glorycloud's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- a godly man has a spirit to desire perfect holiness It is 10:49 AM Sunday morning here in West Michigan. It is 52 degrees and sunny this morning. I should go for a walk someplace. I got up this morning around 6 o'clock AM. A weird crazy dream woke me up this morning. I got up came upstairs to find the house cold and dark. I turned on some lights and turned up the heat/furnace. I warmed up a cup of coffee and made a fresh pot of coffee. I went to my Study and got my paper diary and sat in our dining room to wake up to the first day of a new week. I have spent the morning mainly writing in my paper diary and reading from a book titled, 'Jonathan Edwards: Spiritual Writings' [The Classics of Western Spirituality]. I also messed with our main computer and ate some food. I find I like it super quiet throughout the day since contacting last Summer tinnitus. I did listen to some music yesterday, but I find noise irritates me. Due to having tinnitus it takes more mental energy to listen to my inner voice-voice thoughts-utterances of my heart. I like living inwardly and now due to having tinnitus I have a constant irritation to wrestle with. Carol did call this morning, the Marn, Jack, Lou, and Norah wanted to say Good Morning to Papa! Carol said she would call me later today. So the morning has gone by simply and quietly. Not much else to report so I will close to wait. Last night I mainly read from a book titled, 'The Problem Of Democracy: The Presidents Adams Confront the Cult of Personality' by Nancy Isenberg & Andrew Burstein. I also read last night before going to bed from a book titled, 'East Of Lo Monthang In The Land Of Mustang' travel writing by Peter Matthiessen Photography by Thomas Laird. I got out to look at today a book titled, 'Thomas Jefferson: Author Of America' biography by Christopher Hitchens. "1. Nothing short of perfect holiness will satisfy the appetite and craving of their souls. A godly man has a spirit to desire perfect holiness, and to long after it. 'Tis mentioned as the character of the godly, Matthew 5:6, that they "hunger and thirst after righteousness"; and it is no less than perfect righteousness or holiness that their thirst is after. There is not only a rational desire as a man may set down and consider with himself, that it would really be best for him that he should be perfectly holy; he must rationally think [it] would have many good consequences that would be for his happiness, and so desire and choose to be perfectly holy, if it might be. But 'tis the natural appetite of a gracious soul to be wholly freed from sin, and perfectly conformed to God; as an hungry man desires meat, or a thirsty man drink. A healthy man don't from day to day desire food, merely because he sits down and considers with [himself], "'Tis necessary that I should eat; I can't live if I don't eat"; and so merely desires to eat out of judgment; but he has [an] appetite that craves food day after day. So a thirsty man don't desire drink merely out of judgment, because 'tis for his health; but he has a craving appetite to it. So a godly man is said to hunger and thirst after righteousness, and he has not enough till he has perfect holiness. He that sits down as having got holiness enough, finding no inward craving after any more, 'tis a sign that he has no holiness at all. A godly man, though he may grow in grace, yet is never satisfied with holiness in this life. He is always like a man that has not his thirst satisfied. Psalms 42:1, "As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God." If a man has been parched with thirst, and is allowed to some small taste of cool water; and so once in a while has a few drops, though such tastes are as sweet and refreshing to him; yet he is not satisfied, but lives in thirst, till he is allowed to take a full draught; and the small tastes he has, do indeed the more stir up his eagerness after more. So in some measure it is with a godly man in this world. Unless it be when he is in very ill frames, and his appetite is as it were spoiled by sickness, he lives as long as he lives in this world like a thirsty man.4" Jonathan Edwards 'Striving After Perfection' Sermon Text Ps. 119:3 "They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways" 11:08 a.m. - 2022-05-22 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
||||||