Have you ever wondered what others see when they look at you? I do. I think often, in recent months especially, about how I am viewed by those who I come in contact with while living my life.
One of the most recent events in my life is grieving the loss of a young girl who lived in Edson, AB with her family. Her mother has been an online friend of mine for a number of years and Emily had become a good friend of my daughter's after her family visited with our family a few years ago on one of their vacations. There have been many news reports of the situation and many comments by the public at large as well. Most of those comments are ones of support, comfort, and encouragement. However, some are ones of skepticism by people who don't have the same system of faith.
These statements, often made in an insensitive manner, can come across to those of us with a similar faith experience in a hurtful way. We may think of them as rude and ignorant, unfeeling and intolerant. They can cut us to the very core of who we are and make our hackles rise up in defense. Sometimes equally offensive statements are the result. After all, those who hurt often end up hurting those around them.
In this particular instance, what has prompted these thoughts is reading through the comments under one of the news articles about our young friend's funeral. This isn't the first time bickering regarding the existence of God has taken place online and I'm sure it won't be the last. It's too bad that it comes in response to such a sensitive situation with the potential to cause hurt but that's how these things can steamroller.
As I read through the statements below the article it really struck me how we are active participants in the situation if we think only of ourselves and our feelings in the matter. I have been grieving this week and although I'm not near as close with the family, or even Emily's mom herself, as many people I know are, some of the comments could really get me feeling angry if I had the energy to feel it right now. However, as I began to think of the pain caused to those of us who are "people of faith" and struggling, I realized that these statements are being made without the source of strength that we have. They also don't have the same understanding that we have of spiritual matters of Christianity. A few don't even believe in God at all. They are possibly struggling to make sense of the situation but without hope. These comments actually give us a view of how we are seen by others.
I believe that Emily's parents, family, friends, and neighbours could be hurt by these statements. I also believe that, in time, they will be able to forgive those who would rail at our beliefs. I am sure they will pray for them to have understanding and to find Peace in their life. How hard it can be... unless in possession of an authentic faith and true knowledge of Jesus.
What would we want others to see when they look at us? I don't know about you but I want to be seen to be understanding and caring of the situations of others, regardless of whether their beliefs match mine or not. I need to bite my tongue, not living by my feelings only, sharing those with Jesus who knows my pain, until I'm able to pray for those that would seem my enemy... and I need to continue to strive to walk the walk of my Lord and Saviour, in all my imperfection. I can be grateful for these comments showing me where my walk might be lacking.
I haven't posted in a long while again and I should do a "catch up" post but I'm working through some things and that is what is first and foremost on my mind today.
Authenticity. I'm reading a book on becoming an authentic Christian. The book is written by Bill Hybels and is entitled Honest to God? Becoming an Authentic Christian. I'm just beginning this reading and I'm really enjoying it so far. However, my thought processes are about really being who I am at this point in time. I've been "born again" for almost 9 years now and most of my time as a professing Christian has involved being surrounded by the Christian community. In those nearly 9 years I've witnessed what I would call authentic Christianity and I've witnessed what I would not call authentic Christianity.
What do I mean by this? What I mean is that sometimes we are too busy trying to show others that we are different. Should we be different? Yes, the Bible says we are to be different from the world. Should we have to try to show that we are? No. I believe that if we have to show people that we are different then those differences are just not authentic. If we have to TRY to show that we are different then perhaps the differences are not real enough to impact others in a positive way and create a desire for what we have gained. Perhaps we need to toss aside that Christian veneer and instead just be real... and to be real with God as well as others.
I loved the last line in the first paragraph. When I do something good, it's God that should have the credit rather than me. He is the one accomplishing that good. What a sobering thought. Too often we can start to spout prideful things when we do something good. At least I know I can. What a great reminder.
I'm not sure I understood all of the example of the bleeding woman. Was she ceremonially cleansed the way the devotional author says? I don't know. I don't recall anything about a secret sin so I'll have to take a look one of these days a little closer than I have before. I also wasn't sure about the part where she says Jesus didn't intentionally heal that woman but that it was a chance healing, but I did like a point she made after that.
She said,
The story suggests much about the pursuit of holiness. Perhaps holiness—evident in both Jesus’ accidental act of healing and the woman’s resulting health—isn’t something that can be pursued at all, but rather is the natural outcome of genuine faith. Maybe the pursuit of righteousness is much less intentional than I try to make it.
I've heard much in my few years as a Christian about pursuing holiness but I really like the idea that it might be simply a genuine outcome of faith. If I have faith, if I trust God, then I won't need to serve self. Will I? Less intentional than I try to make it. Perhaps our focus doesn't need to be on all those things we think characterize holiness but simply on living a life of faith and trusting Him with everything in our lives.
I can't sum it up any better than Patty does in her devotional:
We tend to perceive growth—all growth—as the result of fulfilling requirements, paying attention, and, above all, working hard ... something we accomplish. But despite the rules for holy living the Bible and even Jesus offer us, the governing message is this: The yoke is easy because Jesus takes not only our failures but also the impossible task of holiness upon himself. He does it for us.
Holiness doesn’t stem from required behaviors or exertion or stress. In fact, it isn’t something to be achieved at all but rather to be enjoyed as the natural outcome of faith. If we simply believe, the power will go out from us, whether intended or not.
I think I should work less at trying to do it in my own strength and remember that Jesus is the only one that makes it possible at all. I should probably work at it but not take so much pride in "my success".
I appreciated the different thoughts in this devotional even though I might not necessarily agree that everything she said was bang on. Certainly some interesting thoughts to mull over anyway, don't you think?
Some days I really don't know what to think. When I spend very much time in the secular world, it's very clear that I don't really feel that I fit in anymore. I guess that's a good thing since it's been a few years now since I made a conscious decision for the Lord. However, days like today I spend a few hours in a room with a group of other Christians and I realize that it's sometimes abundantly clear that I don't really "belong" in that world either.
It's not that I can't relate to Christians because I do. I listened to a speaker today and could relate with almost every single thing she said. The topic was engaging and I nodded almost all the way through her presentation. The problem is, I also felt extremely sad through the whole thing. Not for her. Nor was it honestly for me. I felt sad thinking that there might be a newer Christian in the room or even a non-Christian that would get the wrong idea about Jesus or about the Christian life. When I imagined what they would think of it all, I could only think that they would feel that it's not real.
I spent several hours afterward feeling the strangest combination of encouragement, sadness, and frustration.
Today on the news I heard Pope Benedict say that religious and cultural differences cause problems with finding peace. Now, I know that this is about a shift toward creating a one-world church but I couldn't help agreeing with him in some ways. I also think that we, as Christians, must consider what all our Christianese does to society. Instead of just living our faith in the world, we have taken to spending a lot of time trying to define it. We want rules and guidelines about how to be Christian. We want to know what it looks like so it's easier to recognize those who are and those who are not. We want life to be simple.
Perhaps instead of spending so much time defining Christianity we should instead just live a life of love and stop creating such differences between people. The Bible speaks about the world knowing us as His if we love. Oh, sure... there's talk of being separate from the world, in it and not of it, but I think we can very easily carry these ideas too far and forget moderation. When we do, I think we find that what happens is that we turn people against Christ instead of toward His saving grace. We lose our ability to have compassion and to relate to the world around us. If we can't relate, I'm not sure we can really be effective witnesses.
Don't get me wrong. I'm all for not taking part in evil but it's the attitudes that somehow seem to go along with our faith and beliefs that I am opposed to. They seep into our statements and into how we live our life. It becomes part of our culture, steeped in tradition and rituals. Unfortunately, the Christian culture is seen as judgemental because of it. Of course, some of the reason we offend the world is because of the message itself and the God who sent His Son but I do believe that we play into the picture as well.
This Christmas I am hoping to move more toward showing the God of LOVE who sent His Son because of the LOVE He has for each and every person on earth. I'm going to try to truly LOVE and let God handle the details of changing me and others into what He wants us to be.
We
humans have a problem. We often don't see our failings. We
don't see or acknowledge our sinfulness or our unworthiness for the
Kingdom of God. We're pretty bent on how good we are and most
especially if we are already saved. However, being saved doesn't
make us better. It simply makes us extremely blessed beyond
measure.
I'm so grateful for the mercy and forgiveness
that Christ has bought for me because there is no way I could provide
my own way to heaven. I cannot on my own live up to God's
standards of perfection and yet, I must try... not out of a sense of
duty but out of gratitude and with tears of joy. Without Christ I
would have no hope at all.
What could I possibly offer
Him as a thank you? How could I ever "pay" for the honour of an
eternity in heaven and missing the torture of an eternity in
hell? The answer is that I can't. There is nothing I could
offer that would be enough. There is nothing I could give that
would even come close. It's more a position of "the least I could
do is..." That is the context from which I'm adding a poem that
was read in our church service today. (I'm not sure if it has a
name and I'm not sure who to give credit to, so if you know the author
of this poem, please do comment and let me know.)
Christ has no hands but our hands to do His work today; He has no feet but our feet to lead men in His way; He has no tongue but our tongues to tell men how He died; He has no help but our help to bring men to His side.
The topic today was God's glory and essentially, our image-bearing
capacity. We house the glory of God in our bodies. We are
to be an embodiment of that glory as we develop and produce fruit in
the form of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Are we truly capable
of this kind of thing?
In certain circles I hear often
about the things God is doing. Now, I'm not saying God doesn't
perform miracles today because I believe He does. However, most
often He will be found at work through us
if we will let Him. The greatest miracle ever done, in my opinion, is
found in the salvation of sinful man. No, we can't repay such a
wondrous gift as salvation but we can act in a way that shows our
appreciation. We can give out love to others that is a mirror
image of the love we ourselves have received. We can allow God to
use us and we can choose to show our gratitude by doing good. It
is God with us that makes us worthy and nothing more.
In light of today being the first Sunday of Advent, are we showing
others the love of our precious Saviour whose birth we celebrate this
month?
I
was part of a discussion last night that I've been mulling it over
since then. A comment made was that in the church there should be
an obvious difference from the world. You know, that people would
see that we are different when they walk in the doors and that we are
to be in the world but not of it.
A bigger discussion
ensued regarding diet and caring for our bodies because that was the
topic of the verses we were referring to at the time but it got me
wondering how others view this. Please leave me a comment with
some examples of what you think some of those differences should be and
how those inside the church should look. I'd love to hear what
you have to say so I'll have more to ponder! :)
Dee..
PS - If you are unsure what I was getting at, please check out the comments so far for clarification. Thanks! :)
The last weekend of September I went on my very first ever Ladies' Retreat.
In the 18 years I've been married, I have never been the one to spend a
night away from the family. My husband has had to be away for
work a few times and for therapy (6 months) after an injury, but I was
the constant in the home. The kids have never known me to be away
overnight unless we were all away somewhere.
The topic of the weekend was the book of Ruth and specifically the three women: Ruth, Naomi, and Orpah.
Ruth - faithful companion Orpah - runaway Naomi (asked to be called Mara) - pleasant (bitter)
We were asked who we could most identify with in regard to different
areas of our lives. Those areas were: myself, marriage, family,
home, church, career.
Naomi was a type of prodigal
daughter as she left her home of Bethlehem during a famine, following
her husband and taking their two sons with them. As you can
probably guess, she later returned. This family went to a new land
where the culture was bad and there were a lot of gods being
worshipped. They put their physical needs ahead of their souls.
The questions for meditation were many. Are you sacrificing
something you know is good for something not so good? Where do
you run in times of trouble and need? When? Why?
How? What fields do you glean in for refreshment and
fulfillment? Is the Redeemer is calling you "home" in any
particular area of your life? Is it time for a change in any of the
above areas? Some VERY good questions and ones that would be good
to ask on a regular basis.
The second session was one where we took communion together but it was
very much a solitary process. The speakers talked about how we
need to be driven to our knees with overwhelming conviction that
there's nowhere else to turn but to Jesus, our Redeemer. We had
15 minutes in which to go to any area of the building where we could be
"alone" with God and then come back and help ourselves to the ancient
grains bread and grape juice that represented wine, have a seat and
take communion. We were asked to think about Zechariah 13:1-9 and
Psalm 27 before the next session. There was also an insert with
Psalm 127 and some tips on how to leave a Godly legacy. Leaving a Godly Legacy Nancy Leigh DeMoss - Revive Our Hearts 2002 Establish the priority (Ps.78:2-8)
Do
I feel a personal sense of responsibility for the spiritual condition
of the next generation? Am I making a conscious effort to ensure
that they walk with God?
Depend upon God (Ps.127:1)
Am I praying persistently and fervently for God to turn the heart of the next generation toward Himself?
Set an example (Ps.128:1)
Am
I modelling love for God and holiness of life? If the next
generation grows up to be just like me, what will they be like?
Embrace biblical roles (Ps.128:1-3)
Is my home in order? Am I living our the biblical role and responsibilities assigned to me by God?
Teach them diligently (Ps.78:5)
Am I consciously teaching the Word and ways of God to the next generation?
Control the climate (Ps.101)
Am
I protecting those entrusted to my care from ungodly influences?
Am I providing the kinds of influence that will create in them a hunger
for God?
Send them forth (Ps..127:4)
Am I instilling in the next generation a vision for how God wants to use them to fulfill His purposes in our world?
The
speakers talked about how Ruth's menial tasks were done
faithfully. Ruth left a dynasty in Moab to build a legacy back in
Bethlehem. We were asked what our attitudes are when faced with
difficult circumstances. There was mention of 5 lies that we
(women) are told.
1) The Bible has the Word of God? No. It IS the Word of God.
2) Jesus wants to be our friend? He is our God first.
3) We need to work harder to be better? No. To be better we
need to meet with Him. Who we are is more important than what
career we have. We are man's completer, not his competitor.
4) Sexuality is power? No. Our sexuality completes us.
5) We are victims of the past? No. We have a destiny. We can be set free and set others free.
The last session was focussed on the armor of God found in Ephesians
6:13-18 along with the life of Ruth, making connections.
Eph.6:13 - Truth (Ruth 3:9)
Eph.6:14 - Righteousness (Ruth 3:9)
Eph.6:15 - Peace (Ruth 3:9, 3:7, 4:8)
Eph.6:16 - Faith (Ruth 1:16, 17, 18)
Eph.6:17 - Salvation (Ruth 1:6, 7)
Eph.6:18 - Prayer (40 day challenge)
We were given a sample declaration before God to consider along with
Psalm 139. The declaration can be found at the Purpose Driven
website. I will chose to create my own, unique for my own
situation, and I really think that is the best way to go.
There was, of course, a lot of personal experience shared by each of
the three speakers which I didn't include but these are the main points
of the sessions and the flow of things. The food was very good
and the activities and spare time was also appreciated. I had a
good time connecting with seven other ladies from our church and our
sister church as well as meeting many new faces.
1. Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth Would care to know my name, Would care to feel my hurt? Who am I, that the Bright and Morning Star Would choose to light the way For my ever wandering heart?
BRIDGE Not because of who I am, But because of what You've done. Not because of what I've done, But because of who You are.
CHORUS I am a flower quickly fading, Here today and gone tomorrow, A wave tossed in the ocean, A vapour in the wind. Still You hear me when I'm calling. Lord, You catch me when I'm falling And You've told me who I am. I am Yours, I am Yours.
2. Who am I, that the eyes that see my sin Would look on me with love and watch me rise again? Who am I, that the voice that calmed the sea Would call out through the rain And calm the storm in me?
BRIDGE CHORUS BRIDGE CHORUS
Whom shall I fear Whom shall I fear Cause I am Yours I am Yours
I
love this song. It's such a poignant reminder of how great God is
and how loved I am by Him even if I am small and insignificant on this
earth. I'm in awe every single time I hear it. It's so hard
to describe the feelings it evokes in me and I'm not ashamed to say it
brings me to tears every single time.
It is so late
already tonight and I have had such a busy week. I should be in
bed but I just couldn't stop listening to this song. I had a
difficult day today for a lot of reasons and although I wasn't
scheduled for worship team this week, I'm sure God knew I needed Him
and without some music I just wouldn't be able to hang on. Our
pastor's wife is in BC visiting her first grandson who was born a week
ago and the person asked to fill in had her mother rushed to the
hospital yesterday after a fall so I got a call. I'm so grateful
that my name was the first one that was thought of this morning.
I didn't feel like going but I sure NEEDED a time of worship tonight and I'm always filled when I go to practice. And as
I leave the cares of the world at the door, my joy returns. My
heart sings and rejoices regardless of the day I've had. I gain a
new perspective on life. I find the Source of my strength.
Who am I? I'm nothing......... but a beloved daughter of the
King.
Thank you, Lord, for the way you know what I need and You provide for those needs even when I forget. I love you.
And call upon Me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you will honour Me.
Psalm 50:15
I'm just meditating on this verse today while I prepare for a day or
two away from home "alone" for the very first time in about 18
years. Of course, I am going away with other people so I won't be
totally alone but I won't be with any of my immediate family...
What a strange feeling. Anyway, back to the
verse.
I think this ties in with the concept of prayer since that is a lot of
how we communicate with God. Prayer is so important and I often
hear fellow Christians say things like, "Gee, I'm so sorry. I
wish I could do more but all I can do is pray." I'm as guilty as
anyone else and I think we need to catch a new vision of prayer.
We seem to have lost the importance of it somewhere along the
way. I'm amazed to think that all it can take to honour God is to
use the privilege of prayer to call upon Him when I'm in trouble.
Can you imagine? It's so easy.... Or is it?
What stops you from calling on God? He's my Father and He loves
me so why, Why, WHY is my tendency to hold back from the only one that
knows my deepest secrets, the condition of my heart, and yet loves me
in spite of it all? I really need to take more time for
prayer.
Today we had an interesting Bible time. We were studying Acts 7 and verses 46-50 caught my attention.
Who (speaking of David) found favour before God, and desired to find a
tabernacle for the God of Jacob. But Solomon built him a
house. Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with
hands; as saith the prophet, Heaven is my throne, and earth is my
footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what
is the place of my rest? Hath not my hand made all these things?
The place of worship had, for many years, been a tent and David wanted
there to be a permanent location, a temple, for worship.
Verse 47 says Solomon built Him a house. The implication
was that this was not just a place to worship but considered a
"dwelling place" for God. The following verses quote Isaiah but
it's abundantly clear that this was not accurate.
God
does not fit into our boxes. He is MUCH too big for that!
In fact, the temples (churches) were not for Him in the first
place. They are for us. They are a place we can go for help
and support as we walk through life in an alien place. They are
for US. They are for our fellowship needs and for our spiritual
growth as we come together with other believers to learn more about
Him, and to serve others desiring to know more about Him. The
local church gives us a place to find folks of common mind. A
place to bless and be blessed. It's for us and our well-being
that the church came into existence, not for Him! He doesn't need
it, but we do!
From this, I have to ask myself... Do I believe it? Do I act like it? What do I need to change?
Tonight
we were at our midweek "Club DJ" meeting at church. We're talking
about the story of Esther and the memory verse for this next week is:
Do not let your heart envy sinners, but always be zealous for the fear of the Lord. Proverbs 23:17
Some of the questions that we discuss there are very simple because we
have young kids there. However, the adults and youth have some
deeper discussion while the kids go for a time of activities and
games.
Maybe it's just me and where I am spiritually,
but I find that we can be so busy looking deep that we can easily miss
or overlook the simple truths. For instance, we were talking
about the verse from Proverbs that I quoted above and especially the
second part of the verse. The focus of the discussion became
being zealous. It was on what we can do rather than first one
what NOT to do. The first part of the verse talks of envy and
sinners.. two things that are not always comfortable to focus on.
Don't envy. Do I envy? Oh, you bet I do! I
envy material things, I envy knowledge, I envy spiritual giftings, and
more. Yeah, I envy. Do I say this because I am proud of
it? No. I say it because I'm human and I don't want anyone
to believe otherwise. I say it because even if I don't want to
admit it, God knows and it's better that I push myself to deal with
that ugly part of myself.
Who is a sinner?...
Know something? I'm a sinner. I'd love to not be a sinner
and I hope I don't sin as much as I used to, thanks to the power of God
in my life. But... I'm still a sinner. I sin every single
day in my thoughts and in what I do, sometimes without even realizing
it. I can't help it because it's the nature of the skin I'm
in. It's the nature of being human. Of course, that doesn't
mean I shouldn't try not to sin, and I do... but even with all my
efforts and desire, I'm not sin-free. The Bible tells us we are ALL
sinners. We all succumb to the power of sin at times.
Thankfully, God provided the life of His Son and repentance to restore
me and so I can have a relationship with Him anyway.
There was a lot of talk about celebrities and how they can become
idols. There is usually talk of people wanting to be or do as
someone else is or does. And this applies to Christian
celebrities as well. We aren't exempt. We envy. The
words of the proverb should haunt us. But does it? Often we
look at this as something the unsaved do but we don't see it in
ourselves; however, we are told to judge ourselves first before others
and so while I appreciate the second half the verse, I may have to deal
with that envying part of me before I can be truly zealous and find a
true 'fear' of the Lord.
Part of what we looked at today was Acts chapter 1. Near the end of our time we were looking specifically at this:
Acts 1:8 - But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is
come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and
in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the
earth.
What a powerful verse... and one filled with
hope! Isn't it exciting to be told that you will be used of God
as a witness with such a scope?
It struck me that the
uttermost part of the earth was not really a known place at that
time. The known world was much smaller than we know it to be
now. Could the apostles have really fathomed what this would
mean? No, but they probably thought they could and even then it
would have been BIG in their eyes!
The other thing is
that we don't have to have power in ourselves. The power we
witness in is God's power through the Holy Spirit. How often have
I said, "I can't..." talk to people, know what to say, have the
boldness needed. I don't need those things. It will be
supplied for me by the one I serve. I just need to step out in
faith and be obedient. His power is there for my access because I
am His. How many times do I forget?
I've
been contemplating more on Job the past several days. It's funny
how his friends weren't much of a support when he was going through
such a hard time. We often tend to turn to our friends, don't
we? I know I have in the past when things were tough
spiritually.
I'm slowly learning that the place I need
to turn is to the Lord. When things are difficult, He is my
strong tower. He is my buckler and shield. He is my defense
and the one that will care for my needs.
I
don't think that God intends for us to not have any support in our
friends, but I do think He would want us to turn first to Him because
only He knows us intimately enough to judge and His Spirit is fully
capable of bringing conviction to our hearts when it is needed. I
also believe that He would have us be careful of believing the words of
others over His.
I have been thinking back to when B started having health problems and
how I/we didn't know where to turn. I was not living a Christian
life although I'd certainly heard the gospel message enough that I was
a "good person" and God had enabled me to clean up my life
considerably. And He certainly drew me to Himself during that
time. I had no clue. I was distressed day and night.
Anxiety levels were very high ALL the time.
We began
to go to church regularly (a couple years and a long distance move)
after we had a diagnosis for what B had been suffering with but I still
didn't know HOW to turn to God for His help though people would say,
"Just turn to God. Just lean on Him." There were a lot of
criticisms of our struggle and the need to communicate what our
struggles consisted of. Very little in the way of real help was
offered to us. Much like Job's friends, our friends were at a
loss. They didn't know how to help us any more than we knew how
to help ourselves. I still think of being told we must have sin
in our lives and if we'd just stop watching movies or tv programs, if
we'd pray more and take part in more Christian service, then surely God
would notice and B's healing would come.
We've come a
long way since then. We now realize that God hadn't taken His
eyes off of us when B got sick. He was right there the whole
time. He wasn't waiting for us to "do" something. He was
already doing something for us. He hadn't abandoned us and we
didn't need to earn His love or His help.
It's those
experiences in our past that have brought us to where we are
today. It is truly the difficult moments in life that teach us
what we need to teach our children. It is those very things that
lead us into God's will for us.
That is the reason
I've been taking classes. I haven't said much about them here yet
so I'll explain a little. I'm taking some counselling
classes. I started because I was doing some volunteer
peer-counselling at the local crisis pregnancy centre and I knew that
they'd be helpful to me. Since then I've had to drop that
(temporarily, I think) but I realize that it's the lack of help we were
able to get, and the experiences we've been through (B's health and
other various life experiences) that really led me to commit to
studying and learning how to help others through their issues.
The course will earn me a certificate but is designed for use in a
church setting and friend-to-friend. It will help should I
continue to do peer-counselling at Options but when I think about it,
that was never really my entire goal. I just want to be able to
help people to grow through their life issues and to find strength in
Him when they are dealing with struggles. And I pray that God
will enable me do it with humility and love.. to honour Him.
What
a great Psalm to read first thing in the morning. It's all about
praising God. It's so short, I'll even record it here...
Praise the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary; praise Him in His mighty heavens. Praise Him for His acts of power; praise Him for His surpassing greatness. Praise Him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise Him with the harp and the lyre, praise Him with the tambourine and dancing, praise Him with the strings and flute, praise Him with the clash of cymbals, praise Him with resounding cymbals.
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord.
Notice how there are no stipulations? There's no directive of
what circumstances to praise Him in. It's not about praising the
good things He does or the things He does that we view as good.
The second last line says it all. If you have breath, then praise
the Lord!
Isn't this what Job did? He had
everything taken from him because of the testing he endured.
Satan was boasting to God how he could turn the most upright man
against God. Job lost his family, his possessions, his health..
but he still had breath so when others (even his wife) were telling him
to curse God and die, he still praised God. His comment was
consistently some slight variation of, "The Lord gives and the Lord
takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord."
What a challenge to me. Do I have what it takes to do that?
Could I praise God through THAT kind of suffering? I don't
know. Job's foundation was strong. Being a newer Christian
(7yrs), I'm sure mine's not as strong as it should be at this
point. I do need to work harder to firm up my faith and the
foundational knowledge the Word of God will give me. I'm so very
grateful that God is faithful to complete the work He began in
me.
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!
Dee.. off to study in the email hiatus God has granted today (email server is down)..
I'm Dee.. and I plan to share some experiences of our family and general ramblings... about school, faith and life issues, not necessarily in that order or preference.
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If you drop in to browse, please leave a comment to let me know you've been here.... ;)
