Shirlee Abbott

I Like Gravity (Tuesday)

Posted on October 15, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

The movie Gravity gave me a new visual for this familiar Psalm:

Psalm 139:7-8 (NIV)
Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there.

Seemed like God is even closer out in space.

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I Like Gravity (Monday)

Posted on October 14, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

We saw Gravity over the weekend. I won’t give away the story, but . . .

I noticed some spiritual lessons embedded in the movie;
kudos to our Creator:

Space is beautiful (and scary) beyond measure
Earth is beautiful and well-fitted to humankind
We want to live and not die

There’s more, but I won’t break my promise to those who haven’t seen it.
Did anyone else come away with deep thoughts?
No spoilers, please.

Posted in other | Tagged desire to survive, Gravity, I Like Gravity, space | Comments Off

Civil? (Friday)

Posted on October 11, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

Do you routinely pray for our government?

Paul’s advice to Timothy still applies:

1 Timothy 2:1-2 (MSG)
Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation.

Pray what? That they govern well.

Why? So we can live quiet, simple, humble, thoughtful lives.

Does anyone else have trouble with the quiet-simple-humble part?

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Civil? (Thursday)

Posted on October 10, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

Posted in other | Tagged civil discourse, Proverbs 14:34 | Comments Off

Civil? (Wednesday)

Posted on October 9, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

God: Civil . . . that part about loving and praying for your enemies? It applies here.

Me: I don’t suppose that “Dear God, let my side win” is what you have in mind?

God: I’d like more focus from you on their souls and less about having it your way.

Me: Ouch!

God: And by the way, your way might not play out as well as you imagine.

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Civil? (Tuesday)

Posted on October 8, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

Good advice from the Good Book:

James 3:13-14, 17-18 (CEV)
Are any of you wise or sensible? Then show it by living right and by being humble and wise in everything you do. But if your heart is full of bitter jealousy and selfishness, don’t brag or lie to cover up the truth . . . the wisdom that comes from above leads us to be pure, friendly, gentle, sensible, kind, helpful, genuine, and sincere. When peacemakers plant seeds of peace, they will harvest justice.

Call in the peacemakers!

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Civil? (Monday)

Posted on October 7, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

Lots of words coming out of Washington right now—what do you think?

Grandstanding, no substance from anyone.
I agree with one side, but the presentation bothers me.
Can’t we just be civil about it?

Civil—according to the dictionary there are at least two meanings to the word:

1) Relating to citizens (not military, not religion)
2) Courteous and polite

The rhetoric falls short of civil on both counts.

Proverbs 2:3 (CEV)
Beg as loud as you can
for good common sense.

Posted in other | Tagged civil discourse, Proverbs 2:3, Washington rhetoric | 2 Comments

Sovereign Debt (Friday)

Posted on October 4, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

John Wesley (1703-1791) was a man of many talents: He preached and wrote, his words concise and inspiring. He was a logical thinker and an efficient organizer (there’s a reason we call them Method-ists). He commented on reaping one’s field:

“. . . our devotion to God is little esteemed by him if it be not accompanied
with acts of charity to men” (from Wesley’s Notes on the Bible).

I pay at the debt I owe my sovereign Lord out of the harvest from my side of the fence.

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Sovereign Debt (Thursday)

Posted on October 3, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

Me: Not harvesting to the edges of a field seems out of touch with our culture.

God: Most Americans don’t harvest fields for profit, true. But you have income.

Me: A paycheck—for me, direct deposit. And with my handy-dandy credit card, I can spend even more than I earn!

God: When you spend more than you earn, you are harvesting on the other side of the fence, so to speak, from someone else’s field—with their permission, I hope.

Me: . . . in return for the interest charged for the “loan” from their harvest.

God: And if you don’t pay them back . . .

Me: That’s stealing!

God: Indeed. As a person, as a nation.

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Sovereign Debt (Wednesday)

Posted on October 2, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

God tells us to live within our means; that is, to keep our expenses inside the boundaries of our incomes, and in so doing share our left-overs with those who are less fortunate.

Leviticus 23:22 (CEV)
When you harvest your grain, always leave some of it standing around the edges of your fields and don’t pick up what falls on the ground. Leave it for the poor.

What would it be like if our entire nation lived within the edges of our individual and corporate incomes?

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