A Different Dashboard

Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy... ⏤ 1 Peter 1:8

Another day, this might have been a flyover verse. But today I noticed how Peter is applauding something. What gets celebrated gets repeated, right? He praises surrender and obedience to Christ, values wholehearted dependence, and admires those who are filled with joy, despite hardship. While we like to count things, Peter's dashboard is entirely qualitative. That seems important.

Holy and Profane

They are to teach my people the difference between the holy and the common and show them how to distinguish between the unclean and the clean. ⏤ Ezekiel 44:23

We have been conditioned to view things as either good or bad, right or wrong. But God's categories are holy and profane, sacred and common. Things are either set apart to him, or they’re not. What is holy is always good, because God himself is good. What is sacred is always right, because God is righteous. When I look at my own life—people, places, and things—are they holy or profane? And what about the deepest parts of me?

Fictionalized

(Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.) ⏤ Numbers 12:3

“Let my people go!” My impression of Moses—no doubt shaped by movies and books—is one of boldness and confidence. But this is the same Moses who said, “Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else” (Exodus 4:13). What Moses accomplished was not done in his own strength. Modern storytellers often fictionalize the story, downplaying or omitting God’s involvement. I want to be more careful: to see God’s work done through the weak things, the foolish things, and the humble things.