the beauty of GRACE

you ever read something so profound, you get a knot in your stomach? it happens to me when something just really grips me. i feel cornered, convicted and humbled...often times against my will. it is good.

i have a knot that i want to share. call it a confession. i started reading Galatians again tonight. honestly, it has been some time since i have spent serious time in the New Testament, and i have felt disconnected in a sense from Jesus and His teachings. wondering which writing i should focus on, i felt lead to Galatians. and i started reading.

iv only gotten through part of chapter three, and i had to stop and write. this knot just keeps growing. you know the kind that is so great, you cant help but bend forward and make it even more felt within you?

lets start at the beginning, where the knot started to form. its in the first chapter, right after paul greets his recipients of his letter. check this out:

8But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned!

i was frozen for a few minutes here. the boldness of paul here grips my very heart. you know that feeling when you read something again, and it is like brand new? that is the feeling, coupled with conviction and humbleness. see, paul does not just stop at man here, but he takes it to another level, that of angels. this is serious stuff paul is talking about......the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

it makes me stop and think, what kind of Gospel do i preach? would it line up with paul? more importantly, would it line up with Christ?

and see, when we jump farther in we find paul is not just talking about words here....he is talking about how we live. later in chapter two we find paul speaking of his issue with peter. we learn that peter, when with the other jews, acted differently around the gentile believers than he did when the jews were not present. paul in turn it says, "11...opposed him to his face, because he was clearly in the wrong." im just lost for words, it feels like.

take this situation with peter that paul addresses, and jump back to where we began. paul goes on in verse ten of chapter one to ask the question of who we try to gain approval of? is it men, or of God? there is a convicting question!

here is another way to ask it.....
how often do we water down the Gospel of Jesus Christ as to not offend anyone?
how often do we let the fear of rejection or criticism stop us from speaking the truth?

and again, this goes farther than just words. how often do we do this with our actions? maybe we dont pray before we eat when we go out, simply because someone might point and laugh. but then in church on Sunday we are all about the prayer team.

you see what paul is saying? paul in his boldness eternally condemns anyone, man or angel, who preaches anything other than the Gospel of Jesus Christ. and i would go as far as to say paul does not limit this to just words. that is convicting.

but it does not stop there for me, this is just where the knot begins. after he tells of the situation with peter, he goes into this lengthy declaration of the point of grace. there is so much in here that just yanks at my heart, but one part specifically convicts me.

21...for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!

ask yourself this question with me:
how often do we set up boundaries in our lives to keep us from falling, and find they tend to fail more than work?

this is the question i was faced with when i read this passage from Galatians chapter two. let me say this though before i move on, i am not against setting up boundaries in our lives to help keep us from falling; in fact, i believe Scripturally it is commanded of us.

but here is the danger i was confronted with tonight, and ultimately convicted of. we often set up these boundaries to help keep us safe, and intentionally or not, end up relying on them to save us. and then when they dont, we find ourselves in a state of confusion and depression.

how foolish to place our trust in these laws! paul makes a point that is so simple, yet so profound! if we were meant to find righteousness through laws, what would be the point of Jesus Christ stepping into His creation from heaven, to die on a cross? there would be no point!!!! paul further drives this point home clearly in the following chapter when he says,

11Clearly no one is justified before God by the law...

the law, our boundaries we put up, they are not what save us. it is what Christ Jesus did for us on the cross; and only by faith in what He did. there is nothing we can do to ever save ourselves. no amount of effort, no skill. it is only by faith in the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ that can save us. it is grace from God, not the law. this is why paul also said,

16...know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ.

for if this were not true, "Christ died for nothing!"

do you seek?

a thought i have had in light of a conversation with an old friend about understanding things in this world.

Proverbs 1:7 says this:

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge...

Proverbs 2:6 says this:

For the LORD gives wisdom, and from His mouth come knowledge and understanding.

we naturally want to understand things. it is clear where understanding comes from and how we can attain it in our own lives.

so here is my thought. how can we expect to gain understanding when we consciously chose to walk in our own ways?

we go looking for understanding often times in the wrong places, and seem shocked, upset and angry with God when we come back empty handed. and yet is it any wonder we have nothing to show for our efforts?

if we want true understanding, we must seek the One from which all understanding originates from. we must be willing to humbly submit ourselves before Him, and follow His ways. any other way is foolish.

and what of those times God withholds understanding? this is where faith comes in. faith that God is in control of all things, even when it seems He is not. let us keep in mind we only see the brush strokes, where as God sees the painting in its entirety.

i will end with this. i cannot recall any instance in Scripture, or my life or the lives of those around me where God granted wisdom and understanding unless the individual was seeking after God with all of their being, striving to walk in His path.

so my question is this. you who seek understanding, who's path are you following?

your own, or God's?

lizards

something has been bugging me for the last few days. something i read, a thought that was injected into my mind. provocative, yet humbling simultaneously. it came while reading one of C.S. Lewis' writings. i have become hooked on them and have recently checked out three new ones. this thought comes from the one i finished a few days ago, called "The Great Divorce".

it is about the differences of Heaven and Hell, their realness and disunity. great read, i might add.

there is this part towards the end where the person observing that which happens around him is talking with a great theologian of the past, and during the course of their discussion and walking about they witness many others being challenged by angels to chose life. one particular instance sticks with me. there was a man he witnessed who had a great lizard on his neck, whispering things to him. this man was yelling at the lizard to keep quiet, and an angel then offered to make it quiet for him. the man, wanting the lizard to be quiet accepted the angels offer. and then the angel asked if he should kill it now. at this the man became alarmed, for he did not understand the angel would kill it. through the discourse that took place between the angel and the man, the angel finally convinced the man that though it would hurt the man some, the lizard would be silenced and the man would have true life. the lizard, who whispered into the mans ear, deceiving him of the truth.

the man gave in, and the angel clasped its hand around the lizard and it burned up, causing the man great agony. and then, the lizard fell to the ground, losing its grip on the man.

but it did not stop there. the lizard, though dead, squirmed on the ground and became a great stallion. the man climbed upon this stallion and then rode him off into the great Mountains where the Sun rises.

interesting. convicting. humbling.

just a few thoughts of mine after i read and pondered this part. fiction, yet with a great truth. it is only when we let our lizards, the wrong influences and habits in our life die, that we become truely who we are meant to be.

i have some lizards in my life. i think we all do. one might say, "of course we do! we are human after all!" very true, but Scripture is clear that this is no excuse to continue living in sin.

and here i must admit i am preaching to myself.

it is as if God is not letting this idea leave me, and i know why. i have lizards i need to deal with. lizards that need to die. lizards that have taken a hold of me simply because i have allowed them to.

think of this:

...do not give the devil a foothold.
Ephesians 4:27

it was my choice to give these lizards a place around my neck, and yet i am commanded not to do so.

now look at this:

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Ephesians 4:22-24

this is what we need to be doing, what i need to do. let those lizards die, and become what i was created to be....a son of God.

it is not easy, il admit that. it is real easy to just say something like this, it is another to live it out. but that is what i am called to do as a son.

and yet i cannot do it on my own......there is no victory down that road, onyl deception and failure. it is only through submission to the power of the Holy Spirit that sin may be conquered.

and dead falls a lizard.

if there is one thing i have learned, it is that Satan is an expert at making a lie appear as truth. and how will we know the difference if we do not know the Truth? if we want to conquer sin we must realize that WE cannot. it is just like changing people, WE dont do the changing. it is the Holy Spirit that does this. the same is true when it comes to conquering sin in our lives. it is through complete surrender to the Will of God and the Holy Spirit, letting it invade every part of our lives and do some house cleaning.

i once heard it illustrated in this fashion in a book i read about purity. our bodies are like a house, and it is filled with rooms, all with doors. we have to take down the barricades holding those doors shut willingly, and let Christ walk through and do what He wishes. we have to submit to God our wills, desires, everything, if we truely want to get rid of the sin in our lives.

and here is the tricky part, it doesnt end here. we live in a world saturated with sin, and because of this we must be constantly surrendering ourselves to His command.

the bottom line is there is no other way to successfully take down sin in our lives. all the other ways are filled with more lies, pain and failure.

i want success. i want joy. i want peace knowing i am in right communion with God.

i want dead lizards.

silly liberals

so i found this article link today, and i had to laugh as i read it. it has to do with gun control.

now, i openly admit i am 100% supportive of the 2nd amendment, and I am anti-gun control in the way liberals describe. read the following article, and i think you will understand.

The Truth - About assault rifles. Those evil assault rifles.
a post written by Shawn McCarthy
Saturday, September 13 at 9:10 PM

Attack of the terrible “assault” rifles.

During Charlie Gibson’s interview with GOP VP candidate Sarah Palin, he asked a question pertaining to so-called “assault” rifles. I am going to show you the question and demonstrate how she SHOULD have answered.


Watch out friends, this is one of the things the dems are going to try if the Obamessiah gets into the White House, with their interpretations of the Constitution as a “living document.”


GIBSON: 70% of Americans support a ban on assault rifles, would you favor such a ban?


What PALIN should have said:


Well, Charlie, I wonder what you mean by “assault rifle.” Traditional assault weapons are weapons that can be fired on either semi-automatic or fully automatic and have a selector switch to pick between the two options. Oh, am I loosing you already, ok I will explain the differences,


You see, Charlie, a fully automatic weapon is one where you pull the trigger and the weapons fires until its ammunition supply is exhausted. These weapons are excessively regulated already by the United States government. Is that what you mean by “assault rifle?” Well, Charlie, if it is, I must say that I do not support banning them. Why? Well, research would show. . . What?

I am loosing you again?

You need me to explain “research?” Ok Charlie, research is something REAL journalists and citizens who wish to exercise their right to vote responsibly engage in prior to casting their vote or asking dumb-ass questions. . . What? No Charlie, I am not explaining “responsibly.” You will have to look that up yourself later.


So let’s pretend you were a real journalist and you did your research. You would find that assault weapons, the fully automatic kind, are almost never used in crimes. In fact, in the last 50 years, an American Civilian has NEVER used a legally owned fully automatic “assault” weapon in a crime. As it stands, civilians who wish to own a fully automatic weapon must apply for a pricey license from the Department of Treasury and then pay very high prices for the weapon itself, since importation and manufacture of automatic weapons for civilian use have been prohibited since 1986. As you can imagine, Charlie, that drives the prices up a tad.


So Charlie, is that what you mean by the question? Well I sure cannot see much of a need for a ban on a weapon that is never used in crimes and is already prohibited from importation and manufacture. Can you, Charlie?


Or did you mean a broader definition of “assault” rifle? Maybe you meant weapons which were banned by the Clinton “assault” weapons ban in the 90s? Is that what you mean, Charlie?

Well, let’s look at the characteristics which made a weapon scary enough to be banned by Clinton. The weapons covered in the Clinton ban were semi-automatic weapons cap- oh, sorry Charlie, semi-automatic means you pull the trigger once, and one bullet comes out of the barrel.

You keeping up with me Charlie?

So as I was saying, the Clinton ban covered semi-automatic weapons capable of taking a detachable magazine that also contained two or more of the following features:

-A folding or telescoping stock

-A pistol grip

-A bayonet mount

-A flash suppressor, or threads to attach one

-A grenade launcher.


I know Charlie, those things do sound scary. Well, stop wetting yourself and slow your breathing and I will explain each one of them for you.


-The folding or telescopic stock simply reduces the weight of the rifle and makes it adjustable for people of different sizes. In a way it promotes diversity.


-The pistol grip is simply a place to rest your hand when firing the gun, and on some guns it offers extra means of stabilizing the rifle while you are shooting it.


-The bayonet mount is the means for attaching a bayonet, which is sometimes simply a knife, to the end of the rifle. I know Charlie, knifes are also scary, but rest assured that most people don’t ever attach bayonets to their rifles because it can hurt their accuracy when they are shooting. The bayonet mounts are just on a lot of rifles because many of the rifles we buy are military rifles from other countries that aren’t being used anymore; its kind of like recycling. The people just leave the mounts on for cosmetic reasons, or simply because it is more of a pain in the butt to take them off. I do understand your concerns of the dangers of bayonets though, we would hate to have a break-out of mass bayonetings.


-A flash suppressor is a device which minimizes the bright stuff that comes out of the end of a barrel when you shoot a gun. These are useful for military snipers or marksmen engaging from a distance who do not want to give away their position. They are usually just left on imported rifles like the bayonet mounts. Sometimes they are combined with compensators which make the rifle’s recoil easier to control.


-Grenade launchers are also very scary. Yes, you can hug me while I talk to you about them. It’s ok Charlie, it will be fine, no one is going to hurt you. The grenade launchers that are sometimes found on rifles are for special grenades which would be attached to the end of the rifle, then set off by a special round which does not actually fire a bullet but just creates enough gas to propel the grenade. These launchers entail nothing more than an attachment on the end of the barrel and a switch to redirect the gas generated by the spent round to the grenade. This gas usually pushes the bolt back and chambers the next round for the rifle. These launchers are part of the gas-operating systems of the rifle and would be very difficult to remove. Am I losing you Charlie? Well, rest assured that these launchers have NEVER been used for a crime in the United States. Someone would have to get their hands on the grenades AND the special cartridge to fire the grenade, so I don’t expect that anyone will be using those for liquor store robberies anytime soon.


So, Charlie, you are probably wondering, like many educated Americans did, why President Clinton would want to ban guns for such silly reasons. Well, I have my theories, but I think it was summed up well by an editorial in The Washington Post from September 15, 1994, which states:

“No one should have any illusions about what was accomplished (by the ban). Assault weapons play a part in only a small percentage of crime. The provision is mainly symbolic; its virtue will be if it turns out to be, as hoped, a stepping stone to broader gun control.”


When most people hear the term “assault rifle” they simply think of military-style rifles. Let’s talk about some things military-style rifles have in common, other than scaring the crap out of liberals such as yourself. They tend to be simple to operate, simple to break down and clean, safer to operate, durable, reliable and fairly cheap to shoot (due to mass-produced, inexpensive ammo). They are also generally very difficult to conceal and are often times in weaker calibers than most hunting rifles.


What Charlie, you don’t understand why people would want to own these rifles anyway? Well, some people hunt with them but that is not their main purpose. Most people just like to collect them and shoot them for practice and sport. People collect all different sorts of things Charlie, from cars to baseball cards. Like you Charlie, you collect silly glasses and practice pretentious glances and you like to shoot out condescending and misleading “gotcha!” questions. And let’s not forget, shooting is a competitive sport, and many rifle shooting competitions require far more athleticism than, say, golf or bowling.


And really, Charlie, what does it matter why people want to own them? The beautiful thing about America is that we have the right to collect such things, and our Founding Fathers did not want silly alarmists to be able to prevent us from having them simply because they do understand them.


Let’s go back to some more research. You remember research from a few minutes ago, don’t you Charlie?

-Assault weapons are not the weapons of choice among drug dealers, gang members or criminals in general. In fact, assault weapons are used in about one-fifth of one percent (.20%) of all violent crimes and about one percent in gun crimes.

-It is estimated that roughly one percent of all homicides are committed with assault weapons (rifles of any type are involved in three to four percent of all homicides).

-Between 1992 and 1996 less than 4% of mass murders, committed with guns, involved assault weapons. (Our deadliest mass murders have either involved arson or bombs.)

-There are close to 4 million assault weapons in the U.S., which amounts to roughly 1.7% of the total gun stock.

So, Charlie, back to your question. I wonder what was meant by the term “assault rifle.” How was it explained to the 70% of Americans who were polled and said they favored a ban? Was it explained at all? You see, as we have demonstrated, many Americans are ignorant about guns and are therefore easily swayed by scary words like “assault” and “bang.” I wonder if the person doing the poll spoke in a deep, scary voice when he said the word “assault.” Ass-ault! Don’t cry Charlie, stop shaking. See, fear-mongering from the left about guns can elicit a very emotional response from Americans who may mean well but just don’t know better.

Now that we have addressed the silliness of the assault weapons ban and the scare tactics employed by the left, I would like to point out something about our opponent in this race, Senator Obama.

Now, during his speech to the swooning masses at the DNC he said that there was no reason we cannot uphold the 2nd Amendment while keeping AK-47s out of the hands drug dealers. Aside from the fact that, despite Hollywood’s depictions, drug dealers do not commonly use AK-47s, Obama’s statement was more than a little disingenuous. In a “Political Courage” survey on candidates’ positions, Obama said he supports a “Ban on the sale or transfer of all forms of semi-automatic weapons.” The survey is available for all to see on votesmart.org. Notice how it says “weapons” and not “rifles.” This could potentially include the pistols and even some revolvers that many law-abiding Americans use to protect themselves and their families. Now I do not know what Senator Obama thinks, but that does not sound like “upholding the 2nd Amendment,” does it, Charlie?

Even more of a threat to our liberties is the Assault Weapons Ban and Law Enforcement Protection Act of 2007 or H.R. 1022. It was introduced last year and cosponsored by 66 democrats (and not a single republican). This fascist bill would not only ban all the weapons covered by the ridiculous Clinton ban, but it would add to that millions of guns which were modified to be in compliance with that ban.

This 2007 bill would ban:

- Common sporting rifles like the Ruger Mini 14 and Mini 30.

- All fixed-magazine, centerfire rifles which hold more that 10 rounds.

- All semi-automatic shotguns, which are widely used in trap shooting and hunting.

- All detachable-magazine semi-automatic rifles-including, for example, the ubiquitous Ruger 10/22 .22 rimfire.

- The three centerfire rifles most popular for marksmanship competitions: the Colt AR-15, the Springfield M1A and the M1 “Garand.”

Fortunately this bill died, and even if it had not, President Bush would have vetoed it. But I assure you, friends, that if Obama ends up in office the democrats will try again. They will not rest until they have implemented oppressive gun laws depriving Americans of their right to hunt, sport-shoot and defend themselves. They want American gun laws to rival those of Europe.


Do you think such oppressive gun laws are a good idea, Charlie? I can think of a few people who thought that total gun control was a good idea. Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini and Castro come to mind. Now Senator Obama can add his name to that list.


We gun owners have a saying, “If you outlaw guns, only outlaws will have guns.”


Assault weapons, and legally owned guns in general, are not a danger to Americans. Those scary features that frighten the ignorant about “assault” rifles do not make them more of a threat to law-abiding Americans. That is, unless you were to try and ban them. Then all those features may be a problem when you come and try to take our guns from us.


We gun owners have another saying. “You can have my guns, when you pry them from my cold, dead hands.”


That’s what I think about your poll, Charlie.

a life worth living for

about a week ago i realized at a deeper level that to simply want to follow after God and understand Him better is not good enough. i have to pursue it, i have to take action. and so i decided to start a study of Proverbs, and seek to understand better how to pursue God and live a life of wisdom and passion for Him.

it has been good. i am through the first two chapters and i feel heavy. because, i look back at my life and i realize i chose to miss the boat. i had the truth, and for whatever reason i chose to scoot it to the side in pursuit of myself.

so here i am now at the beginning of chapter three, and a thought jumped into my mind after reading verses one and two again:

My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart, for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity.

my mind jumps to a chapel that was done last week by one of Moody's past presidents, in which he spoke of aging well. he spoke of how he was on this talk show with a Catholic priest and a Jewish rabbi, and he was looked to for answering the main question. and it was this, that a resent poll done showed that those devout in their faith lived longer and healthier lives than those who were not devout. the host didnt buy it and wanted an answer.

the point that the past president made in his speech was basically this, that the key to longer, fuller, more meaningful life is devoutly and passionatly seeking after God and His Will, His commands.

i have to stop here. i want a longer, more meaningful life. if i am honest, i want to be prosperous. not financially nesicarily, but just in general. and i have noticed something looking back at my short life. the more i try to live this life after myself, the less prosperous i am and the more i hurt.

God lays it out clearly for us. apart from Him we find no rest. we find ultimate failure, a life that is pointless. but with Him, we find purpose. under His wings we find true joy, everlasting life, and prosperity in ways never thought of.

i want this. not for my benefit, but for those in my life. i have fallen a lot in life, and im sick of getting scrapped knees and bruised elbows. im sick of being in self-brought pain and failure. im sick of giving Satan a place in my life.

i want a life that is rich with God, and not just for myself. i want it for those in my life, for my future wife and family. for my friends. i want it for their sake. because lets face it, when we live for ourselves we do not just hurt ourselves.

words and elevators

i must be honest. the maturity level of many of the male students here at Moody Bible Institute simply amazes me. and I'm not talking about the freshman who just came from high school. I'm talking about the students who have been here for more than a year.

today, i heard several words that i would never had expected to hear from a Moody student, and they were said flippantly. now, i understand we all make mistakes, and with that note i recognize my imperfections. but when we do something or say something willingly, knowing the truth.....that bugs me. referring to one of your brothers in Christ as sexual cleaning utensil i think says a lot about your character.

but it doesn't stop there. lets talk about elevators, which is where the above incident happened. the elevators in our building stop at all floors between the basement and the 19th floor. it seems that there is this mentality between those of floors 5 and higher that they are more special then the rest of us when it comes to using the elevator.

and because of this superiority, they feel they have the right to ridicule and judge and name call those of us on floors 3 and 4 when we use the elevator. and this is what i have to say. if i can use the stairs, you can also. if me using the elevator makes it slower, does you using it not? i struggle to see the logic in this. why cant you walk to the 4th floor and use the elevator from there?

here is my point. they made the elevator stop at ALL the floors, not just 5 and up. so i and my floor mates have just as much right to its use as those on 5 and up. not to mention, i do pay to live here just like those on 5 and up. so grow up, act your age, and stop crying. stop name calling. we are not in junior high, we are adults. more than that WE ARE TO BE MEN OF GOD.

can we show a little more maturity?

brush strokes of life

today in one of my classes, we discussed the reason behind things happening in relation to who God is. it was quite fascinating really. my professor used the analogy of a large scale painting. when you stand back, you can take in the entire painting and see it in all of its beauty and glory, its perfection. but if you stand right in front of it, as if with your face against it, you see all the little brush strokes and splatters of paint within that little space. it is not beautiful, it does not seem good or perfect.

this is how we as humans look at things. we see the little brush strokes here and there, the splatters of paint. and to us it is confusing, almost ugly. but God in all of His awesome glory is standing out from the painting and looking upon it, taking it all in. His plan, divinely laid out, beautiful......perfect.

it reminds me of something i read in C.S. Lewis' book, "A Grief Observed" where he speaks of understanding his wife's death. and you know what he concluded? it is beyond his understanding.

When I lay these questions before God I get no answer. But a rather special sort of 'No answer.' It is not the locked door. It is more like a silent, certainly not uncompassionate, gaze. As though He shook His head not in refusal but waiving the question. Like, 'Peace, child; you don't understand.'

see, Lewis was confused and troubled by his wife's death, because all he was seeing was the brush strokes in the great painting. this is life, as my professor pointed out. this is us when tragedy strikes our lives. and then we think of Romans 8:28. see, Paul is speaking here of the grand painting. the perfect masterpiece, God's divine plan.

this hits home for me, especially lately, with some things not going the way i would have liked them to. nothing life threatening, but frustrating. and here i am reminded that i am not seeing the big picture, but the small brush strokes. but in the end, it will all work together for the good of those who love HIM.

the creative Lover

iv been reading this one book for one of my classes, and it deals with world view. it is a good book really. and last night i started on the second part in which the author discusses creation. perhaps i should back up and point out that the kind of world view he discusses is that of the Christian.

anyways, so i am reading, and reading, and reading......about creation. and im thinking, dude, creation is great and i believe it and all, can we move on? he continues to go into detail with the diversity of creation, throwing in a few rhymes that entertained me. but man was i getting tired of reading about creation.

and then i read this one part.

the author starts talking about the creativity of God the Father, and how we see it in creation. how He just thought of something and it came into being. and in this, we find love. a great love that has no end.

a ceaseless, creative love. i never thought of creation in this way, nor God. God and love, of course. but a creative love? wow. there is this part in the book where the author talks about how things constructed are not loved before they are constructed, but something that is created is.

something that is created is loved long before it is created.

it gives the idea of passion and care, not just a project. that is us, you and i. that is what we find around us, the trees and mountains, the animals and people. God has a crazy love for us, and it is creative not dull. it is passionate, not hasty. it reminds me of the Psalms, where it says "How precious to me are Your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!" (139:17). we are talking about the God of all eternity, and He is crazy about us. He created us with a creative love, and we see that in the diversity of us all. each person is unique, different from anyone else.

so next time you think about creation, next time you think about the Creator, remember He is first of all crazy about you. and secondly, he is a creative lover of His creation.