Sunday, September 28, 2008
Sweet and Bitter
This morning in Sunday School, we continue our study of Revelations. We have been on that book for ....some....two or three years now? Today we are on Chapter 10 where John was to eat the book, and it tasted sweet then bitter. We are reminded that the Christian life includes both, and may look differently than we imagine. Sweetness can encompass God's vindication on sinners as well as the sheer blessings of redemption. Bitter can be the awful things of darkness in the life, as well as the trials and sufferings we experience in Christ, which ironically preclude blessings and triumph. I am once again reminded that all of life is our identity in Christ - we receive His matchless gift of salvation as well as the sufferings that He suffered. Are the sufferings more in frequency the older we get or are we just more aware of them? Hmm...something to ponder. I do know that the older I get, the more blessed I am - and the joy of the Lord truly is my strength
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Reigning in the Rain
When it rains it pours - and when it pours, God reigns!
I have just come out of the darkest 6 months of my life (so far).
We discovered a dear Christian sister's husband renounced his faith and left his marriage. Dear Ling - we love you and pray for you in your sorrow. At that time I thought "God - I cannot take any more sorrow". Does God reign? Yes, He does indeed.
In January our adopted daughter (then 16) of ten years firmly decided she did not want to be part of our family, trading it instead for a life of drugs, sex, alcohol, dropping out of high school, and having nothing to do with us. The pain we experienced as a family is beyond comprehension. I won't even begin to go into details of it - BUT I must declare for all to see that OUR GOD REIGNS. He reigns in the hearts of those who trust Him. He reigns in the darkness as well as the light. He reigns in life and in death.
In the midst of our daughter's rebellion my dearest friend my mom, had a serious stroke, leaving her right side paralyzed and her speech compromised. She needs 24 hour care. Does God still reign? Yes He does!
Our dear friend Wally Carruthers is lying waiting to die from pancreatic cancer after a year bout with it, leaving his wife and five children - does our God reign? Yes, He does.
My dear brother Earl has been afflicted with severe pain in his back and neck for one year now - having a neck surgery go awry, being rushed back into emergency surgery to prevent paralysis - now he is barely able to speak due to the damage on his larynx from the surgeries, let alone lift weights and work out like he used to love. Does God reign? YES HE DOES!
There is something inexplainable about suffering - there are physical sufferings, emotional sufferings, mental and even spiritual sufferings. As a believer, all of these sufferings only glorify God and draw us closer to Him and away from out humanness. I thank Him for the opportunity to be totally undone - completely reliant on Him - an empty vessel to be filled with the riches of Christ Jesus.
I have just come out of the darkest 6 months of my life (so far).
We discovered a dear Christian sister's husband renounced his faith and left his marriage. Dear Ling - we love you and pray for you in your sorrow. At that time I thought "God - I cannot take any more sorrow". Does God reign? Yes, He does indeed.
In January our adopted daughter (then 16) of ten years firmly decided she did not want to be part of our family, trading it instead for a life of drugs, sex, alcohol, dropping out of high school, and having nothing to do with us. The pain we experienced as a family is beyond comprehension. I won't even begin to go into details of it - BUT I must declare for all to see that OUR GOD REIGNS. He reigns in the hearts of those who trust Him. He reigns in the darkness as well as the light. He reigns in life and in death.
In the midst of our daughter's rebellion my dearest friend my mom, had a serious stroke, leaving her right side paralyzed and her speech compromised. She needs 24 hour care. Does God still reign? Yes He does!
Our dear friend Wally Carruthers is lying waiting to die from pancreatic cancer after a year bout with it, leaving his wife and five children - does our God reign? Yes, He does.
My dear brother Earl has been afflicted with severe pain in his back and neck for one year now - having a neck surgery go awry, being rushed back into emergency surgery to prevent paralysis - now he is barely able to speak due to the damage on his larynx from the surgeries, let alone lift weights and work out like he used to love. Does God reign? YES HE DOES!
There is something inexplainable about suffering - there are physical sufferings, emotional sufferings, mental and even spiritual sufferings. As a believer, all of these sufferings only glorify God and draw us closer to Him and away from out humanness. I thank Him for the opportunity to be totally undone - completely reliant on Him - an empty vessel to be filled with the riches of Christ Jesus.
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