Is it well with your soul?

     What ever my lot is it well with my soul?  Not always the way my mind thinks about it.  When we choose to surrender our lives to God, we feel the joy of it being well with our soul! or do we?  When life is very real and painful are we really thinking 'it is well with our soul' applies?  How do we rest with excruciating pain and loss?  Do we not have to go through the motions of feeling it, walking through the experience?  We are told we will have trials and tribulations, not maybe you will, maybe you won't.  God has to hurt the things that must go, and yes we will struggle to understand.  Oh surely not! He is a God of love!  We must realize love, true love, will be tough as well as tender.  If we ignored having to do the tough stuff with our children we understand that would harm them more than help them.  I can remember as a child my father saying "you probably won't understand this right now, but this hurts me more than it hurts you"; then I would get a spanking or grounded for something I knew was wrong but did anyway.  I hear parents say that they don't ground their children because it punishes them, too! To that I say 'so what!'  If it will be beneficial for the child then do whatever it takes!  I once grounded my child from driving for a month as a Junior in high school.  Yes I had to get up every morning and drive her to school but I loved her so much it was not an imposition, it was tough love.  I am so thankful I had a father willing to teach me the hard stuff.  God is willing to teach us the hard stuff, too. The question is, is it well with our soul?  My father taught me he was willing to handle my anger and rebellion if I chose to do so in order to teach me right from wrong.  I do not want to express tough love and I do not know anyone who does.  Many people simply refuse to go there; but I believe there are times when we must put our big boy or big girl pants on and press through the tough stuff.  I decided long ago that I loved my children enough for them (to think) they hate me and yes, run the risk of them actually hating me.  I also believe God my Father when He commanded me to "bring up (my) children in the way they should go and when they are old they will not depart from it.'   I also know to "Trust in the Lord with all my heart and lean not unto my own understanding." So in the end the unpopular things I take stands on with my loved ones is because I love them, but more than that, because I love God!  God is not going to forsake me even if I don't understand my lot, or my children's and loved ones lot.  This too I must learn is well with my soul.  When we confess our faith, we gave our lives back to Christ.  "...  the life I now live, I live through Christ who died so I might live." Gal. 2:20  Our souls are His, they are not our own, what ever our lot, 'It is well it, is well with our soul'.  Doesn't say we get to understand it all right now, doesn't say it won't be hard at times and it won't hurt.  God's voice to the saints here is quiet but there is no mistaking it!  We know the right thing to do .  Our flesh so wants the voice to go away so we do not have to deal with the tough stuff;  but we will be miserable until we do.  Oswald Chambers sums this up like only he can " The checks of the spirit come in the most extraordinarily  gentle ways, and if you are not sensitive enough to detect His voice, you will quench it, and your spiritual life will be impaired."  We must stop and do the right thing when we know it or we will grieve the heart of God and ourselves for we have a new heart which is being transformed into His.  Being well with our soul is not a promise of an easy life;  it is a promise of no matter our lot it is well with our soul. " Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death; I will fear no evil"!  Puts our crazy world in perspective for me and I for one want to hang on to the one thing that will never change for it is well, it is well with my soul!
  
Heavenly Father  We are a fearful people, we panic easily and want to take matters into our own hands. We do not want our loved ones to suffer, grant us the wisdom and courage to get through the tough stuff. Give us Your peace that surpasses all understanding; let us be content just to know what ever our lot it is well with our soul.  Thank you for sending your Son to die for our sins so we might have eternal life with You. In Jesus your Son's name I pray. amen

Love to all in Christ Jesus C:)

Blessings Disguised

We have all been shocked, caught off guard, had the very breath sucked right out of us. All our hope, prayer, strength ripped down to a crumbling brittle leaf. Great is Thy Faithfulness is no where in our blurred tearful eye's sight. We can't turn left or right. So many before us have written on this. Solomon and all his wisdom said wisdom was nothing, and who can ever forget Job! We can read and we can learn but until we walk through it we cannot apply it to our lives. It's easy to say 'Oh poor so and so, they should have done this or they should have done that!' These thoughts have me humbled to the core on ever giving anyone else my advice ever again. Our words are useless to comfort unless from God alone. Not that we don't long to help and comfort but we must realize it is not our call; but only the call of our Lord alone. We understand this when we are the one in need of this comfort. In this unbearable dark place we must learn to trust our God. It is not surprising at all why so many families and marriages are ruined over crises. Life is indeed messy and most of us are poorly equipped at best. Our faith is fragile at best and God knows what pain lies ahead of each of us to make that faith strong. These heartaches are our blessings in disguise. We do not want them and they will most assuredly wreak havoc on us in one way or another. The saving grace is simple, and at first most reject it out of the shock of pain that has been injected without warning - or at least we refused to see the warnings, as it may be in some cases. Processing pain is complicated: anger, blame, guilt, whys and yet... Wait for it... Ahhh yes I remember, I said I believed! I made a choice and I'm either going to follow that choice to my grave or I am not. Why must I bear this hurt, this circumstance, this burden? Doesn't matter! I will handle it with truth and love. I do not have to be intimidated or quiet about my plight but I must handle it through my Savior's will. I am still given a choice but the catch is I need to remember I have already made it!!! "To follow after Thee". It seems hard at times and we are hurt by others because of it, especially by those closest to us . Elisabeth Elliot wisely said "The throne before the phone" and she is right! God will put people in your path when He is ready but first and foremost we need Him! -especially in anger and hurt. "The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want... He leadeth me beside still waters, He restores my soul. He guides me in the path of righteousness for His name's sake. Yea thou I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. This is to be lived out; our sanctification through our hardships in life. Life will throw us punches that are hard to take but we choose! Believers choose goodness and love "For God is love"! That's what we have in the midst of our blurred vision of hurt, the knowledge that "Lo, I will never leave you."

Heavenly Father

It is difficult to see Your provisions and blessings when caught off guard and hurt. A chain reaction of no one understanding our pain or able to comfort us. Help us to rest in You alone. Seek You alone so we may see the magnitude of Your blessings in disguise wrapped in the arms of Your love. In Your Son's name I pray. Amen

Love to all in Christ Jesus C:)

Dead and Buried

"Be anxious for nothing but in prayer and supplication let your request be known to God..." Prayer and supplication, is that our first reaction to trials in our lives or do we want to fix it ourselves?

The simple reason we face weights of depression and anxiety is that we refuse to be dead and buried with Christ and walk in the newness of life. We are in constant war with our flesh. Ever go to church camp as a kid or a retreat or revival as an adult? Maybe it was a particular sermon at church that moved you toward great freedom and joy? Didn't you want to stay there and never leave? If only... If only I could stay here and feel this way all the time. "I can see clearly now the rain has gone. I can see all obstacles in my way" and I know and understand, and believe in the One who has conquered them for me! But alas, it does not last - that clear mountaintop of vision. The dark, very real and very scary storm clouds roll in once again and I believe it is for our own well being. We get to experience many storms and God's deliverance from them. I think perhaps we will always cringe to some degree at our lack of faith when once again we realize God's amazing hand on our lives. It is the trying times, the difficulties and hardships God wants us to relinquish in the heat of the moment. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are testaments to that statement alone. We may not face a physical furnace, but we all will experience the flame of trials. Most of us are indeed fearful of walking across the stormy water to Jesus and even Peter, who did, started to doubt and sink. Yet Peter believed and so do we. It is the simple act of faith and trust and we all are asked "Do you love me?..." With age comes wisdom and we all want wisdom before the age but very few indeed possess it. Wisdom requires, for most, experience, and a lot of it. I think sometimes on the mountaintops when we can see clearly we tend to think when the storm clouds roll it will be well with my soul. Yep, we are in the clear and we know and believe the truth yet....(come on you knew it was coming!) we all mourn and regret past actions and actions to come! That's right - actions to come, why? We are not fully sanctified until we are in the presence of the Lord and we all know "to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord." I realize most of us may look at this as a real downer - totally depressing! Ummm until I die I'm basically screwed except for a few brief mountaintop experiences?! We all have times of thinking this way - some more than others. Half empty, half full? How we choose to see matters! It is a choice and we all make it. That doesn't mean when you choose to look at it as half full you do not have to have the difficult times, conversations etc... It just means you do what God has for you to do and you know He is in control and that in Him alone your joy may be made full. "I've looked at life from both sides now... It's life's illusions I recall, I really don't know life at all." God is fully aware we really don't know life at all and He is with us to walk us through it; if and only if we trust Him to do so. I can tell you I do not like my life when it is a half empty glass full of depression and anxiety. Wait for it, wait for it, and do so with great expecting joy! Wait for the Son to shine light into your eyes. "Fear not for I am with you always." When I feel myself saying 'easier said than done', that is my rebellion throwing a fit because I do not want to be put in a vulnerable situation and hand over control. This should ring a bell with us all if we are honest. We may be scared but we must trust the net is there; trust and obey! to do what? Make the leap! Once we do we will see our joy has always been there in the midst of all our circumstances; whether good or painful. Whatever comes, all my reactions and shortcomings I have already overcome through my faith in my Savior who died and was buried and so are my sins! If we choose to believe this then we choose to believe in the resurrection, the newness of life and life everlasting! We have the strength through Christ our Savior to get over ourselves and choose. "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." Practice the presence of God, put on the armor of God. If we choose to do that each and everyday the other choices will become exceedingly clear in the midst of the storms of life. I hope and pray as believers we may all learn to look forward to making the leaps instead of fearing them. May we learn to live a bold life for Christ in a attitude of love.

Heavenly Father

You so patiently let us struggle so we might live and live abundantly. You love us with a greater love than we love our own children and we know too that our children will struggle. Nudge our hearts Lord to keep our eyes fixed on you so light may shine on the path for all to see. In Jesus name I pray. Amen

Love to all in Christ Jesus C:)

Children learn what they live!

Wake up wake up Oh sleeper!

We are all probably familiar with the commercial of a cruise liner where a man is putting on a golf green aboard a ship just as an extremely loud horn blasts "Wasn't expecting the horn!"Sad but true, we live focused on about every distraction life has to throw at us, but rest assured the loud horn is coming when we least expect it. We will be jolted awake to see that life has zipped by. Our children are grown and we will ponder our journey with many questions; some joys, and for many, regrets. It is inevitable that all of us will some day realize we could have done more. I do not believe it is ever too late while we are still here on this earth to wake up! Pray for the horn to blast in every aspect of your life that is not devoted to God because one day you will realize it is not about you but about everyone your life touched for the glory of God. Nothing pulls at our heartstrings more than our children, our own flesh and blood. It is uncanny that we do not devote more of our time and energy to bringing up our children in the way he or she should go. Another sad sad realization is that we can not if we do not know ourselves. I have heard many times a parent say that going to church and their children's faith will be for them to decide when they are old enough to understand! What part of 'children learn what they live' do we not understand! If we find it hard to find time for God our children will indeed find it impossible! Let me say this again and yes this is one for your mirror, fridge, or wall! If we find it hard to find time for God our children will indeed find it impossible! Many times the Israelites turned away from God and worshiped other gods. We make the same choice today to turn away or turn toward! We love our children - that's a given -we live in a very busy chaotic time but we need not be dismayed by it. Jesus has won the victory! And He chose us and we choose Him! Hallelujah Amen! We all get distracted by bright shiny objects. Some more than others and that, my friend, is me , ADD to the max. But nothing is impossible for my Savior and yes sometimes it takes a loud horn to get my attention but instead of being distraught over my distractions I would much rather embrace my Jesus thrilled to be back in His loving arms! So many times I do not even realize I have let the world consume me. I wander off but Jesus always knows where I am . We know sharing the realities of life with our children is so important but it cannot make sense without the truth of God's word . We will never be perfect as parents and its a good thing we are not. Our children are learning not only from us but with us as well. Are we living examples to them how Jesus saves and can they see a transformation in us as we grow older? If our hearts desire Jesus then by the truth of God's word the answer is yes! "Let not your hearts be troubled ...." "Sanctify them," said Jesus, in the truth;" Our Lord's word is truth! To grow our children in sound living, we must grow in sound understanding in the truth of God's word. "No man indulges and error of judgment without sooner or later tolerating an error in practice. Hold fast the truth for by doing so you shall be sanctified by the spirit of God ." (Again) "No man indulges an error of judgment without sooner or later tolerating an error in practice. Hold fast the truth for by doing so you shall be sanctified by the spirit of God." Charles Spurgeon. Yes, another one for your mirror, wall or fridge.

Heavenly Father may we be still and know the beautiful peace of being still and next to you. May we be willing sheep; to follow our master and lay beside still waters and learn of Your love, guidance, and truth. May this be evident to our children as they grow so that Your glory may continue throughout our families for generations. I pray that we may equip our children well to face the storms of life with your saving light. May we teach our children well in Jesus your Son's name I pray. Amen

Love to all in Christ Jesus C:)

This day I give you.

We can desire to give every day to the Lord but we will not always experience victory and it can be very discouraging. In the Desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. Exodus 16:2 The Lord knew they would grumble even after all they had witnessed of His mighty hand and yet the Lord God provided and brought glory to His name.The whole Israelite community had set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin... Exodus 16:1 It is interesting that they came to the desert of sin. I for one find my life there when I least expect it. I do not go out blatantly thinking 'I desire to be sinful today'. Quite the contrary. I go out with a hopeful heart of pleasing my Lord and bringing Glory to Him through my life; only to encounter the onslaught of the day's circumstances and fail miserably! Or at least the enemy would have me think that. If I were to look at the day through the grace of my Lord's spiritual awareness I indeed failed and I did indeed succeed . For through my Father's grace He lets me see where in my heart I am residing in the desert of sin. This is a very deep and spiritual matter between our heart's and God's and it is a one on one appointment only. On the worldly side others may think I handled my circumstances of the day with grace, but only God can discern the heart my friend. It is our heart that can make us anxious, angry, and crazy and it is the heart that can find peace that surpasses all understanding. Yes indeed, it is all about the condition of our heart. If we desire to live a life pleasing to God we can be sure our Father has much to teach us as He did the Israelites. Looking spiritually (in the light of God's word) at my day I can learn much about myself. How are we to grow and live a pleasing life if we do not apply scripture to our daily circumstances? "Give us this day our daily bread, and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, the power and glory forever and ever. amen" Delivering us from evil often hurts! And it must or we will never have complete humble submission. That is what we are aiming for, running the race for, are we not? Sorry to say I find myself at the back of the line in that race more times than one can imagine. Only God knows where I am, though, and the same goes for all of us. If I should even dare to think I'm at the front of that race that in itself is a good indication I am not! On the other hand I rejoice at God's mercy and amazing grace to let me see my shortcomings when I do see them. I am thankful when I realize at least I didn't blurt out my negative hurt feelings and cause all kinds of damage to others. The real gain is when I quit putting myself in the equation. The life I now live I live through Christ who gave His life up so I might live. Galatians 2:20 Jesus was hated and crucified and if we truly desire Christ will we not be? "Pick up your cross and follow after Me." Joy comes in the morning! I do not long to stay in the desert of sin, no I know I long for the everlasting water of my Savior. We will have many battles on this earth to contend with but we also have the awesome privilege to lay them at the foot of the cross. Lay our wounded hearts at the foot of the cross and rest in the unchanging everlasting loving arms of our Father. He will graciously heal our wounds, restore our joy and give us strength and wisdom to face our day.

"Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer, precious Lord, to the cross where Thou hast died."

Heavenly Father

Life is indeed bittersweet! Thank you for your everlasting love. Let us run to You and live. When the world persecutes us may we remember the battle has been won and rejoice at Your victory; knowing we will one day all cross the finish line of our race. May we love without condition or expectation for then we will shine your light through our vessels. Give us the strength to keep on loving. In Your Holy Son's name I pray Amen

Love to all in Christ Jesus C:)

The Holidays

(Christmas has come and gone but I'm putting this one out anyway regardless of the time of year. It is still food for thought that's worth thinking about.) Just the title of this one conjures up a whole slew of feelings. So let's take a deeper look at what the holidays do to us. If we are honest, the child-like anticipation of Christmas wanes into some kind of dreaded stress for the majority of us. As children we are delighted at the thought of goodies to eat and presents under the tree; we are not concerned about the preparation or what anything cost. We are as small children and therefore are also unaware of others around us who go without. For most adults the hurry and stress of providing for our young ones (or elderly ones) helps us ignore those who are in need the best we can; we have enough to think about with our own. It is not that we do not care, it is that we are overwhelmed with the world's idea of celebrating, and it has little to nothing to do with the birth of our Savior. The irony here is suffocating if we have eyes to see. I do want something for Christmas this year. I want eyes to see more clearly the elephant (so to speak) in the room. We all know we have materialized Christmas to where it has nothing to do with God's gift of His Son . It was sacrificial, His only begotten Son, given to undeserving sinners who were and are in a nose dive. God sent His Son, His Son! to save us! Yet so many refuse Him. Buying gifts to express to loved ones that we love them is fine, but I dare say it has become an empty obligation to a great degree. Yes, we have twisted this gesture of love to where there is little joy in it. Why? Two words: selfish expectations. Ours and theirs, but mostly our preconceived ideas about giving and receiving. Yes, I dare say for the most part we are screwed up! And it has robbed the most precious joy and celebration we have as believers; the birth of our Savior! I do not have some list of priorities to follow that will take away the stress of the holidays. The only thing we can do is turn to the One whose birth occurred so that we might be delivered from the weight of sin we are under. It is personal and it will look somewhat different for all of us for we are all given different gifts with which to glorify God. If we want our joy to be full we must glorify Him with the gifts He so freely gave us ! " Rejoice Rejoice Emmanuel...!" Does our Christmas celebration come rejoicing or do we sing half heartedly under the pressures and stress of expectations; ours and others?!

Heavenly Father You have commanded us to "Love one another". Father grant us the courage to get involved in loving one another. Help us to see where we get consumed with our own selfish desires and expectations, so we may lay them down for the Glory of the Lord; so that our joy may be made full.

May we all receive the gift of opened eyes and true joy! Love to all in Christ Jesus C:)