Day 46 - Love's reputation

I'm still thinking about love and what a different meaning love has in the scriptures compared with much of the world.  Even in the New Testament when God through His preachers is encouraging husbands to love their wives, it is not the romantic kind of love that would mean go out and get her a 'valentine'.  There are many things like the valentine, or flowers, that people do, sometimes not even so much to show love as to get love - or to get out of the 'doghouse' so to speak, for some wrong.

God's name today, Jehovah-Elokeha (the Lord thy God) kind of describes to me what others see of the kind of love I display. In Exodus 20:2 He says,  “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery."  Food and any other kind of addiction is truly slavery.  Whatever it is that holds my thoughts day and night and has me willing to buy or sell to get it is no different than Esau's condition.
People tell me that it is one thing for me (or any other Christian) to say I accept God's Word and Work and believe that He is my God; but a more amazing miracle for them is to see changes take place in me that cause them to recognize that God truly is my God instead of...(fill in the blank).  When my Dad saw exciting things happening in my life he recognized it and said, "I want to come down there and see for myself what your God is doing."  Of course there are days when others might say, not kindly, "If you are an example of what God is like... "  I pray that the kind of love I show others through words, action, or working out talents or gifts is not just action but action fueled by the love of God.   The Hebrew suggests that your is implying a willing slaying of self - a pouring out of oneself on behalf of the other.   That makes a pretty powerful 'valentine' message to say "I'm Yours".  If I were to apply God's love and actions to my life, it would be like saying, "I'm willing to lay down my life - my time, my goals, my plans, my dreams, my hopes, my wealth, my possessions, for you.  I am yours."

I surely willingly made food a god for a time in my life - as I did with clothes and other material things, and career goals.  It truly amazes me each time I come to the place where I can finally place that object that was a 'god' for a time, in its appropriate place in my life, that God not only allows me to enjoy that thing in proper perspective, but He gives me more joy and pleasure than that object ever did - or, I now know, ever could.  My prayer is that you have seen or will see Jehovah Elokeha active in my life - that my actions and talents come out of the fruit of His Spirit which begins with ....love.

Those who know me will know that I tend to attack a plan or goal with passion.  No different with this blog and this resolution, however some days my digestive system does not appreciate such fervor and today was one of those.  I will need to re-evaluate remaining abundances in the refrigerator and focus on more variety and a less strenuous pace for cleansing foods.  Two meals today:

Brunch: Abundance from last night - Whitefish, spinach and carrot bread. (I had to give away some of this delightful bread lest I eat it all myself.  Ken and friend Marge both agreed it is delicious).  I just happened (smile) to have some lemon-caper sauce in the refrigerator which topped it off perfectly.

Dinner:  Abundance from Sunday lunch turned into a Taco salad tostada.

After Dinner:  Cashews