Resting Place

At our Care Group on Tuesday night, one of the ladies led us in worship. She read Isaiah 66:1,2:

"This is what the LORD says:

'Heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me? Where will my resting place be? Has not my hand made all these things, and so they came into being?' declares the LORD. 'This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word.' "

I've heard & read these verses before, they are underlined in my Bible. But I don't think I've really understood these verses before Tuesday night. Before, I always had a picture of God sitting on His throne in heaven with His feet resting on the earth - pretty straight forward, but never gave much thought to the rest of the words. Because of my friend sharing her insight, I now have a different perspective.

I now see the focus being more on: "Where will my resting place be?" The resting place that God is seeking is in our hearts. He is looking for a place to rest, to hang out. It was like the light bulb went on! The resting place is in our HEARTS! Not some place in outerspace but in my heart! Suddenly these verses became personal! So then I asked myself: "What kind of a resting place do I have for Jesus? What is the condition of my heart?" He wants to dwell in someone who is humble and is contrite in spirit and trembles at His word. (Contrite: caused by or showing sincere remorse; filled with a sense of guilt and the desire for atonement; penitent.)

God wants to dwell, live, hang out in our humble & repentant hearts. He wants us to tremble, to be in awe at His word. How many times in a day do I mess up, get mad at the kids, not have a loving attitude toward Jeremy? How many times in a day am I selfish with my sleep time, quiet time, wanting my space, what I want to do...)? How many times does my work or the computer (e-mailing, Facebook, even blogging) take priority over God or my family? What a disgusting resting place I've created for the One who is more important to me than anything! It doesn't sound very restful to me! "Maybe that's why my soul hasn't been at rest lately," she states rhetorically! I know when it's time to clear the clutter of my heart because my heart is unsettled, my soul is not at rest.

God asks us: "Where will my resting place be?" My answer, taking it one moment at a time is: "Here, O Lord, I have prepared a resting place for You. I will wait for You alone."

Resting Place
Heaven is my throne
And earth is my footstool
Where is the house you will build for me?
Whom of you will hear the cry of my heart
Where will my resting place be?

Here oh Lord
Have I prepared for you a home
Long have I desired for you to dwell
Here oh Lord
Have I prepared a resting place
Here oh Lord I wait for you alone
Copyright © 1991 Mercy/Vineyard Publishing. All rights reserved. International copyright secured.

Something to Ponder

I just saw this on another blog (Boy, O Boy, O Boy (and Girl)) and thought I'd post it here as well. Very thought provoking! Let me know what you think.

Walking by Faith & "What-Ever"

Well, Mel from Mel's World has done it again! Her words have really spoken to me. First off, each week she participates in "Then Sings My Soul Saturdays". This week's touched my heart. It is a song that God used earlier this summer after He called us to leave our church family of 12 years. Go here to read Mel's post and why this song is special to her.

Jeremy Camp - Walk By Faith



And while you're at it, check out her "Speak to My Soul Sunday" post for this week. It is very insightful and a great way to refocus our thoughts.

Praise & Coffee Giveaway

Sue over at Praise & Coffee offers a monthly giveaway of coffee beans & a worship CD. All you have to do is leave a comment on Sue's blog to be entered in the giveaway. It's that easy! And if you add her Praise & Coffee button to your blog, let her know so she can enter your name a second time!

This month's giveaway is a bag of coffee from a local coffeehouse and "Casting Crown's" CD, "The Altar and the Door Live". Click here to leave a comment on Sue's blog post. (You don't have to have a blog to enter the contest; just leave her your e-mail or some other way of contacting you).

I Will Walk By Faith

This morning we joined the thousands of other Christians in North America and went to church. This is still new for us to attend church on Sunday morning. The church we've been attending for the past 12 years has met Saturday nights for about nine years now, so getting up early Sunday mornings is still new for us!

I've been struggling this past week with being able to let go of our church family. I am confident in the fact that God has called our family on a different path than them. I don't question that at all, but despite that confidence it hasn't made it any easier for me to emotionally let go and open up to a new group of people, a new family.

This morning we attended the same church as last weekend. In some ways it was nice to have that familiarity rather than attending a different church every Sunday. As I sat down, waiting for the service to begin, my heart was still not ready to "make the switch". Yesterday as I was doing my bible reading, I prayed that God would speak to me in some way. Nothing of significance jumped out at me. This morning, one of the songs during the worship time spoke to my heart. It was a song by Jeremy Camp called "Walk by Faith", from the album "Stay". These are the words that spoke to my heart (for the full lyrics, click here):

Will I believe you when you say
Your hand will guide my every way?
Will I receive the words You say
Every moment of every day?

Well I will walk by faith
Even when I cannot see
Because this broken road
Prepares Your will for me

How perfect are those words?! "Will I believe You when You say, Your hand will guide my every way?" At that moment, I realized that even though I trusted God to take our family on another path, I wasn't FULLY trusting Him. I kept thinking, "maybe things will change, maybe things will go back to how they used to be...". Remember, I am the person who does not like change! Reading those lyrics on the screen this morning made me stop and write them in my journal.

After the service as we were visiting with people, one of the men commented to Jeremy and I that although they are more than happy to have us visiting their church, the last thing he wants is us to feel pressure to join. Somehow, that struck a chord within my heart. Tears welled up in my eyes. I can't really explain it but God used this man's words to help me feel at peace about where we are on our journey. I don't know if this will be our new church family, but I now have peace that this road we're on, broken or confusing, is part of the process of God revealing His will for our lives.

Well I will walk by faith
Even when I cannot see
Because this broken road
Prepares Your will for me

My Senses Remembered

Jeremy and I were channel surfing tonight when we came upon the Gaither's singing on Vision TV. They were promoting their album/DVD called Rock of Ages. At the time we turned to the channel, there were three people, the Martins - of the singing group One Voice, singing a song that instantly brought back a flood of wonderful memories.

Have you ever experienced that? Ever heard a song and all your senses remember the original time of experiencing it?

I can remember it now as if I had just happened. I was 18 years old, at bible school, singing in the choir. This particular Sunday our choir was singing in a small community church, the same community where the bible school was located. I remember the church being small (no more than 100 people, probably more like 50-75) and wooden (the church is on a small island, surrounded by nature; the church was built to fit its surroundings).

Our choir sang our rehearsed songs, then listened to the sermon. During the end of the service, one of the older congregants had a medical emergency and friends and family helped to take her to get medical help. To help refocus the service, the pastor requested our choir to sing one of our songs again.

The song we sang is called "All People That On Earth Do Dwell". Each time our choir sang this song, we sang it a cappella standing in a circle facing the congregation. The tenors, sopranos, altos and basses were all interspersed, helping the harmony to sound more mixed. It also made it more difficult for each of us singing because we couldn't listen to the person next to us if we forgot a note! But the effect of it was breathtaking! I remember having chills on more that one occassion while singing this song . This Sunday morning was no exception.

So tonight when I heard that ancient hymn being sung so beautifully by the Martin's, I began searching the internet to find the words. I found several sites with words and even music, but better still, I found a YouTube clip of the Martin's singing the song! I just had to share it with you!

And maybe, just maybe, if you turn up the volume and close your eyes, you'll hear my voice, along with my fellow bible school choir members, singing praises to Jesus!

The Power of Jesus Christ!

As I've already mentioned in the previous two posts, we attended church with our friends Barton & Heather where Barton is the pastor.

Jeremy and I were blessed to be able to hear Barton preach the Word of God this morning. It has been quite some time since we've heard preaching like this. I said to Heather afterwards that for me it was like I knew that I was thirsty for hearing Jesus Christ preached but didn't realize how thirsty I was until I heard the sermon this morning.

Over the past number of months, God has been reviving in Jeremy and I a thirst and hunger for a deeper knowledge of Jesus Christ. It has been an exciting journey. There have definately been struggles along the way but seeing the passion inside me grow stronger makes it easier to accept the bumps and potholes of life. Besides, we learn so much from the hard times.

God is good and God is gracious. He doesn't want to teach us from just hardships, He wants to also teach us from exciting times too. This morning was one of those times.

Our friend, Barton, began a new 8-week series this morning on Ephesians 6:10-18. My first thought was how will he preach on eight verses in an eight-week time frame? But after listening to him this morning, I think the question is answered; he takes each verse and really digs deep.

I thought I would share the notes I took this morning with you. Hopefully they make sense and aren't too choppy. Also, any emphasis with the Bible verses has been added by me.

"(10)Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. (11)Put on the whole armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. (12)For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (13)Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. (14)Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, (15)and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. (16)In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. (17)Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (18)And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints" (Ephesians 6:10-18).

This passage can be broken down into three parts:

1. The Admonition (v. 10-11)
2. The Adversary (v. 12)
3. The Armor (v. 14-18)

In order to first determine that there even is an adversary, Barton switched the parts around and spoke first on the adversary rather than the admonition.

There is an enemy that is always ready to attack us in our every day lives (in our marriages, through gossip, with our spiritual walk, in our ministry, at work...). But we can withstand the enemy. This is a winnable war!

We need to know who the the adversary is because the war he wages is fierce and subtle. Our adversary isn't just other people who irritate us, slander us, etc. They play a minor part, but our true adversary is the devil and his army of evil beings. When Jesus explained to His disciples that He had to suffer, die and then raise again on the third day, Peter began to rebuke Jesus by saying, "Never, Lord! This shall never happen to you!" (Matthew 16:22). Peter was the one actually speaking the words but it was Satan that was giving the words/thoughts to Peter. Jesus responded by saying, "Out of my sight, Satan!..." (v. 23). Jesus knew that Satan was behind Peter's words, trying to stop God's plan, that's why Jesus didn't respond by saying "Out of my sight, Peter". Everyone is responsible for their own words and actions but we need to recognize that Satan is working "behind the scenes".

Next we need to know the characteristics of our adversary so we can recognize him and withstand him. So often we try to fight the enemy with flip flop sandals on! We are not properly equipped to attack the enemy or defend ourselves.

1. Satan is powerful (v.12 "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."). God is all-powerful and all-knowing; Satan is limited. He can only do what God allows him to do, Satan is like a dog on a chain. Yes, Satan is powerful, but he is limited.
2. Satan is wicked (v. 12 "...the powers of this dark world...the spiritual forces of evil").
3. Satan is cunning (v. 11 "Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.") It took only three questions to get Eve to sin and he didn't even have to ask Adam any questions, he just went through Eve.

Because Satan is so cunning, wicked and powerful, we need to know the power we have in Jesus Christ. It is only in knowing and using the power we have through Jesus Christ that we can defeat Satan.

We need to know the objective of our Adversary. Why does Satan want to be so evil? John paints a picture for us through his vision in Revelations 12. A woman (v.1)(Mary, the mother of Jesus) is about to give birth. An enormous red dragon (12:3) (Satan) stands in front of the woman so that he might devour the child (Jesus) the moment it is born (v.4). The woman gave birth to a son and he was instantly taken up to God and to his throne (v.5). "And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down..." to the earth(v. 7-9). Chapter twelve finishes up with verse 17, "Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to make war against the rest of her offspring - those who obey God's commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus." The devil cannot fulfill his plan and destroy Jesus. He has certainly tried (Matthew 4:1-11, Satan tried to tempt Jesus after Jesus had fasted for 40 days and nights in the desert). Satan cannot win because Jesus has already won the war, so Satan is going after Jesus' followers. Satan's objective is to harm Jesus by harming Jesus' people.

We need to know how to conquer our adversary. Christians fight from a position of victory because Jesus has won the decisive battle against Satan.

"When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross" Colossians 2:13-15.

When Jesus died on the cross and rose again, He "made a public spectacle"(v.15) of the adversaries and triumphed over them! The only way to conquer Satan is with scripture. When Jesus was tempted by Satan in the wilderness, He defeated Satan by quoting scripture. The only way we can be ready for battle at all times is to memorize scripture. Earlier this year I began memorizing verses and for various reasons (all of which seem rather empty now) I stopped. I would like to start memorizing verses again because I know how much it helped me last time. Today's sermon was an excellent reminder that we are facing a spiritual battle every day - the only way to win those battles is by the power of Jesus Christ and God's Words.

Barton ended by asking the question, "whose side are you on?" There are only two sides: Jesus' and Satan's. You can only be on one side. It's up to you to choose.

The church service ended this morning by singing the old, but powerful hymn, "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God". (Click here for the words and music.)

"It Is Well With My Soul"

I found this video today on Praise and Coffee. I have always loved this hymn and the story behind the words. I just had to share it with you as well.

One Step at a Time

Where do I start?!

I have so much to write about. I think I'll have to share it in more than one post. This past week has been a very difficult one. I will post about that another time (maybe tomorrow). For right now, I want to share about my weekend (Friday night till Saturday afternoon).

Over the past few months I have been hearing about a lady named Beth Moore with Living Proof Ministries. I didn't know anything about her but I was reading about her on different blogs - "I've just come from my Beth Moore bible study", Beth Moore this and Beth Moore that. When I saw an announcement in our church bulletin saying that this Beth Moore lady was coming to Vancouver for a conference, I thought I'd do a little Google search on her. It was then that I learned that she has an international ministry. She began by creating bible studies for her church and it has spread from there.

Deep inside me something stirred. I just knew that I should go to this conference. I don't usually make spontaneous decisions like that. I didn't really know all that much about this lady. I didn't even know if she was "out there" in her beliefs or if she really was spiritually on track.

I chose to listen to that stirring in me, sent out an e-mail to the other ladies in our church and waited to see if anyone else wanted to go. I didn't really want to go by myself, besides the more ladies that came, the cheaper the hotel cost would be! I'm all for trying to cut costs.

Two other ladies responded so we registered for the conference and booked our hotel. I still wasn't sure if I would have to spend my time at the conference trying to decipher truth from lies, but at the same time I was at peace with going.

Christy & Luciana

From the moment the 2008 Living Proof Live conference started, I was completely at peace. I was able to immediately enter into worship with the worship team. The entire conference was absolutely amazing, focused on Christ - not Beth and the worship team. From the very beginning of the conference, and throughout it, Beth and the worship leader, Travis Cottrell , said that they are hear to serve us. They were not doing these conferences for their glory, rather for God to receive the glory. This was demonstrated over and over again. The strongest way this was portrayed was at the very end of the conference. Beth had finished speaking and the worship team began leading us in some final songs. They began the last song. They began with full instruments, then stopped playing them so we were all singing a cappela. The lights faded, the worship team stopped singing so it was just us women singing praises to God and then quietly, the worship team left the stage. No big hype about praising them for the amazing job they did, no seeking glory for themselves. Just leaving us women to worship God. I was so impressed by that.

Before each conference, Beth prays and asks God what He would like her to share with the ladies in that particular city. Rather than having a polished presentation that she repeats at every city, she speaks specifically what God impresses on her heart. For this past weekend, Beth spoke on Hebrews 4:12-16,

12) "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing sould and spirit, joint and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. (13) Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sigh. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. (14) Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. (15) For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin. (16)Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."

I've read these verses before - they are highlighted and underlined in my bible. But having Beth take us through and dig deeper into the meaning of each verse...it is so different from just reading it. She also had us memorize verse 12. Memorizing scripture is so important. Much of what Beth said I already knew, but hearing it in different ways, hearing it again gives more impact to the verses. I have nine pages of notes in my journal!

The biggest impact for me this weekend was the absolute, all-consuming urge to study the bible more. I know that the Word of God is powerful, sharper than any double-edged sword. I have had an inner yearning for the past number of months to dig deeper in to the bible, but this weekend, having Beth lead us through these verses has strengthened my desire to learn more. It is so exciting to read the bible and see how it can change a person's life. The words in the bible aren't just words on paper, they are living and active. They can heal a person's hurt, they can encourage and uplift, they can bring a person to their knees in repentance. I want to share the excitement of God's Word.

I don't know if this weekend was another step in God's preparation for leading me (and Jeremy) into further ministry or if it's just for the purpose of strengthening my personal relationship with Christ. Whatever the reason, I want to be available.

If you have never attended a Beth Moore conference before, even if you have, I highly recommend you attend one of her upcoming conferences. Check out her website for locations (the rest are in the USA). If you live in the vacinity, make it a priority to attend. You won't be disappointed. You will be challenged and refreshed!

This video is of the conference this past weekend - actual footage! Many thanks to Travis Cottrell for putting the Html code on his blog!

My heart is heavy today

I'm seeking God for encouragement

Medley

(Give/Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus/With Or Without You/Your Love Oh Lord)

by Third Day

You said all that follow You may find

Comfort and pain, blessings in hard times

Were I to leave, where else would I go?

The words of life and of truth you hold

All I want is love

I confess to this

I will take it, Lord

All You have to give

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

And you give yourself away

And you give yourself away

And you give

And you give

And you give yourself away

All I want is love

And I confess to this

I will take it, Lord

All You have to give

All You have to give

All You have

All You have to give

Your love, oh Lord

Reaches to the heavens

Your faithfulness stretches to the sky

And Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains

Your justice flows like the ocean's tides

And I will lift my voice

To worship You, my King

I will find my strength

In the shadow of Your wings

Your love, oh Lord

Reaches to the heavens

Your faithfulness stretches to the sky

"Do not be anxious about anything,

but in everything, by prayer and petition,

with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

And the peace of God,

which transcends all understanding,

will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus"

Philippians 4:6,7

"In repentance and rest is your salvation,

in quietness and trust is your strength."

Isaiah 30:15

Thank you for your encouragement today, Jesus!

Spring Has Sprung!

The sun is shining!

We haven't had a beautiful, sunny day like this for quite some time. Jeremy has taken Daniel and Rebecca to the park while I am at home with "my little girl" I take care of. She is napping almost finished her nap. As I was getting a drink of water from the kitchen sink I saw a splash of color in the back yard. Could that possibly be some spring flowers peeking their heads out of the dirt? I had to investigate!

This is what I found!

"Creation Calls"
by Brian Doerksen
I have felt the wind blow, whispering your name
I have seen your tears fall when I watch the rain

How could I say there is no God
When all around creation calls
A singing bird, a mighty tree
The vast expanse of open sea

Gazing at a bird in flight, soaring through the air
Lying down beneath the stars, I feel your presence there

I love to stand at ocean's shore
And feel the thundering breakers roar
To walk through golden fields of grain
'Neath endless blue horizon's frame

Listening to a river run, watering the earth
Fragrance of a rose in bloom, a newborn's cry at birth

(chorus 1)
(chorus 2)

I believe, I believe, I believe
Lyrics provided by www.seekalyric.com