hmmm...

Okay, in one of my first posts concerning MUFHH I mentioned being consistently inspired through reading it.

However, I should also mention that many times I find myself disagreeing with what Chambers says, or at least questioning his writing. Take a passage from today's devotion and I'll show you what I mean:

"There are certain things we must not pray about--moods for instance. Moods never go by praying, moods go by kicking. A mood nearly always has its seat in the physical condition, not in the moral."

Hold it right there! Pause. Time out.

Of course, I may not be understanding this right, but (if he's saying what I think he's saying) I think he's saying two things that I disagree with...

1. that we should not pray for God to change a mood. Should it be conquered by...our own will power?...strength? I like the thought, "...moods go by kicking." That sounds pretty sweet, but I'm not sure I agree with Chambers on this one. However, I would agree that if we pray for God to change a certain mood (let's say anxious or worried), we need to be willing to respond to the Spirit's work in us to change this mood. When I was young I would pout from time to time. Usually pouting includes acting a certain way--say, angry or sad--for much longer than you really are. It never failed, usually my mom would try to get me to break a smile (tickling was usually effective when I was tempted to pout). So, I'm saying that's similar to praying about a feeling: God has the power to move us from one mood to another. But are we resistant to His prompting? And if we are, then I think that's where it requires the strength that can only come from God to kick that mood.
2. that only moral conditions should be prayed about (implied from the end of the quote?). I don't have anything more to say on this one. Suffice it to say, again, that I disagree.

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The Scripture for today is from Luke 21:19. I'm pretty sure this is the Scripture quoted by the bass player in the movie, That Thing You Do: "In your patience possess ye your souls." (Or, reading it from the NIV: "By standing firm you will gain life." This passage deserves further study.