Fire and Flood Protection

Christians can know we have a protection in this world and it is a truth that many do not comprehend.  It is always available to the saved.  We have heard and read these stories most our lives yet we fail to claim the promises.

Daniel tells of the 3 Hebrew children that were put into the heated furnace. To survive the fire was totally impossible, and yet they felt no heat or flame while inside. This is an astounding miracle for our feeble mind to embrace!

Isaiah 43:2 kjv When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

Some promises we can claim!

̶ Jesus keeps a constant vigil over us.
̶ His attention on us is very deliberate and we can find a strength we did not know was even available.
̶ He covers us and puts an enclosure around us.
̶ We have His protection against the deceitful attacks that are brought against us.
̶ His Grace surrounds our very soul and gives us protection.

In this world we encounter much difficulty but His Spirit controls the effects of the tribulation we face. We travel through intense times when our faith seems to make no sense.

When our faith is weakened ̶ His Grace surrounding us becomes strengthened.

It is as though God is saying to us, “Here are waters, and you must pass through them, the waters are on the road you must pass. The rivers have no bridge over them so you must go through the river. But, I will not let you pass through the waters alone because you would drown. I will go with you and will keep them from overflowing around you. While passing through them I will protect you.” Wow, what a security for the believer!

We can rest on the faithfulness of an unchanging God. It is upon that strong foundation I find rest.

I Have No Value To This World

I have decided there will always be someone who is prettier than me. There will always be someone with a bigger house, more friends, better clothes, a better job, and more money than me. There are some that seem to value success on the wealth of a person, judge their value on their looks or the success on their accomplishments.

I was never really interested in trying to be better than another in outward appearance but I see more and more that it is important to some. What I do see is when we fix our eyes on those qualities it makes our relationships with others turn into power struggles. I have seen some that have spent so many fruitless days wanting or trying to measure up to someone else.

Coming from my background, I spent my life never being smart enough, never being beautiful enough, never being the one family or friends wanted, never having my worth defined by wealth, status, or success. But according to what I read in the Scripture it is very clear what is valuable to God. He isn’t mentioning the words like success, wealth, clothes, or jobs but clearly it says what the Spirit will produce in one’s life and heart, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance:…”Galatians 5:22-23  And these things are available to everyone. That is the part I love about God. He offers it to everyone!

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Undiscriminating Love!

When reading the list I am thinking, OK, this must be a joke!  Right?  …And why did they just name Republicans and not Democrats? Usually easy for most of us to say because we know that is what we are suppose to say. Moderately easy to believe but so very difficult to actually practice…Without Him! We do not even have the ability to love to this degree on our own. We can not create it on our own.

Only His undiscriminating love that causes the sun to rise on the good and the evil is the only One that can produce this kind of love. All He has asked of us is to release our hearts to Him. We are still caught up in our eye for an eye thought that totally releasing our heart to the love that Jesus wants us to have for others is a so foreign to most.

He wants us to love like HE loves. Christ loved me first – end of story!  (I have a lot of work to do on this subject!)

Matt. 5:⁴³ Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.⁴⁴ But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;⁴⁵ That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

But I’m Broken. Is There Hope For Me?

16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. 17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, 18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. 20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. Luke 4:16-21

What a passage for Jesus to read as He began His public ministry! Reading from Isaiah 61:1-11, His gracious words were so different from what the people heard from the religious rulers of their day. Most people  I know, with very few exceptions, have a past they would rather not re-live. Haunting memories cloud our minds. We feel broken, imprisoned by our previous experiences. It doesn’t matter if these wounds were self -inflicted by our own sin or by someone else’s. The result is still the same.  Noone is excluded from the blessings of knowing Christ as Savior.

Jesus, in His sweet, compassionate voice calls to each one of us, offering us:

Wholeness for brokenness (Isaiah 53:4-5)

Liberty for bondage (Romans 8:1-2; John 8:31-36)

Light for darkness (John 1:4-5; John 8:12)

Joy for mourning (Psalm 30:11-12; 1 Peter 1:3-9)

A spirit of praise for despair (Ps. 40:1-3; 2 Corinthians 4:16-18)

Belonging for rejection (1 John 3:1; Galatians 4:6-7)

Righteousness for injustice (Isa. 26:1-8; Isa. 30:18-19)

In Him the disgraced find newness of life. The abandoned are taken under the shelter of His wings. Hope is restored. What a Savior!

Blessings! ~Kelly

When The Heat Is On

“Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and He shall bring it to pass.  And He shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.  Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.”    Psalm 37:5-7

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The older I get, the more the book of Job is a comfort to me.  Having lost so much within a short period of time, the righteous man could have easily taken his eyes off the Lord and focused on his loss.  Instead, he laid hold of his confidence in the Great Provider and exclaimed, “Though He slay me, yet will I hope in Him” (Job 13:15).

It’s so very important that our eyes are fixed on the Lord at all times.  If they aren’t, our circumstances will dictate our emotions.  When things go smoothly, we are happy.  When times are rough, we are frustrated.

It’s vital that we remember God’s promises.  Claiming them when disaster strikes keeps us steady.  Knowing God’s nature (from studying His Word) reassures us of His faithfulness, His love, His justice, His righteousness.

Let’s commit together to trust Him in all circumstances, to follow Him closely.  He will NEVER leave us, nor forsake us.  (Hebrews 13:5)

Many blessings!

~Kelly

 

Does Satan Find You Threatening?

1 John 4:4-6

In Scripture we see two times when satan tested the believer’s faith.  The first occasion is recorded in Job 1:6-12 and the second in Luke 22:31-34.  Job and Peter were satan’s targets.  While both men were triumphant, by God’s grace, in their testings, the most vulnerable areas of their lives were targeted.

Laura Story ~ “Blessings”

I dedicate this song to my precious sister, Jen.  When the raindrops are falling, I will walk right beside you.  I love you!!

 

Finding Refuge

As refugees from the surrounding countries are coming here to begin a new life, my heart sinks as I see the hopelessness in their eyes. Women are laying their babies on the sidewalks to sleep while they wait for their turn to enter the building. The sun is hot, their clothes are tattered, they look hungry. The hopelessness in their brown eyes is heart-piercing.

My heart aches. I think to myself…”If I were rich, I wouldn’t buy myself anything. I don’t need anything. But oh, how I would love to have enough money to house and feed some of these families.” From the depths of my heart I pray the Lord will work in each one of their hearts to bring them to Himself if they don’t already know Him. That He would meet each one of their needs and show them that only He is God.

I think about their future life in America, Canada, or Germany. Will the people there accept them? Will there be enough government funding for them to have a chance? They will have to learn a new language. How can they concentrate? They have been displaced from their homeland. Many of their loved ones are still in that country. Their hearts are torn.

“Lord, as we meet with some of these dear people today, let us be Your hands and Your feet. Let them see You vividly, living in us. Help us to serve them beautifully, in Jesus’ Name. It’s only in You that true refuge can be found.”

~Kelly
1 Chron. 7:14

Behind The Prison Walls

Myself:  What message would you like me to send to the believers back home?

The persecuted:  Please tell them we are their brothers and sisters in the faith.  We love Jesus so much.  We NEED their prayers!  Our brothers and sisters are being put in prison because they love Jesus and will not renounce their faith.  They are being put among the hardest of criminals and sometimes beaten daily.  They are denied medical attention as well.

You Are The Apple Of God’s Eye!

“Whoever touches you touches the apple of His eye.”  ~Zech. 2:8