Ecclesiastes 3:14
I perceived that whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it. God has done it, so that people fear before him.
I heard this song earlier in the week. I’ve liked it for a while. I like the truth behind it, that God has the power to take us “into the beautiful.” And for as much as there is so much beauty here to appreciate, is is to just get a taste of the beauty God has in Hands…there is so much more awaiting us all.
Ecclesiastes 3:11
He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.
Psalm 27:4
One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.
Psalm 90:17
And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.
There are so many types of beauty. There is the inner-beauty I admire in others, to always love others. I try…but I am human. There is outer-beauty. I try on that one, too. However, I have been learning to accept myself and hope that others do the same.
The beauty of nature is something I don’t think will ever be looked by me with dull eyes. One of my favorite things to do is to imagine how vast God’s power is in light of His creation. There is so much to observe and appreciate.
And everything, even those of use who might not be viewed by everyone as God views us, is still seen by God as His “good” creation and worthy of His love.
I think I will go see if I can view that huge moon up in the sky, tonight, and hope for some stars. I like star-gazing. They were placed there by God…
Today, instead of posting a song with Bible verses, I have decided to post this clip of a sermon. I posted another version of this a very long time ago, but I thought it would be a good repeat. Enjoy!
I was just reading Genesis 6–the beginning of the story about Noah.
Most people know the story: Noah, a good man, was tasked by God to build an ark in preparation for the flooding of the earth. In fact, I think we know the story so well, it becomes rote and we do not look deeper.
I tried to look a little deeper this evening. That isn’t to say I am an expert on the story and what is happening between the lines, but I did want to think about this part of Noah’s story a bit.
Chapter 6 is the exposition…the scene is being set and we are being introduced to the people and the reasons for the story. It is easy to gloss through that kind of information.
What grabbed me, though, were two things: 1. an idea that I saw in the study notes of my Bible, and 2. something I kind of got from reading this chapter that reminds me of how God can send us left when we thought we were going in the opposite direction. (Vague…I know.)
The study notes of my Bible brought up the amount of years left on mankind’s clock–120–as an indication of God’s patience. God could have sent the floods whenever He wanted. However, He chose to give Noah, a man God wanted to bless, time to build the ark, and He was also allowing time for people to come to their senses. How often does God just show lengthy stretches of patience with us? I know from my own experience that He watches me walking into walls, letting me get bumped and bruised, but never allowing me to face the full “hurting” that could happen. God is so patient with me, and with all of us. However, when those 120 years are up…they are up.
Now, for the “something” I got from this chapter. I don’t know if it is because of the present “season” of my life, where I am searching and seeking God on some very specific things, but I started to think about what God was requiring of Noah: A good man, living a blessed life was tasked with building a huge boat…probably not very close to water, and had to warn people of their impending doom. Noah had to prepare animals and family for a long cruise…an event that they chose to believe would happen, even if it meant a leap into the unknown. Noah was mocked, probably told he was a few fries short of a happy meal. But, Noah believed God was true to His command.
It kind of reminds me of Abraham a little. Abraham was told to pick up and leave. Noah was told to build a huge ship and then fill it with animals. Sometimes God asks us to do things that don’t quite make sense, especially when it appears that we are so blessed to begin with. And we can have these feelings, even when we have a willing heart and want to obey.
Sometimes in my mind, I get an image of Noah, red carpenter’s pencil in hand, scratching his head as he measures the boards needed….wondering to himself if he heard God correctly.
The important lesson here, though, is that Noah obeyed, took a journey into the unknown and while still an imperfect man, he was blessed to survive the floods.
Hope this all made sense. Just wrote as I thought things.
Genesis 1:1-2
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
Proverbs 3:3-6
Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.
Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
This past week, I had the privilege to travel to a very beautiful part of the country.
As I flew along, I peeked out of the window to see some of the world below me. God’s creation is amazing.
Just think, though, if He was able to create all of that beauty, ponder what He is able to do in our own lives.
The balance of everything rests in His hands….capable, strong and loving hands.
I’m praying and trusting big right now. God is able.
Here are a few photos from my trip. I cannot wait to return.
2 Corinthians 5:17-20
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.
About 20 years ago, on Easter, I gave my life back to God. At times, it has been hard for me to just lay the things that cause me shame or dislike about myself, at God’s feet. However, there is a time when you (meaning me) have to acknowledge how it beats you down and leaves you mentally and spiritually exhausted.
I reached that point a year ago. I was backsliding, because I thought I had all of the answers about how I should live my life. I didn’t.
I asked God…okay…I said, “Fine! Blah, blah, blah. . .” Not so nice, but we can go to God in utter frustration, even if it has been caused by our own sinful nature.
How did God repay my sin? Well, after some repentence, God answered some prayer (that I will not discuss here), and He started a year-long process of helping me to realize how He is guiding me and loving me.
He’s been good all 43 years of my life, as He has protected me from so much, even as far back as the day of my birth. God continues to protect me, because even when I fail or when others do things to take advantage me, I know God is ever-present and will rule the day. I never need to keep a “tally.’ That’s God’s job.
He has forgiven me, has given me a new life, has amazing things ahead for me in the future and I proudly say that I love Him, even though I know He loves me more, because He is my provider, protector, healer and sustainer. I could never be these things on my own, nor could anyone else ultimately embody these roles for me.
The past 20 years have seen a few broken hearts, illness to the point of temporary disability, and great financial need. The past 20 years have also been ones of great blessing…college, friends I could never in a million years expect to have and a job that a lot of people in my neck of the woods would jump through fire to get.
The most important thing, though, is that God loves me and will never turn His back on me.
Over the past year, I have had been working on me.
Most importantly, I’ve been working on my relationship with God.
Two years ago, I battled some personal downs…not many ups to be found, and then coming out of that, I experienced the tragic death of one of my colleague and the slow demise of another. Within it all, I started to slip in my faith, as I allowed influences in my life I knew were not conducive to my spiritual growth.
Last winter, I pulled the emergency brake and shut everything down. I had to. I had to remember who I was and am in Christ.
This process required some hard decisions, but necessary ones. I’m glad I made those changes, including making this blog mostly (if not entirely) focused on my faith.
I am not perfect. I am a sinner and have my struggles; however, God has done nothing short of showing me His faithfulness and goodness as I seek to serve Him and others, as an extension of him, more.
When we begin to feel we can set our own course aside from God, we will experience many frustrations and even failures. Trust me, there was a battle of wills many times on my way to work…that’s when I do a lot of thinking and praying…with my eyes open.
While I am ashamed of the person I became, I am forever grateful that God gently taught me lessons I needed to learn and gave me the peace to know that a walk with Him is not futile. He didn’t let me completely fall on my face.
I heard this song, today, and it reminded of me of how far I’ve come this past year. I have a long way to go, and Lord willing, He will allow me a lot more time to grow and learn…and positively influence others for Him.
Isaiah 61:1-3
The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes,
the oil of joy instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.
God’s promises are so important to remain a hold of, especially when we are tempted to doubt.
Often, I tend to fixate on the areas of my life that I view as burned beyond recognition–thinking they are unusable or that I cannot expect blessings in those areas of my life.
Of course, I know these thougths are errors on my part, but I have them just the same…that whole human thing.
I also know, and I am constantly reminded, that God takes all of the “ashes” from the burned areas and uses them for beautiful things.
We only need to look at what happens after a forest fire: The areas where a wasteland results from a fire experiences the beauty of fertile land, lovely vegetation and the regrowth of trees to bless future generations.
We are no different.
(I was listening to this song, today, as I ran errands. It provides so much hope. We are so blessed to have talented people to verbalize God’s promises in ways most of us cannot.)
If you know me, you know I do not post love songs. I just don’t see a point, really. However, today, I heard the most beautiful song, and I felt the need to share it.
Once a week, our kids pick songs to play between classes. Usually, the songs are quite varied or might match a holiday or event theme. Some songs I tune out and others I bop around to, because they are fun. It is always a nice way to end the week.
Today, I heard this song, and just thought there was so much truth in it. Imagine if people were really able to realize the hard work was/is worth it.
So, I will get all sappy, now…enjoy!
