Ever Thankful, Ever Blessed

If you're like me you know the wretchedness of your own heart.  You know all the deep, dark stains and the brokenness that lies there.  And our Father knows them too.  Yet He extends mercy to us.  He calls His and redeems us and loves us.  Romans 5:8  But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

This past Sunday we continued our sermon series in the Beatitudes, focusing on verse 7, God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy.   Think about that.  Think about the amount of mercy God shows us.  Think for a minute or two of everything you do wrong in one given day.  An unkind thought, a careless word, a hurtful attitude.  Gossip, complaint, turning away from someone who needs help....the list goes on and on.  If that doesn't bring you to your knees with the knowledge of your need for a merciful Savior.....I know it does for me.  I can totally relate to John Newton when he penned those words, "Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me, I once was lost, but now I'm found.  Was blind, but now I see." 

Our worship team found a beautiful song that touched my heart on Sunday.  It reminded me how truly blessed I am, how wonderful of a God we serve, and the amazing Savior who loves me.  It brought to my mind the mercifulness of our Father, the one who sought us, looked down the road for us, waiting us to return to His embrace (see the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15:11-32).  

I am ever thankful and ever blessed by the mercy and love of our Father.  Lamentations 3:22-24  The faithful love of the Lord never ends!  His mercies never cease.  Great is His faithfulness; His mercies begin afresh each morning.  I say to myself, "The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in Him!"   What an amazing God we serve!  Enjoy His mercies, then share them with others!  

Lord, I am humbled by Your love.  Amazed at Your mercy.  Everyday I need boatloads of it and so often I fail to extend the same to others.  Forgive me and change me.  Create in me a clean heart, a merciful heart.  Let me see and treat others as You do me.  I celebrate You mercifulness.  I revel in it and rejoice in Your kindness.  Help us all to remember how much mercy You show us each day and let our hearts give thanks.  Let us give what we've been given.  In Jesus' saving Name.  Amen.

Continued Stilness

The last few weeks have some of the most trying I've experienced in a very, very long time.  We lost our kitten Jasper, then our 14 month old cat Asher James.  As I sleep walked through the week leading up to Asher's death, my stress levels through the rough and my immune system in the basement I didn't realize I had been exposed to COVID19.  And sure enough, I got it.  So now the last week and a half have been spent dealing with the effects of that, which thankfully are very mild.  Still it was no fun being imprisoned in one room of the house, cleaning up after I ventured somewhere that wasn't my domain.  LOL  I am grateful that it was so mild.  We've all seen how bad it can get.  I'll take a minor inconvenience any day over a long drawn out hospital stay hooked up to machines and unable to breath.  My prayers go out to those people who are suffering so.

While on this forced sabbatical I've been reading "A Jewel in His Crown" by Priscilla Shirer.  In it she told the story of the making of a pearl, how a speck of sand or other tiny particle gets into an oyster and in response the oyster secretes a thin substance called nacre that wraps around the irritant.  Eventually the foreign object is remade into a pearl.  She went onto say how uncomfortable, difficult circumstances come into our lives, and it is our job to wrap ourselves in the Word of God.  The Word makes the changes in us that God wants to see as we go through the hard stuff in life.  

I know God was bringing me to the next step after "Be still."  It's not enough to just live in quiet peace, letting life's waves wash over and over us, but we are to rise up using the Word of God to carry us to the surface so we can walk on water, even in the storm.  We are still, because He strengthens us and buoys us and gives us faith to face our sorrows and problems head on.  He comforts us in our sadness, stays with us while we weep, carries us in our illness and loves us through all things.  I've been so blessed in this time of sadness and illness.  Honestly, would I choose, death and sickness to come into my life?  Probably not.  But can I be grateful that my Father is faithful, and I trust that He will cause all things to work together for good?  Yes I can.  And so can you.  

Lord, I don't know what others are facing, but I know You will be with them   Please let them sense You love and Presence even if everything is going wrong in their lives right now.  Let them know You will bring beauty from the ashes of their lives.  There is so much peace in knowing that.  It's so hard sometimes down here on earth.  We come against so many trials, so many desperate circumstances, yet You are faithful through them all.  Lord, help us to see You hand, to trust it even when it doesn't look the way we want.  Make us pearls to glorify You.  In Jesus' powerful Name.  Amen

Trust, be still and stay in the Bible!  

LIfe Hurts

 My little guy is gone.  My heart is heavy and broken.  I know he is with the Lord as God thought making animals was good, but I want him here with me.  

Asher James left this world on Sunday afternoon.  It was sad and heartbreaking and so difficult, but I held him til the end and I'm confident of his place in heaven.  Monday morning I awoke with a hurting heart and went about my morning routine to get ready for my day at the shelter.  One of the last things I do is my "God time." I want it fresh in my mind as I go out the door to face my day.  I was behind a day on my daily devotional so I decided to read Sunday's as well as Monday's.  

The devotional starts with a Bible verse to set the tone for the day's reading.  And the verse blew me away.  My heart feels like it's weighted down with 1000 pounds as I write this but I know how good my Father is, how kind and how deeply caring about even the death of a beloved pet, knowing the heartache it brings us.  He says, "Be still, and know that I am God..."  Psalm 46:10.   The same message He had given me all week before Asher's death, He gave me after as well.  How beautiful is our God?

Lord, we lose those we love here on this earth.  It's a sorrowful fact of life.  People, animals, they don't stay here forever.  And we wouldn't want them to.  We don't want to stay on this earth forever.  Being with You is so far better than anything we could have here.  Help us to remember that when our loved ones die.  And thank You for the comfort and peace only You can bring us.  I'm so grateful that we have hope because of You.  I will miss my little one, but knowing He is running around heaven comforts my heart.  Thank You for that.  Comfort You children in loss.  In Jesus' loving Name.  Amen.  

Genesis 1:25  And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

Romans 8:20-25  20 Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, 21 the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. 22 For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. 24 We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. 25 But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.)

Let God's Word be your comfort in times of death and sorrow.  

Let's keep the west coast of the United States in prayer as they fight these horrendous wildfires.  Lord, please put out these fires.  Keep safe those who are fighting them and living in these areas.  Amen.  

Be Still

This is the message that keeps repeating itself all week.  In readings, in novels, even on a pillow in a catalog.  Be still.   

This week has been extremely difficult.   My youngest cat (14 months) is sick.  He has been diagnosed with a almost always fatal, untreatable disease.   My heart is broken.   But I am encouraged to be still.  It’s been two days since the diagnosis and today is the first day I’ve felt peace.   

For the last two days, as my heart shattered I heard praise song after praise song on the radio.  And when I wasn’t listening to the radio, the Lord was bringing them to my mind.   This is a sad, sad time and yet I know my Father is with me.  

I don’t know God’s plan in this.  I will be getting a second opinion.   I know though I can trust my Father whatever the outcome.  He is good.  And He is present.  

Whatever you are facing, He will not leave nor forsake you.

Psalm 46:10a. Be still and know that I am God!

Thank you Lord for being with me.   I do pray you heal my baby here on earth.  We want him to live with us for a long time.  But whatever you choose I know is right and I trust you.  Thank you for staying by your children when they walk through the sad times.  Please let each person reading this know that God has not forgotten or deserted them.  Our God is awesome.

God is with you.   

Repetition

Not getting the message?   Our Father doesn’t mind repeating it.   I’ve found this out lately as the months pass and retirement/moving get closer.  I’ve mentioned that as much as I look forward to retirement, I’m terrified of all that comes with it.  Selling our home, packing up and moving to a completely new area.  NY is all I’ve ever known.  From Queens to Long Island, I’ve never lived anywhere else.   Scary!   I’ve always been in awe of people who do those big cross country moves.  And now it’s our turn.   The responsibility to make the right decisions weighs heavily on my mind. 

But God keeps chipping away at that fear.  Time and time again over the past couple of weeks I’ve gotten verses and words from people to not be afraid.   Whether it’s from a novel that I am reading,  “Don’t be afraid or discouraged.  For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9), or from a podcast, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self discipline.” (2 Timothy 1:7) I’ve had family members giving words of encouragement and as I went for my first bike ride in over a week, the teaching title for the available Joyce Meyer podcast was “Do It Afraid.”   Lol.  

Time and time again the message is coming in clearly...”God has our future in His capable hands, and fear does not fit with those plans.”  Perfect love casts out fear, and we are perfectly loved by a perfectly loving and wise Father.  Hallelujah!!

Do I still feel trepidation rise up in my soul?  Yes.   Will I let it run circles around my faith?  No.  I will go forward, even if I tremble a bit, knowing the One who has a firm grip on my hand, has a future of blessing planned.   

Thank You Lord that You never tire of reassuring Your children.  You don’t reprimand us for needed extra care, but lovingly send us a the assurance of Your love and care and Presence.  Keep all of us headed in the right direction, and if we get off course we know we can trust You to find and guide us back to Your plan.   

Look for repetition in your life...God is trying to tell you something.  

Wait for It

Patience is not my strong suit.  I, like most of us, don’t like to wait.  And yet waiting is a big part of life, both in the daily grind and in the long stretch.   We wait on lines, wait on hold, wait in traffic, wait for promotions, wait for babies to be born, wait for the weekend, for retirement, for our ships to come in...wait wait wait. You’d think we’d get used to it. Lol. 

Lately, I’ve had to learn a little more about this waiting game life plays.   I had knee surgery about two months ago.  In my pre-surgery doctor visits my surgeon gave me a 6-9 week timeline for healing.  Okay, that’s great I thought to myself.  Not a long recovery.  But no, that’s not what he meant.  Healing was the 6-9 week, recovery takes a bit longer, like a couple of months longer.  Ugh.  

Here I was all ready to be back to full capacity at about eight weeks.   I felt my healing was going well, I was up and about, doing stairs (in a modified fashion), riding my bike, back to work.    But my leg was having none of that full throttle stuff.   It felt and feels weak, going down stairs is still difficult, no running for two more months, I can fall easier due to instability of some of my muscles.   What!!!  I thought this was 6-9 weeks, boom then done!!! 

Nope   Wait.  God says wait.  We’ve been studying Genesis and have just gone through chapters 16-17   This is where Abram and Sarai decide to rush God’s plan for having a child.   In their impatience, it seemed like a good idea, and as was the custom of the day, for Abram to have a child with Sarai’s maid since Sarai herself was not getting pregnant.   Now this led to all sorts of resentments and problems and we see the effects even today in the Middle East with all the fighting and animosity between Israel and the Arab nations   Impatience has brought in a lot of heartache

Are you waiting for something?  Are you tempted to provide the solution for yourself?   Like Abram and Sarai we can even convince ourselves our solution is the one God wants for us.  But nothing could be further from the truth.   This weeks verse in my weekly prayer journal was Isaiah 40:31   But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.   Some versions say “those who wait on the Lord.”   If we want to run and soar with Jesus we have to wait on His timing   And do so with patience, practicing faith, living in thanksgiving, and filled with praise for His perfect plan.  Easier said than done for sure, but so worth the wait.

Much like my knee now needs exercise and strengthening to get back where it’s supposed to be, we need to exercise our faith and trust while waiting on the Lord.

Lord, we don’t like waiting.  Many of us are the microwave generation.   Instant everything.  But You see from eternity to eternity.  Give us the grace to wait on You.  Give us joy and peace in the silence, in the seeming inactivity, it the dire, and in the dark.  You have the perfect plan at the perfect time.  Help us to do our part, show us what that is, and help us to trust You to do Yours   In Jesus Name.  Amen.

Let’s learn to enjoy to wait and rest in the Lord as we do.   

   

Blessings!

 I’ve been wanting to share this song for a couple of weeks now.  Every time I hear it I just feel God’s blessing falling down over me and I wanted to share that with others.  Please enjoy and may God richly bless you !