Unseen Hand of Protection

This weekend my niece was nearly fatally injured when her horse stumbled and fell while running a rodeo event.  This incident has consumed my mind the past two days, she walked away and the horse was fine but something profound had struck me.  As these pictures have been reviewed many times, I can't help but believe an angel was positioned between my niece and the horse.  God's saving hand is obvious in these photos, but what about those times He saves us when we are oblivious?  His presence is always with us but how often do we acknowledge it?  How many times do we say "Wow, that girl was lucky?" 

In this situation, all the credit could have been given to the horse. Horses have instincts that can help them move quickly to avoid a collision, so it would be easy to say "Wow, look at that horse, he's trying to keep from falling on the girl."  Or, it can be seen as the mighty hand of God intervening into a situation for His honor and glory. This horse story is not unlike many other death defying stories. I'm sure, at some point in life, we have all had at least one story where something equally amazing has happened to us. When something this profound does occur, where do we go with it? Since we walk away unharmed, should we move on our way, unchanged, and a month later it is forgotten. On the contrary, it should be remembered and pondered as to why we were spared, when some, in the same circumstances, were not spared. 

Why does he save us so faithfully?  Why save one but let another die?  For those who fear God, Psalm 106:8 tells us exactly why he saves us: 

"Nevertheless, He saved them for the sake of His name,

that He might make His power known." 

He saves us so that we will make His power known.  This thought is so big to me, that He...the Almighty, the Creator of the universe, wants to use me to make His power known? 

So He doesn't save us just so we'll be happy, or so we can move along in life without a major catastrophe messing up our plans, but He saves us for the sake if His name.  His name is power, His name is life, His name can break strongholds, His name trustworthy.  There is a great and awesome purpose for which He saves us, so that we might uphold His name and tell others of His power.

Pslam 111:4 tells us that "the works of the Lord were made to be remembered."  To forget is to be defeated, to remember is to have victory.  We must remember on a daily basis.  This type of remembering is what gives power to our daily walk and its what He will use to make His power known through us.  Let us remember what He has done for us!  Psalm 103:1-5; 21-22 "Let all that I am praise the LORD; with my whole heart, I will praise His holy name.  Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things He does for me.  He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.  He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies.  He fills my life with good things so that my life is renewed like the eagle's.  Praise the Lord, you angels, you mighty ones who carry out his plans, listening for each of his commands. Yes, praise the Lord, you armies of angels who serve him and do his will!  Praise the Lord, everything he has created, everything in all his kingdom.  Praise the Lord."

    

Ashes

This morning as I was building a fire in the wood stove, thoughts came to mind as I was carefully looking for ambers still alive from the night before.  There weren't many, and of those, they were tiny and almost void of heat.  As I stirred the ashes and found those tiny ambers here and there and piled them in the middle, then added small kindling particles, I could feel a rebirth of warmth.  When breath of air was added to it, it didn't take long for those near cold coals to burst into a flame.

Encouagement works this same way in the lives of believers.  Sometimes we get so weary from the fight that our lives do little to bring warmth to ourselves, much less anyone around us.  However, when just a few come together and begin to discuss God's living word, or when music in our ear reminds us of the power of His word, that breath of encouragement can quickly turn cold embers into flames of fire.

This was my experience this morning as I took Seth to work.  Just the day before, I had been voicing disbelief, comparing myself and my family to others, feeling inadequate...you know how the story goes, but was encouraged by my son.  As Seth spoke to me of how the story of Joseph was inspiring him, it breathed life giving encouragement to my soul and reproved me at the same time.

As I was headed back home, I continued to be encouraged by Chris Tomlin through these words:

Precious Cornerstone

Sure Foundation

You are faithful to the end

We are waiting on You Jesus

We believe you're all to us

Let the glory of you name

be the passion of the church

let the righteousness of God

be a holy flame that burns

Let the saving love of Christ

be the measure of our lives

We believe You're all to us

Holy son of God

Sent from heaven

Hope and mercy at the cross

You are everything, you're the promise

Jesus you are all to us.

It is God's righteousness in us that becomes the "holy flalme that burns" and the "saving love of Christ" should be the only "measure of our lives".   2 Corinthians 10:12 says "For we are not bold to class or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves; but when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understanding."

I'm thankful that my thinking was set right for today.  If you are feeling weary from the fight, put praise and worship music in your ear, call a friend who will give you His word, or read the Psalms of David and adopt his habit of remembering God's works and wonders, it will comfort you

(Psalm 119:52).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoXPhuDVp4U

Unlikely Heros

I don't know about you all but I enjoy hearing or reading bits of encouragement that come from the lives of my friends. I am so blessed with a host of friends and family who are all on the same pursuit, that is to live life with an intentional purpose. As I receive encouragement, I would like to share it and I want to encourage you to do the same. It is good to encourage one another so I hope you'll join me in this endeavor. A friend encouraged me to share these following thoughts so I hope it encourages you.

Don't ya just love to read stories about people who rose above their circumstances and did something great? Ya know, the kind of stories where the most unlikely guy rose to the top even though everything was against him. These kind of stories encourage me because I am like the most unlikely type, but the exciting thing is that the "unlikely type" is the ones God chooses to use.

God is all about stories, He wrote a great many stories of underdogs rising to the top. Our heavenly Father so delights to show Himself strong in those who are weak. He delights in creating stories like a child slaying a giant. . . like decreasing an army to a modest size, smaller than its foes, then giving the victory with clay pots, torches and horns. How about a giant fish that swallows a man or finding money in a fish's mouth to pay the taxes - that'd be nice! Better yet, using a group of uneducated fishermen to turn the world upside down.

When we remember these stories of God's power it will strengthen our faith. So don't let any of your weaknesses speak louder than God's power. Those of you who know me well. . . be faithful friends to remind me of this when I forget.

The eyes of the Lord search the earth to show Himself strong in those whose hearts are completely His. The Lord wants to show Himself strong in us. He wants to give us the power to be unlikely heros. May we believe in His power and remember what He has done.

King David remembered these kinds of stories to comfort himself....
Psalm 119:52 I have remembered Your ordinances from of old, O LORD, and comfort myself.

2 Corinthians 12:9
And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness " Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.

If any of you decide to send notes of encouragement. . . please put me on your list. Thanks!

Thoughts on Motivation

In order to have the fruit of the Spirit grow in our lives, we must be delighting in the Lord. As we delight in His Word, His creation, His awesome works, past, present & future, and live with an attitude of praise, the fruit of the Spirit becomes a by-product of living with this intention.

Likewise, motivation is a by product of gratefulness.

As brothers and sisters in Christ, we are to. . .

speak truth to one another,

give thanks together,

rejoice together,

praise God together,

glory in God’s goodness together, and

be sure our speech is seasoned with grace toward one another.

Scripture is saturated with the fact that we are to live life together as brothers and sisters in Him so how we speak to one another can have a huge impact upon our growth and development. All of these actions involve conversation, as we speak with these intentions, motivation will be a by-product of gracious speech. As we speak with deliberate words, of this nature, we will be motivated or spurred on to love and good deeds.

Our words can bring blessing or curses upon ourselves and/or others. So, how can we plan to speak to one another so that we will both be spurred on? Maybe that would mean, no more talking about how tired we are or how unmotivated we are but saying something like… “I’ve got to tell you what God did today!”

Can we do an experiment and see if speaking to one another in words of gratefulness, thanksgiving, rejoicing and praise will begin to stir up motivation? I know there are scads of Scriptures which support this idea but I haven’t taken the time to look them up. This thought came to me recently as I was driving and listening to a praise song “Give Thanks” it goes like this:

Give thanks with a grateful heart, give thanks to the Holy One

Give thanks because He’s given Jesus Christ His Son

And now let the weak say I am strong, let the poor say I am rich

Because of what the Lord has done for us. . .give thanks.

As I listened, I was thinking “that’s mind over matter…let the weak say I am strong, let the poor say I am rich…mind over matter…convincing yourself of something even though the opposite seems to be true. How do you really do that? You do it by developing a grateful heart, by giving thanks in all things.  1 Thessalonians 5:18... in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.  A grateful heart is a joyful heart and a joyful heart is good medicine!  It will bring health and healing to our bodies.  So lets help one another foster a grateful heart then tell of all the good things that come from practicing this truth.

 

Do Not Forget to Remember

When we trust Christ as Savior, He redeems us from sin and we belong to Him.  However, He also redeems us daily from things that would steal our hearts, He has "radically redeemed" me through His gentle reminders (and sometimes not so gentle) to remember all He has done for me and all He has done in history.  He reminds me not to forget who He is and what He is able to do.

Remembering the works and wonders of the Lord is a mentally strengthening exercise that has the power to bring victory into our lives.  Knowing our weaknesses and becoming aware of the areas where we are prone to fall into sin, will help us to develop a plan to fight a good fight of faith when we are faced with struggles.  We are instructed in 2 Corinthians 10:5 to destroy speculations and any lofty thoughts that are raised up against the knowledge of God, taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.  Remembering His works and wonders is a way to exercise our minds and help bring our thoughts into obedience.

Through my struggle with depression, I have found victory in remembering the works and wonders of the Lord.  Our God has been so faithful to reveal Himself to us throughout history, all the way up to current day.  He wants us to know His power, His abilities, His desires, and His heart.  All the many stories in the Bible from, Genesis to Revelation, are revelations of who He is and what He is able to do on the behalf of those who fear Him.  I once heard it said that when our walk with God is distant, it isn't always that we lack devotion but that we fail to remember.

King David was known as being "a man after God's own heart" however he struggled with depression.  Reading through the Psalms will reveal many times in David's life where he was being pursued by someone or was overtaken by his own sin and distress, all of which led him down the road of depression.  However, David did not allow it to rule his life, he fought it by remembering the works and wonders of the Lord.  Many times after David would list all of his woes he would finish up with remembering, as in Psalm 77:11-12 "I shall remember the deeds of the LORD; Surely I will remember Your wonders of old. I will meditate on all Your work and muse on Your deeds."

When we remember His works it strengthens our trust so we can confidently say, "The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid..."  (Heb. 13:6).  Remembering His wonders of old will give us understanding because it is an exersice in fearing the Lord and the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and a good understanding have all those who do His commandments (Psalm 111:10).  When we meditate on all His works and ponder His deeds we are comforted.  David said, "I have remembered Thine ordances from of old, O Lord, and comfort myself." (Psalm 119:52)  David knew that remembering whe works of the Lord would give him victory as well as comfort, therefore, he remembered them often.

I have had seasons of victory and seasons of defeat but I am convinced that defeat does not have to be chronic.  We often choose to live defeated lives but if we choose Christ, we can live in victory.  It is my hope and prayer, that if there is anyone reading this blog that is struggling with depression, you will know that you are not alone.  Many godly people that were used mightly of God struggled with depression as well.  However, we must take steps to obey God's word by taking our thoughts captive and bringing them into obedience.  Remembering His works and wonders is a way to do that.

In this blog, I want to encourage you to do a little scripture study on the word "remember" and then study the phrase "did not remember" and see what you come up with.  Word studies are done easily if you go to http://www.biblegateway.com/ and simply put in your word or "phrase" in quotes then every scripture which contains that word or phrase will come up. 

Ask God to give you creative ways to remember all His works and wonders.  If you do this exercise and experience being radically redeemed please share what God did so we can all rejoice with you and praise His Name.

A Thorn in the Flesh

I've had a lot of ups and downs in the last three years and through various pressures of life, some days are filled with simply surviving.  Throughout all these things, God is changing me and I think a new "normal" is developing.  

Lately, in my assessment of some of these life pressures, I was drawn to think about Paul and his thorn in the flesh. Many have speculated on what that thorn could have been but I began to wonder if it could have been a 'being' because Paul describes the thorn as a "messenger of Satan" and it was given to "buffet" him. We all have personalities that make who we are and when we come to faith, our personality does not change. It takes a certain kind of personality to kill people. Paul was a persecutor and murderer before the road to Damascus experience. When he became a believer, he still had the same personality, however, it was now turned toward holiness instead of destruction. I'm sure that his new nature did not dominate his old habits all the time. Thus we have Romans 7 where he explains the struggle he is going through within his own body. When the Bible uses the word "messenger" it is usually talking about a "being" or a person. A messenger of God is always thought to be an angel so wouldn't a "messenger of Satan" be a demon?

This was something God was allowing in Paul to keep him from exalting himself. There are others in Scripture who were given a "messenger of Satan" by God. Then of course, when Paul asked God to take this from him God's reply was, "My grace is sufficient for you for power is perfected in weakness." The weaknesses we all have are given to us by God and many times we live with an expectation that someday we will overcome these weaknesses, however that day may never come. Our weaknesses are, in reality, our greatest strengths therefore, we may continue to struggle with these things continually. I think a "spirit" of depression is my thorn and while I do not have to live in a depressed state, it will always be looming even during a "good" season. If I can look at "Depression" as the name of an outside force that has been given to me by God to keep me on my face before Him, then fighting a good fight of faith takes on a whole new meaning. Rather than viewing self with contempt, Depression can be viewed with contempt and with the armor of God in tact, He will fight the battle and I am free to show myself grace.

If you struggle with depression, on down days, remember God's grace upon you is sufficient and you are allowed to show yourself grace.

"Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong."

Tree of Delight

What is it like to delight in someting?  My children are delighted when they get an ice-cream cone.  I am delighted when my husband and I have a meaningful conversation! In Psalm 1 it talks about a what happens to a person when their delight is in the Lord and compares it to a tree. 

But his delight is in the law of the Lord

and in His law He meditates day and night.

And he will be like a tree firmy planted by streams of water,

which yeilds its fruit in its season,

and its leaf does not wither,

and in whatever he does he prospers.

Can you imagine a tree that fits this description?  Oh I can, it is full, beautiful and solid.  The birds make their nests among its branches, and others are invited to rest in its shade.  It yields lucious fruit that not only satisfys but also gives beauty that all admire.  Its leaf does not wither, even in the trials of winter.  I can't imagine desiring anything more beautiful than to be like that kind of tree.

As I begin to create and maintain this blog, I want to communicate the many ways I am "Radically Redeemed" by my Lord.  He wants all His children to be like this delightful tree in Psalm 1.  However, sometimes life's circumstances become like a mountain which casts a dark shadow over everything we do,  this is when we really need to encourage one another.   It is my prayer to delight in Him with all my heart and to encourage others to do the same.  It is my hope that others will leave encouraging comments for me and anyone else who reads the blog.  Thank you for reading, and please share your stories of how you are radically redeemed!

Redeemed—how I love to proclaim it! 

Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed through His infinite mercy, 

His child, and forever, I am.

• Redeemed, redeemed,  Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
  Redeemed, redeemed,  His child, and forever, I am.

Redeemed and so happy in Jesus, 

No language my rapture can tell;
I know that the light of His presence 

With me doth continually dwell.

I think of my blessed Redeemer, 

I think of Him all the day long;
I sing, for I cannot be silent; 

His love is the theme of my song.

I know I shall see in His beauty 

The King in whose way I delight;
Who lovingly guardeth my footsteps, 

And giveth me songs in the night.

Source: http://www.hymnal.net/hymn.php/h/301#ixzz1HHDNlOHY