The Plumbline

This is what God says, the God who builds a road right through the ocean, who carves a path through pounding waves, The God who summons horses and chariots and armies— they lie down and then can’t get up; they’re snuffed out like so many candles: “Forget about what’s happened; don’t keep going over old history . Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it? There it is! I’m making a road through the desert, rivers in the badlands. Wild animals will say ‘Thank you!’ —the coyotes and the buzzards— Because I provided water in the desert, rivers through the sunbaked earth, Drinking water for the people I chose, the people I made especially for myself, a people custom-made to praise me. (Isaiah 43:16, 18-19 MSG) Today's message will be simple - it is time for us to take a firm stand and completely stop going over old history in our lives. So many of us spend countless hours rehearsing past failures, short-comings that have long been for...

Have you ever been "set up"?  It could have been a "set up" for some kind of prank where someone proudly announced "gotcha" at some point.  Maybe it was a blind date and you endured the torture of having to get ready without really knowing the other person you were going to be meeting that night, but in respect to your friend who "set you up", you go despite everything within you that is saying "don't go".  Perhaps if was your relative helping you get your first start out in the "real world" by packing up some care packages complete with a new set of pots and pans, some towels, a little bit of basic stuff you need to start a new life on your own.  Whatever the "set up", you had some apprehension, did you not?  Anytime we feel "set up", we will always feel some type of nervousness, anxiety over the potential outcome, coupled with a sense of excitement because you are going into the "unknown". ...