Sunday Stirrings

If you are a regular reader of blogs and you are not reading Jodi over at her blog Fruit Inspection then you should be!  She is one of the most genuine ladies I have met through blogging!  If you are looking for someone transparent about her struggles and joys in being a  wife, parent and homeschooler and how to have an abiding faith in it all, then read her blog!

Jodi is hosting Sunday Stirrings at her blog and I am excited about participating!

So, here is a recap of yesterday for me...

I teach a Senior Adult ladies Sunday School class and right now we are going through the book of Mark.  Yesterday we were in Mark 8.  After the feeding of the 4,000 in verse 11 the Pharisees began to argue with Jesus.  You know they were always trying to trip Jesus up.  They demanded a "sign" from Him.  They didn't really want to understand Jesus.  The Pharisees only wanted to fit Jesus into the context of what they already believed about Him.

I looked further at the word "sign" in the original Greek language using my Key Word Study Bible's Greek dictionary and lexical aids.  This is what I found:
The word "sign" is translated "Semeion" in the Greek and means miracle with a spiritual end and purpose. In the plural it leads to something our of and beyond the miracle itself, the finger-marks of God, valuable not so much for what they are a s for what they indicate of the grace and power of the Doer.

Are you aware of the "finger-marks of God" in your life?  I couldn't help but think back over my 38 years and realize so many I missed as just that, finger-marks of God, along the way!  Oh, I don't want to miss any more!  I don't want to be a Pharisee, always asking and looking for a "sign"; wanting God to fit into the boundaries I set for Him as if I could do that anyway.  But, we sure do try sometimes, don't we?  I want to live and worship Him in the boundaries He sets for me!  To see His finger-prints all over my life, because they are there!


Then came our worship service!  I am so blessed to be a part of a church where the pastor preaches the word unashamedly and boldly and where the fellowship is so sweet and encouraging.  Right now Hal is preaching through Ephesians.  He preaches through a book from beginning to end, verse by verse.  Yesterday, he was finishing up chapter two.

Verse 13 of chapter 2 was discussed in a former sermon, but referred to again yesterday:
"But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ."
Yesterday's focal passage was verses 19-22:
"Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone.  In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.  And in Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit."

In his comments regarding the fact that we are members of God's family, Hal made this point:  The church (that's you and me as believers) are to be a slice of heaven in a broken and fragmented world.


I'm praying that in the days, weeks, and months to come I'll be more conscience and deliberate about being a "slice of heaven" to those around me, starting with my husband and children!


Coram Deo,
Jennifer