Journal Entry ~ 08/20/19

1 Come, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD, who stand by night in the house of the LORD! 
2 Lift up your hands to the holy place and bless the LORD! 
3 May the LORD bless you from Zion, he who made heaven and earth!  - Psalm 134 

Blessing the Lord means all out living with an attitude of thankfulness in my life. Gratitude expresses my understanding that God is in control of everything and He is working FOR me, despite what I see in front of me. It’s not just an attitude of acceptance for my circumstance, it is taking my heart one step further and delighting in what He is allowing to happen in my life. 

2 Great are the works of the LORD, studied by all who delight in them. 
3 Full of splendor and majesty is his work, and his righteousness endures forever. 4 He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and merciful.  - Psalm 111:2-4

He is doing wondrous works, mighty works, great works that I should be delighting in....except it doesn’t look always that way. When I watch the news, it doesn’t seem to highlight the good works of the Lord. When we are inundated with these stories of all the horrible things happening in the world over and over, it can cause us to wonder if He is still at work. We may question if evil won the day - and when we believe that evil has won, our hearts are no longer be thankful. 

When we get our eyes fixed on all the negative things happening around us and in us and to us, we cannot see His works, and we forget to be thankful. We are robbed of the joy that comes in a thankful attitude. 

God’s work is evidenced in his creation. Consider the awesome wonder of what He has made - pause and take a look at the next sunrise, the beautiful trees, mountains, oceans, animals. It’s truly amazing. Get your eyes of your troubles, and look to what He made for you. Go for a walk and open your eyes - His beauty surrounds us. We spend so much time agonizing over our struggles, and far too little time delighting in His creation. Bless Him with a grateful attitude over what He has made. 

God’s work is evidenced in his people. People are born sinful and broken. By nature, we are not good - we are selfish, self-serving, stiff-necked brats. Yet, there are so many examples of people who selflessly serve, who are good and kind, who have overcome an addiction or a generational stronghold caused from abuse - God is at work in those people. We should be marveling at these people and blessing God for His work. But we don’t. We often praise the people for their work, or worse - we compare them to ourselves and either struggle with feelings of inadequacy or jealousy. 

It’s not the people, it’s God. His work is evidenced when we see a person changed, marriages restored, health problems healed, when insurmountable circumstances are overcome, when prodigal children are brought home from so far away. We have and know those stories - God is at work in his people and we should be thankful. Bless Him for the way He chooses to work in people rather than focusing on where you believe He needs to do more.


Press on ~ you are loved 💗

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Medical Update ~ 09/27/17

Image
Today was a challenging day.  I met with the oncologist to discuss chemo as part of my treatment plan.  The oncologist explained there were 3 additional invasions discovered during surgery, so there were actually 4 isolated invasions in the breast tissue.  To review - my diagnosis is Ductal Carcinoma in situ (DCIS) with Invasive Ductal Carcinoma.  All 4 of the invasions are HER2+ (aggressive) and hormone negative (recurrent).  My oncologist walked us through the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCM) guidelines for treatment of this type of aggressive, recurrent cancer - chemo and radiation. The good news is God had already moved the mountain in my heart opposing chemo, and rested me in a place of acceptance.  While my initial prayers focused on not having to have chemo as part of my treatment, after hearing I had multiple invasions, He moved me to a place of understanding that chemo is a necessary part of my treatment.  If there were 4 invasions in the sample they took, there co
Read more

My Journey Begins...

I am a believer in Christ, and I have breast cancer.     On August 17, 2017, I was diagnosed with an aggressive (HER2+), recurrent (hormone negative) type of Invasive Ductal Carcinoma.  At this point, they have not yet staged my cancer because they are waiting for the biopsy results from a suspicious spot in the second breast. The biopsy is scheduled for September 5th, with a lumpectomy to follow on September 7th.  They will formally stage my cancer after they biopsy my lymph nodes, which will be taken during the surgery.  It doesn't make any sense to me that I have a cancer diagnosis - I am a fairly healthy woman who runs 2 miles almost every day and eats a gluten-free, primarily paleo diet, with no family history at all.  But it makes sense to God, and so here I am. Update ~ They found 4 isolated invasions during the lumpectomy.  Due to the nature of my cancer (HER2+ and ER-), the recommended protocol is chemotherapy and radiation.  Beginning in October, my chemotherapy regime
Read more

Grace in Marriage

When we launched our new blog we had no idea if anyone would see it or be helped by it, but we knew that the LORD was prompting us to step out in faith and just do it. The response has been amazing and we are looking forward to how God will use this space for His glory. We have learned over many years of service in a variety of ministries, that God does not require human assistance to realize His plans for individuals, churches, nations, or the human race. But the story of the bible is the story of God’s will playing out through the words and actions of the His children. So…we pray, meditate on his Word, and write from the heart about the truths that mold our faith, guide our actions, and inspire our hearts and minds. Please visit the site and subscribe to continue receiving posts.  https://graceinmarriage.com/ It is our sincere hope that you are blessed by our work here and welcome your input on how we can make Grace in Marriage even better. Thank you for your support.
Read more