Obtaining Mercy

Something for Saturday

 

"And when they were gone over..." Matthew 14:34a

 

"Jesus Christ is no secutity against the storms, but He is perfect security in storms.   

"He has never promised you an easy passage, only a safe landing." ~Streams in the Desert

Hope for Peace

 

"Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them.Are ye not much better than they? 

"...Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these." Matthew 6:26, 28b,29

Trust

 

Lord, let me trust You.

You know what is best.

Lord, let me trust You,

Whether blessing or test.

 

I could demand sunshine

When I need the rain.

I might long for comfort

When my heart needs the pain.

 

You are my Father

In the day, in the night.

I know I can trust You

To give what is right.

 

My heart can rest easy,

When I don't see Your hand.

All things work together

As I follow Your plan.

 

I know I can trust You.

You know what is best.

I know I can trust You,

In Your will I rest.

 

We must...

Stop fighting.  Stop demanding.  Stop scheming.

We should...

Start trusting.  Start believing.  Start relying.

...And peace will follow.

 

A Sure Hope

 

Just a-wearying for you,

Jesus, Lord, beloved and true,

Wishing for you, wondering when

You'll be coming back again,

Under all I say and do,

Just a-wearying for you.

 

Some glad day, all watching past,

You will come for me at last;

Then I'll see you, hear your voice,

Be will you, with you rejoice;

How the sweet hope thrills me through,

Sets me a-wearying for you.

L.B. Cowman, Streams in the Desert

 

"...if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. Romans 8:17b-18

 

Some day...soon...soon...we shall see Him face to face.

The day cannot come soon enough for this homesick pilgrim.

Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!

Just My Thoughts on Family

Family is family is family. 

Nothing should break that bond, lessen that love, remove that responsibility. 

God has placed us in our familial circle for a reason.  Let us love one another with the love of Christ, and move through our trials together. 

The prodigal knew the Father's love was unconditional before he ever left his home. 

May our homes and families be havens of forgiveness and support for those who have believed Satan's lies and walked away from the ways of truth and righteousness. 

We do not love the sin, but we must continue to love the sinner in ways that are honest, tangible and safe for our other family members.  For example, we do not expose our children to sin or to danger while we work with a wayward loved one. 

It is not an easy task.  It is not a frivolous decision.  But it IS showing God to the world when we love as He loves.

For the truth of the matter is...the next family member who is in need of unconditional love may be you or me!

 

 "Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
 "Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.
 "For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself."  Galatians 6:1-3

 

 

Hope in the Fiery Ordeal

 

"Christ would not test us if He did not see the precious ore of faith mingled in the rocky matrix of our nature;

"And it is to bring this out into purity and beauty that He forces us through the fiery ordeal." ~from Tried by Fair, via Streams in the Desert

 

 "Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him:
 On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him:

 But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold." Job 23:8-10

 

We often do not see our own worth as God sees it. 

We must trust, as Job did, that even when we cannot see God's design, and we cannot feel His presence nor ascertain His plan, He is working to bring out the glorious glow of Christ-likeness in us.

The trials teach us what God knew all along:  we are created as a vessel of gold to be used by the Master.

Always Hopeful of His Provision

 

"And he said unto them, Behold, when ye are entered into the city, there shall a man meet you, bearing a pitcher of water; follow him into the house where he entereth in.
 And ye shall say unto the goodman of the house, The Master saith unto thee, Where is the guestchamber, where I shall eat the passover with my disciples?
 And he shall shew you a large upper room furnished: there make ready.
And they went, and found as he had said unto them: and they made ready the passover."  Luke 22:10-13

 

If God has given you a vision for ministry,

If He leads you to a place of service,

Do you think His hand of provision will fail you?

It will not.

Serve on and trust Him to meet your every need.

 

"And he said unto them, When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye any thing? And they said, Nothing." Luke 22:35

 

The will of God will never take you, where the grace of God cannot keep you, where the arms of God cannot support you, where the riches of God cannot supply your needs, where the power of God cannot endow you.

The will of God will never take you, where the Spirit of God cannot work through you, where the wisdom of God cannot teach you, where the army of God cannot protect you, where the hands of God cannot mold you.

The will of God will never take you, where the love of God cannot enfold you, where the mercies of God cannot sustain you, where the peace of God cannot calm your fears, where the authority of God cannot overrule for you.

The will of God will never take you, where the comfort of God cannot dry your tears, where the Word of God cannot feed you, where the miracles of God cannot be done for you, where the omnipresence of God cannot find you.

– Author Unknown

 

 

Success!

 

Finally, by making use of the freebies offered us by our Creator (i.e. planning, perspiring and persevering), I have achieved my goal:

Lunch, on my porch, with a view!

Hopeful Spoils of War

 

 

"Out of the spoils won in battles did they dedicate to maintain the house of the LORD." I Chronicles 26:27

 

You know the Israelites must have grown so tired of war; but from the spoils of those battles they were able to keep up and preserve the tabernacle.

 

"Let us never forget that the source of helping other people must be victorious suffering...Spiritual force is stored in the depths of our being, through the very pain which we cannot understand." ~from Days of Heaven Upon Earth

 

As you emerge victorious from your God-ordained trials and battles, you will be in possession of the very riches that will allow you to minister to others.

 

"Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all." Philippians 2:17

 

Let us not despise our battles. 

Rather let us stand and fight valiantly, knowing that our suffering will lead to great reward.

 

It's the Little Things that Make Me Smile

 

I really think she needs a name, too.  Any suggestions???

A Continual Hope

 

"The hardest ingredient in suffering is often time. 

"A short, sharp pang is easily born, but when a sorrow drags its weary way through long, monotonous years...

and day after day returns with the same dull routine of hopeless agony...

the heart loses its strength...

and without the grace of God, is sure to sink into the very sullenness of despair." ~Streams in the Desert

 

Do you find yourself sinking into despair, due to a sorrow that just won't end?

So did the Psalmist David.

Psalm 38 is made up of verse after verse listing the many trials, pains and sorrows of King David.

But this chapter also shows us where he placed his trust, and where he eventually gained his strength.

 

[6] I am troubled; I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long.

[9] Lord, all my desire is before thee; and my groaning is not hid from thee.

[10] My heart panteth, my strength faileth me: as for the light of mine eyes, it also is gone from me.

[15] For in thee, O LORD, do I hope: thou wilt hear, O Lord my God.

[21] Forsake me not, O LORD: O my God, be not far from me.

[22] Make haste to help me, O Lord my salvation.

Psalm 38:6,9-10,15,21-22

We can trust the same God David trusted.  We can place our faith in His plan and His working in our life. 

No matter how long the trial may last, our God, and His grace and mercy to us, endures forever!

We can Hope in Him continually.