Cling to the Rock

 

Psalm 61:2-4 From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

When your world begins to shake beneath your feet and you can’t find a solid footing anywhere, where do you turn? Who do you run to?

My world has been well and truly shaken in the last 3 days.

The best way I can find to explain it is to imagine that you’re standing knee deep in the ocean. The waves are high and as you try to fix your feet firmly in the sand, steadying yourself, a wave comes rolling in and sends you crashing down into the water, landing flat on your back, salt water spraying into your eyes, burning and stinging, water flies up your nose, you choke, cough and splutter and as the wave recedes, you pick yourself up off the sand, a little unsteady on your feet, and before you know it, CRASH! another wave hits you with unrelenting force, sending you down once again. Over and over it happens, with no relief in sight. You don’t seem to be able to prepare for it or brace yourself against it. It is just one relentless, torturous onslaught that leaves you gasping for breath, weak and weary.

Anybody been there? Can you relate?

Where do you turn during times like these? Do you fall on your knees in despair, or do you fall on your knees in prayer?

It’s in these times that we need to cling to the rock. The rock. The Lord Jesus Christ.

If you were in that situation in a tumultuous sea, and there was a rock you could cling to, that would keep your feet from slipping and give you something to take hold of and steady yourself on, you would grab it with both hands, you would cling to it. That rock would be your safety.

Why is it then that so often, we don’t carry it over to our spiritual lives and cling to the rock? The only solid foundation we can rely on. Christ our rock.

Psalm 61:2-4  From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy. I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever: I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah.

 

Psalm 18:2 KJV - The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.

 

When those waves crash overhead and threaten to overwhelm us, the only safe place is the rock. We have to cling to the rock, and we have to trust the Lord to keep us safe. To protect us. To help us through the trying times.

What a great comfort it is to know that we have a Heavenly Father that cares so much for us. He promises to walk through the difficult times with us. He promises to never leave us or forsake us.

He reminds us that he is our rock, our fortress, our deliverer, our God, our strength, our shelter, our strong tower. These are all symbols of safety. Protection. Refuge.

He is a shelter for us, a place to run to. Somewhere safe we can go. He is a strong tower. Not just any tower, but a STRONG tower.

When those storms of life rage around us, we have a place of safety. We don’t need to fear the waves, we have a rock to cling to.

We need to remember that God is faithful. He is in control. He loves us with an everlasting love and although the trial may seem too hard to bear and we can’t see his hand, we can trust him. We can trust that his plans for us are good.

Sit still. Trust him. And cling to the rock.

 

2 Samuel 22:32

 For who is God, save the LORD? and who is a rock, save our God?

 

 

 

He Hears Me

 

Sitting here tonight, I began to go over my Spotify playlists and sort them. In doing so, I came across a song that I hadn’t heard before and as I listened my heavy spirit began to lift, and a peace filled my soul like only God can give.

I am often very moved by a piece of music and if a particular song touches my heart, I will listen to it on repeat up to 10 times, just to fully take it all in and fill my mind with good thoughts. Thoughts of my Heavenly Father, reaching down and taking me gently in his loving arms, whispering words of love and mercy into my soul and filling my being with a desire to worship and praise the one who saved me from eternal punishment and instead gave me a home in Heaven with him for all eternity.

This beautiful piece of music speaks of God hearing me. He hears me when I’m crying in the night. He hears me when I sit in silence or I’m in a crowd. Whether I am giving him praise or I’m pouring out my soul in despair, he hears me.

I am so glad that my Father hears me when I call. There are so many references in Scripture that remind me of his listening ear. Have a read through the few I’ve listed and rejoice with me in God’s goodness to His children.

Psalm 66:19 KJV - But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer.

1 Peter 3:12a KJV - For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers:

Isaiah 65:24 KJV - And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.

Psalm 18:6 KJV - In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears.

Psalm 34:4 I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.

Psalm 34:15 The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.

Psalm 34:17-18 The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles.

 

What a beautiful and wonderful comfort to know that when we cry out to God, it doesn’t matter whether tears are streaming down our face, or we are frustrated and angry and hurt, he hears us. God hears us.

God hears us in our brokenness. He hears us in our pain. He hears us in our sadness. He hears us when we are rejoicing. He hears us when we worship and praise him in song or in prayer.

We never have to worry that he will turn a deaf ear to our pleas. And even if we don’t say the words aloud, he hears our thoughts. Sometimes the words don’t come, the hurt is too much and the difficulty so overwhelming that we can’t even form a sentence to lift up a prayer to him, but God listens to our hearts. He doesn’t have to hear the words of our mouths; he hears the cries of our hearts.

There will never be anyone else on earth that can listen as he listens. And nobody will ever love you as perfectly and unconditionally as God does. There is no one that understands you like he does.

Cry out to him and take comfort in knowing that he hears you.

Psalm 34:18

 The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart;

 and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.

 

He Hears Me

Here I am again, down on my knees
And with every pleading word, Thy comfort I seek
Though the words are slow to come
My thoughts are racing by
Peace fills the room, Thy spirit is nigh

He hears me
When I'm crying in the night
He hears me
When my soul longs to fight
Till the morning will come
And the light of the dawn reassures
He hears me

Any hour, wherever I may be
In the silence of an empty room, or on a crowded street
Whether offering thanks, or in urgency I pray
I never go unnoticed, I'm never lead astray

He hears me
When I'm crying in the night
He hears me
When my soul longs to fight
Till the morning will come
And the light of the dawn reassures
He hears me

Any whisper of the soul
No matter how old
Father hears the call

He hears the call

He hears me
When I'm crying in the night
He hears me
When my soul longs to fight
Till the morning will come
And the light of the dawn reassures
He hears me

 

 

 

 

 

A Bouquet of Thanksgiving

I read recently about creating beautiful bouquets of thanksgiving throughout the day, to lay at the Lord’s feet each night.

It’s such a beautiful word picture, the idea of collecting flowers and laying them at Jesus feet.

Now, in case you’re wondering, no, I haven’t lost my mind. Let me explain.

Suppose as you went about your day, you looked for specific ways that God was blessing you and you collected these blessings, one by one, into a lovely bouquet of thanksgiving that you could give to God at night before you went to sleep.

I think that every woman, whether she is vocal about it or not, loves flowers. Every woman appreciates a beautiful bouquet of flowers or a rose bush in full bloom. We love to bend down and breathe in the sweet aroma of a particular flower. Or maybe, you’re like me, and you love the flowers that bloom from a weed, on the side of the road, bringing a splash of colour to an otherwise ugly patch of dirt.

So, if you could envision that every blessing was a beautiful flower and that every flower was a different colour and type, uniquely special, and that you could gather them all together and give them to God with a heart of thanksgiving, wouldn’t it be a wonderful way to end your day?

Wouldn’t it be so much better than falling into bed, weary and worn, with a frown on your face and ungratefulness in your heart, words of complaint on your lips as you offer up a few short words to God, asking him to help you sleep well and bless you the next day?

Did you know that God wants your gratitude? He wants your thankfulness. The Bible tells us that it is a good thing to give thanks.

Psalm 92:1  It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High:

We are also told that it is God’s will to give thanks in everything.

1 Thessalonians 5:18  In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

 So many of us are struggling through difficult times at present, and we’re finding it hard to find things to be grateful for. All we see are problems. But if we would just open our eyes, and our hearts, we would find that God blesses us over and over, and we don’t take any notice and never stop to thank him.

If you took mental notes of all the little blessings God gives you throughout your day, and then, before you lay down your head onto your pillow at night, you took time to praise and thank him for each and every one, how long would it take you? And do you think it would crowd out the complaints and the worries and the stress?

One of my favourite authors said this,

 

“Is the gratitude that flows out of your life as abundant as the

grace that flows into your life?” N. DeMoss

 

So, is it? Is the gratitude as abundant as the grace?  Are we in a continual state of gratitude to the Lord? Do our lips overflow with praise to God as we think about all that he does and gives and forgives, and heals and comforts? Are we continually thanking and praising God for his goodness? Or are we only complaining?

True gratitude is not something that comes naturally, nor is it something that is given to us at our salvation. No! It’s a choice! In order for you to experience joy, you have to make a choice. A choice to be thankful. A choice to praise. Why do you think the verse in Psalms says thanksgiving is a sacrifice?

Psalm 116:17  I will offer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call upon the name of the LORD.

Because oftentimes it is! Often, we find that our emotions are controlling us, and we don’t ‘feel’ like being thankful. We don’t want to give God thanks for the situation we find ourselves in, and so we have a choice to make, and it is a sacrifice. We have to set aside what we are feeling in order to open our lips and give praise to God.

The journey to joy is not by getting something that we don’t have, but rather, by appreciating and being thankful for the things we do have.

We are given daily better than we deserve because of God’s mercy and love. God’s grace is so abundant, and he never ceases to bless us if we live for him.

There is ALWAYS something to be thankful for. Whether it’s a beautiful sunny day, or a shower of rain after a long dry spell, or a cup of coffee with a friend, 3 meals a day, a grandchild’s sweet little giggle, a bird’s song, a beautiful sunset, legs to walk, eyes to see, ears to hear.

We take so many things for granted, and we don’t see them for what they are. Blessings! Blessings straight from the hand of God!

Can I encourage you, and I want to join you in this endeavour, to keep your eyes and ears open throughout the day, and gather those beautiful flowers of blessings, one by one, into a lovely bouquet to lay at Jesus feet each night.

Gratitude to God will strengthen your faith and will bring you peace. As you praise him for his goodness to you, you will begin to feel the stresses melt away, the cares and troubles will fade from view as you focus on the good and beautiful, and life won’t feel so hard and heavy as you change your perspective and realise just how much you have to be thankful for.

Let the gratitude that flows out of your life be as abundant as the grace that flows in!

Psalm 150:6

Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.

 

 

 

 

 

 

What do you know?

There is so much uncertainty in this world today. There are so many things we just don’t know.

We don’t know what the future holds. We don’t know whether we’ll have that job tomorrow. We don’t know whether our good health will stay with us day after day. We don’t know whether our country will make laws that change life as we know it. We don’t know who will come into our lives, and who will go out of them.

We live in difficult days and turbulent times. The not knowing if often hard. The fear of the future and what it holds can become debilitating. We can find ourselves spiralling into a never-ending whirlpool of anxiety. We can give in to fear, anxiety and depression, or we can choose to fight back. We can fight back with what we do know!

Do you realise that you can fight back against fear and anxiety? You don’t have to be ruled by fear.

One of the ways you can fight back is by focusing on what you do know.

We know that God is always good.

We know that God is just.

We know that God is merciful.

We know that God is gracious and kind.

We know that God is holy.

We know that God is always in control.

We know that God loves us with an unconditional love and will never leave us or forsake us.

We know that he will work things for our good if we love, trust and obey him.

We know he has prepared a home in heaven for us.

We know that God cannot lie and that he will never change.

There are so many things we know about God and so many things we are still learning about God. If we can train ourselves to focus on the things we do know, we will be able to change the way we think, which will, in turn, decrease the level of fear and anxiety in our lives.

When we hold on tight to the things we do know, it helps us not to drown in overwhelming despair because of what we don’t know.

When you learn about God’s character and you choose to dwell on what you know of him, you can throw it back in the devil’s face.

When the devil comes and whispers lies in your ear, lies about your identity, lies about your eternal security, you can shout back at him with the truth you know.

You don’t need to be bound by the unknown, you can be set free by the known!

Work on getting better acquainted with God. Study his Word. Spend time in prayer. Fellowship with other believers and encourage one another. Share what you know about God with people you meet.

The more you learn about God, the more you will know about him and the more you share about him, the more you will fill your mind with the right things and the good things that will help you when those negative thoughts come crowding in, threatening to pull you down and under.

Build up your ammunition stores. We’re in a battle. Put your armour on.

Ephesians 6:11-13 - Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

 

FOCUS ON WHAT YOU DO KNOW, NOT ON WHAT YOU DON’T!

TRUST GOD!

 

 

 Tell the Mountain Just How Big Your God Is!

(reposted, because I need reminding)

 

As I sit here, after a very long week and a half (or has it been a very long year?), tired, weary and just plain exhausted, this little saying came to mind.

“Stop complaining to God about how big your problems are,

and start telling your problems how big your God is!”

Do you ever find yourself complaining to God about your problems? Do you find yourself questioning him? Do you wonder why life has to be so hard? Are you weary and longing for rest?

I think, if you’re honest with yourself, you will answer each of those questions with a resounding, YES! And I will too.

No one has to be convinced that life is difficult at times and the days are long, but never long enough to fit everything in that needs to be done.

I think we need to remind ourselves continually that God is bigger than our problems. We need to stop complaining and start praising! We need to talk back to our problems.

I am often convicted of my unthankful spirit as I go through my busy days. The work presses in on me and I just want a rest, the bills keep piling up and I just want it to end, but when I look back over my day as I finally stop, numerous examples of God’s goodness come to mind and I am humbled by God’s love and mercy and his kindness to me, despite my complaining spirit.

My problems may seem like mountains, they may seem insurmountable, but in God’s eyes, they are tiny. He is so much bigger than any circumstance I have to deal with.

And when I start to remind myself of God’s greatness, then I am able to tell my problems just how big my God really is!

There are many verses in scripture that tell of God’s greatness.

Psalm 147:5 KJV - Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.

Psalm 145:3 KJV - Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable.

1 Chronicles 29:11 KJV - Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all.

Lamentations 3:22-23 KJV - It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

Ephesians 3:20-21 KJV - Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

There is a song that I really love, and I can’t help but smile and rejoice (and sometimes shout) when I hear it. The chorus goes like this:

The mountain will tell you
That you can't make it over
It will try to convince you
That it's way too high
Though you feel defeated
Know that God keeps His promise
So you tell the mountain
Just how big your God is

Did you know our problems like to talk to us? They fill our thoughts and minds with seeds of doubt and uncertainty. Their whispers cause us to feel anxious and overwhelmed.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. We can talk back to them. We can tell them how big our God is!

Those mountains in our lives, those big, scary problems, those trials that seem never-ending, those bills that we fear we’ll never be able to pay, those long and weary days, we can tell them about our God.

We don’t have to live defeated lives. As I’ve said so often before, God may not always choose to calm the storm around you, but He can calm the storm inside you.

We can have peace even when chaos abounds. And we do this by clinging to God’s promises, reminding ourselves of his character, his love and mercy, and walking in faith, not doubting, but prayerfully putting one foot down after another, always believing that He will provide the firm footing we need.

Let’s tell our mountains about God’s greatness. Let’s shout it from the rooftops. Let’s worship with all our being. Let’s sing God’s praises continually, as we go about our days.

God always keeps his promises. He tells us that he won’t leave us or forsake us. He promises to be with us. He promises to bring light to our path. He promises to love us with an everlasting love. He promises peace. He promises to give us wings to mount up as eagles. He promises to give us rest. He promises to carry our burdens.

Need I go on?

When you feel your burdens weighing you down and your problems begin to whisper discouraging voices in your head, shout them down! Quiet the voices with praises to God. Don’t be afraid to tell them how big your God is!

 

Jeremiah 32:17 KJV - Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee:

 

 

So, you tell the mountain
Just how big your God is

 

 

 

 

 

 

Take it to Daddy

 

Psalm 147:3

He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.

 

When our girls were little, there were many times that something precious was broken. And it wasn’t always the girls who were doing the breaking. I had my fair share of mishaps and clumsiness.

Sometimes it was an appliance, sometimes a ceramic dish, sometimes a toy, or maybe a tangled necklace tied in knots or a dolls arm that had become detached from its body due to a selfish squabble.

Whatever the item was, when I had tried my best to mend the brokenness, more often than not, my next step (after possibly tossing it to the ground in frustration), was to tell the girls to ‘take it to Daddy’.

After I had struggled with trying to piece the broken item back together or fought with a tiny spring that wouldn’t stay in its rightful place, dropping miniscule screws into the carpet, never to be seen again, or sent myself cross-eyed trying to untangle a knot, I would surrender my broken mess to the one who could fix it. The one who always seemed to be able to fix anything. Daddy.

The girls, knowing my lack of expertise and patience in this area, would often bypass me and take it straight to Daddy, with their adorable little ‘Bambi’ eyes, they’d look him in the face, holding their precious item up in surrender and ask him to fix it, as only a Daddy can.

And, with more patience than I could muster up in a lifetime, he’d take out his tools, or his bottle of super glue and with steady hands, and a heart full of love for the little one standing by with anticipation in their eyes, the piece would be mended, and all would be well once again. Sometimes it would leave a little scar, a little cracked line, patched up with glue, or maybe it wouldn’t do everything it once could, but the broken thing was mended, and it was useable once more.

It was always better if we took the broken thing to him before attempting to fix it ourselves. Often when we tried on our own, we would make it more difficult for him to mend because of the damage we had done in trying to fix it.

Take it to Daddy.

How often do we take things to our heavenly Father? Did you know we have a loving Father who will heal our wounds and mend our broken hearts? How often do we struggle to fix things in our own strength, leaving it more broken than before?

When we have something that is broken, we can bring it to our Father, and he will pull out the necessary tools in order to mend the brokenness. He knows just what is needed and we can take it to him and know that he will tenderly heal our wounds, pour in his precious oil, wrap us up so gently and make us useable again.

Psalm 147:3

He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.

In this verse in Psalms, the Hebrew word for healeth is rapa, which basically means to mend by stitching.

When my girls were small, I did a lot of mending. A teddy bears arm, a tear in a dress, a button that needed replacing, new elastic in a skirt and so on.

I had to mend the brokenness by stitching. And you know what you need to do to mend something by stitching? You need to bring it close to you. You have to view it up close. Often you need to place it in your lap as you carefully stitch through the fabric, in and out, in and out until the hole is closed up and almost unseen.

I love that the Lord uses this word rapa in this verse about healing our broken hearts. It means that he needs to draw us close. He needs to bring us to himself, gently take us in his arms and mend our brokenness.

Psalm 34:18 - The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.

We read of his closeness once again in this verse. The Lord is nigh. He is near. He is close by. He doesn’t keep us at arm’s length. He draws us in close.

When you have a problem you can’t fix, just surrender and take it to Daddy. Bring your cares to your Heavenly Father. Don’t be afraid to give it to him. He can mend the unmendable. Heal the unhealable. Fix the unfixable.

Don’t struggle in trying to fix it on your own. As soon as it’s broken, take it to him. Cry out in prayer. Lift your eyes to him. Make him your first port of call, not your last resort.

1 Peter 5:7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

Whether it’s a broken heart, a sorrowful soul, an anxious mind, a bitter and angry thought, a grief-stricken season of life, a confused and uncertain time, anything at all, bring it to him.

Nothing is too big, and nothing is too small for God to heal and mend. Bring it all and bring it broken.

He is there with arms wide open, waiting for you to surrender to him.

 

Bring it broken, bring it used
Bring it shattered, bring it bruised
He is here, He is hope
And the healing hands of Heaven are open
They are open
Bring it broken