080425

 

Moms first day of vacation so WE are ALSO taking a vacation week

NOOL mass. So scared we wouldn't get the Blood. but we did ❤
HUNGER HOMILY. Explicit Gaza mention. KEEP PRAYING FOR THEM. Also offering up small "hungers" of our own as spiritual sacrifices FOR THEIR BENEFIT!!

Highway impatience. Ashamed of it. "Channeled" MARY'S trusting Heart. God will get us exactly where He wants us to be, WHEN He wants us to be there.

ELIO 9AM!!!
Oh my gosh I AM SO GLAD I WENT TO SEE THIS
I WEPT at the radio signal navigation bit, and at the ending
"What if there's nothing in me TO want"?
Man if they had kept Elio canonical gay that would've hit SO MUCH HARDER tbh
"I didn't give earth a chance; I think I want to try"
"This isn't what I wanted my life to be" vs "I only want you"
+ARMY/ARMOR METAPHOR; VULNERABILITY!! ONLY BREAKING ALLOWS LIFESAVING CLOSENESS
+NO HUMAN BEING IS EVER "ALONE"; our great strength & blessing is our unity as a species; we NATURALLY WANT AND NEED TO LOVE AND BE LOVED
⭐PARENTS ARE SACRED & INDISPENSABLE = they are the ONLY human relationship in which their love for each other CREATES A NEW LIFE TO LOVE. Children are SUPPOSED to be "WANTED" in the most PROFOUND way– as a LIVING RESULT OF SHARED LIFE & LOVE. You do not get that kind of "wanting" in ANY friendship! Anyone can "want you" around as a friend, but only a parent can "want you" into existence, as their child. That's an IRREVOCABLE AND INHERENT CONNECTION. The family unit, as it was intended by God, is absolutely the bedrock of society, and it NEEDS to be protected and cherished and healed and honored. But that can ONLY happen WITH God!!! GOD, WHO IS LOVE, AND A TRINITY OF PERSONS, IS THE MODEL & TYPE & PERFECTION OF EVERY HUMAN FAMILY. And so every human family must know and love and serve Him in order to be complete & whole & true themselves.

In general the film really spoke to our own heart, our youngest heart, who was/is just as obsessed with aliens, and wanting so badly to meet them. I don't know if she wanted to "join them" in the same way Elio did, though– she herself identified too strongly AS an alien to think in terms of "separation" to begin with.

One big problem today = the previews and ads before the film.
I was literally IN TEARS from disgust and anger at the worldly "culture" portrayed and presented in them. It was SICKENING how shallow and sinful it all was, disguised in glitter and fun and laughter and silliness. But it made me nauseous, to discern the rotten flesh beneath the smiling mask. It made me furious, because it broke my heart.
HOW MANY LOST SOULS ARE MARKETING THIS? HOW MANY LOST SOULS ARE FOOLED AND ENTICED BY THIS? How deep does the devil have his dirty claws sunk in the guts of the entertainment industry?
...


Decided to go get the olive oil after the movie so we won't worry about it. Genesis & Laurie keeping me on track.
They're "blurring"???? "Gadfly" and "Protector" roles very similar actually. But Laurie "hasn't been doing her job"; her color instability and the trauma of CNC affected her possibly irreversibly. But that does not mean she's broken. Things just need to be healed and corrected, even in her. She needs her edge back; her true strength was in her sharp and hard points. We NEED those to FIGHT WELL!

Just in time for a Library stop to get BAD GUYS 1 & (FINALLY) VENOM 3!!!

Also remember it's SAINT JOHN VIANNEY'S FEAST DAY!! I am so dearly fond of him. "Lucky" radio homily catch on the drive home= I didn't realize his past was so full of rejection though!! I was deeply touched, it gave me so much hope for myself too. God will guide me to where I need to be, too, even if the world thinks I'm utterly stupid and incapable and "not worth investing in."

God got us home for BK RIGHT ON TIME!

Sudden HUGE realization while fighting OCD =
GOD DIDN'T "DISARM" THE DEVIL; HE REDEFINED THE VERY NATURE OF HIS WEAPONRY!!! If you take a weapon away, he can just get it back, or find something else to use, etc.
What are his weapons, that he uses to harm our souls? FEAR, SUFFERING, AND DEATH. These are the results of sin causing Adam's fall, AND that triad CAUSES US to fall into sin as a result.
BUT JESUS TOOK THOSE THINGS INTO HIMSELF AND UTTERLY TRANSFORMED THEM. The Cross REDEFINED THEM ALL into means of sanctification!!!nNow, they can SERVE GOD. So the devil literally HAS NO WEAPONS anymore, towards those who are in Jesus!!

THIS IS ALSO REDEMPTIVE SUFFERING = "OFFER IT UP" THROUGH CHRIST'S CROSS!! He suffered FOR US although HE was INNOCENT = we can do this for OTHERS!!! We can "pay THEIR debt" through grace in us; WE can suffer pain that would otherwise be meant for THEM as just punishment OR as just consequences??? But ONLY if WE "AREN'T GUILTY" of the sins that caused them, by being in a state of grace and detachment from sin???
I thought of this with the OCD. If I suffer this discomfort that triggers sexual trauma, BUT I AM NO LONGER IN IT, I can "defeat the devil" by suffering this "IN THE PLACE OF" women in this world who were "supposed" to suffer for sexual sins??? I can help "take on their penance" by accepting this pain?? And that ALSO helps conquer the "OCD contamination" terror, because it's NOT "filth" anymore in this light, it is a "psychic sharing" of something that CANNOT "TOUCH ME," but my endurance is keeping it from touching anybody else?? I can see it AS a "cross" now because now I understand what that MEANS. It means I am willingly "bearing someone else's burden" out of merciful love, when I have no obligation or compulsion to do so. I suffer with all of humanity, but I give meaning and purpose to this suffering through grace, by "redefining" it on the Cross. I can thereby help unite more of humanity TO Christ through my own sharing in His Passion, and global human suffering, simultaneously. No one ever suffers alone. We all bleed the same, just like Jesus. It's not pointless. God has given us the privileged ability to turn the devil's weapons into channels of God's blessings, into means of uniting and healing souls. Death is no longer the enemy. Pain is no longer to be fled from or avoided. Fear has been completely tamed and declawed, now serving only to direct us away from sin. Christ Crucified has conquered all things with His Love. All praise and honor and glory be to our Good and Merciful Lord!!

------‐--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Daily reading thoughts = numbers 11

"The sons of Israel began to wail, ‘Who will give us meat to eat?’ they said. ‘Think of the fish we used to eat free in Egypt, the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic! Here we are wasting away, stripped of everything; there is nothing but manna for us to look at!’

First off bro... YOU WERE SLAVES. You weren't "eating for free"!! You had NO RIGHTS, NO DIGNITY, NO FUTURE there. You were objectified, used, tossed aside, seen as a mere labor resource. HOWEVER this very circumstances probably made it so that when they DID get to eat, it was their "ONLY JOY" and so its "RELIEF" factor got blown way out of proportion in comparison. Their minds clung to all they could get.
BUT NOW they are OUT of Egypt and so, in a sense, yes, they HAVE been "stripped of everything," Because that little joy WAS their ONLY joy, EVEN AMIDST SLAVERY. Take the latter and the former is lost too, because of the context! But they were MEANT FOR MORE. The problem is, they HAVE TO LOSE the "little" they had first. The wilderness is necessary. So their emotions ARE VALID & REAL, but the are the result of a LACK OF TRUST = FAITH. God has promised them good things– but they don't know what that REAL joy looks like yet, and so they feel bereft, because they lack the faith that IS the anchor and foundation of ALL true joy!!
They want to go back to slavery because it was "all they knew" and they have never experienced something like this. They are seeking comfort and familiarity like children–yet they are abused children, running back to the place of trauma solely because "at least they fed me. At least I knew I had a place to live." They DON'T KNOW HOW TO TRULY TRUST YET; they never had the opportunity TO do so, OR anyone WORTH trusting!! So this is all new and understandable, even if it is still "sinful" in its rebellious and contentious character. But it is coming from very wounded, very sick hearts. It will take time to heal yet.

"Wasting away" = also referring to the "death of the old self"? Not simply exaggeration of hunger, like Esau! They HAD food, but they wanted more, in both variety and amount; they needed to mortify their novelty-seeking appetites in order to be more obedient and receptive to God. They HAD to LET their old way of being "waste away" by "starving it" of its lusts. Their "SLAVE SELF" had to die along with the Egypt it belonged to= they were enslaved to sinful passions, to ungodly pride & idolatrous greed, and they could not enter the Promised Land with those shackles still on; the very weight would kill them in this desert.

"Look at" = fascinating choice of words, INSTEAD of "to eat"!! This betrays their SENSUAL APPETITE, as opposed to real bodily needs! They wanted luxury and richness and "interesting" flavors, as well as "pretty things" and a "plethora of choices" which they could admire visually as much as gastronomically. They wanted the "PRIDE OF THE EYES"– THE VERY FIRST LISTED TEMPTATION THAT LURED EVE INTO DEATH. In order to sin, we must first LOOK at it. "The woman SAW that the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eyes..." She saw what the devil had SUGGESTED to her, in direct yet subtle defiance of God's command to not eat it! Do we not "hunger" after what we see? The fruit was forbidden– why then stand there admiring it? That was no matter to her! Why even choose to consider it? If she had kept her eyes fixed on God, finding HIM pleasing above all, she would not have been turned to face the devil's direction. "The lamp of the body is the eye... if your eye is bad, your whole body will be in darkness. And if the light in you is darkness, how great will the darkness be!"
Israel, in wanting "pleasing" things to look at, is rejecting the simple yet all-sufficient gift of their LORD. They are blinded to the bounty of His grace, of the miracles that surround them, because they have fixed their eyes on their own lusts. They want to LOOK; to "get" what they desire, as a shopper or scavenger "looks" for his own food... they do not want to "close their eyes" in humble surrender of control, and receive whatever God gives, in faith.

------‐--------------------------------------------------------------------------

YOUVERSION SPEAKING RIGHT INTO THIS TODAY = MATTHEW 4:4!!

God's WORD is ALIVE! It is our TRUE FOOD. Scripture is our joy, hope, peace, comfort, purpose, passion, life, etc. It renews and nourishes and strengthens us, refreshes and keeps and sustains us.
We NEED to KNOW GOD'S Word, which is TRUTH ITSELF, in order to prevent "being poisoned" by the lies of this world!
⭐We need to "EAT" Scripture DAILY to feed our souls, but we also need to DIGEST it!! I remember reflecting on this EXACT thought YEARS ago (major deja vu). We must take the time to READ it, to STUDY and UNDERSTAND it, to PONDER it and really "hide it in our heart" by MEMORIZING it, even just by natural familiarity with it! THEN, with it "written inside us," we can APPLY it, and put it into PRACTICE!!
⭐‼️ "Renew your mind" with Scripture and it will "change your behavior"; what you put into your thoughts is what you get out of your decisions & deeds = SOW & REAP PRINCIPLE. Literally EVERYTHING YOU "LET IN" IS A SEED. BUT is it wheat, or darnel? There are TWO diligent "sowers" out preparing for harvest, remember!! BUT THEY DON'T WALK THE SAME PATHS??? God plants His good things where He knows they have means to grow INTO goodness– in sunlight, with rain, and in fields of good labor? But the devil throws his evil seeds into places that may look nice but that bear no good fruit, only poisonous berries?? He plants seeds that only grow in the shade, or that grow so wild that they choke their neighbors? You get the picture. The point is, be wary of the environment you are in. It's not just your soul-soil, it's what seeds you expose yourself to, that CAN be planted there!! Do NOT linger in gardens full of tangled overgrowth and carnivorous plants!! BE CAREFUL!!!
⭐ BELIEVE what GOD says about you IN SCRIPTURE, so you CAN be who HE says you ARE, and DO what He says you CAN do IN HIS GRACE!! This requires TRUST; true transformation, even miraculous changes in our very character, cannot happen without FAITH– but with faith, IT WILL. Trust me. It's happened to me, the instant I surrendered into His Hands. GOD IS FAITHFUL, AND HE KEEPS HIS PROMISES, AND WHAT HE SAYS IS TRUE & ETERNALLY IRREVOCABLE. So LEARN what He says in His Word– pun intended, for Christ personifies it– and LIVE BY IT. There is literally no surer foundation! BUILD your life on the GOSPEL!! It alone can & will reliably and surely guide you from "here" into the "hereafter"! SO TREAT IT LIKE THE LIFESAVING "MAP" IT IS, in this desert of our days.


And oh man LOOK AT THESE JACOB/ESAU PARALLELS in the daily reflection =

‼️‼️ "Jesus was hungry— taunted by the enemy to satisfy His craving for food."
(The devil tells us to "satisfy cravings." This is slave language. He wants us to "placate" or "please" a demanding taskmaster, a primal and selfish, often even mindless, lust for some temporal thing... typically food, and typically when we don't need it. But in this legitimate case, where Jesus's human body IS naturally "craving" anything edible, the devil STILL goads Him to "satisfy" it– to treat HUNGER as the "boss," or even as a wild animal? The word implies a gesture done almost under duress, to keep it from losing its temper, or acting in violence, or otherwise harming you. At least, that's what it sounds like to my traumabrain. "Satisfaction" is not a kind or caring word. It is a stomach full of holes, an addict chasing a high. It is never truly happy. It always wants more. Do not seek to satisfy it. You must direct your true efforts and intentions and object elsewhere. Cravings are to be ignored; let their own hunger eat them alive. You, Christian, are not bound to them, so do not be fooled or bullied into servitude. What you need to listen quietly and carefully to are your GOD-GIVEN AND GOD-HONORING NEEDS.)
(Note also that Jesus was TAUNTED. The devil WILL MOCK you for your sacrifices and self-control, for your temperance and your modesty... and he will often do this through other people. Be wary. Remember that you serve and seek God alone. Don't let the slaves of appetite drag you into their filthy cell, back into Egypt, just because they claim there's "free food," and you're "missing out" on what there is to see. It's a trap. Do not turn back.)
(Etymonline says: "To taunt is to press upon a person certain facts or accusations of a reproachful character unsparingly, for the purpose of annoying or shaming, and glorying in the effect of the insulting words: as, to taunt one with his failure."
DID ESAU "LET HIMSELF BE TAUNTED"??? Was his pride as a hunter bruised? Was he humiliated by the weakness he felt by hunger? )

‼️‼️ "Essentially, Satan provoked Jesus to prove that He was God's Son by turning rocks into bread."
(The devil judges divinity by power alone, and he sees power as control. "Prove you're God by altering the laws of nature at will." "Prove you're God by refusing to accept limitations." Satan sees "godliness" as brute force and proud exaltation.)

‼️‼️‼️ "Can you sense the manipulation?" "If you're really the Son of God, do something. Take matters into your own hands. Give in to your desire. Provide for yourself. Is God even good if He holds out on you?""
(This is what Jacob and Rebekah were tempted into doing??? "If you're REALLY the chosen firstborn, do something. Take the matter onto your own hands." And then the provision aspect, with the goats perhaps... "God gave them to me," but he and his mother were the ones acting in God's place, claiming control, not waiting on prey to appear by "chance", but slaughtering their own herd at will. I'm really stretching the metaphor but it speaks to an insidious tendency of human nature so the warning is apt, even if only in that more generalized sense. "Would you still trust and serve God if it turned out you weren't the one to get the blessing?" "Is God good if He sends you into exile and servitude?" Etc. The answer is, as we see later, absolutely yes. Don't ever trust the devil. He can't see the big picture, and he doesn't care about honoring it regardless, because he refuses to accept the Truth. God IS Good, ALWAYS.)

‼️‼️"...the devil temped Jesus with protection and power, but Jesus rebuked him with Scripture."
(The devil cannot give either of those because HE is the "king" of SIN– the very threat we NEED to be protected against!! And ALL power comes from GOD– even his!! It's not his TO give; and even if he could do you really think he'd share ANY of it with a worthless human, a child of his enemy, like you??)

⭐‼️ "Jesus knew that life is more than having a full stomach. Though He surely longed to satisfy his physical craving, He knew that true sustenance comes from God."
(This is because TRUE LIFE is ETERNAL LIFE.)

⭐"Jesus knew that engaging in debate with the enemy isn't wise. Instead, He relied on the power of Scripture, quoting from Deuteronomy as His weapon of defense."
(Remember what we said earlier! He KNEW Scripture enough TO wield it as a weapon from His Mind & Heart!)

⭐‼️"Jesus knew He had nothing to prove. Unlike Adam and Eve in Genesis, who doubted God's goodness and gave into temptation, Jesus was able to resist the enemy."
(Key words = PROVE, GOODNESS, ABLE, RESIST.)
(PROVE = You'll never "convince" the devil. You don't need to. Don't even try.)
(GOODNESS = ALL temptations to disobey/ distrust God's commandments assume that, if we followed them, we would suffer pain or loss somehow... And we assume such things are always "signs of malice" towards us. So, we try to "escape' that risk by letting ourselves be fooled by the empty promises of safety & pleasure that the devil offers by disobeying God's laws. We forget that God's Law is literally, and quite obviously, about LOVE. "LOVE DOES NO EVIL to one's neighbor; THEREFORE it is the FULFILLMENT of the Law!" But NOTE = it's about NEIGHBOR!! It's SELFLESS! It's the CROSS!!! Jesus loves us with infinite, unconditional, everlasting, perfect Love, and yet THAT LOVE "KILLED" HIM. But it saved our lives from death forever. THAT'S what obeying God is about!! The point ISN'T to be "comfy and happy" in this fallen world! The point of obeying God's Commands is that THEY ARE GIVEN IN LOVE, FOR LOVE, BY LOVE, FOR GOD IS LOVE, AND LOVE IS THE HIGHEST & PUREST GOOD, AND SO ALL HIS LAWS ARE GOOD, EVEN IF WE "SUFFER" FOR KEEPING THEM, BECAUSE THEY KEEP OTHERS FROM SUFFERING!!! And remember what I said much earlier about Jesus REDEFINING SUFFERING!!! When you LOVE the Cross, you're no longer afraid of "pain or loss", because in this world all of that is temporary, and in Christ it can even be used for eternal benefits! Suffering paradoxically becomes joyful, when united with the Lord, because we share HIS joy, which He WON FOR US BY THE CROSS, the HIGHEST joys on this earth: redemption, atonement, and the hope of Resurrection!! Our sufferings now serve THOSE ends! My pain can be offered up for the conversion of sinners, for their redemption by Christ! My losses free me from temporal things so I can put all my hopes in eternity beyond the grave! My suffering in the place of others, and with others, shares in Christ's at-one-ment for us all, a unity of love only possible through such total willingness to share even the agonies of one's neighbor, in pure compassion, so no one is ever alone, and our greatest sorrows are transformed into opportunities for our deepest joy! THIS IS WHAT YOU LOSE BY DISOBEYING GOD BECAUSE YOU'RE "AFRAID TO SUFFER" A LITTLE. DON'T SELL THIS FOR THE SOUP.)
(ABLE = Jesus's humanity was ONLY capable of resisting temptation because He KNEW God was Good & Trustworthy, and didn't feel the need to "justify" that to the devil... or to any human ego. God has "nothing to prove" because His Truth is self-evident. Jesus didn't have to "test" the "validity" of His Father's faithfulness, or constant care, or good purposes, in order to put all His Faith in Him. God's character is a REALITY, not a theory! Having that knowledge and conviction, Jesus was ABLE to resist the devil's foolish and shallow attempts to "poke holes" in His filial trust. But how did Jesus "get" such assurance of God's faithfulness? LOVE. IF YOU LOVE GOD, NO DOUBT CAN EVER SHAKE YOU. IF YOU LOVE GOD, NO TEMPTATION CAN EVER TRICK YOU. IF YOU LOVE GOD, NO HARDSHIP CAN EVER CONQUER YOU. LOVE IS YOUR ANCHOR, YOUR LIGHT, AND YOUR SWORD. LOVE IS GOD, AND GOD LOVES YOU. When we love God, we give ourselves totally to Him– there's "nothing left" TO "give in" to anything else!)
(RESIST = NOT "FIGHT". This is notable to me because sometimes, you literally don't need to– and shouldn't– "battle" the evil facing you. "Only STAND STILL, and the LORD will fight for you!" "BE STILL, and know that I AM GOD!" Sometimes our only marching order is to hold our holy ground. The devil may be stupid in eternal matters, in fact he's the most stupid of all creatures in that regard– but he is SCARY SMART in the ways of sin. That means, do NOT argue with him. NEVER "wage a war of words" with the "father of lies"; you WILL LOSE. Be humble, but don't fear him– fear God. The more you interact with evil, the more you give him your attention, the more opportunities he has to get his thoughts and images into your mind and heart. You cannot conquer him, and guess what? You're not supposed to! That's JESUS'S job, and He ALREADY DID SO!! Your job is to RESIST– to simply stop him from moving forward. Take your stand against his lies, and stand firm, opposing him and refusing to budge. Hold out against his assault– you have the Shield of Faith, after all. You can withstand it, by grace, and grace is always available, so ask for as much as you need. Remember, victory belongs to God, and so do you. There is no need to "beat him" by force; he's already lost! You need only to RESIST the devil, "and he will flee from you"– and your faithfully steadfast humility in contrast will glorify God all the more.)


⭐⭐‼️‼️❤"Jesus knew He was being tempted by the devil and acted in accordance. We must learn to recognize when we're under attack, and remember to fight back with God's Word... Remember, God HAS enabled you to fight back with Truth by the power of the Holy Spirit."
(WHEN WE'RE ATTACKED, WE'RE SUPPOSED TO FIGHT BACK– BUT NOT WITH HUMAN POWER!! GOD IS STILL THE ONE FIGHTING FOR US!!! Also, realize this: the devil is all darkness, lies, hatred, and pride. God is Light, Truth, Love, and Humility. So THOSE are the conquering weapons; not brute force or intellectual gymnastics! God marches into battle head-on, never using subterfuge, never afraid to confront the foe directly. But then what does He do? He SPEAKS. And with one Word, all His enemies fall (John 18:6!). This is the ultimate show of His Power, a proof that He is in total control. He need not even lift a Finger to utterly destroy those who oppose Him; all He has to do is breathe on them (2 Thessalonians 2:8!). So we must realize that God does not "fight" the way we humans do. "For, though we are still living in the world, it is no worldly warfare that we are waging... though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. We use God’s mighty weapons [of divine power], not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ." etc. 2 Corinthians 10. You see what the war ACTUALLY looks like now? A sword of metal can pierce through a heart of flesh, but it cannot pierce through the pride and obstinacy that dwell therein. Only the Sword of the Spirit can do that, "which is the WORD OF GOD" (Ephesians 6:17); "For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul and spirit, joints and marrow, as it judges the thoughts and purposes of the heart"... "God's Word can cut through our spirits and souls... until it discovers the desires and thoughts of our hearts" (Hebrews 4:12). If it can, and does, do that to US, just imagine how TERRIFIED the devil must be of it!! Do not hesitate to wield it against him– but do so skillfully!! It's a HEAVY Sword, powerful and great! You can only "lift it from the Stone (Matthew 21:42)" if you are humble! If you try to swing it by your own strength, it will crush you. Hold it in your hands, and hold it to your heart, and it will move your arms to victory, if you will be led. Let the Word of the LORD speak for you, and you will not be ashamed. Fight back with the TRUTH that incinerates lies on contact– the TRUTH of WHO GOD IS and WHO YOU ARE IN GOD.)


‼️‼️"So, how is the enemy tempting you this week? How is he enticing you to doubt God's trustworthiness?"
(I highlight this for Esau= he, too was "enticed" by "doubting the trustworthiness of his God-given birthright" in a sense?? He effectively didn't think it was of any good FOR God to have given it to Him, if he was "going to die anyway" as it were. He didn't have any faith that God WOULD 'let him survive his hunger" and furthermore to live long enough TO live out the birthright he had been graced with. This was a very subtle, very passive distrust, but it was real. If Esau had trusted in God's faithfulness to provide for His people, including himself, he would NOT have exaggerated his hunger so, OR given in so impetuously to it. The devil knew THAT was his true weak spot... not his sensual appetites in themselves, but his doubt that God would do anything about them.)


------‐--------------------------------------------------------------------------
------‐--------------------------------------------------------------------------


"O Godhead, here untouched, unseen, All things created bear your trace..."
(Literally every creature in existence reflects some aspect of God. This is SUCH A BEAUTIFUL TRUTH. It's beautiful to meditate on too. Look at the things you take for granted in Creation, and make a habit of consciously recognizing the "traces of God" in them. It WILL change your life.)

"Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it."
("Treasure in a field" vibes. I love the imagery of "keeping" it, like a child finds some unexpected precious thing and holds it close, treasuring it for years to come. I think of what few items I've intentionally "kept" over the years– they may seem worthless to others, but I know their inestimable value, a value of the heart & spirit, and so I "keep" them. But such things are never to be "shelved" or put in a drawer, out of sight and mind, despite their worth. If they are truly valued, they will be cherished. THAT is "keeping" in truth.)

Lord, let your love come upon me, the saving help of your promise.
And I shall answer those who taunt me, for I trust in your word.
()

Do not take the word of truth from my mouth, for I trust in your decrees.
I shall always keep your law for ever and ever.
()

I shall walk in the path of freedom for I seek your precepts.
I will speak of your will before kings and not be abashed.
()

Your commands have been my delight; these I have loved.
I will worship your commands and love them and ponder your will."
()

"“You wanted no sacrifice or oblation, but you have prepared a body for me” (Heb 10:5)...  My food is to do the will of my Father."
()

"Lord Jesus Christ, you were made obedient unto death, and your name was exalted above all others. Teach us always to do the Father’s will, so that, made holy by obedience which unites us to the sacrifice of your body, we can expect your great love in times of sorrow and sing a new song to our God."
()