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Home Again

Barbara is out of the hospital and back home! We are so thankful. This progress makes today’s devotional very relevant for us!

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Written10 years ago in the midst of Barbara’s debilitating illness  of chronic Lymesdisease and depression, and the deterioration it brought]. In the midst of this difficult time we want to continue to follow Habakkuk’s example in Habakkuk 3:17-19

“Though the fig tree does not bud

and there are no grapes on the vines,

though the olive crop fails

and the fields produce no food,

though there are no sheep in the pen

and no cattle in the stalls,

“YET I will REJOICE in the LORD, (Yahweh)

I will BE JOYFUL in God (Elohim) my Savior.

[these are acts of the will, leading Habakkuk’s emotions to the proper place of rest in God.]

Like Habakkuk, in the midst of my wife’s difficulties, I choose to rejoice in you, Lord, for you are good always, you are the source of our joy–not our having things go the way we want.

As I praise you for what you are going to do in Barbara’s illness, Lord. I can let go of the negatives and cling to you. I praise you for what you are doing, for what you are planning, for what you will work out, as you did with Old Testament Joseph in all he suffered.

Help us all to respond as Joseph did, trusting you, bringing glory to your name, and healing to our souls. I thank you for the unseen things you are going to accomplish through this, for the good that you will draw out of it. I ask for your guidance in what I should do to join your purposes.

Picture: us in hospital just before coming home

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Our Merciful God

Quick update on Barbara. She is still in the hospital and now has breathing problems they are trying to fix.

“finding no way to a city where they could settle. They were hungry and thirsty, and their lives ebbed away.”

“Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,He led them by a straight way to a city where they could settle.”

[You, Lord, know the way to shelter and are very willing, eager to lead us to it, if only we will follow. You give us wisdom, insight, security and community, all we need to prosper.]

“Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love”

[and truly your love is unfailing as you wait and wait and wait for us to repent of our selfish, stubborn independence. You don’t give up, you are patient, persistence and prepared.]

Give thanks “for his wonderful deeds for men, for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.”

[What you have for us is beyond good–it is wonderful, marvelous, awesome and great. You, Lord, have only good for us, satisfying our thirst for love and forgiveness, our hunger for relationship, our deep desire for reality and meaning.

You know our needs, for you are our Creator; you are able to supply our needs, for you are infinite; you desire to give us what we need, and promise to do so, for you are good. Praise be to you, both now and forever. Help us to walk in the light of these truths today.]

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Wandering into the Arms of God

More from Psalm 107

“Some wandered in desert wastelands,”

[when we reject your truth and go our own way, we dwell in dry and parched lands of our own making, far from the green pastures you have for us.]

“finding no way to a city where they could settle. They were hungry and thirsty, and their lives ebbed away.”

[When on our own path, we go from one bad decision to the next. We search for emotional and physical sustenance but find none; instead we grow weaker and weaker. Everything goes downhill because we are far from your way.]

“Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,”

[When we finally saw that our selfish way was not good, that our weak wisdom was insufficient, that our strength was too little to escape condemnation, then we cried out to you.]

“and he delivered them from their distress.”

[You, Lord, in your goodness, were right there, waiting for us to come to our senses, to see our need, to cry out to you. You were ready to help as soon as we were ready to receive. You plucked us out of our distress and inserted us into your forgiveness, your family and your future plans.]

“He led them by a straight way to a city where they could settle.”

[You, Lord, know the way to shelter and are very willing, even  eager to lead us to it, if only we will follow. Thank you that You give us wisdom, insight, security and community, all we need to prosper.]

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Take Hope O my Soul

Greetings from the hospital room where Barbara is again being treated. The doctors think she has some hidden infection that keeps pulling her down. So, they are going to give her some antibiotics, perhaps long term, to eradicate it. We pray that this will work!

 

When things don’t go the way I want as in this situation, Psalm 43 often comes to mind. David, too, was in an unwanted situation and questioned God:

“You are God my stronghold. Why have you rejected me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?”

This is how he felt, but he follows up by turning to Truth:

“Send me your light and your faithful care, let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell.”

With this thought, he declares his intent to obey the light God gives:

“Then I will go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight. I will praise you with the lyre, O God, my God.”

And in the end he encourages himself with the truth that as he puts his hope in God, God will give David reason to praise him, for He is David’s Savior and God.

“Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.”

So we determine to do the same in this situation. Why miss a chance to offer the sacrifice and thereby honor God? With this we will partner with Him as He brings about salvation of the Lord!

 

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When God commands us to do something, it is always for the best. An example is His expression found in Philippians 4:6-7, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, WITH THANKSGIVING, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, WILL GUARD your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

This is especially true for me today, as Barbara has had a relapse, again unable to walk, think or talk. It’s off to the ER again while we offer thanks for what God is going to do now.

These truths are reiterated in an article in the latest Reader’s Digest, entitled “The Goodness of Gratitude,” saying, “people who wrote thank you letters or performed good deeds for a six-week period decreased their pain, upped their energy, accomplished more every day, and improved their mental health for up to six months. And you can reap these benefits at any age.”

God’s wisdom is far deeper than we can imagine! It is our privilege and responsibility to live out Psalm 50:23 (“He who offers the sacrifice of thanksgiving honors me and opens the way that I may show him the salvation of the Lord” by making every day a “Thanksgiving Day.”

Do yourself and many others a good turn and offer the sacrifice of thanksgiving in each event, especially the ones you don’t like—then watch God work!

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Gratitude

God’s Four Gifts to Us through giving thanks, Part Four

 

A fourth gift He has for us is improving our emotional, mental and physical health. This comes through expressing gratitude to Him as we live out Psalm 50:23 by giving thanks in all things, both positive and painful, delightful and difficult.

 

I am having the chance to practice this now as Barbara has gone downhill again, shaky , unable to walk by herself, has difficulty speaking. Yet there is much to be thankful for, if I choose to be.

 

A secular article on News Max entitled “Giving Thanks Makes Us Happier,” points out that having an attitude of gratitude brings many benefits. A summary says, “Researchers delving into the physiology of gratitude have discovered it acts powerfully upon neurotransmitters in the brain to increase happiness, reduce stress, boost energy and even improve sleep.” In a separate article, I read that gratitude also strengthens our immune system.

 

This, of course, is simply discovering what God has told us all along: giving thanks is powerfully good for us, as well as for all those around us. And it is good for God, as we are joining Him in advancing His Kingdom.

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God is Magnificent!

Updater: after a very good day yesterday, Barbara was not feeling well today, but still is able to walk on herf own and perform basic tasks. I am pleased. Thank you all for your prayers.d

 

Taken from Edified:  The importance of obeying this command came home to me as I realized I’d become “mechanical” in my quiet time; then this verse came to my attention: “seek my face…” (2 Chr. 7:14).

We do this as we daily spend time with Him, our Bridegroom, nurturing our first love for Him, gazing upon His loveliness, focusing on His beauty rather than on four busyness. Following is an example of focusing on Him.

“I will tell of all your wonders” (Ps. 9:1b). Great and many are your wonders, O Lord, beginning with your character:

You are Love, Light and Life.

In you there is Purity, Perfection, and Power.

You are filled with Greatness, Grace and Goodness.

You are Immortal, Invisible and Invincible.

In you alone are Righteousness, Riches and Rightness.

You are Mighty, Magnificent and Marvelous.

You are Holiness, wholeness and wholesomeness.

You are merciful in Justice, munificent in giving, multifaceted in character.

You are the good God, our gracious Lord, and great Sovereign.

You are without beginning, without end and without time.

You are the One and only God who has won every battle.

You are a wonder, you are worthy, you are to be worshiped,

Glory be to you both now and forever!

Help us, Lord, to seek your face every day!

 

This magnificent sun rise embodies the beauty of our God!

 

 

Rock of Refuge

Update on Barbara. We are settled  back in from the hospital. Barbara did well the first day, but then seemed to worsen. Her blood pressure was high and the visiting nurses made some adjustments that seem to help. We are hoping for more improvement in her balance and walking. And tonight she walked some unassisted!

Tonight’s post:

A third gift God bestows when we give thanks, is the privilege of being a powerful witness to those around us.

Our unnatural, supernatural response to trouble puts us up on the stage of grace where we can do the dance of faith in front of all those around us.

As we trust God, we bring a focus on God’s good character in a way that words alone could never do.

Thus God gives us opportunity to join Him in the spread of the gospel by walking in faith, in opening people’s eyes to spiritual truth, and in drawing them to Himself. Are we consistently joining Him by offering the sacrifice of thanksgiving, trusting Him as our rock of refuge?

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Opening the Door

God’s Four Gifts to Us, Part Two

As we saw in part one, Psalm 50:23 starts with “He who offers the sacrifice of thanksgiving honors me”–meaning that if we give thanks when we don’t feel like it, we fulfill the purpose of our lives, giving honor to God before the unseen hosts as well as the people around us.

The verse then continues with “…and prepares the way that I may show him the salvation of the Lord.” Here we see the second gift God has for us: the privilege of partnering with Him in bringing about solutions, of joining Him in a way that He power can work in us and in our situation for good.

Paul echoes this principle in 2 Cor. 12:10 “…I will boast all the more gladly in my weakness SO THAT the power of Christ may rest in me.”

As we give thanks in and for difficulties, we open the way (maybe, get out of the way is more accurate!) for Him to bring the resolution and results He’s planned and prepared. These may come right away, or they may not be visible until years later, as with Joseph in Egypt. Whether seen or unseen, God moves as we give thanks in faith for what is painful for us.

This means that the opposite may also be true: when we complain we block the way for God’s work in our situation. For instance, in experiencing a painful relationship, when we complain things get worse; when we offer the sacrifice of thanksgiving, we are helped with not saying hurtful things and help move things in a good direction.

As 1 Peter 1:5 says, believers,”THROUGH FAITH are shielded by God’s power….” As we trust, operating out of faith, we are protected; as we complain, we expose ourselves to attacks by the enemy.

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Giving God  glory is the purpose for which we were created. So every time we find ourselves in situations where there is no solution, no discernible good, no visible positive point (as with the zoning board’s decision for me this week), we can choose to believe that God is good, at work and trustable–and we can demonstrate this trust by giving thanks in and for all things.

In doing so we are fulfilling the purpose for our existence (worshiping God) and doing something that will last for eternity. This privilege of giving thanks by faith is the first gift He has for us.

You, Lord, are the God who is more than we can imagine, more than what we could hope for, better than our dreams, beyond the understanding of our limited perspective. You are Great and Powerful, Glorious and Perfect, Gracious and Pure.

You are the fulfillment of the longing of our hearts and far more. Glory and praise belong to you alone! And we praise you for the privilege of giving you honor throughout each day by offering the sacrifice of thanksgiving. May we be consistent in doing that today.]

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