God - Our Shelter From The Storm

Is God calling you to come closer to Him?  Does your “relationship” with Him need some quality time?  Are you hurting and just can’t seem to see your way through it?  I know your pain.  I’ve been there, too.  The day I hit my knees and yelled at God is a day that I will remember the rest of my life because it was the day that I realized my total dependence upon Him!  He is in control and I needed to let God be God and allow Him to be my refuge.  The bible says God is our refuge.  This means that He is our shelter and protection from danger.  So when we are going through difficulties in our life we need to remember that He cares and He is there with us protecting us from harm.  He is in control and no matter what; everything is going to be alright.  This is our hope in Him.

This was an amazing realization for me.  That in times of trouble; no matter what I am going through God is my shelter and my strength and He is always present – my refuge.   God is our refuge and strength, a helper who is always found in times of trouble.  Psalm 46:1  I cannot tell you how many times God opened my eyes to His love and mercy through His Word.  It is no wonder that the bible is called the bread of life because without it we would all die from spiritual malnutrition.

 

I know I am not the only person on the planet that has pain and suffering in my life.  I also know that every human being that ever lived, will live or is living now is not immune to sorrow, heartache and loss.  The only difference between me and the rest of the world is my relationship with God.  Mine is different from your relationship with God and your relationship is different than everyone else’s relationship with God.  We all serve the same God and He loves all of His children the same but teaches us according to our own understanding.  The more we read His Word the more understanding we have and therefore the more understanding He gives.

 

I don’t know about you but I want to know as much about God as I possibly can.  I want Him to fill my heart, mind and spirit with who He is.  The only way He can do this is for me to read His word each day and fill my mind with His goodness, mercy and amazing grace.

 

We serve an awesome, powerful Creator who says that He is our refuge and our shelter in times of trouble.  He will never leave us nor forsake us. He is my refuge; my shelter and protector from the storms of life.  My life is in His hands and I trust Him to keep me safe.

SCRIPTURE

The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.  Psalm 9:9

My salvation and glory depend on God; Trust in Him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts before Him.  God is our refuge.  Psalm 62:7-8

I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”  Psalm 91: 2

Faithful Until The End

Sometimes I wish I could be more like the Apostle Paul in his perseverance of serving the Lord.  He never let anything get in his way of serving His Lord or preaching the Gospel.  His sufferings were unparalleled.  He received forty strips on several occasions, he was beaten with rods three times, he was stoned once and shipwrecked three times.  His appearance was weak and his speech contemptible yet he pressed on preaching the glory of the Messiah. 

What about Job?  He lost all of his children, his wealth and his health all in one day.  He was covered with boils and smelled like rotten flesh yet he never stopped worshiping God and he never blamed Him for his suffering. 

Hurt, heartache, disappointment and hardships happen throughout each of our lives.  Some people experience more than their share of these and we wonder why?  Why does God allow so much pain into one family? What is His purpose?  Sometimes it is crystal clear but most times we are uncertain of God’s purpose for our suffering.  We can, however, be certain of one thing – we will know all things when we meet our Savior face to face.  Until that time we must continue to trust in the Lord and have faith that He is in control and that all things will work together for good for those who love Him.  Romans 8:28  And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

We have a purpose in life and that purpose is not about us, our family our job or status in the community; it is about worshiping the Holy God of Heaven and sharing our faith with the lost.  God expects us to be obedient in sharing His Word with the outer most parts of the world.  To you and me the outer most parts of the world could be in our own back yard or even be in our own household. 

We all have suffered in this life and there is no doubt that we will have more sorrow and heartache before our time on earth is through.  As long as we keep our eye on the prize (salvation) we will have peace and joy in our hearts and our lives will be filled with the glory of our Heavenly Father. 

2      Corinthians 1:3-11 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.  For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.  If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.  And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.  We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life.  Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.  He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.

2 Corinthians 4:15-18   this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.  Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.  For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.   So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Unsaved

How many of us know people who are kind, generous, sincere, loving and just seem to be naturally good people?  They live their life with honesty and integrity and treat others kindly.  They give to local charities and can always be counted on to help someone in need.   You might describe this person as a Christian, right?  What if they are Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, Mormon or a follower of any of the other false religions out there?  If they are not saved by the blood of Jesus than that person, as “good” as they are will not join us in paradise.

 

This realization came to me after I was treated in an emergency situation by a surgeon who was of another religion.  Before I met this surgeon I made a phone call to inquire about her, I asked the doctor on call about her and the nurse on call about her.  When she came in to examine me I had a few questions for her as well.  I was concerned more about her competency than her religion at that time.  She had a gentleness about her and she seemed genuinely concerned for my wellbeing.  After talking with her about her credentials and her skill on this particular surgery I was comfortable that she was a capable surgeon and I put my trust in her.

 

That evening when she came in to check on me and go over what she found and what she did during surgery I was again impressed by her gentleness and genuine concern for me.  After she left my room I thought,”I won’t see her in heaven”.  That was a life changing moment for me.  Hell is going to be filled with “good” people.  It’s not going to just be filled with evil people like rapists and murders it’s going to be filled with people like her, too.  That was a very sad realization for me!

 

The next day my step-daughter comes in for a short visit on her way to Houston and we talked about a friend of hers that is Muslim.  She said “she is the nicest person I have ever met.  The only thing that is Muslim about her is she doesn’t drink.  Other than that she really isn’t”.  Wow, was the Holy Spirit working overtime on me or what???  I told her about my concern for this surgeon and now for her friend; that we will not see them in heaven because they are not saved.  They don’t believe in Jesus and He is the only way to get to heaven.  It was hard to say but I said it anyway.  I pray I planted the seed for her to open up a dialogue with her friend and change eternity for someone she obviously cares a lot about.  I also pray that I have the courage to speak with this surgeon about Jesus when I go for my check up in two weeks. 

Scripture

He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.  John 3:36

Special Prayers??

When my grandchildren were in Children’s Hospital in Little Rock suffering from life threatening injuries I began to doubt my relationship with God because my prayers were going unanswered.  I thought maybe I wasn’t praying the right way or using the right words.  Maybe God wasn’t answering because I didn’t have that “special” way of praying to Him.  All kinds of thoughts ran through my mind as I tried desperately to understand what was happening to these precious children and why God seemed to be silent.

I met a lady online.  I really don’t remember how we came in contact with each other but I was desperate and willing to try just about anything.  After many long conversations on the phone and several emails back and forth I was convinced she was the one who could “reach” God on our behalf.  I was convinced that her relationship with God was way better than mine and God would surely listen to her.

 

I bought her an airline ticket from Chicago to Little Rock so she could pray over Sarah and Jason as we all laid hands on them.  She spent the night at the hospital so she could say a very special prayer called The Prayer to The Divine at the 3 o’clock hours.  The time of these prayers is supposed to hold special power because it is the time when our Lord breathed his last.

 

I dropped her off at the airport the next morning.  I thanked her for her time and for making the trip all this way just to pray for my grandchildren.  It was a really kind and compassionate thing to do especially for a complete stranger.     But why didn’t I feel better about the situation?  Didn’t she have a “special bond” with God that I didn’t have?  Didn’t she have the “special prayers” that I didn’t know?  Why didn’t God answer her prayers either?

I realized that it was up to me to develop my own special bond with God.  This lady as devout as she was wasn’t any more saved than I was.  It just seemed that way at the time.  I realized through prayer and scripture reading that God hears the prayers of His children, all of His children.  I was wrong in my thinking.  God is not a respecter of persons.  He loves me as much as He loves you and as much as He loves that dear lady.  He loves us all the same!  What an amazing and comforting realization that was for me during my darkest hours.

Scripture

Hear my prayer, O LORD, give ear to my supplications: in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness.  Psalm 143:1

Prayer

I awoke early in order to get ready and be in Tyler by 10:45 this morning.  I’ve been wanting to visit a church there and my youngest son said he would go with me (he lives in Tyler).  What a blessing it turned out to be!  The preacher asked some very challenging questions of the congregation about the year that just ended and the one the one we just started.  To my surprise and delight Jason engaged in this challenge and answered the questions right along with me.  I wanted so badly to peak at his paper but I didn’t.  I kept reminding myself that if he wanted me to see his answers he would show me.  Besides it was between him and God not between me and him.

The first question was “what prayers did God answer in 201o”?  Wow!  That was a long list for me but in the interest of time I kept it to three.  The second question was “who was a particular blessing to you in 2010”?   That was an easy question for me and one that I answered quickly.  The third was one that upon reflection I do more often that I realized.  “What blessings have you taken for granted over the past 12 months”?  Although I am thankful for so much and give God the glory I am guilty of taking so much for granted as well.

 

God has blessed me so much over the past year on so many levels.  My oldest son and his family are doing alright.  They still struggle but that is to be expected after everything they have been through.  I pray every day twice a day for them to put God in the center of their lives and for God to protect them from Satan and the heartache of divorce.  So far God has answered my prayers!  My youngest son has a wonderful and growing relationship with the Lord and this has been my prayer for many years. The Lord has been faithful in answering this mother’s prayers for her children and for that I am so very thankful!!  My health seems to be on the mend, too!  I have a wonderful Christian husband, a lovely home, a secure job, and a dependable vehicle.  What a very blessed year I have had indeed!!

As I look forward to the year ahead I want to continue to give God the opportunity to show His glory through me and the lives of my family.  There is nothing I’ve done or can do to change the hearts and minds of anyone but God can!  He is faithful and He hears the prayers of His children.  We have 5 children, 2 in-laws, 3 grand children, 5 siblings and their families, my parents and countless friends, our soldiers, our leaders and our Nation to pray for.  This should keep me very busy.

How about you?  Is there anyone in your life that needs someone to pray for them on a regular basis?  Is there someone you know who is struggling with divorce, addiction, job loss, family problems, etc?  Is there someone you want to see come to Christ this year?  If so, make a commitment to pray for them every day.  It will change their lives and it will bless yours at the same time.