Yes! I Will Praise Him

Ever have those times when you think, "Okay, God. What else can I do? You promised abundant life..."?

Yeah; me, too.

He just gives and gives and gives, and I'm so very thankful, but you know what? I want more!! Is that not so selfish! I pray for forgiveness, and I pray for God to change my heart... "Please, Lord, get me to that place Paul was so I can be content in whatever state I'm in!!" Whew! Do I ever seem to struggle.

BUT today I'm clinging to what I guess is my most favorite passage of Scripture - Habakkuk chapter 3. I love Habakkuk. Even his name; it's just fun to say. But did you know it means "love's embrace"? Now, would you have EVER gotten that out of Habakkuk? Sounds more like a cat choking on a hairball. :) But to me, that's one more indication of God's ability to make beauty from anything - no matter how we see it or what we think about it. And after reading Habakkuk's book, yeah, I feel that loving embrace.

The theme of this beautiful book is 'Faith'. Habakkuk has questions - I can already relate, can't you? - about why God lets evil even happen in HIS world. Will God ever fix this horrible place where Satan is the prince of the power of the air? Will justice EVER be served?

And then... there's chapter 3. This beautiful poetic book ends with such confidence! I won't take the time to quote the entire chapter, but let me encourage you to not only read chapter 3, but the entire book of Habakkuk this week. You will be encouraged, I promise!

For today, this is my ROCK:


"Though the fig tree may not blossom,
Nor fruit be on the vines;
Though the labor of the olive may fail,
And the fields yield no food;
Though the flock may be cut off from the fold,
And there be no herd in the stalls--
Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

The Lord God is my strength;
He will make my feet like deer's feet,
And He will make me walk on my high hills."

Habakkuk 3:17-19 (NKJV)

YES!! I will PRAISE Him!!

Is God Good or What?!?!?!

Don't ask me why, but God blessed our family with the time, money, and courage to take a real family vacation. WOW! Our first in 15 years of marriage. We drove over 1500 miles along the eastern coast on what we titled our "American Heritage Vacation." What a field trip for our homeschoolers! :)

Each of us gained a new respect for the freedoms we enjoy in America. Seeing the rows upon rows upon rows of gravestones at Arlington, then in Gettysburg made quite the impact.

How dare we stand by and let ANYONE burn our flag - especially on our own soil! Arlington is 300 acres of graves. Gettysburg - more than 30,000 graves, if I remember correctly. Each represents a soul that lived and breathed willing to lay his or her life down for our country. Some of the graves hold wives or children of the soldiers. Families ripped apart. Whether we agree with the "cause" of war or not, we MUST respect the willingness to fight to the death. And many, if not most, of the freedoms we enjoy today would not be had it not been for courageous soldiers standing strong and proud - dying strong and proud.

As we walked the sidewalks of Arlington after witnessing the changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unkown Soldier, a horse drawn carriage pulled a flag-draped casket through the cemetery. A soldier from Iraq? A "lifer" retired who died of old age? A disabled Vietnam vet? We don't know, but what we do know is another life was laid to rest in that hallowed ground.

We ended our journey in awe. Skyline Drive in the Shenandoah National Park. The amazing, breathtaking views - well, they just leave me speechless and full of wonder as to how anyone can say there's no God or that all that beauty came from some big bang or a single-cell amoeba. Get real.

"All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made." John 1:3 (NKJV)

I'm certainly far from a professional photographer, but the picture with this blog post is from Skyline Drive. Honestly, it just doesn't do the view justice, but look at that bright spot in the midst of those dark clouds... Isn't that just like God? "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it." John 1:4-5 (NKJV)

You see, that's us!! You and I! We, because of Jesus, are a light in this dark world! The dark times in our lives - trouble (pay-cuts included!), persecution, fear, even death - can't comprehend the light of Jesus....

So, I ask you, Is God good or what?!?!?!

I have to say as a witness of His mighty hand - He IS good - ALL the time!

PS -- Thanks Aunt Betty! :)

Am I a Grape or a Marble?

I read this in Oswald Chambers' My Utmost for His Highest and just felt led to share it with you today. It ministered to me - right where it hurts. :o)

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THE COMMISSION OF THE CALL

"Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for His body's sake." Colossians 1:24

We make calls out of our own spiritual consecration, but when we get right with God He brushes all these aside, and rivets us with a pain that is terrific to one thing we never dreamed of, and for one radiant flashing moment we see what He is after, and we say-- "Here am I, send me."

This call has nothing to do with personal sanctification, but with being made broken bread and poured-out wine. God can never make us wine if we object to the fingers He uses to crush us with. If God would only use His own fingers, and make me broken bread and poured-out wine in a special way! But when He uses someone whom we dislike, or some set of circumstances to which we said we would never submit, and makes those the crushers, we object. We must never choose the scene of our own martyrdom. If ever we are going to be made into wine, we will have to be crushed; you cannot drink grapes. Grapes become wine only when they have been squeezed.

I wonder what kind of finger and thumb God has been using to squeeze you, and you have been like a marble and escaped? You are not ripe yet, and if God had squeezed you, the wine would have been remarkably bitter. To be a sacramental personality means that the elements of the natural life are presenced by God as they are broken providentially in His service. We have to be adjusted into God before we can be broken bread in His hands. Keep right with God and let Him do what He likes, and you will find that He is producing the kind of bread and wine that will benefit His other children.

(September 30's reading)

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Father, as Your children, we ask You to open our eyes to see Your hand faithfully working in our lives...

May YOU feel God's precious presence in ALL you do today!