A Response to God's Glory in Light of Romans.

O Heavenly Father, protect me from the most wicked speed and haste of this world. Slow my mind so that I may contemplate that which is of you. Captivate me with the revelation of your righteousness, given through the saving power of your gospel. Lord, may I never be ashamed of your almighty word, for it puts to shame the wisdom of the wise. Give me prudence in speech that I may honor you; not to magnify my own worth, but to exalt you in love. This I ask of you, for I am overwhelmed by who you are and what you have done for me despite my wickedness.

O reader, I have done wrong in the presence of one almighty and yet He has sent His Son bearing life everlasting. By His grace I have been saved through faith. What is this, that a king would die for me? Every king of this world would sentence me to death and yet He has adopted me through His Son. He has baptized me into the death and resurrection of His Son by His Spirit and set me free from sin! I have been brought from death to life by Him for I am under grace. When I foresaw death in my bondage to sin, God saw life in my unity with His Son. O glorious day, for I have been restored and made new. Praise be to God Almighty!

O my beautiful savior, be praised forever! Forever may my life be lived in obedience to your word out of love for you. Guide me by your Spirit in the teachings of your holy Scripture, for I am yours. In this I take my greatest comfort, that I am not my own but I belong to you, O God Almighty.

"To the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen"

A random allagory in light of this past year that I wrote before I begin re-writing my entire semester. haha. :)

Ah what trials come my way. They boast of their own magnitude and revel in my inadequacy. With shrew hands they grip me. With vigorous strength they attempt to force me on my knees and yet I remain unmoved. Infuriated, they increase their force by magnifying their own weight upon me, but to no avail. Having exerted their strength to it's utmost ability, I stand unfeigned. Foiled, they curse and shriek at me. In hideous voices they call to me demanding to know what great power I possess to stand in defiance to them. They tell me of the pain they see in my eyes and yet scoff at my self-righteous choice to ignore it. I return to them silence.

Enraged and with some ill-gotten attempt to catch me off guard, they cast rocks at me, yet they shatter at my feet. Exhausted, my enemy has fallen to the floor and matched me in my silence. Now I answer them, "What authority have you, that I would answer to such a violent inquiry? What right have you upon my life? I answer none. There is no power or might in your possession that could destroy me or make me obey you. I speak not because of your commands, but to glorify the one in whom I have pledged my life. It is true your burden is heavy and your sting is a pang in my side. I am not self-righteous nor do I ignore the pain you have caused me. You have caused a great lament in my life and I have mourned at my loss. I am vulnerable and I am weak. My defenses would crumble at your slightest brush against me.

But I see you are confused. No doubt these things seem true to you. Do they not? Is my appearance not one of a servant? Am I not a mere man fallen in sin, weak and without strength? Ah but that is where the dichotomy lays. You have not asked of me whom I serve. I tell you the truth, my master and my lord governs the very earth to move. He commands the sun to burn and the moon to reflect its light. The very stars, celestial lights of the universe, are inflamed at the utterance of His mouth. With His breath He has given me life. Through His Son He has given me eternal life. It is true that I had fallen in sin, but I must tell you this, I have been set free by the blood of His Son and in His conquering over the one who sent you. Your master, death, can hold no power over the man who belongs to one Almighty. Ah, you have heard of Him haven't you? I see you tremble at reference to His authority. Kneel and behold the name of Christ Jesus my Lord. He has saved me from your grasp. It is because of Him that your inflictions are only temporal and your abuse not lethal to my soul. It is by His amazing grace that I am found righteous. My loving God has adopted me and made me His son. I am an heir of Christ and belong to Him alone. Yes, you may beat upon me and curse my name, but I will stand in the name of Christ and glorify my Heavenly Father, for I love God Almighty. May all of my worship be His forever.

Lord you sustain me, you empower me by your Spirit to seek your face in the midst of calamity. Because of your Son every affliction upon me shall be redeemed for your glory and your honor. May you be praised in my life today and forevermore. O my worthy Lord of Heaven. Amen.

My morning contemplation. Not perfectly worded, but my morning thoughts nonetheless :) No doubt it'll miss some things too. haha

God Almighty. How wonderful! The God I love is almighty. He governs the universe to spin in perfect harmony. What perfection is this? The very planets move in orbit at His command. The faultless glory of one almighty has been made manifest in His creation. Not that the world is deserving of respect or worthy of His regal honor, but that which my God fabricates out of nothing must resound His splendor! Creation has been given beauty, goodness, complexity and in it's very makeup, the invisible qualities of my Lord are made known. How humble I am, that despite the wonder of all creation, I have been given His Image within me. My God, you have made me wonderful and I turned my face from you, yet you pursued me when I hid myself. You called after me in love and I have heard your voice. I lift my eyes and in beholding you, I cannot stand my own corruption. Tears would fill my own eyes in the very sight of my shame, but still you sit with me and still you talk to me. Who am I that God would love me? Who am I that God would die for me to take my place? Who am I to be welcomed into the very dwelling place of the most high God, to be called His son? I am worthy in Christ and only through Him. The Lord is good and is in no need to bless me, yet He chooses to out of love. How can I ever deserve or hope to earn His love? I cannot, yet He loves me despite my inabilities, for where I am weak, I am strong in Christ. I am His in Christ. A member of His Holy church. A son of the Most High and Almighty God. Creator of Heaven and Earth. My Father. My savior. I choose to love Him and seek to serve Him in all I do. When I look at Him, it is my joy and my honor to love Him. May all honor and glory be His forever. Amen. :)

His Cosmos.

My adoption into Christ

God Almighty. How wonderful! The God I love is almighty. He governs the universe to spin in perfect harmony. What perfection is this? The very planets move in orbit at His command. The faultless glory of one almighty has been made manifest in His creation. Not that the world is deserving of respect or worthy of His regal honor, but that which my God fabricates out of nothing must resound His splendor! Creation has been given beauty, goodness, complexity and in it's very makeup, the invisible qualities of my Lord are made known. How humble I am, that despite the wonder of all creation, I have been given His Image within me. My God, you have made me wonderful and I turned my face from you, yet you pursued me when I hid myself. You called after me in love and I have heard your voice. I lift my eyes and in beholding you, I cannot stand my own corruption. Tears would fill my own eyes in the very sight of my shame, but still you sit with me and still you talk to me. Who am I that God would love me? Who am I that God would die for me to take my place? Who am I to be welcomed into the very dwelling place of the most high God, to be called His son? I am worthy in Christ and only through Him. The Lord is good and is in no need to bless me, yet He chooses to out of love. How can I ever deserve or hope to earn His love? I cannot, yet He loves me despite my inabilities, for where I am weak, I am strong in Christ. I am His in Christ. A member of His Holy church. A son of the Most High and Almighty God. Creator of Heaven and Earth. My Father. My savior. I choose to love Him and seek to serve Him in all I do. When I look at Him, it is my joy and my honor to love Him. May all honor and glory be His forever. Amen. :)

A thought before bed

A man given to pride is as a man lost at sea. Both desire sustentation and are destroyed by what they consume. As saltwater promises hydration and in turn destroys his body, so does the inward focus of pride destroy his soul.

May we turn to our holy and perfect Father, the only good and loving Creator, for our every thirst and need lest we unknowingly destroy ourselves. :) He is our ultimate and perfect end. May His name be praised!

In Christ, †††
-Brian Hinds

May we subsist in humble adoration of Him in His divine, undeniable, and righteous perfection!

A tribute to my father.

As I was thinking through what I wanted to say at my father's service, I was getting so bogged down with memories and feelings and just couldn't seem to get something written down. The morning of the service, I ended up remembering, that it's not what I want to say that needs to be said, but what God wants me to say. I threw my pencil and pad down and started to pray. There were so many thoughts going through my mind that week, but God reminded me of two things He had been pressing on my heart: 1. Where my Father is and 2. What he has left behind.

1. I had to think about the first for a bit until it began to sink in. It is that my father is with our Heavenly Father. There is no doubt in my mind about this. This fact has crossed my mind so often but I must never forget that it is true. Heaven is real and by the perfect life, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, we are allowed to live with Him in paradise. Through the grace, mercy, and Love of God, that is where my father is. Any pain or suffering he had while here is gone and has received the full inheritance of sonship in Christ (Eph 1:13-14).

2. The second thing is that my father has left a legacy of love in every person that knew him or has heard his testimony. I seemed to echo the rest of my family at my father's service in mentioning a legacy of love, but it confirmed that it is true. He was a devoted son, a compassionate brother, a faithful husband, and to me and my siblings, a loving father. One thing he made clear to us kids is that he loved us unconditionally. After my Spring 08 finals finished, he decided to take me out for pizza to celebrate. This was another one of those, "don't tell mom!" sort of moments where the two of us ate a whole pizza. Haha. We went to Round Table as always and he told me how proud of me he was. To him I didn't have to be perfect for him to love me. He loved me no matter what. Through his life, he showed me how deep a father's love can be for a son and in doing so, has blessed me with a deeper understanding of what it means for my Heavenly Father to love me as well. His life echoed the life of Christ in love. I'm so glad the Lord allowed me to tell him the same thing he told me in my last words to him. I said, "Daddy, you have been the best role model that I could have ever asked for. You never once cursed God for what you have gone through, but have praised His name. You have impacted my life and even the lives of people you have never met". He kept looking at me and asked, "you think so?" I said, "I know so". He smiled at me and said, "I'm proud of you and I love you". Those are the last words he said to me.

My father is not here with us on this earth, but I can only rejoice, for he is with our Father in Heaven. In these last months, I have an extra fondness for the words of Paul "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith" (2Tim 4:7). My dad fought indeed and by the grace of God through Christ, he too has won the race. I love my father and I, in return, can say, "I am proud of him".

-Brian Hinds

May we subsist in humble adoration of Him in His divine, undeniable, and righteous perfection.