John 5:30 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.

Selfies were not invented with the advent of camera phones. Back in the day we used instamatics. Before that Van Gogh looked in a mirror and painted himself. Before that, I cannot say for sure what the first selfie looked like.

For the most part selfies are rather harmless. We laugh and enjoy a good selfie don’t we? We catch people feeling good and enjoying life. In some cases we even feel sad for some who try to capture the moment and end up sending the wrong message. There are some people that just shouldn’t do selfies. You be the judge.

In this opening verse Jesus said, “I judge.” It is not enough to do things for others before self. If we put our own selfish desires aside, if we humble ourselves, then who is going to be in that “snapshot”? If we are to do right, if our judgments are to be true, then who is in “focus”? Who is in the viewfinder? “I do the will of the Father.” OK, great, love it, so what does that look like? How am I to know the will of God?

Deuteronomy 11:18 Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes.

Is the Word laid up in your heart and soul?

Surprise, no opening scripture. While searching I did not find a supporting scripture that accurately described my thoughts. That is surprising since there always seems to be a scripture to support my thoughts. Not this time. The two words I want to share have multiple meanings. You could say I am picking and choosing definitions to support my observations. You would be right and I wouldn’t be the first to do that.

Often the only way to come to an understanding of words is to quote them in context. Not just within their sentence but with verses that precede and follow. Writers are often limited with a number of options to try and paint a picture or relate an emotion. But what happens when you cannot find words in scripture which pulls those thoughts together into evidence that it came from God and not our vain imagination? Such is my dilemma today.

The two words I spoke of earlier are dwell and abide. You will see that these two words are so close in meaning that they are often interchangeable. One of the definitions of dwell is abide. So why did these two words haunt me day and night for days? There is literally no difference between the two. If I were to select passages to make this point I would fail. These are definitions I did find.

Dwell, to sit, sit down.

Abide, to pass the night.

Dwell tells me I am set in place, where I am, in the circumstances which do not change until I move on. You can dwell in new places with new circumstances, but you are still subject to geography, history and society.

Abide tells me that the darkness is passing over me. While life goes on outside, I am in a place of security, knowing that I am not subject to all that is going on outside. Perhaps the only difference between dwell and abide is my perception, my attitude, and a hope that is not drawn from self.

John 15:7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.