"And you said, 'Behold, the LORD our God has shown us His glory and greatness, and we have heard His voice out of the midst of the fire. This day we have seen God speak with man and man still live.' "
"He whose life is one even and smooth path, will see but little of the glory of the Lord, for he has few occasions of self-emptying, and hence, but little fitness for being filled with the revelation of God. They who navigate little streams and shallow creeks, know but little of the God of tempests; but they who 'do business in great waters', these see His 'wonders in the deep'. Among the huge Atlantic-waves of bereavement, poverty, temptation, and reproach, we learn the power of Jehovah, because we feel the littleness of man. Thank God, then, if you have been led by a rough road: it is this which has given you your experience of God's greatness and loving-kindness. Your troubles have enriched you with a wealth of knowledge to be gained by no other means: your trials have been the cleft of the rock in which Jehovah has set you, as He did His servant Moses, that you might behold His glory as it passed by. Praise God that you have not been left to the darkness and ignorance which continued prosperity might have involved, but that in the great fight of affliction, you have been capacitated for the outshinings of His glory in His wonderful dealings with you."~ Charles Haddon Spurgeon
On March 28, 1999, Jim was working late. Our two precious boys were sound asleep and I was alone, sitting at the kitchen table drinking hot tea. I was sitting there feeling sorry for myself because my husband wasn't home yet. For some strange reason, I was overwhelmed with sorrow and loneliness that night. As I cried out to our Father God, He reminded me that this was such a small stream of a trial compared to all that He had already delivered me from.
Our gracious God, so gently reminded me of the 13 years of child abuse, high school drama and trauma and the three years I spent walking away from Him. And through it all, He was there. He was there to discipline me when I needed it, to hold me, comfort me and love me when no one else could be trusted. And He was there when I said I thought I could "take it from here".
During all these contemptuous times, God never failed me and always reminded me to empty myself of myself, lift my eyes to Jesus, act justly, love mercy and walk humbly before Him. In the midst of my sorrow, I wrote the words to this song:
You Are
You are the sunshine of my days,
You are the apple of my eye.
Lord I lift my voice,
And praise Your name.
You are the One who makes me strong,
You are the Giver of all hope.
Lord You make right,
All my wrongs.
Lord I adore Thee,
For all You have done!
With grace and mercy,
You gave us Your Son!
You put me in, the cleft of the rock.
And You cover me, with Your hand.
You lift me, and mold me,
So that I may stand...on Your Truth,
O Lord, how I love Thee!
I praise You,
O Lord, my God.
I exalt Your Name,
You're the Great "I Am"!
You are the sunshine of my days,
You are the apple of my eye.
Lord I lift my voice,
And praise Your name.
You are the One who makes me strong,
You are the Giver of all hope.
Lord You make right,
All my wrongs.
Lord I adore Thee,
For all You have done!
With grace and mercy,
You gave us Your Son!
You put me in, the cleft of the rock.
And You cover me, with Your hand.
You lift me, and mold me,
So that I may stand...on Your Truth,
O Lord, how I love Thee!
I praise You,
O Lord, my God.
I exalt Your Name,
You're the Great "I Am"!
Hello everyone:
I need your help. About 6 years ago, my dear friend and sister in Christ, Laurie (we've been friends for 20 years) was diagnosed with Follicular Lymphoma Stage III. She's needing a bone marrow transplant to save her life. Originally, they thought they could use her own stem cell since she was not a match with any family members and seems with no one else so far who are already registered with the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP).
She got some really bad news today. Her cancer is not only growing, but she also has another disease called Poluycythemia Rubra Vera (also known as PV. PV compromises her bone marrow and now she can not go through with the stem cell transplant. She is the only known case with both Follicular Lymphoma Stage III and PV so her oncologist is trying to figure out what to do. If PV is not taken care of quickly, she will die and leave behind a husband and three young boys.
She will go in next week to find out if her Follicular Lymphoma Stage III has turned into another cancer like Leukemia.
I have two very important requests for you, the first one is easy, the second will take much prayer and sacrifice:
She got some really bad news today. Her cancer is not only growing, but she also has another disease called Poluycythemia Rubra Vera (also known as PV. PV compromises her bone marrow and now she can not go through with the stem cell transplant. She is the only known case with both Follicular Lymphoma Stage III and PV so her oncologist is trying to figure out what to do. If PV is not taken care of quickly, she will die and leave behind a husband and three young boys.
She will go in next week to find out if her Follicular Lymphoma Stage III has turned into another cancer like Leukemia.
I have two very important requests for you, the first one is easy, the second will take much prayer and sacrifice:
- Please, please be in prayer for her and her entire family, the oncologist and all the other medical staff that are working on and will be working on her case.
- Prayerfully consider (and women ask your husbands first) to register with the National Marrow Donor Program. Who knows, you may be her match and could be the one God made to save her life.
Go to the link above and you can either sign up online, or go to a local registry. I went to Carter Blood Care in my town. The initial testing is only a mouth swab. If you're a match the NMDP will call you and tell you you're a possible match and you'll need to go into your local registry for further testing. This test is just blood work, like when you go to the doctor and get blood drawn. If you are a match, I won't lie to you, it is a painful process to donate your marrow. But your temporary pain could save someone's life. And isn't that the least we can do for one another after what Christ has done for us?
"Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ...And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith."
~ Galatians 6:2, 9-10
“For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous. Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you. We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the bothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.
By this we know love, that He laid down His life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.”
~ 1 John 3:11-18
(emphasis added)
The love of God: agape, is not of this world, but even the world recognizes it and desires it for itself; although the world denies this love is from God. In the world, it is known as “true love” – the love that considers not, nor acts not in order to benefit self, but considers and acts only on the basis of the good that may be bestowed upon the object of its love; sacrificial love.“Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of Him.
This is He who came by water and blood – Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that He has borne concerning His Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has borne concerning His Son. And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life."
~ 1 John 5:1-12
The love of God, perfectly demonstrated in Christ Jesus is beyond our complete comprehension. We neither make God greater, nor do we benefit Heaven in any way. But simply because it pleases God (because God is love [1 John 4:8]) He provided a way for us to have peace with Him through the suffering, death and resurrection of His Son. Through this great Gift, God gave us the freedom to love, to offer “true love” to Him, to other Christians, and to the lost world – and in that order.
Will you choose to exercise your freedom to love from this day forward? Will you choose to love God, to love other Christians and those who are lost, not because they can do anything for you, make you feel good, or for any self-gain or benefit? But love God, other Christians and those who are lost, simply because you seek to bring the greatest benefit to those you love? Even if it will cause you to personally suffer a loss, will you do it? Will you do it with joy, while still feeling the pain?
Will you choose this day, to begin practicing your freedom to love, because Jesus the Christ, willingly bore your shame, your guilt, your nakedness, your condemnation, and your position of enmity with God the Father so that you would have this freedom made available to you?
What will you choose to continue in today? The world’s love that even it rejects: love that always considers itself first before acting, or God’s love?
God has given you the freedom to choose. So choose wisely and consider this: The true character of a person is revealed by how he/she treats someone who is utterly of no use to them.
ABOUT ME
What God takes from me is less than I owe him, but what he leaves me is more than he owes me.
~William Gurnall
~William Gurnall
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