I am so grateful for what Christ did on the cross. Being in this vineyard would be living in a world with God's love withdrawn. I couldn't bear that.

Isaiah 5:5-6
And now I will tell you
what I will do to my vineyard.
I will remove its hedge,
and it shall be devoured;
I will break down its wall,
and it shall be trampled down.
I will make it a waste;
it shall not be pruned or hoed,
and briers and thorns shall grow up;
I will also command the clouds
that they rain no rain upon it.
Bible Gateway link

I'm not trying to be controversial, but I worry when I see so many families being run by their children's activities and so many women taking the lead in their households. It just seems to me the role of the male in the family is minimized. We need our men to step up, and our women to respect them.

Isaiah 3:12
As for My people, children are their oppressors,
And women rule over them.
O My people! Those who lead you cause you to err,
And destroy the way of your paths.”


Bible Gateway link

Another thing I love about the Bible is how deliciously controversial it is. It's interesting to see some Christians ignore the parts they don't agree with and argue strongly for the parts they do agree with. I don't know, can we have it both ways?

1 Corinthians 14:33-35
For God is not a God of confusion but of peace. As in all the churches of the saints,
the women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission, as the Law also says.
If there is anything they desire to learn, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church.
Bible Gateway link

I've heard it explained that here Christ is the beloved and his bride is his church, in other words, the rest of us. Wow, can't anything just be poetry? If it were just a love song, I'd sing this to my dear husband but he's not really the type to go out into the fields.

Song of Solomon 7:11-13

Come, my beloved,
let us go out into the fields 
and lodge in the villages;
let us go out early to the vineyards 
and see whether the vines have budded,
whether the grape blossoms have opened
and the pomegranates are in bloom.
There I will give you my love.
The mandrakes give forth fragrance,
and beside our doors are all choice fruits,
new as well as old,
which I have laid up for you, O my beloved.
Bible Gateway link

God has you in mind for one of his jobs on earth. Don't belittle your gifts, use them. Not all of us should go to the third world as missionaries. Your mission might be right in your own family.

1 Corinthians 12:4-9

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit;
and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord;
and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone.

To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit,
to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit,

Bible Gateway link

This is a lovely response (click on Class Acts link) to my post on Tuesday (link also below.) I was given permission to pass it on. Sorry email subscribers if you got Tuesday's post again.

Class Acts

Vine and Branch (Tuesday)

What are your secrets? I love Ecclesiastes it is confusing or thought provoking depending on how vain you are. Whatever, every year I hate to see it finished. "Fear God and keep His commandments." It's pretty simple and all IS vanity.

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:

Fear God and keep His commandments,

For this is man’s all.
For God will bring every work into judgment,
Including every secret thing,
Whether good or evil.
Bible Gateway link