Where Does Your Hope Come From?

Do you need to be reminded today of where your hope comes from? Think about King David. Finding himself surrounded by thousands of soldiers led by his own rebellious son, Absalom, David could have despaired. Instead of thinking that ever...everyone was against him, however, he remembered that God was FOR him. Psalm 3:1-3 declares his hope in God: O Lord, I have so many enemies; so many are against me. So many are saying, "God will never rescue him!" But you, O Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, and the one who lifts my head high. David wrote Psalm 3 while he was fleeing, running away from, Absalom. With his own son turning against him, David seemed to be surrounded by enemies. Those on every side expressed pessimism concerning the outcome, no one though David could do anything, they doubted God could save him. Certainly David could have become utterly discouraged and without hope.

Yet he confidently wrote that God would protect him, destroy his enemies, and restore him to his rightful place on the throne. David had no idea how it would happen, or when, he was devastated politically, physically and emotionally. But he knew who was in charge of his life and his destiny. David's hope rested no on his abilities or the strength of this armies but on his sovereign God!

Many times we spend our lives running around hiding, fearful, upset about the past, anxious about the future and worried about today. We need top remember that God is our shield too! Trust Him. Put our full hope in Him, and He WILL meet our needs and give us the confidence and strength we need in this life in order to live victoriously now and in eternity with Him.

 

 

Being Happily Depressed!

 

 

I was diagnosed with clinical depression many years ago. When I speak I like to tell ladies I am the happiest depressed person you will find! LOL When it comes to my situation I do have to take a medicine that helps with the chemical balance. However, I also make a choice every day, sometimes minute by minute, how I am going to react to things. When reading the Bible I am always encouraged because David received God's healing from depression. In Psalm 30:11, he praises God for turning his sorrow and grief into joy! God's Word can bring joy into the midst of distress. He encourages us in Psalm 119:143 to turn to God and His Word for healing and comfort. Revelation 21:3-4 holds words of promise for those who feel hopeless about their emotional state. The apostle John describes a place where there will be no death, pain, sorrow, crying or depression. Believers will enjoy eternity in this perfect place with God forever! So when it comes to my depression I allow the Lord to work through my doctor and the medication I take. I take one pill in the morning and I take as many verses from the Word of God as needed throughout my day. That is a prescription I can live this life victoriously with!

 

 

From Glory to Glory ... That Is His Promise To Me!

 

It was time for my "annual" doctor's exam yesterday. So I bravely marched myself into the exam room and patiently waited for the doctor's arrival. As I sat on the exam table, all around me, at eye level were pictures of brand new babies. So sweet, innocent and absolutely adorable. I carefully studied each one's little face and found myself imagining what each little life might become.

By the time the doctor entered the room I had a few tears streaming down my face. She quickly asked me, "what's wrong, Karen?" I told her that at my age, and stage of life, it is bittersweet to sit in an exam room like this one. It serves only as a reminder to me that my "baby days" are a distant memory and my "babies" are now all grown and living their own lives. I will never again experience the intense joy of finding out I was pregnant, nor will I ever experience that miraculous moment of feeling my baby kick for the very first time inside of me. All of that is now over. I told her that it might be worth considering a special exam room for the woman of my age group, a room that doesn't have baby photos covering every inch of painted wall space, but instead perhaps it would be nice to place some pictures of some accomplished and beautiful “older women” on the wall, or maybe some inspiring quotes? My doctor was very empathetic and agreed that would “be nice”, but after all, she is only in her mid 30’s and she has not experienced what I, and so many others, have experienced yet.

On my drive home from my appointment I was thinking about how we, women, transition from child into teenager. Teenager into a young woman. A young woman into a middle-aged woman, and finally, a middle-aged woman into an old woman. Each transition brings with it new joys but each transition also brings with it new challenges and obstacles to overcome. Yet transitioning into each new “season of life” is as normal as a beautiful butterfly taking off from one flower and floating through the air and landing on the next.

 

 

As I am now transitioning into my final “flight” there are days I do find it difficult. Yet there are days I also find it incredibly satisfying and I rejoice in seeing the “fruit of my labor” in watching my sons and their families grow and thrive. There is a peace that comes with this last transition, a peace that I know comes from heaven. A calmness that in my heart I know is the voice of my Savior telling me to continue on because the race is not over yet, my time has not yet come and there is still much to do for the Kingdom. There is also a gentle reminder to me that I had forgotten one “final transition” …the transition from “old woman” to “glory”!

So, lesson learned today….1: celebrations from my youth are to be remembered and cherished, but there are many more celebrations to take place with family and friends. 2: God is with us through each season of our lives and He is very kind in showing us how to “transition” season to season gracefully. 3: it ain’t over until it’s over, so don’t give up, you are not finished yet. Life (and your body) may look different today then it did yesterday but different isn’t bad. We are just beautiful butterflies floating from one flower to another! 4: "You are altogether beautiful, my darling, And there is no blemish in you. Song of Songs 4:7

#iamthebrideofchrist



 

    

PARTICLES IN THE WIND....OR, SEEDS OF FAITH?

Do you ever feel like you are a simply a sculpture made out of sand, and if one more thing falls on you, you will crumble into a million pieces? Then the wind will blow away every tiny particle that was once you, and there will be no evidence that you ever even existed?

I suppose some could say,"yes" and others would say "no, not at all and this post is extremely depressing!" But the fact of the matter is, that we all get discouraged, we all wonder if our life will leave any sort of a positive legacy. It is in those moments that I am so thankful I can go to my Father and hear Him tell me that I am fearfully and wonderfully made. The apple of His eye. His beloved. That He will be my strength when I need it the most, and He catches every tear that falls and promises to replace the hurt with healing.

Everything we do in His name, no matter how insignificant to the world, if we do it to glorify Him,our lives will leave behind a mark, a legacy, the scattered seeds of faith!

 ARE YOU WORKING WITHOUT A NET?

Last night I was listening to an interview with Nick Wallenda and the reporter asked him, "You are a husband and the father of two children. Why would you do these stunts without any net or tether?"

Nick responded, "I have learned that if you know you have a safety net you will not try your very best to stay focused and complete the task. When there is no net, trust me, I stay very focused and give my absolute best!"

At the moment I thought about us, as followers of Christ, Christians. Do we give our very, very best each day? 150%? Do we stay focused on Christ throughout each day in such a way that no matter what the enemy throws at us we can still praise God for ALL he has given to us? Do we resist sin and temptation with everything we've got and focus on the Holy Spirit living within us?

When it comes to our eternal life, there will be no "safety net". There is a heaven and a hell. The tightrope we are walking today is called "life" and what can give us balance and success is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Christ will also ensure a victory celebration for us in heaven...the "other side".

If you have not given your life, or this day, to the Lord, do so right now! Live for Him. Focus on Him. Do it with everything you've got. You will be victorious and not fall! 

 Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness.  ROMANS 6:13

BE AUTHENTIC!

Over the weekend I spoke to a woman who had just sold her home. I asked her what the key was to selling it so quickly and she told me she had a "stager" come in and "stage" the home. In other words, arrange it and present it in a way that is not the norm. That made me wonder, how many of us "stage" our lives and attitudes to appear in such a way that we may "appear" to be Christians. But on the inside, in the heart and mind, we are still holding on to sin. We "stage" ourselves to look good to everyone on the outside, but behind closed doors at home, where "normal" is, there is quite a different picture.

Those who are "in Christ" have been "bought" for a price. God gave His only Son, Jesus, to die on a cross as payment for our sins! I pray that God gives me the grace I need to be authentic...not "staged.  Staging may be acceptable when selling and buying a home.  But when it comes to our souls, Jesus knew exactly what He was paying for, and He bought it anyway. 

 

 

The Last Step In Parental Love

The last step in parental love involves the release of the beloved; the willing cutting of the cord that would otherwise keep the child in a state of emotional dependence.

  LOUIS MUMFORD

Over the past two years I have had watched my friend, Angela, celebrate the college graduations of all three of her children, celebrate her daughters' marriages, and today she and her husband, Darren, witnessed their son become a junior officer in the U.S. Navy.  Wonderful events and celebrations and as parents, very proud moments.

These celebrations are bittersweet for a mother.  On one hand, you are so blessed to know that your children are moving forward and fulfilling their calling and destiny according to God's plan. But on the other hand, your heart is breaking because you realize that no longer will your babies be living under your roof and, in Angela's case, they will not even be living in her community or part of the country.

It is in these "celebrations" of milestones that we realize our children no longer need us to teach them to tie their shoes or how to write their ABC's. These little ones, we have loved since the moment we knew we were carrying them inside of ,will no longer need us to wash their team uniforms or bring snacks for the team to the next game.  We are no longer needed to sew Halloween costumes, bake cupcakes for their class, put toys together, or take them to kids' church and  Sunday School.  We won't be needed to remind them to wear their seat belt or not text and drive.  It becomes painfully obvious that we, the moms, are no longer needed.  Or are we?

The reason we did all of the above was to prepare our babies for adult life.  To demonstrate love, commitment, faith and family in front of them.  The goal and objective from the very first moment they placed that beautiful child in our arms, was to "teach them the way they should go, so when they are older they would not depart from it."  Isn't that still our goal?  Just because we aren't "physically" needed at every moment, doesn't mean our love and teaching stop.

At one point today I noticed Angela wrapping her hand tightly around her Navy son's finger.  I instantly went back to when my sons' were born and one of my favorite memories of them is when they would wrap their little fingers around my pinky.  There was a bond.  A commitment. A blessing.  These things go on, even after our children are grown and away from our watchful eye.

Are we still needed?  YES!  We are needed to support them as they move forward.  We are needed to love them unconditionally as they continue to learn how to navigate through this world.  We are needed to encourage them when this world mistreats them and life doesn't seem fair.  We are needed to offer wisdom  when asked, forgiveness when required, and comfort as only a parent can do.  They are still counting on us to be there.

True, "being there"may now mean skyping; phone calls; emails and/or the occasional visit, but their location is just geography.  The heart strings are still attached and it amazes me how God allows them to,not only stretch the distance between, but to become stronger in the stretching!

My friend, Angela, has demonstrated with such grace what it means to "hold their hand for a little while, but their heart forever".  Our jobs, as mothers, has not ended, the method in which we "mother" has merely changed. <3