Have you ever had something in your life that you would call a complete disaster?
No matter who we are, I think each of us has experienced some sort of disaster in our lives. The degrees of disaster are different...but when we're experiencing it, to us, it's the worst thing ever. It could be a failed test in college, a break-up with a significant other, the loss of a parent, a failed business deal, and the list goes on and on. Fill in the blank for your own personal disaster.
"The time ______ happened."
During those times, you feel lost, alone, afraid, sad, maybe even angry. Angry at the situation, lost because you don't know what comes next, alone because you feel as though you're the only one suffering...etc.
Another disaster that we have been seeing all over the news lately is the earthquake and tsunami disaster in Japan. I'm not there, but I have a feeling that those people feel all those same emotions. Sad that they can't find their loved ones, angry because their home is gone, lost because they don't know how they'll bounce back from this, alone because they feel as though God has forgotten them. Just thinking about their situation over there is enough to make anyone stop in their tracks and be still for a moment.
I think too many times in our lives we only want to praise God when something has gone our way, when it is something we wanted to happen, when it benefits us. But God is all-powerful and all-knowing, shouldn't we praise Him even when things are going horribly wrong? When it feels like our world is caving in around us?
Look at the book of Job in the Bible. Job had everything he owned taken away from him, and yet, he still knew who God was and praised Him despite all of his suffering.
Job 1:20
"...The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away;
may the name of the LORD be praised.”
Job 2:9-10
9 "His wife said to him, 'Are you still maintaining
your integrity? Curse God and die!'
10 He replied, 'You are talking like a foolish woman.
Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?'"
Even when Job was covered in sores and his sons and daughters had been killed, he still praised God.
The other day while I was driving in my car, I had my iPod on shuffle mode, and I knew a specific genre that I wanted to hear. Well, my iPod decided it wanted me to hear a different category of tunes, songs from my worship playlist. One in particular stood out to me. The song was the David Crowder Band song called, "Never Let Go."
This song talks about how when times are the worst in our lives, God never lets go of us. Here are some verses that back this song up.
Deuteronomy 31:6
6 Be strong and courageous.
Do not be afraid or terrified because of them,
for the LORD your God goes with you; he will
never leave you nor forsake you.”
Isaiah 41:10
10 So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
I listened to the song and started crying in my car. It just struck such a cord in my heart that I hope I can share with you all. It was just such a crazy reminder for me that we need to praise God no matter what is going on in our lives. And take comfort in the fact that when bad things happen, God hasn't forgotten us. Because He's a loving Father! What kind of Father would leave their children alone when they are struggling? Take comfort, my friends. God hasn't left you. You're not alone. He never lets go.
Click here to listen to "Never Let Go" by David Crowder Band
Hope you enjoyed the song and it touched your heart as much as it touched mine. Your disaster is never too big for God to handle.
Til next time,
ST
Monday, March 28, 2011
Thursday, March 24, 2011
That's Not What I Needed To Hear...
Have you ever just had a moment...the kind of moment where you freak out for 30 minutes and then it's over. But you feel like you just have to freak out because that's how stressed you are? Believe me, I feel like that all the time.
The other day, I had a slight freak-out session about some debt that I have. It's not even THAT much, but the idea of ever getting it paid off just really seems impossible. So during my freak-out process...I decided to send lots of emails to people asking them for advice and help with stuff like this.
In response, one of my friends I emailed wrote to me and reminded me that God has always provided for me in the past, and I need to remember that God will always provide for me, and that I need to take comfort in that.
Great advice! What a reality check. I really needed that reminder.
But then the next day, that friend and I had an interesting conversation about his response to my frantic email. He said, "I'm sorry about my response. I know sometimes when people freak out like that, the last thing they want to hear is some quick easy answer like that."
I quickly assured him that his response was EXACTLY what I needed to hear and it brought me back to the reality that God IS my provider and my Heavenly Father will always have my best interest at heart.
But what's interesting to me is, how come when we are in a crisis, the last thing we want to hear is a "cliche" reminder of God's word or God's love for us? I mean...shouldn't that be the FIRST thing we want to hear? The love our God has for us is constant, never-failing, never-ending. Shouldn't that be the most comforting thing we could ever hear during any crisis we have?
Psalm 25:5
5 Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my Savior,
and my hope is in you all day long.
Psalm 62:5
5 Yes, my soul, find rest in God;
my hope comes from him.
Psalm 119:52
52 I remember, LORD, your ancient laws,
and I find comfort in them.
Psalm 119:76
76 May your unfailing love be my comfort,
according to your promise to your servant.
Psalm 119:114
114 You are my refuge and my shield;
I have put my hope in your word.
Psalm 147:11
11 the LORD delights in those who fear him,
who put their hope in his unfailing love.
And my friend was right! It IS an easy answer! Because it shouldn't be hard for us to remember how much our Father LOVES us and will always take care of us. As followers of Christ, comforting words from the Bible or other encouragement should be the first things out of our mouths when someone else is suffering. So as the suffer-ees...we should take extreme comfort when people send us encouraging words from the scriptures. Because those promises will never change!
Maybe we need to examine the words we truly want to hear when we are dealing with something tough. Maybe we need to desire to hear God's voice in all circumstances, not just when times are good.
Thinking about this the past few days has really been a great reality check for me. I hope for myself and for the rest of you, that anytime we have a crisis or a freak-out...the first thing we'll desire would be to hear God's word and His promises.
Til next time,
ST
The other day, I had a slight freak-out session about some debt that I have. It's not even THAT much, but the idea of ever getting it paid off just really seems impossible. So during my freak-out process...I decided to send lots of emails to people asking them for advice and help with stuff like this.
In response, one of my friends I emailed wrote to me and reminded me that God has always provided for me in the past, and I need to remember that God will always provide for me, and that I need to take comfort in that.
Great advice! What a reality check. I really needed that reminder.
But then the next day, that friend and I had an interesting conversation about his response to my frantic email. He said, "I'm sorry about my response. I know sometimes when people freak out like that, the last thing they want to hear is some quick easy answer like that."
I quickly assured him that his response was EXACTLY what I needed to hear and it brought me back to the reality that God IS my provider and my Heavenly Father will always have my best interest at heart.
But what's interesting to me is, how come when we are in a crisis, the last thing we want to hear is a "cliche" reminder of God's word or God's love for us? I mean...shouldn't that be the FIRST thing we want to hear? The love our God has for us is constant, never-failing, never-ending. Shouldn't that be the most comforting thing we could ever hear during any crisis we have?
Psalm 25:5
5 Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my Savior,
and my hope is in you all day long.
Psalm 62:5
5 Yes, my soul, find rest in God;
my hope comes from him.
Psalm 119:52
52 I remember, LORD, your ancient laws,
and I find comfort in them.
Psalm 119:76
76 May your unfailing love be my comfort,
according to your promise to your servant.
Psalm 119:114
114 You are my refuge and my shield;
I have put my hope in your word.
Psalm 147:11
11 the LORD delights in those who fear him,
who put their hope in his unfailing love.
And my friend was right! It IS an easy answer! Because it shouldn't be hard for us to remember how much our Father LOVES us and will always take care of us. As followers of Christ, comforting words from the Bible or other encouragement should be the first things out of our mouths when someone else is suffering. So as the suffer-ees...we should take extreme comfort when people send us encouraging words from the scriptures. Because those promises will never change!
Maybe we need to examine the words we truly want to hear when we are dealing with something tough. Maybe we need to desire to hear God's voice in all circumstances, not just when times are good.
Thinking about this the past few days has really been a great reality check for me. I hope for myself and for the rest of you, that anytime we have a crisis or a freak-out...the first thing we'll desire would be to hear God's word and His promises.
Til next time,
ST
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Rest
Have you ever felt like no matter what you do, you can't ever take a break? Relaxing is out of the question, and rest...just kiss that goodbye all together.
I don't think my cousin will mind me sharing a little story with you. Ok so yesterday, my cousin and I had a great phone conversation catching up about life, college, families, sports, and all the stress in between. She spent a little time sharing with me some things that really were giving her a hard time in college. She said she's got so much on her plate, that sometimes it's hard for her to find any peace or any rest or relaxation. So I tried to share a little piece of whatever wisdom I gained while I was in college, and tried my best to help her out. And by the end of our talk, I was happy because I got to catch up with her, and she was happy because she got to get some of those stressful things off her chest. She said it was one of the first times lately she's felt a little bit of peace. So that was a win in my eyes for both of us!
But I got to thinking...we ALL have experienced stuff like what my cousin is going through right now. Some of us are still right in the thick of it every day. We don't know when we'll get a break, we feel beaten up at the end of every day, we don't even know how to relax anymore.
I've felt like this a little the past few days. I've had some things weighing on my mind and heart that were just making my mind go nuts! My brain was on thinking overload and I really just needed a mental break from it all. And talking to a couple of my girls about the things going on in my life really made me feel a lot better, and I know my friends were glad they could be there for me.
Isn't this exactly what our relationship with our Heavenly Father ought to be like? Life gets to be too much for us, and when we need to talk...we go to the Lord in prayer and lay everything down at His feet. Just as I was so happy to talk to my cousin, and my friends were so happy to listen to what I had going on, God LOVES when His children talk to Him! He knows how stressed out we are, and He wants to take away our burdens from us.
Here are some great verses in the Bible where God talks about giving rest to His children.
Psalm 16:8-10
8 I keep my eyes always on the LORD.
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
10 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful[a] one see decay.
Psalm 62:5-6
5 Yes, my soul, find rest in God;
my hope comes from him.
6 Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
Psalm 91:1
1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
Matthew 11:28-30
28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
And just as my cousin felt better after talking to me, and I felt better after talking to my friends, so we all will feel better after talking to God about everything that goes on in our lives. Lay it at His feet and forget about it. He wants to take away all the madness from us and let us rest in knowing our Heavenly Daddy is taking amazing care of us! Enjoy the rest and peace that comes from our God.
Til next time,
ST
I don't think my cousin will mind me sharing a little story with you. Ok so yesterday, my cousin and I had a great phone conversation catching up about life, college, families, sports, and all the stress in between. She spent a little time sharing with me some things that really were giving her a hard time in college. She said she's got so much on her plate, that sometimes it's hard for her to find any peace or any rest or relaxation. So I tried to share a little piece of whatever wisdom I gained while I was in college, and tried my best to help her out. And by the end of our talk, I was happy because I got to catch up with her, and she was happy because she got to get some of those stressful things off her chest. She said it was one of the first times lately she's felt a little bit of peace. So that was a win in my eyes for both of us!
But I got to thinking...we ALL have experienced stuff like what my cousin is going through right now. Some of us are still right in the thick of it every day. We don't know when we'll get a break, we feel beaten up at the end of every day, we don't even know how to relax anymore.
I've felt like this a little the past few days. I've had some things weighing on my mind and heart that were just making my mind go nuts! My brain was on thinking overload and I really just needed a mental break from it all. And talking to a couple of my girls about the things going on in my life really made me feel a lot better, and I know my friends were glad they could be there for me.
Isn't this exactly what our relationship with our Heavenly Father ought to be like? Life gets to be too much for us, and when we need to talk...we go to the Lord in prayer and lay everything down at His feet. Just as I was so happy to talk to my cousin, and my friends were so happy to listen to what I had going on, God LOVES when His children talk to Him! He knows how stressed out we are, and He wants to take away our burdens from us.
Here are some great verses in the Bible where God talks about giving rest to His children.
Psalm 16:8-10
8 I keep my eyes always on the LORD.
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
10 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful[a] one see decay.
Psalm 62:5-6
5 Yes, my soul, find rest in God;
my hope comes from him.
6 Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
Psalm 91:1
1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
Matthew 11:28-30
28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
And just as my cousin felt better after talking to me, and I felt better after talking to my friends, so we all will feel better after talking to God about everything that goes on in our lives. Lay it at His feet and forget about it. He wants to take away all the madness from us and let us rest in knowing our Heavenly Daddy is taking amazing care of us! Enjoy the rest and peace that comes from our God.
Til next time,
ST
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