Daily Reading: Hosea 9-12, Psalm 22, 52
Psalm 52:8 “But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.”
A green olive tree takes 20 years from the time it’s planted to the time it bears fruit. Though I feel a rush to spew forth all the knowledge God has planted in me…I am not ready to be fruitful to the degree in which I desire. I have a lot of maturing to do. A lot of learning to do…it’s going to take lots of sunshine, lots of rain and lots of quiet submission to a gardener who will sometimes prune me in areas I don’t want to be pruned.
Speaking of pruning…This Mind of Christ study really has me thinking and I’m glad. I didn’t enjoy the last Bible study all that much, but I think this one is going to be more challenging, and probably more convicting. I am not single-minded as Christ was, and I am not pure…though I want to be. This morning I read about having right desires and really concentrating on feeding thoughts that are godly and putting away thoughts that conflict with godly thoughts. I don’t do that. I let my mind play and rattle away. I have conflicting desires because I allow both desires to be nurtured. I need to make right choices in my mind and then it won’t be so hard to act right later. It sounds so simple but when I really applied it to one little area it became so apparent that I am not doing this. I have a desire to lose weight, but I also have a desire to eat a lot of sweet and fatty foods. It’s obvious which one is a right desire and which one is wrong, but I had to admit that I meditate on yummy foods more than I do on a skinny body or exercise. I am bombarded with pictures, recipes, commercials and all sorts of marketing for the wrong choice. I then dwell on those things and what I could make with that little bit of sour cream left over from our tacos the other night. I rarely think…my what a great feeling it would be to go out in the cold and walk up and down hills pushing a whiny baby with a runny nose. That’s not desirable to meditate on for some reason. I need to find a way to meditate on the right decision. Maybe I should break out some old photos or something from when I was skinny and fit. Better yet, I need to study the Bible and find all the scriptures I can on being healthy, well, and able to serve with vigor. Jesus was no slouch…neither should I be.