Does God Change his Mind?
There are people in church, people in bible studies who say flatly “God never changes his mind.” It makes me wonder if they read their bible. Throughout the Old Testament, God relents many times. Moses negotiates with God. Job negotiates with God. And here, Saul begs God to let him remain King of Israel and Samuel says in verse 29 that God does not change his mind like some mortal – and then, God relents and allows Saul to be King if he submits, exhibits obedience.
Saul goes on to be a pretty terrible king. God is exceedingly patient and merciful with Saul, and then replaces him with the fallible David. God is unchanging in one way – he is exceedingly merciful and patient with our imperfections, so long as we submit to him.
This is from today’s reading in The Lectionary:
1 Samuel 15:24-35
24 Saul said to Samuel, ‘I have sinned; for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. 25Now therefore, I pray, pardon my sin, and return with me, so that I may worship the Lord.’ 26Samuel said to Saul, ‘I will not return with you; for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.’ 27As Samuel turned to go away, Saul caught hold of the hem of his robe, and it tore. 28And Samuel said to him, ‘The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this very day, and has given it to a neighbour of yours, who is better than you. 29Moreover, the Glory of Israel will not recant* or change his mind; for he is not a mortal, that he should change his mind.’ 30Then Saul* said, ‘I have sinned; yet honour me now before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me, so that I may worship the Lord your God.’ 31So Samuel turned back after Saul; and Saul worshipped the Lord.
32 Then Samuel said, ‘Bring Agag king of the Amalekites here to me.’ And Agag came to him haltingly.* Agag said, ‘Surely this is the bitterness of death.’* 33But Samuel said,
‘As your sword has made women childless,
so your mother shall be childless among women.’
And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.
34 Then Samuel went to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul. 35Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the Lord was sorry that he had made Saul king over Israel.
update
OOps. This is one case where God does NOT change his mind. Today’s lesson says immediately after this scene, God tells Saul to go anoint a son of Jesse king of Israel; for a short while, there are two kings of Israel. . .
1 Samuel 16:1-13
16The Lord said to Samuel, ‘How long will you grieve over Saul? I have rejected him from being king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and set out; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.’
Coming Up: 12:34:56 7/8/9
From Anu Garg at A-Word-A-Day:
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Garg
I’ve been alerted to an event that will take place later this week, something that happens once and only once over the course of history. Shortly after noon on July 8, comes the moment that can be called 12:34:56 7/8/9. To mark this momentous event, this week we’ll feature words that have three consecutive letters in order, something that doesn’t happen very often either (there are hundreds of everyday words, but we are talking here about unusual and interesting words).
It’s not exactly true that this sequence of time/date happens only once. If you follow the day/month/year convention, you can observe the same sequence next month, on August 7. And even though it appears to be a rare occurrence, such interesting patterns aren’t that unusual. Consider these from the past:
01:23:45 6/7/89
12:34.56 7/8/90
01:02:03 04/05/06
In a couple of years we’ll have 11:11:11 11/11/11. What other unusual patterns can you think of that are in the near future?
Progress
The living room is now an island of sanity, but the women’s majlis has descended into semi-insanity until I get the book cases there together.
The kitchen remains an island of sanity, as does the guest bedroom.
The master bedroom has some insane corners.
The office and the quilt room are the big challenge.
One little Pigeon has flown, but . . . he doesn’t seem to be able to get back to the ledge. He is hiding behind a large flower pot on my porch. Theother one shows signs of being interested, but hasn’t taken the leap. I wish the little one on the ground would fly – until he does, he is just . . . cat food!
And in case any of you are really reading this far – I’m going to become a grandmother! WOOOOO HOOOOOOO!
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
I don’t know why I didn’t read this book sooner! First, I saw people like me reading it in airports, and it certainly has a memorable title. The people reading looked totally engrossed. I’m not one to strike up conversations in airports, but on occasion, when I see people reading a book I don’t know about and it is the size of the books that book groups usually read, I will ask, and write it down, and bother the person no further.
I had ordered it on amazon.com when my son’s wife’s father’s wife (and you thought Gulf relationships were complicated!) mentioned to me in an e-mail that she was reading it and that she could barely tear herself away. She and I often pass really good books and/or recommendations back and forth, so that bumped it up a few notches in priority. When it got here, I had just finished Rutherfurd’s London (oops, I thought I had reviewed it, and I haven’t, so I will,) and I thought it was a southern book, like The Ya-Ya Sisterhood or Sweet Potato Queens, no, you are right, I hadn’t read anything about it, just trusted from all the people I saw reading it that it was good, but because of the name, I thought it would be light.
Wrong!
It isn’t depressingly heavy, like The Little Prisoner was heavy, and it had some totally wonderful laugh-out-loud moments, but the subject matter was the German occupation of the island of Guernsey, in the English Channel, and an author in search of a book topic in post-war London, and a little girl born outside of marriage and cared for by a village of caring people. It is spiced up by a dashing romance, and the process of relationship building that happens in the novel, unlikely relationships, aren’t those the very best kind for spice? 😉
The entire story is told in letters. The primary voice, that of Juliet, a thirty-something author, ties all the letters together, but not all letters are to her or from her. It is a great technique for allowing many different voices and many different perspectives. From the first page, you are captivated. Right now, Guernsey is more real to me than the boxes I need to unpack, and there is a part of me that yearns to flee to Guernsey and find a house near a cliff where I can watch the sun set in the west and the clouds turn colors . . .
Here is one sample of the kind of letters you will find when you read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. Don’t wait! This is an unforgettable book!
1st May 1946
Dear Mark,
I didn’t refuse, you know. I said I wanted to think about it. You were so busy ranting about Sidney and Guernsey that perhaps you didn’t notice – I only said I wanted time. I’ve known you two months. It’s not long enough for me to be certain that we should spend the rest of our lives together, even if you are. I once made a terrible mistake and almost married a man I hardly knew (perhaps you read about it in the papers) – and at least in that case, the war was an extenuating circumstance. I won’t be such a fool again.
Think of it: I’ve never seen you home – I don’t even know where it is, really. New York, but which street? What does it look like? What color are your walls? Your sofa? Do you arrange books alphabetically? (I hope not.) Are your drawers tidy or messy? Do you ever hum, and if so, what? Do you prefer cats or dogs? Or fish? What on earth do you eat for breakfast – or do you have a cook?
You see? I don’t know you well enough to marry you.
I have one other piece of news that may interest you: Sidney is not your rival. I am not now nor have I ever been in love with Sidney, nor he with me. Nor will I ever marry him. Is that decisive enough for you?
Are you absolutely certain you wouldn’t rather be married to someone more tractable than I?
Juliet
Written by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, the book will challenge your ideas, will inform you of an obscure episode in World War II, will make your heart sorrow at the inhumanity of which we human beings are capable towards one another, and make your heart sing at the goodness in the human soul. That’s pretty amazing for one book.
Sealine Resort, Doha, Qatar
Qatar just isn’t that big. You can take a day trip, and actually, it’s more like a half a day trip, or even an hour trip. AdventureMan wanted to find his way to Wakra and to the SeaLine Resort, and I wanted to see the big dunes, not as big as in Namibia but pretty impressive, with their sinuous lines.
There are about a hundred different vendors renting out ATVs for racing across the dunes, even in this heat, and it was not easy finding virgin sand dunes, untracked by ATV wheels. We went on an ATV dune safari in Namibia, out of Soussesvlei Lodge, and it was fantastic. I love ATVs. I expect that anything that is so much fun can’t be good for you. It’s probably bad for the dunes . . . anyone?
When we got to Doha before, six plus years ago, I rented a limo and driver to take me and Little Diamond out to the resort and dunes. He kept showing us things on the way, like Wakra, etc. and we were a little restless. But it only took like 20 minutes, even with all the sightseeing, and we were there. We ran up the dunes, we looked for seashells, we walked in the sea, we did everything – and we were back in Doha by 11 in the morning. We laughed – we hadn’t realized, looking at the map, how close it was. The driver must have thought we were crazy.
Sealine also looked a little seedy to me – then. This time when we drove up, it looked very different. It looked all spruced up. The people working there had on clean, neat looking uniforms, and they looked like they were doing their jobs. We took a look at the chalets (cool) and at the villas (also cool) right on the umm. . . errr. . . SeaLine! Waves rolling up, almost to your doorstep – it is pretty lovely. We were planning a stay there when we noticed multiple vehicles at most villas and chalets – and whereas we love to go to sleep to the sound of waves, we kinda thought hmmm. . . this could be a place where the party starts around midnight.
It’s beautiful.
This shot is taken from the main section of the hotel, but to each side, where the chalets are and the villas are, the sea is almost right on your doorstep.
Qatar is a conservative country. There are separate areas for men who are not accompanying their wives and children.
And there is a whole different kind of beachwear! (I blurred the faces to protect their privacy.)
As we were leaving, we spotted two little Qatteris finishing their brunch with gusto!
Missing Day
I knew I was coming down with something Thursday when I just felt uncomfortable, but by Friday morning, I knew I was sick. You know how it feels when all you want to do is sleep? Your head is thick and your innards are gurgling? I think I must have had the flu. Or food poisoning. I’m still not entirely well, but it feels good enough just to feel normal again.
I slept most of the whole day yesterday, while AdventureMan unpacked his boxes and got things put away, tiptoeing in now and then to ask if he could bring me something. The Qatteri Cat kept close by, cuddling up, comforting me while I slept. If I hadn’t felt so rotten, it would have been a nice day.
In one of those management tests that enjoy a flurry of popularity and then drop into obscurity, I once learned that I am primarily motivated by achievement. It’s probably true. The thing I hate about being sick, apart from the being sick part, which was/is pretty awful, is that I haven’t gotten anything done. Today AdventureMan got the cat scratching post and the cat furniture put together. I ate a banana. Even just writing a post is stretching my limits today.
It feels like some kind of flu, but I don’t think I have a fever, and I seem to be recovering fairly quickly. Insh’allah . . . I think I’ll go back to bed now. 🙂
We had such grand plans for this weekend, the first one in a long time where AdventureMan is home for two days. Happy Fourth of July!
A Small Adventure in Qatar
Here is one reason I love AdventureMan. He loves to go exploring, and Friday mornings after church are our favorite time. I am showing him some new routes, because the street patterns have changed, and where the pigeon mosque used to be, and he notices that the GATE IS OPEN!
So here is what I love. The gate is open. There is no sign saying No Entry. To AdventureMan – and to me – that means that it is not forbidden, which means that it is allowed, right?
There is no guard on duty – it’s Friday. Maybe they are praying.
And the pigeon mosque is still there! I was so afraid they were tearing it down. I don’t know what the real name of this mosque is. There used to be parking behind it where all the Pakistani drivers parked their decorated delivery trucks, and those of us visiting the souks in that area parked there, too. Now, there is almost NO parking available unless you get there at like 6 in the morning. (Actually, if you get there around 0830 on Saturday morning, you can find a parking place.) We call it the pigeon mosque because all the pigeons gather on the roof there. The mosque has been totally gutted and is being renovated.
The rest of what used to be a place filled with cheap junky stores is gone. Demolished and carted away. It’s just a big empty space. No clue yet as to what is going in.
We will have to wait for another day when the gate is open – inviting us to come in. 🙂
Ready to Fly Away
The baby pigeons are up, walking around and fluttering their wings – until I open the window to take a photo, and then they go into the if-we-hide-our-faces-she-can’t-see-us-mode. Daddy pigeon makes noises deep in his throat which I understand to mean “Go away.”
This may be the last photo. They seem to me to be getting ready to fly, and once that happens, we will clean out the area and hope they don’t come back. I love the sound of their voices, but I totally hate pigeon poop.
The Qatteri Cat Kicks Back
While I am moaning and groaning about unpacking boxes, the Qatteri Cat just happy as can be. He hates air conditioning, so he is always looking for a nice warm place, and that place changes from time to time. Right now, he loves my favorite chair, which is fine with me because I’m not using it these days while I am unpacking. Every time we unpack a rug, he rolls around on it in delight, and says “Hey! This rug smells like HOME!”
This room has great light. When I need to do some work my hand, I can sit in this chair – that is when QC is not already occupying the chair – and put my feet up on the other chair. Once I get the boxes unpacked, and everything put away, QC and I will spend a lot of time in this room. 🙂
Just wait until this weekend – AdventureMan is going to put together his scratching post and his cat stand!
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