Meanings: Amen

I remember as I child I prayed to God late at night when I should have been sleeping. I would ramble on with Him and tell Him all about my day, my hopes, my dreams. I knew I should finish the prayer and say, “Amen”, but I thought the word was like a goodbye or a door that closed. I didn’t want to speak it because I wanted God to stay with me forever. I didn’t realise then He would never leave me. I didn’t realise “Amen” didn’t mean, “Ok, I’m done talking with you, Lord. You can go now.”

The word, ‘Amen’, instead means, “It is so” and it is derived from the Hebrew āmēn which means “truth”, “certainty”, and “verily”. It’s not a goodbye or a full stop. It is so much greater than mere punctuation.

To me, it is a declaration of God’s Truth. It is a one word song of praise to Him. It is a mighty agreement to His presence in my life.

What does the word mean to you?

Our Choices

Do you choose darkness

or do you choose Light?

Do you choose lies

or do you choose Truth?

Do you choose war

or do you choose Peace?

Do you choose death

or do you choose Life?

Do you choose a moment

or do you choose eternity with God?

These are the choices we make every day.

Do you choose self or do you choose God?

Tools to Weed

Winter is approaching here in Australia. We’ve had only two dry days in Sydney since May 17th. That’s a lot of rain. On the weekend my husband and I enjoyed a morning of sunlight (before it rained again). We went into the garden only to discover the weeds had taken over – again.

I’m not a huge fan of weeding. I prefer to do the job when there isn’t a lot to do, when the garden isn’t completely overrun. It’s easier and the sense of satisfaction is rewarding rather than just exhausting.

Weeding is much like maintaining our faith. We need to weed the sin out of our lives. It’s easier when we do it on a regular basis before sin takes hold and overruns us.

And it’s easier when we use the right tools:

God’s word equips us with the protection we need, like gloves that protect us from the thorns.

God’s truth lets us recognise the weeds in our lives so we can pull them out the moment they appear.

God’s salvation gives us the power to change. We are no longer slaves to the weeds.

God’s strength helps us to persevere. Weeding is not a thing that is ever finished. They try to take root in even the best maintained garden.

God’s love is our motivation. Because of God’s love for us we are able to love Him and because of this we want to glorify God with everything we do.

What do most like and/or dislike about weeding?

Like Poison or Honey?

Did you know that the poison from an oleander plant is so strong that it can poison a person who simply eats the honey made by bees that have digested oleander nectar? That’s some serious honey.

When we ‘digest’ all the things the world has to offer – gossip, greed, pride – it’s like eating the oleander honey. It becomes poison to the soul that spreads like a disease. It will eat away our love for others. It will corrode our love for God and it will convince us that we don’t need to rely on God.

However, when we ‘digest’ God’s word and make it a part of our lives, then our natural response is to spread the goodness. Not only do we benefit, but everyone around us benefits. Rather than reacting with equal insensitivity when someone wrongs us, we respond instead with love. We stop the poisonous cycle. This is because we have become more open for God to shine through us.

So, fill yourself with God. Embrace His ways. Practise His truths. And share the sweet honey of His salvation.

note: I wrote this as guest poster for Elizabeth Mahlou's Blest Athiest blog. Thanks, Elizabeth, for the privilege.

Once Every 3000 Years

I found a brief article hidden away in a back corner of the local newspaper. After some further research, I thought it was interesting enough to merited a post here.

The article was about the discovery of a rare flower found by a Chinese woman in Lushan Mountain, Jiangxi province, China. It is called the udumbara flower or youtan poluo. According to Buddhist legend it blooms once every 3000 years and supposedly marks the coming of a future king.

Rare and unknown things will almost always have legends and myths surrounding them. This flower is no exception. It is extremely tiny and they grow in white clusters which look very much like the eggs of lacewings.

I don’t know if it is true that this flower blooms so rarely or even if it exists. As Simone Preuss notes in her article I found here, “It is interesting to note, however, that the first sighting of an udumbara flower was in July 1997 at a Buddha statue in a temple in Korea, exactly 3,024 lunar years after Buddhism first emerged.” It is also interesting to note that, according to David Emery “they don't match any known species of plant life…”

Do we find things only when we look for them? Is it about being aware of the possibilities and opening our eyes? Or is it a matter of wanting so desperately for something to be true that we close our eyes to other facts? Or do we even disbelieve because we don’t want it to be true?

For me my faith in God is so much more than simply wanting something to be true. Admittedly I did only look for Him when I became aware of the possibility of Him. I looked for Him because I needed Him. But our Lord asks from us more than blind faith. He asks us to learn of Him. He asks us to think about Him. He asks us to be prepared and aware, and He gave us the scriptures and the Holy Spirit to guide us. He reassures us that He is the way and the truth and the life. (John 14:6)