Guiding Light

Therefore, so that I would not become arrogant, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to trouble me—so that I would not become arrogant. I asked the Lord three times about this, that it would depart from me. But he said to me, “My grace is enough for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”~ 2 Corinthians 12:7-9 

 

Life....there will be storms. There will be hail. It will really suck the fun out of existence at times. Anyone who led you to believe that life was easy LIED!!! We get kicked, punched, stabbed in the back, pummeled, and left like roadkill. 

 

There will be times where we will only be able to crawl along because we have been broken.And the biggest lie.........that we believe we are alone in our struggles! If we could handle every situation; if we had the answer to every question; if we were strong enough to make it on our own, we would be boring, alone and so very wrong! 

 

Ever wonder why God allows us to go through so many times of yuck and mess? Perhaps to remind us that we are not self-sufficient; perhaps to get our attention OFF of ourselves; perhaps to help us rely on Him....or all of them. There have been times in my life when I prayed with every ounce of desperation within me for God to "MAKE IT STOP!" and I heard my Grampa's voice remind me "Don't run from Him, run TO Him!" 

 

*When you feel alone, abandoned, as though no one understands...you aren't the first; you aren't the last; and you're not the only one right now.

* When you are so tired of trying that you just want to say, "That's it, I can't do it anymore!" You are not the first; you're not the last; and you're not the only one right now.

* Life is not easy - If it was easy, we'd be SO bored with it.

* Life is not going to go according to our plan - God's plan is far greater than ours every time.

* You are NOT alone! 

 

We are led to believe that admitting we are hurting or struggling is a sign of weakness. Would you rather drown or let someone grab your hand and help you up?

 

God's grace is a gift that is free to us, we cannot earn it, buy it, steal it, or deserve it. God's grace sometimes means letting someone walk with you through the minefield. Sometimes it means someone is there to encourage you and urge you on. Sometimes it means someone sits right with you and lets you cry. 

 

God's gift of grace is sufficient!

Puzzling Pieces

  

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. Romans 8:28 

We were playing in the garage because it was raining outside, and we knocked a box off the shelf.  When we heard the breaking of plates, we knew it was going to be a bad day for us.  Jim was terrified that his Mom was going to be upset with us.  So we decided the best course of action was to confess it, take the punishment, and get it over with.  We told Jim's Mom what had happened and we apologized profusely.  His Mom looked angry for a what seemed like a month, but then she smiled and said, "You know, plates can be replaced. But I have an idea."  We spent the rest of the afternoon making mosaics from the pieces.

 I have a confession to make...I have trouble, sometimes, trusting that God will work everything out according to His plan.  Why? Because, in my limited ability to understand and see His hands at work, I cannot fathom just how He can possibly put all the broken pieces together again.  I struggle with my own understanding because I want to know what is going to happen, when it will happen, and how it will happen.  And God has reminded me that my struggle is called "Lack of Faith"!

When we look at all that is going on in the world, it's easy to wonder where God is in all of this and when will He step in and make it better.   Well, there's BAD NEWS and there's GOOD NEWS.

The BAD NEWS is we need to stop worrying, stop being anxious, stop wondering when and how God will work everything out.  Why? Because it's GOD'S job to fulfill His promise, not ours.  When we try to do God's job, we will quickly become overwhelmed and frustrated and give up.  God is the one with the plan and has worked out all the intricacies of His plan long before He even put the universe together.  How many times does God tell us not to fear and not be anxious?

The GOOD NEWS is that God has never lied to us or failed to fulfill His promises!  And He's not about to start now. God takes the pieces and puts everything in its place so that His plan will ultimately be the result.  And for that reason, we should praise Him and Thank Him!

Learning Things

Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.”

Genesis 1:26 

 

Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. God breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person.

Genesis 2:7 

 

I love learning!  And while I was on vacation last week, I learned some things, so please bear with me.  Scripture tells us a LOT of information.  Yet it also doesn't give us a LOT of information.  God did that on purpose, I believe.

 

Look at today's verses.  We see that God decided to create us....in HIS image!  Then we see that God breathed life into the nostrils of Adam and he became a living person.  That is what Scripture tells us.

 

But look at what Scripture DOESN'T tell us:

• How tall was Adam?
• How heavy was Adam?
• What color was Adam's hair?
• Was Adam's hair straight, curly, wavy, long, short?
  
• What color were Adam's eyes?
• Was Adam right handed or left handed?
• Did he have a deep voice?
• Did he like to sing?
• Did he whistle?
• Did he laugh?
• Did he cry?
• What were Adam's hobbies? 

The list of things about Adam that Scripture DOESN'T tell us is endless.  Why did God choose not to tell us all these details?  Because they aren't important!  God tells us that we are created in God's own image and we are filled with God's own breath.  THAT is what is important!  You see, we are the ones who look at the trivialities and pass judgement.  God knows every single thing about us, more that even we know about us, and He loves us!

 

Here is my challenge for you and for me: Look at every person you see through the eyes of God! See them as God's child, just like you and I are God's child. Look beyond the trivialities and see them as God sees them (and as God sees you).

 

 

It's Time!

 

Then Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.”

Mark 6:31 

 

I will be taking the advice of Christ to rest, relax and renew.  I will be on vacation all of next week.  The good thing about the way my Bride and I do vacation...we plan nothing!  If we want to go somewhere, we will.  If we want to hang out with Woody Bear...we will. 

 

No schedules. No drive to "Go and Do" every moment of every day.  Rather, take time to rest (sleep in). Take time to relax (not be in a hurry). And in so doing, return renewed and refreshed. 

 

 

There is Strength in Peace!

Be strong and brave. Don’t be afraid of them and don’t be frightened, because the Lord your God will go with you. He will not leave you or forget you.                                                                          Deuteronomy 31:6 

 

I can't speak for anyone else but I don't like the feeling of fear.  Don't get me wrong, there is a fear that is helpful. For example, hearing a bear galumphing through the woods toward me strikes a fearful cord in my mind, thus leading me to get out of the way. 

Look at today's verse: God is telling us not to be afraid, but to trust Him!  Believe it or not, God has already dealt with the events we are seeing today.  He is never NOT in control!  God promises us that He will ALWAYS go with us and will never forget us or leave us.

One of my favorite movies is "Kingdom of Heaven" it's about the Crusades.  One of the lines in that movie which has stuck in my mind is "Quod Deus Vult" (As God Wills).  Everything we encounter, every situation we face is according to God's will and ultimate plan.  This is why David wrote in the 23rd Psalm, "Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will not fear. Because You, my God, are with me! Your protection encompasses me!"

I'll be honest, seeing all the chaos that the news shows in great quantities is NOT the whole story!  Our enemy would have us focus on our fear.  Our Abba wants us to focus on Him and Trust Him!  Daniel did when he was dropped into the pit of lions. Shadrach, Meschach and Abednigo did when they were tossed into the overheated furnace.  How about us? Will we trust Him now or fear our enemy?