For this last week's Come Follow Me study, I was drawn to Matthew 6:19-21. "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."
This inspired me to read the short story called "The Mansion" again. I thought the following excerpt was very poignant.
John Weightman: "In all the purpose of my life? What could I have done better? What is it that counts here?"
Keeper of the Gate: "Only that which is truly given," answered the bell-like voice. "Only that good which is done for the love of doing it. Only those plans in which the welfare of others is the master thought. Only those labors in which the sacrifice is greater than the reward. Only those gifts in which the giver forgets himself."
- Excerpt from "The Mansion" by, Henry Van Dyke
I love that part, "that good which is done for the love of doing it... welfare of others is the master thought... in which the sacrifice is greater than the reward".
I still have a lot of improvement in this area. My motives aren't always purely self-less... That is my aim though.
Yesterday, Chandler led our family lesson after church from the Come Follow Me manual and I was impressed with his thoughts and the area he chose to focus on. He spoke of Matthew 7:15, "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves." He then had us all look up the definition of what ravening means.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
1. (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Raven.
2. (n.) Eagerness for plunder; rapacity; extortion.
3. (a.) Greedily devouring; rapacious; as, ravening wolves.
Strong's Hebrew
2963. taraph -- to tear, rend, pluck... root Definition to tear, rend, pluck NASB Word Usage feed (1), ravening (1), ravenous
(1), surely been torn to pieces (2), tear (7), tearing (2), tears (2 ...
/hebrew/2963.htm - 6k
We had some excellent discussions and thoughts shared. We made a family goal to be mindful and wary of those things in our life that would "tear" apart our most important relationships, that which would "plunder" the peace in our home, "rob" our attention of where it needs to be, or "devour" the Spirit.
I'm so proud of Chandler for the way he handled the discussion. I love it when we all read the same passages of scriptures and different sections stand out to each one of us.
I'm very proud of Micah as well. He has made some strong efforts all by his own choosing and by no prompting from us, to offer up a full fast these last several Fast Sundays. Yesterday he told me that he was specifically fasting for the Lord to help him have the strength to fast.
I pray that he will have that blessing and gain a testimony of the great and powerful blessings that shape the soul through such a simple sacrifice.
I'm proud of all my children. They are all making such careful decisions to choose the right in a world that's upside down, twisted, and difficult to navigate, they are all finding there way to truth and aiming for it!
