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Too Much Information
Have you ever seen or heard something you wished you had not? Has someone told you a dirty little secret they should not have yet you still heard it? Has God told you something you wish you didn’t know? There will always be a time in our life we think we have too much information. Unfortunately, we cannot unknow what we know. Sometimes, I would like to just hit the rewind button and write over that knowledge with other more desirable information but it cannot be done. Knowledge is very important to every human being. We thrive based on the knowledge we have. We are destroyed by lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6). There are three ways to deal with desirable or undesirable knowledge from said information. We can ignore/repeat it, we can neglect/use it or we can disregard/keep it. The choices are ours to make.
Ignore or Repeat
When we get undesirable personal knowledge about people our maturity level determines whether we ignore the information or we repeat it (1 Corinthians 14:20). Ignoring the information doesn’t mean we ignore the person especially if they are in need of hope. What it means is we can discern if we should even have that information. Is it desirable information or undesirable. If we make the decision we should not have this knowledge we should ignore it but we cannot unknow it so we pray. If we make the decision to repeat the undesirable information we are choosing to perpetuate what the Life Skills Encyclopedia calls tail bearing. Gossiping hurts you and it hurts everyone around you. You cannot unlearn this knowledge but you can choose to not speak of it.
Neglect or use
In the event you are lucky enough to hear a Word from God, who is the source of all knowledge, will you choose to neglect it or will you use it to gain further knowledge. The only way to unknow the knowledge of God is if He removes it from you (Luke 8:18). The reason He will remove it is neglect of His Words. On the other hand, He gives more knowledge when we use the knowledge He gives us. Each piece of information He gives us may very well dangle in midair for some time until one piece of information He gives us joins all the pieces together to create a complete knowledge about what He has been teaching us. Using those pieces of information has resulted in our great discovery of the knowledge of God.
Disregard or Keep
We are blessed enough to be able to use information from both human minds and the mind of God. We also have another avenue to receive information, the devil. The more information we speak about the more information the devil knows we have and what we are using it for. If we neglect the information from God the devil also knows. He has been studying humans for eons. He knows what we are capable of doing and he can fool us with information that sounds like it is from God. It is our job to be able to discern whether we are hearing from the devil or God. If it is from the devil we should disregard that information because it is meant to get us into trouble. If it is from God we need to keep it in our heart. The heart or soul is where we keep the pieces of information God means to use later to complete our knowledge.
Consider the Source
We always have to take the source into consideration. This can be a major obstacle for some folks because they can be deceived by the source of the information. There are three sources of information, man, God and the devil. There are only two types of information, false or true, and both can be skewed in the reception. Each person is apt to make up their own mind about information based on their history and who is giving them the information. We are called to be discerning with the information we receive because we cannot unlearn the knowledge we have. We need to be careful what we listen too so we will obtain more desirable information rather than undesirable information. We can gain desirable information from man, from God and from the devil. We need to learn how to use it appropriately to become more knowledgeable about our God. From God, you can never have too much information.
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My Father Who Art in Heaven
Her Father
Father’s Day is coming and Leola doesn’t have one to regale with gifts and pleasantries. Her earthly father passed away in 2001 from the damage inflicted by a stroke the year before. She wasn’t a Christian then but was getting close. In just a couple of years she will be saved by the calling of her Heavenly Father. She is not sure if her earthly father is with her heavenly Father but she does know she will be. Her Father who art in Heaven has called her from the death into life. The sun is shining this morning because of Him. Her hope is secure because of Him. There is no father on earth who can promise the hope He can.
Leola used to be upset at her earthly father for not taking care of himself during his time on earth. She is without him today because of that yet today she is reflecting on her Heavenly Father and how she can talk to Him daily. She did not talk to her earthly father daily nor weekly for that matter even though he lived just miles away. The Father has taught her more than her earthly father ever could because he can never know her heart. The Father searches her heart and cleans it. His goodness brings her into repentance. His discipline grows her. His love teaches her to love. She sometimes questions how she lived without Him in her dead life but as she looks back she can see she never did. He has been with her from the day she was born. She understands she was predestined to be called to His purpose therefore her life has always been under the Wings of Love. He has ordered her steps and numbered her hairs for her whole life. She was created to live in this time by her Father who art in Heaven and she is eternally thankful to Him!
Ephesians 5:20 tells us to give thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. How fitting we should thank the Father through Jesus, His Son, for everything even for the time we were not saved from hell for all of our times belong to Him. It is during that time we were subject to the absence of the Father that makes us appreciate His presence today. Even though my father is dead I am subject to my Heavenly Father who shows His love toward me each and every day of my life. I offer myself as a gift to Him on this Father’s Day and every day because He created every single one of them. So I will pray to Him from Matthew 6;
Our Father who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
The Father
Leola is reminded of how the Lord taught His disciples to pray. It is all about giving thanks to the Father who is in Heaven but is also here. His closeness will never go unnoticed by Leola. She can do nothing for Him without Him. Her righteousness vanishes when He does. Her soul falls apart when she cannot see Him. How she loves the Father more than life itself! He gave her life for His glory. He gave her work for His Son. He is forever the lover of her soul and she will do anything for Him. The Father has proven Himself to be faithful to her therefore she will dedicate her life to Him, over and over again. Psalm 103 speaks her heart perfectly, Bless the Lord, O my soul and all that is within me bless His Holy Name. Her soul still baulks against it, in its selfishness, but she does it anyway. She is beyond grateful for His presence in her life therefore she will bless the Father, O her soul!
Our gratefulness toward the Father in Heaven is paramount to our thankfulness for what we have and who the Father has placed our life. If you find yourself critical toward people and things look deeper into how you feel about the Father. When you are of the belief the Father is holding back His favour, you will be critical of everything He has given you. Remember He has chosen you and loves you as much as He loves His own Son. You can turn your thinking around by just blessing the Father one time each day. Your Father who is in Heaven is in love with you and wants to be your Father. He wants you to say Happy Father’s Day Father but more so He desires to prove to you He is a good Father worthy of praise.
Mediation verses this week: Matthew 6:9:13; Psalm 103
