Love Letter Part 2

One of my favorite hymns is How Firm A Foundation. Three of its verses are based on scripture:

Verse 3

Fear not, I am with thee, O be not dismayed,
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid;
I’ll strengthen and help thee, and cause thee to stand
Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand.


Isa 41:10  Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

Verses 4 and 5

When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of woe shall not thee overflow;
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless,
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.

When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.


Isa 43:2  When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

I immediately thought of the hymn when I read Isaiah 43:2. In fact, it was already marked in my Bible. As the hymn's words are in 1st person and spoken as they are from the LORD, they just add depth to the personalization of this chapter to me.  The LORD is with me in troubles, and will not let them overtake me. He will actually bless and separate me as special to HIM. "When I see the reflection of my face" is what one gold refiner said, when asked how do you know when the gold is done being refined. Yes, and so it is with me. Until my Lord sees Himself in me, I will need refining to get my dross out.

This Sunday the Lord had my preacher preach on three words: GRACE, BLOOD, & FAITH
I may write a post on this later, but Isa 43:2 hints at grace and the hymn verse speaks of it. Grace, all sufficient. This phrase is spoken of in 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. ⁸For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. ⁹And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. ¹⁰Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

My pastor shared the above scripture. And a key thing he said was God says, "My grace is enough."
This spoke loudly to me because God has spoken a similar phrase to me before and I feel like it is part of my life message: HE is enough. And every morning the Lord knocks on my heart and has a sufficient amount of grace for me specifically for that particular day.

Oh, how personal my LORD is to me!

Love Letter-Part 1

Isaiah 43:1 But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name;

thou art mine.

A dear friend shared the above verse with me yesterday. "You are Mine." What a powerful statement from the LORD. I ended up rereading the whole chapter this morning. I am hoping in this post to

express to you all that the LORD shared with me. He personalized it to me. Like a lover letter straight to my heart. For time sake, I might have to type this in parts. Let's just focus on the first verse for now. I highlighted five things the Lord spoke to me about.

• I created you.
• I formed you.
• I redeemed you.
• I called you.
• You are Mine.

The LORD created me. He oversaw my growth within my mother's womb. Every birthmark and personality quirk were created by Him. They are His signature marks on me.

The LORD formed me. Not just in the womb, but my molding since then. Every childhood experience, the struggles of youth, the person I am today. All of it was formed and molded by a master potter.

The LORD redeemed me. Not just from my past sins before salvation, but the besetting sins that still make me fall on my face. I am forgiven and redeemed! Oh, what sweet peace and freedom in being redeemed. In my sin and shame, He saw something priceless. He believed I was worth dying for, that I was worth saving.

The LORD called me. He has called me to be His daughter and friend, to work with Him, to walk by His side and be used of Him. Specifically, He has called me to be a single mom, a homeschool parent, a Sunday School teacher, and a witnesses of His love and majesty.

I am His. He reminds me that I am not my own. I am not to be someone or something else's. I belong to the LORD. When the world tries to tell me I am someone else. When the enemy tells me another lie. When I feel like I am being crucified. When I feel misunderstood. When I feel like a stranger in this place. When I stray my eyes from His face. When I feel incomplete and unloved. He calls to my heart, "You are mine. I have chosen you."

I am His. What a beautiful beginning to a love letter. I encourage you to read all of Isaiah 43. Read it carefully. Read it with a prayerful heart. The LORD has much to share with you. Linger over the words. Go back and reread it several times in one day. Let His words touch your heart and draw you deeper in love with the Lover of your soul.

Newest Fingerprint

As I finished my transaction at the store, the Lord prompted me to get a certain amount of cash also. I tucked it away. Later that afternoon, I was alerted to a situation that needed prayer. I wasn't too far away so we headed over there. It was a very tense and stressful situation. It surrounded a financial loss. The little cash I had wasn't going to solve the problem, but I felt like it might be encouraging anyway. I gave it. Later that night, I realized I hadn't gotten the mail since Tuesday. We zoomed up to the P.O. As I opened the mail, there was a refund check from my insurance company. It was for the same amount I had given away, with .01 extra just to remind me God's shovel is bigger! It had been mailed long before the day's current situation. That is the LORD, folks. This is how He works in my life. How is He working in yours?  What fingerprints of God are you seeing in your situation?

A Muzzle & A Bulletproof Vest

So lately I have been feeling the need for a muzzle and a bulletproof vest.

A special muzzle for my own mouth. It seems to open and say the wrong things or in the wrong tone or to the wrong person or just at the wrong time.  I keep running back to the Lord for this spiritual muzzle:

• Psalm 141:3  Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips.
• Psalm 19:14  Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.
• Ephesians 4:29  Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.
• Ecclesiastes 5:2  Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.
• James 1:19  Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:

Another desired item is a bulletproof vest. My heart seems vulnerable to attacks this month. Words from within and words from without seem to make me bleed quickly. The bulletproof vest I need is again a spiritual one:

• Exo 28:29  And Aaron shall bear the names of the children of Israel in the breastplate of judgment upon his heart, when he goeth in unto the holy place, for a memorial before the LORD continually.
• Isa 59:17  For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke.
• Eph 6:14  Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
• 1Th 5:8  But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.

And the heart of the issue is really my heart:

• Psalm 61:2  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.
• Psalm 109:22  For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.
• Psalm 62:8  Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.
• Psalm 73:26  My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.
• Psalm 147:3  He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.

And the Lord tells me to do several things with my heart. Here are a few:

• Proverbs 4:23  Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
• Proverbs 23:17  Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the LORD all the day long.
• Proverbs 23:19  Hear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine heart in the way.

Battles in the Mind

"The mind is God's classroom, satan's playground, and the Christian's battlefield."

Battles--they are all around us.
People battle one another, they battle diseases, they battle loneliness, they battle injustice...

We battle in our minds.

Satan whispers sweet and low and harsh and accusing.
It can be difficult to decipher it is him.
We blame Eve so quickly when we too fall prey to the enemy's deception and lies.
The scripture doesn't describe the sorrow of Eve after the fall. It doesn't speak of all the tears and sleepless nights that occurred as she continued to listen to the enemy beat her up with accusations.
But I am sure they were there.

I am sure of it because I know what the enemy throws at me.
I know how he tells me lies about myself, my family, and my God.
They come so seemingly innocent some days.
Just a little nudge to indulge myself or procrastinate or be lazy.
A little shadow of doubt on a truth, A little confusion to what God hath said.
A little fear to make me hesitate to step forward in faith.

Then there are times the lies can come fast and pelting like a hail storm.
Making me feel blinded, confused, and overwhelmed.
Most often these are fears that pounce on me like a mountain lion,
going for my jugular and seeking to destroy me.
Unbelief wearing a mask that seeks to be my god and rule my heart.

How does one battle these attacks?
With a sword....with the Word of God.
Seek to get as much of it in your heart as you can.
Seek to read it as much as you can.
Sharpen the blade with truth and promises.

Victory is assured us. Yet victory isn't just handed over.
We must learn to battle. With His Word in prayer
and in our minds.

Because We Can

Some of you may have heard of a state governor who encouraged the reading of God's Word across his whole state. Reading the Bible for 80 hours straight from Genesis to Revelation. The cousins and we made a pajama run to the closest fast food place for ice cream.  (For all of you don't know, a pajama run is when you take the kids in their PJs to a store/restaurant for a treat. I highly recommended it. It keeps my boys on their toes; they call me crazy but I pray they do pajama runs with their children.)

My love for God's Word and my curiosity enticed me to check out this Bible Marathon out while we were in town. We did a quick drive by before getting ice cream. Then as we got our late night treat.  I couldn't get away from the feeling to go and stop at the Bible Marathon tent.  So we headed back to the courthouse lawn. They had a simple tent set up with a pulpit, small table, and chairs for the listeners. It was late at night so they had a light shining on the pulpit. One of the cousins asked why they were doing it. My son replied, "Because we can."

As we pulled up and parked, we were startled by a man who came around the block. He looked suspicious and intimidating. Once he was safely gone, I got out. The children all wanted to just stay in the vehicle. It was dark out and there was a cool breeze. After the man had startled us, I didn't blame them. So I proceeded to the tent. I sat and listened for awhile. Then asked if I could read. They said sure.  I only read two chapters, but I signed my name at the beginning of the chapter I began to read at. Sure there were a couple tricky names of cities I wasn't sure about how to pronounce, but I felt surrounded by God as I read. Oh, I must tell you that the previous reader had read the very chapter my previous Sunday School lesson had been about. God's perfect timing!

The light shining on the pulpit made it difficult to see anything outside of the tent. My thoughts raced to the man that had startled us as we drove up. I thought of the sheriffs office across the street. I thought of brothers and sisters in Christ in North Korea who don't have the freedom to read God's Word as publically as I was. People who had every fear to read the Bible anytime. "Because we can" my son had said. Yes, we have freedoms in America that other citizens in other countries don't have. Freedoms are to be exercised.....if we don't exercise them, we will certainly lose them.

The Canyon

Sometimes the hole seems so big.

As these boys edge closer and closer to manhood,
I realize more and more how ill-equipped I am as a mom.
That day to day lack of influence of a godly man in their lives looms like a canyon in front of us.
I know why women rush into new relationships.
It isn't always because of loneliness.
It may be that the vacuum of not having a man in the home is such a powerful void
that any man seems better for the children than no man.
There is something about a man's voice and his presence that effects a child, especially a teenage boy.
My own ache for my beloved has subsided. But the ache I have for my children's lack of a father is ever mighty in my heart. I feel it even more intense as they are become young men. Sometimes these days seem even harder than the ones right after their dad died.
Evermore, I am running to the LORD, placing them at His feet, pleading with Him to fill in the hole with more of Himself. Praying for the boys to learn to run to Jesus when they would have turned to their father. Pushing them toward the LORD as they pull away from me.

This isn't an encouraging post. It isn't even one testifying about the LORD's fingerprints on our lives. It is just from one real mom who loves Christ very much and is staring at a canyon of manhood and realizing she has got to pray her boys into it. It is a place she can't go. And though their dad isn't there to lead them into it, she has got to stay on the rim, on her knees and believe in what she cannot see. To trust in an everlasting Father who promised to never leave her children alone. Though HE seems silent, though He seems absent, though He seems to not be enough.............she bows her head, and choses to hope and believe, even feebly, as the tears run down her checks and her heart aches for her children.

Jeremiah 49:11 

Leave thy fatherless children, I will preserve them alive;

and let thy widows trust in me.