Hello from my heart to yours...
... I don't usually receive "topics" to write about from people, but a long time friend of mine asked me what I thought about those "promises or deals" we make with God .. you know the ones, "I will never drink again if You help me through this hangover, God" ... or how about, "I will not cut my hair if You get me out of this situation, God" .. (yeah, sounds ridiculous, but I have seen it)... how about the little "strings".. promises of what? until they fall off... yep, even I am guilty of that... I wore a string bracelet and wooden cross that was hand-made by the Carmelite nuns.. it was given to me when I was pregnant with G3... I was supposed to wear it until the string wore down and broke on it's own...and I did.. I never took it off... if I had to go to nice events, I simply wore a bigger bracelet over it to cover it.. anyway, it broke right after he turned 10... if you tied me in chains and threatened to torture me, I wouldn't be able to tell you what promise was supposed to be fulfilled... lol... probably because I do not believe in that kind of thing really....
I don't think we can make deals with God.... it isn't, "You do this for me, God and I will do this for You.." God knows the outcome of those kind of empty "promises" and "deals" long before we make them to Him.... certainly, He knows that even if we recover from the hangover, we are going to drink again... and eventually, we have to cut our hair lest we are a modern-day Samson ... I don't know... let me reflect on this a minute... I feel like my kids with their SAT or FCAT writing "prompts" ... it's hard to randomly write on a topic someone gives you.....
okay... so , this is what I think... there is nothing to bargain for nor to ask for.. God knows best and I trust in Him... He made His promises to us and kept them... all He wants is for us to love Him.. we don't have to bribe Him, we only have to give Him our hearts and believe in Him... if we want to love Him in return, then it's really not even a deal.. it is an agreement.... love comes unbidden... we simply love... love is the leaven of life and it is all within us.. we are not just a party to love.. we ARE love.. so, the only "promise" or "deal" we can make with God comes from the First Commandment...
Deuteronomy 6:-5 :"Thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thy heart and all thy soul and all thy might" .. this is the basic credo of Judaism, and its twice-daily recitation is a mitzvah (religious commandment). ... The New Testament (Matthew 22:35-40) asserts that all morality flows from the "Great Commandment" , in which Jesus was reaffirming the teaching of the Torah using the same exact words...
We are a month away from Shavu'ot... and a month away from Pentecost... I read some really beautiful things about US.. WE, the children of One God, regarding these Holidays and how they Divinely connect us, but I am going to leave that for a blessing closer to those celebrations... however, I do want to say this.... since Shavu'ot is when God entered into a relationship with the Jews by giving them the Torah in written form... His original covenant with the chosen people ......... and Pentecost is when God established the New Covenant by writing in the hearts of those who would receive the Holy Spirit and follow the teachings of Jesus.... well then, maybe we can use this time to reflect on the only promise worth making to God...
...Infinite Spirit of God, I know You love me... I promise to follow Your "Great Commandment" and love You with all my heart and all my soul and all my might...
that's the deal... cross my heart... this is my truth...... Amen, Amen....
Remember that you are loved beyond measure and are a cherished blessing to the world... Love one another as God loves you....
I love you,
Elena
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