His Beautiful Eyes

*

For the eyes of the LORD

move to and fro

throughout the earth

that He may strongly support

those whose heart

is completely His.

2 Chronicles 16:9a

Precious Handmaidens,

do not ever believe the lie that you are alone. 

You are His dearly loved child,

worth far more than a little bird which He knows very well.

He is with you to strongly support you,

to strengthen you,

because your heart is completely His.  

Run to Him in all things

and know that He is upholding you

throughout your trials.

Praise His Holy Name!

* 

Legalisms Tickle Ears, Damage People

2Timothy 4:1-5
I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom:

preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.

But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

Recovering Grace is again on my heart with this post by Karen,
Here's the Courtship; Where's the Love?

Karen gives her account of legalistic courtship and she shares seven steps, offset by her humor, which thankfully relieves the pain associated with this dating technique gone awry.

Step 1: God reveals to a young man whom he is to marry. Bonus points if he is not attracted to her and/or her existence is pointed out to him by an authority. He cannot, of course, know her well since anything more than a nodding acquaintance with a member of the opposite sex is dangerous. So any confidence he has in proceeding can only come from direct revelation.

I love the "bonus points" humor she adds to her descriptions, as I well understand the ridiculousness of legalists who make up rules as they go.  Everything legalists scheme seems to be one more way to control and manipulate everyone involved.

This subject matter is heavy as all of this (and things like this) have to do with people - real people.  These real people have families, extended families, friends, then spouses, and then families of their own.  Each person, and even people beyond whom I have mentioned, are affected by the initial legalistic teachings which can be devastating and destroying to each and every person involved.

As I grew older and watched others try to follow this procedure, I began to have my doubts. Sometimes parents would be gung ho about “God’s leading” and then a few months later would “no longer have peace” and call it off. Did God really change His mind, or were the parents not quite infallible? Either way, it was harsh for those who had been taught to save themselves emotionally as well as physically for the one-and-only and then saw the whole thing blow up in their face.

Plus, children were supposed to defer to parents because parents were older and wiser and not likely to be moved by such unspiritual, changeable factors as physical attractiveness. But it seemed like parents themselves were often concerned with unspiritual, changeable factors like money or social standing or doctrinal minutiae or losing control.

Karen's main point concerns the legalistic way of courting without allowing a real relationship between the young people.  Getting to know a person was controlled by the leadership, then by the parents.   The single person was treated as if they can not think, reason, decide.  This is far beyond listening or requesting wise advice.  With the skewed way of letting the list,* and then parents, be in control and not letting the young couple naturally get to know each other (as if this was evil), Karen reveals the problems which contributed to early marriage relationship.

Just at the point in our lives when we were supposed to be leaving our old families and forging a new one—just when we should have been treated as full adults—we were treated as young children again. We had rules we had to follow. Parental approval to win. We could have fought it, but we didn’t. We just complied.

In the process, we learned not to talk to God and each other to make decisions. Instead of finding out how we wanted to do things, we just did as we’d been told. It took us years of marriage to learn to actually talk to each other about major decisions.

The Bible says the goal is to leave the old family and cleave to each other. Courtship taught us that the goal was to please our old families and hold back from each other. The wedding didn’t flip a magic switch that changed that dynamic.

I write this not to depress anyone (even myself---argh!), but to remind each of us that there are hurting people out there.  The "church," with its legalisms, has hurt so many no matter how well meaning anyone has been.

Handmaidens, we rub shoulders with those hurt people.  Some of us are those hurt people so we well know the agony and damage that comes from wrong teachings.  No matter if we are the hurt or we know the hurt, we can walk alongside and mentor those who have been deceived in legalistic teachings.  Many, many times legalistic teachings cripple or side line Christians in their faith for a life time.   We need only to open our eyes so we can see the spiritually wounded.  Let us show Jesus' compassion, full of grace and mercy with His truth.

*Ahh---the list.  The list is ever changing.  The list is different for every legalist.  The list is always nagging and pulling at the deceived.  The list never lets the deceived be free.  The list draws deceived away from God.  The list replaces, or eventually replaces, the Holy Spirit as the deceived do not have to rely on God, but rely the list.  The list is a red flag.  Beware of any list.  Be a Berean and search the scriptures daily.

Acts 17:10-1
The brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews.  Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.  Therefore many of them believed, along with a number of prominent Greek women and men. 

Love the Author

Let's keep taking time to read the Bible.  The more we search the Word, the more we'll grow in our love for it and its Author.
Anne Cetas, rbc

O how I love Your law!

It is my meditation all the day.

Your commandments make me wiser than my enemies,

For they are ever mine.

I have more insight than all my teachers,

For Your testimonies are my meditation.

I understand more than the aged,

Because I have observed Your precepts.

I have restrained my feet from every evil way,

That I may keep Your word.

I have not turned aside from Your ordinances,

For You Yourself have taught me.

How sweet are Your words to my taste!

Yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth!

From Your precepts I get understanding;

Therefore I hate every false way.

Psalm 119:97-104

The more you read the Bible,

the more you'll love the Author.

 

The ugliness of people played out: Money

Money:  The root of all evil?

1 Timothy 6:10
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil: which some reaching after have been led astray from the faith, and have pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

According to God's Word, money is a root of all sorts or kinds of evil.

First, there is me and how I think of and deal with or without money.   I am a sinner and already know how it affects me.

From this point I can observe others.  I watch those I know who love the LORD with all  of their lives.   It is remarkable how knowing Jesus as your Savior can change your whole perspective on life, money included, if you allow it.

There are also those who do not handle the desire for money very well at all.   They could be Christians or non-Christians.  This sin for the greed of money is not particular.

Finally there are your own family members whose desire for their inheritance before or after their parents have died.  The anguish that it causes to the parent or parents is so great---touching their deepest emotions.  Their own flesh and blood whom they have given their lives and loved dearly, have now turned their own parents into a conduit for wealth--whatever that wealth entails.

Let's not forget the siblings who stand in their way for this wealth they so desire and then become just fodder in this battle they must win.  Money is so important that these children do not see rightly and the human damage is continually done.  What does this get them?  I have heard of so many sad, sad stories of families destroyed for the love of money, as well as the higher cost, the disrespect and dishonor that is shown the emotionally wounded parents.

Concerning sin:  People who do not want to hear you, will not hear you.  Thus the ugliness of people played out is not enjoyable, but we, as handmaidens to God, can rise above how we or others dear to us are treated because of the evil desires money produces in people. 

It is not just those who have a lust for money who suffer great griefs and destructions.  We who are the battle damage must rise up and be the compassion and the comfort to those who are hurt by the greedy.  We can comfort those who love Jesus with God's wisdom and compassion and what an opportunity to share the Good News of Jesus and His hope with those who are not saved by His grace, but who are hurt by the greedy.  Our opportunities to shower mercy and grace are many.


1 Timothy 6
All who are under the yoke as slaves are to regard their own masters as worthy of all honor so that the name of God and our doctrine will not be spoken against.  Those who have believers as their masters must not be disrespectful to them because they are brethren, but must serve them all the more, because those who partake of the benefit are believers and beloved. Teach and preach these principles.

If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness,  he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions,  and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain.

But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment.  For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either.  If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content. 

But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction.  For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.


But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness.  Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 

I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate,  that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,  which He will bring about at the proper time—He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords,  who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.


Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy.  Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share,  storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.

 O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge”—  which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith.


Grace be with you.

An Agony Without End

2 Corinthians 1:2-7
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.  For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ.  But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer;  and our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort.

After time drones on and on our sorrows can seemingly look like, feel like, and be like an agony without end.

But are they without end?

This very hot, dry summer has been agonizing for me, and it just continues to drone on like sorrows.  The grass is completely brown with only the weeds comically poking through as green plant-like fireworks above the grass which can’t be mowed because it is so dry.  We are now so used to this sight that we are numb to it.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I was out in the spring before the weather turned hot and dry finally transplanting perennials.  Since this dry spell began, I have only kept hand watering just these certain places of transplants, my potted flowers, window boxes, and I also keep the bird baths clean and full.

This must be done everyday.  If I miss one day of watering in the early morning or late evening, the heat of the day sometimes reaches over a hundred degrees which can be too much for these certain plants.  Further more, in the transplant area, I am watering much of what I do not even see.  Although no one would believe there are plants in these spots, I know the plants personally because I put them there.  Only their leaves have faded away with their new roots still alive below the surface.

Going out everyday to water and clean the bird baths and feed them takes a certain amount of time.  Sometimes it is pleasant with a breeze, it is quiet except for the birds, and I can feel alone and private in this special time.  Other times when I need to do many other things, the watering routine can be a chore just to get over with so I can do what seems more important and do that which is needed to be accomplished.

One of those “chore” days I was watering and could hardly wait to be finished.  I was lamenting the days, the times, the hardships, the waiting---and then I sighed.  Just that single sigh made me realize that this day was predicted to reach one hundred degrees and yet at that moment the breeze, the sky, the birds were beautiful.  All of my lamenting had almost prevented me from missing that precious time being alone and private.  I laughed when I thought of how many summers I have not had to be out watering transplants in the heat, but how --this spring-- I had gotten out and “did next things” like I always counsel others to do.  I believe the LORD had prompted me then to get out and do those transplanting this spring so that now --everyday-- I must go out and water.  I may be looking all around as everything else suffers from the dry heat, but I also enjoy what is surviving and will be surviving because of my efforts.  Instead of staying inside in the cool and waiting for the weather and temperature to break, I do go out and do next things.  More importantly, I have alone and private times with Him while I do my “chores”.

This was a breath of fresh air for my dry, inner person who is sometimes worn out from waiting.  He is all of my strength, all of my comfort. He is full of compassion and I can truly rest in Him when I am dry.  When I rest in Him, when I run to Him, then I am able to have the strength to comfort and encourage others.

Are your and my agonizing sorrows without end?  We serve a just God, a compassionate God.  As we wait for His timing in whatever our agony, we can trust that He is working and working quickly in His perfect time.

"... will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them?   I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly..."
Luke 18:7-8

Gladness

Psalm 9:1-2

I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart;

I will tell of all Your wonders.

I will be glad and exult in You;

I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.

 

Persistence

Jesus teaches about the persistent widow.  We need to contemplate how much more should we trust Him.

Luke 18:1-8

Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart, saying, 

“In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not respect man.

There was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, 

‘Give me legal protection from my opponent.’ 

For a while he was unwilling; but afterward he said to himself, 

‘Even though I do not fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection, otherwise by continually coming she will wear me out.’” 

And the Lord said, 

“Hear what the unrighteous judge said; 

now, will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them?

I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. 

However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”

*

Handmaidens, will we be found faithful?   This life is full of woes and these woes can become overwhelming to where we are worn out physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.  Let us never give up praying, praising, and glorifying God no matter what is happening in our lives.  

Life is getting more tough as this world passes away.  Let us begin now drawing closer to Him in prayer and praise so that it becomes our natural choice and He will find us faithful when He comes again.

2 Timothy 4:3-5

 For the time will come 

when they will not endure sound doctrine; 

but wanting to have their ears tickled, 

they will accumulate for themselves 

teachers in accordance to their own desires, 

and will turn away their ears from the truth 

and will turn aside to myths.

But you, be sober in all things, 

endure hardship, 

do the work of an evangelist, 

fulfill your ministry.
*

Why Should My Heart Be Sad?

This is my Father's world, 

and to my listening ears 

all nature sings, and round me rings 

the music of the spheres.  

This is my Father's world:  

I rest me in the thought 

of rocks and trees, of skies and seas; 

his hand the wonders wrought.

This is my Father's world, 

the birds their carols raise, 

the morning light, the lily white, 

declare their maker's praise.  

This is my Father's world:  

he shines in all that's fair; 

in the rustling grass I hear him pass; 

he speaks to me everywhere.

This is my Father's world.  

O let me ne'er forget 

that though the wrong seems oft so strong, 

God is the ruler yet.  

This is my Father's world:  

why should my heart be sad?  

The Lord is King; let the heavens ring!  

God reigns; let the earth be glad!

Maltbie D. Babcock

His grace lavished on us

I Never Get Use to What You Do

I look on the outside

You look on the heart

Where I see an ending

You can see another place to start

And every time I see Your hand reach down

I know a lonely child has just been found

But I never get used to what You do

I never get used to watching You

Take a life beyond redemption

Make it yours and make it new

I never outgrow the miracle

A heart that was empty flowing full

I never get used to what You do

I grew up surrounded by

The Family of Life

You'd think I would know by now

You'd think I would never be surprised

But every time it takes my breath away

And I think it is time You heard me say

But I never get used to what You do

I never get used to watching You

Take a life beyond redemption

Make it yours and make it new

I never outgrow the miracle

A heart that was empty flowing full

I never get used to what You do

Father of grace and love without end

God of forgiveness, Faithful Friend

Every time I see your hand reach down

Another lonely child has just been found

Every day Your mercy is brand new

And we would all be lost if not for You

By Twila Paris

*
 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace  which He lavished on us.
Ephesians 1:7-8a

Turn Your eyes upon Jesus #2



Turn your eyes upon Jesus,

Look full in His wonderful face,

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,

In the light of His glory and grace.

Words & Music: Helen H. Lemmel, 1922

 
This hymn was first pub­lished in Glad Songs, by the Brit­ish Na­tion­al Sun­day School Un­ion. Its lyr­ics were in­spired by the Gos­pel tract Fo­cused, by Lil­i­as Trot­ter, which in­clud­ed these words:

So then, turn your eyes upon Him, look full in­to His face and you will find that the things of earth will ac­quire a strange new dim­ness.

Helen Howarth Lemmel
Born: No­vem­ber 14, 1863, War­dle, Eng­land. Died: No­vem­ber 1, 1961, at her home in Se­at­tle, Wash­ing­ton
Buried: Lemmel was cre­mat­ed, but her fin­al rest­ing place is un­known to us.

Daughter of a Meth­od­ist min­is­ter, Hel­en em­i­grat­ed from Eng­land with her fam­i­ly to Amer­i­ca when she was 12 years old. They first set­tled in Miss­iss­ip­pi, then re­lo­cat­ed to Wis­con­sin. She moved to Se­at­tle in 1904, and for three years was mu­sic cri­tic for the Se­at­tle Post-In­tel­li­genc­er.

While in­ter­view­ing Ger­man sing­er Er­nest­ine Schu­mann-Hein, Hel­en was per­suad­ed to go to Eur­ope. A gift­ed sing­er, she stu­died mu­sic in Ger­ma­ny for four years. Up­on her re­turn to Amer­i­ca, she be­gan giv­ing con­certs and tra­vel­ing on the Chau­tau­qua cir­cuit.

Event­u­al­ly, she be­came a vo­cal mu­sic teach­er at the Moo­dy Bi­ble In­sti­tute in Chi­ca­go, Il­li­nois. Af­ter re­tire­ment, she moved to Se­at­tle, Wash­ing­ton, where she was a mem­ber of the Bal­lard Bap­tist Church. Among her works are a hymn­al used by evan­gel­ist Bil­ly Sun­day for over a de­cade. Lem­mel and a wo­men’s chor­al group she di­rect­ed were part of Sun­day’s group at the peak of his ca­reer.

Hebrews 12:1-3

Therefore, since we have

so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us,

 let us also lay aside every encumbrance

and the sin which so easily entangles us,

and let us run with endurance

the race that is set before us,

fixing our eyes on Jesus,

the author and perfecter of faith,

who for the joy set before Him endured the cross,

despising the shame,

and has sat down

at the right hand of the throne of God. 

For consider Him who has endured such hostility

by sinners against Himself,

so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

What's your response?

Live, Laugh, Love Life is not the way it's supposed to be. It's the way it is. The way we cope with it,  is what makes the difference. Life is what it is. But we have the LORD, and He becomes more magnificent each day as we draw closer to Him. * 2 Corinthians 3:18  But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. *

Are the roots dead?

It has been a hot, dry, early summer in the mid-west.  Very dry--so dry that the grass is brown and practically everything that is growing is stunted even if it is watered.

Psalm 143
Prayer for Deliverance and Guidance. 
A Psalm of David.

Hear my prayer, O Lord,
Give ear to my supplications!
Answer me in Your faithfulness, in Your righteousness!
And do not enter into judgment with Your servant,
For in Your sight no man living is righteous.
For the enemy has persecuted my soul;
He has crushed my life to the ground;
He has made me dwell in dark places,
like those who have long been dead.
Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me;
My heart is appalled within me.

I remember before this dry weather spell began, I planted a big bag of fertilized giant zinnia seeds which germinated almost immediately.  It was such a joy to see those healthy plants growing, and I breathed in an anticipation of gorgeous, green plants with beautiful flowers.  The colors would be an array and full of every kind of butterfly.

Eventually the upper 90 degree days began with a hot wind sucking the moisture away.  The rabbits found almost every baby zinia plant, and I could not blame them for finding something with moisture in it to eat.  My hope of color in the dog days of summer faded, and my mouth seemed as dry as the ground. 

The state of our land is like my soul.  I am in a dry and weary land--parched where a drink of cool water will seemingly be evaporated practically as I swallow it.  I run to Him and He comforts me.  I rest in Him and the chaos quiets down.  I remember my pain and look away for a moment where I am parched again just like the thunder storm's heavy rains leave no result on the cracked ground. 

And so my days are filled with running to Him over and over.  This is okay because He reaches down and touches my parched soul and lifts my head each time.   No condemnation from Him for grieving, but joy that I run to Him again and again.  He is all my strength and I trust in Him alone.

I remember the days of old;
I meditate on all Your doings;
I muse on the work of Your hands.
I stretch out my hands to You;
My soul longs for You, as a parched land.
Answer me quickly, O Lord, my spirit fails;
Do not hide Your face from me,
Or I will become like those who go down to the pit.
Let me hear Your lovingkindness in the morning;
For I trust in You;
Teach me the way in which I should walk;
For to You I lift up my soul.

Long before the zinnia seeds were 'on the list' to be planted this spring, I had begun transplanting perennials all around in my special "secret garden," which is just beyond our screened porch and back windows for us to enjoy.  A friend had said to me jokingly one day that a perennial plant isn't really planted permanately until it has been transplanted at least seven times.  For me this is probably half true! 

My "secret garden" is our youngest flower bed and, besides being weeded, it hasn't been touched much until last year.  My plan for this spring was to get it more like I want it--in other words, tall perennials not on the edges.  I was able to do so much work in it this early spring.  The weather was perfect, the transplants were doing so well.  It was an exciting feeling to actually accomplish something well.

Life doesn't always work out as we plan, and so for most of May the sun shone and I was not able to water the transplants regularly.  Fairly soon many of the transplanted perennials were drying up and it was too late to revive them.  They browned and shriveled into nothingness.  There is no memory of them at their new places except in my mind.  I continiue to water them because I learned long ago that a perennial's life is in the roots.

PERENNIAL:
1.lasting through a whole year
2.lasting for a very long time;enduring
3.having underground parts that live more than two years
PERENNIALLY:
1.abiding, continual, permanent, everlasting, eternal

Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies;
I take refuge in You.
Teach me to do Your will,
For You are my God;
Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.
For the sake of Your name, O Lord, revive me.
In Your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble.
And in Your lovingkindness, cut off my enemies
And destroy all those who afflict my soul,
For I am Your servant.

Each perennial is planted, but you could not know this unless I showed you where they are.  Are the roots dead?  They sure do give that impression with no evidence of growth even though I continue to water them.  But I know the roots are there.  Even though I water, the roots are behaving like they are supposed to in a dry, and dusty land.  In the autumn or in the spring we will see new growth and the fruit of my early 2012 spring labor will be evident.

In my inner most person I am wounded beyond words where only the Holy Spirit can interpret for me to the LORD God on High.  He knows all about me even to my inner most being. 

Also in my inner most person is my hope and trust in the One and Only.  The One who is able to do far more than I can imagine continues to be permanent, and everlasting in me as I abide in Him.  He lives in me!  I am never alone even if I sometimes I forget momentarily about my roots. I don't have to wait a season to be revived for He is with me always and He lifts my head even if I forget in my deepest despair.

My soul longs for You, as a parched land...
For to You I lift up my soul.

A Reflection of God

As Americans we tend to have an attitude that "everything" is owed to us.  I suppose this came out of the freedom in which we grew up.

Concerning our precious salvation in the LORD, as American Believers we can sometimes wonder "why" our lives aren't as hunky-dory as we think they should be.

As this trying time grows dim in our American history, I think we will finally realize how precious our freedom was as we lose it.  But no matter what time it is in history, our faith in God does not mean our life on earth would ever be all hunky-dory.

God's design to save us from our sins was just that.  He saved us from being separated from Him eternally through the sacrifice of His Son.  Jesus gave the ultimate sacrifice of shedding His spotless, sinless blood where no other sacrifice would ever be needed again.  He died once for all.

His Salvation wasn't to make us happy;  Salvation from the Almighty Holy God was to make us a reflection of Him.

As we choose to draw nearer to Him each day, we will become more of a reflection of Him.  What a wonderful day it will be when others see Him in us.  It may be a joy because others will see our kindness, love, and mercy played out more than ever before.  It also will be a joy when the world hates us, persecutes us, or discards us, because of God's reflection in us.  Don't despair, for when this happens we can still reflect Him so that other people will see and choose to seek the One True God.

Handmaidens, the world is watching us.  "Christianity" to the world is not viewed as what true Christianity really is.  The world needs to see God's reflection in each of us as we respond in a more and more evil world.  You are not alone, God is with you!

I shall be whiter than snow!

Each one of us is a sinner.  Together we could share our sins and even decide who has the "worst" sins, but where would this get us?  Each of us would still be a sinner and we would not be able to face a holy God.

Sin separates us from God.  He has a way to solve this separation.  Our sin is real and can not be explained away.  Our holy, spotless God has a way to cover these sins, so even though our sins are red like crimson, He chooses not to see them through the precious blood of Jesus, His Son, our Savior.  He lavished His love on us through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.  His blood then cleansed those who accept His sacrifice.  We, then, can be brand new each day.

I learned this as a child and I accepted it as a child.  As an adult I realized the truth of it even more so, but it was only when great tragedy struck my life that the knowledge of what God chose to do for me really began to register in a real and personal way.  In my inner most person, I began to realize what all this meant to a greater degree.  I praise God, for I have never been the same.  I view life differently, I view people differently, and I certainly view my gracious, Almighty God in a more humble, loving, thankful, gracious attitude.

This blog has come from Him working in me these years, and me allowing His life-changing love to envelope me.  I am not a scholar nor a writer, but He helps me put down what has touched my heart for Him. 

Precious Handmaidens~~~may you run to Him, rest in Him, find your strength in Him as you realize what a huge and awesome thing God has done for you.  He saved you through the precious blood of Jesus, and made it possible for you to repent at any moment and begin brand new in Him so that when He sees us, we are whiter than snow!

Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Make me to hear joy and gladness,
Let the bones which You have broken rejoice.
Hide Your face from my sins
And blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Psalm 51:7-10

“Come now, and let us reason together,”
Says the Lord,
“Though your sins are as scarlet,
They will be as white as snow;
Though they are red like crimson,
They will be like wool.
Isaiah 1:18

Come now, let us reason together

White as snow, white as snow

Though my sins were as scarlet

Lord, I know, Lord, I know

That I'm clean and forgiven

Through the power of Your blood

Through the wonder of Your love

Through faith in You

I know that I can be

White as snow

 

Leon Olguin

 

Isaiah 1:18