Company

I love to have people come into my home and stay a few
days. Recently a friend from Virginia flew into Boise to
spend a week with us. Dee was not a good friend, was
not interested in God. We did not have much in common.
The day Dee arrived smoke from several big fires moved
into the valley. We were not able to tour the sites in this
beautiful state. Smoke got in our eyes! The week before
her arrival I begged God to keep Dee home. He said 'no.'
Dee arrived on time, left on time and God provided what
I needed to love and bless her. When I dropped her off at
the airport on the eighth day, Dee told me that this had been
a very special week for her. Well, Amen.

Reader, God has been landscaping the verse that details
how 'God's glory is manifested in us when we exchange
our weakness for His strength.' Have you noticed how very
practical He is? He gives us truth and then He gives us the
opportunities to walk it out!

Boasting

"...power is made perfect in weakness. therefore,
I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses...
so that the power of Christ may rest upon me."
2Cor 12:9,10)

How in the Sam Hill can power come, not only from
weakness, but become perfect in weakness? That
was my question as I sat pondering these verses.

The picture of Jesus hanging on the cross came to
mind. 'Power made perfect through weakness,' is
depicted. He is utterly spent, helpless, without
control. The grace of His Father sufficient to keep
Him there until, "it is finished." Then what happens?
The Resurrection happens! Christ demonstrated
what was spoken to Paul that day, which is why
Paul could say, "Therefore, will I boast all the 
more gladly of my weaknesses."

So, dear reader, instead of moaning and groaning
over my flesh and its weaknesses--I can, in truth,
rejoice!!!! How do you spell 'relief?'

Conquerors

"...We are more than conquerors through Him who 
loved us."  (Rom 8:37)

What a great verse to grasp in times when the flesh
has been in the ascendency--like today. You see,
our greatest tests come, not from outside assaults,
but our repsonses to perceived grievances.

"It is by the grace of God that we can be conquerors.
To be a conqueror, one must allow God to live His
life in and through us. Again and again He has to
break us; that is to say, He breaks the things in us
that protect and maintain 'self.' We must surrender
to Him to do all that is necessary." Corrie Ten Boom

What is my biggest enemy? Is it not self? If that is
the case then Paul is saying that being a conqueror
is to choose to live this moment out of God's Life.
It is a surrender of self. This works great...when
I'm asleep!

Makenzie

The babe arrived two weeks ago, after only 30
weeks in the oven. She is now 32 weeks old,
weighing in at just over 3 pounds. This bundle
is bringing delight to parents and staff alike.
Mackenzie is not passive toward life. She is
constantly in motion when awake, wanting to
see what is going on. That is why it was such a
surprise this past weekend when her gut passed
blood and then stopped working. The diagnoses
put forth all sounded bad.

What did the church do? What the church always
does. She prayed. Nothing was ever confirmed
but yesterday she was put back on milk. The
Xrays look good... Mackenzie so alive!

Life is more powerful than death even when
death comes.

Jesus said to Martha four days after the death
of Lazarus: "I am the resurrection and the 
life; he who believes in Me shall live even if 
he dies, and everyone who lives and believes 
in Me shall never die. 
Do you believe this?" (John 11:25,26)

Reader, do YOU believe this? Our God is a
God of life! Eternal Life.

Aspen Trees

"And the (seed) in the good soil, these are the
ones who have heard the word in an honest
good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with
perserverance." (Luke 8:15)

One of the things I enjoyed about living in
Colorado were the Aspen trees. The leaves
turned gold in the fall and spun in the wind.
Did you know that the Aspen does not have
seeds but is spawned from another Aspen? A
whole forest can come from one tree. In this
grove some of the trees are huge, some spindly
and some weak or even dead, yet everyone of
them grows from one root. Why the difference?
No one knows. However, the greatest of the
trees tend to fall in the winter storms and then
become food for the deer.

Reader--Our Jesus is that tree planted in the
ground which gives life to His kids. Some of
us seem weak, some very strong but all of us
receive nourishment from the same source.
Storms come to all. "Paul says to let our roots 
grow down deep into Him." The bigger we
get, the more depth we need. 

The Waiting

To wait is to stay or rest in expectation and patience.
To stop, remain stationary, not depart until His arrival.

"I waited patiently for the Lord." (Ps 40:1)

How very very difficult it is to wait for the Lord,
let alone wait with patience. He is never late, but
He is rarely early. Lyme Disease took me out of
action for years. It took my brain, my energy, my
relationships, and it stole my time. I watched from
a distance busy, productive lives, honors given,
opportunities lost. Waiting on God is not passive,
but an action. Really? Victory is won by standing
still knowing that the God of mercy and comfort
is orchestrating all that touches us. It is knowing
that God is not only in control but that He can be
trusted. It is the action of absolute surrender in the
dark night of the soul.

God worked deeply in me through the years of
weakness and brokenness. It took time, lots of
time for true contentment to come.

Reader, dear reader, "Be still and know that He
is God."  (Psalm 46)

Strive to Abide?

"Abide in Me and I in you. As the branch
cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides
in the vine, so neither can you unless you
abide in Me." (John 15:4)

Jesus is not saying He is like a Vine but
that He IS the Vine. Our abiding in the
living Vine is receiving the Everything,
Jesus.  When we entered into Jesus at
salvation, we were placed into the Vine.
The whole work of Jesus is summed up
in that little word: Abide. It is His work, 
not ours.

Abiding:  holding me in Him, His life in me,
cleansing, revealing who I am, kept safe,
a moment by moment existence, eternal life.

Reader: Abiding, abiding, abiding. Is that
not the best thing you have heard today?

Weakness

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is 
made perfect in weakness. (2Cor 12:9)

I have become captivated by weakness! Perhaps it
is because of some chronic physical issues and also
aging. Weakness is definitely in the ascendancy!
I have a book that addresses this subject in a
marvelous way. It is called:
My Weakness for His Strength, by Michael Wells.
So, for the next few weeks I will be digging into
this book as background for my blogs. I hope this
journey with you is helpful in your Christian walk.

You see, Paul discovered that power is perfected
in man's weakness, not in man's strength. There
is something about the flesh of man that desires
to give to God and receive in return. If I say that
I have done great things because I had great
inner strength, I would have something in which
to boast. However, the fact is that what He has
done in in my life and through my life really
has to do with my utter lack of ability to make
my life work. It is at my weakest that my God
shines forth!

The Valley of Baca

"Blessed are those whose strength is in you...As
they pass through the Valley of Baca--the valley
of weeping--they make it a place of springs."
(Ps 84:5-6)

I have been through the valley of weeping,
The valley of sorrow and pain;
But the "God of all comfort" was with me,
At hand to uphold and sustain.

As the earth needs the clouds and the sunshine,
Our souls need both sorrow and joy;
So He places us oft in the furnace,
The dross from the gold to destroy.

When he leads through some valley of trouble,
His omnipotent hand we trace:
For the trials and sorrows He sends us,
Are part of His lessons in grace.

Oft we run from the purging and pruning,
Forgetting the Gardener knows
That the deeper the cutting and trimming,
The richer the cluster that grows.

Well He knows that affliction is needed;
He has a wise purpose in view,
And in the dark valley He whispers,
"Soon you'll understand what I do."

As we travel through life's shadowed valley,
Fresh springs of His love ever rise;
And we learn that our sorrows and losses,
Are blessings just sent in disguise.

So we'll follow wherever He leads us,
Let the path be dreary or bright;
For we've proved that our God can give
   comfort;
Our God can give songs in the night.
(Streams in the Desert. August 9)

Deeply Grieved

In the last post we looked at the wonder of a
30 week, freshly born, baby. Makenzie has
all of her parts, hair, beautiful fingers, a tiny
bow of a mouth, and, she is clutching her
Mom's finger. What a little miracle in every
way. (I looked at a good many pictures.)

On the one hand I rejoice that this wee one is
getting all she needs to bloom and grow, but,
on the other hand, unborn babies of the same
age are being ripped out of safe warm places
and their body parts then sold for money! How
can this be? Each is special, formed by God
and treasured by Him. It so deeply grieves me.
Who are we to despise and dispose of the
intricate handiwork of God, one made in his
image?

Perhaps it is because the modern age has
disposed of God.

A Wee One

Three days ago a tiny package arrived--ten weeks
early. Makenzie weighed in at 2 lbs 11 oz. The
reason for the early delivery was Pre-eclampsia,
dangerous to both Mom and the babe. Yesterday
the baby pulled off her cap and pulled out the
oxygen tube. You go girl!

Glen is the proud Great Uncle and his brother,
Chuck, the proud Grandpa. I am full of joy.

If the baby could talk she would say:

"You formed my inward parts;
You knitted me together in my mother's
womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and
wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works!
My soul knows it very well."
(Ps 139:13,14)

Party Time!

Reader, are you beginning to tire of the subject of
comfort? I want that word to come alive deep in
your soul. Think of Snoopy who loves to dance
to the scorn of Lucy. Those of us who are free
can receive God's comfort; those of us who are
bound in religion not only cannot receive, but
frown on dancing!

Our Papa God is the God of mercies and the
God of all comfort. This Papa God is the One
who brings comfort to us in our trials and this
begins the explosion of comfort into the lives
of others. You can look at the teachings and
the lives of the leaders of the many religions
out there and comfort is no where to be found.
The leaders have nothing to give but austerity,
rules, and false peace.

So, bring out the balloons, the trumpets, the
strings, drums and the food. It is time to party!

The Father of Mercies

Back to the top to take another look at the third
verse in Second Corinthians. It seems to have a
life of its own!

'Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus 
Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all 
comfort.'

Can it be that the God of the Old Testament is
the same as the God of the New Testament? In
John 14:3 Philip asks Jesus to show them the
Father. Jesus responds: 'whoever has seen me 
has seen the Father...' The Father dwelt in
Jesus who "never did anything on his own."
Jesus had compassion on the multitude. Was not
the heart  of the Father reaching out to a people
who were scattered and undone because they
were as sheep without a shepherd? Our God is
both Father and Shepherd. His heart is full of 
mercy. He is the God of all comfort. He wraps
us in a warm blanket of love in times of great
suffering. He is merciful. He does not turn His
back when we stumble and fall.

Reader, do you know the Father as a God of
mercy and comfort, or is your God prickly,
judgmental, ready to punish? Jesus took the
judgement against sin into His body on the
Tree. There is no punishment left for you.
What an awesome God we have!