Shelter...

"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High 
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty". 
Psalm 91:1

Have you ever needed a shelter in a storm? I know up here in the Northwest you think you have "storms", but I grew up in Texas where we have "STORMS". I have never liked thunder and lightening. I remember as a young teenager being home alone during the summer break. In Houston, we would have a short thunderstorm roll through almost every afternoon. During those storms I would be sittinig on the couch (away from the windows, of course) clutching a throw pillow tightly to my chest. When the storm finally passed, my fingers would be stiff from holding on so tight. 

Storms...fear...shelter.

As I have prayed this week, I have asked God to show me something else about Him. Tonight He reminded me of something I already know and have recently experienced.

This past summer I had back surgery. I have had problems with my back for years, but it suddenly came to a head in May. It became unbearable and within a few weeks I was having surgery for a herniated disk. It went surprisingly well, and the doctors said I healed very quickly. Just don't ask me too many details about those six or eight weeks....drugs do funny things to the mind.

Drugs also do funny things to the body. When I came home from the hospital they sent several pain killers with me. After taking them for about three weeks, I realized I didn't need them anymore. So when I ran out of them, I didn't refill the prescription. Unfortunately, I hadn't been informed of  the horrific withdrawal I would experience. Four days of no sleep, constant crying, jittery, depressed. It was terrible. During the day I could keep busy and seem almost normal, (except I was always of the verge of tears) but the nights were dreadful. To lay in bed, tired from the day and yet eyes wide open. To feel as if there was no hope, and yet know in your heart and mind that everything was OK. 

Shaking, crying...feeling dread. 

Then Sunday came. The choir sang a song I had not heard before. "I'll Trust You". 

You are my Refuge
In You I'll trust.
You are my Fortress
In You I'll trust.
I'll not dread the terror by night
For angels are all around me
So I will not fear.

 There was that word....dread. I had said that word the night before. "I dread nighttime..." But I was reminded that I have 

a refuge...
a fortress...
a shelter

The storms of life are a reality. There is no way to avoid them. We will face circumstances everyday that will require strength and courage and fortitude and determination. They will bring fears and anxieties and uncertainties. 

But there is a shelter... 
A place to rest...  
Under the shadow of the Almighty. 

I listened to this song nonstop for three days. I still experienced the withdrawal symptoms. I still had to walk through the valley. But I did it with the knowledge that I was under the shadow. 

This Sunday, I get to sing this song with the choir. I can stand declare "I'll trust You" knowing that when the next storm comes, I won't experience it alone.

I find my strength in the knowledge that He is right there with me.  I find my rest in the knowledge that He is my fortress...my refuge...

my Shelter....

A Short "Musing"

Just a short thought that came to me in church tonight...

Have you ever had someone say or do something to you that was really painful? And though you knew it was no fault of your own, you still struggled through the circumstances to work toward restoration...only to still feel unaccepted or rejected? It's a horribly discouraging path to walk. It seems that no matter how hard you try, you're just not accepted. Maybe for them, it's just easier to pretend you aren't there than to admit they had a part in the "fall". 

On a much grander scale....much grander...
don't we do that to Jesus? 

Think about it... ever since Adam and Eve, man has been making the mistakes. Jesus paid the price, did all the work for restoration , and yet....He's still rejected and unaccepted by the very ones He came to save. 

How great must be the pain He feels at that rejection....
makes mine seems so trivial.

Present...

“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”   
Matthew 28:20

  We had a women’s conference at church a few weekends ago. I was only able to attend the Friday night session. It had been a busy and hectic day and I hurried to arrive at the church, thinking I would be a little late. However, I slipped into my seat a little early and as I let out a big sigh I said, “Lord, I really need You to meet me here tonight.”

Almost immediately, in my spirit I heard, “I’m already here”.

How silly of me. Of course He was already there. God is present everywhere at all times! He was in the car with me as I was rushing to deliver children to their various activities that night. He was with me all day as I carried out my daily responsibilities. His Spirit dwells in me, so of course He was with me!

Why do we think we have to coax God to meet with us? We get to church and “invite” Him to come! Was He not in the car on the way? Was He not at home while you were doing laundry, or scrubbing floors, or teaching children (I’m a home school mom)? Was He not sitting at your desk with you at work?

Personally, I know it’s not just a matter of Him not being with me, but of me being to busy to notice He’s there. I guess what I really meant, was "Lord, it's quiet now...can we talk?"

Sometimes I get so caught up in the busy-ness of life, that I don't acknowledge Him being with me until I get to church and we begin to worship. My prayer to Him that night was to help me remember that He is present…with me…at all times. But then that started me thinking…how would we behave if we stayed aware of His Presence at all times? 

What would we say?    
What would we do?    
How would we treat others?    
How would we spend our time?    
What music would we listen to?    
What books would we read?    
What would we watch on TV? 

I don’t mean for us to get all stuffy and pious…self-righteousness is not the answer. This doesn’t require us to spend 18 of our 24 hours a day in our prayer closet. Think about when Jesus walked with His disciples. Didn’t they fish? Didn’t they prepare meals? Didn’t they laugh and enjoy life together?

Remember when they were walking along the seashore and the disciples tried to shoo the children away? Jesus stopped and played with them! I remember as a child my Sunday School teacher, Sister Long, had a picture of Jesus sitting on a rock with the children gathered around Him. But, for some reason, I have always pictured in my mind Jesus playing tag with them on the beach.

Don’t know why…just the way I pictured it.

The disciples had daily responsibilities to attend to…and Jesus was there with them. In all that they did…He was there. 

He still is... 

So, when we are going about our responsibilities…cooking meals, washing clothes, going to work, chauffeuring children, preparing for church activities, or even relaxing and having fun…He’s there with us. The challenge…if we stayed aware of that, would it change the way we go about those responsibilities and activities? 

Would it change the words we say?    
Would it change the things we do?    
Would it change the way we treat others?    
Would it change how we spend our time?    
Would it change the music we listen to?    
Would it change the books we read?    
Would it change what we watch on TV? 

I know there are times I speak and wish afterward I hadn’t. I know there are times I do things I probably wouldn’t do if I remembered He was standing right beside me. I think God would watch TV with us…but would we might have to change the channel sometimes. I think He would watch Dancing with the Stars with me, but like my 12 year old son, He would probably say, “They need to put some more clothes on!” But I’m sure there are some shows He would prefer to step out of the room if I were watching them.

Remember the Charles Sheldon book, What Would Jesus Do? A few years ago it started the movement with WWJD printed on everything. It was really so overused, that now people tend to roll their eyes when you mention it. But in reality, we need to ask ourselves…”What would Jesus do?” Or maybe we just need to stop and ask Him, “Jesus, what should we do?”

Because you know, He is always…  

Present…

The Holy One...

"Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of His glory ."
Isaiah 6:3

I know I have written about God being Holy before, but I have new thoughts on the subject. Not different…just knew. God is constantly teaching.
I've been reading a book that had me compare the vision given to Isaiah in chapter 6 to the vision given to John in Revelation 4.

• Both were visions revealing the Holiness of God to these two men.
• Both visions had God seated on the throne.
• Both were visions of the seraphs surrounding the throne with 6 wings who were constantly calling out "Holy, Holy, Holy". As they did, the 24 elders who were also surrounding the throne, fell to their faces, cast their crowns at his feet and began to worship Him.
• Everything shook. 

While it was a study on the Holiness of God, what really struck me was the Worship of God. The question presented to me was, "Are we that intentional with our worship? Are we too casual with the way we come into the Presence of God? How can we develop a greater reverence for Him?" (Ok…that was three questions).

The challenge is that while God is Holy and Awesome and should be approached in reverence and fear, He also tells us in Hebrews 10 that we can come into His Presence with confidence. So how do we balance the reverence and the boldness? All of these things were still fresh in my mind on Tuesday night as we began worship. It struck me that the songs were focused on His Holiness. And I thought, "Lord, how DO we approach your throne with boldness and not be arrogant or casual in our worship?"

The first picture that came to me was Esther, who knew that if she approached the king without being summoned she faced a death sentence. Yet she knew she needed the king to move on behalf of her people. He was in his throne room with all of his elders surrounding him. And I’m sure there was singing and dancing. 

• I imagine that she bowed at his feet like was customary for approaching a king. 
• I imagine she was shaking in her slippers.
• I imagine her heart was pounding with fear.
• I imagine King Xerxes was astonished that she would do what she did.
• He had no idea what was on her mind.
• He had no idea what her request would be.  

The second picture is similar, but oh so different.
Again, the King is on His throne. Again, He is surrounded by His elders. Again, there is singing and probably dancing. BUT… 

• This time we have the King of Kings on the throne.
• This time His elders are on their faces worshiping Him.
• This time the singers are seraphs moving around the throne.
• This time we have permission to enter the throne room with confidence.
• This time we have the assurance that if we ask anything, He will hear and answer.
• This time the King already knows what we have need of.
• This time the King is pleased to see us.
  

I try to picture in my mind the throne room of God with the seraphs calling out "Holy, Holy, Holy" and the elders falling on their faces, and it never stops! This is not casual worship! This is not..."Oh, it's time to go to church and sing worship songs". This is constant, intentional, purposeful, heartfelt...worship.
Isaiah said the "whole earth is full of His glory". Worship doesn't happen just in church. It happens everywhere...all the time. You can enter His Presence anytime, any place. In fact, if you have accepted Jesus as your Savior you ARE in His Presence all the time, everyplace. 
So, how DO we enter the Presence of God with both confidence and reverence?

We don't have to wait for an invitation... 
We've already been invited to come and dine.

We don't have to fear reproach...
He welcomes us with open arms.

We enter with confidence of His love for us and reverence of Who He is...  

The Holy One….

 Watch this video...it's amazing!