No Man, No Woman Can Throw the First Stone

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 Is it not a miracle that we break from the bondages of Satan?  To turn from a stubborn wayward will to the glory of God?  To please and glorify His name?  Now that's a miracle.  Get behind me Satan--you and your demons--for you favor the things of men and not the things of God!  While i search for the quiet words to pray...silence, solitude, discipline are three very important words to me.  i have thought many times before about entering the monastery, knowing i should fast and pray.  An activity that i contemplate doing all the time.  Nobody to watch, nobody but God to answer to.  No man, no woman can condemn me, cannot throw the first stone.

i have an ascetic temperament, gravitating toward solitude, willing to begin the process of excessive self-denial and rigorous devotion and self-sacrifice.  Spirit strong, flesh is weak. When i think my concern for righteousness exceed God's, then i become a self-proclaimed messiah...shame on me!  Do i really hate evil or do i become willing to put up with it?  My desire to be liked has to be crucified.  God's in the business of transforming my character flaws into useful tools.  He's my only friend at this point in life and i can only rejoice in that!


It isn't about me.  There are no shortcuts in obtaining the fruit of the Holy Spirit.  Have my tomatoes been given permission to ripen slowly?  It's not about how fast i grow.  It's about how strong i grow.  i still need to be "softened up," as i accept the adverse conditions Jesus has laid before me that's going to make me ripe and mature.  Christlikeness is my eventual destination, but it'll take the rest of my days to get there.

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