Spared

"O LORD my God, I called to You for help and You healed me.

O LORD, You brought me up from the grave;

You spared me from going down into the pit."

(Psalm 30:2-3)

It is the beginning of a new year and I have found myself a little more reflective than usual. More than a few times it has crossed my mind that I would be totally in the pit without my God's sovereign rescue. More than a few times I have thanked Him this week for rapturing my heart and not leaving me to my own destruction. More than a few times I have bowed down in gratitude before Him and praised Him ... for I have indeed been spared.

"In Your love You kept me from the pit of destruction;

You have put all my sins behind Your back."

(Isaiah 38:17)

Once in a while I think we need to be reminded of the magnitude of our sin in light of the cross of Christ.   In His perfection, He died for us.  For each one of us who call on the Name of Jesus.  I am not suggesting dwelling on previous sins and struggles, as we know that as the Scripture above states - our sins have been put behind the back of Jesus.  I am however suggesting that we not ever (ever, ever!) forget what we have been saved from.  That we have moments where we are just blown away at the redemptive power of the blood of the Lamb. 

"I waited patiently for the LORD; He turned to me and heard my cry. 

He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire;

He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.

He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.  

Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD."

(Psalm 40:1-3) 

How has He changed your life?  Have you taken time lately to recall where you were without Him?  And have you humbly thanked Him for loving you enough to come to your rescue? 

I am overwhelmed by the reality of His salvation and and His redemption.  That in His great love He has endured the Cross in order to lift me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire.  

And because of that truth ...

Here I remain:

Spared.

Alive and Active

I opened my devotional this morning to read the same verses in Scripture that I have been led to various times throughout the past several days.  I was reminded this morning of the power of Hebrews 4:12 ...

"For the word of God is alive and active.  Sharper than any two-edged sword, 

it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow;

it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."

It penetrates.  God is able to use His Word to enter our hearts - to teach us and to convict us, to lead us and guide us, to encourage us and to transform us.  Sometimes there is resistance to the Word of God in our lives - sometimes due to sin and other times due to distractions and other times due to lack of desire - but the point is, God can use His Word to overcome all of that!  He desires to use His Word to transform us and change us, which is absolutely remarkable.

Have you been in the Word of God this week? If so, is there a common theme through the Scripture you are reading? Can you feel it penetrating your heart - changing you from the inside out? How is the Spirit of God using the Bible to speak to you in your specific circumstances this very day?

I have been challenged this week to open the Word of God more frequently. And each time I do so, I am begging God for a fresh word that penetrates my heart ... leaving me more awed at the intentionality of our God.

“As for God, his way is perfect: The LORD’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him." (2 Samuel 22:31)

He longs to meet us exactly where we are so that He can use His Word to speak to our exact circumstances. 

Praising Him for His Word today ... 

For it is indeed Alive and Active.

In your depravity

"The poor and needy search for water, but there is none;

their tongues are parched with thirst.

But I the LORD will answer them;

I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.

I will make rivers flow on barren heights,

and springs within the valleys.

I will turn the desert into pools of water,

and the parched ground into springs.

I will put in the desert the cedar and the acadia,

the myrtle and the olive.

I will set junipers in the wasteland, 

the fir and the cypress together,

so that people may see and know,

may consider and understand,

that the hand of the LORD has done this,

that the Holy One of Israel has created this."

(Isaiah 41:17-20)

There are many times throughout Scripture when the Lord speaks of creating something out of nothing.  Take a look at Genesis chapter 1, for example!  Our God is the God of the absolute impossible.  I love this quality about Him.  His ability to take even the bleakest of circumstances and transform them completely. 

The above Scripture has been on my mind for the past several days.  We all have circumstances in our lives that seem hopeless.  Some of us may currently find ourselves in the middle of a dry desert.  Others in the thick of a giant wasteland.  And still others of us may just feel plain parched.  In need of an immediate and supernatural change in our particular situation.  

Can anyone relate today?  

I believe that God often chooses to use the places of total depravity to reveal Himself in the most profound way.  

There have been times in my life where I have walked through a dry desert - when I have been spiritually dead.  There have been other times when I have been in the thick of a giant wasteland - so thick in sin that I have wasted precious time.  And then there are times like the recent when my soul has just felt parched - I have found myself longing for more of Jesus but lacking the focus it takes to be determined and intentional in my prayer and study life.  And to be honest, I'm tired of it and am in deep need of a revival from my God.  From the Only One who is capable of true transformation in my life.  

What are you feeling deprived of today?  

Whatever it is, God can fill that void in your life.  I do believe that God desires our lives to be filled to the brim with Jesus.  Sometimes we just need to believe Him that He really can restore our lives, that He really does desire to use the dry circumstances in our lives as an opportunity for His grace, for His supernatural power.  

I feel like I'm a little all over the place today in my thoughts.  I believe this is the basis of what is on my heart ... Our God is very interested in seeing our lives transformed, as it brings Him immense glory.

Are you perhaps feeling as though you're in the middle of a dry desert? What about in the midst of a giant wasteland?  Maybe you're just plain parched and in need of restoration and revival?  Re-read Isaiah 41:17-20 again.  Jesus desires for you to run to Him in your depravity, desperate for a supernatural touch from Him alone.  Did you hear that?  Run to God in your depravity. He longs to restore and revive.  

So the next time you are parched with thirst, or feel like you are wandering through the dry desert, or like your life is wasting away ... Run to your God.  In your depravity, run to the God of Israel who longs to satisfy your thirsty soul and transform your even most difficult circumstance ... 

With none other than ...

Himself.  

Totally Unashamed

"I said to the Lord, 'You are my Lord;

Apart from you I have no good thing.' "

(Psalm 16:2)

My husband's sweet 83-year old "Granny" went on to be with Jesus late last week. As we sat in the church pews yesterday morning and heard reflections of her life, filled with sweet memories for the family, I was overcome with emotion as the Pastor over and over again stressed the importance of knowing Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior. Just as Granny did. The importance of knowing Jesus and following Him ...


The importance of being totally unashamed of the Gospel.

I do not think I am reminded nearly enough - in this over-stimulated world we live within - that this is not the end. That this world is not home. That we will one day be in complete glory, praising our God for the rest of eternity. And that this world will completely pale in comparison to the Greatness of our God.

All of this caused a pause in my soul.

Am I living for Christ - every single day? Am I clinging to this world or longing for the next? Am I committed to living out the Gospel of Jesus Christ - regardless of the criticism, fear of failure, or mocking I may face?

Just a short post today, but my heart is heavy over my own self-absorbed life. May we be encouraged to live for His glory and His alone. Totally unashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile." (Romans 1:16)

Apart from You, Lord ... I have no good thing.

Help me to live my life totally unashamed.