2024 Jan 17 how to draw a line between the spiritual and the physical?

2024 JAN 17 PROLOGUE: I assumed that life would be all sunshine and blue sky. That was to be the story of my life. And that would always be. Pure assumption. It did not happen. My earth world came crashing down over a decade ago. I had to part with a partner (of twenty years). I thought we could still remain best forever friend for the rest of our lives, mine at least, as I am 15 years her senior. It turned out to be a wistful thinking on my part. The truth caught up in the last two years. And the curtain closed forever on earth for our “partnership-friendship”. She left with Jesus on 2023-12-26 5am. 

Grief: I am not prepared and I cannot accept. I cannot imagine anyone prepared for grief. Human are not meant to grieve. How can anyone know grief until it hits like an avalanche? 

JANUARY 15, 2024 HELPER10 WORDS OF THOUGHTS AND SPIRIT EDIT "CROSSING OVER TO 2024"

crossing over to 2024

A LIFE AND A DEATH

A death in 2023 made it the most difficult year to cross. All words had fled. All colors faded before their time. Towards the end of December the world died. A heart was torn into two and the torn half left so suddenly that there was no time to weep goodbye. In fact 2023 was the impossible year to cross.

And today is the 21st day after that 5am fateful morning. What is 21 days compared to the 11,315 days of being together? Nothing.

And yet, 21 days mean that 1,814,400 seconds had ticked through. How did that happen? There is no explanation except for the supernatural grace (unmerited favor) and mercy of God, Who enables every dawn’s waking at 3am finding oneself in the midst of the living and is still a living being. With God, all things are possible.

The fact is: regardless of questions like, what is the good of being left behind in the land of the living when all its meaning seems to have departed, being alive on earth is a fact to live with day by day over which one is given a responsibility. A believer of God, the Creator and Origin of life, cannot choose to stay or leave unless God has given that option.

So the next question is, what shall I do for the rest of my life on earth, in particular, 2024? The reluctant earth man (in truth a spiritual man) asks God. What next?

Waiting is not possible when there is no certainty of an answer. What if the answer is broadcasted and I miss tuning to the right frequency? What if it comes in a still small voice and the wind that weeps through the leaves is too loud for me to differentiate and discern? What if it comes in a dream and I forget the moment I wake? What if I miss the 3-5am rendezvous on the particular day it comes? There are many “what ifs”. Yet I wait.

At one time one could imagine that time was a bird of no particular consequence gliding slowly passing by my window as I chanced to look outside through a veil dimly. Looking back the last decade I now hear the thundering sound of urgency for redeeming time.

A summary of a decade (of somewhat oblivion on the part of this blogger): 2012 prelude: a decision was made to each pursue a called direction and the way therein. 2013: A harsh tearing asunder legalistic way. 2014: Finally heeded (after three prophetic utterances) and left reluctantly for a strange land in a strange writing mission. 2015: Continued writing with travel to new land. 2016: the same with variation. 2017-2018 Heeded to the call to study academically about God. 2019-2020 making it to full time study on the snow mountain city above the clouds. 2021: returned to a new land and solitude. 2022: Reconciliation and restoration.  2023: Full restoration towards the end. And then an earth life departed just a few days before the year 2023 departed. And seemingly chaos started afresh when crossing over to 2024…

A devastating regret (for me in hind sight): Choosing a passive andante in earth life, spiritually oblivious that the other half was encountering a sudden onslaught by violent turbulent storm apparently too severe for her delicate frame. “You might not listen, or you could react immediately without thinking through, and not asking the Holy Spirit for direction. As for me, I’d rather stay in the supernatural peace of Jesus and follow His guidance step by step.” She said this to me, too late (?) or perhaps I never really listened until then.

How to describe someone who is like the psalmist in Psalm 1 (her all time favorite to the end), so firmly, deeply grounded and rooted (planted by God) by the stream of living water, walking so close to the Lord that beautiful flowers bloomed, lovely fruits birthed so naturally from her in all seasons, and healing leaves remaining lush and green, and forever whole and young in spirit, soul and body?

2024-01-17

a love song

My heart is overflowing with a good theme;
I recite my composition concerning the King;
My tongue is the pen of a ready writer.

² You are fairer than the sons of men;
Grace is poured upon Your lips;
Therefore God has blessed You forever.
³ Gird Your sword upon Your thigh, O Mighty One,
With Your glory and Your majesty.
⁴ And in Your majesty ride prosperously because of truth, humility, and righteousness;
And Your right hand shall teach You awesome things.
⁵ Your arrows are sharp in the heart of the King’s enemies;
The peoples fall under You.

⁶ Your throne, O God, is forever and ever;
A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom.
⁷ You love righteousness and hate wickedness;
Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You
With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.
⁸ All Your garments are scented with myrrh and aloes and cassia,
Out of the ivory palaces, by which they have made You glad.
⁹ Kings’ daughters are among Your honorable women;
At Your right hand stands the queen in gold from Ophir.

¹⁰ Listen, O daughter,
Consider and incline your ear;
Forget your own people also, and your father’s house;
¹¹ So the King will greatly desire your beauty;
Because He is your Lord, worship Him.
¹² And the daughter of Tyre will come with a gift;
The rich among the people will seek your favor.

¹³ The royal daughter is all glorious within the palace;
Her clothing is woven with gold.
¹⁴ She shall be brought to the King in robes of many colors;
The virgins, her companions who follow her, shall be brought to You.
¹⁵ With gladness and rejoicing they shall be brought;
They shall enter the King’s palace.

¹⁶ Instead of Your fathers shall be Your sons,
Whom You shall make princes in all the earth.
¹⁷ I will make Your name to be remembered in all generations;
Therefore the people shall praise You forever and ever.

 

(Psalm 45 New King James Version (NKJV) The Glories of the Messiah and His Bride

To the Chief Musician. Set to “The Lilies.” A Contemplation of the sons of Korah. A Song of Love.)

 

If I take the wings of the dawn

Tehillim 139

Orthodox Jewish Bible (OJB)

139 (For the one directing, Mizmor of Dovid). Hashem, Thou hast searched me, and known me.

² Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, Thou hast binah of my thought from afar off.

³ Thou comprehendeth my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my drakhim.

⁴ For there is not a milah (word) in my leshon, but, lo, Hashem, Thou knowest it altogether.

⁵ Thou hast enclosed me achor (behind) and kedem (before), and laid Thine hand upon me.

⁶ Such da’as is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.

⁷ To where can I go from Thy Ruach [Hakodesh]? Or to where shall I flee from Thy presence?

⁸ If I ascend up into Shomayim, Thou art there; if I make my bed in Sheol, hinei, Thou art there.

⁹ If I take the wings of the shachar (dawn), and dwell in the uttermost acharit yam (the extreme end of the sea);

¹⁰ Even there shall Thy yad lead me, and Thy yamin shall hold me.

¹¹ If I say, Surely the choshech shall cover me, even the lailah shall be ohr about me.

¹² Even the choshech is not dark to Thee; but the lailah shineth as the yom; the choshech and the ohr are both alike to Thee.

¹³ For Thou hast created my inmost being; Thou didst interweave me in the beten immi.

¹⁴ I will praise Thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvellous are Thy ma’asim; and that my nefesh knoweth very well.

¹⁵ My atzamim (bones, frame) were not hid from Thee, when I was made beseter (in secret), and skillfully wrought in the depths of the Eretz.

¹⁶ Thine eyes did see my golem (embryo), yet being unformed; and in Thy Sefer (Book) all the yamim (days) ordained for me were written down, when as yet there were none of them.

¹⁷ How precious also are Thy thoughts unto me, O El! How great is the sum of them!

¹⁸ If I should count them, they are more in number than the chol (sand); when I awake, I am still with Thee.

¹⁹ Surely Thou wilt slay the rasha, O Eloah; depart from me therefore, ye anshei damim (bloodthirsty men).

²⁰ For they speak of Thee craftily, and it is taken lashav [Ex 20:7] by Thy enemies.

²¹ Should not I hate them, Hashem, that hate Thee? And am not I to be at odds with those that rise up against Thee?

²² I abhor them with complete sinah; I count them mine enemies.

²³ Search me, O El, and know my levav; test me, and know my thoughts;

²⁴ And see if there be any derech otzev (torturous crooked road) in me, and lead me in the Derech Olam.

Psalm 139 (NASB)

God’s Omnipresence and Omniscience.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David.

139 O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
² You know ^[a]when I sit down and ^[b]when I rise up;
You understand my thought from afar.
³ You ^[c]scrutinize my ^[d]path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.
^4 [e]Even before there is a word on my tongue,
Behold, O Lord, You know it all.
⁵ You have enclosed me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
⁶ Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is too high, I cannot attain to it.

⁷ Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
⁸ If I ascend to heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in ^[f]Sheol, behold, You are there.
⁹ If I take the wings of the dawn,
If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea,
¹⁰ Even there Your hand will lead me,
And Your right hand will lay hold of me.
¹¹ If I say, “Surely the darkness will ^[g]overwhelm me,
And the light around me will be night,”
¹² Even the darkness is not dark ^[h]to You,
And the night is as bright as the day.
Darkness and light are alike to You.

¹³ For You formed my ^[i]inward parts;
You wove me in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴ I will give thanks to You, for ^[j]I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Wonderful are Your works,
And my soul knows it very well.
¹⁵ My ^[k]frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;
¹⁶ Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;
And in Your book were all written
The days that were ordained for me,
When as yet there was not one of them.

¹⁷ How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
¹⁸ If I should count them, they would outnumber the sand.
When I awake, I am still with You.

¹⁹ O that You would slay the wicked, O God;
Depart from me, therefore, men of bloodshed.
²⁰ For they speak ^[l]against You wickedly,
And Your enemies ^[m]take Your name in vain.
²¹ Do I not hate those who hate You, O Lord?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?
²² I hate them with the utmost hatred;
They have become my enemies.

²³ Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me and know my anxious thoughts;
²⁴ And see if there be any ^[n]hurtful way in me,
And lead me in the everlasting way.

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 139:2 Lit my sitting
2. Psalm 139:2 Lit my rising
3. Psalm 139:3 Lit winnow
4. Psalm 139:3 Or journeying
5. Psalm 139:4 Lit For there is not
6. Psalm 139:8 I.e. the nether world
7. Psalm 139:11 Lit bruise; some commentators read cover
8. Psalm 139:12 Lit from
9. Psalm 139:13 Lit kidneys
10. Psalm 139:14 Some ancient versions read You are fearfully wonderful
11. Psalm 139:15 Lit bones were
12. Psalm 139:20 Or of
13. Psalm 139:20 Some mss read lift themselves up against You
14. Psalm 139:24 Lit way of pain

How to see God's power and glory?

the cross life

Psalm 63:1-5

New King James Version (NKJV)

Joy in the Fellowship of God

A Psalm of David when he was in the wilderness of Judah.

63 O God, You are my God;
Early will I seek You;
My soul thirsts for You;
My flesh longs for You
In a dry and thirsty land
Where there is no water.
² So I have looked for You in the sanctuary,
To see Your power and Your glory.

³ Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,
My lips shall praise You.
⁴ Thus I will bless You while I live;
I will lift up my hands in Your name.
⁵ My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness,
And my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips.

A HEAD STONE FOR MY YOUNGER BROTHER

A HEADSTONE

_________________________________

ALWAYS IN OUR HEARTS

  常在我们心中

my younger brother

我的弟弟

The day he went to be with the Lord: 3rd March 2012

Bless the Lord, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits:
Who forgives all my iniquities,
Who heals all my diseases,
Who redeems my life from destruction,
Who crowns me with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
Who satisfies my mouth with good things,
So that my youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

( Psalm 103:1-5 )

我 的 心 哪 ， 你 要 称 颂 耶 和 华 ！ 凡 在 我 里 面 的 ，

也 要 称 颂 祂 的 圣 名 ！

我 的 心 哪 ， 你 要 称 颂 耶 和 华 ！

不 可 忘 记 祂 的 一 切 恩 惠 ！

祂 赦 免 我 的 一 切 罪 孽 ，

医 治 我 的 一 切 疾 病 。

祂 救 赎 我 的 命 脱 离 死 亡 ，

以 仁 爱 和 慈 悲 为 我 的 冠 冕 。

祂 用 美 物 使 我 所 愿 的 得 以 知 足 ，

以 致 我 如 鹰 返 老 还 童 。

（ 大 卫 的 诗 - 诗篇103:1-5 )

________________________________________

The watchman’s compilation of Bible verses on “tears”. May all who mourn be deeply comforted.

COMFORTING WORDS FOR THOSE WHO SOW IN TEARS FOR THE LORD JESUS

Psalm 126:5
Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy.
Psalm 126:4-6 (in Context) Psalm 126 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations
Isaiah 25:8
he will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove his people’s disgrace from all the earth. The LORD has spoken.
Isaiah 25:7-9 (in Context) Isaiah 25 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations
Jeremiah 31:16
This is what the LORD says: “Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded,” declares the LORD. “They will return from the land of the enemy.
Jeremiah 31:15-17 (in Context) Jeremiah 31 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations
Psalm 126:5
Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy.
Psalm 126:4-6 (in Context) Psalm 126 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations

HOW AN INTERCESSOR CRIES FOR THE PEOPLE OF GOD

Job 16:20 My intercessor is my friend as my eyes pour out tears to God; Job 16:19-21 (in Context) Job 16 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations
Psalm 119:136 Streams of tears flow from my eyes, for your law is not obeyed. Psalm 119:135-137 (in Context) Psalm 119 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations
Jeremiah 9:1
Oh, that my head were a spring of water and my eyes a fountain of tears! I would weep day and night for the slain of my people.
Jeremiah 9:1-3 (in Context) Jeremiah 9 (Whole Chapter) Other TranslationsJeremiah 9:18
Let them come quickly and wail over us till our eyes overflow with tears and water streams from our eyelids.
Jeremiah 9:17-19 (in Context) Jeremiah 9 (Whole Chapter) Other TranslationsJeremiah 13:17
If you do not listen, I will weep in secret because of your pride; my eyes will weep bitterly, overflowing with tears, because the LORD’s flock will be taken captive.
Jeremiah 13:16-18 (in Context) Jeremiah 13 (Whole Chapter) Other TranslationsJeremiah 14:17
“Speak this word to them: “‘Let my eyes overflow with tears night and day without ceasing; for the Virgin Daughter, my people, has suffered a grievous wound, a crushing blow.
Jeremiah 14:16-18 (in Context) Jeremiah 14 (Whole Chapter) Other TranslationsJeremiah 31:16
This is what the LORD says: “Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded,” declares the LORD. “They will return from the land of the enemy.
Jeremiah 31:15-17 (in Context) Jeremiah 31 (Whole Chapter) Other TranslationsJeremiah 50:4
“In those days, at that time,” declares the LORD, “the people of Israel and the people of Judah together will go in tears to seek the LORD their God.
Jeremiah 50:3-5 (in Context) Jeremiah 50 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations
Lamentations 2:18
The hearts of the people cry out to the Lord. You walls of Daughter Zion, let your tears flow like a river day and night; give yourself no relief, your eyes no rest.
Lamentations 2:17-19 (in Context) Lamentations 2 (Whole Chapter) Other TranslationsLamentations 3:48
Streams of tears flow from my eyes because my people are destroyed.
Lamentations 3:47-49 (in Context) Lamentations 3 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations

THE LORD DETESTS THESE TEARS


Malachi 2:13-14 Another thing you do: You flood the Lord’s altar with tears. You weep and wail because he no longer looks with favor on your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands. You ask, “Why?” It is because the Lord is the witness between you and the wife of your youth. You have been unfaithful to her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant.
Malachi 2:12-14 (in Context) Malachi 2 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations

THE LORD APPRECIATES AND GIVES AWARD TO THESE TEARS


Luke 7:38
As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.
Luke 7:37-39 (in Context) Luke 7 (Whole Chapter) Other TranslationsLuke 7:44
Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.
Luke 7:43-45 (in Context) Luke 7 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations

THE LORD RECORDS TEARS THAT ARE SHED FOR HIM (TEARS SHED BY THOSE AFTER JESUS' HEART)


Psalm 56:8 Record my misery; list my tears on your scroll — are they not in your record? Psalm 56:7-9 (in Context) Psalm 56 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations
Acts 20:19
I served the Lord with great humility and with tears and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of my Jewish opponents.
Acts 20:18-20 (in Context) Acts 20 (Whole Chapter) Other TranslationsActs 20:31
So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.
Acts 20:30-32 (in Context) Acts 20 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations2 Corinthians 2:4
For I wrote you out of great distress and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to grieve you but to let you know the depth of my love for you.
2 Corinthians 2:3-5 (in Context) 2 Corinthians 2 (Whole Chapter) Other TranslationsPhilippians 3:18
For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.
Philippians 3:17-19 (in Context) Philippians 3 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations2 Timothy 1:4
Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy.
2 Timothy 1:3-5 (in Context) 2 Timothy 1 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations

NO MORE TEAR AT LAST!

Revelation 7:17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; ‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’ ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’ ” Revelation 7:16-17 (in Context) Revelation 7 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations

Revelation 21:4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Revelation 21:3-5 (in Context) Revelation 21 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations