Mountain Tops, Valleys, and Meadows

"Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content."

Philippians 4:11

As Believers, we have all experienced Mountain tops in our Christian Walk, whether it's victory over sin, or being recharged in a Revival; and as Believers, we have all experienced Valleys in our Christian Walk, whether it's disappointment, unmet expectations, or the loss of a loved one.

But what about our Meadow?  Where we dwell on a day-to-day basis; our 'normal.'   Sometimes we can misidentify our Meadow for a Valley.  As a person who lives with a chronic illness, on really bad days I tend to think I've drifted into a Valley, when in truth, I'm just having a bad day in my Meadow.

Everybody's Meadows are different; however, most Meadows are outlined by shelter belts. Trees, overgrown brush, thistles and thorns.  Sometimes our feelings, health and loneliness will draw us to the tree line. Discontent in our Meadow, we take a step inside the shelter belt, and we get entangled in the thistles, the cares of the world.  But if we turn around, even though we have not escaped the wooded area, the view we have of our own Meadow doesn't look so bad anymore and we are safely drawn back to where we need to be.  (Sometimes we think the grass is greener in someone else's Meadow and we get distracted.)  Tall grass may be in our Meadow; hidden critters of fatigue and disappointments tend to make us look down and think we have entered into a Valley, but when we look up and see The Son, our perspective changes and we become thankful for our own Meadow, no matter where it may be, and no matter what it may hold, because we know that our needs are being met right where we are.  

My Meadow isn't always easy...

    But I choose to be content...

        Because I know my Lord placed me here...

            But that's just me!

In the In Between

Wayne Watson/Sandi Patty

2012

I've seen some glorious days,

Where I flew so much higher,

Much higher than I ever thought I would,

And soaring through the air I would declare,

Well, isn't God good, Isn't He good?

'Cause He was, and He is, and He always will be,

But in the in between

It's hard for me to see,

In the in between.

Where everyday life happens,

And the fields of green

Belonged to someone else

In the in between

Of what will be and what has been

Jesus is a faithful friend

In the in between

I've been unsure of myself

But even in the dark

I'm pretty sure that all is well and then I see

There in a mirror looking back at me

A work that is not everything that it would be

And He was and He is, And He always will be

Close beside and holdin' on to me

And in the in between

Where everyday life happens,

And the fields of green

Belonged to someone else

In the in between

Of what will be and what has been

Jesus is a faithful friend

In the in between

Grace and mercy know no season

There is no good reason why the best of days

Might not be the days ahead

And in the in between when you have some time to dream

Your faith and strength will be restored

By the gracious Lord of the in between

Where everyday life happens and the fields of green

Belonged to someone else

In the in between

Of what will be and what has been

(Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever)

Jesus is a faithful friend,

In the in between.

Security of the godly

 "Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments." Psalm 112:1

 I read this Psalm this morning and just had to share the many blessings God promises to those who delight in His commandments; they are all found in verses 2-9.

1-He is blessed with physical and material prosperity because he is righteous.

2-Light is given even in darkness. (This can refer to prosperity in place of disaster, or to discernment. Walvoord & Zuck)

3-He receives goodness in return for being generous and just.

4-He will be firmly established in his faith, unshakeable, with no fear of what man might do to him.

5-Because he gives to the poor, his horn will be lifted up, meaning he will be made strong and honorable by the Lord.

God is so very good to us! He is gracious, compassionate and righteous!

And according to this Psalm the attributes of a good man who is obedient to God's commandments will have:

-Favour

-Discretion

-Sure footing!

-Praise the LORD!

-Happy is the man who fears the LORD and delights in His commandments. (They are not grievous. 1 John 5:3)

In fact, remaining in the obedience of His commandments is one of the very reasons we are safe!

Then in verses 10 and 11 we see the contrasts between the blessings of those who fear and obey God, to those who are wicked.  The wicked will be filled with anxiety because of the goodness of God towards the righteous, and the wicked will perish and be powerless over the righteous.

I was thinking about that.  Sometimes it seems the wicked win.  Sometimes it seems that nothing ever happens to those who do not do what is right, but God's Word promises the Believer that the days of the wicked will be cut off.

I remember years ago, the dear wife of one of our Missionaries showed me 1 Peter 4:19,

"Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator."

God sees, He knows, He hears...

    Just keep doing right, place your burdens in God's hands...

        And He will take care of everything.

            But that's just me!

Urchins, Rag-a-Muffins, Precious

I had the privilege to help in the kitchen at Jr. Camp today preparing the children's lunches.  (Yes, the privilege.)  It brought joy to my heart to see all the smiling, 'Happy Campers' work on their crafts, play games and interact with each other. It reminded me of what Mr. Fred Rogers once told a child; He said, "Thank you for allowing me to remember what it was like to be a child."

He also said, "Childhood is not just clowns and balloons, in fact, childhood goes to the very heart of who we all become."

And that's where Biblical training begins.

Our world has no time for its children today.  The ones not aborted, are left with babysitters and nannies and dropped off at childcare centers as their parents spend more time at work than at home.  I have heard children identified as 'urchins and ragamuffins' sometimes playfully, and at other times, with disdain, and yet Jesus welcomed them all with open arms.

Children are precious in the sight of God.

"But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven. And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence." Matthew 19:14-15.  Jesus also warns us that it would be better for us to have a millstone hung about our necks and drowned in the depths of the sea if we were ever to offend a little child. (Matthew 18:6)

The children I observed today, will one day grow up.  I told another Kitchen Helper that we are being blessed by observing the faces of our future Preachers, Missionaries, and Sunday School Teachers.  

She replied, "And this is what it's really all about."

Thank you, Lord,

    for reminding me that we are all precious in your sight...

        No matter how old we are!

            But that's just me!

"Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world;

Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in His sight,

Jesus loves the little children of the world!"  C. Herbert Woolston

    

The Quarter Inch Screw

"Bendice a quienes entran y salen de este lugar para que regresen sanos y salvos."

(Bless all those who come and go from this place and bring them back safe.) I have these words in a frame hanging on my living room wall that remind me of Psalm 121:8 "The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore."

Yesterday, God kept that promise even though I didn't recognize it at first.

Beginning my day with the Lord, and with a prayer on my lips, I grabbed my little dog, Grace, and we drove 18 miles South for her grooming appointment.  I mentioned to Grace's groomer that I would be headed to town, (which is about 47 miles one way from where I was standing) to run a few errands, and that I would be back to pick Grace up on time, return her home, and then head back to town to finish my errands.  Grace's groomer graciously told me to take my time, finish all my necessary errands to save an additional trip to town, and that she would keep Grace with her.  "No worries."  She added.  So, I thanked her and went on my way.  Getting out of my car at my first stop, I glanced at my front driver's side tire and noticed a shiny object protruding from the rubber.  Upon a closer look, I realized that a screw was embedded in the tire.  I knew right then that my meticulously planned day just flew out the window.  Crumpling up the paper of my well-planned-list, I drove over to our dealership and explained my dilemma.  Upon first glance, this dilemma only appeared to be a glitch: a 15-minute patch at the most and I could be on my way, salvaging my plans after all.  But as the minutes changed to an hour, and then the glitch turning into a purchasing a brand-new tire, I finally admitted to myself that this would be the last errand (unplanned!) I would be doing in town.  An hour and a half later, and a lighter purse, I drove back to our little Southern Community to pick up my dog from the groomer.

As I continued to drive home, the disappointment of my unmet expectations for the day turned into a prayer of thankfulness.  I realized that God had kept His promise to me.  He had kept me safe.  As I processed all of the 'could-have's,' I apologized to my Lord and thanked Him for keeping me safe.  You see, I could have had a flat tire on the Interstate.  I could have had a blow out on the back County Roads.  I could have lost control of my vehicle on the Interstate driving 75 MPH.  I could have had a flat tire at a red light in the busiest intersection in town.  But none of that happened.  God safely got me into town.  He guided my eyes to see the screw in my tire at my very first stop. He allowed me to drive safely to the dealership for a new tire.  God provided the means to purchase the surprise expense.  God kept me safe, just as He promised He would.

Thank you, God.

Yes, the quarter inch screw threw a monkey wrench into my plans...

   But God reminded me of a precious promise...

        He will keep me safe.

            But that's just me!

    

On The Verge

I've been on the verge of tears all week.  Have you ever been there?  You've held them back for as long as you can, but as the days turn into weeks, and weeks turn into months and months turn into years, you wake up one morning and finally let it all go.  You can't hold back the tears anymore.  You've grown tired of carrying the weight of your burden and you finally give what you no longer can carry yourself over to the Lord who has promised to carry them for you.  What took us so long?

I finally surrendered the burden through my tears.  And as I continued to cry, I thought about Psalm 56:8, "Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?"

Thank you, God.

Your burden can be anything; my burden is chronic illness.  I can function for a while, and then when I have a bad week and feel as if I'm going to break under the weight of this constant fight, I again, find myself 'on the verge of tears.' (Why do I try to hold them back?)

After being up most of the night from side effects from a new medication, I sat down in my prayer chair this morning to spend time with my Lord.  First, I read the words to the Hymn, God Himself is With Us. (Gerhard Tersteegen, 1729) I almost couldn't get past the title of the song.  It amazes me that God Himself is with me.  Every day, every hour, moment and second of each day and night.  I am not alone. Instead of writing out my prayer in my journal this morning, I began to write down the promises of God that He reminded me of to help me get through this day.  Today.

Hebrews 13:5b "...I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee."

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 "For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal."

2 Corinthians 12:9-10 "And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly I will rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong."

Lamentations 3:22-23 "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."

So many promises in God's Word that remind us that He is with us, this won't last forever, and it's all going to be OK.

By the time I finished writing out these verses, my pity party turned into peace.  My sadness turned into joy; this day will not be a day of defeat, but of victory through the promises of God's Word, His grace and His mercy towards me.

I cannot say that I will never be 'on the verge' of tears again...

    But I will determine not to hold them back too long...

        The peace of God only comes when I surrender my burdens to Him...

            But that's just me!

"You can draw near to God even though you cannot say a word. A prayer may be crystallized in a tear.  A tear is enough water to float a desire to God."  Charles Spurgeon

My Plans

"A man's heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps." Proverbs 16:9

It's fun to dream, isn't it? When I was just a little girl, I had big plans for my life.  Some came to pass, some didn't.  As I began my role as a wife and a mother, some of those big dreams and ambitions changed into dreams for my children.  Some came to pass, and some didn't. Now as an adult, with grown children, grandchildren and an empty nest, I still continue to dream, knowing that some dreams will come to pass, and there will be those that never do.

Have you heard this encouraging quote? "When God closes the door, He opens a window."

Sometimes He will, and sometimes He won't.  Sometimes, the door and window will remain closed.

There are days when I have written an entire day's worth of errands down on a sheet of paper with hopes of placing a √ mark by each accomplished task, only to find errands left undone at the end of my day because of circumstances outside of my control.  Things have entered my world that I didn't plan at all, and I'm left asking God the question we all have so readily on our lips-"Why?" And then God reminds me of Jeremiah 29:11.  I'm reminded that my plans for me, and God's plans for me may be very different.

"For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end." 

The plans I have for myself may be different than God's, but I know God's plans for me are better.

"It is God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect." Psalm 18:32

God doesn't allow things to happen in my life to fulfill my plans...

    He places them there to fulfill His plans...

        But that's just me!

"When God brings all things to light, you will discover just how significant you've been in God's plan."

A.W. Tozer

He Sees Me

"Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy."

Psalm 33:18

I remember when I was a little girl, I always felt more 'safe' when I knew my mom was watching me play outside.  I knew that she would see anything that would hurt me before I did, and she would often prevent such incidences from happening.  At other times, I would fall down and before I could pick myself back up, my mom was there bending down to see if I was OK.  If she saw me heading towards the street, or perhaps a stranger who was walking by, she would call out my name, and I would halt in my tracks, turn her way and heed her warning.  

That's what I thought about this morning as I read this verse in Psalms.  

The eyes of the LORD are always upon me.

Why?

Because I fear Him, I am in awe of Him, and I hope in His mercy alone. 

As an adult, sometimes I feel invisible, unimportant, alone.  This verse reminds me that I am not invisible, I am important, and I am not alone to my Heavenly Father.

He.  Sees.  Me.

What a comforting verse to start out my day...

        I hope it brings comfort to you too...

            But that's just me!

"Nothing escapes God's eyes. He sees everything that occurs in His child's life, and He cares.  They who fear God need not fear anything else; let them fix their eye of faith on Him, and His eye of love will always rest upon them."  Charles Spurgeon