Psalm 21:7 “For the king trusts in the LORD;”

[When David trusted in you, he was led on in paths righteousness. When Jesus trusted you in his time on earth as a man He was totally vulnerable, absolutely weak, fully helpless in his humanness.

But He was willing to be weak because He knew and trusted your pure, positive, perfect character. And you were proven true again in the Resurrection where He obeyed you and submitted to the cross and death.

And we can trust in Him because He trusted you, heavenly Father.  Such trust is the doorway into the garden of His delights, like the door in the picture.

“through the unfailing love of the Most High he will not be shaken.”

[Your love, Heavenly Father, did not fail, did not leave Jesus in the grave, but brought about the great victory over death, decay and the devil. And that “unfailingness” continues on in our lives today.  You, the Most High, the Final Authority, the Almighty One, persist in your perfect love to protect us so we will never be shaken as we rest on the rock-solid reality of your rich and reliable character.

Praise be to you Lord God, Triune King, Gracious Shepherd, Mighty Warrior. Tender Father, to you be honor and glory and praise as I submit to and trust in your goodness today and on into eternity forever. Amen.]

Psalm 21:5 “Through the victories you gave, his glory is great;”

[David was given many victories, beginning with Goliath and spanning his whole reign.

Jesus, in His incarnation was strengthened by God’s power and had one long string of victories: no sin, no failure, no defeats, only obedience and triumph in every temptation. Even the greatest possible defeat, death, led to the greatest possible victory—the resurrection destroying the power of death, the devil and destruction.

The great glory Jesus earned in His many victories He passes on to us, giving us the possibility of being victors, too, calling us to be more than conquerors with Him in His power (Rom. 8:37). He also wants to share His glory with us, as we triumph with Him through our faith (1 Pet 1:7).]

“you have bestowed on him splendor and majesty.”

[David ruled in the golden age of Israel and now Jesus reigns in the powerful church age from His throne on high as the mighty and majestic Ruler of creation and all beyond. You, Heavenly Father, have raised Him up above all principalities and powers, above all might and majesty, above all names and titles. You have seated Him, the eternal Victor, at your right hand to reign forever and ever.

Evil can now be eliminated and a new and sinless start can be had, and then through our physical death, we will go into the new Heaven and Earth. There the splendor and supremacy of Jesus will be endlessly on display and we will be forever with Him in His wonderful, wide and wise eternal love.]

Praise be to you, Heavenly Father, for revealing these things by the pen of David, by the triumph of Christ and by bringing us into your bountiful and beautiful Kingdom. Help us to live daily in this unseen reality, rejoicing in you, in your love for us and in the certainly of what you will bring.

Nearing the Autobio end

It was so good to arrive back in Connecticut from Germany and settle into our little house by the water. We could sit in our living room, look out the big windows and enjoy the ever-changing view of our pond.

The quietness, the rich green, the sunny days all began the healing process for Barbara. It took more than a year for her to see improvement in her immune system and physical strength, but she was able to get back to gardening, walking and enjoying her good friends here.

The first year was one of visiting all our supporting churches to report on the events of the last five years, so we did quite a bit of traveling. Then, at the end of 2012 Barbara officially retired and was very glad not to have to write any more monthly reports and do any official traveling.

Although I continue on with Christar, my role has changed. I gave over my area directorship to one of my disciples. Shortly afterwards he was asked to become the International Director of Christar, and passed on the area directorship to another of my disciples.

My new role is being a Life Coach to anyone in Christar who wants input on anything. And I will do that for anyone else, too. Sometimes people are assigned to me for counseling, which is a bit more challenging. Most of this work is done with Skype over the internet, so in any one week, I may visit several areas of the world via my computer.

Along with this I continue to teach in various training sessions for Christar, travelling to Texas, Michigan and overseas.  The Lord also brings invitations to speak in various churches, and I continue to write, working on several books and lessons at the same time.

Living on the family homestead (my boys are the sixth generation of our family to live here) adds another dimension, that of physical labor, which I enjoy very much. There is never any lack of things to do, with numerous old buildings that need upkeep after thirty years of neglect. It’s great to get my hands dirty and my muscles toned up with such work.

What the future holds, the Lord knows. I suspect more of the same as people come for advice, teaching and input. My first book, EQUIPPED!  continues to change lives and bring opportunities to speak and counsel. I suspect the other books will do the same.

So, as I look back over the last 68 years, remembering the many and wonderful things God has done in my life, two emotions stand out.

First is the wonder at why God invited me to join Him in His plans; I didn’t deserve it, wasn’t equipped or trained for it, but that’s the essence of the gospel. God calls His enemies to become His children and then His partners in ministry! And so He did with me; and so He desires to do with all who will answer His invitation to become children of God.

The second emotion is thankfulness. I am thankful for how He set me free and for how He protected and used me and my little family over the years to bring a bit more honor to His name. What a privilege to be an instrument in His hands.

Now with a few more years left to live for Him here, eternity stretches out before me: an endless time to serve Jesus, to know Him more and more, to revel in His love and rejoice in His goodness.  May you join us there, too: Jesus stands with the door open to all who will come.

Our “tribe” of four grandchildren in 2012     The view out our window

Psalm 21:3 “You welcomed him with rich blessings and placed a crown of pure gold on his head.”

[You crowned David as king, after his long wait of living years as an outlaw. And you crowned Jesus as Savior, after His 30 year wait, then after His 3 years of intense work followed by his immense suffering.

And every day you crown us as children of the King with love and compassion (Ps 104:4), continually pouring out abundant, good and gracious blessings on us.]

Psalm 21:4 “He asked you for life, and you gave it to him—length of days, forever and ever.”

You gave David life on earth—you protected him in all the battles he was in; and you gave David eternal life with you.

[In his death, you granted Jesus resurrection; He rose to eternal life and then passes it on to all who believe in Him, David included.

And we, as your children, have eternity before us–length of days forever and ever–and can rejoice now in the certainty of it.]

You have given us rich blessings in Jesus: forgiveness, cleansing us for sin, adopted into the family of God, made a citizen of Heaven and equipped for special service. In addition we have an “an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.” 1 Peter 1:4,5

Help us, Lord, to live in this reality, knowing that we are passionately accepted, fully approved of and deeply cared for. To live with you is like having a bit of heaven now, like the picture here. We praise you for your rich and high love for us.

Every day, Lord Jesus, we grieve your Spirit, choosing to exalt our ideas and agendas over your Word. You endure this willingly, and thankfully, your suffering this pain inflicted by us does not alter the course of your love, your plans or your grace for us. You are love itself, so you can never not love. In your wisdom you take each failure and use it to chasten, teach and bring surrender.

In this reality of your perfect and powerful character, I can rest, sure that my place in your heart is secure, certain and unshakable. “My soul finds rest in God alone…for my hope comes from Him…” (Ps. 62:1,5).

I am deeply thankful for this. I am both quietly and wildly joyful that you chose me to be your child, to be your partner in your plans, to be a fruitful branch in your vine. Thank you that nothing can separate me from your love and that my place in eternity is secure. Help  me to consciously live in this rock-solid stability all day long.