“Bless the LORD, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits:
Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases,
Who redeems your life from destruction,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
Who satisfies your mouth with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”
-Psalm 103:1-5
i can’t sleep.
i would like to pray, and remember all those i love. i would like to talk to God, and be so taken by Him. i would like to be sure again of how it is enough to tell Him all, to sit at His feet, to look in His face.
i think of slivers of time here and there, and there are so many sweet slices. i don’t even think them painful anymore. not really. it’s a happy thought, but i still want to be small, and see how big everything is, how big you are, how much bigger He is and how it is all okay, even when it’s not.
i would like to rest, and wake up tomorrow with Your mercies anew, Your faithfulness ringing in my heart, breaking me. making me find that fountain of life.
2.01am.
i think of
Bits from Oswald Chambers:
“It is not what we feel or what we know, but ever what we receive from God — and a fool can receive a gift. ‘If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?’ (Luke 11:13) It is so simple that everyone who is not simple misses it.
…
The Holy Spirit takes care that we fix our attention on Jesus Christ, then He will look after the presentation given of our Lord through us.
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If you are being checked by the Holy Spirit over a wrong thing you are allowing in yourself, beware of only captiously seeing the limitations in other people; you will diverge further away from God if you don’t recognise that it is the still, small voice of God to you.
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The Holy Spirit does not obliterate personality, He lifts it to its highest use, namely, for the portrayal of the mind of God.
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Let God bring you through some midnight, when the Holy Spirit reminds you of what you once were, of your religious hypocrisies — the things the devil whispers you should forget, let God bring you to the dust before Him. This experience will always come in the path of those God is going to take up in His purposes.
…
The great, impelling power of the Holy Spirit is seen in its most fundamental working whenever an issue of will is pushed. It is pleasanter to listen to poetical discourses, more agreeable to have your affinities appealed to, but it is not good enough, it leaves you exactly as you were. The Gospel appeal comes with a stinging grip: ‘Will you?’ or ‘Won’t you?’; ‘I will accept,’ or ‘I’ll put it off’ — both are decisions, remember.
…
We have to distinguish between acquiring and receiving. We acquire habits of prayer and Bible reading and we receive our salvation, we receive the Holy Spirit, we receive the grace of God. We give more attention to the things we acquire, all God pays attention to is what we receive. Those things we receive can never be taken from us because God holds those who receive His gifts.
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It is the fine art of the Holy Spirit to be alone with God.”
