Archive for Grace
A New Definition of Perfection
My friend Kristen posted about a wedding sermon in which the pastor gave this definition of perfection. I’ve been meditating on this for weeks now and when I feel overwhelmed by my sinfulness I am encouraged and motivated. Instead of getting down and focusing on how impossible it is to reach perfection this side of eternity I’m reminded to actively pursue God rather than dwell on myself.
p.s. Warning: if you spend any amount of time reading Kristen’s blog, you will be inspired. She is an amazing example of perseverance in amazingly difficult circumstances!
“at the works of your hands I sing for joy”
Wow! I can’t even express in words the continual joys and trials I (I really need to say we) have faced over the past 11 weeks since our sweet Lillian arrived. This season has been one of the hardest, most sanctifying and yet greatest of my life. I praise the Lord for His faithfulness. His power has been evident every minute of every day. He showed His faithfulness to me through His word, a loving family, His church and the loving, caring spouse He has graciously blessed me with. (Thank you Keith for all of your encouragement and for helping me to fight the good fight even when I felt like I couldn’t) During late nights while feeling overwhelmed by the darkness I was reminded that darkness is as light with God and I was comforted. All around I feel blessed and really just amazed by God’s grace as I wouldn’t have made it without it!
Psalm 139:11-12 “If I say, ‘Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light about me be night,’ even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you.”
Psalm 92:1-4 “It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night, to the music of the lute and the harp, to the melody of the lyre. For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work; at the works of your hands I sing for joy.”
Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow
Keith and I are overjoyed to annouce that our little blessing arrived safely on April 24th at 7:13 pm. We’ve named her Lillian Marie and she was 6 pd’s 10 oz. and 19 3/4 ” long. My dr. suggested that we induce because I was so close to going into labor at my appointment on the 24th and she felt like having me go into labor in a controlled environment would be best. It turned out to be a huge blessing because instead of going home and laboring that day (with Lillian in distress and us not knowing it) we were able to find out that Lillian wasn’t responding well to contractions (her heartrate kept dropping really low) so I ended up having a C Section. I wasn’t ever induced because they thought she would continue to respond poorly. We have been humbled and overwhelmed by the Lord’s grace and mercy as Lillian arrived safely and in good health.
We praise you Lord for our little blessing and look forward to the days ahead!
“the incomparable riches of his grace”
As my due date approaches I’m having to daily (more like hourly) lay my anxieties at the feet of my Savior. Along with the joy and excitement that pregnancy has brought, I am constantly tempted to lose perspective and let fear and anxiety take over. This battle has been humbling and has left me feeling weary at times. I’m finding comfort in my Savior as I remember that the same God who is patiently bearing with me as I sin and lose perspective is the same God that patiently endured the sins of the world on the cross. His mercy and patience are unfathomable and I praise Him for this!
“When Satan tempts me to despair
And tells me of the guilt within
Upward I look and see Him there
Who made an end of all my sin
Because the sinless Savior died
My sinful soul is counted free
For God the Just is satisfied
To look on Him and pardon me”
(From: Before the Throne of God above – Charity L. Bancroft – 1863)
Ephesians 2:4-7 “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.”
What Wondrous Love Is This?
While singing the hymn “What Wondrous Love Is This” in church yesterday I was extremely moved by the truth of the Gospel. The words “When I was sinking down beneath God’s righteous frown, Christ laid aside His crown for my soul” seemed to pierce my heart in a new way.
In my sin I was “sinking down” to a place of eternal destruction and God, in His great mercy, reached into my life and saved me! Sadly I can easily go through my day without this reality in the forefront of my mind.
Thank you Lord for your grace and mercy that brings sinners such as I to repentance and new life in you!
“What wondrous love is this, O my soul, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this that caused the Lord of bliss
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul,
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul.
When I was sinking down, sinking down, sinking down,
When I was sinking down, sinking down,
When I was sinking down beneath God’s righteous frown,
Christ laid aside His crown for my soul, for my soul,
Christ laid aside His crown for my soul.
To God and to the Lamb, I will sing, I will sing;
To God and to the Lamb, I will sing.
To God and to the Lamb Who is the great “I Am”;
While millions join the theme, I will sing, I will sing;
While millions join the theme, I will sing.
And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing on, I’ll sing on;
And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing on.
And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing and joyful be;
And through eternity, I’ll sing on, I’ll sing on;
And through eternity, I’ll sing on.”
William Walker
One Year Closer to Your Eternal Destiny
I have been reflecting on two things lately.
1. There are times in life when our emotions don’t follow our hearts. Although my heart is at peace in the Gospel I’ve been tossed and turned quite a bit recently by changing emotions and feelings. I think for me right now these are caused by pregnancy but I’m sure I’ll experience many different seasons throughout my life when my feelings confuse me. This has made me long even more for my eternal home where my emotions will be all joy and love for my Heavenly Father and those around me – no matter what the day or hour.
2. At the close of 2008 I am overjoyed to be 1 year closer to my eternal home. I’ve been reading more sermons by Jonathan Edwards that have served as reminders that my present home, earth, is a transient place. Every one of us is bound for an eternal home – eternal destruction apart from Christ or eternal life available in Christ.
“The home to which we aspire and for which we pant is not only a promised, it is also a perfect and permanent home. The mixed character of those seasons we now call repose, and the shifting places and changing dwellings we call home, should perpetually remind us that we are not, as yet, come to the perfect rest and the permanent home of heaven. God is the believer’s present home and Jesus his present rest. Beneath the shadow of the cross, by the side of the mercy seat, within the pavilion of a Father’s love, there is true mental repose, real heart’s ease, and a peace that passeth all understanding, to be found even here where all things else are fleeting as a cloud and unsubstantial as a dream…It is enough that I am journeying toward the heaven that is my rest, and that I am one year nearer its blessed and endless enjoyment.” Octavious Winslow (1808 – 1878)
I praise you Father for your grace and mercy that allows sinners like me to find security in your love and eternal plan!!
Pointing Myself To Christ
Recently the burdens I’ve been called to bare have felt extremely heavy. At times I am tempted to doubt God’s promises and wonder if they are too heavy for me. Because of the Lord’s grace and promises I know they are not. I do not write this blog because I’ve somehow figured out how to persevere under trial. I write this blog to remind myself (and hopefully others) of the strength and assurance everyone is offered through Jesus Christ.
In the darkest parts of this valley I often find myself re-reading past posts and it soothes my soul as I remember how the Lord has carried me. I do pray that somehow the Lord will use my journey to point others to Himself but also know that if I’m the only reader it’s helping me to press on.
Psalm 9:9-10 “The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.”
“For the former things have passed away”
In this world I often feel as if my fight against sin is unending and I feel weary from the battle. In these moments the phrase “for the former things have passed away” (Rev. 21:5) serves as a reminder to my soul that the end is in sight. Soon we will know what it means to be holy and no longer fight. I wonder what this peace will feel like? Can you imagine how much more energy we will have to glorify the Lord as opposed to being bogged down by this burdensome weight? Come quickly Lord Jesus that we may bask in your Holiness – that which we don’t deserve but which you offer to those who love you!
Revelation 21:1-5 “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
Light in Darkness
One of the overwhelming blessings I’ve experienced in the midst of trials/suffering is that the Lord uses this “platform” of weakness to engulf us with His boundless love, grace and peace. Some of the most blessed times are those when we find ourselves leaning entirely on our Saviour. Susanna Spurgeon speaks of these sweet times in her book “A Basket of Summer Fruit.”
“Many a time has the Lord had to disturb our nest, and bring us out of some earthly refuge which was becoming too easy and too dear to our soul. But, as music sounds the sweetest when heard across the waters, so do God’s dealings make the purest harmony in our hearts when they reach us over the waves of affliction and trial. When a tried and tempted soul stays itself on God, and sings in the midst of the flood or the fire, such praise must, methinks, be more glorious and glorifying to Him and His mighty grace than the hallelujahs of unfallen angels.”
Prescription for Perseverance
Once again I have been uplifted and challenged by the words of Octavius Winslow. Here he gives what I’ve named a “prescription for perseverance.”
“How shall I ever fight my way through this mighty host, and reach in safety the world of bliss? By leaning daily, hourly, moment by moment, upon your Beloved for strength. Christ is the power of God, and He is the power of the children of God. Who can strengthen the weak hands and confirm the feeble knees, but Jesus? In them that have no might he increaseth strength. When they are weak in themselves, then are they strong in Him. His declaration is, ‘My strength is made perfect in weakness’ (2 Cor. 12:9). Lean, then, upon Jesus for strength. He has strength for all your weakness; He can strengthen your faith, strengthen your hope, strengthen your courage, strengthen your patience, and strengthen your heart for every burden, for every trial, and for every temptation. Lean upon Him; He loves to feel the pressure of your arm; He loves you to link your feebleness to His almightiness, to avail yourself of His grace. Thus leaning off yourself upon Christ, ‘as thy days, so shall thy strength be’ (Deut. 33:25). In all your tremblings and sinkings, you will feel the encircling of His power.”
Gratitude and Grace
I was recently challenged through reading this quote to examine my heart and look for signs of gratefulness. In his book, “Ruthless Trust,” Brennan Manning writes:
“The foremost quality of a trusting disciple is gratefulness. Gratitude arises from the lived perception, evaluation, and acceptance of all life as grace–as an undeserved and unearned gift from the Father’s hand. Such recognition is itself the work of grace, and acceptance of the gift is implicitly an acknowledgment of the Giver.”
Colossians 3:15-16 ”Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.”
Psalm 69:30 “I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.”
Philippians 4:6 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
What Wondrous Love Is This!
As I was listening to this hymn tonight I was humbled by Christ’s unfathomable love.
The phrase “Christ laid aside His crown for my soul” moved me as I was reminded that God loved me so much that He sent His Son to die for me. He suffered greatly on my behalf so that I might live with Him one day. I deserved the brutal death that he experienced but because of His grace I will never know suffering like that.
Hebrews 9:27-28 “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”
1 John 4:10 “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”
His Grace is Sufficient
Paul is an amazing example of a faithful Christian who suffered greatly (unjust imprisonments, health problems, the list goes on and on). He is also an example of perseverance and passion for the Gospel and the Lord’s glory.
Paul suffered with a thorn in his flesh (referring to particular suffering that was not literally a thorn in the flesh – but some type of difficult trial). 2 Corinthians 12:8-10 says “Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he [God] said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Paul goes on to say “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
Cling to this promise! “My grace is sufficient for you.” Remind yourself of this today and everyday. No matter what you face today or in the days to come if you turn to Christ His grace will always be sufficient!
