A NEW Beginning for all!

2012: ♫ "So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, good night..." ♫

As we turn the page on another year, it is common to reflect on the previous days, weeks, and months that were presented to us in 2012. We celebrate the joys and sorrows of days gone by. For many this year may have been trying and unyielding to a positive outlook. However, I know that no matter what frustrations and difficulties that we may pass through that God is always in control. It is hard to comprehend at times that He does, indeed, work ALL things for our good~but nevertheless HE does. Part of having faith in God is trusting that we don't understand all the things that happen but that there is a purpose for everything under the sun; and hopefully one day we will know in full, as now we only know in part, all the things God has planned for us.

Now we are looking to a new year. The new year for many signifies a new start, a new beginning. This reminds me of a story I'd like to share. A couple had two sons. One son was pleasing to the Father and one son was not. Through jealousy and rage the older son killed the younger. I'm sure this family was devastated. They had lost two children. One to murder and one ran away as a fugitive. I cannot imagine what this mother and father must have felt...perhaps-despair, anger, hurt, grief, confusion, hopelessness, etc....; But God stepped in and gave them a new beginning.

A note about CHRISTmas time. May you all be blessed on this day, and every day by the joy that the news of a SAVIOR brings. †

"For to us a Child is born, to us a Son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder, and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father [of Eternity], Prince of Peace."  ~Isaiah 9:6 Amplified

Once upon a time, when time had yet begun

The Father up in Heaven, Holy Spirit and the Son

Three together separate, and yet complete as one...

From whence we share the story of God's unending LOVE!

WHO TURNED OFF THE LIGHT?

Remember that feeling you get in the pit of your stomach? You know the one when somehow you found yourself in total darkness and you couldn't see your hand in front of your face? I remember years ago I was watching one of the babies in the nursery at church. This particular little fellow loved to sit at my hip and play with the light switch on the wall. Now while the light was on he was relaxed and happy, however the second his little finger flipped that switch his body tensed up and he clutched me with all his little might. What changed? Had the person holding him changed? No. Had the place he was in changed? No. Yet, his vision, his perspective had changed. What was once visible in the light, was now undiscernable in the darkness. Fear crept in and his security was shaken. You may have felt that feeling at some point in your life. Even as a grown woman I have to say I'm not a fan of total darkness. I like light, bright, rays of sunshine! Light versus darkness is a tale as old as time. Our spiritual lives have a great battle going on daily. Light versus darkness, which is greater in your life? Does it depend on the day, the moment? If so, how do we dispel the darkness? Let's find out...

 

 

"For You, O LORD, are my Lamp; the Lord lightens my darkness. For by You I run through a troop; by my God I leap over a wall. As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the LORD is tried. He is a Shield to all those who trust and take refuge in Him. For who is God but the LORD? And who is a Rock except our God? God is my strong Fortress; He guides the blameless in...His way and sets him free. He makes my feet like the hinds’ [firm and able]; He sets me secure and confident upon the heights." ~2 Samuel 22:29-34

No matter how matter how long you have been in the dark, whenever you turn on a light the same thing always happens -the darkness scatters. The light illuminates what is around you, and you have a whole new perspective of your surroundings. What was slightly visible in the darkness is discernable in the light. Unfortunately, many of us contend to walk around in the darkness as the status quo of our lives. Even as Christians, we have settled to be in these places- Settled to be bound in the darkness because we can’t see our paths clearly. I don’t know about you, but I have been there. Our eyes have grown accustomed to the dimmed reality and accepted darkness as normal. This is not how God would have us live our lives. Yet, day after day this happens. I love this passage of scripture. It is a gentle reminder that the LORD our GOD, ruler of the universe, the Creator and giver of light –is Himself- our Lamp, our light! HE-Himself- lights the dark paths we walk in. HE illuminates our way and makes the path clear.

ARE YOU "WAITING" OR "ON HOLD"?

Wait. That one words seems to cast out all the patience right out of my body through my toenails! However, waiting is a part of every day life. It seems like every business has an automated phone system these days. Typically you will here a recorded voice that immediately comes on the phone to give you instructions on how to reach your party. And then it happens. You get put on hold. I recently made a call and was told my "wait" time was going to be one hour. Yes, that is correct SIXTY minutes to be put on hold. Now I just used the terms "wait" and "on hold" synonymously, but are they really the same according to our walk with God? Let's find out...

 

 

Waiting is not the same as being on hold.


Wait (def.): 

• stay in one place and anticipate or expect something
• expect: look forward to the probable occurrence of;
• to remain stationary in readiness or expectation
• to look forward expectantly
• “wait upon”= : to attend as a servant

I myself am guilty of thinking that sometimes in life I feel put “on hold”. I’ve often felt like a hamster on a wheel running hard but actually getting no where. But as I begin to think about waiting, in general, I began to think that when you wait for something there is an expectation that at the end of your wait you will have what you waited for. For example, a woman who is pregnant with a child will not have that child for 9 months. However, every day that child is being formed and fashioned, new organs developing, eyes, nose, ears, mouth all forming unto the nature of the mother and father. Meanwhile out in the world those parents are waiting to see what their child will look like. They have an expectation that at the end of the pregnancy their waiting will end and they will see their miracle.

BUT AT MIDNIGHT

It's that time of year. In a few short weeks millions of people will stay up counting down the clock to Midnight. What for? A transition of course. An old year passes as a new one begins. A new year, a new month, a new day, a new hour. What is special about the midnight hour, and how can Paul and Silas help us learn about transition? Let's find out...

"And when they had struck them with many blows, they threw them into prison, charging the jailer to keep them safely. He, having received [so strict a] charge, put them into the inner prison (the dungeon) and fastened their feet in the stocks. But about midnight, as Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the [other] prisoners were listening to them; Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the very foundations of the prison were shaken; and at once all the doors were opened and everyone's shackles were unfastened. When the jailer, startled out of his sleep, saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was on the point of killing himself, because he supposed that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, Do not harm yourself, for we are all here!" ~Acts 16:23-28 Amplified Bible

In this familiar passage of scripture we see that Paul and Silas have been beaten, for the cause of Christ, and thrown into jail. They were where God called them to be, but they were suffering persecution for it. Does it ever seem like you are where God called you to be, yet you are suffering for the cause? Paul and Silas experienced that here in this jail. They had been beaten and thrown into prison. And in my own flesh, if this were me, I would be angry and upset. I would be questioning whether or not I heard God. I would be questioning why this was happening to me. In my flesh, I would be confused. But God is not the author of confusion. He had this all set up. In the middle of this storm that Paul and Silas were in they chose to keep their faith because their faith was not based on what they could see.  

"For we walk by faith [we regulate our lives and conduct ourselves by our conviction or belief respecting man's relationship to God and divine things, with trust and holy fervor; thus we walk] not by sight or appearance.” ~2 Corinthians 5:7

But the Bible doesn’t leave Paul and Silas beaten and chained in a prison. It goes on to say, "BUT AT MIDNIGHT…"(Acts 16:25 NKJV); It’s always interesting to see the word “but” in the Bible, because no matter what was said -this word “but” cancels out what just was mentioned. Get ready for a new statement. Something is about to change.

“BUT AT MIDNIGHT”, Paul and Silas were praying and singing praises to God. This is so amazing. How many of us could be beaten, and thrown into jail, while going about God’s business, and still decide to praise Him for His goodness? They weren’t complaining, they weren’t cursing God, they weren’t having a pity party, and they had every right to be upset by human standards; yet they chose to praise God for who He is. The Bible says, “But at midnight” they were praising God, and the other prisoners listened to them. Did you know that there are other people around you in similar situations? Other people are watching how you handle a trial and/or crisis. What do you think these prisoners thought when these two men came in beaten and shackled but yet sang praises and prayed to God? What kind of testimony, what kind of impact do you think this must have had on these prisoners? People are watching us. As Christians we are to walk in love and with the Spirit of God. We may be the only Christ that people encounter, and our love and our commitment to faith in God should be genuine.

Paul and Silas were praying around midnight. They had no idea what was about to happen. And I’ve heard it said that midnight is near the darkest hour. But I have also heard this wonderful point. Midnight is “transition time”. Midnight is when the old day passes on and the new day begins. Hold on…I’m not sure you got that. I said Midnight is when the OLD passes away and the NEW begins!!! Are you getting this? Paul and Silas were in their transition. They began praising and glorifying God in spite of their circumstances-- and in their transition of midnight an earthquake came. The Bible says that an earthquake came and it was so strong it shook the very foundations of the prison. At once the doors were opened and all the shackles fell off. WOW! Did you get that too? When we are in the midst of the storm, and if we continue in our faith, God will shake the very foundation of the [prison] we are in. And not only did Paul and Silas’ shackles unfasten, every one else’s were loosed as well! What a mighty work, God freed not only them but everyone around them as well. So our impact cannot be just for ourselves when we are going through a trial, yet when we praise God and keep our faith others may see the light of God through us that they may also be loosed from whatever [prison] they may be in.

God loosed the chains that Paul and Silas were shackled to and the prison doors were opened. Even the jailer himself was moved. He asked them how he too could be saved. And that very night he and his family were saved. What a powerful resolution to a miserable trial. The faith that Paul and Silas had impacted everyone they encountered and God was given all the glory!

This story is a wonderful example to us of how we can look to our circumstances and say I am not moved. I am not going to question God. I am going to sing praises to Him and I am going to pray. Even though it seems like they have put me in the dungeon and I have shackles all around me, I will praise the LORD my God. And while I praise Him, He will send the earthquake, He will set me free from my captivity. And while I praise Him- may others see my testimony so that they too can be set free! Praise God for midnight. Let the transition begin!
 
Be Encouraged, Be Blessed, Be Free!




Originally written July 13, 2009

THE SACRIFICE OF PRAISE

One morning as I was reading one of the daily Bible verses/devotional that appears in my email, this particular verse caught my attention. Every once in a while something I read hits a note with me and I like to explore its meaning further. This is my attempt to share my thoughts "out loud" on the scripture.
 

  

"Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased."   ~Hebrews 13:15-16 (NKJV)

Okay, so at first glance this scripture makes sense. In a nutshell, my understanding of it is this--to praise God for who He is, for what He has done, and to present thanksgiving for all He has given us.

Sounds good right? Yes, but what spoke to me was the word sacrifice. Now that isn't a word you hear much today...or at least desire to hear anyway. When we think of sacrifice we usually think of some far away custom from the Bible days ...or perhaps we may think of some not too familiar evil practices. So either way I wanted to understand why when we present our praise to God it is to be a sacrifice of praise.

SOARING

Remember the catchy 90's tune, "I believe I can fly"? I always thought flying would be an awesome superhero trait to have! I envy the freedom that birds have while flying high above us. So what can we really learn from watching a bird fly? Is there more than one way to fly?

Let's find out...

 

A lot of things come to me while I'm driving in my car. The LORD and I have a lot of little talks there too. Lately, while I've been driving down the road, I have seen a lot of birds soaring in the air. Well you might say that's not so unusual--I see birds everyday!....BUT, I realized something as I watched these creatures in their natural element.

No matter how many times I've seen a bird fly through the air, I've never thought about them in this respect. The Bible says (as we are all familiar with) that, "they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. [Isaiah 40:31]"

Now let me digress for just a moment and break down that verse. "they shall mount up with wings as eagles": Another interpretation of this verse says "they will soar on wings like eagles..." I found multiple definitions of the word "soar"

WELCOME

Hello Everyone,

Welcome to my little corner of the world. I hope you will make yourself comfortable here. I am a girl who loves to talk about the LORD, and I am learning daily what it means to follow HIM. I will be posting new blogs and also some others things I have written from years past. My heart's desire is that something on this page will be an encouragement and blessing to you. Feel free to comment and share your thoughts as well.

"As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another." ~Proverbs 27:17 NIV


Be Encouraged & Be Blessed,