SelahV Today by hariette petersen

Serenity

The state of being serene.

Calm.

Placid.

Without stress?  Oh no.  Not at all. 

You see; the world manufactures stress on a 24/7 basis.  It never stops churning up waves, tides, winds, storms, battles, wars, rumors, illness, viruses, and disease.

Life lives and dies with bacterial growth. Good and bad reside within us...each striving to keep the other at bay...each vying for control.

Life flows to each inch of our veins by the beat, beat, beat of a heart muscle.  As tough as the heart is, the tiniest infection can interrupt its rhythm. To determine its health, doctors give a "stress" test.  The better we do under the greatest of stress, the more commendable result is diagnosed.

Can we handle the truth?  Yes, we can. And we can rest in the serenity of God's watch care and grace in the face of famine, turmoil, lions, fire, earthquakes and even death.  We can sleep in the midst of a storm.  We can face giants and know our aim is sure, our future is already secured in Christ.

"What time I am afraid, I will put my trust in Thee." ~Psalm 56:3  

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth Thee." ~Isaiah 26:3

"In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety." ~Psalm 4:8
      SERENITY...ah, yes.

 

Related articles

When the Future Is in Doubt

When You Dwell In Jesus

"Even When It Hurts..."

God sees what we cannot

And when we least expect it, God brings things into our lives to fuel us, empower us and strengthen us. Sometimes He mixes yesterday with today to give us exactly what we need to step into tomorrow.

Today as I sat amid piles and piles of paperwork, trying to get a list compiled for our insurance company regarding the losses in our recent robbery, I felt discombobulated.  Ever felt discombobulated? My stepmother use to say that all the time when she felt totally perplexed and helpless to meet the challenges before her.

It was mind boggling trying to remember when items were purchased that were stolen. It was exhausting rummaging through boxes and drawers trying to find information about my belongings to put on the list. It was frustrating that I couldn't remember the exact model of things I owned and used every single day.

As I pressed forward in my searches, I wondered why the man with whom I set up an appointment for a quote to replace my damaged doors, had not shown up... had not even called to say why.  I wondered why another contractor had not called me back.  I wondered why the security company I called never returned my call.

Then a lovely Corrie ten Boom quote came to mind, "Every experience God gives you, every person He places in your life, is the perfect preparation for the future, that only He can see." 

I can't see the future.  I can't know why people fail to do what they say, or the reason for complexities in life. I don't know why a complete stranger would choose my home to pillage and destroy.  But God can. And God does. And I take comfort in that.

Not long after that quote came to mind, my doorbell rang. Expecting to see the man with whom I'd made the appointment to fix my doors, I was surprised to discover my pastor standing on my porch. He'd come to encourage me, to pray with me, and also to deliver a love gift from some unknown person. Such a humbling, sweet God-sent surprise.

A little while later, as I rummaged through a box in the garage, I came across a little group of cards my son had sent me years ago. One was sooo funny. He told me how great I was in every way, yet never could throw a "knuckleball". The sweetest one talked about how "as moms we know how to support each other".  It was a Mother's Day card from 2004 in which he wrote, "Thank you for helping and showing me how to be a lil' mom in the dad that I am.  However things turn out with my time shared with my girls, I owe it all to you. Love you mom, Chadder." 

Isn't it amazing, that in the midst of all my aggravation with the robbery, because of the robbery, I found some cards I had tucked away that my son had given me so long ago? and those very cards came forth today to lift my spirits? to give me worth? Indeed, Every experience we have, God will use again and again to move us ever onward to the goal He's set before us.

When We Are Attacked We Need Jesus Even More

There are times when we can be so overwhelmed by what others think of us, we lose sight of what God thinks of us.  When our spirit is crushed by the actions of others, the betrayals, the misunderstandings, the irreconcilable differences, we fall prey to a kind of inward journey of heartache.  That is not what our Father in Heaven wants for us.  He wants us to be ever focused upon Himself.  He's given us His Spirit to encourage and strengthen and comfort us.  We are never alone.

When discord enters our lives through friend or foe, family or stranger, we can be assured that they are in our lives for a divine reason.

"The one thing for which we are all being disciplined is to know that God is real.  As soon as God becomes real, other people become mere shadows.  Nothing that other saints do or say can ever perturb the one who is built on the real God.  'In all the world, my God, there is none but Thee, there is none but Thee.'"  Oswald Chambers, So I Send You, 1930

Would that we remember that we are more than conquerors through Him Who has ascertained our victory with life.  Would that we rest in His never-changing, all-sufficient grace.  Would that we look beyond ourselves and into our Savior's face.

Related articles

Living for Jesus In a Broken World

How to Be at Peace

Take Heart Dear Christian Blogger, Baker, Business Owner

There's hope.

With all the discussion of religious discrimination, bigotry, hatred, and abuse of government power today, a Christian can feel pretty lonely. We see citizens targeted for their beliefs, and their businesses destroyed. We have critics who try to silence our voices as we defend other Christians.  We have politicians and legislators who block attempts for our right to educate and raise our own children. And these say nothing of the everyday battles we each fight individually with health, finances and relationships. 

I find it expedient and necessary to share a few words of encouragement for Christians to consider from God's sanctified author said here:

"For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, 'THE REPROACHES OF THOSE WHO REPROACHED YOU FELL ON ME.' For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." Romans 15:3-6 NASB [Emboldened & italics mine.]

God knew we Christians would face a day like today wherein issues such as these would create firestorms of controversy with social and political pressures. He forewarned us. God wanted Christians to know that through perseverance and encouragement of Scriptures, we could come to calming conclusions for our heart, mind and soul. In Him there is "hope". He also knew we'd need the help of our brothers and sisters, so he added a prayer for us to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus so that we'd have one voice to glorify our Father in heaven.

Do we have one voice?  We truly need it if we plan to glorify Christ.  What a difference we could make in our world if we all stood together, shoulder to shoulder for all Christian hearts and lives.  I do not know what difficulties you face today, perhaps a battle that seems lost-- or a future that looks bleak. But I do know that the MOST HIGH GOD knows your situation and HE will protect you when you look to Him.  He watches over us wherein our leaders fail and our country falters.  Look to the encouragement of Scripture and receive hope. God's Word is sure.

Complaining --What is it good for?

Complain.  Complain.  Complain. Lately, it seems that's all I've done with some of my closer friends (and some of them with me).

Sure.  We also shared some good stuff.  I shared how I made it through a bunch of aggravating situations.  I praised God for lots of hurdles I cleared, and trials I endured.  I even bounced up and down like one of those bouncy balls my grandkids get for a quarter in the bubble-gum machines in restaurant lobbies.  I shared lots of good stuff... the mini-miracles.  the hope.  the way I thought God was moving me forward and upward.  HOWEVER...

when I sit back and think about some of the conversations I've had of late, I am ashamed.  I am ashamed that I haven't encouraged more than shared discouragement.  I know when I am caught in a spiral of downward motion.  Sometimes it feels like I'm watching myself from above...like I do when I watch the sink drain and smut go down a garbage disposal.  Only, with me, the smut seems to keep on swirling and gets stuck inside my heart and throat.

Complaining not only ruins everybody else's day, it ruins the complainer's day, too. The more we complain, the more unhappy we get.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/complaining.html#lA0rpkyTOdIIS3e9.99

Complaining not only ruins everybody else's day, it ruins the complainer's day, too. The more we complain, the more unhappy we get.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/complaining.html#lA0rpkyTOdIIS3e9.99

Sometimes we call it "venting".  I grant you, there is a time when we need to vent. It's healthy.  It's therapeutic.  Experts agree:

"In our society, we're supposed to smile and have a nice day and pretend everything's OK even when it's not. That's unreal," says Barbara Held, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at Bowdoin College. She believes that this emphasis on always seeing the bright side can encourage people to mask their unhappiness and swallow their gripes-but that can be toxic. "It's important to learn how to tell friends and family when you're upset-if you don't, you end up alone in your pain. Complaints can be healing".

But habitual venting is addictive.  It eats at your soul and robs your spirit of hope and peace. It's also annoying.  While some folks may be sponges for our ire and angst, even sponges have their limits to capacity before they leak out all over the place.

"Unhealthy complainers bellyache to anyone who crosses their path and don't pick up on people's cues that they've had their fill of negativity. "Chronic complainers get stuck in victim mode, and that irritates the people around them," says Cunningham. Plus, these types love to talk but rarely listen. "They'll take hours of your time telling you their problems--then they reject your help and don't take one piece of advice you give them," says Kowalski.

Bad complainers are annoying at best, depressing at worst. They spread negativity and give griping a bad name."* 

Friends, there's so much more to life than complaining.  There's more to friendship than sharing the downs simply because we're down.  And when we get into a habit of sharing those blues and blahs and yucks and mucks, the mire turns to putrid quicksand.  It is bound to grab hold of us and stick to our spirit and mind. It's bound to weigh us down and keep us looking down rather than looking up. I'm learning who is interested in my joys, my convictions-- those who encourage me when I tell them how I'm trying to move forward. 

"There are times in life when, instead of complaining, you do something about your complaints." Rita Dove

"Chronic complainers" drone on and on; they don't take any advice given to them.  They don't take well to encouragement.  I don't want to be like that. Not long ago I was driving down the road and whining to God about a particular person in my life who I desperately wanted to know my love and accept me for who I was. Then it hit me.  "Lord, how do you put up with it?  I am telling You about one person in my life who is like millions You deal with every day, all the time.  Forgive me."

I have some folks who "vent" and share their burdens with me; I can easily hear their hearts.  I don't have a problem listening to them.  They not only vent, they appreciate encouragement--they covet my prayers.  These are not chronic complainers. Scripture tells us, "Carry one another's burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." Galatians 6:2.

I want to be the person who not only shares and cares about the burdens and difficulties of others.  I want to make a difference in their lives for Christ.  If all I do is commiserate with them, I'm no help; I'm a hindrance.  I have feet of clay.  I need to bow out of their lives and let God connect them with someone who lifts them up and stirs them on.  When God shows me my folly, I must aim higher.  "I look unto the hills from whence cometh my help.  My help cometh from the LORD."  It's time to point others to the One who makes the difference. "Lord, lift us up."

[ *quotes from WebMd article.]

Trust Carefully My Friends

People are fallible.  Only One is infallible. 

Only One is worthy of all trust. In sickness or in health.  In poverty or wealth.  In sorrow or in joy.  In fear or in confidence.  The LORD is forever steadfast and trustworthy in all things.  Yes...HE IS. 

He is the Great I Am.  The Eternal Day.  The Perpetual Peace.  In Him is all understanding, empathy, and hope. 

Bask in His presence, my friends.  He has all the answers.  He knows all things.  He is your Anchor.  In Him is the peace that passes all understanding.  Trust in Him and lean not unto yourself.  He is your advocate.  He sits at the right hand of God and makes intercession for you even at this moment.

We are weak and He is strong.  His strength is made perfect in our weakness.  Surrender that load, that burden, that heartache.  He bids you come. 

"Come unto me all you who are weak and heavy laden...and I will give you rest." 

If you know Jesus as personal Lord and Savior, then you are already righteous.  You are already set aside and separated from that which is evil.  You are a child of the King --The Most High God-- and you are merely biding time on this journey home to share eternity with Him.  Rest.  Rest.  Rest. selahV

Places High and Low With God

Charles Spurgeon gives us insight into the high places and low places where we walk with God.  There is never a moment that HE does not keep us when we trust in Him.  Sometimes I worry about my grandson and his free-spirited nature.  He loves life.  He lives it to the fullest.  Nights like tonight, sometimes I wake up and think of him and all he does.  He's worked some 20 days straight--6 a.m. to 6 p.m.  He now starts a shift working from 2 a.m. to 2 p.m.  He's young.  Yet, it concerns me that he is not getting proper rest and that his diet of burgers and fries may not be the sustaining foods he needs for energy.  When I woke up tonight, he was on my mind and so I prayed for him as he is working.

Then I went to my facebook and saw photos of his Sunday afternoon relaxation with his fiance and friends.  It was like God was telling me not to worry.  That all life was in HIS hands and He was watching over my grandson.  As he heads into each adventure (and you can bet his life is one non-stop adventure), I am at peace.  I added some verses to his photos.  That speak to his future.

Below is a devotional from Charles Spurgeon which I found profoundly fitting that came in my email today:

"The LORD God is my strength, and He will make my feet like hind's feet, and He will make me to walk upon mine high places"  Habakkuk 3:19

 This confidence of the man of God is tantamount to a promise, for that which faith is persuaded of is the purpose of God. The prophet had to traverse the deep places of poverty and famine, but he went down hill without slipping, for the LORD gave him standing. By and by he was called to the high places of the hills of conflict; and he was no more afraid to go up than to go down.

See! The LORD lent him strength. Nay, Jehovah Himself was his strength. Think of that: the almighty God Himself becomes our strength!Note that the LORD also gave him surefootedness. The hinds leap over rock and crag, never missing their footholds.

Our LORD will give us grace to follow the most difficult paths of duty without a stumble. He can fit our foot for the crags so that we shall be at home where apart from God we should perish.One of these days we shall be called to higher places still. Up yonder we shall climb, even to the mount of God, the high places where the shining ones are gathered. Oh, what feet are the feet of faith, by which, following the hind of the morning, we shall ascend into the hill of the LORD!

 

Endings, Beginnings and Stuff In Between

As 2012 fades and makes way for 2013, I think how blessed I am to have lived another year and look forward to the opportunity to celebrate a new one.  Each day is a gift, each moment.  Even the moments I wish I could have left unwrapped, those are gifts, too.  They built faith; they taught tolerance.  They strengthened. 

I ended my love affair with space and collections and many expectations.  I made room in my mind for less of life's clutter and more of life's simplicity.  I replaced tangibles with  intangibles.  I witnessed the restoration of relationships... such a good thing.  I experienced the joy of meeting new people.  Was blessed again and again by old friends, family and God.

Today I find myself enjoying more of the simple things in life.  A giggle, a hug, a smile, a walk in the woods, the memory of a family celebration.  First tooth loss, first home purchase, engagement, new jobs, first band concert. 

As I look back on 2012, there are some conversations I regret.  Yet, many conversations I memorized and locked inside my heart.  It's okay to let go of some things in life.  It's okay to end things.  Every ending gives birth to a beginning-- beginnings that are not always comfortable, familiar, or typical of yesterday.  Every sunset falls asleep in the arms of God to awaken to the sunrise of a new day.  The darkness of every new moon grows into the light of a fresh full moon.  We fill all the hours and days in between with the stuff life is made of... the sorrow, the love, the grief, the joy.  Amid the disappointments and trials, we also find surprises, triumphs and victories, if...

...if we open the doors and look for them.

So, as you think about last year, do not dwell too long in moments which ended in regret or sadness.  Close the door on them.  Consider those moments you found beautiful, and those moments and hours filled with laughter, goodness and love.  Savor those.  They will carry you through all the stuff between each ending and lend you hope to begin again.  selahV

A Few Thoughts OR Many...

are always limited.  They are flawed. 

My thoughts, no matter how lofty, grand, or loving--they are never enough to meet the least of God's thoughts.

 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways my ways,”

declares the Lord.

 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9

Ultimately, even the most sacrificial thoughts I have still need God's purifying touch. The most descriptive word, the most profound phrase, the most knowledgeable statement I utter is nonsense in comparison to the wisdom of God.  Each of my acts, no matter how kind, generous, or merciful, are far less than the perfection of God's.  In this I know, it is God who seeks the best for others.  It is God who reaches beyond the stars, above the universe, and whispers this earth into being.  His word will never come back empty...void...without power.  His thoughts will reign higher than the great beyond man seeks to explore.  And for all this I am grateful to know that life is not up to me, struggles are not mine to fix, questions are not mine to answer, turmoil is not mine to still.  In Christ I have my peace...in Him I rest.  selahV

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

When It Seems Futile

Sometimes we look at the world around us and we see brokenness, bitterness and apathy.  We see people walking city streets who seem oblivious to others around them.  Sometimes we are those people.  Sometimes our world is so consumed with our own thoughts, needs, struggles and trials that all we see is desolation and hopelessness.  We are blind to others.  We think we are the only ones in the world who have such difficulty.

That is not true.  It's a devil's lie that is whispered in our ears so much that all we can hear is his words of gloom and doom.  All we can see is the futility and hopelessness.

Are we dead?  Are we without breath?  Have our hearts stopped beating?  Have our muscles atrophied?  Are our bones dry and brittle?  If you are reading this then the answer is no.  Listen to the Spirit of God within you.  Heed the conviction of His voice.  Ignore the lies of the evil one.  God knows where you are and what you are going through.  He sees the other side of day.  His has the power to bring even dry bones to life.  Remember Ezekiel?

"Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live." Ezekiel 37:4-5

Just as God will cause breath to enter the dead and bring them to life, He is with you to bring life to your spirit, to kindle a fire in your heart, to jumpstart your mind, to remove the scales of doubt from your eyes, to show you the joy on the other side of sorrow.  He is never beyond the futility of man.  He is God.  Mountains are molehills to Him.  Grand Canyons are sidewalk cracks.  Ocean waves are but ripples in a pond. Be comforted, my friend.  Fear not.  The Lord is with you; He is your refuge. He is your strength. He is life amid destruction and death.  "Behold", He "will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live."  selahV

Fear Not

There are 365 "Fear Nots" in the Bible, one for every day of the year. I heard a preacher say that yesterday. I can't remember which preacher. I listened to several on television because I couldn't go to church.  I didn't look it up in my Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, so I cannot confirm this is true.  But I loved the idea of getting up every day and reading a "fear not" from God's Word.

I suppose there are many folks who could use those two words whispered to them each day.  The battered wife, the abused child, the homeless teen, the soldier in a foreign country, the orphaned child, the widowed woman, the man who just lost his job, the family who lost their home, the movie-goers in Aurora, Colorado.  "Fear not, for I am with you, even to the end of the age."

Frightening situations come to each of us.  We may not be in a war zone, or most likely never found ourselves on the front row of a movie theatre when a madman goes berserk with an automatic weapon.  We may never be in a tornado, hurricane or tsunami.  However we each have found ourselves in fearful moments of earthquake proportion.  We've had problems that rocked our worlds, destroyed relationships, and threatened our way of living.  We each found ourselves on the firing-line of life which left us quivering with doubt and palpitating hearts.  Our Lord told us we'd even be persecuted because of our faith in Him.  Yet, He told us, "Fear not."

Fear not the evil one who seeks to steal your peace.  Fear not the world which seeks to fill your days and nights with insecurity.  Fear not the circumstance before you which promises nothing but chaos and destruction.  Fear not.

God is bigger than all our problems.  Jesus has overcome the world.  Greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world.  Be strong and courageous.  Stand and face the day with the assurance that God is your refuge, Christ is your Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit is your guide.  If God is for us, who can be against us?  Fear not, my friends.  Fear not.  selahV

DO YOU HAVE WHAT I HAVE?

It's a blessing worth more than anything I've owned throughout nearly five and a half decades.  It's more comforting than a mother's love.  It's more validating than a father's approval, or an employer's commendation.  It's worth more than all the silver and gold a person or country could accumulate.  It's one of the benefits of faith.

I have peace with God.

Anyone can have this peace.  We who are Believers know, firsthand, this "peace that passes all understanding".  The calm amid the storms.  The stillness in a turmoil.  I've done nothing to earn peace.  It's a gift from God to all who turn to Him in faith and rest in Christ.

1Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God." Romans 5:1-2

Peace does not eliminate struggle, difficulty, obstacles, and turmoil on this old earth. The prince of this world brings nothing but destruction and despair and confusion.  But peace gives us the ability to rest in God's ability to provide and keep us in the midst of those things.  We are enabled to rejoice because we have overcome the world through Jesus.

3Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us."  Romans 5:3-5

I am quite content with my lot in life.  And my "lot" is not a very big lot, nor a very valuable lot, nor a very prestigious lot, nor a very coveted lot, nor the best manicured lot.  But with my lot, I am at peace.  I am okay with the place in which I find myself today, and look forward to what God has in store for me each day.  If I am here on this old earth to share anything, it is to share Jesus and encourage others in the peace, joy, and hope we have in His grace.  selahV

Because Of A Bunch of Self-centered, Self-saturated, Rebellious, Pride-Dominated, Arrogant and Angry People

that God so loved...

a virgin named Mary

found favor in His sight

and conceived His only begotten Son, that whosoever

believed in Him, he would have everlasting life.

Believed in Him?  Yes...

whosoever believed His words and relied upon His words, and heeded His words, and confessed with their lips that He is Lord...then...

no matter how snarky, arrogant, mean, bitter, angry, abusive, self-centered, self-saturated, rebellious and pride-filled person he was, or is, he will be saved and Christ will begin a work in him that is beyond miraculous and never ever leave him alone.  He will be made totally and completely perfect.  Forever and forever and forever, he will dwell in Christ and receive a reward when He returns to earth to gather His people unto Himself.  selahV

Revisiting WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS...

I return to my roots and...

I SURRENDER...

My inabilities.

My expectations.

My weaknesses.

My capabilities.  My failures and my needs.

I surrender all of me.  All to Jesus.

I take all my talents which He has so richly given to me and lay them at His feet.  I yield all my gifts to His divine control.  I abandon my preconceived ideas of what He expected of me when I fail to see results.

I wave the white flag and give Him all that I am--the dregs of my endeavors.

He takes my dregs and casts them into His heavenly compost heap and adds some heat to the dung of my offerings.  In time, He takes a seed of His own choosing from that dung and helps me put to death my own desires to sprout and bloom with dreams of becoming a rose without a thorn.  With His own breath my death gives way to life and in the paths of others who demand I bloom as they desire, I burst forth as a thistle in the wind.  Attached upon my stem a banner waves of all He seeks of me and all I can become in the meadow of His choice and design.  A white flag--shaded blue--in honor of His royal purpose for me, I give to thee this day, my readers.   selahV

This post is slightly edited today and dedicated in honor of all who seek to know my Lord through the words I write, in my hope of bringing glory to His name.  It is my prayer that eyes which see this rendering will know the heart of my words and the hope I see in Jesus Christ my Lord.

[For further posts of which I find most joy in writing and purpose in publishing go [email protected], and [email protected]...and [email protected]'Matters]  [first written and copyrighted, on February 1, 2008 by selahV Today]

I Am Not Alone...

When Arrows Come

and pierce my soul...and I am mocked...I am not alone... [continue reading HERE.]

A Stranger In My House

It sounds like some stranger is living inside me when I talk.  Who is that person?  She could sing bass for the Oak Ridge Boys.  

Will the real me ever return?  That is debatable.  Each morning my husband says good morning, and the woman who replies to him sounds more like Suzanne Pleshette than me.  Actually, I kinda like my lower voice-- if it wasn't quite so manly.  Would love to keep that raspy Suzanne Pleshette effect if it didn't come with so many other annoyances.  When I cough, it feels like someone is pulling my brains out through my left temple.  I guess that's one way to get my attention.

Perhaps it is a good thing to have a stranger in our houses at time.  It causes us to slow down and give more attention to details we rarely notice.  Sometimes we take for granted the everyday blessing of health.  We forget how blessed we are to think clearly, to speak without effort, to laugh without setting off a jack-hammer coughing fit.  Intrusions give us a deeper appreciation of normal.  Of routine.  Of balance.

I don't know about you, but sometimes I tend to forget how blessed I am when life rolls along with ease.  I get complacent.  I can become apathetic to what is really important...what really matters.  Perhaps it is good for God to allow Babylon to capture our well-being and self-reliance.  Perhaps we need a reminder to thank God in all things.  Paul reminds us to be thankful "in", not for, all our circumstances.

"Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." 1 Thessalonians 5:18 ESV

While Paul was encouraging us to be grateful to God in the difficult times, through our trials, I think we'd do well to remember His watchcare during the calm moments of life, rather than feel so entitled to be blessed.  The will of God in Christ Jesus for us is to give thanks and remember to Whom we owe due appreciation.  It's not our economy.  Our bank accounts.  Our pension plans.  Our doctors, or health insurance policies.  It's not our government --or a declaration-- that guarantees our right to pursue happiness, life and liberty.

It is the Most High God to whom we owe our gratitude--the Supplier, the Protector, the Shield, the Giver of and Anchor to Eternal life.  The Great Physician who heals all wounds, wipes all tears, and soothes all sorrows. 

I guess sometimes it takes a stranger in the house to show us how blessed we are with familiarity and common things--to point us to the "perfect will" we all, at times, fail to notice.  selahV

[THOUGHT TO PONDER: Today, no matter how pressed you are by life's circumstances, someone, somewhere else, is crushed, and facing far greater trials.  Sometimes we think the world is picking on us alone.  But life does not discriminate upon whose space it brings forces to move the earth beneath our feet, or the air around us.  Pray for those in life who feel like you do today--be it good or not so good. Then give thanks that God is with you in the midst of yours.]

AND BY THE WAY...I DISAPPOINT OTHERS TOO

Last week I penned a post which unveiled a bit of discouragement I felt at the moment of its writing.  It was picked up by SBC Today  as one of several top posts for the week.  I was honored that my writing struck a chord of interest with the editors, but I have to say, "disappointment" is hardly an emerald in my proverbial crown of personal growth experiences.  Being prone to write encouraging words, I see where my words in that post did little to comfort, edify, or inspire some folks. 

Just because I have been disappointed at times, doesn't negate times I have disappointed others.  It's not easy being us.  Each of us have a call on our lives by God.  For the record, I cannot fulfill your call anymore than you can fulfill mine.  There are times in our lives we must make decisions that affect others.  We cannot possibly know exactly how they will affect others, or what will result upon the execution of our decision-making.  We have a certain amount of information and experience at our disposal to make our decisions and after prayer, meditation, and searching God's Word, we make the best decision we can personally make.  When we seek God's face, we must rest in His grace.  My decisions will not always be popular.  Yours will not always be popular.  What we say and do may please a great deal of people, and still offend others.  It is the way of decisions.

When Jesus made choices, it offended the Pharisees.  When He healed the blind, touched the leper, and lived an absolutely sinless life, He offended some.  When He praised Mary for breaking a vessel of perfume and anointing Him, He offended people.  When He invited himself to eat with Zaccheus, he offended folks.

Having mulled over a lot of thoughts and information the past few days, I must confess, I see no room for being offended personally for what Christian leaders decide corporately to tread deep and troubled waters.  Men must do what men must do according to their own conscience, spirit, and wisdom.  God puts His anointing power upon the shoulders of some to lead us into Canaan.  Should we not yield our whims, emotions and desires to the authority He has placed over us?  Should we not follow the process by which God has put in place to follow?  Must we seek another cloud, another pillar of fire?  Look to another Moses?

I do not want to be a "murmuring Miriam" (Numbers 12:1-10), or the "other spies" (Numbers 13:1-33).  I do not want to disappoint my Heavenly Father.  I want to follow Caleb and Joshua.  While I want to be as bold as Naaman's servant girl (2 Kings 5:14), and as brave as Queen Esther, I also want to be as humble as the virgin Mary.

I do not know or understand everything.  I only know what God reveals to me.  That is where I wish to walk.  As far as I can see.  Beyond that, I walk by faith in His sovereign grace and trust in those He's ordained to lead me forward.  selahV

WHEN CHANGE IS INEVITABLE, GO WITH THE FLOW OR.../link

Cest' la vie

Embrace the unpredictable;

    it is but a blink in eternity.

How quickly it passes...

    for you,

    for me,

    for those we touch.  

You were created to live as though

    you are what you are...

    precious in His sight--

Not yesterday or tomorrow, but Today.  selahV

I Cannot Control It

The world is a big fat mess.  We allow the media to tell us who is the best person to lead us.  We allow society to direct our culture and redirect our values and principles.  We allow government to control our thoughts, our words, our spiritual lives.  It's ridiculous.  Especially for Christians.  We live in liberty, under grace given to us by the sacrificial, submission of Christ to the cross of redemption for our very lives.  We have everything we need to live an abundant life:

filled with peace,

consumed with love,

permeated with goodness,

saturated with hope,

assured of mercy.  Everything.  

Yet, we cower.  We get all antsy and look to elections for hope instead of a Sovereign God.  We place our faith in our choices rather than the God who allows those choices.  We trust in pundits and reporters to stand as watchmen over our lives rather than being the watchman over the souls of men.  I cannot control the "voices" that rattle on, day after day, nor those minds bent on force-feeding the world negativity, evil, and deceit to achieve an end that justifies their means.  However...

I can control:

what I allow to pierce my heart with discouragement.

what I allow my ears to hear.

what I allow my eyes to devour.

Yes...I can control my time and where I spend it.  I choose to look to the Triune God to direct my life by the inerrant Word He gave us.  I choose to rely upon the Holy Spirit to keep in line with God's will and purpose for my life.  I choose to rest in the promises of my Redeemer, Savior, and Lord to give me hope.  I choose to resist the temptation to dwell on the mantra of gloom and doom and set my mind and heart on the blessings of God and the history of success through the Victor of the world.  No longer is my life directed by laws written on stone.  My life is directed by the Word dwelling within my heart and soul.

If only we Christians would each let God's Word dominate our lives rather than society's foolishness, we'd really be better off.  No, I cannot control the world, I can only control how I respond to the world.  And through the Holy Spirit I've been given fruit of self-control.  That encompasses what I hear, how I react, what I do.  I will not shudder, nor will I quake as the world gets messier and messier.  The Word of God told us this is the way the world would go.  The world would be a pathetic mess.  People would be stubborn and not heed His Word-- would fall-away from faith they'd been taught.  Children would rise up against parents.  Decadence and debauchery would rule the hearts of man.  Faithful doers would lose their First Love. Yes, the world is a mess.  But folks, we have more than the world.  We have everything we need to live a Christ-filled, Spirit-fueled life in God.

"His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. 2 Peter 1:3

God is in control.  No one else.  I can trust Him over everything, with everything, and in everything.  Can you?  Will you?  selahV

NEAT SLEEP

It amazes me how easily a child falls asleep.  They run, they play, they eat, they sleep.  It's that simple.

Yet, me?  Well, I couldn't sleep again last night--three nights in a row.  At about 3 a.m. I wondered if morning would arrive before I even felt sleepy.  I wasn't worried about anything.  I wasn't upset.  I wasn't anxious.  Just couldn't get sleepy.

So I started talking to God about how wonderful He is.  I thanked Him for His awesome, hallowed name.  I praised Him for His goodness and glory.  I thanked Him for His protection and provision.  I didn't ask Him for anything.  In fact, I didn't even ask for sleep.  I just talked to Him about how great and powerful He is.  The next thing I knew...

it was morning.  Isn't that neat?  selahV

It's Not Easily Understood

People have a hard time explaining it.  They can't make sense of it.  When the world sees it manifest itself amid the chaotic conflicts, they shake their heads and wonder. That's because it passes all understanding.

Peace.

It moves beyond the rational.  It calms the soul and steels the heart against all threat, all assaults, all diversity.  It is an inward assurance in an outward disturbance.

The peace of Jesus through the person of the Holy Spirit is in all Believers.  Though the world crumble about us, we know we are safe in Christ.  Though wars rage among the nations, we know the promise of peace.  God gives us peace to instill confidence... confidence in Him.  We cannot take our eyes off our LORD.

Each day I practice forgetting turmoil, relaxing in His peace.  Each day when confronted with aggravating situations, I focus my mind on Him--on His sovereign care.  The Holy Spirit reminds me that I have nothing to fear...God is in control.  He is not sleeping; He is not too busy for me.  He is ever with me.  I know for certain that the turmoil is temporary.  In time, the LORD lifts me up from each valley, carries me up every mountain, and walks with me on each road.  Peace only eludes me when I focus my mind on me and my inability, rather than God and His ability.

May we know His peace today.  May we look beyond the gathering clouds and see our Father's power to control them.  When incessant voices wail, and rumors of battles loom, let us be still; let us remember:

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace,

whose mind is stayed on thee:

because he trusteth in thee." Isaiah 26:3

AS MARKETS GO UP AND DOWN

One day they're up.  The next day, they're down.  Last week they dropped 1,600 points, then recovered to only lose a bit over 100 points overall.  Today, on Thursday, 8-18-2011, the DOW plunges 469 points at 9:31 a.m. Central time.  Speculation reigns in the minds of investors and folks who trust the markets for their future retirement.  Businesses shudder and wonder if stability will ever return.  Economists are like gerbels on treadmills, running in place trying to get nowhere faster.  Politicians are spinning the bottle of hope that whatever happens, the blame will land on someone else.  As the markets fall, so does President Obama's favorability polls.  Yet...

the sun is shining in Oklahoma.  And I have great hope.  Do you?

My hope is not in the markets.  And even though we depend on Social Security as our main source of income, I do not depend on it as my provision.  I don't even believe in the pittance we receive from our meager pension investment-- companies have been known to go bankrupt.  When threats of doom assail because of outer circumstances, I open my eyes and "look to the hills from whence cometh my help".  Just as investors rush to buy gold as an anchor during volatile times, I rush to my Father...the Anchor of my soul.

¹ Bless the LORD, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
² Bless the LORD, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits:
³ Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases,
⁴ Who redeems your life from destruction,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,"  Psalm 103:1-4 NKJV

Times are uncertain.  But my LORD is certain.  All that is within me cries out to Him to keep me...to give me strength, diligence, and perseverance so that I might bless His holy name and bring Him glory.

I remember "all His benefits" --beyond the material possession of this world...

beyond my comfort... beyond my pleasure.

As markets go up and down, and gloom and doom hover around us like dark shadows of despair, I take comfort in knowing my sin is forgiven... my diseases are healed, I have a life incorruptible... I have God's loving-kindness and tender mercies.  And I am at peace.  I pray you are, too.  selahV for Today 

When Shelter Is Needed ...

...may you find it beneath the wings of God.

May He protect you when you are frightened.  May He lift you up when you are weary and feel you cannot go on.  May you find His peace and assurance as you rest beneath His wings.

"How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!
People take refuge in the shadow of your wings." Psalm 36:7

I found this one of the most endearing photos I've ever seen of the sheltering wings of refuge and care.  Do you feel a sense of peace and protection as you look at it, too?

For me it is a marvelous example of how our Heavenly Father wraps us in the safety of His love and grace.   We cannot comprehend the security enjoyed by these little birds.  A friend sent this to me in an email.  Simply gotta love the symbolism God gives to His children sometimes through the glory of His creation.  Amen? selahV

Heavy Heart

Ever have a heavy heart?  A burden for someone you cannot get off your mind?  Every verse you read whispers their name.  Words that come to my mind are mercy, grace, peace, consolation, strength, joy, comfort, encouragement, rest, hope.

Yet all these words are so empty to someone who is at their wit's end.  Their physical condition has taken its toll.  Depression has wrapped around them like a warm blanket on a cold dark night.  They cannot take it off for fear of freezing.  They know God.  They know He loves but they feel none because their heart is in the throes of earthly battles beyond their control. The thorns have not been removed.  The pain is persistent. The turmoil returns with the morning sun.  The weight of emptiness is crushing.  Faith is an ember.

I can only pray.  And continue to pray.  May God's mercy be upon my "someone".  In fact, I have a couple of "someones".  My heart may be heavy, but not nearly as heavy as my "someone" so far away.  May light be upon them.  Lift their spirit, oh, LORD.  Return hope from where hope has hidden.

BLOGGER'S REFRESHMENT

All Things Heart and Home

An open jar.

Empty.  Shine it up...clean away the sediments and dust.

A few hydrangeas.  Blue and taupe.

Drying.  Three.  Dying.  What pleasure in the air.

Fill me up, Lord.  Fill me with Your love and goodness.  Fill me with Your fruit of gentleness, kindness, peace and hope.

A zinc lid.  Placed upon the jar.

Lock Yourself inside me, Lord.  Close the jar and use me for Your purpose and Your plan.

Ah...I needed this just now.  The quiet.  The waiting is not hard at all.  I have been still, and now I know.

I know that You are God.  selahV 

Close Encounters (Continued)

Pity parties are odd things.  I often throw mine and realize I have not one soul I can invite.  Who'd want to join me in feeling sorry for myself after all?  I don't even want to talk to me.

Enter the blogosphere...Facebook, Twitter.  There's always someone somewhere to join in commiserating with me.  That can be a dangerous thing for some folk, but I've been blessed by some of those folks who encourage with scripture without beating my head in with Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of verses from their 7-pound Family Bible.  I'm humbled that a person takes the time to care for someone they've never been physically close enough to to even so much as nod at a four-way stopsign.

It seems odd, to say the least, that we find ourselves spilling our guts to people we've never had the privilege of seeing face to face. It's quite baffling when one finds more understanding, and encouragement via internet access than from a person they've shared years of details in an up-close-and-personal relationship.

How can this happen?  Is it true we can't see the forest for the trees?

I never know quite how long to hold a pity party. Occasionally, for me, holding one is what makes life most bearable to deal with an arthritic infested spine, a painful vertebrae, the dreaded day others find joy in remembering Mothers, and the petty disappointments of daily living.  Until the last guest leaves (uh, that be me), I tend to wallow in this time and write.  I write.  I gripe, complain, whine, and consider the bunk stored in an unguarded heart which always seems to surface in my mind when I am at my lowest point emotionally and physically.

Yet, when the tears dry upon my cheeks, and the pity party begins to lose its charm, I rediscover an age-old truth.  By some extraordinary twist of providence, only God can make a difference in disappointments.  Only He is wise enough to give us the exact person we need at that particular time in our lives to deliver His word of comfort.  Only He can fuse the broken spirit, and turn the life-wheels to form a pot worth having from the dust and water of a corrupted earth.

Only through writing, praying, and weighing my thoughts, do I find any purpose for the chaotic friction, fissures, and misunderstandings...if there be any purpose under the sun.  There is a time for everything--a time to live, to die, to dance, to not dance, to weep, to laugh.  Today is my time to mourn life in general.  It's my way of running like Forrest, biking, painting, doing yardwork and purging the closets of my soul.  Since today gave way to self-indulgence, perhaps tomorrow will bring the joy.  If not, there is always the next day--and the next.  For without Hope, without expectation of God's intervention, would there be any sense at all in this world?  I think not. 

There's therapeutic deliverance in thinking, in writing, in praying through discouragement.  God changes me and things seem to change around me.  It's not that I can change the circumstance or fix the situation.  No, there is no fixing what is.  Only living with it as is, and accepting "such is life".  C'est la vie.

It's hard to admit, since I haven't really ended my pity party, but I am quite grateful for the close encounters He brings my way when I least expect it.  I really am.  They often show me a side of myself I cannot see for the trees.  Their pain puts me in my place.  Their struggles help me see my own in perspective.  Their love makes me want to love the ones I'm with a bit more, a bit stronger--with greater tolerance and patience and understanding.

 

How about you?  Has God brought about good from what others intended, or unintentionally intended, as evil?  Have you had "close encounters" from a long distance? selahV

We Are Talking FOREVER, Gang, FOREVER

People are turning away from faith, from God, from all they've known and believed true.  They mock; they scorn; they ridicule.

But the LORD endures forever.

The government in Illinois passed a law that prohibits kids from bringing a homemade lunch to school.  Prayer is forbidden.  Children are taught other religions are sacred and to be respected, but Christianity is taboo.

But the LORD endures forever.

Japan's nuclear plant is melting down and will destroy life as Japan once knew.  But the LORD endures forever.

America's politicians are so puffed up with power and self-deception that our blessed country is on the brink of economic collapse.  But the LORD endures forever.

All sin is now categorized in some disease form or another, and people are excused from their sinful immoral actions and choices.  But the LORD endures forever.

Christian churches are being burned in places all around the world.  Christians are literally losing their lives for the sake of the Gospel.  But the LORD endures forever.

Wars upon wars are being waged in the Middle East.  The world is unfaithful.  The governments are unfaithful.  Little is trustworthy.  But the LORD endures forever. 

 ¹ Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good;
    His faithful love endures forever.

² Let Israel say,
    "His faithful love endures forever."

³ Let the house of Aaron say,
    "His faithful love endures forever."

⁴ Let those who fear the LORD say,
    "His faithful love endures forever."  Psalm 118:1-4

Forever, my friends.  His faithful love endures forever.  Heaven and earth shall pass away, but the LORD and His faithful love endures forever.

Forever is a long, long time.  People carelessly say they stood in line "forever" at the check out.  They've been waiting "forever" for their tax refunds.  They sat "forever" without being served.  But friends...as long as we've lived, we've only lived a second in the eternity of forever.  I was allowed to have my precious son on earth for 33 years before his appointed time on earth came due.  But that 33 years was but a blink of an eye in comparison to the eternity I get to spend with him and Jesus because "His faithful love endures forever."

Give thanks to the Lord while you have breath.  Give glory to Him Who gives you faithful enduring love--forever.  Say it, my friends, say it.  "His faithful love endures forever."  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

DEVASTATION: EARTH QUAKES, SEAS ROAR

I slept peacefully dreaming of brilliantly colored birds.  Tiny little birds the size of bumble bees flew into my house and perched upon my fingertips.  One bird resembled a cluster of purple, pink, and yellow bubbles.  I went outside and was mesmerized by black swirling clouds that rained down dinner-plate sized cherry blossoms that spiraled round and round with delicate beauty.  I reached out to touch them and they melted at the touch of my hand.  Joy and goodness and comfort and peace enveloped my heart.  Wonder filled my mind.  THEN=>>>...