Ensign: Explain NaNo to someone today. Take pictures when they fail to comprehend.
All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye. Isaiah 18:3
AN ENSIGN ON THE MOUNTAINS 6 November 2015
WORD COUNT: 10,001
You got it from your father, it was all he had to give.
So it's yours to use and cherish, for as long as you may live.
If you lost the watch he gave you, it can always be replaced;
But a black mark on your name, son, can never be erased.
It was clean the day you took it, and a worthy name to bear.
When he got it from his father, there was no dishonor there.
So make sure you guard it wisely, after all is said and done --
You'll be glad the name is spotless, when you give it to your son.
I don't know about spotless. It's certainly not sinless.
There is a plaque with that last line that my dad gave me when I was ten, maybe eleven years old. My memory's going with ten (the year I'd turn double digits) and I've told Jeffrey about it several times as well as told him that I plan to give the plaque with that poem on it TO him when he turns ten on his birthday. And that's just over a year and a half away, for my son turned eight this past July. (I've seen at least three people called the author of it, so pray forgive my lack of identifier.)
So make sure you guard it wisely, after all is said and done.
I bring that up -- and I don't try to explain National Novel Writing Month to you as the title says -- because whenever spotless is mentioned in Scripture it means pure. And none of us are. To be "without spot", as the term's first used in Numbers 19:2 to refer to the calf Eleazar's to have brought to him to sacrifice to the LORD, to Revelation 19:14 where "spotless" is synonymous with "clean" (in fact, that's the term used there), we're given the impression this is done to us.
When he got it from his father, there was no dishonor there.
That is, we can't make ourselves clean or spotless no matter how many showers or baths we take! It takes someone who is ALREADY spotless to do it, to make us clean or spotless. And that Someone is Jesus the Christ, the Son of the living God. I'm paraphrasing Simon Peter in Matthew 16:16 there, and following that Jesus tells him that he wouldn't have known that by himself!
It was clean the day you took it, and a worthy name to bear.
It takes God Himself to reveal anything of Himself to us, through His Word or through the world around us. At most, all you and I can be are messengers -- not in the angelic sense (the word angel comes from the Greek word for "messenger" -- and all you and I can do is allow ourselves to be used to present and live the greatest message of all. The Greatest Story Ever Told.
You got it from your father, it was all he had to give.
So it's yours to use and cherish, for as long as you may live
If you lost the watch he gave you, it can always be replaced;
But a black mark on your name, Son, can never be erased.
And that's what I need to do, for the sake of my family and all around me. Not because I'm perfect, but because I'm created to honor a God Who is. Philippians 2:14-15, "Do all things without murmurings and disputings, That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;"
Let me shine,
David
P.S. I write this weekly devotional to keep in touch and I hope I'm encouraging too! If I'm not or you want me to get lost, please let me know. Thank you!
Thank You, Lord, that we can come to You in prayer and that You provide for all our needs, even when we don't know what they are. We pray for the peace of Jerusalem on both sides of the fence there and around the world.
Thank You, Lord, for everyone and every one of us in leadership and service both here and abroad. Thank You for the opportunities we have and the promise of new line in You. And may we all seek and have a blessed week! Amen.
AN ENSIGN ON THE MOUNTAINS 6 November 2015
WORD COUNT: 10,001
You got it from your father, it was all he had to give.
So it's yours to use and cherish, for as long as you may live.
If you lost the watch he gave you, it can always be replaced;
But a black mark on your name, son, can never be erased.
It was clean the day you took it, and a worthy name to bear.
When he got it from his father, there was no dishonor there.
So make sure you guard it wisely, after all is said and done --
You'll be glad the name is spotless, when you give it to your son.
I don't know about spotless. It's certainly not sinless.
There is a plaque with that last line that my dad gave me when I was ten, maybe eleven years old. My memory's going with ten (the year I'd turn double digits) and I've told Jeffrey about it several times as well as told him that I plan to give the plaque with that poem on it TO him when he turns ten on his birthday. And that's just over a year and a half away, for my son turned eight this past July. (I've seen at least three people called the author of it, so pray forgive my lack of identifier.)
So make sure you guard it wisely, after all is said and done.
I bring that up -- and I don't try to explain National Novel Writing Month to you as the title says -- because whenever spotless is mentioned in Scripture it means pure. And none of us are. To be "without spot", as the term's first used in Numbers 19:2 to refer to the calf Eleazar's to have brought to him to sacrifice to the LORD, to Revelation 19:14 where "spotless" is synonymous with "clean" (in fact, that's the term used there), we're given the impression this is done to us.
When he got it from his father, there was no dishonor there.
That is, we can't make ourselves clean or spotless no matter how many showers or baths we take! It takes someone who is ALREADY spotless to do it, to make us clean or spotless. And that Someone is Jesus the Christ, the Son of the living God. I'm paraphrasing Simon Peter in Matthew 16:16 there, and following that Jesus tells him that he wouldn't have known that by himself!
It was clean the day you took it, and a worthy name to bear.
It takes God Himself to reveal anything of Himself to us, through His Word or through the world around us. At most, all you and I can be are messengers -- not in the angelic sense (the word angel comes from the Greek word for "messenger" -- and all you and I can do is allow ourselves to be used to present and live the greatest message of all. The Greatest Story Ever Told.
You got it from your father, it was all he had to give.
So it's yours to use and cherish, for as long as you may live
If you lost the watch he gave you, it can always be replaced;
But a black mark on your name, Son, can never be erased.
And that's what I need to do, for the sake of my family and all around me. Not because I'm perfect, but because I'm created to honor a God Who is. Philippians 2:14-15, "Do all things without murmurings and disputings, That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;"
Let me shine,
David
P.S. I write this weekly devotional to keep in touch and I hope I'm encouraging too! If I'm not or you want me to get lost, please let me know. Thank you!
Thank You, Lord, that we can come to You in prayer and that You provide for all our needs, even when we don't know what they are. We pray for the peace of Jerusalem on both sides of the fence there and around the world.
Thank You, Lord, for everyone and every one of us in leadership and service both here and abroad. Thank You for the opportunities we have and the promise of new line in You. And may we all seek and have a blessed week! Amen.
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