Tag Archives: Hope

Posted on

Clarity

by

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.  Ephesians 1:18-19

As I sit down to write, I am anticipating cataract surgery for my right eye in the morning.  Lord willing, by the time this is posted I will have had successful surgery and will be healing.  I went through this process a few months ago with my left eye.  It healed well and my vision in that eye is much better.  I hope to have the same result this time.  While I look forward to the outcome, I do not look forward to the process.  As surgeries go, this isn’t too bad.  However, the annoyance of the intended injury that will need to heal, the irritation during the healing process and the restrictions to my lifestyle are slightly frustrating.  While experience is somewhat painful and tiring, the benefit of visual clarity will certainly worth the inconvenience.  As I look back over my life, I find that the same is true with my soul.

Continue Reading »

Posted on

Belonging to God

by

The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours; the world and all it contains, You have founded them.  Psalm 89:11

I spent most of the last two days driving.  It’s not something I do easily, but God was gracious in providing the needed strength and endurance.  Knowing that I would be traveling and my time would be limited, I was considering what I would write about this week.  As I drove, the song “I am Yours” started playing.  It echoed the quote from Charles Spurgeon that I shared earlier in the week and is shown at the top of this post.  The common theme was not lost on me.  Given the calamity due to hurricanes, earth quakes, threats of war, prayer requests, etc., it seemed appropriate to consider the concept that we belong to God and what that means.

Continue Reading »

Posted on

No Coninsidences

by

“The LORD is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”  Deuteronomy 31:8

“I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; from where shall my help come?  My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.”  Psalm 121:1-2

This year has been as season of challenges and unplanned events.  While on vacation in July, my wife broke her ankle which led to surgery and several weeks of not bearing weight on her left leg.  Needless to say, it has caused challenges of various sorts for both of us.  Additionally, we’ve just returned for a trip that was to be a relaxing time at the beach.  Given the recent surgery, we considered canceling; however, as the trip included our aunt and uncle, we chose to proceed as planned desiring to take advantage of every opportunity that we have to spend time with them.  What was not planned was a hurricane Irma heading straight toward our chosen location.

Continue Reading »

Posted on

Life Is Like a Pack of Crackers

Guest Post by Shelly Hendricks

by

“You can make many plans, but the LORD’s purpose will prevail.” – Proverbs 19:21

A frustrated woman, that’s what I was one day not long ago as I tried diligently to wrap and fold neatly, a pack of crackers. Sounds like a simple task, right? Try it sometime, and really pay attention to what happens. I found a few interesting tidbits that day that I could relate to life.

A pack of crackers, first pulled out of the box, is a beautiful thing, especially for a mind like mine that craves order. The package is crisp and smooth. The crackers are lined up neatly in a row, no breaks or crumbs in sight. The seam opens smoothly and they are crisp in your mouth. Then comes the trouble… how to return the package to a decent-looking state without losing your mind.

Continue Reading »

Posted on

Dry Bones

Revival

by

“‘O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.’ Thus says the Lord God to these bones, ‘Behold, I will cause breath to enter you that you may come to life.  I will put sinews on you, make flesh grow back on you, cover you with skin and put breath in you that you may come alive; and you will know that I am the Lord.’”  Ezekiel 37:4-6

Most mornings, the pain in my body wakes me before the alarm goes off.  Laying there a bit irritated that my body has deprived me of sleep, the morning inventory and ponderings begin.  How much pain is there and is it the kind can it be ignored?  How much energy is available and will it improve as I start moving or quickly fade?  How angry is my gut and how well will it cooperate with eating throughout the day?  What is planned for today and will it have to be adjusted due to the responses to the prior queries?  At best, I will encourage my body to get moving and function relatively normally (for me) throughout the day.  At worst, I’ll end up more like a slug accomplishing the bare minimum.  More often than not, it will be somewhere in the middle of the two.  Notice that there is no “This is the day which the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it”, nor is there a mental or spiritual inventory.  In those early moments of the day, it’s usually all about the body.  Short sighted, focused and exhausting.  I long for days when I awaken refreshed and alive.  Whether or not one is ill, this life can be wearying.  Trials and illness most certainly sap the strength from us on every level encouraging us to withdraw and become self-focused.  However, jobs, family, relationships and social obligations are just as capable of draining us of physical, emotional and spiritual strength. Without attention to our souls, we become like the bones in Ezekiel’s vision: dried up, hopeless and cut off.  In those times it’s important to remember who we are, where our strength comes from and where or hope lies.

Continue Reading »

Posted on

Beautiful Things

by

“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.”  Romans 1:20

Last weekend I went to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.  While there are a variety of reasons why people go to museums, I go purely to enjoy the beautiful objects.  My favorites are the paintings by the old masters and the bronze pieces.  On this trip I focused on the paintings, especially those with rich color and depth.  It was relaxing and rewarding.  However, no matter how much I appreciate fine art, architecture, or any other work created by mankind, they all pale when compared to the works of God.

Continue Reading »

Posted on

The Need for Vindication

Moving From Despair to Praise

by

“Vindicate me, O God, and plead my case against an ungodly nation; O deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man!  For You are the God of my strength; why have You rejected me?  Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?”  Psalm 43:1-2

Have you ever felt that you were personally attacked and needed an advocate?  I can think of several times in my life that I have felt very alone in the world and had no defense against the assaults hurled in my direction.  Further, the current social climate of our nation makes it difficult to hold to Christian values and basic biblical principles.   To say that I feel a bit oppressed by this is an understatement.  Then there is my illness.  While I accept it as part of God’s plan for me, it can be tiring and leave me feeling alone and assaulted unnecessarily.  Whether from friends or medical personnel, it is difficult to abide those who doubt the realities of living with a rare disease…especially and invisible one.  Finally, there are times when I feel that I am my worst enemy and that I need an advocate to protect me from myself.

Continue Reading »

Posted on

Children of Light

Called with Hope

by

“For you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light.”  Ephesians 5:8

When I’m up to it and the weather is nice, I like to ride my bike to the gym.  Today was one of those days.  I didn’t expect it to be warm enough, but the sun was shining which made the air pleasant.  I had dressed for cooler weather, so I became a little warm as I rode.  While at the gym, I was concerned that I might get too warm on the way home.  However, while I was there, a heavy cloud cover rolled in and the ride home was actually a little cooler than I like.  What a difference a little sunshine can make and what a difference various forms of light make in our lives.

Continue Reading »

Posted on

Praying With Hope

by

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.  Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he?  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!”  Matthew 7:7-11

Several years ago, a friend brought balloons to a study that we were co-leading.  As an object lesson, she had each of us write our prayer request on a balloon then we took them outside and released them together.  It was an excellent way to visualize how to present our needs to God then let go and trust Him to do what is necessary.  As a result, I’ve started to look at my prayer life differently.  More recently, I was praying about a fairly substantial concern.   As I began to pray, I was convicted of the need to pray with confidence.  I don’t know that I’ve ever done that quite this way before.  Rather than telling God what I needed, I started thanking Him in advance for His provision in response to my request.  As a result, I was filled with hope and praise.  It’s not that I wasn’t confident of God’s provision beforehand, but praying in this way took away the desire to “micromanage” God…that kind of prayer that is more like drafting a legal document rather than a making a request of my Lord.  Since then, my mind keeps returning to the topic of prayer and the attitude we should take when praying.

Continue Reading »

Posted on

Where is Your Focus?

by

“Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.  For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”  Colossians 3:1-3

In high school, I was a member of the Speech Club.  After a few competitions, one realized that it was much easier to evoke fear, anger and sorrow than happiness.   Consequently, with a bit of skill and practice it was fairly easy to do well with darker prose and drama.  However, anyone choosing comedy had to really work to get the judges attention quickly and employ good timing to score well.  This is true in life also.  Because of our sinful nature, our tendency is toward fear, anger and sorrow rather than joy.  As a result, we tend to focus on our problems and losses rather than what God is accomplishing through them and looking to Him for sustaining grace.  Further, we often get so caught up in daily life that we neglect our relationship with God.  That’s why Paul encourages the Colossians, the Romans and the Philippians to focus on “the things above” rather than our earthly circumstances.

Continue Reading »