Not Listening - Dinner #77

     After church, today, I took a photo of myself beside our van tire. Yep! You read that right! LOL! 

     You see, the devil has been trying to feed me his lies, all week.  “It would be more profitable for you to get a job than to homeschool your children.  You’ll never be able to pay your bills and save enough to be on deputation full-time.  You aren’t going to have enough gas to even make it to the next church meeting.  You’ve sold 1/3 of your furniture for nothing.  Your books are in boxes and your clothes are in suitcases for nothing.  You’ll never make it to Indonesia.  You’re wasting your time.  You’re not cut out for this.  If you DO finally get there, you’ll be too old to learn the language.  Your kids will succumb to every disease known to man.  Your marriage will fall apart.  You’ll fall flat on your face, and end up coming right back to the States.” Whew!  Does he ever want to hit us hard!  The spiritual warfare is REAL, My Friends!

     And when God sends me a sweet little “smile “ from Heaven, I’m going to rejoice in it! Even if it means bending down beside our van tire, and taking a photo.  Because, you know what, My Friends?  The Lord allowed me to discover something, today.  If you pull out your magnifying glass, you’ll see it, too. That tire of ours was “Made in Indonesia”! SMILE!  We are driving around on wheels that were made on the other side of the world, as we seek the prayer and the financial support we need to go there, ourselves! SMILE!  God is good! And He will get us there – for it is He that hath called us!  Psalm 57:2 “I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things for me.”

     The devil wants to battle our minds, and leave us too discouraged to take another step forward. He wants to leave me too fearful and “weary in well doing” (Galatians 6:9), to do anything more for God.  How easy it is to believe his lies!  But oh, how grateful I am that we serve a TRUSTWORTHY God! The Bible tells me, that “God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” (II Timothy 1:7) That is His promise to me.  The Bible says, “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”  (Isaiah 41:10)  That is His promise to me. 

     This morning, as we sang the hymn “Tis So Sweet To Trust In Jesus”, the words reached into my soul:

“'Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just to take Him at His Word

Just to rest upon His promise,
Just to know, "Thus saith the Lord!"

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him!
How I've proved Him o'er and o'er
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
Oh, for grace to trust Him more!”

     When the devil fights us long and hard, God is there.  “And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.” (Psalm 9:10) “Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God . . .” (Psalm 42:5) Satan is nothing but the “Father of Lies” (John 8:44), and by God’s grace, I’m not going to listen to him! I’m going to continue to place my faith and my hope in GOD! “In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.  Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.” (Psalm 62:7-8) Please make us strong, Dear God!  Please help us as we continue to “fight the good fight of faith” (I Timothy 6:12)!  Will you please continue praying for us, Dear Brethren In Christ?

The Gift Of Summer - Dinner #76

     I headed back towards the tree line, in our yard, after I laid the girls down for their nap, this afternoon.  We had used their sand pails from the beach, to gather items from a little “nature walk”, and my oldest daughter, Brooklyn, had discovered a pretty wildflower, we wanted to identify. Of course, there were gnats, and bees, and other undesirable insects, but the sunshine felt wonderful.  Upon my “return journey” – flower photo now successfully on my phone, for future “Google research” – I thanked the Lord, once again, for this awesome summer. 

     Sometimes my heart still sinks at the realization that I have no newborn to care for, but the gift God has handed to me this summer is a “non-nursing” summer – a summer with four little toddlers, preschoolers, and school girls. This is the gift that God has chosen to give us this year, and I have opened it – embracing it to the fullest.  The Library’s Summer Reading Program . . . Every night of VBS . . .  “Summer Lessons” on flowers, water, baseball, and birds . . . Trips to the park . . . A children’s play. . . An afternoon picking wildflowers . . . Water balloons, birthday parties, river exploration, and even a day at the beach . . .

     With missionary candidate school now behind us, I realize, more than ever, that I will not always live in a house with a huge backyard at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains – but for now, we will ENJOY it!  We will love seeing the deer walking through the grass.  We will take our sand pails and fill them with items from our nature walks.  We will identify birds, and pick flowers to put in little cups of water on my kitchen counter. We will tend the little memorial garden for Joshua, and watch the seedlings burst into full bloom.  Later, we may be in a camper, or a trailer, or a hotel room, and, by God’s grace, I will ENJOY those days, too!  Determined to be thankful . . . Determined to embrace the gifts that God places in my hand . . . for He “daily loadeth us with benefits.” (Psalm 68:19).  Are we looking for them?  

     In Psalm 31, David writes “Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men!”  Being quite a petite woman, myself, I picture those blessings of goodness as wrapped presents on a top shelf.  God has “laid them up” for me, and I sometimes need to stand on a stool to reach them.  He has “laid up” so much goodness, and so many blessings for you, too, Dear Sister in Christ!  Are you reaching for them? Are you looking for them? Are you willing to see them, all around you, every day? When you open the “gift of summer”, in your own home, what do you find? Where has He intentionally placed YOU? May you thank Him for it, and embrace it with joy! 

     Is my life carefree? Absolutely not . . . There are more stresses and concerns now, than ever! More things to prepare, to plan, to ponder . . . I’m taking my children from a lovely little spot in the Shenandoah Valley, and headed towards 17,000 tropical islands on the other side of the world! We are changing the course of our lives forever, because GOD has changed it for us!  And there is JOY in serving Christ! There are blessings EVERY DAY! “For thy lovingkindness is before mine eyes: and I have walked in thy truth.” (Psalm 26:3) What “lovingkindness” from the Lord, do you have the eyes to see, in your own home, today? What blessings lay all around you? Healthy little ones? Food in the pantry? Air conditioning? A library, just around the corner? “I will sing unto the LORD, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.” (Psalm 13:6) My encouragement to you, this evening, is keep those blessings “before your eyes” – open those gifts – and ENJOY these blessed summer days!