7 Things I Like About God This Morning

1. He's God. Goes without saying, of course, but what if He weren't? What God held grudges, or was capricious, or decided we really weren't worth the effort? What if you were God -- or worse, perhaps, what if I were?
   


2. He is into infinite variety. There are more shades of green than I ever conceived. And think about snowflakes and fingerprints -- all different. And people -- all different.
   


3. He is sovereign. He's in control. No matter how things seem to be careening down the bobsled trail, it's all part of a carefully designed plan for my good and His glory. And not only that, but think of all the minute details He has to orchestrate in order to choreograph what we so casually chalk up to "circumstance."
   
   
4. He loves words. After all, He created everything by speaking, and revealed Himself through His Word. And Jesus IS the Word. I love words, too.
   


5. He's all about relationship. I'm pretty much a loner, but even for me, it would be a terrible thing if isolation was His plan. He sets us in families and friendships and churches. He is, within Himself, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the ultimate Relationship, and because He made us in His image, we are drawn to relationship also, and are incomplete without it.
   
   
6. He is a God of lavish abundance. He owns it all, and freely gives it.
   
   
7. He's a God of celebration. Celebrations are ways to mark the good things that happen in our lives. Today I'm celebrating the birthday of one of my most favorite people, Kim Avery. Happy Birthday, Kim!

The Mirage of Worldly Pleasures

I've been thinking about the world being a desert and the mirage of satisfaction it offers. It's been a long time since I've been out West and seen the distant shimmer of what promises to be water but is not.

The tendency, if you are lost in the desert, is to chase after those fleeting images, sure of finding satisfaction, but instead, experiencing disappointment after disappointment. And so it is in life. We chase after success and popularity, knowledge and possessions, sure that the next conquest will bring us the satisfaction we so desperately desire. But it does not.

Our soul thirst can only be quenched by the Living Water -- Jesus Himself. The fleeting satisfaction that comes from achievement and recognition, acquisitions and status, control and a full schedule is only an illusion. It cannot bring true peace or contentment or joy or love. Those things, what we really long for, can only come as we submerse ourselves in a relationship with the Lover of our souls.

To Blog or Not To Blog...

I'm hoping that blogs are a lot like pickles -- once you get the first one out of the jar, the rest come pretty easily.

I've though about blogging for quite a while, and now that I have one, it's rather like the perfect pages of a brand new journal... hard to know where to start. Can't start at the beginning because I'd never catch up. Reluctant to start with "now" because there's so much good stuff that's hanging out there waiting to be written about.

So, I guess the answer is just to blog "ALOT" -- that stands for A Little of This and A Little of That. My goal is to write three times a week and chronicle my quest to quench my soul thirst with the Living Water.

The theme song from "Monk" says, "It's a jungle out there..." Personally, I think it's a desert out there. Wandering in the world will give you a glass of sand for your thirsty soul. It's like an mirage, shimmering and enticing, but not a bit satisfying.