The Lord is with us

We're surrounded by bad news. 

But the Lord is with us.

The enemy is near. 

But the Lord is with us.

We've grown weary in the fight. 

But the Lord is with us. 

No matter the battle.

No matter the news.

No matter the circumstance.

The Lord is with us.

When the night grows dark. 

When our faith has diminished.

When our tears keep falling. 

The Lord is there.

Fulfilling His promise.

Offering us hope.

There will be moments when it seems we should give up. 

When everything seems pointless.

When all seems lost. 

But life is never what it seems. 

And the Lord is never more than a breath away. 

The news may sound bad. 

The enemy may have surrounded. 

The darkness may feel like it will never end. 

But the Lord will overcome it all.

No matter how hard. 

No matter how long. 

No matter what we face.

We can't give up.

We can't give in. 

We can't lose hope.

The world will try to defeat us.

That's a guarantee.

But our trust should not be in this world. 

And so, on our knees, we seek God out.

On our knees, we change our perspective. 

On our knees, we build up our faith. 

With our tears and with our prayers, we give it all to Him.

We are in a battle. We know it.

And we are weary of the fight. 

But God does not grow weary.

God does not give up.

God does not give in.

He stands ready.

To defend.

To protect.

To comfort.

The enemy has been trying to distract us. 

To get us to turn our backs on God. 

But we see it now. We've caught on.

We were fooled for a minute, but not anymore. 

Our faith is tired, Lord, it's so very tired. 

And we can't do this alone. 

So we look to you. 

We're standing on your Word.

We're asking you to save us. 

And we believe this one thing. 

The world has tried to destroy us, it has done its very best, 

but you Lord are still with us,

and you will carry us through. 

 

Is God's Word enough for us?

Remember Moses? God wanted him to go to Pharaoh on His behalf. But Moses didn't want to go. He didn't feel like he was the right person for the job. And so, he questioned God.    

But God, who I am that I should go?

But God, what if they don't believe me?

But God, what if they don't listen to me?

But God. 

But God. 

But God.

God was performing miracles right in front of him. He was showing him the impossible was possible.

He was reassuring every doubt. He promised to be with him.

But despite it all, Moses still doubted.  

You would think God appearing in a burning bush would be enough.

You would think Him turning a staff into a snake would be enough.

You would think His every Word would be enough. 

But it wasn't enough for Moses.

God was standing right in front of him. Asking him to believe. Asking him to trust Him. 

"I will be with you," He promised.

And yet Moses still needed more.

It's easy to read that account in the Bible and call him crazy. "How much more did he need?" we ask.

But if we're honest, most of us are just like him. 

We need more too.

God will provide an opportunity and we hesitate.

"Are you sure, God?"

"Isn't there someone better, Lord?" 

When faced with using our faith, we question God as much as Moses did. 

"Why are you asking me to do, what I am not able to do?" 

The question from Moses becomes the question from us. 

And God answers from His place of promise.   

Abraham wasn't able, He reminds us.   

Joseph wasn't able. 

David wasn't able.  

Sarah.

Ruth.

Mary.

None of them were able.

But none of them stopped at what they weren't able to do.  

In the most uncertain moments of their lives, God asked them to believe. 

That though they weren't able, He was.  

And now He asks us the same.

When we're faced with hard moments. When we're overcome with doubt.

When we're scared.

When it's too hard. When it's too much.

When we don't want to do what God is asking us to do.

Will we still do it? 

Will we trust Him anyway?

Will we listen to the promise of God's Word?

And will His Word be enough for us?

 

God took my mom

God took my mom. 

When I was 6 years old and knew nothing about life. 

Before I had a chance to know her. Long before I would have a way to remember her. 

He took her. 

And I grew up never having a mother.

If God can see all, if God knows all, if God is in control...did He not think I would want a mom? 

Or deserved a mom? 

Or needed a mom? 

Did He not care how painful it would be? Did He not care how awful it would feel? 

Did He not care about me at all?

Because I thought when you loved someone you wanted the best for them. You sacrificed for them. You made sure you did everything in your power to help them.

And it didn't feel like God helped me. It felt like He punished me.

And I had no idea why. 

I just knew I hated it. 

And there were moments that I hated Him. 

When you're little, no one comes up to you and tells you it's going to be ok. 

Most don't come up to you at all. 

Because people shrink from talking about death. 

They don't know what to say so they don't say anything. 

And that just makes you feel like you shouldn't talk about it either. 

So you just smile. And say you're good. And keep your hurt inside. 

And hope no one notices how different you are.

If I could only talk to my younger self now. If I could only have a moment to pull her aside and let her know she would be ok. That she would grow up to be strong. And compassionate. And capable.

If I could only let her know, that this pain would become what made her never go to bed mad. That it would make her not be scared to tell people they were important. 

That she would never shy away from telling people she loved them. Or be worried what people thought because she insisted on hugging. And looking for the good.  

If I could only have a moment to tell her that this loss would become what pushed her to make sure people knew, especially young people, that they could overcome hard things too. And that her greatest joy would be to find opportunities to cheer them on. 

If I could just talk to her and tell her to hold her head up. That God had not punished her. 

That God had not let her down.

And that God would walk with her each step of the way without her mom. 

I can't go back to tell her, but I can make sure to never forget.

How my greatest pain became my greatest purpose.  

And I can make sure to pass the message on. 

If you're facing a loss. 

If you're feeling like God has taken someone away from you.

If you're mad. If you're doubtful. 

If you're in the middle of hating God.

I'm here to tell you to hold on to hope. To surround yourself with people who remind you of the good. To believe your loved one is not gone, that they live on in you. That their life may have ended here, but it has not ended entirely. That their heart still beats inside of you. Their goodness still lives on inside of you. That each breath you take is a living testimony to a love that never ends. That they don't have to be here to make a difference. That your life is the difference they make now.

So choose kindness. For them.

Choose gratefulness. For them.

Choose forgiveness. For them.

And most of all, choose to go on living. For them.

Because even on the days it doesn't feel like it. 

Even in the moments you don't care. 

God loves you.  

I know the pain is hard.

I know it. 

But there is a bigger picture we will never see.

And a bigger plan we will never know.

I used to think the truth was that God had punished me.

That He took my mom from me. 

But the truth was my mom was God's child before she was my mom.

He loved her first.

He didn't take her from me. 

She wasn't my belonging.

She was His blessing.  

And though it took me awhile I realized, His blessing never left. 

It still remains.

And I promise one day you will see,

that it remains for you too.  

 

A Prayer for our Nation

Father, I pray according to 1 Timothy 2:1-3, for all who are in authority in this nation.

I ask for Godly counsel and wisdom for the President and his Cabinet, Chief Justice, Associate Justices of the Supreme Court and all judges across this land. 

Thank you for restoring to our nation righteous judges who hear Your voice and adhere to Your Word (Isaiah 1:26).

We lift up the Secretary of State, Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of Defense, members of the Senate and House of Representatives, and all other leaders at every level of our government to receive the wisdom of God, to act in obedience to that wisdom, and for the power of God to flow in their lives. 

I declare that they hear and obey Your voice, Lord, and the voice of a stranger they will not follow.

Lord, I pray that righteousness be manifest in the hearts of all in authority in our nation, and that they seek after You with all their hearts, souls, minds and strength.

In the Name of Jesus. 

Amen.

(Prayer from Kenneth Copeland)

I cannot do it. I do not have the power to do this on my own. But God can. And God will. Joseph had a gift. He could interpret dreams. And his gift had landed him right where he was. In prison. During his short life, he had been betrayed by his brothers. Sold into slavery. Falsely imprisoned. Largely forgotten. He should have been discouraged by now. He should have been angry. He should have been so disillusioned that the last thing he wanted to do was honor God. But he wasn’t. Though time and time again he was faced with disappointment, his faith remained strong. Because he knew the God he served was bigger than anything he faced. And that trust strengthened him. That basic trust kept him going. That trust brought about the saving of many lives. I don’t know what you’re facing today. But the God of Joseph is still on the throne. Trust Him. Through each betrayal. Through each heartache. Through each impossible situation. Believe that He can turn it around. Believe that He will turn it around. I cannot do it. I do not have the power to do this on my own. But God can. And God will.

when the world is not good...God still is

Coronavirus Battle Plan - Trusting God in the fight

I can't read one more thing about the Coronavirus chaos. 

I can't hear one more news briefing. Listen to one more opinion. Take into consideration one more theory. One more speculation. One more best guess.

I can't and I won't.

At least not today.

Not because I want to bury my head in the sand and pretend it's not there. But because I've given enough time to what the world says. I've given too many of my minutes to worry, and anxiety and fear. And I refuse to give it anymore. 

I know I'm not the only one overwhelmed. We are surrounded by information overload. Some of it accurate. Some of it inaccurate. And us in the middle trying to distinguish between the two. Trying to figure out the truth.

People are fighting. And hoarding. And saying awful things to each other. And I wish I could say it was happening far away. In some other country. In some other town. But it's happening in our country. In our town. It's happening right in front of us. 

And some days it's happening because of us. 

And I keep saying I can't wait for the world to get back to "normal". Until I realized today that maybe normal isn't a good goal. That maybe normal is what got us here in the first place.

This virus has shown very clearly where our hearts are.

And our hearts are IN this world. 

Because our hearts are OF this world.

And God is wondering where His people are. 

He's wondering why we're spending more time in the news than in the Bible. He's wondering why we're spending more time spreading fear than spreading faith. He's wondering why it's easier for us to believe CNN, or FOX, or Facebook, than it is to believe Him.

He's wondering why, when faced with the impossible, we don't think He's enough. Why we haven't spent time with Him to find out what He needs us to do. 

We say we're acting in wisdom. But whose wisdom? 

The world? Or His Word?

If we believe in God. If we believe that He loved us enough to send His only Son to save us. Then surely we can believe that spending time with Him in the middle of a crisis is where we should be.

We should be consulting God for His opinion. We should be asking Him for guidance. We should be seeking Him for peace.

We're in the middle of a battle and we know the One willing to fight the battle for us.

Before we say one more word, or type one more response, or post one more opinion, let's seek Him.

Really seek Him.

Let's ask Him to lead us. Let's ask Him to direct our steps. Let's ask Him to direct our hearts.  

Our faith in the world has only filled us with worry. And anxiety. And fear. Maybe it's time we turn off the television. Turn off the internet. Turn off the distractions. 

Just for the day. 

[Heart check. Was our immediate response to fight against this idea? Or did we consider it something we could do?]

It's not putting our head in the sand. It's putting our heart in His Hands. 

We are more than willing to fill our lives up listening to what the world says.  

God stands waiting for us, to be willing to fill our lives up, listening to Him.   

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We're in a battle. It's time to make a battle plan. If you don't know how or need direction, you can click back to this previous post and print out a free draft to get you started: How to make a Prayer Battle Plan with God. The printable link is in the middle of the post. I did mine the other day. I put on some praise music, printed out a battle plan, and opened the Bible. 

And I went from anxiety to peace. 

Immediately. 

When we seek God we find Him. Always.