Leaning or standing?

 

Leaning or standing?

Remember the words from the old song “Leaning on the everlasting arms, safe and secure from all alarms…”and think about what that actually means.

Exodus 3:5 Then He said, "Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground."

When the people looked into the Ark of the Covenant, 1 Samuel 6:20 And the men of Beth Shemesh said, "Who is able to stand before this holy LORD God? And to whom shall it go up from us?"

Psalm 35:1ff A Psalm of David. Plead my cause, O LORD, with those who strive with me; Fight against those who fight against me. 2Take hold of shield and buckler, And stand up for my help. 3Also draw out the spear, And stop those who pursue me. Say to my soul, "I am your salvation."

Psalm 89:28 My mercy I will keep for him forever, And My covenant shall stand firm with him.

Psalm 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

Isaiah 10:15 Shall the ax boast itself against him who chops with it? Or shall the saw exalt itself against him who saws with it? As if a rod could wield itself against those who lift it up, Or as if a staff could lift up, as if it were not wood!

Isaiah 11:10 "And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, Who shall stand as a banner to the people; For the Gentiles shall seek Him, And His resting place shall be glorious."

Zechariah 14:4 And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, Which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, From east to west, Making a very large valley; Half of the mountain shall move toward the north And half of it toward the south.

Malachi 3:2 "But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire And like launderers' soap.

John 13:23 Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.

Peter tells us in his first letter in chapter one that our trials are more valuable than gold. The tribulations we suffer as Christians, Jesus warned us about for He said that as the world reviles Him so shall it revile us. We are merely strangers in a strange land on this earth. Our true home is in Heaven. However, sanctifying is a process that we must travail. God sanctifies us through mental and physical works that He prepared for us to do which entails a lot of trails and troubles. How we suffer through this sanctification process is by leaning on the everlasting arms. We cannot withstand the wiles of the devil except through the power of Christ. We cannot stand by ourselves. This, then, is the most powerful lesson any Christian can learn. By leaning, we conquer. By leaning and in our weakness is His mighty strength. Life is much more livable when we allow Jesus to take our burdens and lift our loads.

Weary and heavy laden, come to Him. He will straighten the backs of those bent beneath their loads. Matthew 11:28 and Psalm 146:8.

Friends

I cannot live without my friends.
The earth is a dry and barren land without friends. I pant like the deer pants for water during the dry spells.
I much prefer the rain kissed earth, the sweet smell, the hugs the satisfaction and the refreshing dew of talking with my dear friend, writing, my friends, reading from my friends and being with my friends.

I love the sweet messages from my friends.
I adore the loving kindnesses of my friends.
There is no treasure on earth that compares to the pearls of friendships.
Loving kindness is the tie that binds and the cords that hold with the strength of steel.

Thank you, God, for my friends!

This is a repeat, and so well worth the repeat. I have made so many new friends since I wrote this Five years ago!!!

Faithing

I had a precious friend years ago whom I have lost touch with, but she taught me a word that you can't find in the dictionary. The word is Faithing.

Faith isn't a thing, it is a verb, an action as well as state of being.

Hebrews 11:6 tells us that our faith (belief) brings Him pleasure, without which no one can please Him. It is a simple thing, yet so hard.

It is easy to believe there is God. He created the heavens and the earth in all their glory. The universe is vast beyond our wildest imaginings, but the Bible tells us that it can be measured by His hand's breadth. A newborn's cry is a testimony to God's presence for He created life. A child’s giggle is a testimony for he loved the little children to come unto Him. His signature is in the stars for He named each one of the billions of billions of stars. Just look at some of the photos that the Hubble Telescope takes, one of them is the celestial cross. The dogwood's flower gives testimony.

But, to believe God? That is harder to do. When you don't "feel" the presence of God, how do you know He's there?

That is when we must go with what we know rather than our feelings. I love to remember the times we have had together and to draw my comfort from those things He has done for me, from the fact He has never failed me, ever. I know He will fulfill His promises because of all the promises He has already fulfilled. He made the sun stand still. He made the wet bottom of the sea dry as toast. He caused it to rain, and He caused the rain to dry up. He raised Jesus from the dead.

That kind of power flows through Him and yet, He is mindful of me. He knows my name and how many hairs are on my head and the number which are gray and the number which are brown. It matters not to Him how many wrinkles I have, for He has taken me Just As I Am.
Is there a power greater than raising Someone from the dead? Perhaps it is the power of changing lives, the power of forgiveness, the power of mercy, the power of grace. Without those, Jesus would not have needed to be raised for He wouldn't have given Himself as sacrifice.

Psalm 5:11 But let all who put their trust in You rejoice; let them shout for joy forever, because You cover them. And let those who love Your name be joyful in You.

Such simple words and yet they hold all the comfort of a snuggly quilt and a warm, cozy fire complete with hot cocoa and a purring cat on the lap.

God's asks a lot of us. We can't see Him. We can't touch Him. Why should we believe Him, trust Him, have faith in Him? 

Because He said so.

If that isn't enough, then there is plenty of evidence that He is real, that He does exactly what He says He'll do, and that He answers our prayers, that He loved us enough to die for us. There is no greater love than that, except He also loved us enough to rise from the dead. He is alive, back from the dead and that, my friends, is a feat great enough to silence the most scornful voice.

Faith of a child

"Would you like to take a walk with me?" my grandfather held out his huge hand.

Eagerly, I jumped up and ran to him, my tiny fingers barely able to grip his. I was somewhere between one and two. I remember I was fascinated by the sun in the trees; and Granddad asked this question of me every day. As we would walk down the gravel road, he was very careful of the ruts, holes and rocks for us both.


I, on the other hand, walked with my face toward the sun, watching the play of light in the leaves. I had no notion where I put my feet or which direction I was walking, but always trusting that Granddad would never let me fall or wander from the path we trod together.

I do not know why I have this memory, or why it has stayed so vibrant with me for more than five decades (that makes me sound old). I'm walking, safe and secure with my eyes lifted above, no fear of where my feet were going.

This is how it should be with God. If we hold on to His hand, if we trust He will not lead us into temptation and will deliver us from evil, then we can keep our eyes lifted to Him and never fear where our feet are walking. Even when we drop our eyes for that fleeting instant, He is there to grab us and lift us from the depths as He did Peter in the storm. There is nothing He cannot do. 

God's mighty work will bring peace through the storm

I have looked back and can see that what I thought I wanted, was going to be very bad for me.

I had such a lovely dream, though. If you look back in some of my 2006 posts, you'll see the love affair I had with a very young Christian. We were going to get married. But, God had other plans.

I actually saw two divergent paths that I could have traveled down. One would have been very rocky and full of pain, arguments, laughter, and strife. But, how is that different from anyone else's life who loves the LORD and works hard to do what God wants? The path I chose still had pain and arguments and laughter and strife and much, much peace in Him. I am so very content.

Satan tries his best to defile every work of God and that includes His teaching and training up of His children. We must strive to persevere in our faith, walking closely behind God if not actually sitting on His feet. I believe this is what John means when he says "He who overcomes". The overcomers are the ones who Believe God even though the situation looks as bleak as a blizzard.

We, my mom, my daughter, and I have been praying for my daughter a job. It has seemed that every door she knocked on was slammed shut. She's been in the movie industry since before Katrina. And the movie industry is really worse than any other industry I know. I was hoping that God would want her to walk a different path. But, dire straits had forced me to beg God for any job because unemployment had dried up.

Most jobs come to you after sending in a resume, or talking with someone or at least letting the employer know in some way that you would like that job. Not this one.

My daughter was called out of the clear blue and asked for an interview the next day. By Wednesday, she had the job. To me this is a miracle. How God works is still as amazing as Grace to me. Not only that, but Disney emailed her asking for her resume because they're doing a pilot for a new series. When God opens the windows of Heaven, the blessings overflow like a river bursting its banks. I am so thankful, and we are so blessed.

Glory to God in the Highest. He pours out peace during the storm, but with the clouds part the sun shines warmly causing the storm to be forgotten.