SelahV Today

Depression, Drugs and Death

Depression is a disease.  It is as much a disease to the thinking system as cancer is to the cells of the body.  What cancer cells eat, depression steals from the inner peace of a person's ability to think and reason and feel.

I've had depression my entire life.  I know this because, after being treated for years as an adult, and researching the ins and outs of symptoms, I was able to trace it back to my childhood.  Certainly a part of depression is environmental, situational, and is affected by relationships.  But there is a definite connection between the chemicals in ones brain that create havoc with the inner strength of ones thought processes.  And as a man thinketh, so is he.

So much of what we think comes from what we put into our minds. Positive reinforcements.  Joyful occasions.  Goodness.  However, to a deeply depressed person, even joyful occasions have no joy.  All the goodness in the world has no good.  And all the positive input has no influence.  To the person who does not suffer with this disease, it is unfathomable.  It is incomprehensible.  It is a bit foolish, and weak.  At times the healthier person who tries to help, cannot help and cannot fix the weaker and so they transfer their own helplessness and frustration onto the person who deals with enough self-deprecation to kill twenty healthy-minded individuals.

Depressed people cannot undo what is.  They can no more change it than a person with cancer or diabetes can change their ailment.  They can be treated.  They can learn to deal with it.  They can learn what affects them negatively and try to avoid the diet, outside influences, and darkness that draws them into a deeper abyss.  But they cannot fix it.  Cancer can be cut out, burned out, and chemically destroyed.  But not always successfully--sometimes it kills you.  Depression can be aided, but cannot be removed... it can be lessened but will always remain...and sometimes it, too, kills. 

The real problem with the disease is doctors keep throwing more and more drugs at you and it always ends up that the problem is YOU... and your family and friends treat you as if you are a weird wart in their lives... they tolerate your sadness, and only a few people in life actually "get it" that you cannot change what is going on no matter how hard you try.  Depressed folks are trusting God for the very breath they take to make it to the next breath.  But others do not see depressed people in this way.  They tell folks to buck up, to get over it, and to stop thinking the way they think as if a person can unthink cancer of the lung.

God be with the Warrens and all the other parents and friends and families of the Matthew Warrens in life.  I know it will be a very sad sad journey for the Warrens.  But they will find comfort in knowing their son is finally free of all his anguish and pain and struggle.  The hardest part is missing the dear son they love so much.  Life will always have a hole in it which can only be filled by the presence of God.  And even then, it will not seem to be enough to satisfy the hunger in their hearts to see their son, to touch him, to hear his voice and absorb his presence.  selahV

Sometimes We Cry

Sometimes we wonder if we will ever stop crying.

Our hearts may ache for the loss of a loved one.  We may agonize over the turmoil between us and another: a teenager who rebels, an adult child who strays, a husband who fails to meet our needs, a friend who struggles with faith.

We may be consumed with circumstances so far beyond our control that we cannot see any way out, nor any solution to our problems.  We may be distressed, despairing, and desperate.  And all we can do is cry.  We fight it.  We try to buck up and deal with things.  We try to stuff it all behind us and let it go.  We busy ourselves with as many menial and productive tasks that we can conjure up... just to keep from crying.  Why?

Why not just let the floodgates open and let the tears flow?

Crying is a cleansing thing.  God gave us tear ducts for a reason.  He knew our hearts would fill with heartache.  He knew our souls would scream with the pain of life.  He knew our spirits would face tumult and frustration.  He knew.

It's okay, my friends, to let go and let God take your hurt, your sadness, your stored despair, your disappointments and brokenness. It's okay.  You can cry.  You really can. selahV

"You have collected all my tears in Your bottle.

 You have recorded each one in your book."                        

                                     Psalm 56:8

When Worry Rules Your Mind

"consider the lilies of the field." 

I feel like a scorched lily at the moment.  Though my heart knows that God is watching over me and mine, my mind is like a whirlwind in a field of lilies. My heart knows that:

"The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me."

That "the Lord is my refuge and strength."

That "nothing can separate me from the love of God." 

That if I "trust the Lord with all my heart, and lean not unto my own understanding, but in all my ways acknowledge Him, that He will direct my path."  

That "if I keep my mind stayed on Jesus, He will keep me in perfect peace." 

That "the Lord is working out all things for those who love Him."

I know all this.

My heart trusts this.

May this moment, this hour be one in which my brother is reassured of these same things.  May he have the peace and calm and power in him to meet the challenges of his day.  Though I do not know where he is or how he is, God knows.  And while I cannot trust people, I can trust God.  Into His hands I lay my burden of worry and "am persuaded that He will keep that which I've committed to Him against this day."  selahV

" All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled; they shall turn back and be put to shame in a moment." Psalm 6:10

Beyond the Abyss and Potholes

Have you ever found yourself in an abyss of weariness, disappointment, or discouragement?  Perhaps it is more like a pothole than a cavernous dark hole.  Yet you know, each day, whenever someone's words or actions cross your path, you crumble as surely as chunks of asphalt crumble when a tire runs across a hole in the road.  With every bump, the pothole widens and deepens.  You know you must do something about it; if you allow this hole to go unattended, it will soon be a canyon.

Potholes and pits are not fun.  Sometimes we have no clue what is wrong with us.  We can't understand how we find ourselves in such a state.  We have everything--a home, a family, friends, a loving God.  What IS our problem, anyway?  I confess, I do not know what your problem is.  I have a suspicion what mine is, most of the time.

Notice, there is something very telling about a pothole: a pothole is not a problem because of what is inside it; but rather, because of what is not inside it.  Just as a pothole on a highway needs to be filled to keep it from getting worse, we need to fill our holes of discontent, discouragement, disillusionment and despair.  When I find myself in the shadows of sadness and cannot see the sunshine, it is usually because my back is to the "light".  It's then I know I must turn around.

My greatest joy comes when I revisit the miracles of hope God has shown me through His Word. I consider how relieved the nation of Israel felt when they crossed the Red Sea. I consider the joy David felt when God forgave him. I consider the joy Peter felt when Jesus met him and told him to feed His sheep. I meditate upon the glory of God's presence in my life through the handiwork of His creation. I marvel that He would do so much for me, a sinner who once was at war with Him and His people.  Then I rest. I rest beside the still waters and cry and consider, Why am I cast down? My Father owns the cattle on a thousand hills. This is but a blink in eternity that I am enduring.

We aren't the only ones to be weary, tired, and filled with grief.  The disciples were so overcome with the news that Jesus told them at the Last Supper, that they couldn't even watch and pray with Him.  Remember what He said when He found them sleeping? “Get up and pray, so that you won’t enter into temptation.” Luke22:46b.

I am tempted every day to focus on me and mine rather than He and His. When I lose focus and take my eyes off Him, I fall prey every time to the folly of circumstance. Meeting God, and praying and talking it all out with Him, does more for me than an afternoon nap, a shopping trip, or complaining to a friend. Knowing that the saints before me fell prey to the abyss at times, reminds me once again that God cares in ways beyond my comprehension.

Are you weary?  Are you discouraged?  Do you want to run away from life?

May the Most High God flood your soul today and lift you out of the quagmire in which you find yourself. May He give you clear insight and understanding of the grand purpose He has for you…this day. selahV

How To Soothe A Troubled Heart

I received an email from a friend yesterday.  He sends me little snippets of this-and-that each day.  I laugh at some, shake my head at others and then some, I am pressed to ponder a bit.  Yesterday's was a quote by Warren Wiersbe:

"When there is peace in the heart, there will be praise on the lips."

Sounds sweet, huh?  I thought so, too--at the first read.  Then I looked at it again and recalled a time when the phrase was reversed for me.  When there is praise on the lips, there is peace in the heart.  There was a time so dark and full of sorrow and blackness I thought any second I was going to die.  In fact as much as I feared it, I wanted it.  I saw no light in the abyss.  No comfort to come from mourning.  No filling to come from hungering and thirsting.  No strength to come from weakness.  No hand amid the waves of pain.

Wiersbe says, when there is peace, there is praise.  I don't know if that is always true.

You see, my heart is at peace quite often without an utterance of praise or a thought of adoration toward my Maker.  But when I am troubled, when my heart is broken, when heartache seems to squeeze the life right out of my soul, it's then that peace eludes me.

I have found when I take time to exalt the Lord, to sing a chorus of praise:  "I exalt You.  I exalt You.  I exalt You, Oh, Lord;" it is then my heart is stilled.  It's then my heart relaxes and my weakness turns to strength.  It's then the darkest night becomes day.  Most certainly when a heart is at peace it can praise the Lord for His presence.  But do we?  always?

When a person has a troubled heart, praise on his lips will create the peace his heart cannot produce on its own.  It transforms the heart flooded with itself.  God is the keeper of the secret longings and needs of our hearts.  We can praise Him for the hope we have in Him and then our hearts will give Him room to sit enthroned each moment of our day.

"But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. Our fathers trusted Thee and Thou didst deliver them." Psalm 22:3-4 KJV

If you have a troubled weary heart today, try singing Jesus Loves Me till you feel He does and know He is your refuge and stay.  I am praying for you, too.  May His peace be the praise you offer to others who find themselves torn and broken today. selahV

RELATED POST:  Lessons of Loss

What the Future Holds

No one really knows.  For some reason, we cannot help but wonder about it, though.  We wonder what our kids will be when they are grown.  We wonder what their kids will do.  Will everyone stay in the same area, or will they move to all parts of the globe?  In these unsettling economic times, we wonder about employment.  Will we have a job next year?  next month?  next week?

I have two friends whose husbands have lost their jobs after a long tenure.  They are in their late fifties.  It's a scary thing.  They are knowledgeable, experienced and dependable.  By and large, those are qualities a prospective employer seeks.  However, financial pressures for corporations limit an employer's ability to hire older men with those qualities.  Younger, unproven and teachable people do not command the same salary commensurate with older rivals.

It's hard for my friends' husbands.  They have mortgages.  They are more apt to need their insurance coverage.  They are closing in on retirement age and every dime they put into a pension or 401-K is vital.  It's only natural for them to wonder about their future.  Will they have to relocate to another city, another state?  Will they lose everything they worked for their entire lives?  Could they really and truly end up homeless?  It's possible.  They do not know what the future holds.  But, fortunately for them, they "know Who holds the future."

When Job lost his entire family, grown children with families of their own, servants, livestock and possessions, he did not know how things could get worse.  When his body was wracked with sores and pain was his constant companion, he wondered what would happen next.  What was left for him to lose?  For Job it boiled down to complete humility and total dependence on his Creator.  He had every reason to listen to his wife and "curse God and die."  But he didn't.  He questioned his condition and circumstances, but he did not curse God.  God restored to Job all he had and more.

In the season of difficult circumstances, we are vulnerable to fear, to worry, and concern.  Yet, as Christians we are assured that when we put our trust in God, He will provide.  He will take care of us.  He will never leave us.  We do not know what tomorrow holds, but the daily trials are sufficient to battle without us borrowing battles beyond the horizon.  When the abundance of "what ifs" come my way, I remember that "The Lord will perfect that which concerns me." Psalm 138:8  I pray He gives my friends the same assurance as they wait upon His provision.

What about you?  Do you need God's sustaining grace to cover your heart and still your worried mind?  If so, I pray He fills you with peace today.  I pray you see Him move in such a way that it could only be Him to whom you give the glory.  selahV

WHATEVER CONCERNS ME

CONCERNS THE LORD.

And at this very moment, He is perfecting all things for good.  He will not forget that I am His workmanship.  He does not forget that I need Him every moment.  He does not ignore the actions of those who mistreat me.  He has a purpose to fulfill in me and with me.  I am His child.  I can trust Him when others are untrustworthy.  I trust Him when others seek to do me harm.  I trust Him when life seems an unending trial of heartache, trouble and difficulty.  What seems impossible, is held in the palm of my Father's hand.  My name is written in His palm.  He knows everything about me--my thoughts as well as my going out and coming in.  He sees it all and knows the schemes of man who seek to harm me and mine.  He will not forsake me.

"The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O LORD, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own hands." Psalm 138:8

Oh, Lord my God.  Most High in all the earth and beyond, perfect that which troubles the hearts of those on my mind at this moment.  Assure them of Your steadfast love, mercy and constant watchcare.  selahV

Wrong Thinking, Number 3 of 11

Mental Filter:

It's a rather self-centered way of looking at life.  Kinda like what we see in children who don't get their way.  No matter how hard you try to get a child to accept another toy, or see another way that is much more fun, they choose to stay in a grumpy negative mood.  Folks who have this "mental filter" kind of thinking refuse to see the positive of anything, are many times just childish people who want to (or can't help but), wallow in misery.

Ever dwell on the negatives and filter out or ignore the positives of specific situations and events in your life?  I have.  This is one of the areas of thinking I found as comforting as a blanket before I became a Christian.  I felt if anything could go wrong, it would.  I believed the worst of every situation until it was proven otherwise.  I reasoned that if I thought I would be diagnosed with cancer and wasn't, then I'd feel better than if I believed I didn't have it and found out I did.  I believed the worst so if the worst happened, I would not be as miserable or disappointed; I'd be better prepared.  It was a self-protective mechanism in my view.  Some folks call it pessimism.  It can be far worse than that.

I have also tried, unsuccessfully, at times, to point out the positives in the most dire of situations in life.  I work hard to walk carefully when I offer any positive as a means to alleviate pain, or to comfort the grief-stricken.  In the throes of depression or discouragement, bubbling, joyful people can be the most irritating people another can run into.  I've had times when anything positive said to me was like a slap in my face.  It's as if people can't feel your pain or hear your point of view.  Therefore, it is advisable when you find folks who only think negatively, that you listen, and validate what they are saying before you offer platitudes of joy.   

Some of the most annoying people in the world are those who deliver nothing but positive cliches for every trial, difficulty, disaster and tragedy another experiences.  When I face these kinds of circumstances, I want an empathetic ear--not a cliche I already hold onto.

There are a few times when I face difficulty and find myself trapped in this kind of thinking today.  But God, in His abundant mercy, brings me out of it.  It takes an active mind focused upon the positives to escape that kind of thinking.  It takes concerted effort to look for positives.  But it is possible because "all things are possible with God".

People with a problematic "mental filter" see no good in anything and see no positives even when positives clearly exist.  The problem with this kind of thinking is that positive people get weary of dealing with the negativity.  A negative person who cannot see any positive, takes life to dark extremes.  They live without hope.  They pass on negativity to others wherever they go. It's hard to live with people who think this way.  It's hard to be around them.  It's imperative that we pray for them and ask God to clear their minds and give them hope.  Otherwise, depression becomes their friend and they will live in darkness until God delivers from this oppressive kind of thinking. 

How about you?  Do you know people like this?  What advice can you give to those who must deal with, or live with them?  selahV

WHEN LIFE IS HARD

Sometimes I think I forget Whose I am, and for Whom I live.

It's easy to listen to someone complain and join in with their complaints.  It's easy to be drawn into another's anger, aggravation, and annoyance.  I do it every time I listen to news reports on health-care, politics, and injustice around the world.  The hard thing is to listen and observe all of these things and be encouraging, hopeful, and inspiring.  There's a fine line to empathy.  We must feel another's trial without giving into their despair and claiming ownership to it.  We must identify with it without letting it identify us.  Pity the counselor who allows their clients' problems to become their own.  Overwhelming.

Discouragement leads to despair.  Praising God triggers the joy within my soul.  Dwelling on the goodness of life grounds me and develops an attitude of gratitude for all I have when the world threatens stability.  Remembering all the difficult times God has taken me through is vital to strengthening my faith and increasing my hope.  In remembering, I have concrete times I can pinpoint wherein I personally experienced the faithfulness of God.  I have a rock to stand upon that reminds me I am not alone.

Today brings its own share of difficulties for people I know and love.  Some things are insurmountable.  Some things appear insurmountable.  May God give me the grace I need to be their support and not their stumbling block as I feel their heartache and pain.  May I always point them to the bridge over raging waters that only Christ can be.  selahV  

NO MATTER WHAT, GOD IS MY REFUGE

So many folks I know today are enduring hardships, loss, and illness.  I'm sure you know lots of people who are coping with the same things.  It isn't easy to endure, to persevere.  It isn't much easier to watch our friends and family battle, cope, and keep faith in these situations.  We stumble and search for words to offer; we want to comfort where comfort can only be brought from God. 

All things turn back to our salvation in Christ.  That solitary fact--salvation.  Though thieves of life want to rob us of sleep, peace and security, we still own security.  We have security in the salvation of our Lord.  Nothing can separate us from the hand of our Lord.  Famine, joblessness, nor death...we still have our salvation.  That is our glory.  That is worth more than anything this world offers us or takes away from us.

We feel so weak, so faithless in the darker moments of our struggles.  But our refuge is in God.  He is the Rock--the foundation, the strength we need to make it through the fire, flood and storm.  When the world casts doubt, we trust.  Each day, every moment, at all times, we trust Him to see us through.  We know we cannot rely upon ourselves, which is why we falter in our faith.  We must remember to pour out our heart to Him and let Him know we trust Him.  He knows we are battered.  He knows we are weary.  He knows we are broken.  He is our refuge, our healing place.  He says, "Come unto Me, all ye who are weary and heavy laden."

"In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God. Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah"  Psalm 62:7,8

Leave the burdens of the world--the crushing weight of despair, discouragement, and weariness.  "Come."  selahV

GETTING OVER IT

There is a story of General Robert E. Lee going to a southern state after the Civil War. A lady came out of her house and showed him a mangled tree in her yard. "The Yankees did this with their constant shelling. They thought nothing of my safety or my property."  On and on, she shared her bitterness about the Yankees disfiguring her once beautiful tree. She would not stop, and after what seemed a very long time, she asked General Lee what he thought about it.

Lee said something like, "Lady, just chop down that tree and forget about it."

Do you know someone who clings to the negative things in their past?  They won't let go of those things. There are things folks allow to linger in their minds from childhood that affect how they feel about things as an adult.  Some experiences actually play a part in destroying goals they have or decisions they make.  They're so embittered, they judge all people by the stick of the "Yankees" who shot up their tree.  They cannot see past that experience.  They blame others for all of their problems and find little good in their world.

Today we can do the same thing.  We can take our problems, the rejection, the assaults, the criticism, and think that tomorrow will only be more of the same.  We can think that the world is no different anywhere we go.  We can think that life will only get harder and no matter how much we've endured, the tree in our yard will always be mangled and remind us of the hatred and disregard others had for us.  There are things in our lives we should forget about.  We should get over it, and move on.  It's over.  That may sound harsh. 

And many people are struggling in the freshness of pain.  They do not need to hear it quite this way.  There were times in my life that people told me to "grow up", to "get over it", to "forget about it", and I felt the sting of those words as clearly as I felt the pain I felt from the situation.  I've learned to show more compassion.  I usually say, let go and let God heal you.  Let go and let God take you further.  Let go and let God keep you and hold you in the midst of the storm; let Him lead you into the sunlight.

I have a little epithet by my bathroom mirror:  "Though childhood may have been rough, it is over."  I placed it there to remind me that many things from my childhood could not be changed--that when I was tempted to throw myself a pity-party over the unfairness of life, I was to remember, today is a new day.  Today is my opportunity to right wrongs in the world, to live above the unkindness of my past, and to love where I had been neglected or rejected.  Today is the day that the Lord has made; I will forgive and let God handle yesterday.  I will love and let God be my refuge and strength. 

Do you know someone going through a difficult time?  Someone who is being unfairly attacked or maligned?  Listen to their heartache.  Help them cut down their tree.  But do it slowly, one whack at a time.  Pray with them and love them through it.  selahV

Another word of encouragement you can find here at Devotional Christian

WHY?  at dailyIMPACT

WITHOUT REVENGE  at dailyIMPACT

When Fears Come Knocking, Have Faith in God

Why We Worry

1...Because we take in more negative than positive.  We often begin our days with the morning news or the morning paper.  Little to encourage one in those venues.

2...Because we all face trials and difficulties in life that seem overwhelming at times.  Just when we overcome one obstacle (and sometimes we've not even overcome it), another one pops up.  Hard to think positively when the septic system collapses just after you've been to the grocery and hotdogs have gone up from two to three dollars, and rice has doubled in price.  Big things on top of little things can grate on one's nerves.

3...Because we go from website to website reading the doom and gloom of our government's incompentency.  We see the hypocrisy of leadership in all facets of life.  We spend more time feeding darkness into our minds than Light into our souls.

4...Because we take our eyes off Jesus.  We listen to the lies of Satan.  We will have difficulties in life, but Jesus is with us.  The world is a discouraging place, but it is not our home.  The day may seem riddled with insurmountable odds, but the odds are in our favor as Christians.  We have peace in Christ--activate it by prayer and supplication.  Pray for others.  Pray for more eyes to be opened to the blessings in Christ while living in the futility of life.  Count more blessings than problems.

5...Because we seek first the kingdom of earth and all its unrighteousness instead of seeking "first the kingdom of God and His righteousness."  Our eyes are on the temporal.  Our hearts are on emotional highs, comfort and personal gains.  Our minds are on how we can fix things rather than how God is working in our life through the things we encounter.

6...We worry because we want to.  We'd rather worry than praise.  We'd rather worry than pray.  We'd rather worry than follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  We rather worry than trust in Jehovah Jirah, the Provider.  We'd rather worry than be content "with and without".  We'd rather worry than rejoice.

7...It's the way we are.  And we need to rest in the sufficiency of God's grace.  Not strive in the self-suffiency of our abilities, skills, intellect, logic and reason.  God is a God of miracles.  God is a God over impossibilities.  God is a God over chaos.  He has overcome it all.  He knows exactly what is happening in our lives.  We need to trust He has our best interests in mind--even when we think He doesn't.

"Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."  Mattew 6:33.

WHEN FEAR COMES KNOCKING, HAVE FAITH IN GOD 

WHAT MORE CAN I DO?

Sometimes I have no clue what more I can do.  I want to fix a situation.  I can't.  I want to change--but I cannot.  I long to make things better.  It gets worse.  I want to know what more I can do.  I feel as though I disappoint more than I please.  I pray more.  Yet, the struggle to take the next step seems so difficult.  To breathe takes so much effort.

My heart cries, "Higher; climb higher.  See?  The crest is just a bit higher."

My mind whispers, "Don't grow weary."

My body screams, "I can't go on."

And then the Spirit within me calls, "Come.  Come here and rest."  But even rest is hard.  It's hard to sit still when so much needs doing...so much needs fixing...so many need encouraging.  Then I remember.  I am a branch, I'm not the roots in search of sustaining power.  I am not the Vine--the strength, the support.  I am merely a branch.  I do not even hold on to the Vine.  It holds me.  And from the Vine flows sustaining life to produce the fruit the Vine so desires.  I have nothing more to do than to dwell in Him.  selahV

SOMETIMES IT BAFFLES ME

Since July 31st I haven't written a post here (excluding the near-nothing previously posted).  Wow!  That's 11 days!!  Thanks to all who continued to read me and search my archives.  Bless your hearts!  Thanks for your emails of concern.  I'm humbled that you read me regularly.  I just couldn't get my muse to work together in my brain, my spirit, my heart and soul.  Yet, the entire time my blog remained void of my near-daily opines, commiserations, and laments, I have rejoiced.  And sometimes that baffles me.

Though a dark spirit chained my power to think with clarity, I saw light in the shadows of my heart.  Though assaulted by verbiage that challenged my every positive view, my mind praised God for all He is and Who He is in the evil of this world.  Though my trust in others is strangled by skepticism, my hope in the integrity of Christians grows and lives.

A study I'm doing in 1 Thessalonians 5:15-22 clarifies, to me, how it is possible to go through the darkness, pessimism, negativity and pain of daily living.  I'm going to do a series of posts on what God is showing me.  Maybe it will give encouragement to someone else.  First up:  "REJOICE"

"REJOICE ALWAYS!" vs. 16

Why should I rejoice when the prince of this world controls and seeks to destroy every iota of peace and joy I have on this earth?  Why should I rejoice when the clutches of death attempts to choke the very seed of hope lodged in my heart?  Why should I rejoice when I'm troubled on every side? 

The Spirit and God's Word tells me why.  The world belongs to Jesus--His death and resurrection has overcome the world.  God has made His enemies His footstool.  The Cross crushed the serpent's head.  It's so amazing to me that, ultimately, battles are swallowed up in Victory.  Victory in Christ.

Yet you might ask, "rejoice?"  How, when I have no idea how I'm going to pay my mortgage.  How, when I've just buried my son?  How, when I lost my job?  How, when the church I attend seems so cold and lifeless?  How, when my country is so divided?  How, when I'm dry and dead spiritually?  Ah...that's the whole point in the above verse and ones to follow.

Sometimes I'm baffled because my heart cannot let go of the joy I have in Jesus.  I suppose it is because I am so in awe of all Christ is and how much greater He is than all my problems.  He is my strength in my weakest moments.  He is my hope in my deepest fears.  He is my provision in my greatest lack.  He is my peace in my most unsettling confusion.  He is my refuge in my hardest storms.  He is my protector in hateful assaults.  Jesus.  How can I not rejoice always, when I own so much in my Savior and Lord?

In the midst of my darkest hours, He is my Light.  So I rejoice; I am not alone in despair.  I am not without someone who lifts me up when I slip and fall.  So I rejoice; my Lord is able.  When my faith wavers in the continual flow of waves that seek to push me back and pull me under, I have a faithful God.  So I rejoice in His promises.  Jesus is my all in all.  He keeps me, defends me, protects me, guides me, sustains me, and someday will come back and bring me into His holy presence forever and ever.  And I am baffled sometimes because He is far more worthy than I can ever credit Him.  selahV

EVER FEEL LIKE A ROLEY-POLEY?

The other day my webhost asked one of those Barbara-Walters' questions:  If you could be any animal in the world, what would it be and why?   I couldn't think of a single animal I'd want to be other than maybe a gazelle.  And only because they can run so fast and move so quickly.  That's the "old" portion of me fantasizing new cartilage and tendons that react on command.

I do, however, know what kind of insect I'd like to be.  They are rather ugly little creatures.  Gray ovals of multiple teeney legs that scoot along the surface of cool places.  They can often be found hiding beneath an old log, or under a rock.  Lately I feel I could enjoy being a roley-poley.  I could curl up into a little ball until some sweet child comes along and puts me in the center of her friendly warm palm.  Then I'd unfurl and crawl all over her hand and enjoy the giggles and happiness she has in her heart.  I could revel in the fact of just being "me" and being loved for exactly who I am.

That is similar to how I feel about the days of discouragement and the moments of disillusionment I have with people who have little to no regard for another person's feelings.  I see folks treat each other with less kindness than they do their cocker spaniels, and I naturally recoil at the sight.  I'm so glad that the Lord comes along and picks me up and puts me in the palm of His hand and lets me revel in the joy He gives--the mercy and forgiveness.  His steadfast love gives me heart for the dregs of life.  And in Him only do I trust to unfurl and relax.  selahV

IMPRISONED AND SET FREE

In Christ we have all we need to meet the circumstances that seem to imprison our souls and manacle us to our past.  Abuse.  Addictions.  Abandonment.  Betrayals.  In Christ we are set free to praise, to live under grace and receive the greatest joy.  Jesus gives us that choice--to live victoriously.

"At the bottom of a Philippian prison cell sat Paul and Silas. With mangled bodies and emotional torment they began to pray. Soon their spirits were raptured into the presence of the Ancient of Days. The joy of their spirits conquered the agony of their bodies and weariness of their souls. Before long they broke into a symphony of praise.

In the darkness of their trial Paul and Silas praised God. And their gospel-centered lives experienced LIFE. Their bonds were loosed – doors were opened - and morning was soon to dawn on a very dark night. As we live the gospel-centered life we are prosperous. And in our darkest hours, we can praise God for the coming morn."  Dr. Brad Reynolds, Guardian Ministries

What imprisons you today?  What bars surround your heart and soul?  Break free and sing.  Sing a new song.  A song of praise, because God is good.

Blessed is He among all generations.  Blessed is He in the darkest of hours.  Blessed is He in the tremors of earth.  Blessed is He in the fire of pain.  Blessed is He in the hatred of man.  Blessed is He in the most violent of storms.  Blessed is He.  Blessed is He Who has overcome the world.  His Truth will set you free.  And you will be free, indeed.  selahV

FEASTING ON THE BETTER THINGS

Nine times out of ten when asking someone how they are, they will say, "Fine.  Good.  Doing okay."  And to be honest, the majority of the time, folks are fairlly fine, basically doing good or okay.  Though problems are in their lives, they do their best to rise above them.  They determine to face the day with as much grace as they can muster.  They do not let the world know their mental battles, the physical struggles, or the wars they have spiritually.

Anyone can be negative, annoying and disgruntled.  Anyone can focus on all that goes wrong in a day.  It's easy to grumble, murmur, and complain.  It's common to see the dark spot on the pristine wall and notice its flaw.  But it is not the better portion of one's life to dwell on the annoyances or turmoil. 

"All the days of the desponding and afflicted are made evil [by anxious thoughts and forebodings], but he who has a glad heart has a continual feast [regardless of the circumstances]."  Proverbs 15:15 Amplified.

Anxiety weighs us down.  Affliction can wear us down.  Why is it that some people have as many problems, or more than others, and manage to see the vast amount of goodness surrounding the bad?  The person who manages to do this is sometimes called an optimist.  But not everyone is an optimist by nature.  Proverbs says, "he who has a glad heart has a continual feast".  A glad heart--a heart focused, not on oneself--but Jesus Himself, has a continual feast.  We don't have unceasing praise for life--we have unceasing praise for the Life Giver.  Jesus has overcome the world and all its anxieties, its heartache, its sorrow.  In Christ is redemption.  Forgiveness.  Sanctification.  Righteousness.  Freedom.  Eternal life.  Constant, continual presence of His Spirit.  Peace.  Reconciliation.  Counting our blessings in Him gives us the glad heart we need to face "all the days" meant for evil.  God makes them for good.  selahV

WHEN LIFE AIN'T A SLIDING BOARD

Is your life easy?  I'm not talking about easy in comparison to someone else's.  I'm talking about your day being a slip down the playground slide--slick and smooth with a soft-sand landing at the end.  No problems.  If your life is a series of those kind of days, then more power to you.  You can stop reading now, go get your comic strips, put your feet up and just "be happy". 

For most folks, though, life is not all sunshine and roses; it ain't a sliding board.  Life is fraught with trials, problems, chaos, crisis, and upheavals.  Just start in Genesis and read through Revelation.  It's only in a brief couple of chapters that we find complete paradise.  No one is exempt from the difficulty of life.  None of us.  It can be as annoying as the smallest rock in our shoe to living with an abusive parent.  It can be as simple as an illness that causes us to miss a paycheck, to as frightening as losing a job.  No matter how difficult we find the climb in our own lives, we can always look around and see someone else who has a far greater mountain.  We can take courage when we see them endure, overcome or persevere.

God never intended it to be so difficult.  Life began in paradise and everything was perfect.  Man's decision to sin set in motion a world filled with darkness and trouble.  Over and over again we read the difficulty people faced from then on.  Even the most holy of people faced difficulty.  But with each difficulty came opportunity for man to turn to God for strength, wisdom and hope.  Today, God offers us His Son to cleanse us from all sin.  He gives us his Spirit to help carry our load.  In Christ we are no longer alone in a desert place.  He keeps us in the center of peace when we focus on Him and trust Him to take us through those difficult times.  He gives us other Christians to help shoulder burdens and encourage one another.

When my granddaughter, Kinsey, climbs the slide, she likes to have me stand at the bottom to catch her when she comes down.  She has more confidence to let go knowing I am there.  That's what God does for us when we look to Him in confidence.  He is always with us to keep us through the perils and trials.

And the best part of life is that we can be the ones to help others face those times.  We can be used to hold others up in prayer.  To visit the troubled.  To offer words of encouragement.  To share Jesus.  Can you think of someone who has helped you through a difficult time--someone who's been at the end of your slide?  Wasn't it a blessing?  It's been that way for me.  No matter how hard my situation is, God has always brought someone into my life to help me, to counsel, inspire, motivate and build me up.  To undergird me.  That fuels me to be someone for another.  How about you?  selahV

   

JESUS SAID...

"The sheep that are My own

hear

and are listening

to My voice; and I know them,

and they

follow Me. " John 10:27

Do you hear?  Are you listening?  To His voice, or to others?  Are you following Him?  Or the winds of doctrine, the changing culture, the whims and desires of your own ways?  

He will come after you, you know?  He will not let you wander off alone.  He will bring you home.  No matter where He finds you.  And He will carry you until you can stand, and listen, and follow Him when you hear His voice.  selahV

THE DAY AFTER A STORM

We can probably all give testimony of times we've faced emotional storms.  We can share the heartache we've felt when falsely accused, wrongfully used, or verbally abused.  No one is exempt from trials the world delivers as we walk through this space in time called life.  Some of these storms hit us in the midst of an ordinary day, in an ordinary way, and then move on as quickly as they strike.  Sometimes we're left alone to pick up the pieces from things others have caused.  Sometimes we find ourselves wondering where to begin.  It's in these times, as Believers, we can stop and rest in our Savior's presence.  Where flesh fails, the Spirit prevails.  We can give Him the pain, the sadness, the brokenness--our weakness.  And He will take it from us and cast it far beyond our memory.  Then He will transform that which is destroyed into a new day.  And we will walk on, in an extraordinary way.

"In a sense, believers can be happier after their trials because the greatest joy is realized when you contrast that joy with the greatest sorrow.  No calm is any more evident than that which follows a storm.  The sunshine that follows a dreary rainy day is all the brighter.  Even so, the peace that follows crisis and tragedy is sweet, deep, and wonderful beyond description.  You become rich through losses; you will be lifted up after your falls; you will fill your cup only after you have emptied it; you will find life abundantly only after dying yourself."  Dr. Dorothy Patterson, A HANDBOOK FOR MINISTERS' WIVES

Perhaps today you will find that calm in an extraordinary way...after the storm has passed you by.  selahV

[copyrighted, 2009, selahVToday, hariette petersen]

STAYING POSITIVE IN A NEGATIVE WORLD

It ain't easy.

I try to recall scripture that gives me hope.  I lie in my hammock, look up into the blue sky and breathe deeply.  I switch channels on the television and hit the mute button when someone comes on that is absolutely ridiculous in their viral spew.  I don't watch manipulatively written or produced reality shows such as Survivor or Big Brother.  Recently I have done my best to stay totally clear of all blogs which serve up post after post of negative bile.  I usually never read the comment sections.  If I make it past the title, and then the first few sentences spit in my face or the face of someone I care about, I click off and move on.  Then I take a minute or two and have a conversation with God and ask Him to clear my brain of all the negative garbage I've read.

I love to click on a couple of sites that always, and I do mean always, have a positive thought on Jesus and ministry.  And very often these same sites have wonderful Christian music playing as I read them.

I've been spending alot of time meditating on those things which are most important to me.  My husband.  My family.  A few friends.  And my life in Christ.  I love to peruse photographs and recall the moment I snapped that shot and the joy going on at the time.

I've been doing my best to see the white side of black and rest in the promises of God.  And what time my mind is stayed on Him, I truly am at perfect peace.  How about you?  What are you doing to stay positive in this negative world?  selahV 

JUST IN CASE YOU MISSED IT....

A WEEKEND REVIEW IN REVERSE:

Okay, I thought I'd try something different with my daily devotional thoughts.  Sometimes folks do not even realize I have this site.  And while I am planning to change it completely and give it a domain of its own, I thought I'd try to publish a weekly recap for you each week. And each devotional can be read by simply clicking on the photo beside each date.  Hope this helps give you an easier all-in-one access to what God has placed on my heart for this particular day.

FRIDAY, August 15th, 08. 

WE DO NOT NEED TO BEG GOD. 

Do we?

 

THURSDAY, August 14th, 08. 

ARE YOU TEMPTED TO JUDGE?  Occasionally?

   

WEDNESDAY, August 13th, 2008. 

WOULD I HAVE PRAISED HIM MORE? 

Could I?

 

TUESDAY, August 12th, 2008. 

WHEN MINISTERS WEEP...

what happens?  is it good for others?

will it help your church, our country?

MONDAY, August 11th, 2008. ESSENTIAL TO DO EVERY DAY...

what's that to you? 

SUNDAY, August 10th, 2008.

HAVE YOU GOT THE RIGHT SPIRIT?

Do others around you?      

SATURDAY, August 9th, 2008.

A BROKEN SPIRIT, A PURPOSEFUL PRAYER

Ever felt broken, despairing with no place to turn?  Ever wonder why?   

WEDNESDAY, August 13th, 2008. 

WOULD I HAVE PRAISED HIM MORE? 

Could I?