Friday, September 14, 2012

God and I had a good time this morning.  I was recently reminded of a really old song, and I sat down to see if I could remember how to play it.  I got to singing the words, and the presence of the LORD filled my space, and it was wonderful!!!  The words of the song touched me and reminded me to "Praise the Lord."  I believe Dallas Holm wrote the words:

When you're up against a struggle
That shatters all your dreams,
And your hope has been cruelly crushed
By Satan's manifesting scheme,
And you feel the urge within you
To submit to earthly fears.
Don't let the faith you're standing in seem to disappear.

(Chorus) Praise the Lord!
He can work with those who praise Him.
Praise the Lord!!
For our God inhabits praise,
Praise the Lord!!!
For the chains that seem to bind you
Serve only to remind you that they drop powerless behind you
When you praise Him!

Now satan is a liar,
And he wants to make us think
That we are paupers,
When he knows himself
We're children of the King.
So lift up the mighty shield of faith,
For the battle has been won!!!
We know that Jesus Christ has risen,
So the work's already done!!!
Aren't those powerful words?

Live like a child of the King!!  Praise Him!!

Friday, September 7, 2012

"For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.  Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron;    Because they rebelled against the words of God, and contemned the counsel of the most High: Therefore he brought down their heart with labour; they fell down , and there was none to help.  Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses.  He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunderOh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!" -- Psalm 107:9-15.

I mentioned in my last post that I have been having a hard time, being really anxious about my lost loved one, and that God had been faithful in giving me raindrops to help me.  The above psalm is one of the raindrops, a VERY POWERFUL raindrop, especially the verses I quoted.  Most of that psalm spoke to me, and you may want to read the whole thing to see which part speaks to you the most. 

This verse basically told me to hang on and give praise.  Even if my loved one is in the very shadow of death, God is still able!!!  He is ABLE!!!  I will "praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!" 
I may have mentioned that I pray scriptures for my children (including my son-in-law) from Jodie Berndt's Praying the Scriptures for your Children, usually praying one scripture prayer a day, filling in whosoever's name fits the prayer that I come across that day, sometimes even praying for children of friends.  Last night I came to a prayer that was particularly pertinent to me, because in the past few days, I have had several "slaps in the face" about my lost loved one.  The prayer said, "As we pray for________, do not let us be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, let us always remember to present our requests to you.  And let your peace, which transcends all understanding, guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)" 

My faith has been wavering because of the things I have seen and heard about my lost loved one, and I had to apologize to the LORD, because He has remained faithful, and I can trust Him.  Just because my faith wavered does not mean He has stopped working and fulfilling His promises to me.  In fact, when I asked Him to please give me a raindrop and to let me know He is still working, He was faithful to even do this:  to send this prayer, to show me His creation to remind me of His awesome power, and to send so many songs that have helped me praise and to remember Him, as well as many other reminders. 

In fact, this passage of scripture gives us the answer for the anxiety of the wait:  prayer with thanksgiving.  There is a peace that comes when I pray, presenting all my concerns before the LORD, and thank Him for His work and for listening and answering my prayers.   

He is so very faithful, and He has given me a peace that I cannot fathom.  In fact, I almost feel guilty to be so much at peace when so much bad is going on.  But even that is being handled by God.  I cannot be God in my loved one's life.  I cannot fix anything.  I cannot save that person.  I cannot manipulate circumstances for that person.  I am not God.  I am Tami, but I serve God, and He has this under control!!  I am thankful!
 

Monday, September 3, 2012

"(For he saith , I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.) --2 Corinthians 6:2

OK.  I guess I am just a little slow, but the phrase, "today is the day of salvation," hit me and hit me hard and made me so VERY happy!!!  The King James Version says, ". . . now is the day of salvation."  I have heard people say, "All in God's time," and that had me a little confused in my prayer time for my lost loved one.  However, Christ came, died, rose, provided redemption, said, "It is finished."  I KNOW it is not God's will for sin to be in anyone's life.  It is His perfect will that all would be saved NOW, TODAY!!  It is not God's perfect will that my loved one stay in sin one more day!!  NOT ONE MORE DAY!!!   Yes, He will work all things for good, but His perfect will is that this person would be saved today!!  I am glad He will use the experiences for the good.  However, I am praying, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."  TODAY!!!  I know I am praying for God's perfect will!!!