Was spiritually weak, but mercy and hope had its perfect work.

Were turned away from things spiritually weak of prior times.

~Therefore, relent not now, and remember the Narrow Way, the teachings of Christ: not only how all things are compassed by the plan of God, and that all serve God, but we have reason for having believed, that we should honor the days and rightly divide the word in His cause.

Self-destruction and hatred, the lack of mercy are the paraphernalia of sin.  Those are our only restraints in this world, spiritual restraints.  We did, before times, enough to injure ourselves and each other, our neighbors, our colleagues, and our friends.

The best is yet to come: continue on in belief, that the poor will be helped, the miserable consoled, and that yet the least among us light the path to our best times ahead.

An enemy to you now, for speaking the truth? Certainly not!(Galatians 4)

~Paul had suffered many afflictions, and sometimes don’t we all? Is there not that small element of self-doubt sometimes, that some mishap or bad luck in our daily lives might be something of God stopping us short? Stuck in traffic? Bad weather? Illness? It happens to all of us, as one version so eloquently puts it, “it’s rained on the just and the unjust”. 

The Galatians were not judgmental, not thinking his ailments to be some sort of rebuke from God. There have been times when people were not so lucky, such as Job, who was said by his own friends to have been punished again and again by God, when it was really Satan that was tormenting him.  He had never lost faith or love for God.  The Galatian believers brought Paul among them in acceptance, hearing his words, the teachings of God’s mercy.

Bless any you meet and pray for Mercy for ourselves and others, friends.

1. Our only restraints are spiritual: self-destruction and lack of mercy.

2. With mercy in mind, be accepting whenever possible—err on the side of love, hope and mercy.

 

Faith. Job and the old Devil.

“Come to me, all you that are weary and carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

-Matthew 11 

I was reading commentary on Job, and the author was flustered with the material, positively astounded that Job's friends took him to task so.  They accused him of sin, of course, with no evidence and assumed that God was visiting wrath on poor Job.

But quite not.  It was the work of the Devil, of course, and in the end, God lifted up Job and restored everything from prior, back into Job's life.  That's a sown seed: Job's faith.

a modern beset canaanite.

Life had beaten him down, and, a confused man, he set not always upright, but took a few shortcuts.  His social circle practiced the same lifestyle, and they took shortcuts in regards to him.

Life waa fast, and love faster.  As quickly and heatedly as it came, it as quickly departed him.

Love came.

Devil took it.

Steady job?

Devil took it.

He would disrespect authority, and authority distrusted him; they were at odds, with mutual enmity.

Just as Job was set on, the devil was just getting started in his unhappy life, but he lived, of course, true to his first instincts, and his appetites, and maybe even loved.

Some people look at those wayward anticipating the joy of them returning to the fold; it could very well happen, and as they still live, hope lives.

The devil at a control panel pushing buttons, finding no deterrence, no resistance, and the fundamental kerflopple of the thing, what was original sin, to know good and evil, but he, our query, in a kind of confusion, marks the time and circumstance differently.

Mankind gained understanding, but the understanding was darkened by Satan at the cost of eternity itself.

We, mystically, foggily, chime the refrain as Christ once did,"not as I would, but as You would, Lord'.