Orange Moon Cafe "IS"

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe

"IS"

    In our present earthly lifetime, we constantly face the temptation to live according to "seems" and "feels like" rather than "is."

    "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment" (John 7:24).

    "Is" begins with the one, the only One, who can rightly call Himself "I AM" (Exodus 3:14).  The God of the Bible - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - constitutes the essence of reality and truth.  Nothing exists that He did not create.  Nothing continues to exist that He does not sustain.  And in a manner far beyond our capacity to understand, all things serve God's ultimate intention referred to by the Apostle Paul as "the eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Psalm 100:3; Colossians 1:17; Ephesians 3:11).  Thus, when we seek to live by "is", we look to the great "I AM."

   "What is truth?" asked Pilate of the Lord Jesus Christ (John 18:38).  The Bible does not record that Pilate waited for the Lord Jesus to answer.  He clearly did not want to know the answer to his question.  We know, of course.  "I am… the truth" (John 14:6).  The truth Himself stood before Pilate, as He does before us in all things.  The Lord Jesus literally dwells within believers by His Spirit, forevermore constituting truth and reality as both an internal and external gift of God's presence and working.  "I will dwell in them and walk in them" (II Corinthians 6:16).  This leads to vital questions of our existence we do well to ponder in the light of "is" and "I AM."  Let us make these questions personal, and ponder them in the holy light of truth.

   Who is God to us in terms of our being and existence, in this moment and forevermore?  "He is thy life… To live is Christ" (Deuteronomy 30:20).

   What constitutes the "is" of this day, regardless of its conditions, situations, and circumstances?  "This is the day which the Lord hath made" (Psalm 118:24).

   What is the true blessedness of every blessing?  Is there someone to thank for "every good gift and every perfect gift?" (James 1:17).  "God giveth to all life and breath and all things" (Acts 17:25).

   What is the primary truth of every trouble, difficulty, pain, sorrow, and loss?  "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble" (Psalm 46:1).

    What is our hope for navigating the seas of this day, this lifetime, and forever?  "As thy days, so shall thy strength be" (Deuteronomy 33:25).

    What is love, that is, the reality of the heart that we all know to be "the greatest of these?" (I Corinthians 13:13).  "God is love" (I John 4:8).

    How can we know peace?  Joy?  Fulfillment?  "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusteth in Thee… God, my exceeding joy… To live is Christ" (Isaiah 26:3; Psalm 43:4; Philippians 1:21).

    Is there meaning, significance, and purpose to my life and being?  Is there an answer to the greatest question of all: Why?  "Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God… Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord" (I Corinthians 10:31; Colossians 3:23).

    These and every question of life must be answered according to "is" rather than "seems" and "feels."  A genuine experience of life, being, and sublime wonder await all who join the prophet in his determination to see and know reality - "Is" - in the light of its Essence, Maker, and Sustainer…

"I will look for Him."

(Isaiah 8:17)

Weekly Memory Verse

   In Him we live and move and have our being.

(Acts 17:28)

5766