The Work of God

Music: "What This World Needs" by Casting Crowns

The perfect devotional reading greeted me a good morning as I was outlining in my head the things I need to do today (which include, but not limited to, reading and organizing the fifty or more columns I received for a side project, meet up with my friends, finish another blog post I've started weeks ago about the last play we produced, and, uhh, go jogging).

"It's not easy to stop trusting ourselves and rely on Christ. In this world, the message we hear is that value comes from what we do, what we earn, and what we accomplish. If we believe that, life becomes a prolonged struggle to fix everything that's broken and strive for perfection in all we do, we'll be driven and compulsive, busier than God ever meant us to be, trying to do extremely well what He never intended us to do."

Admittedly, I find it hard to rely on others, especially when it comes to tasks I need to finish. My way of thinking usually goes like this: "I better do this or that, since I know best what output I want. Besides, why bother other people when it's something I can accomplish by myself?" And often I find myself at the verge of burning out, cranky and moody, because I have too much on my plate. Plus I sound a little conceited. Like, give me your best shot, world, I can take it.

And that's just it. I can't always take it.

"Jesus was never that busy. Throughout His public ministry, He had much to do and only a little more that 3 years to do it, yet His pace was measured and deliberate.
"And so it comes to this: God's work must be done by God. We work, but we must rely on Him every step of the way."

 And so I love the little reminder highlighted in bold. God's work must be done by God. It reminds me of that famous Psalty's song:

It's not by might

Nor by power

But by my spirit

It's not by might

Nor by power

Says the Lord

It's not by my own power, but by God's spirit that I can do anything.

"Before you do anything else, begin your day by expressing your dependence on God. Ask Him to help you rely on Him. Growing faith, like any other job, is a job for God!"

And so my prayer is:

Lord, forgive me for depending too much on myself and too little on You. Thank you for reminding me that it's not by my own might that I can accomplish the  things I need to do, but by your spirit. Please help me be more dependent on you, and to let you do your work through me. Amen.

Partial "Read" List (as of October 19, 2012)

Music: "Wonders of the Deep" by The Chemical Brothers

After drafting my partial book list for 2012, I realize that I've read A LOT of YA books this year. And that I didn't finish reading anything last July. Perhaps I overdid it last June and decided to let my brain cells recuperate? I cannot remember. 

Anyway.

January:
A Lion Among Men (Gregory Maguire) **
100 Cupboards (N.D. Wilson) ***

February:
Maniac Magee (Jerry Spinelli) ***

March:
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (R.L. Stevenson) **

April:
Cirque du Freak: Vampire Mountain (Darren Shan) *
Cirque du Freak: Trials of Death (Darren Shan) **

May:
Freak the Mighty (Rodman Philbrick) **
Kit's Wilderness (David Almond) *
Fish-Hair Woman (Merlinda Bobis) **

June:
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time (Mark Haddon) *
Holes (Louis Sachar) - second reading ***
Dandelion Fire (N.D. Wilson) ***
Odd is On Our Side (Dean Koontz) **
Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Jeff Kinney) *
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules (Jeff Kinney) **
Salingkit (Cyan Abad-Jugo) ***

July:
OMGWTFBBQ. I didn't read anything?!

August:
Bell Prater's Boy (Ruth White) **

September:
The Name of the Wind (Patrick Rothfuss) ***

October:
Joey Pigza Loses Control (Jack Gantos) *
The Chestnut King (N.D. Wilson) **

So that's 14 YA novels, 5 "regular" novels (because calling them "adult novels" sounds wrong), and 1 graphic novel, so far. I wonder how many more I can add to the list before the year ends?

Legends:
* Hmm, okay, I guess :-/
** Liked it :-)
*** Loved it! Definitely a great read! :-D

This. (a.k.a. George Orwell's concept of power)

Music: "Chase This Light" by Jimmy Eat World

"How does one man assert his power over another, Winston?"

Winston thought. "By making him suffer," he said.

"Exactly. By making him suffer. Obedience is not enough. Unless he is suffering, how can you be sure that he is obeying your will and not his own? Power is in inflicting pain and humiliation. Power is in tearing human minds to pieces and putting them together again in new shapes of your own choosing. Do you begin to see, then, what kind of world we are creating? . . .

"There will be no loyalty, except loyalty toward the Party. There will be no love, except the love of Big Brother. There will be no laughter, except the laugh of triumph over a defeated enemy. There will be no art, no literature, no science. When we are omnipotent we shall have no more need of science. There will be no distinction between beauty and ugliness. There will be no curiosity, no employment of the process of life. All competing pleasures will be destroyed. But always--do not forget this, Winston--always there will be intoxication of power, constantly increasing and constantly growing subtler. Always, at every moment, there will be the thrill of victory, the sensation of trampling on an enemy who is helpless. If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face--forever."

-1984, George Orwell