Praise in the Storm

Praise the LORD! Brandon's results came back this evening. He has stage 4 cancer, BUT it is a type that is very responsive to chemo. He starts in the morning with his first round and the best news is that this cancer has a 90% cure-rate!

These precious friends are so firmly rooted in the LORD, it is a blessing and an honor to walk beside them in this life.

Kyle and I are reading Little Pilgrim's Progress (so good, highly recommend, it's our second time through it) and today we read how the character Mercy received a little golden anchor as a gift from the character Piety, who explained the meaning of the anchor like this:

"You know what is the use of an anchor. If it is firmly fixed the sailors do not mind how rough the sea may be. The anchor holds their vessel safely, though the waters may be tossing and the wind roaring all around them. So if you love the King, the hope that He will help you will keep your heart from failing. And, though you may be in the greatest danger or difficulty, you will never be really afraid."

Little Pilgrim's Progress is an allegory of (for? to?) the Bible and the above quote reminds me of this verse in Scripture:

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. Isaiah 43:1b-2

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33

God doesn't say "if" we have trouble, but "when" we have trouble. Believers aren't immune to troubles, but the deeper the anchor the more brightly God's glory is reflected and from my vantage I see God's goodness and glory shining radiantly in the Hall family. Pray for them, check their blog for updates, and encourage them as they pass through the waters and walk through the fire, God is surely with them.

Pray

Please join us on our knees for Brandon, Windy, Reed and Dossett.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him. Romans 15:13

Healed and Revealed

Don’t you just love showing off your scars? No? Me either. I recently heard a sermon which reminded me that is precisely what we should be doing though.

The pastor pointed out that it was the scars of Jesus which prompted Thomas to believe and stop doubting.

By definition a scar is a wound that has been healed. In the case of Jesus the wounds were caused by sin, not His, but the sins of others – the Roman soldiers’, the religious leaders’, mine, yours.

Our wounds may be from our own sin or they may be from hurts others have inflicted on us.

Some people are great at showing their scars and telling of the Father’s healing touch. I am not one of them. I know I have been healed; I know I have been forgiven. It is one of the most powerful sources of witness I can think of. Yet it is for that very reason our enemy wants desperately to convince us to keep our scars covered. What would people think if you tell them of the sin and hurt that caused those wounds? Good Christians shouldn’t have wounds like that. You’re supposed to be an example, that sin couldn’t possibly glorify God anyway. Hide it. Cover it up.

Just like Joseph, who was sold into slavery by his own brothers, I know that our enemy meant those sins and wounds for my destruction, but God used them for good.

God is good. God heals and He makes new. God didn’t forgive me because of anything good or special about me. He forgave me because of the perfect sacrifice of His Son. My righteous deeds are filthy rags, but He looks at me and sees the Spotless Lamb. He looks at me and sees His beautiful child, bought at a great price.

My past is ugly. My present is full of stumbling, but it is all part of the journey to the foot of the throne of grace – beautiful, wholly unmerited, but fully received – grace.

I want to show my scars, I want to proclaim in humility the touch of God in my life, how he picked me up out of the mire and set my feet on a firm foundation. I don’t have to enter each room and confess my sins to everyone in earshot, but I do need to be obedient and share them when God nudges me.

I want to be the light I am called to be and let others see it is within their reach to come out of the darkness. We can’t pull ourselves out of the mire though. God lifts us out when we stop striving and let His mighty and tender hand redeem our ashes.

One of my favorite passages in the Bible is Psalm 103, here are a few verses:

2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits-
3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,
8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.
10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.
12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
13 As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;