"Heavy Hearts"

"We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof." (Psalms 137:2)

   Precisely what is needed, something to cry about that actually does something! James has a way of saying this, maybe a little misunderstood by some, but none the less, it is cleansing to our souls when we actually take the time to do it; that is, if you have the time! We find the Scripture I am talking about in James 4:8-10, where he says, "Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double-minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up." I guess the thing that brings it all together is those last four words, "in the midst thereof;" seriously, literally brings it together! As I mentioned before, this is a point where you see the contrast between those things which are and those things that could have been. To some, it might be a cross-roads, a place where you stop to reflect upon how much you have given or not given to God; whether that be your time, your money, or your baggage! Is it 10% of all that you have? He truly has asked for the tithe of your finances, that we know; but what about out time and our baggage; does the same 10% count for that also? I would hope not; but I think it might turn out to look that way, if we are just being honest. I know where I stand, as I was reminded of it yesterday when I was having dinner with my in-laws. I mentioned about my devotions, and how I tried to give Lord the first two and a half hours of every day, dedicated to prayer, reading, and this blog. And then, I reflected on the other twenty-one and a half hours, which was not so much about doing anything for God; at least not on a constant set of guidelines. Reflecting upon my daily routine, it is mostly being consumed by work; which I hardly feel guilty about, because we all should be working for our livelihood. But, my work is time consuming, to say the least; it starts by 8am and finishes by 8pm, every Monday through Friday; and when I am not working, I think about the work I still need to get done. That is the time, but what about the baggage? Lord, please tell me it's more than 10%...

"What is causing quarrels and fights among you? Don't they come from the evil desires at war within you? You want what you don't have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can't get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don't have what you want because you don't ask God for it. And even when you ask, you don't get it because your motives are all wrong -you want only what will give you pleasure. You adulterers! Don't you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself and enemy of God. What do you think the Scriptures mean when the say that the spirit God has placed within us is filled with envy? But he gives us even more grace to stand against such evil desires. As the Scriptures say, "God opposes the proud, but favors the humble." So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world." (James 4:1-8) NLT