Life can be hard with its twists and turns. Yet even in our struggles and brokenness, God is near.
This book is a call to action encouraging you to focus on the loving character of God no matter what happens. Praising God in the midst of hardships and loss probably sounds downright impossible. But I’m learning that there’s nothing quite so powerful as proclaiming the truth of who God is—especially during tough times.
Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name. Heb. 13:15
I will never forget when God spoke to me through my two-and-a-half year old grandson. My husband’s future looked very grim after his brain bleed and stroke. My heart was broken. In a way that a young child would understand, my daughter-in-law shared with my grandson that Pops was sick. Without hesitating my grandson said, “Jesus loves Pops. Jesus helps Pops feel better.” After hearing those words, a sense of well-being filled my heart. I knew God was speaking through this precious child. Even though my circumstances didn’t change, God gave me a needed reminder that with His help, Carl and I could ride the waves of this raging storm. There’s no greater joy than knowing that you’ve heard from God.
Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. Eph. 5:1-2
I want my life to smell pleasant before God. No stink of sin, just the pleasing aroma of the Spirit of Jesus. I choose to delight God and give Him my life as a fragrant offering. Will you join me? Let’s offer ALL we think, say and do to Him. Let’s submit our body, money, things, praise, prayers, worship, study, service and suffering too. The aroma of our sweet-smelling offering pleases God.
Have you heard the song called Happy Together by the Turtles? Many years ago when we were dating, that song was popular. We call it “our song.” The words make us smile and think about the love we share for each other. Over the years the skies have not always been blue, but the blue skies have far outweighed any gray skies.
Let love and faithfulness never leave you. Proverbs 3:3
If you were to ask me to fill in this blank…I hate_______. My answer would be “lies.” I think the biggest reason why I hate lying so much is because when I was growing up I believed the lies of the enemy and I didn’t even know it. I needed to know more about Jesus and who I am because of my faith in Him. I didn’t know the truth found in the pages of the Bible. As I grew older I decided to seek and study the truth from God’s perspective. God’s Word exposes lies and replaces lies with the truth. His Word has changed my life and continues to do so. Here are some whispering lies followed by the truth of His Word.
The lie: You’ll always be a worrier. The truth: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 2 Cor. 5:17
The lie: You don’t have the strength. It’s just too hard. The truth: So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isa. 41:10
The lie: You’re too scared. The truth: When I am afraid, I will trust in you. Psalm 56:3
The lie: You’re alone. The truth: “Never will I leave you.” Heb. 13:5
Carl and I used to take dance lessons. We learned how to two-step and waltz. Those were our favorites. But because of Carl’s stroke we’re learning a different kind of dance. This dance is not a typical dance that requires movement of your feet and arms. Instead, this dance is called “life” and requires childlike trust and a laser-like focus on Jesus, the Leader of this dance. A childlike trust enables us to rest in His arms. The laser-like focus enables us to live beyond the suffering. Even in our brokenness we are held together and carried step by step. The Leader of this dance called life will never lead you in the wrong direction. He will hold you tight. His love is unconditional and His eyes of grace will ease your suffering.
You turned my wailing into dancing. Psalm 30:11
For those who have children, grandchildren, nieces, or nephews, do you remember how you felt when they first said your name? I repeated the words “Ma-Ma” to my baby boys over and over. Then when the day finally came and they said “Ma-Ma” on their own, my heart almost popped. Those words meant so much to me. If that’s the way we feel when our children echo back the words we want them to say, can you imagine how delighted God is when we pray back His Word! Echoing back the words of God with a childlike faith is a powerful prayer. We can rest knowing that He hears our prayer because we’re trusting in what HE says.
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 1 John 5:14
Have you ever locked your keys in the car while the car was still running? I have. I was in a hurry and needed to calm down. There are many things to love about Jesus, but I can’t get over how He stayed calm and didn’t hurry even in very stressful situations. I love that calmness about Him. Like when the disciples were in a boat and a storm came up on the lake, Jesus calmly walked on the water to get to them. I thought He would hurry or maybe take out running to them. But He didn’t. He walked in the storm! I want to do that. I want to walk calmly through any stressful and stormy time in my life…no hurry, just walking calmly with Jesus. I bet you want that too.
During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. Matt. 14:25-26
In the Bible (Acts 3:15) Jesus is described as the Author of Life. That makes me think of God as the creative writer of each person’s life. Some of the pages in our story may read painful, with knocks and bruises in the script. But then there’s pages that read of fun times and times of overcoming obstacles and triumphs. For each of us, no matter what, the Author of Life weaves a story of love from beginning to end. We can rest in the good news that His storyline always leads to a happy ending, only through Jesus Christ.
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Heb. 12:2
I’m so grateful that God created sound, our ears, our vocal cords, and emotions so we can enjoy music and sing. I bet there’s a lot of singing in heaven and I’m looking forward to being on the praise team. Denominations, skin color, or cultural customs won’t matter in heaven. We’ll all be singing with one voice to Our King. Something that really touches my heart is when I think about Jesus singing. Jesus sang with His disciples after their last supper together and before He was arrested. They ended their time together singing. When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. Matt. 26:30 Wow! Can you imagine that sound? I’m sure the disciples never forgot that Singer…Jesus…God’s love Song to us.