Good Tuesday morning. It was a rough start today as the kids had not gone to bed early enough. So they were tired, as was I. I couldn't get to sleep. I had a night of thinking way to much and worrying about the letter coming today, the bills due, and on and on!
I started my day with the Daily Audio Bible. I love this program so much. We start by reading in Gensis, then Matthew, Psalms and Proverbs. It is wonderful. Brian makes the stories come to life and then reviews what we read at the end. I love it.
Matthew 14: 13-36 This talks about the little boy with the five loaves and the two fish that then fed about five thousand men along with their wives and children. That little bit fed everyone until they were full and still there were 14 baskets left over. I think of that with our finances often. God makes that little bit stretch to cover everything. We have been tithing this year and it has been amazing how God has blessed us. This passage also talks about Peter walking on the water and his lack of faith. Boy, I am so often like Peter loosing my focus and starting to sink. I cry out to God and He reaches out his hand and pulls me back up. Why do I loose that faith?
Psalms 18: 35-50 and Proverbs 4:11-13... these scriptures show us that God has such great power to do whatever He wants. He will work through us and He gives us all the tools we need to carry out His will. If only we have the faith and the willingness to do what HE asks of us. Many times we feel we aren't able to do what He has asked OR we are just not listening to what He is saying!
Life is hard. Times are tough. But God has a purpose for all that has happened. Some of us had made bad choices to get us where we are. While others, have continued to live by faith and yet life is still so hard. Some people get angry and feel these tough times give them the right to be mad at the world and hold on to it. Freedom is availble to all of us. We can look at these tough times and harbor hatred and anger or we can use these times to build character. We show God's love through tough times ... we don't have to be bitter. Joseph should us this perfectly when his brothers sold him into slavery. When they came to him years later and needed help, he gave it to them and loved his brothers in spite of their terrible deeds.
Matthew 5:6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Colossians 3 clearly speaks about making sure we are focussed on God and God alone. We are to put away the earthly things. We are to stay pure and keep our focus on God alone. We are to put away anger, malice, and slander. We are not to talk about others and to not lie to each other! We are to ask Him for His grace in our need to follow Him. We are to ask Him for the grace to live in that grace. When we take those difficult steps we will see the power of the gospel, and the power of fear will diminish with each step. It is difficult but as we know, All things are possible with God!
Please Lord help me to use the hard times as another chapter in my testimony for you. Life has many wonderful parts. There have been so many wonderful joyful times in my life. You have blessed me with so many miracles like finding my birth Mother and my wonderful siblings. You have blessed me with a wonderful Husband and three beautiful children. You blessed me with Parents who loved me and raised me to love you. You have taken care of me and my family in ways I could never have imagined.
Help me be a walking testimony to your love and your goodness. Help me be submissive to Your will. My goal for 2013 is to be in Your will in all I do. I love You Lord.
I am looking forward to the awesome things God has planned for the day ahead. A dear friend sent me a little saying that I have pinned on my wall. It says, When God takes something from your grasp, He is not punishing you, but merely opening your hands to receive something better. The will of God will never take you where the Grace of God will not protect you. Thank you Lord for those words of comfort! Amen
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