The roll of the wind & Typhoon Haiyan

I was sitting on the deck today, reading and I couldn't help but notice the wind.

I've said before that wind happens to be one of my favorite things. Most of the time it reminds me of a gust of refreshment and the powerful presence of God, but today the wind reminded me of something else.

 

Today the Los Angeles Times reported that more than 11 million people have been affected by Typhoon Haiyan, as well as 660,000 people are homeless. Some people have estimated that the death toll will be around 10,000 and others have guessed around 2,000. No doubt, the Philippines has experienced the most powerful storm yet.

 

Erik De Castro/Reuters

 

 

Noel Celis AFP/via Getty Images

 

 

We've experienced plenty of tropical storms here in the south, but nothing to the magnitude of Typhoon Haiyan. As I sat on the deck this morning, the wind spoke to me.

 I heard it in the distance.

I saw it through the trees.

Yet, I wasn't being affected by it.

 

I was in the calm, while others were in the storm. Just like we are in the calm over here in America, while the people of the Philippines are in the storm. Aside from actual storms, it's the same in life.

 

As I watched the leaves struggle to hang on, the branches sway to and fro, and the dirt be lifted off the ground, it made me think of the times in life when we struggle to hang on...when we sway to and fro...and when we are thrown off our feet.

 

Times of divorce, sickness, and death can feel like a storm. Either we are the ones experiencing the storm or we watching a person face that storm. Both places aren't fun places to be in. Although I didn't experience Typhoon Haiyan, it still makes my stomach hurt and heart ache to think about the emptiness, sadness and anger they must be feeling. It's not an easy place to be in.

 

Storms like these often make people question the character of God.

However, times like these are simply the reality of life.

Thankfully, these times don't last forever, even if it may feel like it.

They are followed by a time of stillness, quiet, clean up and rebirth.

 

In the still and the quiet, we are able to clean up the mess, while realizing that God did not send the wind to destroy us. He didn't send a typhoon to kill thousands of people (at least I don't think He did). You know why I think that?

God is love and I can't seem to bring myself to believe that love would kill and destroy.

 

The reality is, we are in a battle between good and evil.

Ephesians 6:10-20 says, " Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,  and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints, and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak."

 

Jesus conquered the grave already and He will bring victory once and for all, when He comes again. For right now, we are in the middle of this tug-of-war match. Sometimes the bad wins, but in the end, good conquers. Jesus is the one who is walking with us in the these storms and lends a hand to pick us up. He is in the business of rebirth and redemption. Just like Apostle Paul says in Ephesians, we must put on the armor of God and stand firm in His promises. Like the trunk of a tree and the ground that is holding it in place, God's promises can ground us through the wrestling of the wind.

 

Hard times will come. The roll of the winds will break and we'll be able to catch our breath and receive peace. Our thankfulness for the quiet times becomes magnified and if we never faced the roll of the wind, we would take the calming times for granted. The gusts of wind sometimes force us to cling to God our vine, look toward hope, and appreciate the quiet times even more.

 

Lets pray for those around us who are in the middle of a storm, as well as our brothers and sisters in the Philippines. Let us also pray that we have strength to stand firm and remember God's presence in our lives even when a storm rolls through.

 

Bible reading plan this week:

 Jeremiah 35-52

 

destruction

What a week.

First, the Boston marathon bombing and then the West fertilizer plant explosion.

It's times like these where people wonder, "where is God in all of this?"

I say, God is here.

I say that with confidence because his Word tells us...

"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6

What a beautiful truth that we should continually hold onto.

 

I've said before, we don't live in paradise.

Evil, pain, and sin entered the world when Adam and Eve turned away from God.

That doesn't mean that God has left us here to suffer.

God is here in the midst of everything.

 

We need to look for the light in the darkness.

We need to be the light in the darkness.

I see it in the helping hands of the West explosion.

I see it in the unity of prayer for Boston, our country and our world.

As much as it hurts us to see all the pain and destruction around us, I know it hurts God even more. This isn't how he wanted things to end up.

He intended us to live in paradise with Him, but we messed that up when we wanted the power in our own hands.

 

Thankfully, God has redeemed us and saved us from this fallen world

that we live in.

Times like these only intensify my excitement for Jesus to come back, set up His kingdom here on earth, and defeat evil once and for all.

 

So what can we do?

We can pray for God's will to be done.

We pray for God to raise up missionaries.

We can pray for God to give us the motivation & courage to be light in the darkness.

We can pray for God to intensify our hunger to grow in our faith.

We can pray for God to replace our fear with faithful excitement for the return of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

 

Also, don't forget to pray for the unreached people group of the day!

 

 

Update on my Lyme life: I saw my doctor this Wednesday and he wants me to take a break from my treatment for a week. I have mixed emotions- yay! because I get to have a break from A LOT of pills. Nay! because my body has already started feeling worse from the break. However, it just goes to show that my treatment has made me feel a lot better. Once this week is over, I'll start on a new treatment plan that will hopefully push me toward the finish line! OH and  more good news...he took me off an antibiotic that has kept me out of the sun for this past year so I'm SUPER excited that I can be out in the sun and not be afraid of being burnt to a crisp! Wohoo! Always trying to find the good in the bad :)

 

 

What a week...

First of all, I apologize for the long lapse of posting. This week has been crazy!!! So normally my job is part-time, but this week I was full-time due to my boss' family emergency. Great news though, I made it through the week! I am completely worn out, that's for sure, but I'm back to part-time this week.

Rest, rest, rest for me this week! I don't want a relapse, no siree.

 

My class is going really well! This week we learned about Cat and Dog theology. Sounds funny, huh? I'll give you a short summary...

 

Dogs say, "You feed me, you shelter me, you love me...You must be God."

Cats say, "You feed me, you shelter me, you love me...I must be God."

 

Dogs are all about giving God the glory. They worship God in their everyday lives in everything they do. They praise Him for who He is.

Cats are all about focusing on themselves. They worship God on their own time, usually on Sundays. They praise Him for what He does for them.

 

Dogs think, "What does God get?" when they read the Bible. They focus on every character of God...love, grace, discipline, wrath, mercy, sovereignty, etc.

Cats think, "What do I get?" when they read the Bible. They focus on God's blessings...only one aspect.

 

Dogs want God's will, whether they like it or not.

Cats want what they want, not God's will.

 

Everyone has at least a little bit of cat in them, because we are all humans. We can tend to focus on ourselves more than God, because we can be selfish. It's not fun to think about, but it's true.

 

So which one are you? Are you a dog or a cat?

Needless to say, that lesson was very interesting, convicting, and made me want to get rid of my selfish, cat ways.

If you want more information on Cat & Dog Theology, check it out here.

 

So work and class have been good, but yesterday I woke up to some very sad news. One of my best friend's mom died yesterday morning from cancer. I've never lost anyone close to me, so she is actually the closest person I've lost. I can't imagine how my best friend feels. I'm so happy for her mom because she is now pain free, walking on the streets of gold, hand in hand with Jesus. Gives me goose bumps (aka God bumps) everytime I think about it. However, my heart breaks for my friend and her family. I can't imagine losing someone as close as a mother or father. Please pray for my friend Katelyn and her family. That they may feel God's peace and rest knowing that one day they will meet her again. That they will be comforted in knowing that she now has a new body and is with her Savior for eternity. That they will feel blessed to have had so many wonderful years filled with many memories with such a wondeful, faithful woman. Also, please pray for me in that I can be the friend I'm supposed to be. That the Holy Spirit will give me the words when needed to speak words of encouragement. That the Holy Spirit will give me discernment when silence and a hug is needed. That God would give me the strength she needs. That God would make me a safe haven for her to come and express her hurts and doubts.  I'm pretty much at a loss for words so your prayers are appreciated!

 

Although she has left her earthly, temporary home, she is now in her permanent, heavenly home. I know that God is working through this for His glory. It's just hard to see and understand right now. Death happens...it's a part of life and this was just her time for God to call her home. You may have dealt with death before, but always know that God brings good from the bad.

 

So now that I'm on a part-time schedule again, I should be back soon!

I hope you all are doing well & giving God all the glory with your life :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day 10 In Him we find...

So it's been another rough day. Lots of couch time, gingerale, and popsicles (only good part of being sick, unlimited popsicles with no guilt), but more importantly,

I made it here to tell you another thing we find in Him!

 

 

 

One of the expectations of my Lyme Disease treatment is to rest. It's so important.

Rest helps our bodies to heal. Our bodies need rest. Our minds need rest. We all need to rest physically, mentally, and spiritually. No matter how many naps we take or how many hours we sleep, we will not find true rest until we rest in God's promises. This could mean reading the Bible, listening to worship music, praying, or all of the above. Soaking in His promises for us will give us rest and restoration that is needed to keep us going so that we are able to fulfill His call on our lives.

 

Another way we find rest in God is by giving up all our worries to Him. He can handle it, that's for sure. You'll be surprised how at rest you will feel when you give it up to the One who cares for you. Matthew 11:28-29 says, “…Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

In Him we find rest.

 

Today's scripture for read-your-Bible-in-a-year-plan is John 5-6.

Hope to see you tomorrow for day 11 & don't forget to rest in Him!

Heart broken

Your Story:

"You've been let down, it's true
Your pain is so easy to see
You're haunted by your history
And it feels like you've got no escape

Your life left you high and dry
You used to be sure of yourself
But then your whole world went to hell
And tomorrow looks just like today

So, you lie on your bed, you won't let the morning come in
And you hide in your room, feeding that fear and it's killing you....

His Story:
I miss the life in your eyes
The home that I found in your arms
And now you don't know who you are
But I won't give up on you

You lie on your bed, you won't let the morning come in
And you hide in your room, feeding that fear and it's killing you
Don't you know
That it's killing me too, cause your heart break is breaking you

And you lost your fire
And your flame's gone out
And your down on your knees
Cause your life is not what you thought it would be

Lift up your head
Help is on the way
And it won't pass you by
You just gotta reach out your hand
Lift up your eyes
Love is on the way
And it won't pass you by
You just gotta reach out your hand

Go on and lift up your head
Because love is on it's way
And it won't pass you by
You've just gotta reach out your hand."

What you just read were the lyrics to "Breaking You" by Audrey Assad. Could you relate to the top story?  If that's your story, God wants you to know something...

He is with you.

No matter what you've done or what your history is...drugs, alcohol, sex, regrets, whatever is "feeding your fear" and guilt,

He is NOT giving up on you.

He hates to see you this way.

He wants you to open your eyes & heart to Him.

He wants you to trust in Him.

He wants you to ask for help.

He wants to help you.

He wants to give you life.

I hope and pray that this was encouragement to "lift up your head" and "reach out your hand". His hand is there and He's waiting for you to grab hold. God doesn't want you to go through this alone. Trust me, you won't get any sense of relief or peace unless you open up to God. There was a time when all I did was lay in bed and hid because of fear, but when I reached out to God, my life was transformed. If you need prayer, please let me know! I would love to pray for you. Check out the video for the song!