Category: Trust

Saturday Song – King of the World

Posted on by Dorci

I was driving home from a doctor appointment the other day when this song came on the radio.  I’ve heard it a few times recently, and the timing on this day, at this moment, wasn’t lost on me.  I had asked for prayer from friends for this appointment, half joking that this would be doctor number 5,482.

Much of my prayer life over the last 14 years and 10 months has been consumed with asking for answers to health mysteries that, so far, doctors have yet to answer. God has yet to answer. I’d love to be able to say I trusted God from the first day all the way to this, that my faith never wavered, that I never took the reins from Him and tried to steer the cart in the direction I thought it should go. I’d love to say that. But I can’t.

And as I sang along, I heard the lyrics again…

“I try to take life back right out of the hands of the King of the world
How could I make you so small
When you’re the one who holds it all
When did I forget that you’ve always been the king of the world”

 

And I suddenly thought about Jack standing on the prow of the ship yelling out for all mankind to hear –  “I’m the king of the world!”

Don’t we all stand inside our hearts yelling “I’m the king of the world!”? We all want to the be the king of our own world. Our pride drives us to it, and our fears expand our territory. 

That’s the struggle. To drive or be driven by God. Those reins are so close, sometimes so loosely held by God, and if we want them bad enough He’ll hand them over and let us steer ourselves right into a ditch.  And He’ll wait, and pray until we’re ready to reach up to Him, covered in the muck, asking Him to lift us out yet again.  And He’s always right there, with love in His eyes, pulling us out, washing us off and setting us right back next to Him.

Whether we’re riding a ship, a cart, a race car or a skateboard, there’s only one rightful King of the world, of our world.  And yes, the ride is bumpy and confusing and painful and sometimes feels excruciatingly long, but He knows where He’s going and how to get there.  We can trust Him.  After all, He was King long before there was a world and you and me.

 

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”  Genesis 1:1

 

“You will always be the King of the world…”

Sunday Praise and a Prayer for Dependence

Posted on by Dorci

“During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven…”  Daniel 2:19

 

Dear Heavenly Father, we praise you.  We praise you for who you are, for your unending love and wisdom which you have freely shared with us through your Word, and that you continue to give us as we seek you with all of our heart.  Lord, no matter what we’re going through right now, whether it’s a matter of life or death, or simply getting through another day, may we never be so arrogant and prideful to think to ourselves, “I’ve got this.”  May we continually lean you on, depend on you for wisdom and direction every moment of every day. You are our God, our Lord, and you’ve been so gracious to fill us with your Holy Spirit to continually minister to us, lead us, teach us, and comfort us. Help us turn down the sound of our world and of our own voices.  Anoint the ears of our hearts so that we may be attuned to Him, and grow accustomed to the sound of His voice speaking to us in that still, small way.  Give us the courage and strength to turn left when He says to turn left, to be still when he says to be still. May we obey you in all things, our Lord and Savior.   In the mighty and precious name of Jesus Christ we pray, amen.

Sunday Praise and a Prayer for Wise Building

Posted on by Dorci

“With praise and thanksgiving they sang to the Lord:
‘He is good; his love toward Israel endures forever.’
And all the people gave a great shout of praise to the Lord,
because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.” Ezra 3:11

 

Heavenly Father, we praise you. We praise you because you’ve laid the foundation of our salvation, which is Jesus Christ, and you’ve made us the temple of your Holy Spirit. Lord, I simply ask you today to help us keep our hearts and spirits focused on you. With all the distractions we have coming at us from so many directions, help us keep The Main Thing, the main thing.

Help us remember that this life is about Who you’ve called us to believe in, to trust, to follow, to proclaim. Help us use the limited time and the gifts you’ve given us to be about our Father’s business, and build only on the foundation of Jesus Christ, serving Him only, building by your Spirit and not our flesh.

For “If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.”  1 Cor. 3: 12-15

Lead us, Lord, so that what we build will survive, and we will receive your reward. In Jesus’ eternal name we pray, amen.

Lesson From a Rescue

Posted on by Dorci

“Even to your old age and gray hairs I am He, I am He who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.” Isaiah 46:4 (NIV)

We had been scouring rescue facilities for months looking for just the right dog to adopt into our family. We finally found a little black Lhasa Apso mix who had a past only God knew. He had been a stray picked up by the county, full of ticks and matted hair. He seemed unfazed by whatever adventures he’d had while living on the street, and his big, brown eyes begged us to take him home. We instantly loved him.

We soon discovered he was not completely unaffected by his time lost and alone. Not only did his body need to be healed of an infection left by all those ticks, but his little heart did, too.

For months I never saw him close his eyes. He’d lie on the floor with his big brown eyes wide open, as if he were afraid to let down his guard. He loved walks to the park, but when that trip was taken too late one night, we discovered how afraid of the dark he was. And every once in a while while lying inside the house, with nothing going on around him, he’d jerk his head around looking for something that wasn’t there.

We treated his physical ailments and spoiled him with as much love as we could. I’d stroke his wavy black hair and remind him over and over “You’re safe now. We’re going to take care of you.”

Months later he was lying on my lap and I reached over and held his prematurely graying paw, and for the first time I saw him close his eyes.

It suddenly occurred to me how much I was like him. I may not have lived on the street (although I came close), but for many years I was lost and alone.

Then one fine day God saw me and rescued me. He adopted me as His own. He removed the enemy that had so viciously attached itself to me, cleansed me from the inside out, and began binding up my wounds. 

Even though it’s been many years, that anxiety and fear can creep back in when I face a new hardship, or even the possibility of one. Will God still take care of me? Has He forgotten me? Is He tired of providing for me?

I turn and see Rocky at my feet and know it’s not too much to take care of everything he needs. He is my furry little reminder that if I can love and take care of a little dog like that, how much more will God love and take care of me? 

No, everything isn’t perfect. God hasn’t given us a dog’s life. But He has given us something infinitely better – a lifetime of walking with the Lord as He uses the imperfection of our lives to draw us closer to Him, to mold us into the image of His Son, and prepare us for a life when everything will be perfect.

He is our Provider, and not only will He provide for us in this life, He’s also preparing a home for us with Him in the next.

That word “sustain” in Isaiah 46 is the Hebrew word sabal.  It means to be gravid, meaning to be pregnant, to carry one’s young.  What a tender thought, that the Lord will carry us, as a mother carries her children, from pregnancy, and the Lord says, even to our old age will He carry us.  He will provide for our every need.

As our perfect provider, He is all things to us – our rescuer, our strength, our fortress, and countless other things, from birth to death, and beyond. We can live with confidence knowing that as we trust and follow Him, laying our needs at His feet, and knowing He’s well aware of them even before we do, He will provide for every one, both present and future, as He loves us and has compassion on us. We are His children, and He forever delights to show us His mercy.

 

 

The Road to the Power of God

Posted on by Dorci

Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”  (2 Corinthians 12:7b-10) ~Paul the apostle  

There are days, weeks, lifetimes that I feel overwhelmed by my weaknesses. My sins. Regrets.

And I think how in the world could I ever expect God to use someone like me?  

I have nothing. I am wholly inadequate. I live with daily constraints of fatigue and pain. I am constantly thinking and saying and doing things I don’t want to. Things that are contrary to the nature of a loving and forgiving and gracious God.  I look at who I am and I’m disappointed.  How could God not be?

If I were Him I’d run in the other direction in search of someone better.

But here’s the thing: I’m not God – praise the Lord.

And here’s the other thing – I may be inadequate, I may be sinful, but I love my Jesus.

It’s those very weaknesses that had me running to Him in the first place, and keep me running back because I know how much I need Him.

Spending time with my gracious Lord brings into focus even more how great He is and it is humbling. I compare myself to Him and I see how short I come up in the godliness department. My weaknesses and sins are more evident when I’m in His presence.

And I see again just how very much I need my Father.

When I need Him I call on Him to do in and through me what I never could. I leave room for Him to do the miraculous, because I need a miracle, every single day.  

There are those who would have Christians believe God doesn’t want any of His children to be sick. I would refer them to Paul. And there are those who believe their sickness must mean they are being punished by God. I would again refer them to Paul, and Job, and the many others who found themselves weak in some way, yet we clearly see God’s hand was on them.

Yes, God heals. Yes, God still does miracles. When it suits His purposes.  

But don’t limit God.  God uses all kinds of people in all kinds of circumstances for all kinds of things.

Our weaknesses, whatever they may be, don’t disqualify us from being used by God. In fact they can be the road leading right to it. 

We are all weak in some way, most of us in many ways. 

The world tells us Be strong!  Be powerful.  In doing that we refuse the power of God in our lives, and we remain in our weakness.

But acknowledging our weaknesses, taking them to the throne room of God and putting our life in His hands out of sheer desperation, knowing we have nothing good in and of ourselves, is the very thing that will make us useful.  He’s then able to fill us with His strength and do great things through us, not because of who we are, but in spite of it.

And all the glory is His.

The prayers prayed out of desperation tend to be stripped of all pretense.  The mask comes off, the formality is laid aside, and we get real with God. That kind of realness leads to an authentic, personal relationship with our Heavenly Father.  Our Abba.  And that unleashes His power in us.  

It’s not the strength of our bodies, or the intelligence of our minds, or the skill of our hands.  

It’s the willingness of our hearts. 

For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him. 2 Chronicles 16:9