Tag: faith

In the Fire

Posted on by Dorci

The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous,
and His ears are attentive to their cry;

The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them;
He delivers them from all their troubles.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
Psalm 34:15a,17,18


I’ve heard so many stories the last couple of years from people who have gone through some extraordinarily difficult times, and of course I’ve faced times like that, too.

Times so painful I’ve wondered where God was. I’ve been brought to the place where my prayers were simply, “God, do You see me? Do You even care? Maybe we’ve all wondered that at one time or another.

Just recently I was reminded of a time a long time ago when I was raising my little boys.  (Funny how that seems like a lifetime ago and at the same time like it was just yesterday. Well, maybe last week.)

Some kind of illness was going around. My kids had just gotten over something not too long before and I just couldn’t take the thought of them being sick and miserable all over again so soon. I loved them too much.

So I prayed and asked God if one of us had to be sick then let it be me, not them. And that was one prayer He graciously and mercifully answered. Yes, I was sick for a little bit, but my sons didn’t have to suffer again so soon and I was thankful.

As the memory of that time came to mind, the Lord impressed on my heart that if I, being such an incredibly flawed parent and human being, could have that much compassion for my children, how much more compassion and love does He have for His children when they suffer?

Jesus wept with Mary and Martha as Lazarus lay in the grave even though He knew in five minutes he’d walk out, as alive as ever, and there would be tears of joy and hugs and celebrating. (Can you just imagine the party they had that night?)

Yes, He took a while in coming back to them, but He had reason to. Obvious reasons like, He wanted to grow their faith; He wanted the opportunity to perform this miracle in front of all of them, and I’m sure reasons we may never know.

And yes, it may seem like He’s taking a long time to answer our prayers, too, but that doesn’t mean He doesn’t hear our prayers, or that He doesn’t know what we’re going through, or that He doesn’t care.

It doesn’t mean He’s not right there with us in the fire, like He was with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego (I wonder if they even knew He was with them amidst the flames); like He was with Job in his intense suffering; like He was with Hagar in the wilderness, like He was with Joseph when he was sold into slavery; and like He was with the Israelites as they crossed the desert for forty years.

Matthew even tells us “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel (which means ‘God with us’).”
Matthew 1:23

He doesn’t stand far off. He is right there, suffering with us, having more love and compassion than I could ever comprehend, doing a great, eternal work in our hearts, and using those trials to bring Him great glory, the salvation of souls for some and the deepening of the faith of others.

He has so much love that He couldn’t bear to watch us suffer eternally, so He took on our sin-sickness and our place on the cross; He took on Himself the pain and misery that would have been ours, and kept us from an eternal death.

But He didn’t stop there. When we believed in Him He filled us with His Holy Spirit, whom He called the Comforter, who is with us, who lives in us, at all times, through all our trials and pain, no matter what.


How has God been with you in your trials?


Dear Heavenly Father, we praise you and thank you for your all-consuming love and grace and mercy. Thank you for your promise to never leave us or forsake us. When we are facing a fiery trial, help us to stay in communication with you, to remember that you are with us in it, and that you’ll use our faith in the fire to draw us ever closer to you and to bring you great glory. There is no higher calling in this life. In Jesus’ precious and holy name I pray, amen.

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Hope for America

Posted on by Dorci

Hi Everybody. In case you haven’t heard, Pastor Greg Laurie has announced they’ll be hosting a one-day Harvest Crusade – Hope for America – on Sunday, November 16th at 6pm at Utah Valley University.

The same campus where Charlie Kirk fell asleep to this life and woke up in the arms of Jesus, Pastor Greg and his team desire to bring the promise of Christ and revival. He explains it all in the video below. (Technical glitch. Please scroll aaaall the way down. Lol)  

And he’s asking all of us to be praying at 3:20, am or pm, your choice. Why 3:20?

“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine,
according to His power that is at work within us,”
Ephesians 3:20

 

Through our prayers, let’s all be a part of this amazing move of the Holy Spirit on the hearts of everyone who attends, whether in person or online at harvest.org, their youtube and facebook channels, and on the Harvest+ app. If you want to go in person, you can sign up here.  God bless you all.

Heavenly Father, we look forward to seeing your power at work through your servants, that you would do immeasurably more than all we ask or could ever imagine. We pray you would give them what they need to put on this event in such a short amount of time. We pray you would go ahead of them, binding the hand of the enemy, and preparing the hearts of everyone who hears your message, bringing countless souls to salvation, and that others who have been away from you would recommit their lives to you. We pray for revival in Jesus’ mighty name, amen. 

“Do you love Me?”

Posted on by Dorci
If we want to take steps closer to Jesus, that may mean moving away from others who don’t share that love of Christ. It’s sad, it’s heartbreaking, but a reality. It is a choice that will determine our path. We keep loving them and praying for them, but we must decide, do we want to follow Christ at all costs?

Will we love Him, choose Him, follow Him, above all else?

As Jesus asked Simon after His resurrection: “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” John 21:15a

Do you love me more than you love the others? Do you love me more than your vocation? Do you love me more than you love anyone or anything else?

I think, at this time especially, He asks us, “Do you love me more?”


Heavenly Father, give us wisdom, and the strength and courage to love you more, to follow you no matter what. In Jesus’ Name I pray, amen.

Stand Firm

Posted on by Dorci

Today I feel like I have about, oh, a million and one thoughts and feelings running through my mind. It’s a day of grief and sorrow for so many reasons, for events from long ago and some much more recent. And woven throughout all those thoughts and feelings are prayers to and thoughts of my Lord Jesus and of so many of the precious, Holy Spirit-inspired words He’s given us for times such as this. 


“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
that you may be children of your Father in heaven'”
Matthew 5:43-44


“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
Romans 12:21


“Be still before the Lord
    and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
    when they carry out their wicked schemes.

Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;
do not fret—it leads only to evil.
For those who are evil will be destroyed,
but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land.”
Psalm 37:7-9


“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.  For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.
With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”
Ephesians 6:10-18


“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.
In this world you will have trouble.
But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been feeling the labor pains intensifying for some time now. The enemy knows his time is short and he’s prowling, and besides the obvious destruction we see, he’d love nothing more than to cause destruction in the hearts of believers by using those events to lure us into hatred, then resentment, and then bitterness, ultimately hardening our hearts.

But Jesus warned us:  “Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.” Matthew 24:12

And that brings me to one particular thought over all else that overwhelms my mind today. May our God and Father, through our Lord Jesus Christ, by the indwelling of His precious Holy Spirit, bless you and keep you.

 

“Everyone will hate you because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.”
Mark 13:13

“Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you.” 
1 Cor. 15:58a

“Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.”
1 Cor. 16:13

“Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ.”
2 Cor. 1:21

“…because it is by faith you stand firm.”
2 Cor. 1:24b

“Stand firm, then…” 
Gal. 5:1b

“Stand firm then…” 
Eph 6:14a

“Therefore, my brothers and sisters…stand firm in the Lord”
Phil. 4:1a, c

“…that you may stand firm in all the will of God…”
Col. 4:12b

“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
Resist him, standing firm in the faith…”
1 Peter 5:8-9a

“You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.”
James 5:8

“So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm…”
2 Thessalonians 2:15a

 

What God’s Doing – Cementing

Posted on by Dorci

The last year and a half have been something else. It’s been a long journey slogging through marshes, dark, creepy forests full of eyes glowing in the dark, deep shark-infested waters, rocky, steep exhausting climbs and riding avalanches down the other side. And that’s on top of an exhausting three years, on top of an excruciatingly painful fifteen years, and so on and so forth. 

Up until the last year and a half, I handled the stresses pretty well; not perfectly of course, but I’ve held on to Jesus through it. But this last trial has been different. It’s a long story in itself, but suffice it to say it came just as I felt I was finally coming back from the stroke, and it came on with vengeance. One thing after another, after another, after another…

I’ve prayed my heart out until I’m blue in the face. I’ve been worried, upset, frustrated, at the end of my rope. And yes, I’ve gotten angry. I’ve lobbed up those prayers we sometimes pray when we feel up against a brick wall – “Why God? Why more? Haven’t I had enough?!” And there have been days I’ve wondered what was the point. Why keep praying? Why keep trusting? 

Then this morning at church we sang a song that reminded me of a truth Peter spoke as many around them started to become disillusioned with Jesus and walk away. 

Jesus asked the Twelve “You do not want to leave too, do you?”

“Simon Peter answered Him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.'” (John 6:67-68a)

It seems not only in my life, but in the lives of so many others, the trials and suffering of all kinds is ramping up. The time to Jesus’ return gets closer every day, and God is preparing us. God is cementing our faith in Him and giving us a strength we’ve never known before. 

Yes, the journey can be confusing, frustrating, painful, and some days it can be downright maddening. It can creep up on you like a riptide and threaten to carry you away. I know.

But keep holding onto Christ. Keep telling Him how you feel. He can handle it, and He wants to help you through it. It is His grace and mercy that He disciplines us, His children, to mature us. There is no where else to go where we can find the eternal truths found in Christ, no where else we can find the kind of pure, genuine and lasting love He has for us. No where else we can go to find His peace, His joy, His hope. 

Let’s let Him cement our faith in the way He knows we need so it will be absolutely unshakeable, in the way that will bring Him glory upon glory, and take us into the Promised Land where our reward awaits with Him. Oh, what a glorious day. 

Please, if you need prayer, I’m here. You can leave a comment or email me. 

For His glory, 

Dorci
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Heavenly Father, I lift up each person reading this. May you hold them tight and comfort them as they each walk their journeys, identifying with Jesus in His suffering. May you bring much good out of it – a strong faith, godly character, obedience, perseverance, wisdom, the salvation of souls around them, and the spreading of your love far and wide. I pray it all in the precious name of our Lord Jesus, amen.