Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Deathly Swallows

And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Genesis 2:9

“Maybe the truth of the Adam and Eve story, maybe the greatest power of the story, is not so much that it happened, but that it happens.” Rob Bell

Pelicans are especially vulnerable to oil. Not only could they eat tainted fish and feed it to their young, but they could die of hypothermia or drowning if they're soaked in oil. - AP

Along with having oil-slicked feathers, the pelicans gather food in their normal feeding grounds and feed it to their babies. They don’t get CNN, NPR or the Gulf Times. They are completely unaware that death lurks inside the fish that they are feeding to their young. Can you imagine the outrage of finding out that you routinely bought oil-stuffed fish at the market, fed it unknowingly to your child and your toddler died as a result? You had no idea, but it never changed the results: death.

Yet, everyday we swim in death. We eat death. Then we feed it to our family, our friends, our co-workers, our children. We are deceived that our portion is pure. But really, it's filled with death. The first feeding started with the First Family:

Deception: "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." – Genesis 3:4-5

Delivery: When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. – Genesis 3:6

Death: Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned; -Romans 5:12

Today’s Catch:

We are, in fact, born with “oil on our feathers and toxins in our mouths.” How then shall we live? We are not hopeless to die because into death we are born.

Unlike pelicans, we can choose to come clean and eat clean.

“…every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different from what it was before.” C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! – Hebrews 9:13-14

Unlike pelicans, we can choose feeding grounds of death or life.

The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit. – Proverbs 18:21

Do not eat the food of a stingy man, do not crave his delicacies; for he is the kind of man who is always thinking about the cost. "Eat and drink," he says to you, but his heart is not with you. Proverbs 23:6-7

From these verses comes the phrase: “a man thinks in his heart, so is he” and I might add, “so he calls to his friends to eat and drink from the tainted well of his heart.”

Unlike pelicans, we can choose to feed truth or toxins to the world around us.

Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Deuteronomy 6:5-7

I will sing of the LORD's great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations. Psalm 89:1

From my mouth to the multitudes, I choose pure.

Enjoy Him, Michelle mlpack1@yahoo.com

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Love this! oh yeah... sent it to my mom and sisters.

Anonymous said...

Good morning Michelle

I think the the Lord is fed up with the inequities of this world as he was when he let Neberkanezer destroy Jerusalem (His chosen people). Ezekiel 24:12-14 (12)She has grown weary with lies,and her great scum has not gone from her. Let her scum be in the fire! (13)In your filthiness is lewdness. Because I have cleansed you, and you were not cleansed, you will not be cleansed of your filthiness anymore, Till I have caused My fury to rest upon you. (14)I, the Lord have spoken it; It shall come to pass and I will do it; I will not hold back, Nor will I spare, Nor will I relent; According to your ways and according to your deeds They will judge you," says the Lord GOD."

Is not America Gods chosen people, He blessed us because we stood on principle and the Bible, World Power! I think we were, we have disappointed our Lord with our own abominations and inequities. It is sad what is going on in the Gulf with the oil spill, but our day is closer than we think, I pray for my grandchildren that they don't live to see the the anger of God in the last days. We as a nation will have to show Him that we can repent and be righteous, If only ONE!

Love.....Nancy Colaprete

Anonymous said...

Totally speechless at this really deep word from the Lord. Spoke volumes to me in the way that I should communicate with my kids and for that matter, anyone around me. Will it glorify God or not is what He made me focus on. Thank you for being such a great vessel for Jesus. He just spoke to me through your writing. How cool is that!!!

Anonymous said...

Great "food" for thought!
Love to you Michelle!

Debbie Griffith said...

EXCELLENT!
Love this great writing with headliners like: Delivery-Deception-Death and then "Today's Catch?!" Brilliant!

I will have to go back and read again because there are so many delicious verses you gave that sometimes I can't process it all...I mean so much good truth to what you shared that I want to really savor what you're sharing.

Joey (11 yrs.) asked me today after reading his choice of a chapter in the Bible; "Would Peter be put to death if we were following the law of the Old Testament?" I asked, "What are you reading? "Well it says in Exodus 21:15 'If anyone attacks his father or mother, he will be put to death.' And remember that time Peter kinda attacked you because he didn’t want to talk to you about being disciplined?” “Ah no Joey” I explained that first I Peter wasn’t trying to put me to death but if he had sinned there was likely some animal sacrifice he could give. How great that I could share with Joe that Jesus was the final sacrifice so we no longer have to offer the blood of other animals for the atonement of our sins. Joey was just a grinnin’ to make the connection that the blood of Jesus was given for us as a free gift. We are free from the sting of death and its curses.

So thankful for what you shared Michelle it all connected for me today in the "matters" I was working and dealing with!

Anonymous said...

Very nice work!!!!!!!! so proud of you!!!!!! - Judy