His Mercies Are Neverending!

You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.  Psalm 30:11,12.

Thanksgiving Day, 2005. I remember it very well. For our family it was definitely a day of mixed feelings. Two days before, my brother had passed away and we were struggling as we tried to retain some sense of normalcy, in spite of our loss and grief.

My niece had cooked a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner and invited all of the family over to her small apartment to share the feast. It was a day of unusual quietness for our family. We treasured the closeness - both physical and emotional - as we shared our grief, yet tried to carry on the tradition.

I remember early that Thanksgiving morning, I had been looking through my Bible searching for scripture that would bring me comfort.  I was saddened at the loss of my brother, but was almost overwhelmed with joy that he had finally given his heart to the Lord just shortly before he died.

After reading my Bible and searching a bit, I came upon Psalm 30:11, 12 and it seemed to be just the perfect verse for the occasion! I was mournful for the loss of my brother, but inside I was dancing with joy because I knew that some day we would meet again.

One of God's greatest mercies is His patience with his children. Several members of our family had been praying for so many years for the salvation of my brother. He was stubborn and didn't even want to hear about God or any of that "religious stuff" that we tried to talk to him about. We continued our prayers, and God in His mercy just kept doing what He could to convince my brother to give his heart to the Lord. After so many years, many people would have given up on my brother - and I think some in fact did.  Thankfully, that is not God's way. As long as there is just a little piece of us that will allow the Holy Spirit to work in us, God will continue to fight for our souls! I don't know of any human who could have the patience that our Lord has, or be able to show the mercies that He has shown.

On that Thanksgiving morning,  I was feeling especially grateful for the Lord's blessings and His saving grace! It was the best Thanksgiving in my whole life because I knew that once again, God had been victorious! I am so thankful to know that, unlike so many of us, God never gives up!

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.  Isaiah 55:8

Being a Christian . . .

Being a Christian is like being a pumpkin. God lifts you up, takes you in, and washes all the dirt off of you. He opens you up, touches you deep inside and scoops out all the yucky stuff - including the seeds of doubt, hate, greed, etc. Then He carves you a new smiling face and puts His light inside you to shine for all the world to see!

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Psalm 51:10

Are You Washed in the Blood?

This has always been one of my favorite hymns, but I hadn't thought about this song for a long time. Then, suddenly, it kept playing and playing in my head and I just couldn't get it out of my mind, so I decided to share it! This song has been a great reminder to me over the years of what we need to do, and what we need to allow the Lord to do in our lives, in order to be washed in the blood of the Lamb and have garments white as snow!

Have you been to Jesus for the cleansing pow'r?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?
Are you fully trusting in His grace this hour?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?

Refrain:
Are you washed in the blood, 
In the soul-cleansing blood of the Lamb?
Are your garments spotless? Are they white as snow?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?

Are you walking daily by the Savior's side?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?
Do you rest each moment in the Crucified?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?

When the Bridegroom cometh will your robes be white?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?
Will your soul be ready for the mansions bright,
And be washed in the blood of the Lamb?

Lay aside the garments that are stained with sin,
And be washed in the blood of the Lamb;
There's a fountain flowing for the soul unclean,
Oh, be washed in the blood of the Lamb!

~ Elisha A. Hoffman, 1878

These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.  Revelation 7:14

Let Go and Let God

As children bring their broken toys, 

with tears for us to mend, 

I brought my broken dreams to God,

because He is my friend.

But then instead of leaving Him

in peace to work alone, 

I hung around and tried to help,

with ways that were my own.

At last, I snatched them back again

and cried, "How can you be so slow?"

"My child" He said, "What could I do?"

You never did let go."

~ unknown ~

I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.

Psalm 40:1

An Attitude of Gratitude

Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father

in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:20

I used to have a small notebook that I carried with me and kept handy at all times. I called it my Gratitude Journal. I made it a point to try to list at least five things every day for which I was thankful, or that I felt had been a blessing for me - things I was grateful for. 

As I sat here enjoying a hot drink and a muffin this beautiful sunny morning, I realized that with all the chaos of my recent move and life changes going on, I had gotten away from that habit. It's definitely time to start up my Gratitude Journal again. 

I've also noticed that sometimes when I pray, my prayers are full of needs for myself, or loved ones. Sometimes I am thinking so much of the needs, that I forget the praises! God has richly blessed me and I want Him to know that I am not only aware of His blessings, but that I truly appreciate them. 

I've been reading my Bible through this year and I've recently finished reading the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. These four books in particular were quite an eye opener for me as I realized how much I fail to not only express, but to LIVE an attitude of gratitude! 

We've all heard or read stories of gratefulness and sometimes the overwhelming emotion that a person feels after their life has been saved by another. Some have told stories of making great changes in their lives because someone cared enough to save them. The tears, the "thank yous" and all the emotion are often so overwhelming that it can render the grateful person speechless at times.

I thought about this as I read about Christ's crucifixion and was dismayed at  what  I consider a lack of real life-changing gratitude that I have shown for what He went through and suffered on my behalf - the painful torture, the humiliation, and the abandonment by those closest to Him. If you read the story and really make it personal, as if Christ died for you alone, I truly believe that it will touch a whole new chord  within your soul. 

I thought about the story of the crucifixion for days. I thought about how I would react if another human being had taken a bullet for me, or jumped into an icy river to save me. There's no humiliation or torture involved in the rescue, but that person risked his life for me and I would be forever grateful. For the rest of my life, I would feel a special bond with this person. There's a special closeness between two people after an experience like that - different from any other kind of relationship.

I gave a lot of thought to that and wondered why my feelings of gratitude aren't deeper, and why my bond with Christ isn't stronger than what it is. Why don't I feel the same overwhelming feelings of gratitude and appreciation in my life every day, as one whose life has been saved? In my head, I know what He did for me, and I do appreciate it, but the deep, heartwrenching, soul-cleansing attitude of gratitude is missing., or at the very least, insufficient! The daily thoughts of who I owe my life to aren't there as they should be. I definitely need a stronger attitude of gratitude toward my Savior!

Friends, let us not forget that we are not here because of our own merits or accomplishments. We are not here because we are self-sustaining and independent. We are here because God wakes us very morning and blesses us with a new day - a clean slate - and because of that we should be much more aware and appreciative of where our  gift of life comes from. We have been rescued and blessed with many gifts that make our life more pleasant. Every day is a new beginning. It's a new chance to draw closer to our Rescuer and Savior!

Every day is a blessing, and for that we must always have an attitude of gratitude!

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. James 1:17

Every Day is a Blessing!

This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.  Psalm 118:24

I woke up this morning to find that our world had been bathed with a refreshing rain. Soon after, the sun came out, and while a few clouds remain, it's a beautiful day! 

Once again, God has blessed me with a new day and a clean slate. The Lord has lifted the clouds of my spirit and has left me feeling as refreshed as the new day! It is so easy to fall into the doldrums without really giving God a chance to help us. How often we forget that His love and His strength are available to us at all hours of the day and night, 365 days a year! God never sleeps, never takes vacations, and is never distracted from our needs. Like errant children, how quickly we forget! 

Every day is a blessing! I pray that God will walk with you today and grant you a day full of His peace and blessings! 

 It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness.  Lamentations 3:22,23

Lord, Lift My Spirits

 But You, O Lord, are a shield for me, my glory 

and the One who lifts up my head. Psalm 3:3

It's been a difficult month! Several weeks ago, I lost a friend to suicide. Shortly after, I lost a friend who died of natural causes. Yesterday, my niece and her husband suffered a loss when his younger brother died under suspicious circumstances that are being investigated by both military and civilian authorities.

At times over the last few weeks, I have felt the way this squirrel looks - bereft of energy, tears and emotions. It's these times in life that can really drain your soul. You wonder what the reasons are, and maybe even wonder where God was through all of this.

I know where God was. God woke with me each morning, to start my day with hope. God walked with me throughout the day, to give me comfort. God laid with me at night, to wipe away the tears and to help me realize that we can't always understand why things happen. Sometimes things happen because of someone else's poor decisions, or simply because the time has come for one's life to end. Sometimes things happen because of the impulsive and rash act of someone who gave no thought to their deed or the consequences of their actions. 

Sometimes life just happens, and we can't understand why. Maybe we're better off not trying to understand why. Maybe it's wiser to just accept that people make decisions that we have no control over, and there's nothing we can do about it . . .

. . . or  maybe there is something we can do. We can remember each day to lift up our loved ones in prayer. Give them to the Lord and ask for His protection and guidance in their lives. When you see your loved ones, tell them you love them. Let them know how important they are to you. When they walk out that door, we never really know whether or not they will return. Tomorrow is not promised, so live in the moment, and remember the things that are truly important.

When things happen that knock us off our feet, there is only One who can really pick us up and give us the courage to continue on our way. He alone can supply the strength that it takes to face each day after a loss - particularly a loss that makes no sense, at least not to us.

God is my Rock! He's the One who gives me a reason to get up in the morning. He's the One who gives me the strength and courage to face each new day. Lean on the Lord, because He is our only true Hope! He is the only One who can, and will, carry us through whatever storms life throws at us.

Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; 

Wait, I say, on the Lord!  Psalm 27:14