The great Physician

I grew up with such a limited knowledge of the Bible that I didn't grasp exactly what Jesus had done on the cross and the purpose of His sacrifice.

But, despite that, I know that God never gave up on me, and I'm so glad about that! In fact, He's the perfect Healer and that's something I know for sure. You see, many years ago, I would lose my voice and only surgery could bring it back. Thankfully, I had been under the care of a highly-skilled voice specialist whose reputation was second to none. He had operated on me early on and the outcome was very successful.

However, a couple of years later, my voice had weakened once more so I returned to my doctor and he performed surgery on me again. I knew I was in good hands and he would give me my voice back as he had done before.

But much to my dismay, my voice didn't come back.

I was in shock! But, all would be fine because a month later, it was time for plan B and I went back for another surgery. Surely, this time around, the result would be successful. But, sadly, despite these two surgeries back to back, my voice was still gone with no sign of coming back.

I couldn't understand why. Here was one of the highest-skilled doctors in the country. Other doctors from all over the world came to him to get trained. I knew he could give me my voice back since he had done it before, so why on earth couldn't I get it back?

Little by little, I became filled with hopelessness. That's when I started to think about God.

I believed in Him (although I didn't pay Him much attention), and I was confident that if I actually prayed to Him, He would hear me.

So as I went to bed one night, I began to pour out my heart to Him. I remember telling Him that I knew everything I had was His, including my voice, and for Him to do with it what He wanted. I was surrendering. Tears rolled down my face again and again. I woke up the next morning and I felt at peace about coming to God. I knew it was the right thing to do.

Then I got out of bed and got ready for the day. And when I opened my mouth...

My voice was back!!!!!

Yes, nice and strong! Immediately, I thought "God was here! He heard me and He healed me!". Everywhere I went, people were shocked and asked me what happened. Quite simply, I told them that I had started praying. Ever since that day, I have been giving thanks to God for giving me my voice back. I know that He took it away for a reason, and I appreciate it so much now.

O Lord my God, I cried out to You, and You healed me. Psalm 30:2.

I know God is the perfect Healer and there is nothing too hard for Him. He has perfect strength and wisdom and power, and I am actually grateful that God took my voice away when He did in order that I could come to that realization and have a relationship with Him.

If you need healing of any kind, turn to God. You won't find a physician with credentials that come anywhere close to His!

Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. James 5:13-15.

May God bless you and heal you!

God's will

Have you watched the news lately? Sometimes I think I may just have to stop. Why? Because it's difficult to see all the bad news that there is to see night after night. It's difficult to see the state of our economy not getting a whole lot better. It's difficult to see people and places being destroyed by fires, earthquakes, floods, and by the enormous amount of oil that spilled in the gulf.

As a Christian, I find myself being asked by unbelievers "where on earth is the goodness of God in all of this? What kind of God lets terrible things happen?". Of course, I know that God is good all the time. I know that God doesn't delight in the affliction that so many suffer and in the slow but steady demise of our planet. But, how do I explain to an unbeliever that God is here, that He sees what is happening and is saddened about it? How do I explain that He cares about and loves all of us? How do I explain God's will to an unbeliever?

Today, I found a great excerpt from C. S. Lewis' Mere Christianity. He puts it in a context that is quite easy to understand. He writes:

"Christians believe that an evil power has made himself for the present the prince of this world. And, of course, that raises problems. Is this state of affairs in accordance with God's will or not? If it is, He is a strange God you will say; and if it is not, how can anything happen contrary to the will of a Being with absolute power?

But anyone who has been in authority knows how a thing can be in accordance with your will in one way and not in another. It may be quite sensible for a mother to say to her children, "I'm not going to go and make you tidy the schoolroom every night. You've got to learn to keep it tidy on your own". Then she goes up one night and finds the teddy bear and the ink and the French grammar all lying in the grate. That is against her will. She would prefer the children to be tidy. But on the other hand, it is her will which has left the children free to be untidy."

This certainly makes sense. God has given us the freedom to live our lives as we please, but God's will is His perfect plan for our lives. It's to give us hope and a future, not to harm us.

I hope I keep this in mind the next time I have a pity party and feel like asking God "why me?". (It does happen!)

Thank you for stopping by and may you and yours be blessed today and always.

{hugs}

One special crown

These past few weeks, following the devastating earthquake in Haiti, my heart has been aching for all of the people who lost loved ones and are still without homes, food and proper care.

Despite their extremely difficult living conditions, I see that there are so many surviving victims who have an unshakable faith, a knowledge that God is there with them and will see them through. A certainty that their loved ones who have perished are indeed with Jesus. Many people don't have that certainty and it's a blessing to know the glory of salvation. It's a blessing to have no doubt of where we are headed after our journey here ends.

The following words from Charles Spurgeon have to do with exactly that and I thought I would share them with you today.

O, doubting Christian, you have often said, "I'm afraid I'll never enter heaven". Fear not! All the people of God will enter.

I love the refreshing statement of a dying man who exclaimed, "I have no fear of going home. I've sent everything ahead of me. God's finger is on the latch of my door and I'm ready for Him to enter."

Yet, he was asked "Are you not afraid you may miss your inheritance?"

"No", he responded, "there is one crown in heaven the angel Gabriel cannot wear. It will fit no one's head but mine. And there is one throne in heaven the apostle Paul could not fill. It was made for me - and I will have it!"

If you could fly across the eternal city, you would see written upon one of its many mansions these words: "This is reserved for someone special and is being held for him alone. Someday he will be caught up to dwell with God forever."

Poor doubting soul, look at your wonderful inheritance. It is yours - if you believe in the Lord Jesus, if you have repented of your sin, if your heart has been renewed. You are one of the Lord's people and there is a place reserved for you. A crown has been stored up for you and a harp has been especially provided for you.

No one else will take what is yours, for it is reserved in heaven for you. And throughout eternity it will be yours, for there will be no vacant thrones in glory once all of God's chosen have been gathered in.

Don't you love the way Charles Spurgeon puts it? I hope this ministers to even just one person who may have needed to read this today. God loves you and has a special place and a special crown reserved just for you!

Sweet blessings!

{hugs}

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a message in the sky!

You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. Trust in the Lord forever, for in YAH, the Lord, is everlasting strength. Isaiah 26:3-4

Last Saturday morning, I went for a walk in my neighborhood. The weather was beautiful, sunny and warm.

I was deep in thoughts which slowed down my pace a bit. I was thinking about a certain situation that lately has been heavy on my heart. Then I looked up and saw a plane that was writing a message in the sky. The message read: TRUST GOD.

At first, I thought "how neat!" and then I thought "how thoughtful of You God to answer me in this way, knowing that I can't possibly miss this message". Talk about the right answer at the right time!

Instead of little me trying to figure things out on my own, how much better to let God handle it? I sure don't have all the answers but He does.

Then the next day, on Sunday afternoon, as we were out with some friends, another message popped up in the sky. This time I did have my camera...


TRUST JESUS. Is it just me or is He trying to tell me something?!

I'd say it's something that probably not just myself but many of us need to remind ourselves of. And I'm sure getting the message loud and clear. Sometimes that's just what I need to get the point. Make it plain and simple and put it right there in my face where I can't miss it.

Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. John 14:27

Hoping you're having a great week and may each of you be full of God's peace, love and strength. Those are indeed some very sweet blessings!

{hugs}

A lesson of love

Lately, I have been enjoying once again this lovely book of devotionals. As I read today the story of Cat and Griz, I was reminded that their fascinating story had appeared on the national news many years ago. You may have heard of them as well, as they had become a very unlikely pair of best pals: a young kitten and a grizzly bear.



Here is the devotional that I read today from that book, and I hope that it blesses you as much as it has blessed me. :)


No longer enemies

The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopards shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. Isaiah 11:6

The orange kitten was hungry. The grizzly bear was lonely. The man was apprehensive.

The cat weighed no more than 10 ounces when he first slid under the fence into the bear's pen. The man was almost in a panic thinking the hungry gizzly would kill him with one swat and eat him for dinner - carnivorous bears make much larger animals a part of their diet.

The grizzly, whose name was Griz, had come to the Oregon Wildlife Center in 1990 when he was just a cub. Hit by a train while foraging on railroad tracks in Montana, he suffered severe head injuries and was deemed unfit to return to the wild.

The kitten was one of four kittens abandoned at the center early in the summer. Volunteers were able to find homes for the rest of the litter, but Cat, as he was now called, somehow eluded them.

Then one day in July, Cat turned up in Griz's pen. Afraid to do anything that might alarm Griz, the man just watched, expecting the worst. As the 650-pound grizzly was eating his midday meal, something extraordinary happened. The bear very gently picked out a chicken wing with his forepaw and dropped it near Cat.

From that moment on, Griz and Cat became something of a slapstick animal act. Cat would lay in ambush, then leap out and swat Griz on his nose. Griz would carry Cat in his mouth. Cat would ride on Griz's back, and sometimes Griz would lick Cat.

Their friendly relationship defies both the patterns of nature as well as their own troubled life histories. Griz never took advantage of Cat's weaknesses, and each animal has accomodated the other's needs.

What a lesson Griz and Cat offer! We can help each other break free from the patterns of our past that keep us from loving each other. As we pray for and care for others with the love of Jesus Christ, we obtain healing by the grace of God, both for them and ourselves!

(Tea time with God, Honor Books Publishers, pages 20-21)

As I read this devotional today, I thought "how amazing is it that we can take a lesson from a couple of animals?". Indeed, we can simply remind ourselves that although we're all different from each other, and we may have experienced difficult and hurtful relationships, we can all choose friendship and love with one another over animosity and bitterness.

May love fill our hearts today and always!

A treasure

Today, I came across this verse in the book of Psalms and it really spoke to me:

I rejoice at Your word as one who finds great treasure. Psalm 119:162




How true that the Bible is a great treasure. Yet, it's widely available, affordable, and many people own several of them. In other countries around the world, however, it isn't the case as religious persecution is very real and very serious.

Here in the US, we are truly blessed to be able to openly read the Bible, carry it with us in public, pray wherever and whenever we want, and share the gospel of Jesus Christ with others without fear. That freedom is something worth treasuring and thanking God for.

The words contained in it bring awe to me each time I open its pages. It's amazing how God's word is indeed every question's answer.

Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death. John 8:51

May each of us let it speak to us today and receive its message of salvation. And that is the most precious thing we could ever rejoice over!

Welcome friends!

This is the welcome sign that hangs outside by our front door. Its job is to officially welcome guests and visitors before we can get to the door. You probably have one too, don't you?

At this time of year, all of us tend to do a lot of "welcoming". We entertain family and friends, maybe also a few neighbors, coworkers, etc.

However, when we already have so much on our plate, showing hospitality isn't always something we look forward to. It often takes a lot of our time, effort and money, but it doesn't have to.

It can be as simple as having a few friends over to play board games and calling for pizza. Or, how about going for a walk with family and friends in the neighborhood to see all the beautiful decorations and having them over afterwards for hot chocolate and a Christmas movie?

Sharing special moments with others by welcoming them to our home is something we are all called to do. In fact, God's Word tells us we must do it with a cheerful heart.

Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. 1 Peter 4:9

Now that's to the point! Notice that the command is simply to "be hospitable". Nowhere does it say that we must try to outdo ourselves or Martha Stewart for that matter. It really can be simple and fun.

May the hospitality we'll all soon practice be a time of rejoicing and blessing for all of our guests as well as ourselves. :)

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels. Hebrews 13:2

Seasons of change, seasons of courage

I don't know about you but I'm a creature of habit. Give me good old predictability any day and I'll leave the surprises for those who enjoy living on the edge.

I think we can all attest though, that once in a while life will throw an unexpected change or turn of events in our direction. The kind that makes not only our routine come to an end but sometimes as much as our current way of life.

In the midst of unexpected changes, big or small, we need to muster up the courage to face them head on.

After all, change can be threatening. It can rob us of our peace of mind, comfort and health. Things like moving, changing jobs or losing a job, mourning a loved one, coping with a newly diagnosed health issue, a sudden empty nest, and so on.

As always, God is aware of our need for courage and wisdom during all of our seasons of change. He doesn't want us to go it alone but with His help.

Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you. 1 Peter 5:6-7

Courage in the midst of change is not always easy to come by but we must remind ourselves that as children of our Heavenly Father, we are never alone in any of it. If you're in one of those seasons at this time, be encouraged that the Lord is with you today and always.

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9

The real Giver

Just recently, as I waited in the check-out line at my local Super-Target with a cart full of groceries, someone tapped me on the shoulder.

Behind me was a woman I had never met. She didn't have a cart, or a shopping basket, or any items in her hands. She wasn't in line behind me but just seemed to have come out of nowhere.

With a smile on her face, all she said to me was "Can you use this? It expires in a few days", and she handed me a Target gift card. Although the card value wasn't enormous, I couldn't have been more shocked! I thanked her sincerely and as soon as I turned around she was gone.

I couldn't help but wonder why she had picked me out of all the shoppers in the store. What made her come to me rather than the person in the next lane, or ahead of me, or better yet, why didn't she just use the card herself? After all, she was already in the store!

Then I asked myself this: could it be that God used her to bless me? Had He noticed that I have tried my best to be a good steward with the money that I'm given? I think so, yes. As Christian writer C.S. Lewis spoke of back in the early '40s in his book Mere Christianity, behind this lady's kindness was in fact the real Giver. Here's an excerpt from the book:

"You may say "I've never had the sense of being helped by an invisible Christ, but I often have been helped by other human beings". That is rather like the woman in the first war who said that if there were a bread shortage, it would not bother her house because they always ate toast. If there is no bread, there is no toast. If there were no help from Christ, there would be no help from other human beings.

But do not forget this. At first, it is natural for a baby to take his mother's milk without knowing his mother. It is equally natural for us to see the man who helps us without seeing Christ behind him. But we must not remain babies. We must go on to recognize the real Giver. It is madness not to. Because, if we do not, we shall be relying on human beings. And that is going to let us down."

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights. James 1:17

Are we there yet?

Does this sound like something that comes out of your children's mouth every two minutes as soon as you pull out of your driveway?

We all know that most children don't have much patience. They want everything now. Not in hours or days or weeks.

Funny enough, we when take a closer look, we find that many of us adults are very much like our children in that sense. Regardless of what turns (including U-turns) we've decided to make in our lives, we want to make sure we're going to get where we're headed, and we want to get there as soon as possible. We need assurance that our plan is going to work, that we're on the right track, and we want to see definite results immediately.

Well, God's timing and ours is often two very different things. But if we're busy doing God's will, then we can have peace simply by knowing that He's with us directing our path.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

All of us can stop worrying, looking for immediate results, wanting to get there now. All we need is to seek our Lord Jesus Christ, trust in Him, believe in His infinite wisdom and power, and know that He will take us where we need to be.

He has the controls, after all. We just like to think we do. :)

A reflection

"God loves America. When you realize what He accomplished in bringing forth a new nation on this continent - a government founded on Christian principles and dedicated to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness - you have to realize that He had a dramatic vision and purpose for this nation."

Dr. James Kennedy (1930-2007)

Count it all joy

"My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials,
knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.
But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be
perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives
to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts
is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind."

James 1:2-6