Even through sleepless nights...God CARES

Psalm 56:8 (MSG) You’ve kept track of my every toss and turn through the sleepless nights, Each tear entered in your ledger, each ache written in your book.

Just when you think you’re utterly alone and there is no one who can even begin to understand the pain you’re going through…you stumble across this verse (Psalm 56:8) in God’s word. This verse is a promise we can cling to in the middle of our sleepless night. God knows and furthermore, HE CARES. He cares so much about us that He has a record of every tear we’ve cried and every ounce of pain we’ve ever suffered. He even knows the number of hairs on our head (Matthew 10:30).

Why? He’s a caring Father who loves us unconditionally. He sees us every second of every minute of every hour of every day. NOTHING that happens to us can shock him. He knows that someone close to you will betray you. He knows that someone who vowed to love, honor and cherish you will walk out. He knows that someone you love will fall ill with a debilitating disease. He knows that someone looking for a fix will steal everything of value.

HE KNOWS. HE SEES. HE CARES.

When we’re on our knees with tear stained faces, He wraps us in His embrace (Song of Solomon 2:6 and 8:3) and whispers “It will be ok, I am right here and will never leave you nor forsake you.”

How will you handle these times in your life?

• Will you trust Him and His plan?
• Will you allow Him to work through this situation to make you more like Christ and grow your faith in the process?
• Will you dive into His word and find His promised to stand on?
• Will you turn your back on God thinking that He has left you to “fend” for yourself?
• Will you hold onto the anger and bitterness allowing it to fester?

I encourage you to cry out to Him and tell Him everything. Ask Him for wisdom and guidance. Read through His word and discover what He has to say about His closeness during times of chaos.

I love  the lyrics to Blessings, a song written by Laura Story. This song has helped me look at tough times another way.

Blessings (Laura Story)

We pray for blessings, we pray for peace

Comfort for family, protection while we sleep

We pray for healing, for prosperity

We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering

And all the while, You hear each spoken need

Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things

'Cause what if your blessings come through rain drops

What if Your healing comes through tears

What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near

What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

We pray for wisdom, Your voice to hear

We cry in anger when we cannot feel You near

We doubt your goodness, we doubt your love

As if every promise from Your word is not enough

And all the while, You hear each desperate plea

And long that we'd have faith to believe

'Cause what if your blessings come through rain drops

What if Your healing comes through tears

What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near

What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

When friends betray us

When darkness seems to win

We know that pain reminds this heart

That this is not,

This is not our home

It's not our home

'Cause what if your blessings come through rain drops

What if Your healing comes through tears

What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near

What if my greatest disappointments or the aching of this life

Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can't satisfy

What if trials of this life

The rain, the storms, the hardest nights

Are your mercies in disguise

God never, ever leaves us alone

Psalm 63:8 (MSG)  I hold on to you for dear life, and you hold me steady as a post.

Over the past several days the weather in my area has been overcast with clouds and rainy. When it’s grey and rainy like this it’s easy for me to get caught up in the “blah-ness” of the day. To intentionally stop myself from allowing the weather to dictate my mood, I began to pray over several friends who are facing pretty serious “life storms.” During my prayer time, I asked God to provide wisdom, discernment and guidance for my friends and their families and, I also asked Him to show himself to them in a very real and powerful way. As soon as those words came out of my mouth, the clouds parted and I saw a ray of sunshine beam down on the road in front of me.

In that moment, I heard God whisper Tell them they are not alone, I am with them. Even though the storms may rage I have not left them to fend for themselves. I am at work in their lives and in your life my dear child. Remind them of my promises, encourage them with my word.

Tears fell from my eyes as one of my friends faces came racing to my mind. She had asked me earlier to pray for an unspoken prayer. “I will Jesus. Thank you for never leaving or forsaking us. Thank you for caring for us, for knowing our pain and loving us through it all.” When I came to a stopping place, I sent a text message to my friend encouraging her to rely on the promises of God during her current circumstance. Her reply to my message confirmed that when she received the text, she needed to hear those words of encouragement.

Isn’t that just like God? He puts someone in our path that will encourage us to “hang in there” and remind us of His promises. I stand in AWE of the God who set the stars in sky yet sees each and every one of our hurts and our pain then, sends someone into our lives to encourage us and love on us a little.

 Who do you know that could use a word of encouragement today? Remind a friend today of God's love and provision during the good times and the stormy times of life.

Shielded from the rain

Psalm 28:7 (AMP) “The Lord is my Strength and my [impenetrable] Shield; my heart trusts in, relies on, and confidently leans on Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song will I praise Him.

This morning as I listen to the rain falling on my roof, I am reminded of a day I had to drive down to North Carolina for a meeting. At one point on my trip, I drove into a pretty treacherous downpour of rain. It was raining so hard I could barely see the car in front of me or the road  ahead. As I drove through the rain, I realized that my car was a “shield” from the rain much like God is my impenetrable shield from the storms of life. 

In the near distance, I was able to make out an overpass. Passing under, a motorcyclist frantically tried to put on his rain gear to offer some sort "protection" from the rain. The guy was already soaked to the bone.

I couldn't help but make the analogy to those who don’t know Christ when they are going through storms of life. Where do they turn for strength? Who shields them? Who do they rely on? That day I was protected from the circumstances surrounding me by my car. Even though driving through the downpour made me nervous because I couldn't see what was going on in the distance, I was still safe from the rain. They guy on the motorcycle didn't have that security. He was doing all he could do to protect himself but he was still exposed to the elements.

The closer I walk with Christ the more I rely on Him to get through every season of my life. There isn’t anything I don’t talk to Him about. I let Him do the heavy lifting in my life because I know His word has promised me “His yoke is easy and His burden is light.” (Matthew 11:30). I know I can lean on Him and He will help me. God really does want us to come to Him and lay EVERYTHING at His feet. He wants us to confidently lean on Him.

Today, what is it that you need to lay down at His feet and rely on Him to be your shield?



Psalm 119:114 (NIV) You are my refuge and my shield; I have put my hope in your word.

Surviving relentless waves in a dollar store raft

Psalm 18:16-19 (MSG) But me he caught—reached all the way from sky to sea; he pulled me out of that ocean of hate, that enemy chaos, the void in which I was drowning. They hit me when I was down, but God stuck by me. He stood me up on a wide-open field; I stood there saved—surprised to be loved!

Psalm 18 is a song of victory David sang to the Lord when the Lord saved him from King Saul and his other enemies. While reading through these verses in the Message paraphrases I could certainly relate to a few of the words David used to describe what God had him through. Did you notice the same words I did?  

Ocean, Chaos, Void and Drowning

Let’s just face it, sometimes the "stuff" of life gets overwhelming. Situations or events can seem like you are drowning in an ocean of chaos and you can't find your way out of the dark void surrounding you. 

Anyone relating yet?

There have been times in my life when I have felt like a dollar-store raft being tossed out of control by the relentless waves of a raging sea during a category five hurricane. While circumstances around me rage, I convince myself the storm will eventually chew me up and spit me out. 

But that's not the truth of God's word is it?  NOPE! It's a lie of the enemy. 

the truth is God rescues me; just like He rescued David from his enemies, and just like He will rescue you from whatever storm you're facing.

At this moment are there any “life-storms” threatening to chew you up? Are you so consumed by them that it’s nearly impossible for you to see past them? There is ONLY ONE way to find hope, healing and protection from the battering sea...His name is Jesus! 

Yes… the “calmer of the storm” (Matthew 8: 23 - 27) wants to help us navigate through the treacherous waters we find ourselves in at times. We never have to question or be surprised by that truth. Jesus cares so deeply for us. If Jesus had a cell phone or a computer monitor, our face would be His background image. He cherishes us. He delights in us. Jesus doesn’t want us to be consumed and torn apart by the storms of life. He wants to give us the abundant life He promises in John 10:10 (MSG) “I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.”

Did you know that our life-storms can bring honor and glory to God? It’s true by the way we choose to handle them. How do you react when you're in an "uncontrollable" life-storm? Do you tend to cling to the sides of your little dollar store raft OR do you raise your hands in the midst of the fury and cry out to the ONLY God who can provide calmness and peace? 

I know I've learned something through each storm in my life and as a result my faith is increased and my relationship with Christ deepened. Though the waves may crash around me I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, I will never facing their fury alone. Christ is using His word and the prayer covering of my spiritual family to encourage me to hang on and trust even if I can't see calm waters ahead.  

Whether you're facing a "storm" right now or your life waters are calm, know that you are never alone. When storms rage, God will NEVER leave you nor forsaken you (Deut. 31:6,8; Joshua 1:5). 

Call out to Jesus and HE WILL keep you from falling.

“Storm calming" stories Matthew 14:22 – 32, Matthew 8: 24 - 26

The lesson of the "hot pot"

1 Corinthians 10:11 – 13 “These are all warning markers—danger!—in our history books, written down so that we don't repeat their mistakes. Our positions in the story are parallel—they at the beginning, we at the end—and we are just as capable of messing it up as they were. Don't be so naive and self-confident. You're not exempt. You could fall flat on your face as easily as anyone else. Forget about self-confidence; it's useless. Cultivate God-confidence.”

Being a parent is one of the greatest joys I have ever known. It is such a blessing to watch my little guy (he is 7) grow up and learn new and exciting things. His eyes sparkle and his entire face lights up when he discovers something new. “WOW! Mom, would you look at this place?” were the first words he uttered when we went through the gates at Busch Gardens (a theme park in Williamsburg, VA) for the first time. “Oh yeah! I’m gonna go on all the water rides!” he confidently told his cousin as we walked through the gates. He had only heard about a few of the water rides from his friend next door – but he didn’t care. He was going to ride every one of them.

 

As my eyes read through 1 Corinthians 10, verses 11 – 13 took me back to that first trip to Busch Gardens. My son was confident about the water rides based on what he had heard from his friend. His friend had a good experience, so he just knew he would too – and he did. He enjoyed every one of the water rides…and a few others as well.

Just as easily as the Busch Gardens thought ran through my head, another thought popped in too. We learn at an early age not to touch a hot stove. I bet your parents used to “shew” you away from the kitchen when they were fixing dinner because they knew the “dangers” that lurked there for little hands that didn’t know better. I know mine did. Perhaps one of them had touched a hot pot and didn’t want you to do the same. They had learned a very valuable lesson from a past experience or through the experience of others.

God has given us His Word so that through it, we may learn valuable lessons and not make the same mistakes people throughout history have made. The pressures of today make it so easy to forget the lessons of the past. Have you ever found yourself in a conversation where someone is trying to teach you something? “Don’t touch the pot on the stove, it’s hot and you will burn your hand” a concerned mother says to her son. “MOM! I know!” replies the son. The words “I know” roll off the tongue in hasty response. Have you ever had conversations like these? Perhaps you have been the “I know” person. I sure have. But did I really know? I think the answer is NO. I was just being confident – self confident.

 We are bound to make the same mistakes if we don’t learn from the lessons of the past. As I continue my journey through life, I can’t rely on my own confidence to get me through the various seasons. It is up to me to develop an unshakable God-confidence. When I think I am strong enough to handle anything that is thrown at me, I will find myself flat on my face if I don’t put my full confidence in God. Confidence in myself to weather the storms of life will leave me battered and torn like a dingy on a raging sea. I place my confidence in God and allow Him to strengthen me. 1 Corinthians 10:13 reminds me of this truth

“No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he'll never let you be pushed past your limit; he'll always be there to help you come through it.”

Control over the "Flood"

Psalm 29:10-11 (NCV) “The Lord controls the flood. The Lord will be King forever. The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace.”

Throughout the Bible the power of God is revealed through incredible miracles over nature. Psalm 29 verse 10 reminds me of the great flood in Genesis 6 – 9. In these three chapters of Genesis, God’s wrath towards sin unfolds through a flood that wiped out the entire earth and all of its inhabitants. At the same time, these chapters show God’s great mercy for people who truly seek Him. God saw that “Noah was a good man, the most innocent man of his time, and he walked with God.” (6:8 - NCV) “Noah did everything that God commanded him.” (6:22 & 7:5 - NCV) Noah and his family were spared devastation because of their obedience and faithfulness to God.

Just the other day I was talking to my Mom about the current life storm I’m facing. I am at the point where it would really be nice if God still spoke to His people audibly, you know through a burning bush (Exodus 3) or something like that. Better still, I would have no problem if He would just write what I should do next on the wall (Daniel 5) to get His message across. Okay, I know it doesn’t work that way (I am walking by faith not by sight!). But, the Apostle Paul urged us to understand the greatness of God’s power (Ephesians 1:18-23). The same power that raised Christ from the dead is available to help us today. Is that incredible or what? The same power that controls all of creation, caused solid rain for 40 days and nights, caused raging storms to settle, raised the dead is…that same power is available to you and me today!

When you commit your life to Christ, you access you have access to this great power. The next time you feel weak and helpless just remember that the power of Christ lives in you. That should give you the confidence to weather any storm knowing you’re not weak nor are you alone. You are strong because Christ gives you His strength!

Related scripture: Isaiah 40:29 – 31; Psalm 18: 32 – 34;

What do you do when your day gets chaotic?

The craziness had seemed to go on for hours and I was caught right in the middle. Every time I tried to slow down and take a breath there was someone else who needed something “10 minutes” ago. I was anxious and I could feel my heart rate going up, up, up. Have you ever been there? Perhaps you’ve felt this way in your home, at school, or at work. Nothing seems to slow you down or cut through the chaos.

The last few weeks, I’ve been reading through the Psalms. What incredible strength and peace I have found in the words written all those years ago. Throughout my reading I’ve been particularly drawn to the word refuge. This word appears in the book of Psalms at least 40 times that I have noticed.

According to Noah Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language, the word refuge is defined as follows:

That which shelters or protects from danger, distress or calamity; a strong hold which protects by its strength, or a sanctuary which secures safety by its sacredness; any place inaccessible to an enemy.

 

When I think about the word “refuge”, I think about a hiding place. The mental picture I get is of a castle or fortress from long ago. I bet there are many places to hide in a huge castle. Having had the opportunity to travel in Europe and other places around the globe, I can remember visiting castles in Puerto Rico, England, Austria, Ireland, France and Budapest. They were magnificent structures and to me they had an appearance of safety and security. A place “inaccessible to an enemy.”

When the chaos of another day began to bubble up, I realized in that moment, I was looking in all the wrong places for peace and solitude. Suddenly, I was reminded of my study of the word refuge throughout the Psalms. Verses that I had read began to flood my spirit and I found myself clinging to the only One who provides true refuge.

Psalm 2:12 (NIV) Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Psalm 5:11 (NIV) But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you.

Psalm 7:1 (NIV) I take refuge in you; save and deliver me from all who pursue me.

Psalm 9:9 (NIV) The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble.

Psalm 18:2 (NIV) The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.