The Plumbline

Have you ever had one of those nights when you just couldn't sleep?  You tossed and turned, just barely getting in some "naps" along the way.  I usually sleep the first four hours pretty soundly and get a great deal of my rest within those four hours.  Then I find myself sleeping "lightly" for the remainder of my night - usually another three hours.  God gives rest to his kids - the secret is to stop long enough to understand and enjoy the rest.  I actually do very well on seven hours of "physical" rest, but there are times when it seems like I don't take the time to get the "spiritual" rest I need.  I am setting myself up for a huge crash whenever this occurs.  You might just say I experience one of those "unless" moments - unless I stop, I will run headlong into something I'd probably not want to face!  How about you? Experienced any of those "unless" moments in your life lately? If  God  doesn’t build the hous...

There is much power which comes as we learn to walk together in unity.  I think we all know how truly difficult it is to actually be and stay in unity, though.  Deep, intimate relationships require a different commitment than mere acquaintances.  Friendships help to sustain us and keep us on track. How we view each relationship kind of tells us a little bit about what we may actually invest into and take away from them.  We may find some actually are an ordeal for us because they demand more than we want to really put into them, but does that make them unnecessary relationships?  Some may seem like a big deal to us, but does that make them worthy of special attention while neglecting others?  Other relationships seem like they are kind of ideal, almost making us want to be exclusionary within those relationships, but doesn't that isolate us from the other types of relationships which might actually help us chip away some of the rough edges in our character?...

Have you ever read the story of the storming of Jericho?  It begins with the statement:  " Jericho was shut up tight as a drum because of the People of Israel: no one going in, no one coming out." (Joshua 6:1 MSG)  Now, let me paint a little picture for you of Jericho, for as I do, you will see just how amazing it was that Israel actually "halted" the activity of this great city just by their presence!   First, its location was in the western part of the Jordan valley just above the Dead Sea.  It was known as the city of palms because it was filled with the trees.  For anyone to pass through the valley of Jordan, they had to first pass through Jericho.  It was like a natural "toll station" for all travelers of the time.   Second, its fortifications were massive.  The outside "city wall" was six-feet thick, separated by a space of about twelve feet from the inner wall which was double the thickness of the outer wall.  For those who w...