Still Sovereign, Still Great!

My mind reels every time I see the news reports of the extreme weather that has been hitting the US over the past few weeks. It is so unsettling seeing the pictures and videos of the devastation and hearing the stories of survival and loss.

My heart breaks and my prayers turn heavenward while the age old questions rise within us, again ... the same questions that have been asked since the dawn of time ... and will continue to the end of time ...

• Why does God allow these tragedies to happen?

• How do people deal with situations of this magnitude? 

Along with those honest questions comes the mockery of those who don't believe ... and they ask ...

• Where is your God now? 

And, my heart breaks a little more. It breaks for the lack of understanding all around. It breaks for the lack of trust all around. It breaks for the mockery directed toward my God.

You see, I don't have the answers either. I can't say why horrible things happen but I am learning in my own life that I don't always have to have the answers. In fact, I must confess there are no easy answers, no box to pull from, no magic formula that can fully explain why certain things happen. The only answer that works, the only theology that resounds within me with any kind of sense is to know that God is sovereign.

Yes, He is sovereign over all. He is El Roi, the God who sees. He is merciful and compassionate. His loving-kindness endures forever. His does not slumber nor sleep. He is a Rock, a Shield, a Fortress. He is the very-present Help in time of need. He is matchless in all His ways.

Isaiah 40 speaks of His greatness, His sovereignty, His power and His might. If you haven't read it lately I hope you will. It brings me great, settling peace to be reminded that ...

It is He who sits above the circle of the earth! vs 22

Knowing this one simple fact makes it enough to bow to His sovereignty in the midst of uncertainty. It makes it enough to cling to faith when answers do not come. To trust in His mercy and run to His arms of compassion. To choose to fix my eyes on the Hope that is in Christ Jesus even when all hope seems lost. It is a glorious mystery that this simple truth, that He, can be enough in times of deep sorrow, deep loss and overwhelming confusion.

My heart goes out to those affected by the storms. My prayers are with them as they pick up the pieces of their lives and find a new normal. I pray that they will find Him to be enough. I pray they will look to His Word and be strengthened. I pray they hold on to their faith and hope. I pray they never miss seeing His greatness!

Job said it best when he found himself humbled by, crushed by, the weight of God's greatness that all he could do was simply bow before God Almighty, his Maker and say ...

I have heard of You by the hearing of the ears;

But now my eye sees You

Job 42:5 (nasb updated)

Let's make it our aim to not just hear with our ears but with eyes wide open to look for His greatness all around and in the midst of even the toughest of our days. Let's find Him in His Word first and then surely we'll be less likely to miss Him in His World.

Blessings and prayers for the journey!

Cindy K

It's my Birthday & I'll reminisce if I want to ...

Well, here I am again. One year older! My, my how those birthdays roll around with rapid speed!

I was out walking the other day thinking of the upcoming "day of birth" and was reminded of the birthdays of yesterday. I got all warm and fuzzy on the inside just recounting how blessed I have been. Here's a bit of what I remembered ...

1972 ~ my 8th, and I woke up to the loudest sound of a bird singing, singing right in my room! When I opened my eyes I saw a bird stand and a cage with the most beautiful yellow canary inside just singing his heart out. He had a crooked beak so I promptly named him "Ernie".  Why? You might ask just like my parents did. To which I replied, "in honor, of course, of  Ernie on My Three Sons!" I used to love watching the re-runs, did you?

Anyway, I don't remember exactly how long little Ernie lived but I do remember that when he died we gently covered him, from the neck down, in a blanket of Kleenex. We placed him on his side with his head on a little pillow, also made of Kleenex, and sealed him tightly in a quart size Mason glass canning jar.

I'm here to tell you that he was beautifully preserved. In fact, I would repeatedly dig him up to show him to our visitors. My Dad finally moved his grave so I couldn't find him anymore. Now, neither of us know where he's buried. Probably a good thing! LOL! What a weird kid I must have been.

1979 ~ my 15th birthday, had a cookout with my family and they invited my Jr High School sweetheart (and future hubby), Mark. He gave me the prettiest, and daintiest, gold earrings. I think I still have them. I'll have to check!

1989 ~ my 25th. Storms and Tornadoes were in the area that evening and we had been at a friends home. They lived in a mobile home and as the storms approached we all decided to head to our house while it was still safe enough to do so. Our house was about 5 miles away. We (Mark, myself and 10 mo. old Bradley) were in the car in front, and something told us to turn left and take the back way home. Our friends behind us didn't know we had turned and as they continued straight they came to a bridge and saw an odd looking cloud (we'd later come to know it was a small twister) just crossing the road ahead of them. They just knew it had blown over us!

Indeed, had we not turned it might have crossed right over us surely resulting in a powerful collision. I'm sure our car would have lost that battle. Thank God for His prompting. I'll always know it was His hand upon us.

1995 ~ my 31st. I've never doubted the love of my parents for me. They have made me feel secure all my life. Not perfect parents but I don't blame them for any of my issues and you won't see me on Oprah railing them either! LOL!

Anyway, on this particular birthday, I was really feeling the Lord call me to a deeper walk with Him. Calling me to a more exclusive dependence upon Him. To let go of the hands around me, except for Mark ~ we are one, and to hold tighter to the hand of my Maker. Little did I know the ride we were about to embark on. Glorious and it continues to this day!

For that birthday, I wrote my parents a little poem of thanks and I want to share it with you now. Hopefully, knowing how God was stirring in my heart will help you to understand the poem a little better. Remember, it was meant to honor my parents for the heritage of faith which gave me courage to follow hard after Christ.

~~~

From May 5, 1995 ~

AM I "GROWED-UP" YET?

I'm thirty-one today, you know, another year has passed

It's the deep desire of my heart to be "growed-up" at last. 

Not in appearance ~ that would be a physical kind of "growed".

I'm speaking of the inner kind that only Christians know.

It seems I've always been a child, dependent on the ones

who brought me life and taught me life and always sought my good.

I love you Mom, I love you Dad, and I want you to know

I'm grateful for your guiding hand and all the love you show.

It was in your home where I first heard the story of my Lord

where I became a child of God and trusted in His word

I live in calm assurance now that Jesus lives in me,

I know Him as my Source of joy ~ the Calmer of my seas. 

But, more often now I hear Him say, "Hold tighter to MY hand.

Through every joy and sorrow; beside you I will stand. 

Life isn't always easy. You'll have your share of pain.

Sometimes it really hurts to grow; sometimes it has to rain."

How will I know when I am "growed"? The answer's very clear!

I'll find His grace and mercy when I smile or shed a tear.

Then when I lay my burdens down at Jesus' precious feet

I'll know my earthly journey's done and I'll be "growed-up" complete.

 ~~~

And, what a wild ride we've had ever since and I can say with more confidence than ever before ~ I wouldn't trade not one moment of it. My hand in His. His hand is firm. His hand upholds me. His hand sustains me. There's no safer place to rest than with my hand securely holding on to His. Yep, my hand in His!

So on this birthday, my 47th birthday, I say to my Father ~ Happy Birthday! What an honor to have received Your breath of life 47 years ago and may I use every ounce of breath that remains in me to boldly proclaim Your goodness!

Lead on, O King, lead on ~ I'm just all Yours and I love You will all that I am!

Love Defined!

The Bible says in 1 John 4:19 that  "We love, because He first loved us." I'm thinking you've heard many messages around that particular verse. I know I have and usually those messages are focused on the if and how and why of loving others. I guess this is because the very next verse tells us that if we say we love God and yet hate our brother then we are a liar (1 John 4:20). That's important to know in our application and stewardship of His love in our lives. 

But, I'd like to suggest to you that until we fully comprehend and embrace how much we are loved by God Almighty, the Creator of the Universe, our Father, then we cannot truly love another human being. Love at its best will be self-seeking. It's human nature to want something in return for the love we give. We want desperately to be loved ~ to feel loved ~ and many of us have been disappointed and wounded by those in our lives that haven't loved us well and so our view of what love really is, of what the Father's love really is, gets horribly distorted. Likewise, the love we give will be also.

I'm loving this verse (I Jn 4:19) in my life right now because I'm just a bit overwhelmed by what it says, by what it means ... imagine, to be able to love someone simply because He first loved me? Kind of takes the pressure off. I mean, it redefines where I reach to find the reservoir of love to draw from in the first place. It redefines, where I find the capacity to love those around me. It redefines my definition of what love even looks like and my understanding of whether or not I deserve it.

Earlier in that same chapter,  at the end of verse 8, we find these 3 words ...  "God is love" It does not say that "God loves" although that is true but John is emphasizing the nature of God ... God is love. It's Who. He. Is.

Love Defined! Not an emotion, not an attraction, not a feeling to be conjured up but rather a deep abiding, everlasting, intentional, lavish, unconditional, undeserved, unfailing, life giving, perfect expression of the very nature of our God. God. Is. Love.  Love Defined!

G.S. Barrett says about these words, God is love, 

"the greatest words ever spoken in human speech, the greatest words in the whole Bible ... It is impossible to suggest even in briefest outline all that these words contain, for no human and no created intellect has ever, or will ever, fathom their unfathomable meaning; but we may reverently say that this one sentence concerning God contains the key to all God's works and way ... the mystery of creation ... redemption ... and the Being of God Himself."

And this Love ...

~ has come to us in the gift of God's Only Begotten Son (1 Jn. 4: 9-10)

And, this Love ...

~ has come to us in the pouring out of His perfect (complete) love into our imperfect hearts through the indwelling Holy Spirit (I Jn 4:13 & Romans 5:5)

And, this Love ...

~ has come to us in the confidence (no fear) that we will stand before Holy God, as the forgiven and redeemed, made pure through the blood of Christ Jesus, our Sacrifice (1 Jn 4:16-17)

And, this Love ... loved us first; therefore, we can love.

I heard it said recently, and I wholeheartedly agree, that the appropriate response to such lavish, first love might be to simply say ... "I love You, too" ~ After all ~ I love because He first loved me.

So, next time He's on your mind, no matter what you're doing, take a moment and acknowledge that He first loved you and echo back to Him ... "I love you, too"  It'll do your heart good ~ that imperfect heart of the believer filled with the continuous pouring of His perfect (complete) love!

Be blessed, be filled, be made complete by the One who is Love!

Cindy K

The Sweet Sound of Mercy & Grace

I was thinking the other day about how the melody of God's mercy and grace just constantly runs through my very being. I know that might sound a little odd to you, especially if you don't particularly like to sing or don't play an instrument, but I'm hoping you know what I'm talking about.

You see, I'm convinced that there is a "Song of the Redeemed" that bubbles up and overflows. It comes from deep within the soul of those who love the Lord with all their heart and I think God has placed it there. It is a song our soul must sing! A song of His incredible mercy and grace!

Sing praise to the LORD, you His godly ones, And give thanks to His holy name. (Psalm 30:4)

So, naturally, one thought led to another until finally I found myself at the beginning of time ~ yep, right there at the edge of everlasting, gazing at Holy, Eternal God, and just wondering ~

How the melody of mercy and the refrain of grace must have sounded...

in the nothingness as His spirit hovered above the dark and formless earth.

How must it have sounded...

as He spoke the worlds into existence and all that lives and moves upon it.

Oh, how it must have sounded... 

as He formed man from the dust of the earth,
breathed His breath of life into his nostrils, 

placed him in the garden and walked with him in the cool of the day. 

Even as man fell, his eyes now opened to death, driven out from the garden and separated from Holy God, yes, even then I am sure I hear the melody of mercy and the refrain of grace. Can you?

I hear it echoing through the ages as God tells Abraham, "I will make you the father of a multitude of nations." (Gen 17:5) And then He brings fulfillment to this promise through the birth of Isaac, Jacob and the generations that followed establishing the lineage of our Messiah.

I hear it as God leads His chosen people out of slavery and bondage, and tends to their every need. I hear it as they complain about everything! I hear it as God writes his law upon stone tablets and gives them to His people. I hear it as He, with outstretched arm and surely a broken heart, is continually rejected by His beloved, chosen people.

I hear it as the prophets speak the Word of the living God to these stubborn and rebellious people ... yes, the melody of mercy is audible as one such prophet, Isaiah, proclaims ~

For this the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, has said, 

"In repentance and rest you wil be saved. 

In quietness and trust is your strength

But you were not willing."
(Is. 30:15)

Can you hear the melody of mercy as God must let them have their way but assures them He will once again be gracious to them? Mercy and Grace!

Does your heart sing with praise as the Deliverer comes ~ our Redeemer, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world? Messiah ~ walking among us. Healing the sick, touching the lame, giving life ~ real life ~ to destitute souls. That'd be you and that'd be me ~ but do we hear the melody of mercy, the chorus of grace and realize that He is singing over us?

Do we hum this melody of mercy as we see Christ ride into Jerusalem, His beloved city, and hear Him weep over it? (Luke 19:41) Do we sing along as we hear the people cry, "Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord"? (Luke 19:37-38)

Do we sing in perfect harmony, this song of mercy, as He stands before the High Priest to answer the question, "Are you the Christ the Son of the Blessed One?"
(Mark 14:61)

Do we hear the crescendo of the ages as He says in reply, "I AM ..."  (Mark 14:62) That is His name! He is the great I AM!

I wonder do we keep time to the melody of mercy as we walk the dusty road leading to Golgotha, the Place of the Skull. Once there, do we look upon the cross and imagine our Lord Jesus Christ breathing His last and uttering the words "It is finished"? Do we find ourselves wondering if the world will ever hear the sweet melody of mercy again?

Well, I hope you know the answer to that question.  We, the redeemed, look at the cross from the benefit of historical perspective and we see that not only is it empty ~ His body long since removed, the crowds long since dispersed ~ but we also see an empty tomb. Indeed, we look to the empty cross and to the empty tomb and we know our Hope, our Promise, our Joy, our Salvation, our Deliverance has come!

We find our worth in Him because He alone is worthy. He alone is worthy to remove the stain of sin from our lives and clothe us in His righteousness. He alone makes us whole again ~ and in so doing, we hear the melody of mercy and the chorus of grace. He sings over us, the redeemed, this sweet refrain of redemption. Mercy and Grace!

Oh my friend, don't let this Holy week, this blessed season, pass you by without a new perspective of all that He has done for us. This week is placed on the calendar and we intentionally reflect on His sacrifice and His victory over the grave; but, remember, every day is the time to remember and rejoice in what He has done!

Keep Him ever before you. Love Him with your entire being. Give Him all You have. Don't be afraid to lose this life which you cannot keep in order to gain real Life that you cannot lose! His life!

 

He is the Melody that our hearts can sing;
He is the Chorus that beats within;
He is our Song and it rises from deep within the soul of those who are His own. 

              Christ Jesus ~ 

He is the spotless Lamb of God, our perfect Sacrifice

He is the Way, the Truth and the Life

He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords!

So, sing it out Saints! Your Salvation has come!

Have a Blessed and Holy Easter and ... be His!

Cindy K

Still Undone ~

It was two years ago today that I became completely and utterly UNDONE by One so Great who cared enough about me to extend His strong arm of safety and flood my soul with a depth of peace I never knew could exist. And incredibly, He did all of that and so much more, right in the midst of my storm.

Undone, I tell you, and, I am not over it yet! I'm still just as undone in His presence today as I was the very moment the Dr said to me ... "it's breast cancer".  In fact, I'm a continual mess in His presence and I wouldn't have it any other way!

Who could have known that I would find myself on the other side, looking back and feeling so blessed as I recall the journey, remembering how we sang and danced under the stormy skies. What joy He has placed deep within! I remember how He led me in His Word and created in me an appetite for more. I remember how He spoke peace, comfort and courage directly to my heart; how He never left me, not for one moment, and guided my every step! Truly He is our Refuge and Very-Present Help in time of need!

Yesterday was a perfect example of His very-present-ness in my life. I was riding in the car and had put my CD (Overwhelmed) in the player. I was listening to the song Still (track 5) and thinking of how good He had been to me. Then the chorus began ....

When the oceans rise and thunders roar

I will soar with You above the storm .... 

And right then, as those words hung in the air ~ "I will soar with You" ~ I looked up above the stoplight where I was sitting and saw a large, strong, dark colored bird soaring from one side of the road to the other. His graceful flight was just above the Bradford Pear trees, the Crepe Myrtles and the power lines; yet, close enough to capture my eye; drawing my gaze heavenward. As I glanced past the bird and to the heavens my heart quickened for I had to wonder if God was recalling our journey too.  This was our moment, our gentle reminder, of the journey together.

I want you to know that there has been no greater joy in all of my life, no greater time of growth in all of my days, no deeper love for my Master than that which He has allowed me to experience while dodging the storm's fury. He has refined me in ways that I could never have dreamed and I don't ever want to be the same!

I'm sure I'm not the only one who has walked through a storm and found herself stunned speechless by the faithfulness and mercy of God. I'm convinced there is something that rearranges deep within the child of God when faced with their own mortality.  But I think the change comes not from just "accepting" the medical facts and deciding to fight. That is important and we must find the courage and the wherewithal to do exactly that but in that medical knowledge alone is not where the transformation will take place.

No, I feel that the transforming change occurs as we grip more tightly to our Father and say to Him, "I trust You. Have Your way in me." We are changed in the midst of surrender. We are strengthened in the midst of being still. We are upheld as we reach for the outstretched hands of the Sovereign God of the universe ~ our Healer ~ our Everything! And, He will be faithful! It is who He is ... faithful! (2 Tim. 2:13)

Oh God, have you found me faithful? 
Am I walking it well for Your glory and fame?

I pray that He has and I pray that I am. I pray that as long as He gives me breath, I will use it for His great glory! Not out of my own strength, mind you, because I know I will fail ~ but in the mighty strength and power that He provides.

So, today I remember ... and I also keep moving forward. We all must do that. There are new storm clouds gathering all around. Some will be severe and life-altering while others just a mere inconvenience. No matter what, He alone holds the peace, the power, the purpose, the joy, and the victory in the midst of them all because ~ There is no one like our God!

Simply Undone,

Cindy K.