Accolades of worth, an excerpt

"Accepting the accolade proclaimed in Bethlehem does, however, confront the very banal narcissism that epitomizes our numbed consumer hearts. When it comes down to it, we may find that we in fact prefer the consumer transaction that tells us that being human is about what we can buy. We may find that there is something comforting and familiar in paying for our sense of worth and value. We might find it baffling to accept the idea that something deemed a gift could come to us fragile and broken. Or maybe it is the personal nature of his humanness that we find altogether unnerving—namely, he was not simply born a child in first century Bethlehem, he was born a child in first century Bethlehem for you. It is far easier to accept an empty compliment."

http://www.rzim.org/a-slice-of-infinity/accolades-of-worth/

The full article is well worth the read!

The law of God is perfect.

The law of the Lord is perfect,

reviving the soul;

the testimony of the Lord is sure,

making wise the simple;

the precepts of the Lord are right,

rejoicing the heart;

the commandment of the Lord is pure,

enlightening the eyes;

the fear of the Lord is clean,

enduring forever;

the rules of the Lord are true,

and righteous altogether.

More to be desired are they than gold,

even much fine gold;

sweeter also than honey

and drippings of the honeycomb.

Moreover, by them is your servant warned;

in keeping them there is great reward.

Who can discern his errors?

Declare me innocent from hidden faults.

Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;

let them not have dominion over me!

Then I shall be blameless,

and innocent of great transgression.

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart

be acceptable in your sight,

O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

Psalm 19:7-14 (ESV)

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In these days of being under imperfect, damaging, and unsure law we see our need for Law in which we can rejoice –Law that has been fulfilled in light and love.

Remembrance.

“What answers we find [in God's Word] may not be exhaustive, but they give us the God who is there, and who gives us some measure of comfort and assurance.”
― D.A. Carson, How Long, O Lord?: Reflections on Suffering and Evil

Spectacularly simple.

Random links that I have saved on my laptop desktop.

"James Montgomery's (1771-1854) hymn has long recognized this:

Prayer is the soul's sincere desire,

unuttered or expressed,

the motion of a hidden fire

that trembles in the breast.

Prayer is the burden of a sigh,

the falling of a tear,

the upward glancing of an eye

when none but God is near."

From When you can't even pray by Ray Ortlund of The Gospel Coalition

A stoat. It's pretty epic. 

Forevermore.

O LORD, you are my God; I will exalt you; I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure.
For you have made the city a heap, the fortified city a ruin; the foreigners' palace is a city no more; it will never be rebuilt.
Therefore strong peoples will glorify you; cities of ruthless nations will fear you.
For you have been a stronghold to the poor, a stronghold to the needy in his distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat; for the breath of the ruthless is like a storm against a wall,
 like heat in a dry place. You subdue the noise of the foreigners; as heat by the shade of a cloud, so the song of the ruthless is put down.
On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.
And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations.
He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.
It will be said on that day, "Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the LORD; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation."
(Isaiah 25)

A helpful word - We are not alone in this.

We are not alone in this

Matt Johnson » Scripture Counseling Sin Community Suffering

 

Everyone, without exception, struggles with both sin and suffering. Letting people know that we’re all in the boat together can go a long way.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

2 Corinthians 1:3–4

Blown it recently? Me too.
Done or said things you wish you could take back? Check. Family relationships strained? Yup. On the lighter side, maybe you’ve added a few more pounds to the scale? Overdrawn your account? Again?
Maybe it’s not something you did, but something you received, like bad news after a doctor’s visit.
Everyone, without exception, struggles with both sin and suffering. When we’ve found ourselves in these situations, we’ve all probably been encouraged by someone willing to get into the trenches of life with us. So let’s pass it on.
Many of us counsel people in the church, and letting them know that we’re all in the boat together can go a long way. The common bond you have is not so much the type of sin and suffering as much as kind and degree.

Let the person know they are not alone. 

Let’s look at some examples. Is someone crippled with pressure to impress others? Everyone knows what it’s like to feel like they don’t measure up. Are you concerned that you can’t relate to an addict? Actually, you can if you’ve ever wanted to numb out, eat the whole bag of chips and channel surf for hours on end, and not face reality.
At the risk of oversimplifying things, crippling fear of others’ opinions, awkward social pressure, mindless junk food binging, and full-blown, self-destructive addiction aren’t exactly the same things. But they still come from the same place: Sin. Suffering. Compulsion. And we can all relate.

None of us is alone in this.  

You don’t have to feign sincerity or over-relate. Just let the person know you’re imperfect. You feel tempted and you blow it, too. Have you felt the forgiveness and comfort of your Savior in your less-than-stellar moments? If so, you have the great privilege to pass it on.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too. If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. Our hope for you is unshaken, for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort.

2 Corinthians 1:5–7

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What is your only comfort in life and death?

Heidelberg Catechism - Question 1
What is your only comfort in life and death?

That I with body and soul, both in life and death,  am not my own, but belong unto my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ; who, with his precious blood, has fully satisfied for all my sins, and delivered me from all the power of the devil; and so preserves me that without the will of my heavenly Father, not a hair can fall from my head; yea, that all things must be subservient to my salvation, and therefore, by his Holy Spirit, He also assures me of eternal life, and makes me sincerely willing and ready, henceforth, to live unto him.

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The grace of God, flowing steadily through the ages, carves grand canyons in desolate hearts.