How Sweet It Is
The month has sped by...and the half century birthday (now that really makes a girl feel old when I say it that way!) came and went without too much fanfare.
Part of the reason the birthday was so low key was because I had some medical tests done the week before my birthday and the results would not be known until after the July 4th holiday. It is kind of hard to be in a big time celebratory mood when your mind is firmly settled in the "what if..." mood.
But, as I have learned over the course of this 50 year life, the Lord is never far away and that he indeed is "my shepherd" carefully watching over me. And this particular week was no exception.
My small group at church has been studying " The Circle Maker" by Mark Batterson. It is a book about prayer...circling your prayers and praying long, praying hard and praying through. I had recently started reading the book, as a matter of fact. when I had my doctor's appointment where the above mentioned problem was found. And because I had just started it (and my husband decided to read along as well) the idea of circling my prayers was fresh in my mind. However, I disagreed with one of the first major statements the author made in the book. He quotes a South Korean pastor who basically said that God doesn't answer vague prayers. He goes on to say that most of us don't get what we want because we don't know what we want. If faith is being sure of what we hope for, then if we aren't sure what we want. then we must not have faith.
Hmmm... I just could not come to grips with this way of thinking. I certainly believe in the power of prayer and that God wants only what is best for us; yet, most of the time we think what is best for us is what causes us the least amount of pain, struggle and inconvenience. God's main concern is that we know him in a deeper way and that we show His glory to others---and a life without pain rarely accomplishes either of these things.
So, as I began to pray for my test results, I simply could not "demand" a happy ending from God. Of course, I shared my heart and confessed what I wanted to happen. But, I just could not "tell" Him how this all should turn out. ( I hope this did not show my lack of faith!) What I did instead was ask a very simple favor: Lord, no matter the outcome of these tests, I just want to know that you are in this with me.
I don't have to tell you that God came through in a big way.
The very next day at church, our worship leader sang a solo of one of my favorite hymns "Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus" The lyrics reached even deeper into my soul that night.
The next day I turned on my Nook and---I promise this had never happened before--a reminder from my Bible App popped up and said that I should check in for an inspiring verse of the day. The verse was Psalm 27:14 :
Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.
Then I decided to start at the beginning of the chapter and read it in its entirety. I didn't need to read much past verse one to know the Lord was speaking to me:
The Lord is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
of whom shall I be afraid?
Whew...I was feeling very shepherded. But God wasn't done yet.
Monday morning I went onto Facebook and a friend had shared a couple of verses that were so meaningful to her as she mourned the death of her dad. Isaiah 26:3-4 were the verses:
You will keep in perfect peace
those whose minds are steadfast,
because they trust in you.
4 Trust in the Lord forever,
for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal.
Wow..Ok... so I thought I had gotten the message loud and clear...but God wanted to really drive the point home.
Tuesday morning I was reading an update from a missions team from our church and they specifically mentioned that their theme verse for the week was Mark 11:24
Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
I sat looking at the screen--not in disbelief--but in awe, really. How could the God of the Universe care so much about me that he would speak to me on four different days, in such personal ways, to let me know that yes, indeed, He not only goes before me, but He also walks with me. I knew that day that regardless of the news I received on Friday, I would not go it alone.
Thankfully, the news from the doctor was good news, But, I also know that life can throw a curve ball at me in the blink of an eye. After all, none of us are guaranteed a trouble free life. What I was reminded of during this long week of thinking and praying was that no matter what may come my way, I can trust that God will be there with me.
Part of the reason the birthday was so low key was because I had some medical tests done the week before my birthday and the results would not be known until after the July 4th holiday. It is kind of hard to be in a big time celebratory mood when your mind is firmly settled in the "what if..." mood.
But, as I have learned over the course of this 50 year life, the Lord is never far away and that he indeed is "my shepherd" carefully watching over me. And this particular week was no exception.
My small group at church has been studying " The Circle Maker" by Mark Batterson. It is a book about prayer...circling your prayers and praying long, praying hard and praying through. I had recently started reading the book, as a matter of fact. when I had my doctor's appointment where the above mentioned problem was found. And because I had just started it (and my husband decided to read along as well) the idea of circling my prayers was fresh in my mind. However, I disagreed with one of the first major statements the author made in the book. He quotes a South Korean pastor who basically said that God doesn't answer vague prayers. He goes on to say that most of us don't get what we want because we don't know what we want. If faith is being sure of what we hope for, then if we aren't sure what we want. then we must not have faith.
Hmmm... I just could not come to grips with this way of thinking. I certainly believe in the power of prayer and that God wants only what is best for us; yet, most of the time we think what is best for us is what causes us the least amount of pain, struggle and inconvenience. God's main concern is that we know him in a deeper way and that we show His glory to others---and a life without pain rarely accomplishes either of these things.
So, as I began to pray for my test results, I simply could not "demand" a happy ending from God. Of course, I shared my heart and confessed what I wanted to happen. But, I just could not "tell" Him how this all should turn out. ( I hope this did not show my lack of faith!) What I did instead was ask a very simple favor: Lord, no matter the outcome of these tests, I just want to know that you are in this with me.
I don't have to tell you that God came through in a big way.
The very next day at church, our worship leader sang a solo of one of my favorite hymns "Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus" The lyrics reached even deeper into my soul that night.
The next day I turned on my Nook and---I promise this had never happened before--a reminder from my Bible App popped up and said that I should check in for an inspiring verse of the day. The verse was Psalm 27:14 :
Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.
Then I decided to start at the beginning of the chapter and read it in its entirety. I didn't need to read much past verse one to know the Lord was speaking to me:
The Lord is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
of whom shall I be afraid?
Whew...I was feeling very shepherded. But God wasn't done yet.
Monday morning I went onto Facebook and a friend had shared a couple of verses that were so meaningful to her as she mourned the death of her dad. Isaiah 26:3-4 were the verses:
You will keep in perfect peace
those whose minds are steadfast,
because they trust in you.
4 Trust in the Lord forever,
for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal.
Wow..Ok... so I thought I had gotten the message loud and clear...but God wanted to really drive the point home.
Tuesday morning I was reading an update from a missions team from our church and they specifically mentioned that their theme verse for the week was Mark 11:24
Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
I sat looking at the screen--not in disbelief--but in awe, really. How could the God of the Universe care so much about me that he would speak to me on four different days, in such personal ways, to let me know that yes, indeed, He not only goes before me, but He also walks with me. I knew that day that regardless of the news I received on Friday, I would not go it alone.
Thankfully, the news from the doctor was good news, But, I also know that life can throw a curve ball at me in the blink of an eye. After all, none of us are guaranteed a trouble free life. What I was reminded of during this long week of thinking and praying was that no matter what may come my way, I can trust that God will be there with me.
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