glorycloud's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- relief in God alone It is in the death flow 8:45 AM Tuesday morning here in West Michigan. It is a cold rainy dark gray ugly morning. Carol told me last night this coming Thursday it is suppose to be 90 degrees. This morning it is icy cold and rainy. Weird weather patterns is another sign we are in the Last Days. Carol and I were both early because Carol had to be at the hospital for a tour of the new Cardiac Catheter Lab. This morning I made a pot of coffee, ate a bowl of cereal, messed with our main computer, wrote in my paper diary and have been reading a treatise on the forgiveness of sins by the great Puritan divine John Owen titled, 'The Forgiveness of Sin: A Practical Exposition of Psalm 130' by John Owen. Carol goes back to work tonight after being off eight nights. I have nothing to do today worth doing. I plan to coast through the day. Last night I read my books and went to bed. I read from these books last night before going to sleep- 'Schmidt Delivered' a novel by Louis Begley 'The Forgiveness of Sin: A Practical Exposition of Psalm 130' by John Owen 'The World Broke In Two: Virginia Woolf, T. S. Eliot, D. H. Lawrence, E. M. Forster, and the Year That Changed Literature' by Bill Goldstein Carol and I also listened to two sermons yesterday evening, one by John Piper and the other one by a local PCA minister named Andrew Vandermaas. Carol liked to hear Rev. Vandermaas preach because he is so easy to follow. The sermon we listened to on Carol's cell phone was on The Book of Lamentations (Old Testament). I think Vandermaas basically gave a summary of the Lamentations. I think Vandermaas main point was that because Christians suffer we are enabled to reach out to unbelievers with something in common, namely Christians and unbelievers both suffer. I told Carol after listening to Vandermaas sermon that I do not think Lamentations is saying the sufferings of God's people are the same as the ungodly. What I mean is that in Lamentations the Old Testament covenant people are suffering for their sins/breaking the Mosaic Covenant/The Torah. We read in Lam. chapter 1 verse 3 "Her foes have become her masters; her enemies are at ease. The LORD has brought her grief because of her many sins". I would recommend to Rev. Vandermaas that he read 'The Forgiveness of Sin: A Practical Exposition of Psalm 130' by John Owen wherein he shows why God brings suffering into His people lives because of their sin. People who are not Christians do suffer. The Bible teaches if we sin we will experience suffering/death. But God's brings suffering into His people's lives to lead them to repentance. Anyway I could write a book of this subject. So the morning goes by. Carol is not home from the hospital. I suppose I will close to drift. I also should mention in Lamentations in chapter 1 verse 4 we read, "The roads to Zion mourn, for no one comes to her appointed feasts. All her gateways are desolate, her priests groan, her maidens grieve, and she is in bitter anguish." Rev. Vandermaas should read a treatise titled, 'The Roads to Zion Mourn' by Hugh of Balma found in 'Carthusian Spirituality: The Writings Of Hugh Of Balma And Guigo De Ponte' [The Classics Of Western Spirituality]. Read Hugh Of Balma on the Purgative Way. I also would recommend Vandermaas read 'The Dark Night' by St. John of the Cross. 9:34 a.m. - 2017-09-19 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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