Let the peace of heart that comes from Christ be always present in your hearts and lives, for this is your responsibility and privilege as members of his body. And always be thankful.
Remember what Christ taught, and let his words enrich your lives and make you wise; teach them to each other and sing them out in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing to the Lord with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, let it be as a representative of the Lord Jesus, and come with him into the presence of God the Father to give him your thanks.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
From time to time, I like to read through my prayer journal and reflect on what I noted there in recent months. While I communicate with God every single day…I’ll be honest, I am not as diligent with the journal. There can be days or even weeks between entries. Some are lengthy and detailed…others resemble more of a short prayer or a quick list of my concerns at that particular moment. But sprinkled throughout the pages are names and concerns for which God has faithfully answered me…not always as I asked or hoped…but He answered, just the same. And for all of these answers and so much more, I am truly grateful and blessed.
The journal I picked up this morning began on January 1, 2014…a day on which I noted the unexpected death of my dad’s childhood best friend. Mixed with sadness for his daughter and other family members – and the thought that another person whose life was significant to mine – was the joy that I felt in thinking about what heaven must be like for him…how happy my dad and others must have been to see him…and how free and whole in Jesus this person is now.
As I read through other entries, I noted probably a dozen or more people for whom I prayed who have passed on to Glory and now sit at the feet of Jesus…Greg’s beloved aunt…more than one of my grandmother’s dear friends and acquaintances…a young father who had brain cancer and a schoolmate of ours who also had a form of cancer…the son of a schoolmate who died from a drug overdose…and other friends and acquaintances. For many of these, I prayed for healing. And God answered – He truly did! And then I prayed for their families as they grieved – and again, I believed God continues to answer those petitions even today.
I thanked God for blessings and generous outpourings of His grace and mercy over me and members of my family. I called on Him to work things out according to His will in situations where I absolutely could see no solution. I asked Him to cover me, my family members, friends and acquaintances – and those in my community and the world at large – with His amazing grace, mercy, love and protection. And I found subsequent entries where I thanked Him for answering these prayers.
Even though I do not write in this journal every single day, I find reviewing some of my prayers and praises over the last few months to be helpful – enriching and reaffirming. I see that God is absolutely in complete control. I am able to read – “in black and white” – how He has “made a way” where quite often, I positively felt that none was possible. What was I thinking?! How dare I doubt my God! Surely He is able to do all things! We know this…but sometimes we really don’t understand it fully. And the scary thing is that I have a feeling that in these moments, we show this doubt and fear to others – through our words and actions.
So today, my “journal entry” is one of profound gratitude…if nothing else, for where God has brought me in the last 10+ months. But of course, I am grateful for so much more…and I know that God will continue to use my “journey” and the daily experiences, blessings and answered prayers of my own life – and yours – to enrich the lives of others in His precious name…if only we will pay attention and allow it!
A friend said to me recently that “there is so much sadness right now…so many with cancer and other problems”. My response to her was that I think we just happen to know about many specific situations right now…that there is truly no more or no less suffering and sadness today than at any other time. What do we do with all of this? We look to God for faith and hope…and we look at our reactions and demeanor and examine how we are representing Him to others, in any and every situation.
My prayer today is that we would be a reflection of God’s amazing grace and blessings…that we would be truly grateful for where He has brought us…and where we are headed…and that all of the glory and honor would always be His. Are you with me?
©2014 Debbie Robus
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