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Still I Will Trust You

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1236524_10201279022071340_513847842_nDay 15 of the #31dbc! Today I am glad to have my sister-in-law, Sue Elkins, guest posting for me!  Sue is a mother, a long time Broker/Associate with Re/Max Realty Professionals, and has recently “retired” from being a pastor’s wife for many years. But that has not slowed her down in ministry. She and her husband, Dexter, are still very active in their church teaching, ministering and being helpers as the Bible calls us to be. Her newest and most beloved profession in this life is that of grandmother to Roarke David. I know this will be a blessing to you!

Still I will trust you
Still I will follow
Still I will answer, to your every calling
When the storm rages on and I can’t find my way
Still I will trust you Lord

I love a song that seems as if I am talking directly to the Master!

It talks to my heart every time I sing it. It renews my commitment to the Lord that regardless of what comes my way; the Lord and I are STILL going to have a relationship that is unbreakable. 

The bond between you and the Lord should be the strongest bond in your life.

Still I Will Trust 2

Nothing can separate me from you, Lord, except myself!  If you have a made-up mind there is nothing that can overcome you.  Trials may slow you down, but not stop you.   If you don’t have a made-up mind, then trouble is going to be around every corner because the adversary is going to know that your bond and commitment to the Lord has a weak link….you!  

STILL I WILL TRUST YOU…

I have watched people go in and out of serving the Lord, never building, or understanding how to build that relationship with Jesus.  They struggle every day with just the simplest things and when something BIG happens, they are just not able to overcome.

Serving the Lord is not about following rules or even the fear of hell, it has to be because you have a love for your Lord that is all-consuming!  The old song, “I Love Him Too Much To Fail Him Now” comes to mind. Do you feel that way about the Lord?  Does your heart hurt at the very thought that you could bring more pain to Jesus by giving up? 

I have been married for 41 years to the love of my life.  Have there been trials and days when I didn’t like him very much? Sure.  But not one time have I ever thought, “Okay, I’m done, I’m out of here.” That simply is not an option for me.  I made a commitment to my husband to love and cherish till death do us part.  We have four children that we created out of love and I am committed to always having a place with both Mother and Father that they can call “home”.  

If I am feeling unhappy, I don’t have to look any further than the mirror to know where to start fixing the problem.   It is not an option!

Forty two years ago I made a commitment to change my life and told the Lord I would love Him forever, and it is with that same commitment, and His help, that I am going to complete this journey.  It has never been an option to quit.  

Have I had sad or discouraging days? Of course. 

Have I been disappointed in myself and others? Sure I have.

But quit on JESUS? NEVER!

No one has ever given me the peace, contentment, happiness, joy and blessing that comes from walking with Jesus and NO ONE has ever given their life so that I could have life abundantly and eternally!

STILL I WILL FOLLOW….

In our world today there is such a relaxed attitude that commitment isn’t really all that important.  You don’t have to be committed to your marriage. If it doesn’t work out, just move on. 

You don’t have to be committed to friends….you can get new ones. 

You don’t have to be committed to your job….if you don’t like it you can find another one. 

You don’t have to be committed to principles and morals…they may just not be for you. 

You don’t have to be committed to this religion thing…if it doesn’t work out, try another. 

Acts 4:12. “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”

We have a society that does not seem to be committed to anything except its own selfish desires!

Whether you have been walking with the Lord, one day or 10,000, if you desire your life to be one of peace and harmony, I cannot express to you the importance of committing to your relationship with Jesus Christ.  Really committing to know more about Him.  Really committing to read His Word and discovering His ways.  Totally, and without hesitation, committing yourself to whatever comes your way, you will not stop walking with Him.  Committing yourself to Him so that whatever He asks of you, you are willing to do it. 

STILL I WILL ANSWER TO YOUR EVERY CALLING…..

Will life always be easy?  No, but it will be a lot easier now with a made-up mind and Jesus by your side.  Will your life be free of problems?  No, but there is a peace in the midst of the storm, there is good in an imperfect world, and there will be comfort during sadness for you. 

Jesus is a friend like no other.  The Creator of the Universe…your Creator…Jesus, is on your side.  You will not believe what the two of you can accomplish!

He is waiting on you.  He has already made the commitment to you….He gave His life for you.   Jesus is going to wait on you to show your commitment to Him.  Don’t make Him wait any longer!

WHEN THE STORM RAGES ON AND I CAN’T FIND MY WAY…..STILL I WILL TRUST YOU LORD!

Enjoy listening to this beautiful song, “Still I Will Follow”, sung by the writer, Vonnie Ewing Lopez, performing with The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir.

 

Sharing with Women Helping Women, Teach Me Tuesdays, Titus 2sdays, Counting Our Blessings, Rich Faith Rising, Wedded Wednesday, Encourage One Another, A Wise Woman Builds, Word Filled Wednesday

 

Crazy Coincidence or Divine Appointment?

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“There is a God who governs the world, so that things do not come to pass by chance, no, not the smallest event, but all by Divine direction.” ~ Matthew Henry

 

Crazy Coincidence or Divine Appointment?

There was a lady who experienced quite the coincidence in the Bible. You may or may not know her as the Shunammite woman whose son was raised from the dead by the prophet Elisha in the book of 2 Kings, chapter 4.

Elisha had told the woman that there would be a famine in the land and she should go and stay wherever she could because the famine would last for seven years. She obeyed, took her household and dwelt in the land of the Philistines for seven years.

At the end of the seven years she makes her way back to Israel to make an appeal to the king to get her house and her land returned to her. Now this is no small feat for anyone, especially for a woman! To go before the king and demand your property be returned to you after seven years of being gone had to be a little scary, and from the commentaries I have read he might not have been particularly easy to work with.

In the meantime, the king is talking with Gehazi, the servant of the man of God; they are just sitting around discussing all of the great things Elisha has done. There they are going down through the list of all the miracles he had performed and when Gehazi gets to the story of Elisha bringing the Shunammite woman’s son back to life she walks in at that very moment to ask the king to restore her house and land! Gehazi is beside himself and reacts like this:

“My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son whom Elisha restored to life.” 2 Kings 8:5 NKJV.

It isn’t like they are the only ones in the room…surely there are many people in line to see the king just as this woman. But Gehazi sees her just as he is telling about her son’s miracle.

The king listens to her story, assigns an official to her case and tells him to “Give back everything that belonged to her, including all the income from her land from the day she left the country until now.” 2 Kings 8:6 NIV.

Crazy Coincidence? I prefer to call it Divine Appointment!

Crazy Coincidence hopeinthehealing

God had taken care of her this far; He sure was not going to abandon her now!

This was no coincidence my friend, this was all divinely orchestrated by God.

Coincidence- A sequence of events that although accidental seems to have been planned or arranged.

Can you handle one more story?

We all love Ruth and Naomi and their dedication to one another in the Old Testament. After the death of both of their husbands they move back to their homeland and in order to provide food for the two of them, Ruth is out in the field gathering grain that is left over from the harvesters.

“Then she left, and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech.” Ruth 2:3 NKJV.

She just happened to come to the field that belonged to Boaz…a man of influence and wealth who would soon fall in love with her and take her for his wife.

But it doesn’t end there. This little coincidence truly is a Divine Appointment, for we find Boaz and Ruth listed in the New Testament in a pretty important place.

“The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham…Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king.” Matthew 1:1-5 NKJV.

Surely you can think of times in your life when circumstances have come together that you knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that it had to be God! Some would have called it coincidence but you knew better.

God had His hand all over it!

“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord,
And He delights in his way.” Psalm 37:23 NKJV.

[Tweet “We miss out on giving God the glory in when we pass something off as chance, happenstance or coincidence.”]

What specific instances can you recall that God has done in your life that you knew was not a coincidence?

Have you found yourself in the right place at the right time and just knew it was the hand of God?

[Tweet “Nothing happens by chance!”]

I like to think that my God delights in getting out His datebook and setting up Divine Appointments for me!

Do you have a Divine Appointment you would like to share? We would love to hear it!

 

Kingdom2

 

In the Multitude of My Thoughts…

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31 Days of Hope & HealingDay 13 of  the #31dbc! 31 Days of Hope and Healing.

“When I said, My foot slippeth; thy mercy, O Lord, held me up.
In the multitude of my thoughts within me thy comforts delight my soul.” Psalm 94:18-19.

Your comforts delight my soul. Doesn’t that phrase alone just cover you like a blanket?! When the anxieties of this life pile on us and overwhelm us and our foot slips, the Lord will hold us up.

His comforts will delight our very soul.

The commentaries explain the word “thoughts” here to mean branches of trees, thick and entwined. Complicated, busy or distressing thoughts.

This time of year is a comforting time.
The turning of the leaves.
The cooling of temperatures.
Getting out our sweaters and boots.
Snuggling up with a throw and a cup of hot chocolate.
It’s time for campfires and caramel apples…and plenty of good comfort food.

God brings us comfort in so many ways. He relieves us of those anxieties, and complicated or distressing thoughts, with His loving comfort, in an instant, if we will allow Him.

The Comfort of His Presence: “Honor and majesty are (found) in His presence; strength and joy are (found) in His sanctuary.” 1 Chronicles 16:27 AMP.

“There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.” Joshua 1:5.

The Comfort of His Love: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.” Jeremiah 31:3, NIV.

“And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:17-19, NIV.

The Comfort of His Security: “The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” Psalm 18:2.

“When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned ; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.” Isaiah   43:2.

The Comfort of His Promise: “So Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.” Hebrews 9:28 NKJV.

“For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.” 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 ESV.

What kind of comfort do you need today?

Chicken soup is good.

A nice cozy blanket is appealing.

Even a blazing fire makes us feel warm and toasty inside.

But all of those things are temporary and they do not fill the soul.

Only the Great Comforter can do that.

He is the One to hold you up, calm the thoughts within and delight your very soul!

Psalm 94

Sharing with Inspire Me Mondays, Amaze Me Mondays, Hear it on Sunday Use it on Monday, Motivation Monday, Living Proverbs 31