December 6
Scripture focus: But Thomas, sometimes called the Twin, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples told him, "We saw the Master." But he said, "Unless I see the nail holes in his hands, put my finger in the nail holes, and stick my hand in his side, I won't believe it." Eight days later, his disciples were again in the room. This time Thomas was with them. Jesus came through the locked doors, stood among them, and said, "Peace to you." Then he focused his attention on Thomas. "Take your finger and examine my hands. Take your hand and stick it in my side. Don't be unbelieving. Believe." Thomas said, "My Master! My God!" Jesus said, "So, you believe because you've seen with your own eyes. Even better blessings are in store for those who believe without seeing." Jesus provided far more God-revealing signs than are written down in this book. These are written down so you will believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and in the act of believing, have real and eternal life in the way he personally revealed it. John 20:24-31 The Message
I am awed by the way Jesus loved Thomas. Here are a few of the things that I appreciate about their relationship.
- Jesus didn't fuss at Thomas for being a doubter.
- Jesus loved Thomas in a very personal way, taking into account Thomas' temperament type and the current state of his spirituality.
- Jesus knew Thomas so intimately that he was able to teach Thomas according to Thomas' learning style.
- Jesus focused his attention on Thomas. He wasn't distracted by the others in the room. He was intent on fully attending to the broken-hearted one.
- Jesus was less concerned about being recognized because he was far more interested in the state of Thomas' believing.
Jesus remains the same today as yesterday. He is deeply concerned about the state of your belief. May this comfort you no matter where you find yourself today.
4 comments:
"He is deeply concerned about the state of your belief." yes, He is very lovingly concerned. He wants me to see His love for me.when i see that, He then wants me to see His love for others.He loves the ones I have been in conflict with just as much as He loves me; and He not only wants me to stop trying to defend myself, He wants me to let Him bring me along side of Him and be a part of loving others with His love. "beloved, let us love one another; for love is of G-d, and he who loves is born of G-d and knows G-d." (I John 4:7) a.'nanny'mouse
I am struck by the compassion and directness of Jesus in this vignette from the Bible. This gives me hope where there was no hope. The mystery of this holy love fills me with awe and gives me strength to keep listening for His voice and following His light.
Reading Joel 1-2 this morning it seems that it is a story of distruction and rebuilding. If you replace locust with addictions it would tell the stories of my life. The line that hit me as most painful is"Sober up, you drunks! Get in touch with reality—and weep! Your supply of booze is cut off. You're on the wagon, like it or not." Thinking back as a using person that would scare the hell out of me.It seems it would be a realy good thing for all addicts to be stripped of their addictions in a flash.I know I was scared who I would be without mine until I met others who had let theirs go. I had gotten to a point where the only thing I had left to count on was my addiction. I have never done well with things that are taken from me good or bad. I have learned that I do not miss what I give freely. Today I live as an alcoholic who chooses not to drink, A drug addict who chooses not to use, and a smoker who chooses not to smoke. I do not mean to make it seem easy to get to those statments as it has taken some years to go from I cannot drink, use, or smoke to them becoming choices. It is from those struggles that today I am finding the strenght to make other choices in my life to continue to grow.I then found Joel 2 13-14 "Change your life, not just your clothes. Come back to God, your God.
And here's why: God is kind and merciful.He takes a deep breath, puts up with a lot,This most patient God, extravagant in love, always ready to cancel catastrophe." I know he has been Patient with me, Today I ask to find a place for patients with myself.
God Bless my community those I know and those I have yet to meet.
As I sit here meditating on today's post, I don't think I really doubt God so much as I test him in my addiction to speeding. That's probably why I don't think about how fast I'm driving until I'm out the car and realize how much I put my life in danger by doing that, then I can thank Him for getting me to my destination safely. However, how much longer will He allow me to get away with endangering my life and breaking the law. I don't know but I may want to start sticking as close to the speed limit as possible no matter how much stress it causes me. Hmmm, maybe I am doubting that he'll take care of me, forever. v
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