The Choreography of God or My Spiritual Fitness Pal

On my iphone, I have a great app called 'MyFitnessPal'. It is a data-driven diet program that counts calories for me. Since using the app, in two months, I have lost about 20 pounds and, actually, I have enjoyed it!  I type the name of things I eat and then it goes to work processing data and tells me a lot of things about what I eat on a given day. I have been amazed at the nutrient counts and the balance of fats, proteins and carbs that show up in the 'daily diary'.  I just love it when the program tells me I'm not eating enough! It is a very simple diet and it computes all the things I need to know to be successful.  I can see exactly the hidden content of the food I eat and enjoy the variety and richness in nutrients. It is so surprising how great good food is for you!

This week I got hooked on some great verses that have the greek word 'epichoregeo' translated to 

the King James Version as: minister to, having nourishment ministered to, add and related words like supply and give. It is amazing what has been supplied when God made Jesus Christ the head of His body.

Colossians 2:19 And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered (Link to Digging Deeper - epichoregeo, choregeo), and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.

The word 'epichoregeo can be broken down into two parts.  First, the greek word 'epi' can mean 'upon' and 'coming from' or 'resting upon'. The next piece is the greek word 'choregeo'.

In E.W. Bullinger's A Critical Lexicon and Concordance To The English and Greek New Testament, 'choregeo' word means "to be a chorus leader, to lead a chorus of singers; then to lead out or furnish a chorus on public occasions; hence to furnish or supply." There are many valuable aspects that go into what is finally produced. How interesting!

Here's another verse:

II Corinthians 9:10-11 Now he that ministereth seed to (epichoregio) the sower both minister (choregio) bread for your food and multiply your seed sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness Being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness which causeth through us thanksgiving to God.

A seed contains all the potential for growth and not only growth, but also reproduction.  It is vivid analogy about the bountifulness of God. I think of all the multiple nutritional goodness embodied in just one little blueberry or a walnut. God has great lessons in everything He made! The greatest spiritual lesson of all comes from His plan for man through the ages and all that has been supplied to man through the life of Jesus Christ. It is a beautiful choreography of love!

"An ideology borne of sense knowledge is dominating our nation, and unless the Word of God gains the ascendency again, all the ideals of the Republic will go, and a new type of despotism that is destructive to Christianity will take its place." E.W Kenyon (1944-45)

Loss of Innocence

When the  catastrophe of 9/11 happened, I had just quickly grabbed a final sip of coffee in the teacher's lounge. The TV was on in the room and then out of nowhere, the scene of airplanes flying into buildings was  breaking news. The bell rang and I had to run to class. I will never forget the feeling in my heart that 'Eden' was now changed. Oh! if only I could turn back the clock. In my classroom 26 teenagers waited. The TV in my classroom was already turned on for morning announcements. The announcements that morning were replaced by images of disaster.  The kids were reacting to the news in such different ways. There as fear, unbelief, silence and even laughter because they were thinking that someone was pulling something over on them with some sci-fi flick. It was strange. If only this didn't happen. It drove home the stark contrast between good and evil.

This morning I was thinking about an article I read about 'the tree of the knowledge of good and evil' in Genesis 2-3. God had put many abundant trees in the garden of Eden and he mentioned two specifically, the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God told Adam and Eve that they could freely eat of all the trees in the garden except from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He told them if they did eat of that tree they would surely die. The tree of life was immortality and the tree of knowledge of good and evil was mortality. We know what happened, something in them died the day they ate of the wrong tree and it had a profound effect on humanity.

Romans 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

In making the choice that they made, they became changed forever. Something got them to focus on  themselves, on what they might be missing and what it would mean to them. They lived in a perfect world, yet they chose something else and the world came crashing down on top of them spiritually.

The coming of the law with Moses established what was good and what was evil. The law of Moses had its limitations however and was not God's first choice of establishing a relationship with man.

Romans 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: 4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

God's remedy came with the second Adam, Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.

Galatians 4:4-6But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.

We have access to our Father today not through the law, but by grace.  Evil exists in the world, but because of all that Christ accomplished we are free from from being pulled down into it. Our focus is on Jesus Christ and our fellowship with the Father through the spirit. That is how we gracefully stay above the fray and are forever changed.

Check out my post: On September 11, 3BC http://truefrase.blogspot.com/search/label/9%2F11

Don't Judge A Book By Its Cover

Recently I bought a new Bible and I like the cover! Have you ever thought about why the Bible is usually black leather with a gold title "Holy Bible".   Could it be that it gives off an official look, a sacred appearance or just has a good coffee table aroma?

When I was just starting to read it, any one of the above could be used to describe it for me. I don't feel that way now. This morning when I woke up the following verse popped in my head:

Psalm 119:162 I rejoice at thy word, as one that findeth great spoil.

The Bible has great treasure buried between its covers! The book in and of itself is not 'holy'. The 'holy' part comes in as it is inspired of God. Words are tools and tools are used to get a job done. You can't use a screwdriver to pound in a nail. Sometimes people try to use the word like that - pound, pound, pound and nothing moves. The two-columned, thin-paged reader has meaning far beyond it's image. This book can be the very breath of God at times when understood.  At other times it could be falsely construed as judgmental as just tough words hard to be understood.

When reading a chemistry book while trying to understand the first law of thermodynamics, one wouldn't necessarily go to the chapter on the periodic table for the answer. The periodic table is an important tool, but not the right one to go to for a study on heat and matter. Applying biblical tools is similar. The Word of God is 'God-breathed' or God-inspired, but God is dynamic, ever-present and all-knowing. He doesn't throw the whole book at us at one time.

I am energized and thankful this morning with Psalm 119:162. I think I memorized it a long time ago or maybe I read it often enough to remember it. At any rate it was readily available to bless my day ahead when God clicked on that file.