Thursday, February 14, 2013
LEARNING TO LIKE WHERE YOU ARE FROM
1 Peter 2:9-10 "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy."
I heard a statement this morning...."you need to learn to like where you are from". Of course the first thing that came to mind is where I was born. I began to think of how, growing up in that midsize town in Louisiana, it never seemed to be where I belonged. I wonder how many of us feel this way as we are growing up. So many times, the young people of a place leave it as soon as they are old enough as it just does not seem to suit them.
Then the Lord began to show me that so many people do not like where they come from because they tend to think of it geographically and not spiritually. It is about location....location....location. And then the thoughts of so many think about station in life. The difference of who our parents were, whether we lived on the "right" side of the tracks or not, if our fathers worked in the field, on the water, or in a building downtown. So many thoughts fly rampant when we think of where we are from. And, so many of us have a strong dislike of what we think.....what we look at.....what we remember.
The same God that supplies for your neighbor supplies for you. The same God that heals your employer, heals you. The same God that metes out favor for the man or woman in the big house or the smaller house....metes out favor for you. The Lord, our Lord, is not a respecter of persons. He sees each of us as He made us.....His child. What we have, what we don't have, is not what interests our Lord. What interests our Lord is that we are His, His chosen.
Look beyond the place of where you think you are from. Look beyond the parents that raised you. Look up to the Lord that breathed breath into you. Look up to the God that lovingly drew you to Himself on a cross so many years ago. See instead a Father that reaches to you in love and tenderness. Feel the love that is poured out on you just as it is being poured out on to someone across the world. Feel the gentleness of a tear being removed as our Lord comforts a widow, an orphan, or a grieving child or parent at the loss of a loved one. Look beyond a map that shows a city and see the Father that adopted each of us into His household, to give us hope and joy, peace and expectation. We did not come from a town, a state, a country.....we did not come from rich or poor parents, good or bad parents....we came from a Father that wants nothing more than to provide the richest life ever offered to anyone. And that life is available to all who call Him Lord, who rejoice in knowing He is our Father.
Dear friends, that same hand that is guiding your brother or sister in the Lord, that same nail scarred hand, that same hand is the one on your shoulder guiding you, with love, with peace, with mercy and grace. Learn the real meaning of where you come from, who holds you in His hand, and you will have the pure joy of knowing exactly where you are going. Where you come from will be a pleasure to remember, and it will make the path you are walking on, bright with anticipation for each day to come.
I come from my Father's heart, His heart of love.....I love where I am from, I love where I am bound for.
Pat's Pennings
02-14-13
I heard a statement this morning...."you need to learn to like where you are from". Of course the first thing that came to mind is where I was born. I began to think of how, growing up in that midsize town in Louisiana, it never seemed to be where I belonged. I wonder how many of us feel this way as we are growing up. So many times, the young people of a place leave it as soon as they are old enough as it just does not seem to suit them.
Then the Lord began to show me that so many people do not like where they come from because they tend to think of it geographically and not spiritually. It is about location....location....location. And then the thoughts of so many think about station in life. The difference of who our parents were, whether we lived on the "right" side of the tracks or not, if our fathers worked in the field, on the water, or in a building downtown. So many thoughts fly rampant when we think of where we are from. And, so many of us have a strong dislike of what we think.....what we look at.....what we remember.
The same God that supplies for your neighbor supplies for you. The same God that heals your employer, heals you. The same God that metes out favor for the man or woman in the big house or the smaller house....metes out favor for you. The Lord, our Lord, is not a respecter of persons. He sees each of us as He made us.....His child. What we have, what we don't have, is not what interests our Lord. What interests our Lord is that we are His, His chosen.
Look beyond the place of where you think you are from. Look beyond the parents that raised you. Look up to the Lord that breathed breath into you. Look up to the God that lovingly drew you to Himself on a cross so many years ago. See instead a Father that reaches to you in love and tenderness. Feel the love that is poured out on you just as it is being poured out on to someone across the world. Feel the gentleness of a tear being removed as our Lord comforts a widow, an orphan, or a grieving child or parent at the loss of a loved one. Look beyond a map that shows a city and see the Father that adopted each of us into His household, to give us hope and joy, peace and expectation. We did not come from a town, a state, a country.....we did not come from rich or poor parents, good or bad parents....we came from a Father that wants nothing more than to provide the richest life ever offered to anyone. And that life is available to all who call Him Lord, who rejoice in knowing He is our Father.
Dear friends, that same hand that is guiding your brother or sister in the Lord, that same nail scarred hand, that same hand is the one on your shoulder guiding you, with love, with peace, with mercy and grace. Learn the real meaning of where you come from, who holds you in His hand, and you will have the pure joy of knowing exactly where you are going. Where you come from will be a pleasure to remember, and it will make the path you are walking on, bright with anticipation for each day to come.
I come from my Father's heart, His heart of love.....I love where I am from, I love where I am bound for.
Pat's Pennings
02-14-13
Saturday, February 9, 2013
THE HANDS THAT BORE THE NAILS
Acts 2:23 "This man was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross."
Every time I read in a book, or referenced to in the Bible, of my Savior, Jesus, being nailed to the cross, I find myself doing the same thing. Doesn't matter where I am, what I am doing at the time, if I hear or read or see in a movie or television program.....of the nails being driven into my Lord's hands.....my fingers reach for the palm on the other hand and feel there, in the middle. I have to put my hand in the other and feel the smoothness of my palm, where no nail has been driven, no skin broken by misunderstanding, confusion......religion.
My hands will never know the pain felt that day by my Jesus. I will never know the sting of my closest friends running in fear. My brow will never feel the anguish of thorns of a crown crushing in, drawing blood. My side will never know the rush of the flow of watery blood running down when a spear presses into the flesh. No, I will never suffer in the manner that the One who loved me so, suffered in my place.
As I feel the palms of my hands, the only thing I feel is the impression of my Lord's hand where He has held mine day after day as I walked toward the goal He set before me. Sometimes upright, walking boldly.....sometimes, falling, overwhelmed by life....but at all times feeling that hand that holds mine strongly, never letting go, always lifting, drawing upward, gently but firmly.
I will never know the pain of a thorny crown, because when my Savior wore that crown, He gave me His crown of righteousness, His crown of favor, His crown of mercy and grace. A crown that would never be a burden, a painful reflection of someone I could only hope to be, but a crown of life extended by the Giver of life, the Restorer of souls.....a crown of love.
Never would I feel my side being pierced, but instead I receive a piercing, strong and determined, into my heart by the Holy Spirit as I am led to the Master's feet, time and again, to receive an outpouring onto me of His anointing, His blessings and unmerited favor.
Those hands that bore the nails, that bore the pain, the shame.........my sin....those hands are the hands that I reach for each morning when I awake, as He waits to lead me through the day. Those hands, those beautiful hands are the very hands that one day I will kiss as I kneel before my Lord and Savior, Jesus.
Yes, every time I hear, I see, references to the nails that dug deep into my Savior's hands, driving deep to hang Him on a cross to die for my sin.......I know I will reach into the palms of my own hands and remember, as I feel my unblemished palms.....that those nails, but for my God, were meant for me.
02-09-13
Every time I read in a book, or referenced to in the Bible, of my Savior, Jesus, being nailed to the cross, I find myself doing the same thing. Doesn't matter where I am, what I am doing at the time, if I hear or read or see in a movie or television program.....of the nails being driven into my Lord's hands.....my fingers reach for the palm on the other hand and feel there, in the middle. I have to put my hand in the other and feel the smoothness of my palm, where no nail has been driven, no skin broken by misunderstanding, confusion......religion.
My hands will never know the pain felt that day by my Jesus. I will never know the sting of my closest friends running in fear. My brow will never feel the anguish of thorns of a crown crushing in, drawing blood. My side will never know the rush of the flow of watery blood running down when a spear presses into the flesh. No, I will never suffer in the manner that the One who loved me so, suffered in my place.
As I feel the palms of my hands, the only thing I feel is the impression of my Lord's hand where He has held mine day after day as I walked toward the goal He set before me. Sometimes upright, walking boldly.....sometimes, falling, overwhelmed by life....but at all times feeling that hand that holds mine strongly, never letting go, always lifting, drawing upward, gently but firmly.
I will never know the pain of a thorny crown, because when my Savior wore that crown, He gave me His crown of righteousness, His crown of favor, His crown of mercy and grace. A crown that would never be a burden, a painful reflection of someone I could only hope to be, but a crown of life extended by the Giver of life, the Restorer of souls.....a crown of love.
Never would I feel my side being pierced, but instead I receive a piercing, strong and determined, into my heart by the Holy Spirit as I am led to the Master's feet, time and again, to receive an outpouring onto me of His anointing, His blessings and unmerited favor.
Those hands that bore the nails, that bore the pain, the shame.........my sin....those hands are the hands that I reach for each morning when I awake, as He waits to lead me through the day. Those hands, those beautiful hands are the very hands that one day I will kiss as I kneel before my Lord and Savior, Jesus.
Yes, every time I hear, I see, references to the nails that dug deep into my Savior's hands, driving deep to hang Him on a cross to die for my sin.......I know I will reach into the palms of my own hands and remember, as I feel my unblemished palms.....that those nails, but for my God, were meant for me.
02-09-13
Monday, February 4, 2013
I THIRST
John 19:28b "I thirst!"
This morning as I was thinking about the Lord, about my precious Lords' crucifixtion, I heard the words "I thirst" come from deep inside of me. As I began to seek the Lord for what He was telling me, I went to the Word. I find that Jesus made this statement after He took on all our sin, all our shame. After the Father turned from the sin of the world, did Jesus cry out in thirst. I am certain this has occurred to many before it did me, this day, but what a revelation when the Lord shows you something that you did not see, did not understand, did not know where it applied to yourself.
I had always thought it in the natural....thirst. But of course, Jesus would not have been in the human thought process there, in His last moments, worrying about human desire and functions. He was so in the Spirit those last moments, so knowing that His only strength, His last objective was now as the Son of God and not the Son of man.
As soon as the Father turned away, instantly an overwhelming thirst hit our Savior. He desired but one thing at those last moments....His Father. Nothing mattered except that He be embraced, that He be received into the Father. His thirst was not for water but for the deep, satisfying love and warmth of His Father. I realize my words are not those of someone who is a theologian, but my words come from my own thirst and desire for the constant deep, satisfying love and warmth of my Father. Can you not but imagine, think for a moment, of Jesus on the cross, His last moments, knowing that finally His work on earth was complete, knowing that He had done what He was sent to do.....and then as all the sins, all the shame, all the disease, all the filth, everything unclean, despicable came flooding onto Him, as He took them on, removing these things from us, pouring out His righteousness onto the undeserving, but forgiven children of God.....I wonder if He knew ahead of time that when this happened....when all these wretched things came upon Him, as He breathed them into Him.....that the Father, who would not look at sin, could not look upon sin, would turn His back on His Beloved Son for those moments. Can you see the life draining from Jesus as His Spirit began to leave Him, thirsting for the Father, needing at that moment not to wait any longer but to go.....return to where He was full, filled to overflowing with the love and grace of His Father. And then with one last breath.....It Is Finished.
Do you thirst.....have you found that nothing quenches that thirst but the Spirit of God? Do you find when you get distracted, when a time comes when for a moment, you forget what life is, real life is, when the world draws your mind away from Jesus and you fix your thoughts on the world around you... and in a moment....you realize you are thirsty. You are thirsty but you know not for water, not for drink, but for the Fullness to come, overflowing, overfilling your spirit with His. You cannot live without this River of life flowing through you from your head to your toes; you cannot breathe without the sweet aroma of the love of God filling you with grace and His mercy. A thirst that can only be quenched by God's arms around you, holding you dear to His heart; a thirst that can only be satisfied when you are reminded that you are saved, you are sanctified, you are never to thirst again, for you are the Bride of Christ. You are being led beside the River of life where one day you will be lifted up, just as Jesus was, and taken home where our thirst will be no more.
I thirst and I hunger for only You, my Lord. I yield my life to Your will and I wait, I wait to have You quench my thirst; when I will be with You and will thirst no more.
02-04-13
This morning as I was thinking about the Lord, about my precious Lords' crucifixtion, I heard the words "I thirst" come from deep inside of me. As I began to seek the Lord for what He was telling me, I went to the Word. I find that Jesus made this statement after He took on all our sin, all our shame. After the Father turned from the sin of the world, did Jesus cry out in thirst. I am certain this has occurred to many before it did me, this day, but what a revelation when the Lord shows you something that you did not see, did not understand, did not know where it applied to yourself.
I had always thought it in the natural....thirst. But of course, Jesus would not have been in the human thought process there, in His last moments, worrying about human desire and functions. He was so in the Spirit those last moments, so knowing that His only strength, His last objective was now as the Son of God and not the Son of man.
As soon as the Father turned away, instantly an overwhelming thirst hit our Savior. He desired but one thing at those last moments....His Father. Nothing mattered except that He be embraced, that He be received into the Father. His thirst was not for water but for the deep, satisfying love and warmth of His Father. I realize my words are not those of someone who is a theologian, but my words come from my own thirst and desire for the constant deep, satisfying love and warmth of my Father. Can you not but imagine, think for a moment, of Jesus on the cross, His last moments, knowing that finally His work on earth was complete, knowing that He had done what He was sent to do.....and then as all the sins, all the shame, all the disease, all the filth, everything unclean, despicable came flooding onto Him, as He took them on, removing these things from us, pouring out His righteousness onto the undeserving, but forgiven children of God.....I wonder if He knew ahead of time that when this happened....when all these wretched things came upon Him, as He breathed them into Him.....that the Father, who would not look at sin, could not look upon sin, would turn His back on His Beloved Son for those moments. Can you see the life draining from Jesus as His Spirit began to leave Him, thirsting for the Father, needing at that moment not to wait any longer but to go.....return to where He was full, filled to overflowing with the love and grace of His Father. And then with one last breath.....It Is Finished.
Do you thirst.....have you found that nothing quenches that thirst but the Spirit of God? Do you find when you get distracted, when a time comes when for a moment, you forget what life is, real life is, when the world draws your mind away from Jesus and you fix your thoughts on the world around you... and in a moment....you realize you are thirsty. You are thirsty but you know not for water, not for drink, but for the Fullness to come, overflowing, overfilling your spirit with His. You cannot live without this River of life flowing through you from your head to your toes; you cannot breathe without the sweet aroma of the love of God filling you with grace and His mercy. A thirst that can only be quenched by God's arms around you, holding you dear to His heart; a thirst that can only be satisfied when you are reminded that you are saved, you are sanctified, you are never to thirst again, for you are the Bride of Christ. You are being led beside the River of life where one day you will be lifted up, just as Jesus was, and taken home where our thirst will be no more.
I thirst and I hunger for only You, my Lord. I yield my life to Your will and I wait, I wait to have You quench my thirst; when I will be with You and will thirst no more.
02-04-13
Thursday, January 10, 2013
THE LIGHT THAT OVERCOMES
1 Peter 2:9 "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."
As I was out running errands earlier, I looked up (habit, always watching, always looking for Him to come) and saw the dark clouds and instantly my eyes went to the white clouds and then to the open blue sky peaking through. The Holy Spirit at that time, instantly dropped in my spirit.....you always look for the Light, and in doing so, you remain teachable. What followed is another lesson, another way in which the Lord took what many would find ordinary and use it to teach me, to instruct me and to encourage me.
If we are to remain in the ways of our Lord, we must always look for the Light. If we allow ourselves to be drawn into the ways of the world, into the lusts of the world, our spirits will slowly lose the Light and become dark. When this happens, the dark closes out our ability to learn from the Lord, it makes the voice of the Lord seem distant and we lose understanding as once we had. One of our most important assets is our hearing the voice of the Lord. We already have to listen so closely, as the sounds and distractions of the world try to drown out that beautiful, sweet voice.....I believe it is the Lord's intention that we should not have it easy to hear Him, but that He see we do everything we can to make certain we hear Him. He wants to see His children, who love and adore Him, give it all up, reach above to heights unwalked, and listen only for His voice, His instruction, His guidance. As we look for His Light, we will step out of whatever darkness is in the world.
If we seem to always see the dark side of things, the negative side.....whether it be in our day to day jobs, our homes, what we see on the news....it can all be so overwhelming, but we cannot let it drag us into the dark.....we must still look and know that our Lord is in control, He is with us, and He will not ever let us go from Him. He will never forsake us. How hurtful it must be, how grievous to our God, when His children lose hope so quickly when things do not go as wanted, as planned. We will have trials, my friends, but at these times, it is when the Light should become so bright in us, through us, that we, as well as those watching us, never doubt on Whom we believe. Remember, always, the verse...."What can man do to me". They cannot touch the child of God, unless that child loses faith, loses hope, falls into darkness.
The Light that overcomes, is our Lord, in us, living in us, the Holy Spirit. Always, when you see darkness, look for the Light, the Light is always there and will always overcome darkness. Thank You, Lord, for Your words to me this day.....for Your Light that takes me just where I want to always be.....at Your feet, learning from You. Let me always have the teachable spirit that You desire for me. I want to learn more and more of You, daily, as I live for You,
01-10-13
As I was out running errands earlier, I looked up (habit, always watching, always looking for Him to come) and saw the dark clouds and instantly my eyes went to the white clouds and then to the open blue sky peaking through. The Holy Spirit at that time, instantly dropped in my spirit.....you always look for the Light, and in doing so, you remain teachable. What followed is another lesson, another way in which the Lord took what many would find ordinary and use it to teach me, to instruct me and to encourage me.
If we are to remain in the ways of our Lord, we must always look for the Light. If we allow ourselves to be drawn into the ways of the world, into the lusts of the world, our spirits will slowly lose the Light and become dark. When this happens, the dark closes out our ability to learn from the Lord, it makes the voice of the Lord seem distant and we lose understanding as once we had. One of our most important assets is our hearing the voice of the Lord. We already have to listen so closely, as the sounds and distractions of the world try to drown out that beautiful, sweet voice.....I believe it is the Lord's intention that we should not have it easy to hear Him, but that He see we do everything we can to make certain we hear Him. He wants to see His children, who love and adore Him, give it all up, reach above to heights unwalked, and listen only for His voice, His instruction, His guidance. As we look for His Light, we will step out of whatever darkness is in the world.
If we seem to always see the dark side of things, the negative side.....whether it be in our day to day jobs, our homes, what we see on the news....it can all be so overwhelming, but we cannot let it drag us into the dark.....we must still look and know that our Lord is in control, He is with us, and He will not ever let us go from Him. He will never forsake us. How hurtful it must be, how grievous to our God, when His children lose hope so quickly when things do not go as wanted, as planned. We will have trials, my friends, but at these times, it is when the Light should become so bright in us, through us, that we, as well as those watching us, never doubt on Whom we believe. Remember, always, the verse...."What can man do to me". They cannot touch the child of God, unless that child loses faith, loses hope, falls into darkness.
The Light that overcomes, is our Lord, in us, living in us, the Holy Spirit. Always, when you see darkness, look for the Light, the Light is always there and will always overcome darkness. Thank You, Lord, for Your words to me this day.....for Your Light that takes me just where I want to always be.....at Your feet, learning from You. Let me always have the teachable spirit that You desire for me. I want to learn more and more of You, daily, as I live for You,
01-10-13
Sunday, December 2, 2012
SECOND NATURE
Psalm 25:5 "Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation, on You I wait all the day."
The truth of this life, the life of a child of God, is only found in the Word of God. As we study, as we wait on the Lord, waiting for His Words, His Ways, His Truth to be part of who we are....the part of who we are....herein, I believe, is where our thinking can become a problem. A part of who we are instead of the whole of who we are. The Lord wants to become who we are not just a portion of our lives, but the whole of our lives.
As I came in to my office to sit and write this, I had the thoughts formulating in my mind, but now as I write, those words seem to have left and new words are coming in. This is who we must be, what we must be willing to do; let go of ourselves and let the Lord take us where He wants us to go, teach us the things that are the truth, His things, not what we perceive as true, but the whole truth, nothing but the truth, as you might hear in a court of law. The Word of the Lord is the law that we must live by. And thank You, Jesus, that Your sacrifice made life, our life, a life that has been redeemed from the harsh judgment of the law of the Old Testament and a life giving law of redemption and deliverance, love and mercy of the New Testament.
Your truths, Lord, Your paths that have been made, special to each of us, are to be such a part of us, the whole of us, that who we are is second nature to who You are in us. What people see on the outside of us, must reflect what is on the inside of us, the nature of God. Our nature is no longer who we are, but who we are in the Lord, His children, His disciple, His words, His nature. We must cease to be, and let our Lord be who we are. Yes, I know this is not easy, as we live in a world that adheres itself to us in all sorts of media, the worldly thoughts trying to worm into our minds, into our thoughts....through social media, television, radio, music playing in stores, what our eyes see as we drive down the street... the things of the world trying to overcome who we are to be.
The truth of the Lord, if we let the Lord, if we release ourselves totally unto Him, submitting all to Him, let His Word take precedent over our minds, our very thoughts....if we begin letting all we see and hear conform to His Word, to His ways, then we become second nature to the Lord. The Holy Spirit will take what we were, and lead us into what we are....true children of the Most High God, in spirit and in truth. We become second nature to God's nature. Here is where being second, in second place, makes us winners of everything....of life eternal. O my Lord, I submit totally unto You. Be all in me so I may become all in You. Let the peace of our Lord flow in you as you yield your nature to His alone.
12-02-12
The truth of this life, the life of a child of God, is only found in the Word of God. As we study, as we wait on the Lord, waiting for His Words, His Ways, His Truth to be part of who we are....the part of who we are....herein, I believe, is where our thinking can become a problem. A part of who we are instead of the whole of who we are. The Lord wants to become who we are not just a portion of our lives, but the whole of our lives.
As I came in to my office to sit and write this, I had the thoughts formulating in my mind, but now as I write, those words seem to have left and new words are coming in. This is who we must be, what we must be willing to do; let go of ourselves and let the Lord take us where He wants us to go, teach us the things that are the truth, His things, not what we perceive as true, but the whole truth, nothing but the truth, as you might hear in a court of law. The Word of the Lord is the law that we must live by. And thank You, Jesus, that Your sacrifice made life, our life, a life that has been redeemed from the harsh judgment of the law of the Old Testament and a life giving law of redemption and deliverance, love and mercy of the New Testament.
Your truths, Lord, Your paths that have been made, special to each of us, are to be such a part of us, the whole of us, that who we are is second nature to who You are in us. What people see on the outside of us, must reflect what is on the inside of us, the nature of God. Our nature is no longer who we are, but who we are in the Lord, His children, His disciple, His words, His nature. We must cease to be, and let our Lord be who we are. Yes, I know this is not easy, as we live in a world that adheres itself to us in all sorts of media, the worldly thoughts trying to worm into our minds, into our thoughts....through social media, television, radio, music playing in stores, what our eyes see as we drive down the street... the things of the world trying to overcome who we are to be.
The truth of the Lord, if we let the Lord, if we release ourselves totally unto Him, submitting all to Him, let His Word take precedent over our minds, our very thoughts....if we begin letting all we see and hear conform to His Word, to His ways, then we become second nature to the Lord. The Holy Spirit will take what we were, and lead us into what we are....true children of the Most High God, in spirit and in truth. We become second nature to God's nature. Here is where being second, in second place, makes us winners of everything....of life eternal. O my Lord, I submit totally unto You. Be all in me so I may become all in You. Let the peace of our Lord flow in you as you yield your nature to His alone.
12-02-12
Saturday, November 17, 2012
THANKSGIVING OF THE HEART
Psalm 30:12 "To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever."
I was looking for a Thanksgiving prayer that I had given at a ladies meeting a number of years ago and not finding it on my computer, I pulled out a thumb drive on which I had saved a number of things from my old computer. Well, it wasn't there either, but I saw a document called "My Testimony" and decided to see what it was. It was my testimony that I had given at church, I guess it must have been about 5 or 6 years ago. To tell the truth, it was probably not a good idea that I read it..... I don't know how good it is to go back in time, especially when the Lord has brought me so far, but I read it anyway.
As I read about my failures, disappointments, heart break, and then rejoiced again at the miracles the Lord had done in my past.....as I finished reading it and remembered what I had gone to the flash drive to find, the old Thanksgiving prayer. It seems foolish now, looking for an old prayer, even thought it was so beautiful and fit with the day coming up, thanking the Lord for family and friends, for His blessings and grace; it still falls short of what is in my heart.
When I look inside my heart now, as I let myself look at what the Lord has done in my life, how could I ever think that something someone else had written could truly express my heart, my heart today. All the things I read in "my testimony", those times I remember having my heart freeze up to everything, become stone, in reality the flesh just hanging on by a thread of what you might consider... call it hope, maybe even desperation for something to fill my heart, to ease the pain. So many years, it seems like it took so many years for me to realize that that hope I was desperately looking for, was there all along.
My heart, my heart is so filled with love for my Lord. What was once a stone has become a fountain that flows with love, it is filled by the River of Life from the throne of my Lord, never running shallow, never running dry, but is constantly restored with His love, with His Words of encouragement and clarity....the Holy Spirit never failing to show me the way I should go, never ceasing to remind me that I am exactly who the Lord designed me to be, that there is nothing I can not do in Him, for He strengthens me daily, He restores my soul....to His glory. He restores me so that my life can glorify Him alone.
My Thanksgiving prayer has more words than space would ever allow, but can be condensed in these precious words, these words that will spill out of my heart, out of my spirit and through my praise, in my constant worship to my God, my Lord and King.....
I love You, I love You, I love You, my Lord. I love You, I love You, I love You, my Lord. I thank You, I thank You, I thank You, my Lord. I thank You, I thank You, I thank You, my Lord.
11-17-12
I was looking for a Thanksgiving prayer that I had given at a ladies meeting a number of years ago and not finding it on my computer, I pulled out a thumb drive on which I had saved a number of things from my old computer. Well, it wasn't there either, but I saw a document called "My Testimony" and decided to see what it was. It was my testimony that I had given at church, I guess it must have been about 5 or 6 years ago. To tell the truth, it was probably not a good idea that I read it..... I don't know how good it is to go back in time, especially when the Lord has brought me so far, but I read it anyway.
As I read about my failures, disappointments, heart break, and then rejoiced again at the miracles the Lord had done in my past.....as I finished reading it and remembered what I had gone to the flash drive to find, the old Thanksgiving prayer. It seems foolish now, looking for an old prayer, even thought it was so beautiful and fit with the day coming up, thanking the Lord for family and friends, for His blessings and grace; it still falls short of what is in my heart.
When I look inside my heart now, as I let myself look at what the Lord has done in my life, how could I ever think that something someone else had written could truly express my heart, my heart today. All the things I read in "my testimony", those times I remember having my heart freeze up to everything, become stone, in reality the flesh just hanging on by a thread of what you might consider... call it hope, maybe even desperation for something to fill my heart, to ease the pain. So many years, it seems like it took so many years for me to realize that that hope I was desperately looking for, was there all along.
My heart, my heart is so filled with love for my Lord. What was once a stone has become a fountain that flows with love, it is filled by the River of Life from the throne of my Lord, never running shallow, never running dry, but is constantly restored with His love, with His Words of encouragement and clarity....the Holy Spirit never failing to show me the way I should go, never ceasing to remind me that I am exactly who the Lord designed me to be, that there is nothing I can not do in Him, for He strengthens me daily, He restores my soul....to His glory. He restores me so that my life can glorify Him alone.
My Thanksgiving prayer has more words than space would ever allow, but can be condensed in these precious words, these words that will spill out of my heart, out of my spirit and through my praise, in my constant worship to my God, my Lord and King.....
I love You, I love You, I love You, my Lord. I love You, I love You, I love You, my Lord. I thank You, I thank You, I thank You, my Lord. I thank You, I thank You, I thank You, my Lord.
11-17-12
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