WORD OF THE WEK - "ATTENTION" -8/25/24

Definition:  the act or state of applying the mind to something:  sympathetic consideration of the needs and wants of others:  a position assumed by a soldier with heels together, body erect, arms at the sides, and eyes to the front.
Scriptures:Hebrews 2:2 - “We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. For since the message spoken through angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? 

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Transcript

Definition:  the act or state of applying the mind to something:  sympathetic consideration of the needs and wants of others:  a position assumed by a soldier with heels together, body erect, arms at the sides, and eyes to the front.
Scriptures:Hebrews 2:2 - “We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. For since the message spoken through angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation?
THOUGHT

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If we imagine the world as a forest, the families that make up the forest would be the trees. Every day we hear of the tragedies that are a result of natural disasters, political upheavals, terrorist attacks, international scandals, the state of the economy, health advisories, etc.
The forest is burning.  But if it is, could it be due to the decay of its trees?Globally, the trees, or the God-created family is in decline.
Having children is being delayed, while co-habitation, same-sex marriage, and multi-generational households is on the rise. The “golden-years” see “Ganny” and “Pop-Pop” working well into their late sixty’s.  As a world, we sit longer, read less, and isolate ourselves more. The health and well-being of the family is becoming increasingly at risk.
We are experiencing increases in• Stress-related headaches, hypertension, diabetes and gastrointestinal issues.• sexually transmitted diseases among people in their child-bearing years,• co-habituating adults outpacing the number of adults who decide to marry and• mental health diseases including Alzheimer’s and dementia.
God created people as physical, mental and spiritual beings that require the basics of food, shelter, clothing, and knowledge to meet those needs. God is specific on how to meet those needs.
• In Genesis 2:18, God says, “It is not good for the man to be alone.” We were created to have personal and social relationships where we not only pay attention to our needs, but to the needs of others. We are people who need people.
• We are to learn how to “bear with and forgive another” in partnership with each other in marriage where we learn love, commitment and mutual respect as expressed in Colossian 3:13.  
• Psalm 127:3-5 teaches that “Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring are a reward from God. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth.” We are to pay attention to humanities’ divine order to procreate for the sake of maintaining the world and the world to come.  
• “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? Corinthians 6:19-20.  We are to pay attention to our bodies and honor God by avoiding ingesting, injecting or digesting harmful substances and exercising to maintain a healthy body.
• Psalms 71:9 says “Do not cast me away when I am old: do not forsake me when my strength is gone.”  Age is to be honored and cherished.  It is loneliness, lack of care, and separation from the productivity of children and grandchildren that are contributing factors leading to depression, Alzheimer’s, dementia, and early death for many elderly.
Mankind cannot continue to isolate, dishonor each other, run from commitment and fail to care for itself and expect to survive.
To save our “forest,” we must nurture and protect our “trees” by fostering strong, healthy families and communities. We must pay attention to our physical and mental health needs, to how we cultivate relationships, honor commitments, and care for each other across generations.
AT-----TENNNN-TION!!
THE FOREST IS BURNING!!!