y'all ever lamented?
yah me too.
1:16 "This is why I weep
and my eyes overflow with tears.
No one is near to comfort me,
no one to restore my spirit.
- how often do we say/feel things like this? How can we use the knowledge of God's love to combat this?
God is near to comfort me.
God to restore my spirit.
how about them apples?
1:18 "Listen, all you peoples;
look upon my suffering.
- i love this because it's about learning by example from the sufferings of others incurred by their own transgressions. i think sometimes (i know i sure do) we just haaaave to learn it the hard way and on our own. but then again, i know what happens when you run into traffic. i don't need to learn that the hard way.
1:20 "See, O LORD, how distressed I am!
I am in torment within,
and in my heart I am disturbed,
for I have been most rebellious.
- focus on not rebelling; remember that His love exceeds all, even the most euphoric gratification on Earth. let's learn to let it enfold and enrapture us.
1:21 "People have heard my groaning,
but there is no one to comfort me.
- idk bout yous guys, but this one hit me pretty hard. there is emphasis on two main points here: 1) on people. we all fall short of the glory of God, and part of that glory is the capacity to heal. sometimes we don't mean to let our friends down when they're in the dumps, but the only way to edify them is with the Spirit. it's easy to encourage; we just have to do it in a holy way - the only way that lasts.
and 2) emphasis on a dependence on God.
"but there is God to comfort me"
clearly, I'm taking some creative liberties, but it's not for heretical purposes. i think it's true; there is no one person on Earth that can comfort us the way God can, and that absolutely blows my mind. a being that i can't get coffee with, have slumber parties with (I WISH!), or hang out with, is the only person who can actually help and heal me and will 100% of the time WANT to do it. just imagine a complete stranger doing that for you (don't get creeped out, btw). it would totally blow your mind if someone took a human interest in you that transcended all boundaries of normal human interaction (characterized by road rage, pedestrian rage, regular rage, pride, blargh). whoa!
- God's not just ANYONE; he made you, he understands you and your sufferings better than anyone! That's why we feel empty when we only let PEOPLE try to help or ease our suffering; we expect from people what we can only get from God, leaving us disillusioned with people when really we should be loving and encouraging each other. see: one of Satan's over 9000 trap doors.
2:5 The Lord is like an enemy;
- I think this is so interesting because it has the caveat of 'like' within it.
- Maybe this suggests merely what he is an enemy of, and clearly he is an enemy of sin. Blargh, I mean who isn't?
- Also, I feel like we can get like this sometimes, too. We feel like God is an enemy to all our plans - then we remember that we really don't have any plans. I mean, one time I had a plan to go get in my truck and drive back to Athens, and when I opened my truck door - ANTS. THOUSANDS OF ANTS. EVERYWHERE. MY FAULT. LEFT CEREAL BOX OPEN DURING RAIN STORM. THEY HUDDLED UNDER MY CAR FOR COVER AND THEN INVADED. two hours of ant cleaning and then I drove back; with ants still in the car even days later. Never again.
2:7 The Lord has rejected his altar
and abandoned his sanctuary.
He has handed over to the enemy
the walls of her palaces;
- idea of God handing us over to what we've been doing/indulging in all along. what do you guys think about that? is that an adequate interpretation?
2:13 Your wound is as deep as the sea.
Who can heal you?
2:14 The visions of your prophets
were false and worthless;
they did not expose your sin
to ward off your captivity.
The oracles they gave you
were false and misleading.
- this is one that i asteriked.
- the prophets are like the people of our world that the Devil uses and manipulates in order to tempt us into sin and cause our captivity. I can't help but think of this in terms of my addictions; sin ropes you in but you develop a tolerance to the vice and its pleasures. Then, you're trapped, joyless, doing the same things with only pathetic sorrow as the outcome. does that make sense?
2:19 Arise, cry out in the night,
as the watches of the night begin;
pour out your heart like water
in the presence of the Lord.
Lift up your hands to him
for the lives of your children
- other people catch shrapnel from our sins, undeservingly
3:9 He has barred my way with blocks of stone;
he has made my paths crooked
- I think this is really interesting...crooked is kind of like the middle ground between broad and narrow; crooked implies a zigzag figure that deviates to both sides, hence the confusion caused by crooked paths that we were once on. it's the opposite of a straight path, but crooked doesn't mean unfixable.
3:19 I remember my affliction and my wandering,
the bitterness and the gall.
3:20 I well remember them,
and my soul is downcast within me.
3:21 Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:
3:22-66
- Redemption! Turning to God! Revelation that we must examine our ways and return to the Lord, and that 22 Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.
- I love this - compassions. He has multiple, infinite compassions.
Book 4
- idea that God punishes and takes away, but we choose how to deal with our new circumstances
- change to past tense - gives a sense of closure and understanding of wrongdoings and the subsequent consequences.
22 O Daughter of Zion, your punishment will end;
he will not prolong your exile.
But, O Daughter of Edom, he will punish your sin
and expose your wickedness.
-it's straight up the english major in me, but i think this in interesting in terms of time frames. the first half is future tense that indicates an end and the second half is a future tense that indicates a beginning. I think this definitely contributes to the cyclical and pedantic nature of this entire book. had Daughter of Edom learned from the sufferings caused by the sin of Daughter of Zion, she could have avoided such unholy trouble. maybe that's an incorrect reading, but I think the tense and time frame separation here is really interesting.
and that's all i have!
love.
elizzybeckles
Philippians 4, y'all.
4Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
+++++
for many reasons, this is one of my favorite scriptures. sometimes i forget that there are excellent and praiseworthy things to think about. i forget how many of those things exist! i see glimmers of our Father in so many places, I wish I could list them all here. i feel my heart becoming less hard, and my love for the Lord deepens every day. the more i understand and feel His love and presence, the more I am able to love. i am so grateful for everything I have experienced, all of the perils and pitfalls of the world that i have fallen into because once out, the light is ever brighter - and now i know how to help others out of the darkness; any darkness.
that's all i have for now in terms of prayer and thanks and catharsis, so here's something i wrote.
---
in this light
i am adorned with blemishes
blemishes you can't see with the eye.
or understand with words
feel my hands
you'll know in time.
sorrow is timeless
it scatters the stars and fogs my eyes
until all I see are perils and pitfalls
can these truly be my only routes?
I arrive, newborn
dust in my palms
i am sprung from the attic
i torch the whole house
leave behind everything that
defined my body
and poisoned my soul
i have always been intrigued
by what exists that i cannot see
by what loves that I cannot hold
by what rotates, shines, is born, that I am not there to witness
perhaps the intrigue turns to despair
because I compare your love to the conditional and fleeting dispositions of my imperfect family
-- and yet
they are made perfect in your love.
i am broken wrists and wet cheeks
i am supernovas spitting gold.
You, You
are the cosmos
-elizzybeth
So for the first post, I was going to type out all the prayer requests that I collected on Wednesday in our family group at mid-week. But, they're in my car, and my sister just absconded with my car. So for now, here are some beautiful pictures for you. I hope they inspire you and inspire you to remember how much beauty God breathes through us and our works to find some semblance of comfort in the chaos that our lives on Earth can be at times.
Peace, love, joy, amen.
I love you all.
iotas of darkness, dreamscapes of light
