anticipation to see what God will do. If we look around, we can see the evidence of God's presence—in the brilliant colors of the azaleas, in the face of a newborn baby, in the miracle of a restored relationship, or the call of a friend. We have a God who loves us. He has a plan for us and will never abandon us. When Mary heard the angel, she did not know how such promises would work. But she didn't need to know. She only needed to trust. That doesn't mean it was easy. She could have lost Joseph. She was almost definitely ostracized from her peers for a time. But she trusted God, and she remained faithful in her daily life. We, too, can trust that we belong to God. We, too, can hope that he will never let go of us. Any blocked path, any loud "No," any impossibility isn't the end of the story. These are signs for us to keep working and believing that God is leading us in a new direction, somewhere beautiful, amazing, and unanticipated (Kristin Huffman at The High Calling).
"Is Ephraim a precious son to me? Or a child of my good pleasure? For as often as I speak against him, I surely remember him more; therefore my bowels moan for him; I will surely have mercy on him,declares Yahweh. Set up markers for yourself; make signposts for yourself; pay attention to the highway..." (Jer. 31:20-21a).
I am drawn back to Mic. 7:18-20, Who is a God like you? "There is no God like you. You forgive those who are guilty of sin; you don't look at the sins of your people who are left alive. You will not stay angry forever, because you "delight" in showing lovingkindness. You will have mercy on us again; you will conquer all our sins. You will cast away all our sins into the deepest part of the sea. You will be true to the people of Jacob, and you will be kind to the people of Abraham as you promised to our ancestors long ago."
It is not over, til' it's over, and when it's over, it's just beginning
Mary needed encouragement. The angel had just told her that she was going to be the mother of the Son of the Most High God, the Redeemer of the people of Israel, the Messiah whom they had been anticipating for centuries, and that she was going to become pregnant without ever having sex. Mary must have been thinking, "Yeah, right, and how will that happen? Impossible."But the Angel anticipated her doubt with a promise, "No word is impossible with God." And this was the word of God. By God's grace, Mary chose not to doubt and moved into a totally unexpected, unanticipated, and amazing journey. She wasn't the first woman in the Bible to have a miracle child, though other miracle babies had human fathers. God created life from barrenness in biblical mothers such as Sarah, the mother of Isaac, Hannah, the mother of Samuel, and Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist. Throughout Scripture, God proves to be far more creative than our imaginations, and he is in the business of creating something out of nothing. Including the world. When it seems impossible, get ready for God to work. Sometimes in our lives, we are confronted with a blocked path, a resounding "No," an impossible relationship that we cannot do anything to fix. We are tempted to get frustrated, desperate, angry, and sad. But just like barren women, we can turn to the One who creates life itself. As we follow him, our feelings of frustration and anger are replaced by hope and anticipation to see what God will do. If we look around, we can see the evidence of God's presence—in the brilliant colors of the azaleas, in the face of a newborn baby, in the miracle of a restored relationship, or the call of a friend. We have a God who loves us. He has a plan for us and will never abandon us. When Mary heard the angel, she did not know how such promises would work. But she didn't need to know. She only needed to trust. That doesn't mean it was easy. She could have lost Joseph. She was almost definitely ostracized from her peers for a time. But she trusted God, and she remained faithful in her daily life. We, too, can trust that we belong to God. We, too, can hope that he will never let go of us. Any blocked path, any loud "No," any impossibility isn't the end of the story. These are signs for us to keep working and believing that God is leading us in a new direction, somewhere beautiful, amazing, and unanticipated (Kristin Huffman at The High Calling).
"Is Ephraim a precious son to me? Or a child of my good pleasure? For as often as I speak against him, I surely remember him more; therefore my bowels moan for him; I will surely have mercy on him,declares Yahweh. Set up markers for yourself; make signposts for yourself; pay attention to the highway..." (Jer. 31:20-21a).
I am drawn back to Mic. 7:18-20, Who is a God like you? "There is no God like you. You forgive those who are guilty of sin; you don't look at the sins of your people who are left alive. You will not stay angry forever, because you "delight" in showing lovingkindness. You will have mercy on us again; you will conquer all our sins. You will cast away all our sins into the deepest part of the sea. You will be true to the people of Jacob, and you will be kind to the people of Abraham as you promised to our ancestors long ago."
It is not over, til' it's over, and when it's over, it's just beginning
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