The Voice Of Many Waters Vs. Moral Norms?

I’m reviewing my recent posts in various forums and seeing that I’m chasing a theme without realizing it. Perhaps I’m sleeping on the job, doing something right . . . unintentionally. There are times that we’re intentional about righteousness, purity, moral norms . . . and then there are times when we wake up and see that we’ve stumbled onto the right path in a new day.

So here are some posts from the last few weeks. I haven’t tried embedding posts like this in awhile, so you may have to click on the posts from the social networks and scroll to read the whole posts and comments.

Household Code series in Ephesians

This post kicked off the current series on the Household Code in Ephesians, with a couple of good comments on LinkedIn.[1]

Pictured are Per Akvist and family. He’s the PCG area supervisor for Africa, who has visited Traverse City on a couple occasions.

So I’m chasing the theme of marriage, family, and the subsequent questions of Christian morality within that series.

Look for the next post next week.

Aquinas on the vice of curiositas
. . . eerily similar to our times

I’m not sure how to approach Thomism, as I’m am not well versed in it. From what I understand of Thomas Aquinas, there is an ordering to the mind that is a spiritual practice in and of itself, to put it in our terms. The pursuit of knowledge can be detrimental if not reigned in and rightly ordered. As Smitty once put it:

A little carnal knowledge
Is a dangerous thing
It’ll eat a hole in the brain

I’d be the biggest fool
In the whole universe
To trade a heavenly blessing
For a worldly curse [2]

I believe Aquinas agrees. Where do we allow our highly functional, strategic, knowledge-seeking, intellectual abilities to lead us?

Events this week

How many chimed in on the events this week? The timelines on social networks were buzzing along at a rapid clip.

I don’t really feel like Christians are without a voice. We do seem to speak out fairly regularly through any means available to us. On the other hand, I think that we have to be careful not to promote another form of nationalism, because all of our concepts of Christendom haven’t quite worked out yet . . . historically.

Nonetheless, I believe we have a right in America that we cannot ignore, the freedom to be a voice . . . to be a Biblical Christian voice . . . if we choose.

We also have the rite . . . as Christians . . . regardless of what the state says about our voices . . . to be a witness to Truth as our act of worship (Romans 12.1-2).

With that in mind, I offered my personal, fun, brief Yes or No vote on this week’s events, from the Superbowl to national politics. However, I’m convinced, even with our system, that we have a great opportunity for renewal at the local level first. So unless we’re called to be part of a grand-scale national movement, we need to look around, and see who the Spirit is leading us to around here. That is our reasonable service, as Romans says.

My current readings

Have you ever realized that when the Holy Spirit leads you to chase a particular theme, it starts showing up everywhere? All of a sudden preachers that you listen to are preaching and posting about it. Books you’re reading start shedding light on the subject. Conversations with others start to offer insights, even if your friends and family are unaware. Devotional and Scriptural readings lead you further up and further in.

I believe this is one way that we can tune our third ear, or maybe our fourth ear, if it’s our spiritual ear, to the voice of the Lord.

Any quick Scriptural keyword search reveals that the voice of the Lord is often compared to the voice of many waters (Psalm 29.3; Jeremiah 10.13; 51.6; Ezekiel 1.24; 43.2; Revelation 1.15; 14.2).

I was born in Oregon, my family loves the outdoors, and we have been to countless National and State Parks over the years. Have you ever been so close to a waterfall, to river rapids, or the the great breaking ocean waves on cliffs that the great sound of the waters drowns out everything else?

When God speaks at times, I believe there may not just be one trickle we’re drawing from. If we allow Him to speak, He will speak in multiple ways at the same time, not just one water source, but many. Am I talking about pluralism? No, but I’m talking about cultivating an ear to hear what the Spirit is saying and the various ways He chooses to do so.

So the above meme is from my readings this morning. It seems to be falling in line with the whole theme.

What is the theme this week, if not moral norms?

When do we as a society stop and ask the questions:

What do we want to allow . . . for ourselves on a big prime time event . . . or in the offices of our statesmen?

Do we want a new standard for our generation?

What are our moral norms . . . or our moral compass?

Do we want the current amoral trend to continue for our children, their children, and possibly our great grandchildren, if we live to see their day? This is actually a life changing question if we let it be. It often helps individuals make great changes in counseling, when they really consider such a perspective. How will I be mentoring my tribe when I’m a great grandpa?

Will we tune-in to the ever-changing currents of societal moral norms . . . or to God’s Word and direction?

God will speak to us through multiple sources, as I have discovered. It’s what led me to write this post. However, we have to tune-in to our Lord’s voice that has the potential of drowning out the competing voices of a society that seems to have forgotten her spiritual compass. Will we listen to trending moral norms, or the voice of the Spirit on many waters?