The Other Side of the Storm

The Other Side of the Storm

Once again, My Utmost For His Highest,

has given me much food for thought.

This story, about Jesus walking on the Water,

is one I have told to my Sunday School classes on many occasions. . .

we have all heard the story. . .

Jesus sent his disciples ahead of him. . .

there was a storm. . .

the disciples were afraid. . .

Jesus came walking on the water. . .

but there is so, so much more to the story than that. . .

if you will click on the links and read the commentary,

you begin to understand the political aspects,

the personality aspects, just basic human nature aspects. . .

so many emotions in one little children's tale. . .

I almost feel ashamed to have glossed over

so many lessons that could have been

taught and learned from this one Bible passage. . .

Rev. Oswald Chambers makes the point in his devotional

that Jesus was there with the disciples during the storm. . .

and that the storm itself was the process,

not the beginning of or the ending of. . .

but what happened during. . .

It makes me realize, it is so true. . .

what happens to us

when we are going through the storm

is just as important as the conclusion. . .

How do we conduct ourselves when we face adversity?

Do we realize Jesus is there with us during the storm,

or do we feel so alone,

and scared, unsure of which way to turn?

We are all going to have storms in our lives. . .

the unexpected death of a family member or friend. . .

the betrayal of someone you trusted. . .

hurt feelings, financial difficulties. . .

all the day to day trauma that life brings. . .

This devotion today has made me realize,

how I conduct myself during my storms

is just as important as the miracle of God

delivering me from my storms.

My prayer today

is that we have an assurance

that God is with us in the storm,

and that he is more than able

to bring us out of the storm

to a bright, beautiful future

filled with His promises and blessings. . .

Memories of God

Memories of God

What is your earliest memory of God?. . .

How old were you when you realized God existed?

I must have been about four years old, I know I had not started school. We attended church in Port Arthur Tx, pastored by J.T. Pugh.

One Sunday morning in Sunday School, there was a power failure, all the lights had gone off, and the kids in my class must have been scared, because I clearly remember my teacher saying, "We don't have to be afraid, Jesus is here with us, and just look at the beautiful sunshine he has given us", as she pulled back the curtains covering the windows.

That memory is so clear in my mind, that if I stepped into that classroom today, I believe I could show you where I was sitting. . .I also remember we had candy corn for snack. . .isn't our memory a phenomenal miracle. . .

How old were you when you realized that God was protecting you?. . .I could not have been too much older, I still had not started school. . .Mom and I were driving in the dark. . .it was only the two of us. . .I don't know where my Dad or younger brother were. . .

In those days kids rode in the front seat, and we did not wear seat belts. . .remember those days. . .I remember Mother screaming. . ."JESUS". . .and swerving to miss a cow in the road. . .I can so clearly see myself scooting up to the front of the seat, resting my elbow on the dash, and stating, "Jesus protected us, didn't he?", and my Mom's answer, "yes He did, He sure did, we need to thank him". . .

you know, come to think of it, I still scream "JESUS", in the car. . .guess I know where that came from. . .

and then, how old were you when you knew there was a calling from God on your life?

The summer I finished third grade, and was starting fourth grade, our family moved to Fort Worth TX, and began attending a church in White Settlement. . .I do not recall the circumstances of why. . . but I do know that is when I felt a calling on my life. . .every night I would lie in bed, and very quietly sing, "I'll go where you want me to go dear Lord, I'll do what you want me to do", as tears rolled down the sides of my face. . .I can't even remember all the words to the song now. . .but I do remember the earnestness with which I sang it. . .I meant every word. . .

and you know what?

To this very day, that is still the cry of my heart. . .

Let me do what YOU want me to do Dear Lord. . .

Please answer the question and share your stories in the comment section below. . .

you never know whose life your story may touch. . .

Reaching Your World

Reaching Your World

How big is your world?

When Jesus gave the instruction,

"Go ye into all the world",

and preach the gospel. . .

what did that mean?

I can only decide

how this term applies to my life,

and since I am not capable of

going into ALL the World,

I must apply the term to mean MY World. . .

I am required to share Jesus

with those I come in to contact with in my daily activities. . .

I'm afraid we get so busy with our little activities,

the things that are important to us,

that we forget,

people are hurting, and have no where to turn. . .

Lord, let it be our daily prayer. . .

Open a door today, and let me share Jesus. . .

Calculating the Cost

Calculating the Cost

God must have a sense of humor. . .I mean really, sometimes he must just look down on our foolishness, and just get the biggest laugh. . .

A couple of years after our son's death. . .we were beginning to recuperate. . .the world didn't stop and let us off. . .life had gone on. . .and we had adapted. . .

God blessed me with the most incredible job. . .carrying mail for the Post Office. . .it was great. . .more money than I had ever made in my life. . .a miracle from the Lord. . .we hardly knew what to do with ourselves. . .so we did what many young couples do. . .we spent it. . .yes we did. . .

Oh, we were faithful in our tithes and offerings. . .we learned those lessons. . .you can never outgive God. . .but we had a hi ho time. . .we put in a new pool. . .bought a new van. . .added on to the house. . .went on vacation to Disney World. . .

by this time we had adopted our son. . .he fit right in to the family. . .he had never had anything. . .so we made sure if he wanted it, he got it. . .and of course we couldn't deprive our other son. . .after all, he had lost his brother. . .we couldn't have him traumatized by doing without anything. . .

and so it went. . .for at least three years, we lived the good life. . .

and then we decided. . .we'll build a NEW HOUSE. . .

we've all heard that Bible Story haven't we. . .about building bigger barns. . .

Now, looking back, I can't honestly tell you if we prayed about it or not. . .what I can tell you is this. . .if we did pray about it. . .God's answer was NO. . .but we did not hear NO. . .we heard GO! and go we did. . .

We ran into a roadblock at every turn. . .I could not even begin to list them. . .we were determined to make it happen. . .and we did. . .we paid for things out of our pocket. . .we moved money out of savings. . .we did whatever needed to be done to make it happen. . .and it was wonderful. . .wonderful, I tell you. . .

until. . .the bills started rolling in. . .

do you know what it costs to air condition 10 foot ceilings. . .and insure all that wonderfulness?. . .neither did we. . .not a clue. . .

But even in our ignorance, and our stubborness, God was faithful. . .and delivered us. . .and we sold our beautiful, beautiful home. . .and barely broke even. . .and came back down to reality. . .to the real world. . .where the real mortals live. . .

and it was then that we had an EPIPHANY. . .

YOU NEED TO LIVE ON LESS THAN YOU MAKE. . .and NOT BE IN DEBT. . .

there is a reason it says in the Bible that the borrower is SLAVE to the LENDER. . .

we had learned a priceless lesson. . .being enslaved was not fun. . .working overtime to pay bills was not fun. . .knowing your paycheck was gone before you even got it was not fun either. . .

Our road to recovery was slow. . .and sometimes painful. . .but we were faithful. . .and God was faithful. . .and we endured, and God was faithful. . .and his promises were true. . .and he has blessed us above all we could ask or think. . .

and for that we give Him the glory. . .

Where were you God?

Where were you GOD?

I asked the question and God answered:

I was there all the time

(click link for video)

I've been there, where this Mother was standing. . .

Oh, it wasn't outside of a surgery unit. . .

No. .

We found ourselves standing outside the PICU. . .

in one of the top rated teaching hospitals in the world. . .

with the lead pediatrician in charge. . .

while our adorable, blonde haired, blue eyed, dimpled,

always smiling little cherub fought for his life. . .

and lost. . .

so yes, I know the agony this mother felt. . .

I was so very, very angry with God. . .oh I held it together in public. . .

everyone commented on how well we were doing. . .

but in the privacy of my own room. . .flinging myself out across my bed. . .

I would scream at God. . .how could you do this to me?. . .

HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?

It's not fair. . .it's not fair God. . .

I don't understand. . .

there is nothing you can say to me that is going to make me understand this. . .

but somehow, we survived. . .

we survived the grief, and the agony. . .

somehow our marriage survived. . .

and we kept what was left of our little family intact. . .

and slowly, slowly, began to rebuild a life for ourselves. . .

and God was faithful. . .and his promises were true. . .

and his blessings were abundant.

So many blessings. . .an adopted son who looks so much like us,

you won't be able to tell the difference. . .he is my joy. . .

sometimes I have to call just to hear his voice. . .

and adorable, precious grandchildren,

including one little instant grandson, who just lights up the room when he comes in. . .

So yes, God was there. . .

do I understand?. . .

NO. . .

but someday I will,

and until that day. . .I will keep pressing toward the mark of the calling of the Most High. . .

Pressing Forward

Pressing Forward

A friend recently told me, they felt as though they had wasted

ten years of their life, that they could never get back.

They felt looking back on those ten years,

there was nothing they had accomplished. . .

and they wished they had made different choices,

when the opportunity presented itself.

This bothered me. . .I felt I knew them so well. . .

I knew all of the accomplishments. . .countless lives touched by their ministry. . .

unbelievable riches they had brought into lives,

unmeasurable riches that would compound in the lives they had touched. . .

and be passed on from generation to generation. . .

I pondered the comment for days. . .

I could not get the words out of my mind. . .

wasted years. . .accomplished nothing. . .words I knew to be blatantly untrue. . .

and then it came to me so clear. . .

forgetting those things which are behind . . .

letting go of the negative parts of the past,

and focusing on the positive. . .so many positives. . .

we are so hard on ourselves . . . so negative about our accomplishments . . .

the enemy just watches and waits . . .

and pounces on every little morsel of negativity. . .

and then just feeds our little pitiful minds. . .

until we are just sad, pathetic little puddles of apathy. . .

but this one thing I know for a fact. . .

After reading about King David. . .he was a mess. . .

if King David could be called a Man after God's own heart. . .

then truly we can. . .by the grace of God. . .speak the words,

I WILL PRESS FORWARD TOWARD THE MARK for the PRIZE

God has unbelievable rewards and riches for his children. . .

His promises are yes and amen. . .

He said He would do it. . .and He will. . .

endless possibilities that we can't even begin to comprehend. . .

God's Word says:

I know the plans I have for you. . .

may the words of this song be the cry of our heart. . .

God let my thoughts be your thoughts, my plans be your plans. . .

Measure of a Man

Measure of a Man

I love God's version of Law and Order. . .

the version where everyone is equal. . .

everyone is held accountable to the same laws. . .

no one gets special privileges because they are rich,

or beautiful, or popular, or because of who they know. . .

Isn't that an amazing concept?

In God's version of Law and Order. . .

we are each judged according to a set of rules that are indisputable. . .

no lawyer gets to discuss the meaning of is. . .God's law is. . .

I often read writings by Rabbi Daniel Lapin. . .

sometimes it just helps me make sense of the way things

are written in the Bible. . .

I specifically loved an article he wrote recently,

concerning the measure of a man . . .

I found it fascinating to think about God's instructions. . .

you are to use a just measure. . .

you don't get to use one measure for yourself,

and another measure for someone else. . .

no matter if you are rich or poor, fat or skinny, beautiful or homely. . .

you must measure equally. . .

I must remind myself of this concept often . . .

my human nature is sometimes quick to criticize . . .

but I am learning. . .

I only wish I could have learned these life lessons sooner. . .

I Miss My Time With You

I miss my time with you, those moments together, I need to be with you each day, and it hurts me when you say, you're too busy. . .

I went to bed with this song on my mind. . .and thought about how very far I have come in developing a prayer life. . .

Now I know as a Christian you are just supposed to love to pray. . .but somehow I missed the connection, and did not feel the love. . .seriously, growing up as a child, prayer time was sheer agony. . .my parents would get on a kick, and decide that we were going to have family devotionals. . .only they weren't joyful. . .and they involved the entire family kneeling around the couch while my Mom prayed, and prayed, and prayed. . .goodness, sometimes it just went on forever. . .

and as if that wasn't enough. . .all children were required to go to the prayer room for fifteen minutes before every service. . .do you know how long fifteen minutes is to a child. . .eternity. . .

so this was my experience with prayer growing up. . .and frankly, although I knew it was a necessity, and a need and a requirement. . .it still remained agony for me. . .

until. . .I heard the words to this song. . .on the drive to work each morning, I learned that an easy way to get into God's presence was through awesome music. . .this particular song just happened to be on a Larnelle Harris project entitled From a Servants Heart . . .

I would play this song over and over, and sing it as a prayer . . the words, you're too busy, busy trying to serve me. . .but how can you serve me when your spirit's empty. . .

spoke to me, and I knew, I just knew that this was so true. . .that even though I was so busy working in the Kingdom, it was truly with an empty spirit. . .

I began to analyze how God must feel when he sees us running around like crazy people. . .doing stuff. . .doing this. . .doing that. . .teaching classes. . .singing in the choir. . .even worshiping, but yet there is no true relationship. . .I began to compare my relationship to God to having a friendship. . . and I began to realize that a friendship is not always this intense. . .gut wrenching. . .crying. . .sobbing. . .relationship. . .sometimes it is just being in your friends presence. . .no words are needed. . .you just enjoy the pleasure of their company. . .

I began to want to just enjoy being in God's presence. . .I wanted to understand what it meant when Jesus said, if an earthly father would give good gifts to his children. . . how much more would your Heavenly Father give good gifts . . .

As I began, on a regular basis, to study God's attributes. . .to read about God's goodness. . .to understand God's Promises. . .I truly began to develop a relationship where I enjoyed prayer. . .it was no longer a drudgery. . .but an expectation of dwelling in the Presence of the Most High God. .

My prayer for you is that you will develop your own, very personal, relationship with your Heavenly Father. . .

Living in the Pig's Pen

Living in the Pig's Pen

My son sent me a text this morning, asking for prayer, because he had a job interview today.

Now, normally, every parent would think this was great, right? but this particular request brought to mind the story of the prodigal son, and all of the many, many pitfalls he brought upon himself, by insisting upon having his own way. . .

in pondering the story, a thought crossed my mind. . .was the Prodigal son's mother ever mentioned?. . .since I had never studied the story with this thought in mind, I decided to go verify the entire account again. . .

I began to wonder how many times his mother cried herself to sleep, wondering where her son was, wondering if he was safe?. . .pleading with God to keep him safe. . .to send angels to protect him, even in his rebellion. . .please God, please let him return safely. . .

I can just imagine the Mother's joy . . .because it's different for a Mom. . .no matter how many times a Mom is disappointed, there is still a feeling of joy when you see their face, and you know they are safe. . . I imagine she was running around, getting a hot bath ready. . .laying out the clean clothes. . .Dad ordered the feast. . .and Mom was making sure it was done just right. . .

Thinking about all of this, I recalled God's promises. . .and know that once again I must cling to the Words of the Father:

I KNOW THE PLANS I HAVE FOR YOU. . .

plans to prosper you and not to harm you. . .

plans to give you hope and a future. . .

Ironically, these words of hope came right in the middle of a terrible time of bondage for "God's Children"

punishment that was given,"because you did not listen to me"

(how many times have we all heard those words from our parents)

So once again, with all these thoughts going through my mind, I find myself praying the same prayer I've prayed many times before. . .

"God, I cling to your promises. . .you promised me that my boy's would do great things for you. . .

God you know I raised them to love you, and to serve you. . .so even though I don't understand, I cling to your promises, God".

SERVING the ONE TRUE LIVING GOD

Choose you this day Whom you WILL Serve

With all the media coverage this week concerning Michael Jackson's death, and the ensuing media storm that has followed, I found today's devotional segment from My Utmost For His Highest by Oswald Chambers. especially poignant. . .

Joshua had been leading around this group of whining, sniffling, pitiful people for twenty to thirty years. . .these were the youngsters, all the old people had died before they crossed over the Jordan River. When things were good they whined. . .when things were bad, they whined. . .it must have gotten to the point that he just wanted to throw up his hands, and say, "I give up", and somehow it seems that maybe in verse 15 of Joshua 24, he does just that.

We always read the portion of scripture where Joshua states, "As for me and my house, we WILL serve the Lord", but what comes before that phrase is very, very intriguing. . .

evidently, as long as Joshua was alive, the "people" served the Lord, but Joshua must have sensed that they had a hankering for the world, because he called them all together,

YOU DECIDE whom you WILL serve . . . he asked them to state it plainly . . . you have a choice . . . but this is what you have to understand . . . God is a jealous God . . . and you are weak . . .

As I read this entire story, and the Bible commentaries, I truly know that I am weak, but he is strong, by His grace I WILL CHOOSE to serve him . . .

Just as Joshua asked for a commitment from the Children of Israel . . . I WILL make a commitment . . .

Will you join me? . . . As for me and my house, we WILL serve the Lord . . .

I say yes, Lord, yes, to your WILL and to your WAY,

I say yes, Lord, yes. I WILL trust you and obey.

When your spirit speaks to me, with my whole heart I agree,

And my answer will be, YES, LORD, YES

*this song available by Kevin LeVar on his project titled: Let's Come Together