The more time we spend in the Presence of the Most High God, the more his character rubs off on us.
Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. (Psalm 51:7)
Influence
Tag: photography
Rest
There still exists, therefore, a full and complete rest for the people of God.
And he who experiences his real rest is resting from his own work as fully as God from his.
Let us then be eager to know this rest for ourselves,
and let us beware that no one misses it through falling into the same kind of unbelief as those we have mentioned.
For the Word that God speaks is alive and active;
it cuts more keenly than any two-edged sword:
it strikes through to the place where soul and spirit meet,
to the innermost intimacies of a man’s being:
it exposes the very thoughts and motives of a man’s heart.
No creature has any cover from the sight of God;
everything lies naked and exposed before the eyes of him with whom we have to do.
Seeing that we have a great High Priest who has entered the inmost Heaven,
Jesus the Son of God,
let us hold firmly to our faith.
For we have no superhuman High Priest to whom our weaknesses are unintelligible
—he himself has shared fully in all our experience of temptation, except that he never sinned.
Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with fullest confidence,
that we may receive mercy for our failures and grace to help in the hour of need.
(Hebrews 4:13 – 17)
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Shelter
My little granddaughter and I were watching the snowstorm out the big front window yesterday when I noticed how the bright colours of the flowers a friend sent mommy contrasted with the harshness of the weather outside. Inside the house is a warmth that shelters the delicate blooms sent from some place where the sun shines kindly.
The storms may rage, but close to the heart of God, in His shelter, tender hearts are safe.
I run continually to the shelter of Psalm 91, and there I find delight in the precious colours of Love.
Those who live in the shelter of the Most High
will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
This I declare about the Lord:
He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;
he is my God, and I trust him.
For he will rescue you from every trap
and protect you from deadly disease.
He will cover you with his feathers.
He will shelter you with his wings.
His faithful promises are your armor and protection.
Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night,
nor the arrow that flies in the day.
Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness,
nor the disaster that strikes at midday.
Though a thousand fall at your side,
though ten thousand are dying around you,
these evils will not touch you.
Just open your eyes,
and see how the wicked are punished.
If you make the Lord your refuge,
if you make the Most High your shelter,
no evil will conquer you;
no plague will come near your home.
For he will order his angels
to protect you wherever you go.
They will hold you up with their hands
so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.
You will trample upon lions and cobras;
you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!
The Lord says, “I will rescue those who love me.
I will protect those who trust in my name.
When they call on me, I will answer;
I will be with them in trouble.
I will rescue and honor them.
I will reward them with a long life
and give them my salvation.”
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Clouds
It’s one thing to sing about joy and peace when all is sunny and warm; it’s another when clouds hang over the horizon like dismal forebodings.
It’s one thing to praise God when healing comes and everything works according to design specifications; it’s another when undeniable pain interrupts sleep and a doctor says we need to schedule a biopsy.
I have often heard the expression “struggling with…” as in, “He is struggling with an alcohol/porn/Oxycontin addiction,” or, “She is struggling with a victim mentality/sympathy addiction/negative attitude problem.” I’ve used the phrase myself.
It is easier for him to say, “I am struggling with an addiction,” than it is to say, “I confess that I am giving in to an addiction,” or for her to say, “I am struggling with discouragement,” than “I am choosing to obsess about how much harder my life has been than other peoples’.”
It’s a euphemism, a prettier way to lie to ourselves and others. The truth is he has stopped fighting his addiction and she is deliberately wallowing in self-pity. The devil can custom-make the temptations he waves in front of our eyes, but we are the ones who choose to bite into them.
Here’s another crazy thing: it is so easy to divert attention by criticizing others for taking bites from forbidden fruit that are unattractive to us, while our own mouths are busy chomping temptation tidbits. I am not tempted by a case of beer (I can’t get it past my nose) but if a loved one driving on winter roads is an hour past estimated arrival time I can go from re-checking my watch to worrying about funeral plans in a ridiculously short period of time. I have habitually docked my boat in Worry Bay for far too many years. This is a change that doesn’t come easy.
My confession: I have been giving in to fear. For about three weeks I have allowed the “what-ifs” to drown out God’s promises to never leave me or forsake me. Fear has not been there the whole time, but often enough to distract me from enjoying precious moments with my new grandchild.
At first I kept the secret of ominous symptoms to myself, but then I had a dream about putting make-up on with a spatula and someone telling me that putting on a good face doesn’t make the problem go away, nor is it honest. That’s not faith; that’s denial. There is a greater truth that is seen from God’s perspective, but it doesn’t make the mere facts seen from human perspective untrue — merely limited.
This morning I read Psalm 57:
Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me,
for in you my soul takes refuge;
in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge,
till the storms of destruction pass by.
I cry out to God Most High,
to God who fulfills his purpose for me.
He will send from heaven and save me;
he will put to shame him who tramples on me. Selah
God will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness!
It’s a choice, the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control) or the fruit of temptation (“Did God really say…?”).
This is a storm on the horizon. Maybe it will blow over, maybe it won’t. The Lord has safely seen me through many storms and He will safely see me through this one as well. Today I choose to listen to Holy Spirit.
Bless the Lord, oh my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name!
Related post
At a Standstill: https://charispsallo.wordpress.com/2012/05/20/at-a-standstill/
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Love bears, believes, hopes, endures
Love suffers long and is kind;
love does not envy;
love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;
does not behave rudely,
does not seek its own,
is not provoked,
thinks no evil;
does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;
bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never fails.
1 Corinthians 13
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Peace within
“May today there be peace within.
May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.
May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.
May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.
May you be content knowing you are a child of God.
Let this presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love.
It is there for each and every one of us.”
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A prayer for my granddaughter on the day of her first breath
Oh sweet child, you have already given me such joy. There is nothing you need to do to earn my love. I have loved you since you were the hope in my own daughter’s heart, the hope that doctors told her was in vain. But God….
But God heard your Mommy’s and Daddy’s prayers, and ours, and now you, our miracle, snuggled in my arms this very day as my joy overflowed. You are the very fulfillment of the promise of the goodness of our heavenly Father and we all thank him so much for you.
There is a reason why your name means “Living Love Warrior.”
How do I pray for you, precious one? I can think of no greater prayer than this.
My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth. I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength—that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in. And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you’ll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ’s love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God.
God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us. (Ephesians 3:14-21 The Message)
May you know, that as much a you are loved by your Mommy and Daddy and grandparents and all your family, there is One who loves you more, loves you perfectly, has always loved you and always will love you. May you be filled to overflowing with His love from your first breath until your last.
Abba Father, I bow in grateful thanks for everything you have in store for this child of promise. You are so very, very good!
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Fire on the Mountain
I will enter His gates with Thanksgiving in my heart
I will enter His courts with praise
I will say this is the day that the Lord has made
I will rejoice for he has made me glad
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Portal
Standing at the portal
Of the opening year,
Words of comfort meet us,
Hushing every fear;
Spoken thru the silence
By our Savior’s voice,
Tender, strong and faithful,
Making us rejoice.
Onward, then, and fear not,
Children of the day;
For His Word shall never,
Never pass away.
“I, the Lord, am with thee,
Be thou not afraid;
I will help and strengthen
Be thou not dismayed.
Yea, I will uphold thee
With My own right hand;
Thou art called and chosen
In My sight to stand.”
For the year before us,
O what rich supplies!
For the poor and needy
Living streams shall rise;
For the sad and sinful
Shall His grace abound;
For the faint and feeble
Perfect strength be found.
He will never fail us,
He will not forsake;
For His eternal covenant
He will never break.
Resting on the promise,
What have we to fear?
God is all sufficient
For the coming year.
-Frances Havergal, 1873
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Enduring
Hope: Vision-led endurance
What endurance these orchids demonstrate. They were a gift that arrived this past summer and here they are still blooming in the last short days of December.
May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 15:5, 6)
Charis: Subject to Change 