Good morning all-
I woke up thinking about hard questions like: "What if everything I loved was taken away?; What if my house and cars were destroyed?; What if I lost a child?" These are difficult questions and yet, people have these things happen to them every single day. This year alone we could lose over 7 million children. Influenza A is everywhere and the hospitals are full of children and adults with upper respiratory distress. Some will make it and some won't. The hurricane victims are still trying to figure out where they're going to live, buying cars and trying to figure out how to keep it together. And when the Joplin tornado hit a couple of years back almost the whole town was disintegrated. Typhoons have hit, earthquakes have destroyed and Japan had a nuclear disaster. These are just a few instances in the last few years where major destruction occurred.
In the last couple of months, many people lost their children in Connecticut. Senseless acts of life are happening everywhere we look. Iraq is trying to get rid of their President, Iran and North Korea want to use nuclear weapons, and Syria is heating up. And all I could think about this morning was Job. He was a true man of God. He believed that he knew God and that God was faithful and then tragedy struck. His wealth, home, possessions and children were all taken from him. He was left with a nagging wife, unfaithful friends and a disease no one knew how to cure. He suffered and still he believed. I admire that kind of true faith. It's rare, even today. It's hard for us to plant our feet on bedrock, often I find myself on sinking sand and then God reminds me that He is consistent, never wavers and all I have to do is align my will with His. I don't have to understand the "Why?" I probably will never know. So instead, I must walk in faith, plant my feet, and look towards the Bible for comfort, for truth and for direction. I love my friends and I love to mentor others but at the end of the day, I must go to Jesus.
God comforted Job in the end. He restored his riches and gave him more children. He showed Job that through all his suffering He was right there. Did he deserve to be tested by Satan? Deserve is a hard thing to contemplate. The more important question is, because Job suffered and God revealed himself and restored him, do we have a story to uphold us in our darkest hour? Yes we do. I have constantly heard my friend Michelle say, "I am Job." There are lots of people that can say the same thing. Although her marriage is strong, she has a beautiful roof over her head and her children are living, she continues to battle her loss of hair but more importantly, her faith. I totally get it. It's hard to tell someone that you have questioned God over and over again and it's hard to be the one to lift up your friend when she's down. It's just hard to be stretched and stretched until you think you will never be the same again. Maybe that's why God tells us not to test Him in anything but money. Giving money is an act of obedience, it's really not for Him, it's for us to remember that everything we have belongs to Him. But our lives are His to do with what He wants, when He wants and that is a tough lesson for all of us to learn. He loves us and that's why He continues to grow us so that our feet are on bedrock. Bedrock is tough all you have to do is watch a drill go through it and see it spewing rock out. Bedrock has lasted through every change the earth has gone through. So, in essence, our faith has to get there for us to be solid, steadfast and seeking. Without it, our feelings will take control.
I have always dealt with fear and questions. Only in the last couple of years have I been able to say to myself that the control belongs to Jesus. No matter how hard I try; I have no control. It has diminished my worry and slowly but surely my feet are starting to be on bedrock. I'm not all the way there yet and probably never will be; but Jesus has stretched me and shown me that He is my Shepherd. I don't know what tomorrow holds and really I don't want to know. I want to take today and see what He has in store. If I look past today worry and fear will surely come. So instead, I am learning to trust in Him, seek Him and meditate on Him. It's not about how I feel but about who He says He is.
I hope you do the same and I hope today finds you well. We are all a work in progress and thank God for that. Many blessings my sisters. As I was sitting watching my son's basketball game, I was searching for Scripture and this one popped out. I researched what a crag is and its a solid piece of rock that is high and wide where eagles can sit and look over the land.
Job 39:26-28 NKJV:
"Does the hawk fly by your wisdom, and spread its wings toward the South? Does the eagle mount up at your command, and make its nest on high? On the rock it dwells and resides, on the crag of the rock and the stronghold.
This Scripture really says it all. It's one I want to memorize so that when I stumble I know who is in control.
My prayer today:
O, Lord, thank You for coming before us in Scripture. There are times I read it and You come out of the pages. I see You ruling over the earth and heaven and I wonder what it will be like to be with you. Time will only tell but until then, I want to teach my sons and future generations the power of the Holy Word. In it, You have given us insight to Your thoughts and Your ways. We can look back at former kings, young men and women and Job to see the path You carved for each one. Women all over the world are coming before You this morning, they may be seeking, crying or just praying. You know who they are. Please write this Scripture on their hearts and make Yourself be known. Help us to lift up the lost, to see beyond ourselves and look for the coming of Your kingdom. We live in a world that likes success, possessions and peace but we rarely do what we need to do. For those that give of themselves, I pray that You would bless their days here. And for those that give time to children, I pray that You would lead them so that they can lead the next generations. Our churches need You Lord, Our schools need You Lord, Our leaders need You Lord, please come into them and reside in them all Your days. I want to be the eagle, watching on high for my pray, vigilant and hungry for Your word and to understand the evil that lurks at every corner. I take Your command seriously to love my neighbor and to be there for others. I pray that I would stay steadfast on the rock of salvation and that You would lead me to women that need You. Make us strong mind, body and soul. In Jesus name, AMEN.
Until tomorrow...
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