Category: Noah’s Thoughts

The more I pray and read, and read and pray, the more I firmly understand that I barely know anything about Our Father, faith, the Church, and our holy family. Don’t get me wrong, I have learned so much from great Christian theologians, and early church fathers. I guess what I specifically mean is that I am barely scratching the surface of this incredible existence and what Our Father has created. How much everything touches everything. He has so cleanly and orderly setup all things that when we think we understand something, he will reveal to us how this thing actually is related to something way out of our purview.

For example, I was typing up about loving our neighbor earlier today and was struck that sharing grace and love that Our Father shares with us, with our brothers and sisters/future brothers and sisters is a correlation to the parable of the Sower. That the Holy Spirit can work through us to grow the seed of faith inside others!

Loving our neighbor can be an unnecessarily difficult thing, if we let our pride cloud our vision. I have and still struggle with this, more than I care to admit. But I do admit it, because I truly believe that when we confess our sins, temptations, and shortcomings in faithful action we allow God’s grace to work in us and hopefully encourage our brothers and sisters in Christ to give each other the same grace.

Pride is the biggest hinderance to loving our neighbors. From my perspective, when satan tries to drive wedges in between us; where the Holy Spirit would otherwise bring us together, it is the sin of pride. It makes us unintentionally see ourselves as better than those around us, even those we love so much.

Specifically pride blinds us to an obvious fact regarding creation. That all of creation is infused with the essence of God. If all things exist because it is Our Father’s will, then all people who exist are here because it is the will of Our Father, and since God takes direct part in the creation of life; even more should we see the goodness of God in all people.

Let us hope and pray that the Holy Spirit will open our eyes, and shape our souls so we can see the goodness of God in our current and future brothers and sisters.

Jesus spoke very strongly about marriage and family life. The sanctity of marriage is I think part of what is supposed to come out of the Holy Union of man and woman in covenant with God. That is life, new life, that is part of the man and part of the woman and the essence of God. God literally gives us the ability to create new life with his blessing. That is why marriage is so special, and should not be entered into lightly. Jesus was very clear on marriage, again I think because of what it brings. When we enter into a marriage covenant, it is not just the husband and wife before and under God; but with God. We are recreating Heaven on earth and participating in the act of creation. Like the love between the Father and the Son, comes the Holy Spirit (always existing for ever and ever). So from the love of a man and a woman comes children. How incredible that Our Father shares the ability to create life with us! Through our children, the Kingdom of God can increase by our faithful instruction and honest lives. Our children will see the truth of His words, and the fruits of the spirit in us. God working through us will bring their hearts to him also.

We are made in the image and likeness of the triune God. In the image of God, we have a soul that is a spirit. In the image of Jesus, we have a physical body. We participate in the love between the Father and the Son with the Holy Spirit. We were originally created to share and partake of God’s holy goodness by sharing and giving our whole selves to our Father and Him revealing Himself to us for eternity.

We got a little sidetracked by original sin and cycles of steadfast faith, rebellion and debauchery, and sorrow of our past rebellions.

Throughout history God has been so graceful and shown us great mercy. He even gave himself up as sacrifice through Jesus Christ the Son, to save us from ourselves.

Praise and bless the holy name of the Lord Our God!