A while back, Hannah Grace saw some candy lipstick and wanted me to eat some for my "first." We were out of town and there were too many other things to do for a "first" there to eat candy lipstick. Today has been a pretty cool day, but no real "firsts." I had two ideas but they didn't work out due to circumstances beyond my control. Tonight, Hannah Grace brought out the candy lipstick.
I thought I was going to end up with some kind of lipstick on my lips from eating the candy lipstick. It seemed like that would be kind of funny. But no, no real lipstick at all. Just a lipstick looking container with a stick of some awful candy inside. It was kind of like a really bad sweetart. Joel decided to try it and he liked it which surprised me a lot. Hannah Grace tried it as well and she liked it. Maybe since my taste buds have passed 18 years old, the candy lipstick just doesn't appeal to me anymore. No lipstick, no taste, nothing funny, I will not be doing this "first" again. This kind of reminded me of those little wax coke bottles with the drop and a half of juice in them that we used to buy when we were kids.
So, I looked at the ingredients for the candy lipstick. Wow, here they are; Dextrose, Maltodextrin, Malic Acid, Magnesium Sterate, Artificial Flavors, Red 40, Yellow 6, Blue 1, and Turmeric. So, what is this made of? I don't think I can identify any ingredient-I do know my colors, but what is Red 40 and how does that differ from Red 37 or just Red. Why does Red get such a higher number than Yellow and poor Blue only scratched out a one. I expected to find something like sugar.
This got me to thinking about what the real ingredients are for those who are following Jesus. Here are a few Bible verses that came to mind.
Mark 12: 28-31- One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the foremost of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The foremost is, ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord; 30 and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Galatians 5: 13-14-For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. 14 For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.
Romans 13: 9-10 - For the commandments say, You must not commit adultery. You must not murder. You must not steal. You must not covet .These—and other such commandments—are summed up in this one commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself." 10 Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law.
1 Timothy 1:5- But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.
Those Scriptures are giving us some key ingredients as to what it means to truly follow Jesus. They certainly do not cover everything, but they are real and not incidental. These are not artificial colors or flavors. Genuine love and faith are central to following Jesus.
Now, for something real to eat. I wonder if we have any Reese's around here....
Looking for the real abundant life
Barry
3 things I thank God for today
1. Jesus love is real
2. Privilege to vote
3. The privilege of having supper with Pastor Franckie from Haiti
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