Category Archives: Faithfulness of Christ

The Friday that was Good

Good Friday everyone. This is the Friday that was Good. Blessed be the Name of the Lord! Thank you Jesus for Calvary! Thank you for the cross. And even though it’s a couple of days away, I am so thankful He didn’t stay in the tomb. It is empty!!

You can read my other posts on Holy Week here, here, herehere and here. Please come back tomorrow and Resurrection Morning (before or after church!) for our final conclusion. 

“And Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and breathed His last. Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.” Mark 15:37, 38 NKJV.

The veil in the Temple separated the Holy Place from the Holiest of Holies. Only the High Priest could even enter the Holiest of Holies, no one else was allowed. Inside was the Ark of the Covenant, which held the Ten Commandments, Aaron’s rod that budded, and Manna. The High Priest could only go into the Holiest of Holies once a year to roll away the sins of the people for another 365 days. (Day of Atonement)

This Holiest of Holies represented the presence of God.

The Israelites could not approach God for themselves. They had to have others to plead for their sins.

But everything changed on the Friday that was Good.

It is a Holy Friday and with good reason! We cannot talk of the Cross without realizing there was a Holy God, a Good God, paying the price.

Look at all that was going on in the spirit world when Jesus was dying. 

When Jesus took His last and final breath, the earth shook violently, thunder rolled and a magnificent thing happened in the Temple. The massive curtain, which, according to Jewish historical descriptions, was approximately 30 feet wide, 60 feet high and three inches thick, was impossible for man to rip apart! It was said that it took 300 priests just to wash it. That’s big.

That veil separated man from God’s presence. So when God literally tore it into two pieces, from the top to the bottom, it was very significant.

“But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.” Isaiah 59:2.

When Jesus died, things changed forever. We could now enter that Holy Place, God’s Presence, all by ourselves. Without fear!

“Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh…” Hebrews 10:19-20.

Now the priests were no longer the only ones who could WORSHIP!

Worship was now for everyone.

Do you realize what that means?

We are able to worship the Savior personally, have a living relationship with the One who hung on the cross!

And…it gets better.

We  can, and should, worship God anywhere! 

  • In a church, yes, please worship Him there!
  • Out in the woods? Worship Him!
  • Walking down the road? Worship Him!
  • Driving in your car? Worship Him!
  • About to have a meal? Worship!
  • Breathing today? Worship, worship, worship!

“Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:14-16.

Because of Calvary, because of “It is finished”, we have direct access to Jesus Christ.

Don’t be discouraged today if you are quarantined on this Friday that is Good. Rejoice because the veil was torn and wherever WE are, HE is!

Friday is Good because without Friday there would be no Resurrection Sunday. Join me tomorrow as we anticipate the Risen Savior.

Kingdom2

When God is Silent

Surely there have been times in your life that you have asked the question of the ages:

Why is God silent?

Does He not hear me? My prayers are not being answered, maybe He doesn’t love me. Have I done something wrong?

  • I don’t feel Him.
  • I don’t hear Him.
  • I definitely don’t see Him.

I am surely all alone in this world!

when God is silent

Haven’t we all been there? Maybe we have even lived there for a time? It isn’t easy.

Can we say it can be just plain difficult?

I am not one of those that is fortunate enough to hear the Lord speak in an audible voice to me every morning and say, “Good morning Nannette, time to get up, Sweet Daughter of Mine! Here is what I have planned for you today…”

But He does speak to us, in a variety of ways, mostly through His Word and prayer. And the two of them together? Even better chance you will hear that still, small voice of the Lord.

But sometimes, there is silence; and He is teaching us to trust Him.

Do you remember Thomas? Poor Thomas is still getting picked on as The Doubter. He said he wouldn’t believe that Jesus was alive unless he could see the nail marks in his hands and put his hand in his side. But Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:29 NIV.

Compare it to a marriage relationship. If your spouse is away on a trip, are you panicked that they don’t love you anymore?

  • You can’t feel them next to you.
  • You can’t see them.
  • You can’t talk to them if they are busy or in meetings.
  • You can’t hear them.

Does that mean that just because there is silence that their love means nothing any longer? Of course not.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder.

Would it not be wonderful to think that the Lord is preparing us in the silence, to teach us to long for Him?

Of course, we want to be sure that there is not something keeping us from hearing from the Lord.

  • If there is sin, repent.
  • If there is anger, get rid of it.
  • If there is someone you need to forgive, go do it.

Clean up the heart. Draw nigh to Him and He will draw nigh to you. His Word promises that.

Can we trust God even when we don’t hear from Him? When we don’t feel Him every day? He promised to never leave us or forsake us, when there is silence we lean on His promises!

Can we keep on loving Him, serving Him, telling others about Him, just because we love Him, and not because He owes us anything in return?

C.S. Lewis said, “Though our feelings come and go, God’s love for us does not.”

He never changes, He is always the same. “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” Hebrews 13:8. And in an ever-changing world that is full to the brim of uncertainty, we can encourage one another by reminding ourselves of His faithfulness and remembering prayers that He has answered in the past.

You can trust Him, even in the silence.

Show Jesus you want to be picked up by Him!

Every once in a while, social media gives you a win. Such was the case a few days ago when I was mindlessly scrolling and feeling sorry for myself.

I was just a week out from having back surgery: Basically a REDO of a failed spinal fusion in 2018 of my L4-L5 and L5-S1. Fusion had not taken place and I literally had loose screws causing pain.

Since then, my vertebrae at L3 decided to jump down and lay on top of L4 causing the utmost pain and suffering the last six months and requiring, in layman terms, a lumbar spinal fusion from L3-S1 with cages, rods, and screws, oh my! The surgery went well and everything looks great except for the horrific nerve pain I am having in my left leg. It has caused endless, sleepless nights and nothing has touched the pain, nor do they know specifically what has caused it.

So, here I had landed, wondering what was passing me by in the world when I came upon this post by a sweet friend about her six year old daughter, Haylee:

“On Sunday, Haylee wanted to be in the main sanctuary with me and said, ‘I wanna praise Jesus with you, Mom!’ Obviously I said, ‘Okay!’

And boy did she!!

I let my hands down because they were losing circulation and she grabbed my hand, shoved it back in the air and said, 

‘Mom, you need to show Jesus you want to be picked up by Him!’”

And in an instant, one sentence, one thought can change your whole perspective. And maybe even change your life.

Haylee’s mommy told me that her precious little one was recently baptized; her love for Jesus has grown with every passing day. Haylee has asked her why she raises her hands in the car, at home, at church or even outside just listening to worship music and Jessica replied that it is her way of sending Jesus hugs and receiving His hugs in return! 

“Haylee, when you want Mommy to pick you up, what do you do?”

Her little eyes dancing in wonder and awe, she slowly replies, “Ahhhh, so Jesus picks us up when we lift our hands?!” 

“Exactly!” 

“And now she can’t get enough of lifting her hands and worshiping our Savior. God continues to answer my tear-filled prayers and it brings tears of joy to my eyes to know how much He loves us!”

Wow. This is sermon material that I will not do justice to but I will keep it simple and it will encourage and bless all the same because one little girl, one innocent heart, just believes what she is told, loves what she believes and acts on it. Haylee goes on to say that when she has been scared she just says His name, “Jesus”, and the fear goes away, and in her words, “Mom, it works!”

Yes, Haylee, it works! I have prayed and prayed for relief from pain these last couple of weeks, actually months, make that years, but it rarely comes the way I want it to. Not that God hasn’t healed me before, you can read of at least one of my miracles here. Besides the burn, He completely healed me of migraines ten years ago, I have not had one since. When He does heal me, HE will receive the glory, the miracle will magnify HIM and others will be blessed, encouraged and maybe find their way to the throne!

Even though I still have pain, every time I would lift my hands, He would pick me up, reassure me He was with me, comfort me with the knowledge He had been in my shoes, with even worse pain and He would give me the strength I needed to overcome. 

His Word is His promise, His promises are true, His truth prevails time and time again! 

And maybe sometimes, just maybe, our joy in our pain, our confidence in our God, our trust that He is with us no matter what, the JOY we find in living for Him, regardless of pain and suffering, is a blessing and strength to someone else. You are always being watched, child of God, others are interested in the One you say takes all your fears away. They know you still have pain, but they also see you still praise God, you become stronger regardless of suffering and every day becomes a testimony of His goodness in so many ways.

We may not always receive the instant miracle we are seeking but when we lift our hands and ask Jesus to pick us up, with child-like faith, child sized trust, He will respond with God-sized strength!

When I first came to know Jesus, I heard our lifted hands were like a funnel, “Fill me up, God, fill me up!” I also heard it was a sign of surrender, giving everything to Him in recognition that He is all powerful and we are nothing without Him. 

All  of these are true; whatever you need for your current situation, He is that! If your predicament is physical pain, then hands in the air and call on Him, “Pick me up, Father! Here I am, Lord, hold me, strengthen me, help me.”

Many are fearful of the virus, many others are stressed about being away from those they love, then there is the intimidation and peer pressure both ways about what we should do or what we shouldn’t do this holiday season. Sometimes it is all just too much! So….hands up! Surrender those fears to Him, let Jesus carry that burden that is too big for you then let Him fill that funnel and give you the peace that passes understanding.

It doesn’t matter what your situation, God has the answer; sometimes it is just Him, sometimes that is all we need. He will show us His wisdom, His strength and impart comfort that only He can give.  He will reassure us He is with us in our pain, He has overcome and that same power that raised Jesus from the dead, lives in us! 

Raise those hands today, surrender and let God pick you up, strengthen, establish you and bless you beyond measure.

Jessica and her adorable family!

Enjoy this similar post, Holdju!