Day 13: Nothing is Impossible

Day 13: Nothing is impossible

Read: Matthew 19:16-30, Mark 10:17-31, Luke 18:18-30, Philippians 4:10-13

im·pos·si·ble (impossible)

adjective
1. not possible; unable to be, exist, happen, etc.
2. unable to be done, performed, effected, etc.: an impossible assignment.
3. incapable of being true, as a rumor.
4. not to be done, endured, etc., with any degree of reason or propriety: an impossible situation.
5. utterly impracticable: an impossible plan.

Be assured that while man throws around the word impossible for seemingly every thing under the sun, that the word 'impossible' is not part of God's vocabulary. It is a word that we thought up on our own for which we believe carries allot of relevance.

But it does so only because we subtract God from the equation. If there is no God, the kind of God portrayed in the Bible, then we would have every right to believe that there are all kinds of impossible things going on in our families, our homes, in our communities, our churches .... anywhere you can put one foot in front of the other.

However, it makes perfect sense that if the God of the Bible indeed exists, then there is nothing, literally nothing, that is impossible. By definition, God excludes the realm of the impossible. Water into wine - done! Quelling a storm - done! Bringing the dead back to life - done! With God all things are possible. With man all things are possible through Jesus Christ (raised from the dead) who strengthens them in all things.

Description of a Christian: Someone prepared to attempt the impossible and with God's help and Christ's strength, achieve success where none was believed to be. What more motivation could God give us to help us get through each of our days?

Today's Prayer: Ask God, that in those moments when impossible is the only choice you believe you have, to create for you a vision of hope, a spirit of strength and a heart filled with possibility (Philippians 4:10 - 13) through Jesus Christ our Lord.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDOMRLU-P7Q

God of Impossible Music Video by Oaks Worship

www.youtube.com

The Oaks Worship's first studio album project features The God of Impossible music video. A song that celebrates how God is able to do the

Day 12: Anonymity

Day 12: Anonymity

Read: Psalm 23

Anonymous: meaning "without a name" or "namelessness" (Wikipedia). lacking individuality, distinction, or recognizability (Merriam - Webster dictionary)

My friends,

Last night was a glorious night of celebration for the parents and children who attended our Vacation Bible School. The music was wonderful, the videos, the dancing of the children (adults too) in the aisles. Everybody who was present really got into the swing of just having fun with each other and above all that they were praising God. They were celebrating the awesome presence of God that week. Wow!

And well they should celebrate the presence of God in their lives and the life of Christ's church at Hiss. It was absolutely powerful and completely inspirational. It was obvious to all who were present, most of whom are known to each other through family, neighbors and members of the community, and being members of our church. There is something marvelous about celebrations, at least last nights, there was nothing anonymous about it. People knew each other, they talked to each other, they shared their joy with each they drew closer to or deeper into their relationship with an ever present God who knows and loves all. GOD is truly good.

Last night, I found a new and wonderful reason to celebrate - people told my wife Sharon that they love me dearly. When I learned this my heart was filled to the brim with happiness. And why would it not be for learning that someone loves you is a powerfully heart warming experience. Love builds up your spirits as nothing else can do. It forms powerful bonds of lasting friendships. There is some great sadness in the knowledge of learning someone loves me - I do not know who to love back. I do not know who to thank for taking the time to walk over to my wife and warm her heart for their anonymous (at least to me) expression of their loving her husband.

And this is the message with God and this wonderful Psalm. God loves you deeply. God loves you up close and very personal. And above all else -- God wants you to know it in unmistakable ways. God wants to stand beside you, with you, for the purpose of saying "I love you" through his loving presence in answered prayer. God does not want His love for us to be anything close to anonymous. He wants you to know absolutely completely who it is that loves you unconditionally. Our God is never an anonymous God who will ever choose to remain unknown to any of His children.

The 23rd Psalm is an extraordinarily and deeply intimate prayer. The writer of the Prayer - David, and anyone who prays this today, knows deeply in their heart that God is not anonymous. God wants relationship with you and He wants you to know Him, who he is, in the bonds of deepest love. And this Psalm does just that, it draws us into that deeply personal and intimate relationship and God knows who you are.

The Lord of Love, the ever visible, ever vigilant Shepherd loves you and me and praise the Lord there is nothing anonymous about that. Share your faith. Testify to the love of your Shepherd. Please do not keep your love for Him anonymous. Please do not keep it to yourself. Let others come into loving relationship with God through your love for Him. Strive to keep your faith journey any thing but anonymous.

Every reason not to do so is listed quite eloquently in the verses of Psalm 23.

So I leave that as your prayer this morning. Pray the 23rd Psalm with someone today. Let them know, that they don't have to feel anonymous with God and that they are not anonymous to God. Pray for those moments when anonymity reigns in your heart. Pray for those moments when you or others feel being anonymous is the only way to get through life. Pray for God to strengthen you through such times as these.

Let us Pray:

Lord, please don't be anonymous to me or my family today. Please help my love for you be known to all I may meet today. Let me bare witness to the great and glorious blessings you have bestowed upon me and my house. Let my life be an open book of testimony to Your great love for us. This day and forever more. In Christ's name.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zxi1zAqavo

All The Way

www.youtube.com

All The Way All the way my Savior leads me; What have I to ask beside? Can I doubt His tender mercy, Who through life has been my guide?

Day 11: What is Life Like? What is life with God like?

Day 11: What is life like? What is life with God like?

Read: Exodus 3:1-12; 4:1-17 (The Call and Mission of Moses)

Let me ask you a very important question: What is life like? I know that it is a very significant question to answer in just such a short space as this. But, none the less, I am asking you to ponder it for just a moment. I know and appreciate that there is much to ponder and may not know exactly where to begin. So let me help you with it.

"Life is like a bowl of cherries." This phrase came to us through the wonderful song written by Lew Brown and Ray Henderson, and sung by Ethel Merman in 1931 as part of her early performances in George Whites Scandals (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_White%27s_Scandals). Her singing career began here and her early experience with this launched Ethel into 52 years of success as an actress and singer.

Lyrics:

Life is just a bowl of cherries;
Don't make it serious;
Life's too mysterious.
You work, you save, you worry so,
But you can't take your dough when you go, go, go.
So keep repeating it's the berries;
The strongest oak must fall.
The sweet things in life
To you were just loaned,
So how can you lose what you've never owned?
Life is just a bowl of cherries,
So live and laugh at it all.

Yes, Life is like a bowl of Cherries until you actually bite into it and realize that there is a pit inside. Yes, Life is like a bowl of cherries until you actually bite into one and realize that all cherries do not taste the same. Some are extraordinarily sour and others you immediately spit out of your mouth, there taste being so very bad. Or when you eat one too many just how so painful and upset your gut gets.

Or, like I used to like doing back home in my back yard when I was a kid. We had a cherry tree in our backyard. It was usually full of cherries just waiting to be picked. Some I could reach from the ground. Some I had to climb to reach. Some I used a ladder to get to. But there were always those in the very highest branches which stayed out of my reach. There were some years where extended periods of no rain or there were not enough bees around to pollinate the blossoms. Or the tree died.

Yes, life can be very much like a bowl of cherries.

Then there is this version of life:

"Mamma always told me: Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get."

This iconic phrase entered into our culture from Tom Hanks' character 'Forrest Gump' of the movie of the same name. Recall that the phrase that spawned this was set in Gump's family home. Consider the emotion packed scene when Forrest was called home from his shrimp boat business and ran to his mother's bedside. He is seen seated at his mother's bedside when she was slowly dying from cancer. What mamma said to her son were basically her final word's of loving advice to her son.

Yes, life can be like a box of chocolates until you realize you are or live with Diabetes in your home and you both have to be extremely careful about what you eat. Life can be like a box of chocolates unless you know or find out that you or someone you know or love are allergic to chocolate or worse to peanuts. No fun here!!! What if you do not like or cannot stand the taste or texture of nuts? What about when you realize that some chocolates are very very expensive. And for the sake of your home budget -- paying the mortgage or rent or utilities or telephone bills for example and buying food for your family to eat, you simply a luxury you cannot afford to buy.

Yes, Life can be very much like a box of chocolates.

Then there is this version to consider:

John Mayer (American pop music Singer and Song Writer) wrote his version of life:

"“Life is like a box of crayons. Most people are the 8-color boxes, but what you're really looking for are the 64-color boxes with the sharpeners on the back. I fancy myself to be a 64-color box, though I've got a few missing. It's ok though, because I've got some more vibrant colors like periwinkle at my disposal. I have a bit of a problem though in that I can only meet the 8-color boxes. Does anyone else have that problem? I mean there are so many different colors of life, of feeling, of articulation.. so when I meet someone who's an 8-color type.. I'm like, "hey girl, magenta!" and she's like, "oh, you mean purple!" and she goes off on her purple thing, and I'm like, "no - I want magenta!"”

What if you or your kids cannot stand crayons and will only use markers or pencils?

And how about these visions of life:

Life is like a garden - "We reap what we sow" (1 Corinthians 9:9-12)

Life is like a garden - "We live off the bounty that comes from what sprouts up and what flourishes through our loving care and attention." (Okay, my Mamma said this)

Life is like a game of cards: We have to play the game of life with the hands we are dealt and hope for the very best of luck after that.

Mamma said life would be like this (The Shirelles 1961):

Mama said there'll be days like this.
"There'll be days like this," my mama said.
(Mama said, mama said.)
Mama said there'll be days like this.
"There'll be days like this," my mama said.
(Mama said, mama said.)

I went walkin' the other day, ye-ay-ee-ah-yay,
Everything was goin' fine.
I met a little boy named Billy-Joe,
And then almost lost my mind.

Mama said there'd be days like this,
"There'll be days like this," my mama said.
(Mama said, mama said.)
Mama said there'll be days like this,
"There'll be days like this," my mama said.

My eyes were wide open,
But all that I could see is,
The chapel bells were tollin',
For everyone-a but-a me.

But I don't worry 'cause...
Mama said there'll be days like this,
"There'll be days like this," my mama said.
(Mama said, mama said.)
"There'll be days like this," my mama said.

And then she said, someone will look at me,
Like I'm lookin' at you, one day.
And then I might find,
I don't want you any old way.

So, I don't worry, 'cause...
Mama said there'll be days like this,
"There'll be days like this," my mama said.
(Mama said, mama said.)
Mama said there'll be days like this,
"There'll be days like this," my mama said.

(Mama said, mama said, hey, hey.)
Don't you worry.
(Mama said, mama said, hey, hey.)
Don't you worry, now.
(Mama said, mama said, hey, hey.)

Mama said there'll be days like this,
"There'll be days like this," my mama said.
(Mama said, mama said.)
Fade.
Mama said there'll be days like this,
"There'll be-a days like this," my mama said.

Yes, Mama said there would be days like these but what she didn't say (Okay, maybe I wasn't doing such a great job of listening either) is that there would be many such days and there could be days when several will come along right in a row!! It could also be that I was having too much fun paddling down the long river called denial.

I guess by now you realize, prayerfully more so now that there are an infinite number of ways to say it or sing it. There are an infinite number of images we can assign to it. Each one is uniquely ours. Each one is equally special and each one is uniquely relevant to who we are and each one uniquely defines how we have lived and learned for our experiences along the journey of this life. Each one uniquely defines who we have become through these experiences. Each one uniquely defines who we were created to be when created us in His image and in His image He created us, He molded us and He shaped us (Genesis 1:26-28) for living in a relationship based solely on love (John 3:16, John 14:1-3,27; 15:1-5; 12-16.)

Now, let me ask you this -

What is the Christian life like? What imagery comes into heart? What heaven borne visions enter your spirit? What lessons might we take from today's Scripture that helps us move forward in faith through our journey towards eternal life in Christ?

1) From Exodus we can learn:

A. Is that God is always there waiting for us to notice Him. It doesn't matter how long it took for Moses to notice the burning bush but that he eventually did. He probably did not start the day saying to himself "today, I am going to notice any burning bushes. Maybe the burning bush was before his eyes for forty years and he paid no attention to it or dismissed it as something he could not or did not desire to use.

B. Even though you may not perceive it, you are being drawn ever forward through your life experiences. Your life experiences will sharpen your vision. Your vision will become more narrow and more focused on what is directly in front of you. There will be something about this vision which will empower your legs and feet ever forward.
(Exodus 3:1 - 3)

C. You will slowly begin to walk forward in faith. To find out what new sort of life awaits you, you will climb the mountain upon which the burning bush is planted. You will risk life, limb and property, just to satisfy your growing curiosity, to get to the top. You will be inexplicably drawn forward towards you know not what. But you know that you will do whatever it takes just to get yourself to the mountain top.

D. God will know that you have begun your journey of faith and He will call out to you (Exodus 3:4-6). You will find yourself being drawn ever closer into a relationship with the voice that is speaking to you from the Burning bush. He will emphatically call out your name and the sum total of your life will find itself responding with "I am here."

D. The first thing God will do is fill you with a growing sense 'awe' and 'wonder' that will stop you in your tracks. Then God will take the time to welcome you into His presence. He will tell you how to make yourself welcome, how to make yourself right at home. Then, as only God can do, He will identify Himself to you in a manner that is both easily recognizable and most emphatically unmistakable (Exodus 3:6,14 - 15).

E. It will be a fearful time for the sum total what your life has been like is now laid bare before you and placed at your feet for you are fully in the presence of God. It is a time of greatest uncertainty. What will happen to me now? What will life be like? There will be many questions on your heart awaiting answers that God provides.

F. God will not call you into a new relationship without telling you why He has done so. He will open up His heart to you in an up close and personal 1:1 conversation. He will talk to you as though He has known you forever, that this moment was always going to take place. He will tell you I have a new purpose or a plan for you in mind (Exodus 3:7-10).

G. You will hear it. You will try to listen attentively to what God says. Then .... the arguments and excuses begin. One reason after the other, your life experiences will berate God with all the reasons it can think of why you cannot and will not do it. Every reason under the sun will pour forth from the voice of your life experience. You will hear it, you will try to keep listening to it and you will keep trying to defend it. God will get angry. However, it will not last but for a moment (Isaiah 57:16). He will have infinite patience with you while your life sorts out all its assorted excuses. He will wait for your life experiences to convince itself that what God is asking you to do is good, is possible despite your beliefs to the contrary, and will eventually get done. (Exodus 4:1-17)

H. He will always reassure you that you are in the right place and at the right time. He will put people along side of you to help you and guide you so you aren't alone. God will always be right along side of you and will take care of the impossible so your life doesn't have to act on or believe that it has to go at it by all by itself.

I. You will be convinced and you will eventually go knowing and believing with all of your heart that the grace and love of God the Father is forever going before you. And God will make something good out of whatever happens (Romans 8:28-31)

Pray Psalm 139

Sing to Psalm 139

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKX61GpxmY0

Day 10: Disturbing the Heart of God - Dear God .... Do you really truly care?

Day 10: Disturbing the Heart of God - Dear God... do you really truly care?

Read: Psalm 13, John 11:28-37

One of the the long and the short truths to found in living this life we have been given are found in these questions: Does anybody care about what is going on? Does anybody care enough that they will be stirred into taking some kind of action?

Now, I realize that most everybody cares about something. There will always be something that happens that will give someone a sufficient reason to take an action. For example: Breast Cancer in women for example. The Susan G Komen Race for the Cure Series is the largest and most successful education and fund raising event.

In 2012, they will have 18 international Races in 13 countries with more than 150 Races globally. Thanks to events like Komen’s Race for the Cure® Series, "we have invested nearly $1.9 billion to fulfill our promise, playing a critical role in virtually every major advance in breast cancer."

This cause draws literally tens of thousands runners (female and male) to don the color of pink and run to eradicate the disease. They make T Shirts with their loved ones on them to show their love and their passionate support. Thousands more come out to volunteer to organize the race or stand along the course to give out water to the runners. People care because someone they know has felt first hand the ravages of this disease. They believe a difference can be made, a cure found.

The late Danny Thomas and his daughter Marlo spending countless hours in founding and supporting "St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. This year the Hospital is celebrating 50 years of service to the world. Their mission statement: The mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is to advance cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment. Consistent with the vision of our founder Danny Thomas, no child is denied treatment based on race, religion or a family's ability to pay. One particularly stunning fact is that no family pays St Jude for anything. It is entirely run off of donations from caring people.

On Labor Day for over forty years was the fixture of Jerry Lewis and "Jerry's Kids" in a weekend telethon that local communities put on to raise money for the battle against Muscular Dystrophy which has raised billions of dollars for the cause. There is the United Way campaign in support of hundreds of worthy causes. There is just so much to care about. And the beauty of it all is that people raise up and do care.

But then again, when we are the one's going through something that everyone else is supporting -- we are the ones whose child has a catastrophic illness, we are the ones whose loved one, perhaps even ourselves who has breast cancer or Muscular Dystrophy or any of a host of things -- sometimes we want to know: Does God Care?
For years, my wife Sharon s mother suffered from Alzheimer's disease and She along with her Dad cared for her. They watched day by day as she was separated from a lifetime of memories, separated from those who were her own family.

As the Psalmist is angrily seeking answers from the midst of his catastrophe:

1 How long, O Lord? Will you forget me for ever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
2 How long must I bear pain in my soul,
and have sorrow in my heart all day long?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? (Psalm 13:1-2)

So we too pray the question:

Dear God,
Do you think you can take a little time out of your eternally busy day to ....?

Have you ever prayed that? Have you ever thought to pray that? It is a very hard question to ask of our loved ones let alone ask it of the God who not only knows everything that is happening throughout His creation, he also knows every thought of every heart at every moment. Yet there are genuinely times, that like the Psalmist, we struggle mightily to experience His Presence. Our perfect storms of doubt that place great winds before our eyes. We cannot keep them open, we cannot see God.

Yes, God knows every thought and emotion. But not just that .... He actually enters into our own distress and feels what we feel (John 11:28-37) God comes into our midst and survey's for Himself what causes us to ask the Dear God questions. He comes and consoles as He did for Mary and Martha. He accepts their Dear God question with only love in His heart. He touches us and He CRIES for us too!!!

Our distress causes distress in God. Please take a moment out of your own too busy day and meditate about that for a moment. Our distress causes distress in God. The Creator of the Universe, a universe to big to imagine, is not only aware of our deepest emotions, but also FEELS it right along side of us. Our distress deeply stirs the heart of God. There is such a level of distress in the heart of God -- He cried. I have read that passage from John many times and the hardest image for me to put in my own mind - is that God cried. God shed a tear for Mary and Martha as their brother Lazarus had died and been bound with funeral cloth and placed in a tomb.

Yet, even when God came, showed emotion for us, there were still the lingering questions:

JOHN 11:32 When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.

AND

JOHN 11:37 But some of them said, ‘Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?’

Still the skepticism remained. But Jesus looked beyond our lingering skepticism and prayed to the Father and then called Lazarus out of his tomb and back into his community. God takes our deepest cares, our continual skepticism our continued "Dear God .... letters, and He acts. In no uncertain terms, God acts in a way that is unmistakably God. So there is sufficient reason to remain positive that how ever many times you write Dear God ..... on a sheep of paper, His love for you will be the difference. God stays true to His people. God will always find a way to show "I care".

God made man in His image for the purpose of bringing many sons to glory (Genesis 1:26-27). God knows you and loves you very intimately. “God so loved the world” is how the famous verse, John 3:16, begins. God loves and cares for the world. However, it is not this world, but the people that He made for which He cares so deeply. Jesus was sent as a sacrifice in order to save the world, but not as a group. The saving power in the sacrifice happens one sinner, one person, at a time. That sacrifice was perfect and fit for just one person, you! God loved you so much that He gave His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to die for you. Jesus cared and died for us.

And why would Jesus die for you? For the joy set before Him, to bring you to glory (Hebrews 2:9-10; 12:2). God the Father and Jesus know you very well and they have offered to you the joy of eternal life. They want to share with you all the goodness they know. God loves you very much. He thinks about you, watches over you and desires that you will embrace His promises and partake of the good things He offers to you. Never doubt how much He loves you. He sent His Son to die for you to demonstrate how earnest He is now and forever about you living with Him.

Today,

Pray Psalm 85 and personalize it for your own "Dear God ....." questions.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kLa9XjsHvo

"For Those Tears I Died" By Donnie Sumner

www.youtube.com

i've always loved this song

Day 9: The Perfect Storm: Where our hurt and our Healer collide.

Day 9: The Perfect Storm: Where our hurt and our Healer collide.

Read: Psalm 18:1-19, Romans 12, Hebrews 9:11-15, Mark 4:35-41, Luke 22:14-23

“I have heard a brother of the story-telling trade at Naples preaching to a pack of good-for-nothing honest, lazy fellows by the sea-shore, work himself up into such a rage and passion with some of the villains whose wicked deeds he was describing and inventing, that the audience could not resist it; and they and the poet together would burst out into a roar of oaths and execrations against the fictitious monster of the tale, so that the hat went round, and the bajocchi tumbled into it, in the midst of a perfect storm of sympathy." Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackery 1811-1863

"The Perfect Storm": It is is an expression that describes an event where a rare combination of circumstances will aggravate a situation drastically. The term is also used to describe an actual phenomenon that happens to occur in such a confluence, resulting in an event of unusual magnitude. (From Wikipedia)

It is the worse case scenario, it was the biggest catchphrase the financial crisis of the last 5 years. Perfect Storm: It is an overused phrase' one for which many wish it would just go away - never to return (the perfect storm of oblivion?). In the midst of the human condition, it doesn't just refer to the worse possible weather event that occurs at the worse possible moment like a nor'easter, a hurricane, a tornado, a blizzard for which we struggle to hide in our cellars from to live, survive, recover.

It seems to me to be that state of the inner and outer 'us' -- our lives -- when life happens so severely, so fast and so furious (please forgive the reference to the failed FBI operation of the same name), repeatedly hitting us from all directions at the same time that we feel as if we 'want to run away as fast as we can to hide in our cellars' to just to live, survive and hopefully recover. It is standing in the middle of the great whirlwind, the biggest tornado, the worse blizzard trying to wait it out while, at the same time, we feel like we are being torn 'limb from limb' and we can do nothing about it for we know not which direction to turn which will lead to life.

For me, it seemed like my whole life was lived in such a storm. Bullied from time I entered Elementary School, through Middle and Senior High, In the Navy, In the Army at work, and regretfully even in the home I grew up in by my Father. Day after day, I knew not what to expect except that someone was seeking to make my day one of sheer misery. From start to finish, day to day, I got to the point early in life (7 or 8 I believe), I expected nothing better than a ruined day. Everyday, I expected the worse case scenario to define the course of my life. I had no reason to believe the storm would go away. Even as the outer storms might come and go and I had intermittent periods of sunshine and gorgeous weather, it was the inner storm that raged within me -- sometimes I stood in the eye of the hurricane -- that I genuinely felt lost and generally forgotten about as happened in 6th grade when my teacher failed to notice (for 3 hours) that I was missing from his class in the middle of the day. "I'm sorry" he said later "I did not notice that you were gone." "I just forgot all about you." I was obviously used to it though for I just accepted the apology.

My relationship with my father deteriorated to where we would not speak to each other for extended periods of time. To say we were estranged from each other would not come close to the real truth of it. It is not that I did not love him - I did - but my father would just 'remove both of his hearing aids' when I tried to talk. First one then the other, in a progression that meant 'I am fast losing interest in this conversation and I am wishing you would just go away' to 'alright, now we are done, there is no more to say that I want to or am going to hear so GO AWAY!!!' On his deathbed when I tried to finally reconcile, he turned thumbs down. Barely one day before he died he utterly rejected me as his son! Even at deaths door, the perfect storm of life raged on. No longer within dad, now I carried mine and his.

For the Christians living under the oppression of the Roman Empire, the perfect storm was an everyday thing. Any day, someone could take exception to their very existence and make life an exercise in complete misery. Any day, their lives could be taken away - thrown into prison, out of their homes, out of their livelihoods and even killed. Everyday their lives were seemingly under some kind of threat. And this the atmospheric condition under which they continued to go on with their lives. Live your life as though nothing will happen knowing that at any time, and expect that the worse case scenario could show up at your door step - and that could be it!!

What about the mindset of someone living out their lives in the midst of the perfect storm? What goes through their head when you try to live as 'normal as possible' when the 'normal' is the unrelenting raging storm? Your mind becomes transformed by the storm to try to survive the storm. The reality of your thoughts are governed by the bounds of the perfect storm you are struggling to live in everyday. Let go,Let God.

You have heard the phrase "Don't tell God how big your storm is but tell your storm how big your God is (Psalm 18:1-19). As Paul tried to emphatically convince his Christian audience to do: strive to place more of Christ the healer in your mind and focus on Him who said to the storm: "Peace, be still!" Strive to live more each day believing that the the power of God's grace and the love of the risen Jesus Christ is stronger and more powerful and the comforting presence of the Holy Spirit is there to gently remind you of all this when the raging storm rages harder in response to your struggle finding your port, your haven of rest (Psalm 18:19).

The perfect storm exerts great influence but Scripture states that the perfect storm of Father, Son and Holy Spirit exerts an even greater influence counter to that of our storms. This place of confluence, where two perfect storms meet - is the place to find the most perfect storm of the 'Healer' the 'Great Physician, sitting at the right hand of the Father - Christ the Risen Lord - the perfect mediator of all of our perfect storms. He is the Way, the Truth, the Life and the place where our hurt meets our healer. Here is the place our storms would rather us not to venture towards. For it is here where it knows with the greatest certainty it is going to lose its vast power.

I have no idea where the epicenter of your 's or anybody else s might be. I do not know if it is an onrush of college or professional board exams, overwhelming and serious medical concerns, change in health status, life or death decisions that beckon you, transitioning to a new job or trying to get promoted in your current one, and the list grows and changes with each individual. However, I am certain that God knows the Good News - He will always know exactly where your greatest needs are.

He will always place before you opportunities for you to take time out from the storm to see that there are better days ahead. While all storms seem to find a way to do some temporary or even long lasting memories and personal grief, God says "Peace and be Still." "Peace and be healed." It is potentially a very long journey to recover filled with all range of feelings an emotions. I encourage you pray often to give your hurt to Healer of all things. Allow Jesus Christ the opportunity to transform you from the inside out so that your true self maybe revealed unbounded and unchained from your many hurt's. Hurts that have been growing over a long, long time.

Right now, for myself, these devotions and prayers that I am writing have given me a glorious opportunity to put some troubling issues to rest. For me, the perfect storm of my hurt is encountering the perfect storm of my healer, Jesus Christ. His perfect storm of grace, love and forgiveness is diminishing the great winds that continue to buffet me, continue to try to give up and accept the storms arrayed against me. My confidence is in the Lord who commanded the storms of my life to "BE STILL!!"

My prayer for those of you who are reading this is that you give God permission to come to your side. I pray that there will be a time when you can give yourself permission to accept the Light of Jesus Christ into your chaos and darkness. I pray that there will come a time when you will accept the guidance of the Holy Spirit to help you navigate along a different course towards a growing and maturing peace.

Let us Pray:

Dear Lord,

When storms of life are raging
and doubt reaches my way,
remind me of Your love, dear Lord,
to keep my fears at bay.

When all I see is failure
and mountains hard to climb,
just whisper in my ear, O Lord,
that You are still sublime.

This life may disappoint me
and so may people too.
Dear Lord, show me Your faithfulness
and keep me true to You.

When tears do fill my eyes Lord,
and I'm seemingly blind,
walk with me Precious Yeshua (Jesus),
and ease my tired mind.

Take me by the hand, O Lord,
when roads are washing out.
Provide me with protection
and keep me from all doubt.

When I'm getting real tired from
struggling day and night,
hold me tight dear Yeshuah,
Please be my guiding Light.

- Author Unknown

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqBMNSuDf7g

MercyMe - The Hurt & The Healer with lyrics

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I don't own any rights. This is just for entertainment purposes.

Day 8: Okay, Lord, I am waiting like you said to. So.... What happens now?

Day 8: Okay, Lord, I am waiting like you said to. So.... What happens now?

Read: Job 6:11-13, Psalm 27 (Song of Confidence in God), Psalm 25 (Prayer for Guidance and deliverance) Isaiah 40:21-31, Matthew 11:1-5, Acts 1:1-8.

Patience, Patience, Patience, wait for it ... wait for it ... wait for it ... OKAY, Now go for it!!! Hurry Hurry Hurry .... Run or you'll miss your opportunity to .... do WHAT?

One of golf’s immortal moments came when a Scotsman demonstrated the new game to President Ulysses Grant. Carefully placing the ball on the tee, he took a mighty swing. The club hit the turf and scattered dirt all over the President’s beard and surrounding vicinity, while the ball placidly waited on the tee. Again the Scotsman swung, and again he missed. Our President waited patiently through six tries and then quietly stated, “There seems to be a fair amount of exercise in the game, but I fail to see the purpose of the ball.”

Those of you who remember the "Honey Mooners" with Jackie Gleason and Art Carney remember the scene in Ralph's apartment where Ralph is trying to teach Norton how to play golf for Ralph was playing his boss later in the day. Ralph famously tells Norton that the first thing he has to do is 'address the ball' and Norton looks down; tips his hat and says "Hello Ball." The reward for which he finds himself unceremoniously shoved across the room by an angry Ralph.

At one time in my life I loved the game of Golf. I used to watch it on television a lot. Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino, Chi Chi Rodriguez, Tom Watson, Greg Norman and yes, even Bob Hope and Bing Crosby. A wonderful game that requires great strategy a deep and thoughtful mind to study the courses - what club to use, when to use it, gauging wind direction and speed. Where are the trees, water, sand traps and out of bounds. Golf is a thoughtful game of gentleman and gentle ladies. It is a game of very precise rules that requires great attention to all the little details.

It looks so easy on television. Then the reality really sets in. It is never as easy as it looks. In 1985 or so, a friend of mine invited to go golfing with him. I had never been golfing before and was kind of excited about it. So I went even though I had no clubs. We went to a small Par three course and I rented some clubs from them. It looked so easy on television and my confidence was running pretty high. Put the ball on the tee -- stand behind it -- put your feet apart -- swing your hips a couple of times -- take a couple of practice swings and swing and ...... wait for it .... wait for it .... miss the ball, shank the ball, or worse and only hit it five feet (backwards).

But not to get too discouraged, it is a game of patience after all, carefully reset yourself, listen to your friends advice, and then try it again and wait for it .... wait for it .... miss the ball again or hit it and it goes 10 feet or it skitters along the ground with great speed threatening any worm that was fool enough to stick its head above the ground at that particular moment. I struggled to get through that Par three and I am sure that my 'more proficient at golf' friend was losing his patience with me. It was not long after that I decided I had zero patience for playing the game.

When I was in New Jersey on Army business in 1992, I decided that I would give the game another go, I promised myself that I would be more patient with myself and the game. I would wait it out and earnestly try to learn the game. So I went to a local sporting good store and purchased the cheapest set of clubs I could find. I went several times to practice ranges nearby and hit basket after basket of range balls. I read books, picked up several issues of Golf weekly and Golf Digest and try to study them carefully. I would practice in my room just like the pros did in the magazines. Gradually, with a lot of practice and equal amounts of frustration, I gradually got the hang of it. I was no Lee Trevino by any stretch but at least I found I could hit the ball straighter most of the time. My confidence grew stronger the more I practiced.

Over the next 7 years or so, I would go golfing with friends and co-workers and I felt reasonably successful. I was slower than most of the people I played with, but they seemed patient enough with me to wait while I caught up to them. There were times when I hit my club into the ground and even winged a few clubs into the water when I wasn't patient enough in my approach to the game. However, I felt I did my best to endure the lack luster of my game. That is until I went home in 1998 and went out with now a former friend to a local five par course. On the first hole I hit a shot way off to the right. The nice part of golf to me was that even though I wasn't good all the time, my friend would always wait for me to catch up before we moved on. This time, this day, however was very different. Instead of waiting patiently for me. He pushed on a head of me and completed the hole before I could get half way there. And this set the tone for the entire round of eighteen holes we 'played?' together.

He didn't wait for me to catch up. He did not slow his game down so we could share in the joy of playing together. He did not wait for me to catch up through most of the eighteen holes we played. And on more than one level, it hurt me very deeply. I never told him how I felt about it all, instead I let our friendship fall by the wayside. I decided that I was not going to be the least bit patient with him anymore. He was not waiting for me so I decided that I would not wait for him either. And a friendship we had shared since fourth grade dissolved away. I have not seen nor heard from him since, nor do I really have any desire to do re initiate contact.

We hope that others will be patient with us not just in the bad times but in the good as well. Well, as I found out and I am sure many more have as well, when through waiting patience does not materialize as we would pray for it to, the injury goes very very deep. It goes without saying that I gave up on golf after that, even watching it on television, and finally this year, simply had the junk man take the clubs away.

If ever there is some tough advice to swallow, this is probably at the pinnacle: "Wait for the Lord." The patience of Job is legendary and help up as a Scriptural model for us to learn from. Yet Job also emphatically expressed this to learn just the opposite from: What are we to learn from such seemingly contrasting and contrary words?

11 "What is my strength, that I should wait?
And what is my end, that I should be patient?
12 Is my strength the strength of stones,
or is my flesh bronze?
13 In truth I have no help in me,
and any resource is driven from me." (Job 6:11-13 NRSV)

We don't always enjoy waiting. Waiting takes energy and strength to do. And we simply do not want to wait around and waste our valuable time and resources. We can be doing a thousand other things to better take our time and fill up our days. Relevant things or irrelevant things, it doesn't matter. Anything becomes better than waiting around for who knows or even cares what. Waiting is a major buzz killer. I mean this is nothing new -- Adam and Eve could not wait to take a bite out of the forbidden fruit and they couldn't wait for God to find them so they hid in the woods and made God look for them. And so the beat moves on right through page after page of Scripture. And consequently we learned our lesson from this all too well. We hide very quickly and don't always like to be patient and wait for God to find us.

Have you noticed that High Speed technology waits for no one? We simply do not tolerate 'slow' - slow computers, slow restaurants, slow service, or slow traffic. It is just not a big part of our genetic make up. It is not embedded in our DNA or RNA. Waiting just simply does not seem to fit very well in to our human condition.

But that is not God's way. God does not mind waiting for us and He doesn't mind our waiting either. Which is great news for all of us today. In fact, God does not wait but He goes out of His way to find us wherever we may be (Psalm 139). Sometimes I get the feeling that He goes out of His way to get out of our way that allows us to be the author of situations where our only choice is but to wait and to develop patience.

Have you been there recently? Are you there now? Take heart and be strong. The Psalmist (Psalm 27) tells us most importantly to be strong and do not fear (v. 1-3), to pray (v. 4-5) , to wait it out for it will get better (v. 6), persevere and continue to pray at all times good or bad (v. 7-12), to wait, to be patient and believe in yourself, have the confidence that while you wait on the Lord to come and make a difference - you will see the difference in your lifetime (v. 13 - 14). You will be transformed.

Have you ever wondered why so often in history God waits until the last minute to step in and answer your prayer? I personally believe, from my own experience with prayer, that in that last possible moment, in that last possible second that He does His absolute best work. That is the place where we send disciples into an impatient world to give answer to John the Baptist's last earthly question from Matthew 11:2-3

When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?’. To which Jesus emphatically responded (Matthew 11:4-5) "‘Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them."

And this is the final message of Acts 1:4 - 8 given to His disciples before He ascended to heaven: (4-5) "While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father. ‘This’, he said, ‘is what you have heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’ for the reward for waiting (v.8) But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’
The Fires of Pentecost came at the right moment to empower, strengthen those who waited as the Prophet Isaiah promised.

Isaiah 40:31 "but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint.

Read any Christian biography and what do you find? What will you learn from it? Probably that the experience of the growing believer is punctuated with frequent and oftentimes extended periods of waiting. But waiting for what? Waiting for God to step in and do what He does best. We pray for redemption, for transformed lives through His love, His mercy, His forgiveness. We wait for His response. We believe that as we wait, God will respond. That as we wait we will learn wisdom to persevere. We will prayerfully come to a time of divine revelation that those who wait will find that:

13 They will abide in prosperity,
and their children shall possess the land.
14 The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him,
and he makes his covenant known to them.
15 My eyes are ever towards the Lord,
for he will pluck my feet out of the net. (Psalm 25:13-15)

Plan today to wait on God. Ask Him to accomplish exactly what He wants for you to become. Pray for the patience to wait a little longer each day.

Let us Pray:

Lord, teach me to be patient – with life, with people,and with myself. I sometimes try to hurry things along too much, and I push for answers before the time is right. Teach me to trust Your sense of timing rather than my own and to surrender my will to Your greater and wiser plan. Help me let life unfold slowly, like the small rosebud whose petals unravel bit by bit, and remind me that in hurrying the bloom along, I destroy the bud and much of the beauty therein.

Instead, let me wait for all to unfold in its own time. Each moment and state of growth contains a loveliness. Teach me to slow down enough to appreciate life and all it holds. Amen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Szd9s2AEDEU

Everlasting God

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Everlasting God by Chris Tomlin in See the Morning With Lyrics

Day 7: Finishing the Race - I can only Imagine

Day 7: The End of the Race: I can only imagine

Read: Philippians 3:13-14, 1Corinthians 9:24-27, Hebrews 12:1-2,

Yesterday I read an article about an athlete who set a brand new world record in the Decathlon at the US Olympic qualifier. For those of you who do not know, as I guess there might be a few of you out there - The Decathlon is a rigorous test of an athletes level of endurance over 10 events done over two days. The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of ten track and field events. and the winners are determined by the combined performance in all. Performance is judged on a points system in each event, not by the position achieved. Traditionally, the title of "World's Greatest Athlete" has been given to the man who wins the decathlon.

The Decathlon begins with a 100 meter race and ends with event number ten: a grueling 1500 meter race. In between there are events graduated in difficulty like a shot put, high jump, discus throws, pole vaulting, javelin throws, hurdles. Five events of increasing difficulty on day one and five more on day two. Every part of your body is put to the limit of physical endurance. It is an accomplishment just to finish it.

Yesterday, American athlete Ashton Eaton set a world record with 9039 points. He broke the world record which had stood for an amazing thirteen years. What an astounding feat of athleticism. World Record setting effort to achieve a place on the 2012 US Olympic Team heading to London in August. All that effort just to gain a place on the World Stage in the hope that he cannot just be the best US athlete but also the best athlete in the world, proven on the grandest of athletic stages. He is an amazing individual filled with the nth desire to achieve the greatest prize - The Best!

"It's like living an entire lifetime in two days," Eaton said. "It doesn't mean that much to the rest of the world, but to me, it's my whole world. To do the best that I possibly could in my world makes me pretty happy." He won seven of the 10 events and did most of it in terrible weather — drizzle, rain, cold and then, finally, sunshine.

What to do for an encore?

Keep training, keep your mind, body and spirit on the prize that is before him - An Olympic Gold Medal. He will be the prohibitive favorite to accomplish it in London. Now, he must work to build on his accomplishments at the Olympic trials. Use the lessons he has learned from his physical and spiritual training for the events which set the standard for the rest of the world to follow and set them aside to start the process of preparing himself for an even more challenging moment - to become the Olympic Champion - to achieve ultimate victory on the grandest of world stages. He must take the lessons he has learned, positive and negative and set them aside to learn what there is to learn and incorporate into his training to finish this race.

How about we as Christians? I don't pretend to know what it is like to train to the level that Mr. Eaton has done. Athletics were not really my strongest suit. But still the same, Paul likens the Christian life to an athlete competing in the great games for which Greece originated. For the Greeks, being the best of the best meant power and status among the people. The Laurels wreath placed on their heads was their gold medal. Their very visible sign that they were role models for other Greeks.

I suppose most of us have figured out that life itself, whether Christian or otherwise is a decathlon or as it has often been associated with - the Marathon 26 miles 385 yards of "what have I got myself into now?" Living life is a measure of endurance - physical, mental, spiritual and much more. Each day challenges us to set aside the previous one that we may move forward. Build on yesterday, to accomplish today so to achieve the victory of gaining our tomorrows. Meditate on that for a moment: the victory of today is to achieve and gain our tomorrows - 24 consecutive hours of effort just to get to the finish line which is our tomorrows. A daily test of rigorous and truly exasperating endurance. Small wonder Paul likens life to training for athletics.

If you want to keep moving forward, expecting to achieve the small victories in life, However you choose to move forward, through prayer, patience or the sheer will power we have called human optimism, then this passage of Scripture was written for you to help prepare yourself. To help you put together a training regimen that will help you grow into the process of building you up. The process of maturing your life that prayerfully what ever threatens to bring you down - memories of the past, for example, will be approached, learned from then set aside to move on in life.

The more I approach this Scripture, the more I study it, the more I place myself on the inside of it, I realize we cannot simply just forget about the victory and defeats of yesterday. We just cannot simply try to convince ourselves that yesterday never really happened the way it did. We cannot block out the memories or lessons we have learned from whatever happened. We cannot and do not have the power to change or modify history. Yesterday, life happened and today and tomorrow life will continue to happen. Yesterdays challenges exhausted our resources yet we endured through it all. We worked hard, we gained our greatest and smallest of victories, We endured yesterday therefore we're victorious then. Let's achieve victory today.

For example, if you are running a hurdle race, you cannot afford to worry about the hurdle you just jumped. You must focus on the next one in front of you. Run two steps and jump and repeat until you reach the finish line. You may not finish first but with your best efforts you will finish the race set before you. If you are not so proficient at jumping hurdles and you run into the occasional one along the route, your victory is trying to forget the pain in your leg, the hurdle you just knocked down. Your victory is the effort you place into the process learning and re learning to pick your legs up higher and stay focused on not stopping where you tripped up and to just going forward, gaining the finish line. The victory is the effort just to finish.

Let us pray,

Creator God,

You have with us from the very beginning. You were there when the race began. So
it is with a humbled sense of desperation and desire for victory that I come to You
seeking Your strength to be mine. I feel as if I have been running a long time with not so much to show for it. I am tired. I am weary from running from what I do not understand toward a finish line I cannot see. Sometimes I am not even sure it is there waiting for me. Sometimes I feel as though it is only taunting me, encouraging me to stop and just give up trying to find it. Lord, please, hear my desperate prayer.

Lord Jesus Christ, My desire is for the strength of your grace to replenish my own depleted stores, for I feel as if I have none of my own left to continue. The race is long and the course is filled with the silences in life, expectations and desires not fulfilled by those around me. Come Holy Spirit, fill me once again with your fires of perseverance so that Your fulfillment and satisfaction would come into my life fully satisfying, fully appreciated of Your comfort, love, and hope. Lord, transform me.

Father, Son and Holy Spirit You have called me on this journey of enduring victory;

To strive to live my life in Your ways so to become more faithful

To learn how to endure the hurdles in my life and to still follow obediently

To humble myself through victory and loss that I may more fully trust You because You are trust-worthy and true. You are worthy of all glory honor and praise.

For You do not disappoint. From the very beginning You have promised to always find a way of making everything well according to Your timing and plan.

And I believe that You will still be there at the finish line, waiting for me to finish no matter how long it takes me to get there.

Still Lord, in those times when I struggle, help me in the midst of my unbelief for
there are things in this world that I pretend to but do not understand; things I am blind to; so many things I have yet to see and people that i do not try to understand.

Lord, there are just too many hurdles to overcome, too many uncertainties and uncontrolled elements. Lord, I would be the biggest of fools if i say i don't need You.
I confess I would be convicted of my pride if i ever failed asked for Your help. Lord, help me with enduring and overcoming the high hurdles of my foolish pride.

So Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I m asking for all contentment in You; for full submission to Your will; for wholly trust into Your plans for my life; for enduring and lasting peace in falling gracefully into Your sovereignty.

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my thoughts.
See if there is any wicked way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.

Search my words and my prayers, may they ever be true to you. May my heart know and experience endurance through the strength of Your grace and may it ever rest secure in the knowledge that You will forever wait for me to finish.

Lord, I can only Imagine ..... Amen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8EFYcG2Ym0

I can only imagine mercy me with lyrics [Father's love & forever worship] Team hoyt

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Dick and Rick Hoyt are a father-and-son team from Massachusetts who together compete just about continuously in marathon races. And if theyâ re not in a mara...

Day 6: Our Joy, God's Joy -- Can they ever be the Same?

Day 6: Our Joy, God's Joy. Can the journey ever be the Same?

Read: Psalm 30:1-5, Psalm 33:1-4, 1 Chronicles 16:23-34, any of the 164 places in the NRSV Bible where the the word Joy can be found.

Today is a day for me to get a bit more serious and down to earth. There is a place in my heart this morning that I am having some issues trying to reach. For my heart is just a bit on the heavy side, my hip is giving me fits and my feet just seem to be getting heavier, bogging down as I try to move forward into the rest of my day. The place I am trying to arrive at is the place of Joy. It is a wonderful place to be and I have been there many many times. I have always enjoyed my lengthy stays there.

However, on this wonderful wonderful morning, I find myself being inexplicably slowed down by a heaviness in my heart and a weighty spirit slows my pace. My journey to the place of joy is hindered. I expect to get there eventually, but right now I am slowed down. Each morning I take a ready and steady journey down the path that leads to this place called Joy. I am happily married, I have a home to live in, I have more than enough food in the house to share with the wife, great pets and so much more. Each morning my heart and my spirit sing songs of prayer unto God. Except that today I am finding that Joy seems a bit further away than I remember.

I want to sing. In fact I really enjoy singing to God in the morning and throughout the day. But right now - my song is slow to develop, slow to reach my heart and my lips. I cannot really pin down any specific reason why my journey is slowed down. It just seems to be that way right now. I am sure that it will get better as I keep walking. I ask you, In your experience, Is there a pathway that leads to a place called Joy?

My wife has six cats. For the most part, these cats are quite healthy. Except for one which a cat she has named 'black' because well ... he is ... mostly black with white paws. He is an elderly cat about 11 or 12 years old. He was part of a littler of 4 that were rescued as kittens from a barn. Back in December 2011, we realized that he was losing serious weight. We took him to the Vet where the cat was diagnosed as Diabetic. He was prescribed a regimen of twice a day injections of Insulin. Gradually, over a period of 5 months or so, he regained his lost weight. While in the process of recovery, he was not always a very happy cat. He was tired and sluggish and his walking was not always the most steady. Repeated journeys back and forth to vet and we finally after repeated evaluations, we had the correct dosage of insulin.

Let me tell you a little about the cats twice daily journey to joy. We keep special moist food and the insulin in a small refrigerator in our office. First thing in the morning, the cat will come looking for us to let us know it is time for Joy. He will purr, and meow incessantly as he goes back and forth between us, the refrigerator, and the place where we prepare and administer the Insulin. As we are getting the syringe ready, spooning out a small portion of food, he is pacing back and forth purring and meowing all the way. He will put his paw out there and try to pull the hands preparing the Insulin and spooning the food toward him. He wants his joy!!! We put the food before him to distract him from the needle. He purrs and purrs and purrs as he digs into the food while we give him the Insulin. Then we pet him. All the time while he is eating and medicated, he just sings and sings his song of Joy. Sharon and I just watch and listen to him plastered with big smiles on our faces.

Can you think of any reason to sing joyfully this morning or at this very moment? I mean if something really bad just happened to you, a friend, a school mate, a co - worker or you just watched something on Television or online or wherever, heard something on the radio that created a barrier to your journey to the place of Joy? And I guess that my own heart and spirit is in such a place as I watched the video on you tube of the bus monitor being bullied by middle school boys and memories of my being in such a place as the bus monitor cascaded over me soaking me to the bone.

Such an event really made my journey to the place called Joy that much slower. It was truly very difficult to watch for me personally. It was also exceptionally difficult for a world to watch as there was a great outpouring of international rage against those who perpetrated this grievous act. I am going to guess that the bus monitor's journey to the place of her Joy was severely slowed down, each step more hurtful than the last. This tragic situation likely slowed many journeys to the place of Joy.

In view of this event and so many others that come before our senses: Is there any reason to be joyful whether you feel like it or not? Is there any reason, any rational thought process going through your heart or your spirit that convinces you that the journey down the path to Joy should wait 'for a better day', for the 'sun to shine again one day'? What about the heart of God? Surely His heart is seriously grieved by these events. Should He or will He slow down His journey to the place of Joy? Will He stop our journey while we patiently wait on Him to renew our strength as an eagle (Isaiah 40:31, Psalm 103:1-5)? Is it God's message that we should stop our Joy?

No! In fact this should be an emphatic NO! If we stop and wait until we feel the fullness of joyful praise before we continue our journey, we might be waiting an exceptionally long period. A period of standstill seemingly without end will only seem more so for there will always be something that will keep us from being joyful. Some will choose this path for which we can only pray about and seek opportunity to come along side of in support and encouragement. It is so very important to recognize when someone's journey to Joy is slowed down or even stopped altogether.

We can always learn a lesson from those who have gone before, the 'been there, done that' group of people. Their support through prayer and presence cannot and should not be underestimated. It is always a good time to sing a new song with somebody. God always enjoys a good 'joyful noise' from us. It makes His heart sing right along side of us. It adds to the divine chorus of angels that eternally sing His praises, who exist to forever, in joy, praise and worship the Lord of all creation. Our praise is simply acknowledging who and what God is. God is true Love. God is our strength and our true Joy (Nehemiah 8:10) We journey towards this place of Joy on the grounds of our faith in that it will forever be there. For we walk by faith and not by sight to a heavenly place of the purest kind of Joy. The awesome Joy who is God.

Once we get the full vision of who God is, (not overnight by any stretch or reach of our imagination a one day journey) what He has done for us, what awaits us, and how faithful His place of Joy will always be, we can find new reasons to remain positive and expectant even when we do not feel like it. Maturity to navigate the pathway to Joy grows ever stronger when we can authentically say: 'Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning.' and from Psalm 16:11 "You show me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasures for evermore."

Sometimes all it takes to be on the same path to Joy is an occasional Halleluiah. What Halleluiah's could we sing? What Halleluiah's can we bring before the Lord that the place called Joy shall be revealed to us, shall ever be placed before us?

Let us place ourselves along the pathway to Joy ....

Our hearts are funny things, O God, rising and falling at the oddest moments. We can be encouraged by the smile of a friend or complete stranger or we can find ourselves going down the pathway towards dejection when we see it rain.

We can become excited by the prospects of a wonderful meal, but dejected when we think about those all who have little or none to satisfy their needs. Yet there is always something stimulating and empowering about your presence, and when we become aware, when you reveal it to us, through our halleluiah moments, our hearts seem to glow and we find our spirits lifted up. Oh, let the Joy of the Lord be ours.

ABBA Father, we wish we lived more constantly in awareness of your path of Joy. It is ever before us yet we too often take another. Guide us toward an awareness of your kingdom. Guide us in the midst of distractions both great and small. Help us to be more sensitive to the needs of others in a world that suffers too much cruelty.

Embrace and Empower us now through your Holy Spirit to walk in the path that leads to everlasting Joy. Listen with Joy to our Halleluiah moments and let the heavenly chorus resound that all may come with loudest song and praise into the lives of our neighbors and finally into the eternal glory of your presence. Let your Joy be ours. Through Jesus Christ our Savior, the author and finisher of our faith. Amen

Amy Grant "Better than Halleluiah http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rm5kx3xqmg0

Chuck Girard "Sometimes Alleluia http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGf916aTDXo

Chuck Girard - Sometimes Alleluia

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From the album "Chuck Girard" (1975). A timeless beautiful song. 2nd Chapter of Acts were the back up singers. You can buy this album in mp3 format

Day 5: Can it get any better than this?

Day 5: Can it get any better than this?

Read: John 14:1-3, Psalm 23

Planning for the ultimate vacation. The once in a lifetime place you never allow yourself to believe will actually become reality. It is too expensive, It is too far away, there are travel restrictions, ooooh and so many hours sitting in a airplane. Perhaps this once in a lifetime place is in the middle of some tropical nowhere and you realize that the travel planning just to get there is going to get way too complex and you need to get someone else permission and you need to possess certain attributes to go - especially if that once in a lifetime place is the top of Mount Everest in Tibet.

Prices will range from the “low-end” of an estimated $26,000 all the way up to $65,000 from several of the bigger companies. And this cost does not include the fact you’ll need to have roughly two months of free time to devote to climbing the mountain either. I wont mention the fact that of the cost and the time to preparing your physical and spiritual self for such an arduous journey. The highest mountain on the earth attracts many well-experienced mountaineers as well as capable climbers intrepid enough to try and willing to hire out trustworthy professional guides.

The risks are very great - There have been 219 fatalities recorded on Mount Everest, 54 fatalities since 2000. But, oh the thrill when you get to the top. I don't know this personally as I have never been and don't really plan on going either. But if you get the chance ask Apa Sherpa who holds the record for reaching the summit more times than any other person, 21 times between 10 May 1990 and 11 May 2011.[66] The record for a non-Sherpa is held by American climber and expedition guide Dave Hahn, reaching the summit 14 times between 19 May 1994 and 26 May 2012. The oldest was a 73 year old Tibetan woman and the youngest to make the ascent to the top was a 13-year-old boy Jordan Romero in May 2010 from the Tibetan side.

Perhaps you are really the adventurous type and your ultimate vacation is sailing around the world in a yacht or a sailboat or maybe even in a row boat. Sailing around the world is an adventure of a lifetime. The constant movement, the changing winds and waters and the people you'll meet along the way comprise an incredible experience. If you have always wanted to sail around the world but have been overwhelmed by the prospect, simply follow these steps to get started with an around the world trip. Read more: How to Sail Around the World | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_2093398_sail-around-world.html. Good luck my friend.

Could it get any better than that. Well probably not. Although any one who has any plans for the ultimate get away, when they retire, or have a bucket wish, or just for the heck of it mentality are going to try and see if it is possible to top the one at the top. There will always seem to be a better place to go to go above the best you have ever had. It is the thrill of the planning. It is the ultimate joy and happy place we want to experience. The place of ultimate 'awe' and 'wonder' we long to get to.

The ultimate place we want to go, the ultimate place of 'awe' and 'wonder' -- The Father's House. The House of God both on earth and in heaven. Living with God. Experiencing the ultimate 'awe' and 'wonder' that is being in the presence of God. Just being near to the heart of God. Can it get any better than that? For me - NO!!

That is what makes today's Scripture passages so completely special. These truly wonderful passages are better than they first appear. For they have a very special double reference, both of which hold the promise of the 'ultimate get away'. On the one hand, it seems to refer to the place Jesus is about to prepare for us by going to the cross - a place in the Father's House that He alone enjoyed before coming to live among us. He has the perfect place of 'awe' and 'wonder', as One, with the heart of God. He had the ultimate once in an eternal lifetime place - in perfect fellowship with His Father God. He was there from the very beginning and will be there at the end.

He shared this with God long before His incarnation as a human being. Could it get any better than to be in a such a unique place of love and intimacy? The ultimate special place - near the heart of God - and He wants to be our eternal guide. The only trustworthy and true guide to get us to the ultimate place, to the ultimate joy.

In other wo0ds, for the joy that was before Him, He bore the ultimate punishment to create the ultimate "dwelling place" that we could forever experience the ultimate joy (Hebrews 12:1-3, Psalm 23:6), the ultimate place of quiet rest, the ultimate place of 'awe' and 'wonder'. Let me ask you again: Can it ever get any better than that?

Can it get ever any better than that? Once we grasp this magnificent promise and make it truly our own, when we squeeze it as hard as we can into our hearts, we can begin to squeeze out our despair, our depression, our darkness our negative thinking and so very much more than that. YES, my very good friends, it does and will get very much better for each of us. Regardless of where we are in our own human condition - locked in the very worst of times, enjoying the fruits of the very best of times - it will always get better and better, as we draw nearer and nearer to the Heart and the House of God. It may take more than a mornings before this joy to arrive and many tears will most likely be shed for many a reason. But, please, my friends, always strive to be encouraged that you may become an encouragement.

Yes, No matter where you are, life and Scripture teaches us an important lesson; we can get through anything anytime and anywhere when we know with true blessed assurance where the heart of God is to be found. God has given us a clear vision of where 'better' is located - sealed forever with His proven promises and illustrated so magnificently from the very beginning, through the present, on to the very end.

As we enter into a time of prayer and petition before our Father God, ask Him to fill your heart with His ultimate joy; with His ultimate rest, His ultimate presence. Then meditate on the nature of your 'wants' and 'needs' in light of God's plan for you.

Let us pray:

You are here, O God, even when we are woefully unaware of it. You are touching our lives with grace in a thousand different ways: in the smile of people we pass; the flowers growing where we did not expect them, the taste of warm bread, the sight of birds and butterflies flying through the air, a love letter, a Hallmark card, the warmth of a friends voice and so much more that we cannot name them all.

How wonderfully rich our lives are and how seldom we seek to say thanks. You have called us out of ourselves that we may draw near and into your quiet presence. You have promised us that it will always get better than we have been, where we are walking now and wherever our future will take us if we but suffer you to guide us.

Father, Son and Holy Spirit; where we see a cross, we will carry it with joy; when we pass through the valleys of despair, we will endure it with joy; when our place of rest and peace are disturbed, we will suffer it with joy in our hearts; when in times we find ourselves grieving or mourning we will strive to do so bravely; when we are overwhelmed by our human condition, we will seek to bear it in joy trusting in your promises alone. Whatever we face, whatever and whenever it happens, wherever we may go in life - good or bad - draw us ever closer to you, keep us in the shadow of the cross, keep us near and nearer still to your heart. Fill us to over flowing with the oils of gladness, the ultimate love of Jesus and the ultimate comfort of the Holy Spirit. Transform us from the inside out, in spite of us, with joy of it getting better.

We place this petition before you in the sure hope that you will draw it close to your heart and find it authentic and ultimately pleasing in your sight. By your grace, Amen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfZH07mWKKc

How to Sail Around the World

www.ehow.com

Sailing around the world is an adventure of a lifetime. The constant movement, the changing winds and waters and the people you'll meet along the way comprise an incredible experience. If you have always wanted to sail around the world but have been overwhelmed by the prospect, simply follow these s...

Day 4: God heals the rboken hearted

Day 4: He heals the brokenhearted

Readings: Psalm 147 (A song of Praise for God's care), 2 Kings 20:5-11 (The Lord heals King Hezekiah). Gospel of St. Mark 4:35-41 (Jesus stills the storm)

The Beautiful Flower In The Broken Pot
Author Unknown

Our house was directly across the street from the clinic entrance of Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. We lived downstairs and rented the upstairs rooms to out patients at the clinic.

One summer evening as I was fixing supper, there was a knock at the door. I opened it to see a truly awful looking man. "Why, he's hardly taller than my eight-year-old," I thought as I stared at the stooped, shriveled body. But the appalling thing was his face, lopsided from swelling, red and raw.

Yet his voice was pleasant as he said, "Good evening. I've come to see if you've a room for just one night. I came for a treatment this morning from the eastern shore, and there's no bus 'til morning."

He told me he'd been hunting for a room since noon but with no success, no one seemed to have a room. "I guess it's my face... I know it looks terrible, but my doctor says with a few more treatments..."

For a moment I hesitated, but his next words convinced me: "I could sleep in this rocking chair on the porch. My bus leaves early in the morning."

I told him we would find him a bed, but to rest on the porch. I went inside and finished getting supper. When we were ready, I asked the old man if he would join us. "No thank you. I have plenty." And he held up a brown paper bag.

When I had finished the dishes, I went out on the porch to talk with him a few minutes. It didn't take a long time to see that this old man had an over sized heart crowded into that tiny body. He told me he fished for a living to support his daughter, her five children, and her husband, who was hopelessly crippled from a back injury.

He didn't tell it by way of complaint; in fact, every other sentence was preface with a thanks to God for a blessing. He was grateful that no pain accompanied his disease, which was apparently a form of skin cancer. He thanked God for giving him the strength to keep going.

At bedtime, we put a camp cot in the children's room for him. When I got up in the morning, the bed linens were neatly folded and the little man was out on the porch.

He refused breakfast, but just before he left for his bus, haltingly, as if asking a great favor, he said, Could I please come back and stay the next time I have a treatment? I won't put you out a bit. I can sleep fine in a chair." He paused a moment and then added, "Your children made me feel at home. Grownups are bothered by my face, but children don't seem to mind." I told him he was welcome to come again.

And on his next trip he arrived a little after seven in the morning.

As a gift, he brought a big fish and a quart of the largest oysters I had ever seen. He said he had shucked them that morning before he left so that they'd be nice and fresh. I knew his bus left at 4:00 a.m. and I wondered what time he had to get up in order to do this for us.

In the years he came to stay overnight with us there was never a time that he did not bring us fish or oysters or vegetables from his garden.

Other times we received packages in the mail, always by special delivery; fish and oysters packed in a box of fresh young spinach or kale, every leaf carefully washed. Knowing that he must walk three miles to mail these, and knowing how little money he had made the gifts doubly precious.

When I received these little remembrances, I often thought of a comment our next-door neighbor made after he left that first morning.

"Did you keep that awful looking man last night? I turned him away! You can lose roomers by putting up such people!"

Maybe we did lose roomers once or twice. But oh! If only they could have known him, perhaps their illnesses would have been easier to bear.

I know our family always will be grateful to have known him; from him we learned what it was to accept the bad without complaint and the good with gratitude to God.

Recently I was visiting a friend, who has a greenhouse, as she showed me her flowers, we came to the most beautiful one of all, a golden chrysanthemum, bursting with blooms. But to my great surprise, it was growing in an old dented, rusty bucket. I thought to myself, "If this were my plant, I'd put it in the loveliest container I had!"

My friend changed my mind. "I ran short of pots," she explained, and knowing how beautiful this one would be, I thought it wouldn't mind starting out in this old pail. It's just for a little while, till I can put it out in the garden."

She must have wondered why I laughed so delightedly, but I was imagining just such a scene in heaven. "Here's an especially beautiful one," God might have said when he came to the soul of the sweet old fisherman. "He won't mind starting in this small body."

All this happened long ago - and now, in God's garden, how tall this lovely soul must stand.

Author Anonymous

When I encounter inspirational stories where the Author is Anonymous -- and I have read many when I needed to have my spirit lifted, when in moments my heart felt like a ton of bricks just lying in the middle of my chest -- My spirit convinces me that I might just as well have faith that God is the one who wrote this magnificent story. They are such beautiful stories that just can't help but lift me up towards heaven.

God cares for us in the midst of the storm. God simply speaks to the wind and the wind responds to His call. Jesus said "Peace be Still" and there was peace. The Psalmist writes (verse 3): He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds. From 2 Kings 5:8 King Hezekiah asks the Prophet for a sign that he will be healed and in verse 11 we learn that : The prophet Isaiah cried to the Lord; and he brought the shadow back the ten intervals, by which the sun had declined on the dial of Ahaz. God gave a very physical sign that Hezekiah would in fact be healed of his illness.

God gives to us 'signs of awe and wonder' that He will come and heal His people. He will come in ways that are so self evident that if we are intentionally looking for it, it will happen right before our eyes. The unmistakable presence of God's hand in our life - giving aid and comfort to His people. He will lay His hands upon us and bring healing and hope, peace and comfort, faith and belief. How many stories in the Gospel are there where Jesus come's alongside the Leper, the blind, the deaf, the disabled, even the dead. He placed His hands on them and they were physically healed. The God of us all will come along side us and will heal our broken hearts.

What is so special about these statements is that God's involvement with us is not so spiritual and heavenly that it has no earthly good. And this is significant. God is very present and very with us in our broken-heartedness , disillusionments, despair and wounded spirits. These painful moments; those that go deep into our hearts souls and spirits; the fact is there God will bend eternity itself just to get to your side. Pray for it, wait for it, and God will answer. God will come and create for you very real and visible difference in your life. God will take care of you. Oh how He Loves Us.

If God does not come the very moment we ask him, it is not because he is not concerned; it is because He intends to grow and mature us through such moments in our life. Jesus came late to Mary and Martha in the midst of their grief and wept and went to the tomb and commanded Lazarus to come out to reveal the true power and glory of God. God comes to reveal the power and glory of His love for us all.

Are there places in your heart and soul that feel so wounded that your prayer requests feels out of reach 'because of you'? Ask God to grant you a vision of His eternal perspective on your journey to coming to maturing or coming to faith.

Let us pray:

Redeeming God, hear my prayer,
And let my cry come to You.
Do not hide from me in the day of my distress
Heed not the desires of my broken heart to defeat me
From the depths of eternity, turn to me and speedily answer my prayer.
Eternal God, Source of healing, You who command the winds to be at peace,
Out of my distress I call upon You. Hear the longing desires of my heart for rest.
Show me, Help me sense Your presence At this difficult time.
Grant me patience when the hours become too many and the burden too heavy for me to bear for very long. Reveal to me Your heart that I may touch it and made well.
In the midst of my hurt or disappointment give me courage to endure; strength to persevere. Wisdom to keep my eyes ever on you.
When I am ready to give in, Keep me trustful in Your love. Forgive me when I seem to fail and falter in my faith and prayers to You.
Give me strength for today, and hope for tomorrow. Open my eyes to envision your eternity that I may see the whole picture.
To your loving hands I commit my spirit. I surrender myself to Your healing hands.
When asleep and when awake. I know You are with me; I shall not fear.

In the name of Jesus the Christ, the Great Physician we pray ... Amen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FxaUYjRtkc

How He Loves lyrics by David Crowder Band

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One of my favorite songs of all time by the David Crowder Band! enjoy! I own nothing