With Thanksgiving fast approaching this week, it seems an attitude of thankfulness is all around. I've seen so many posts on facebook since the start of November, all declaring some they are thankful for on each day of the month. I love it!
I have lots to be thankful for in my own life. It goes without saying, I am very thankful for my family...for my boys...my amazing husband. I'm thankful for my job I'm thankful for my friends. Not just my friends....I'm thankful for my God fearing, Jesus loving, power praying friends in my life. I'm thankful for a beautiful and amazing church family. I'm thankful for freedom. I'm thankful for the little things in life too/ You know, things like....cool breezes on a hot summer day....breathtaking fall colors as the seasons change...drenching spring rains that cause dead and dried up things to live again...a baby's giggle....a chids smile. And lets not forget the things like.....warm, gooey brownies and a cold glass of milk....reese cups of any kind...and chocolate. Yes, I'm really thankful for chocolate.
While all of these things are great and good, I'm thankful for other things that go above and beyond all of this. I'm thankful that circumstances of my life allow me to experience God in different ways. I'm thankful that God loves me enough to give me the opportunity to find Him in the most unexpected places. I'm thankful that I've come to know God in new ways recently, like Healer, Defender, and Daddy. I'm thankful that even when I'm most unlovable in myself, He still loves me just the same. I'm thankful that He is unchanging. I'm thankful that He is never ending. I'm thankful that He operates in redemption. I'm thankful that He gives me more grace than I deserve. I'm thankful that His mercies are new every morning. I'm thankful He pursued me and drew me to Himself, and in my search for Him, He adopted me and brought me into His eternal family. I'm thankful for Jesus and the sacrifice He made on my behalf.
Max Lucado says, "worship is the THANK YOU that cannot be silenced." Do you know what I have just done by declaring my thankful heart? I've just experienced worship. Do you know why? Because anytime I start reflecting on Who God is, or What He's done for me, it inspires worship within my heart. I begin to become full of praises because of how good He has been to me. I enter into a private moment with Him, where my heart is consumed with passion for Him....where my gaze is completely occupied with His gaze. When I begin to thank Him, I begin to worship. And as I worship, my heart is changed.
I wonder, what would our lives look like if we walked in a state of thankfulness? What if we walked in a place of "I don't care what my circumstances are or situation I find myself in, I will thank my God continually" way of life? 1 Thessalonians 5:18 tells us to "be thankful in ALL circumstances." That doesn't mean we thank God only when life is good. No, quite the contrary. It means we thank Him even when we are in battle. It means we thank Him even when life is hard. It means we thank Him even when our circumstances don't give us a reason to be thankful. It means we thank Him in ALL things. Remember, thanking Him becomes worship, and when we worship our perspective changes. And when our perspective changes, we walk in freedom. Freedom from being bound by things of this world, whether they be emotions or material. Our gaze is redirected to His gaze through our worship and we begin to lay aside every weight and anything that trips us up or hinders us from walking along the paths of righteousness with Him.
And to think, it all starts with a thankful heart. So,as Thanksgiving approaches, find some time to just sit with Him. And as you are there, begin to meditate and speak out all that you are thankful for from Father. Remember His goodness. Remember His faithfulness. And allow your grateful heart to turn into a moment of worship. Then develop a thankful heart within you and allow it turn your life into a life that sweetly becomes one who lives life on your knees in a state of worship. A life found competely and totally immersed, and hidden in Him.
Let's live thankfully...
Stacy
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Friday, November 11, 2011
The Sound of His Great Name...
"The whole earth is filled with awe at Your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, You inspire songs of praise."
Psalm 65:8
If you would've asked me a few months ago if I believed that Jesus heals, I would've said yes. With complete assurance in my heart, it would've been yes. Not because I've had it happen to me personally, but because His word assures me it is possible. So I would've said yes based on that fact alone. Now, fast forward to today. If you ask me that same question, I will wholeheartedly declare a resounding YES, because not only does His word assure me of it, but I have now seen His word in action in my life personally. I have been a recipient of His touch. And let me just tell you, its one thing to know it based off of reading His word and hearing stories from other people. It's a completely different thing to know it based off a personal experience of it. And THAT my friends, is the inspiration for this blog tonight.
For the past several weeks I have been battling an extremely intense illness. To make a long story short, I'll just give you the cliff notes. I was sent to UAB in Birmingham this past Wednesday for what was thought to be a hepatic liver abscess. Doctors found a lesion on my liver that instigated several imaging scans and with my symptoms continuing to worsen by the day, they felt a transfer to UAB where people experienced in infectious disease could do a biopsy and treat me would be the best possible solution. No one in our area was experienced with it, and so off we went.
When we left that day, I have to admit, I was scared. We were faced with the uncertainty of what was going on, with an uncertainty of what was going to happen. My eyes were clouded by the fog of my current circumstances. I knew God was with me, but still my heart began to fear. However, I belong to a faithful God, and He knew what my heart needed, exactly when it needed it. And so after getting the news that I was being transferred and admitted to UAB, I began sending out messages to everyone I knew. My church met with us and prayed over me before we left. Everyone I know began praying and calling on other people to pray. Word spread quickly and before I knew it, I was surrounded by an army of believers, locked arm in arm, crying out to God on my behalf.
I don't know about you, but I've never walked through anything like this that required such faith and prayer. Up until this point in my life, I had never battled serious physical illness, so I really didn't know how to walk in this. But as people began to pray, things began to change. My heart was encouraged and strengthened. And before we left for Birmingham, my husband and I both agreed, we weren't going to Birmingham for my healing, we were going to bring glory to God. We were going to make much of Jesus through this. If I was healed in the process, great. If I wasn't, that was ok too. We knew God was in this and we trusted Him to lead us through. And He didn't leave my side the entire time.
There were moments as I lay in the hospital bed that as I closed my eyes, I could sense Him standing at the foot of my bed, just smiling over me. Like any good dad would do for his kid. Here stood my Dad, standing at the foot of my bed, smiling over me, giving me the constant assurance that He would never leave my side. And He never did. His presence filled my room every moment I was there. My phone would constantly be going off with texts and messages coming through of people telling me there were praying and just encouraging me in my faith. When I say it was an army, I'm not kidding. I saw the army suit up and go to war on my behalf. THAT is humbling.
A few days prior to this, I saw a movie about war. It was about Sparta and a group of soldiers who were defening Sparta. They were fierce soldiers, who marched into battle with no fear, but always arm to arm in battle. It was no coincidence I saw this movie when I did. Because little did I know I was about to experience an army of believers suit up on my behalf and push back the enemy who was coming against me. And that is exactly what happened. People I knew, people I didn't know, all on their knees, crying out to God, swords drawn, shields raised, running onto the battlefield for ME. I'm still in complete amazement by it.
Well, I'm happy to say, it was a battle well fought. I was admitted on Wednesday and Thursday late afternoon my doctors came into the hospital room and told me this..."you came in with all the signs and symptoms of a hepatic liver abscess. Yet now your blood work shows nothing abnormal. Our radiologists have looked at all your scans and imaging, and they believe this spot on your liver to be just a benign hemangioma. Your liver is normal and healthy." And shortly after I was released from the hospital.
In the course of my stay I began to continuously improve. The doctors had done nothing. I had recieved no medicines. Nothing. And yet I was improving. The pain was subsiding, I was coming back to life. My symptoms began disappearing. Thursday morning a friend of mine had sent me a post on facebook that said this...
"
"The whole earth is filled with awe at Your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, You inspire songs of praise."
Psalm 65:8
He is a mighty God. He is a Healer. His name is Jesus. He has the power to do the impossible my friend. Throughout this journey, He has indeed inspired many songs of praise. His hand has moved on my behalf, and because of it, I have a facebook page that is lit up with nothing but songs of praise to my Jesus. Post after post after post, all declaring the greatness of my God. So yeah, this whole sickness...was it worth it? Absolutely. Because my God was glorified through it and at the end of the day, His great Name has inpsired many, many songs of praise.
I'll close with a few of the lyrics to one of my favorite songs, which, by the way, now holds even greater meaning for my life. It's "Your Great Name" by Natalie Grant. May these words take root in your soul and may you find all the treasures your heart needs found in the dark times of your soul as well.
All the weak; find their strength; at the sound of Your great name
Hungry souls; receive grace; at the sound of Your great name
The fatherless; they find their rest; at the sound of Your great name
Sick are healed; and the dead are raised; at the sound of Your great name
Jesus, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain for us, Son of God and Man
You are high and lifted up; and all the world will praise Your great name
Redeemer, My Healer, Lord Almighty
My savior, Defender, You are My King
I love you all from the bottom of my heart,
Stacy
Psalm 65:8
If you would've asked me a few months ago if I believed that Jesus heals, I would've said yes. With complete assurance in my heart, it would've been yes. Not because I've had it happen to me personally, but because His word assures me it is possible. So I would've said yes based on that fact alone. Now, fast forward to today. If you ask me that same question, I will wholeheartedly declare a resounding YES, because not only does His word assure me of it, but I have now seen His word in action in my life personally. I have been a recipient of His touch. And let me just tell you, its one thing to know it based off of reading His word and hearing stories from other people. It's a completely different thing to know it based off a personal experience of it. And THAT my friends, is the inspiration for this blog tonight.
For the past several weeks I have been battling an extremely intense illness. To make a long story short, I'll just give you the cliff notes. I was sent to UAB in Birmingham this past Wednesday for what was thought to be a hepatic liver abscess. Doctors found a lesion on my liver that instigated several imaging scans and with my symptoms continuing to worsen by the day, they felt a transfer to UAB where people experienced in infectious disease could do a biopsy and treat me would be the best possible solution. No one in our area was experienced with it, and so off we went.
When we left that day, I have to admit, I was scared. We were faced with the uncertainty of what was going on, with an uncertainty of what was going to happen. My eyes were clouded by the fog of my current circumstances. I knew God was with me, but still my heart began to fear. However, I belong to a faithful God, and He knew what my heart needed, exactly when it needed it. And so after getting the news that I was being transferred and admitted to UAB, I began sending out messages to everyone I knew. My church met with us and prayed over me before we left. Everyone I know began praying and calling on other people to pray. Word spread quickly and before I knew it, I was surrounded by an army of believers, locked arm in arm, crying out to God on my behalf.
I don't know about you, but I've never walked through anything like this that required such faith and prayer. Up until this point in my life, I had never battled serious physical illness, so I really didn't know how to walk in this. But as people began to pray, things began to change. My heart was encouraged and strengthened. And before we left for Birmingham, my husband and I both agreed, we weren't going to Birmingham for my healing, we were going to bring glory to God. We were going to make much of Jesus through this. If I was healed in the process, great. If I wasn't, that was ok too. We knew God was in this and we trusted Him to lead us through. And He didn't leave my side the entire time.
There were moments as I lay in the hospital bed that as I closed my eyes, I could sense Him standing at the foot of my bed, just smiling over me. Like any good dad would do for his kid. Here stood my Dad, standing at the foot of my bed, smiling over me, giving me the constant assurance that He would never leave my side. And He never did. His presence filled my room every moment I was there. My phone would constantly be going off with texts and messages coming through of people telling me there were praying and just encouraging me in my faith. When I say it was an army, I'm not kidding. I saw the army suit up and go to war on my behalf. THAT is humbling.
A few days prior to this, I saw a movie about war. It was about Sparta and a group of soldiers who were defening Sparta. They were fierce soldiers, who marched into battle with no fear, but always arm to arm in battle. It was no coincidence I saw this movie when I did. Because little did I know I was about to experience an army of believers suit up on my behalf and push back the enemy who was coming against me. And that is exactly what happened. People I knew, people I didn't know, all on their knees, crying out to God, swords drawn, shields raised, running onto the battlefield for ME. I'm still in complete amazement by it.
Well, I'm happy to say, it was a battle well fought. I was admitted on Wednesday and Thursday late afternoon my doctors came into the hospital room and told me this..."you came in with all the signs and symptoms of a hepatic liver abscess. Yet now your blood work shows nothing abnormal. Our radiologists have looked at all your scans and imaging, and they believe this spot on your liver to be just a benign hemangioma. Your liver is normal and healthy." And shortly after I was released from the hospital.
In the course of my stay I began to continuously improve. The doctors had done nothing. I had recieved no medicines. Nothing. And yet I was improving. The pain was subsiding, I was coming back to life. My symptoms began disappearing. Thursday morning a friend of mine had sent me a post on facebook that said this...
"
"The whole earth is filled with awe at Your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, You inspire songs of praise."
Psalm 65:8
He is a mighty God. He is a Healer. His name is Jesus. He has the power to do the impossible my friend. Throughout this journey, He has indeed inspired many songs of praise. His hand has moved on my behalf, and because of it, I have a facebook page that is lit up with nothing but songs of praise to my Jesus. Post after post after post, all declaring the greatness of my God. So yeah, this whole sickness...was it worth it? Absolutely. Because my God was glorified through it and at the end of the day, His great Name has inpsired many, many songs of praise.
I'll close with a few of the lyrics to one of my favorite songs, which, by the way, now holds even greater meaning for my life. It's "Your Great Name" by Natalie Grant. May these words take root in your soul and may you find all the treasures your heart needs found in the dark times of your soul as well.
All the weak; find their strength; at the sound of Your great name
Hungry souls; receive grace; at the sound of Your great name
The fatherless; they find their rest; at the sound of Your great name
Sick are healed; and the dead are raised; at the sound of Your great name
Jesus, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain for us, Son of God and Man
You are high and lifted up; and all the world will praise Your great name
Redeemer, My Healer, Lord Almighty
My savior, Defender, You are My King
I love you all from the bottom of my heart,
Stacy
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Hidden Treasures
"We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies." 2 Corinthians 4:8-10
So it's after midnight. I should really be sleeping. My body tells me to. But my mind just isn't having it tonight. So I get up and Father leads me to actually a different verse in 2 Corinthians 4 than the first verse I just posted...verses16-18....
"That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever."
You know, I don't know about you, but I kinda like the whole "mountain top" spiritual times. The times when we are winning battle after battle. When Dad is speaking constantly and we are learning, growing, being changed from the inside out. When we see Him moving in our lives, through our lives. I really, really like those times in my life. Alot. It's those crazy valleys that just get me everytime.
You know the valleys, those times when all hell seems to break lose against you. When the enemy of your soul unleashes an all out attack on everything about you...your health, your strength, your witness, your life, your heart, your everything. When he is on a mission to destroy you. Period. THOSE kind of valleys.
So I start reading all of this about not giving up. About how what we are going through now is temporary. Did you catch that? TEMPORARY. That means, according to Websters, "lasting for a LIMITED time." Limited means "confined with limits; restricted." Are you getting this? It means, what we are going through now is not ALWAYS. It's temporary. It's like a limited edition...only here for a short period of time. Now, I know, short period of time can seem like forever when you're in the midst of it. But in the scope of eternity, it's short. Trust me on this.
I love how those verses just ooze hope within them. I love how we find things "unseen" in our valleys. In our darkest moments really. It's what I like to call hidden treasures. Those things that we can only find in the dark times of our lives. It's in the darkest times of our lives that we find out what faith in Him truly is. It's in dark times that we find out how good He is, even when life doesn't always agree. It's in dark times that we learn the value of pressing through, seeking His face and finding His heart. For THAT, my friend, is the greatest treasure of all. When we find His heart through the dark valleys, we have found our pearl of great price. And sometimes those great pearls come at the expense of our comforts. They come when we are the weakest. But they DO come...when we are seeking Him through it.
Verses 8-10 give me even greater hope. Battles may get intense. They always do. There's always blood shed in war. There are casualties. There are injuries and wounds inflicted from enemy fire. There are times when the soldiers grow weak and tired and weary. There are times when daylight never shines because the enemy fire is intense and keeps the sun hidden by all the artillery being unleashed, by all the smoke from the fire. BUT, here's where we find hope....we may be pressed in on every side by enemy fire...but we aren't crushed. We may be filled with uncertainty and facing difficulties in our lives by what we are going through, but it does not have to drive us to despair. We may be hunted down day and night by our enemy...but we are NEVER abandoned by our great and mighty Warrior...Father God. We may get knocked down...ALOT...but it does not destroy us. We get back up. Why? Because greater is He Who lives in us, than our enemy who lives in the world.
Bottom line...HE is stronger. He is able. And He fights for us. He is our great Defender.
I write all of this tonight with a heart that is screaming...."fill me with THIS hope in the midst of battle". To stand on the battleground and lean on, rely on the fact that never once will He ever leave us in the battle. He gives us the weapons to use to fight our enemy, and then He gives us the strength and wisdom to fight according to His ways, not ours. Oh, and one more thing...He will Always come through.
I'll leave you with this thought tonight. It's an old song that my heart is singing as I write this....
"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."
Search for your hidden treasures friend. They are treasures waiting to be found that are hidden in Him. And to find them, you must seek Him to find HIM.
Happy hunting....
~Stacy
So it's after midnight. I should really be sleeping. My body tells me to. But my mind just isn't having it tonight. So I get up and Father leads me to actually a different verse in 2 Corinthians 4 than the first verse I just posted...verses16-18....
"That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever."
You know, I don't know about you, but I kinda like the whole "mountain top" spiritual times. The times when we are winning battle after battle. When Dad is speaking constantly and we are learning, growing, being changed from the inside out. When we see Him moving in our lives, through our lives. I really, really like those times in my life. Alot. It's those crazy valleys that just get me everytime.
You know the valleys, those times when all hell seems to break lose against you. When the enemy of your soul unleashes an all out attack on everything about you...your health, your strength, your witness, your life, your heart, your everything. When he is on a mission to destroy you. Period. THOSE kind of valleys.
So I start reading all of this about not giving up. About how what we are going through now is temporary. Did you catch that? TEMPORARY. That means, according to Websters, "lasting for a LIMITED time." Limited means "confined with limits; restricted." Are you getting this? It means, what we are going through now is not ALWAYS. It's temporary. It's like a limited edition...only here for a short period of time. Now, I know, short period of time can seem like forever when you're in the midst of it. But in the scope of eternity, it's short. Trust me on this.
I love how those verses just ooze hope within them. I love how we find things "unseen" in our valleys. In our darkest moments really. It's what I like to call hidden treasures. Those things that we can only find in the dark times of our lives. It's in the darkest times of our lives that we find out what faith in Him truly is. It's in dark times that we find out how good He is, even when life doesn't always agree. It's in dark times that we learn the value of pressing through, seeking His face and finding His heart. For THAT, my friend, is the greatest treasure of all. When we find His heart through the dark valleys, we have found our pearl of great price. And sometimes those great pearls come at the expense of our comforts. They come when we are the weakest. But they DO come...when we are seeking Him through it.
Verses 8-10 give me even greater hope. Battles may get intense. They always do. There's always blood shed in war. There are casualties. There are injuries and wounds inflicted from enemy fire. There are times when the soldiers grow weak and tired and weary. There are times when daylight never shines because the enemy fire is intense and keeps the sun hidden by all the artillery being unleashed, by all the smoke from the fire. BUT, here's where we find hope....we may be pressed in on every side by enemy fire...but we aren't crushed. We may be filled with uncertainty and facing difficulties in our lives by what we are going through, but it does not have to drive us to despair. We may be hunted down day and night by our enemy...but we are NEVER abandoned by our great and mighty Warrior...Father God. We may get knocked down...ALOT...but it does not destroy us. We get back up. Why? Because greater is He Who lives in us, than our enemy who lives in the world.
Bottom line...HE is stronger. He is able. And He fights for us. He is our great Defender.
I write all of this tonight with a heart that is screaming...."fill me with THIS hope in the midst of battle". To stand on the battleground and lean on, rely on the fact that never once will He ever leave us in the battle. He gives us the weapons to use to fight our enemy, and then He gives us the strength and wisdom to fight according to His ways, not ours. Oh, and one more thing...He will Always come through.
I'll leave you with this thought tonight. It's an old song that my heart is singing as I write this....
"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."
Search for your hidden treasures friend. They are treasures waiting to be found that are hidden in Him. And to find them, you must seek Him to find HIM.
Happy hunting....
~Stacy
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