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

Better Than Allstate

"You're in good hands with Allstate." Slogan for Allstate Insurance.

Yesterday I had an MRI.

As the Technician inserted the Port for the Contrast, he asked me, "What kind of music would you like to listen to?"  I gave him the digital number for my preferred radio station, and he said, "It's actually music from Pandora, so you need to tell me what Genre you prefer."  I replied, "Christian Radio."

As he put the earphones in place, and the bed began to slide into the machine, the first words I heard were, "My fear doesn't stand a chance, when I stand in your love."  (Josh Baldwin, Bethel Music, 2019)

I wasn't supposed to move while in the radiology machine, but I couldn't help but smile, "Thank you, God."

At the end of my 30-minute test, the music stopped, the bed slid out of the machine, and the Technician asked, "So, what's been going on that you needed this test today?"  I explained what has been going on for 5 months now, and he said, "Some people don't like to hear the results of their test, but then there are those times when there is nothing to worry about."

As I stood up to put my shoes on, I said, "Good or bad, the Lord knows and I'm in Good Hands."

And I meant that with all of my heart.

I have a God who sees all my affliction, hears all my cries, and knows all my sorrows.  (Exodus 3:7)

I have a God who delivers me from ALL of my afflictions.

"The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry." Psalm 34:15

"Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all."  Psalm 34: 19

"I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears." Psalm 34: 4

My car may be in good hands with Allstate...

    but I'm in Better Hands with God...

        But that's just me!

God Will Take Care of You

Civilla D. Martin/ W. Stillman Martin

Hymn

Vs. 1- Be not dismayed what-e'er be-tide, God will take care of you,

Beneath His wings of love abide, God will take care of you.

Vs. 2- Through days of toil when heart doth fail, God will take care of you,

When dangers fierce your path assail, God will take care of you.

Vs. 3- All you my need He will provide, God will take care of you,

Nothing you ask will be denied, God will take care of you.

Vs 4- No matter what may be the test, God will take care of you,

Lean, weary one, upon His breast, God will take care of you.

Chorus:

God will take care of you, through ev-'ry day, O'er all the way,

He will take care of you, God will take care of you!

"It is in those times of hopeless chaos when the sovereign hand of God is most likely to be seen."

Thomas Chalmers

"There is no better place to be, than in the palm of God's Hand."  T.H.

How Beautiful

 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. Isaiah 53:2

Recently I did a short study on the physical attributes of God.  His heart, His feet, His hands and fingers, His ears, eyes and voice; but I didn't mention His face.  God's Word does tell us that His face had been slapped and spit upon by soldiers in the hall of Praetorium, (Mark 15:19) but His Word also tells us that 'there is no beauty that we should desire him.'  There was nothing distinct about the appearance of His face, and yet because of what He did while He was on earth, made Him Beautiful.

How Beautiful

Twila Paris 1990

How beautiful, the hands that served, the wine and the bread, and the sons of the earth,

How beautiful, the feet that walked, the long dusty roads and the hill to the cross-

How beautiful-

How beautiful-

How beautiful, the body of Christ.

How beautiful, the heart that bled, that took all my sin and bore it instead,

How beautiful, the tender eyes, that choose to forgive, and never despise-

How beautiful-

How beautiful-

How beautiful, the body of Christ.

And as He lay down His life, we offer this sacrifice,

That we will live just as He died,

Willing to pay the price, willing to pay the price.

How beautiful the radiant bride, who waits for her groom with His light in her eyes,

How beautiful when humble hearts give, the fruit of pure lives so that others may live.

How beautiful-

How beautiful-

How beautiful, the body of Christ.

How beautiful, the faith that bring, the sound of good news and the love of the King,

How beautiful, the hands that serve, the wine and the bread and the sons of the earth.

How beautiful-

How beautiful-

How beautiful, the body of Christ!

There is also another body of Christ: The Local Church. The Lord places each member in the body as it pleases Him. (1 Corinthians 12:18) Each member has its own gift and purpose in the local assembly. (1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12)

So, what am I doing personally for others?  What is my local church doing for others?

Are we serving others, or ourselves?

The world sees beauty at face value...

    Our Lord sees beauty in our love and service for others...

        But that's just me!

"God's beauty is the bouquet of His perfections in His person, unveiled in His purposes, and displayed in His glory." DeWitt

        

At Ease in Zion

"And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground." God speaking to Moses, Exodus 3:5

The Pastor steps behind the pulpit and opens his bible.  The Word of God is about to be preached; we are seeking to hear from God.

There should be a hush, an anticipation from the heart of God's people to come into the presence of God.

Instead, as I look around the Sanctuary, I see men wearing ball caps or knit hats-

People sipping coffee or soda-

Cell phones, in hand, yet not open to the Bible App-

Some have already begun their Sunday morning nap.

Members skipping church for Sport's Events and Weekend-get-a-ways, and instead of dressing up to meet their Lord, they don after-church activity apparel anticipating the final 'Amen.'

What has happened?

Casual Christianity has crept into our local churches.

We have become at ease in Zion, and we have lost our Reverence for the House of God.

"Woe to them that are at ease in Zion..." Amos 6:1a

"Ye shall keep my Sabbath, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD." Leviticus 19:30

Have we become so pacified by the past blessings of God, that we have forgotten that there is still more work to do?

Has our Reverence for God turned to rest, ease and lackadaisical attitudes in Zion?

There can be no ease...

    Until the last soul is saved...

        But that's just me!

"The world is sleeping in the dark, that the church just can't fight because it's asleep in the Light."

Keith Green