Unveiling Hope

Can You Hear Me Now?

Yes! Yes! I can hear you. I hear every word you say, I know every thought you think. I’m with you. Yes! I’m here, always and forever.

I know you’re beginning to think I’m not listening or that our connection has been broken; it hasn’t dear heart. Every prayer you pray I collect in a bowl, waiting for the perfect moment to pour out blessings upon you. I’m not ignoring you. I’m not disappointed in you. I love you, with all my heart, without condition. There is nothing you’ve done to change that. There is nothing you can do to change that.

You will hear me again, know this for sure. The din of this world is making much static, but I’m still on the line. I won’t hang up. Quiet yourself. Find a place of solitude and meet me there, you’ll find less noise on the line. You’ll hear me. You might have to try a few times, but please don’t give up. Don’t give up on me for I will never give up on you. My heart is for you - all the way. You have my full attention.

You said you wished we could talk the way we used to, we still can, if you cling to the Hope I’ve given you. Nothing has changed – this is a temporary situation. You’ll see, soon you’ll understand everything. Let this be a time that drives your passion for me to persist regardless of what is going on around you. You will hear me again, I promise. You can stand on that promise. For all the promises I’ve made to you are the foundation of an everlasting covenant. You are mine! Stay on the line!

‘And he said, "Go out and stand on the mount before the LORD." And behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper.And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him,’ 1 Kings 19:11-13 NIV.

Damaged Goods?!

I had to return an electronic device the other day. The salesperson was unable to determine what the problem was. I had explained to him that I’m not technically inclined and that perhaps the problem was with me. “Damaged goods” he said. My eyes opened widely, my heart began to pound in my chest. For a brief moment, those words – while I knew were not intended to describe me – chilled me to my very core.

The drive home was quiet – no radio – just my thoughts. Those few moments in the store took me back to a time, less than six years ago, when I exchange my “life” for the Life of Christ who came to live in me. You see, before that exchange was made – my life for His – I had always thought of myself as damaged goods. In those first months after surrendering my heart to Him, I struggled with one recurring thought: why would He want me? I am damaged goods. I won’t try and pull the wool over your eyes, there are still times – however infrequent - when the enemy still tries to convince me that I was born damaged, I am damaged, and I will always be damaged. What does he know?!

God’s Truth tells me that I am not my circumstances – past, present, or future. My past sin does not define me; my future sin will not define me, nor do the sins committed against me define me. I am who I AM says I am.

God knew me before I was conceived. He knew everything I would do, think, say, feel … He knew that I would make many poor choices before choosing Him; He knew that there would be others who would make poor choices on my behalf. He knew my fears, my habits, my secrets. He knew I would reject Him. He knew I would reject those He loves. He knew that I would choose to please others before Him. BUT, He never focussed on anything other than His love for me. He loved me – He loves me - with an everlasting love. He let nothing stand in the way of His plans for me. His love and His promises are for all who choose Him regardless of the who, where, when, what, why and how.

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart,” Jeremiah 1:5(a).

In Deed

From May 2007 until May 2009, someone I love very much was in a pit so deep that there were times – long periods of time – when he had no vision of being rescued. From his perspective, although he appreciated the support, it mattered little in the thick of the quagmire how many people were routing for him.

He had begun to question his very foundation; was it built on Rock or sand? Doubt was beginning to drown him and guilt, fuelled by the doubt, was the anchor pulling him down. How easy it is to tell someone to “have faith.” The truth is, unless we are going through the exact thing at the exact time, and under the exact circumstances, we can only begin to imagine what someone is living through.

What could I do? What can any of us do for others on our own? The only thing I could do was pray. And while I know that God heard my prayers – I also knew that when two or more are gathered, there He is. I began asking for others to lift him up in prayer without divulging personal and intimate details. Groups of people began praying for him; some he knew of – others he did not.

On September 21st, 2008 – someone spoke into this life – someone spoke life into this situation. A brother had a vision of the Lord reaching down into that pit and leading him into a bright future.

James (2:14-17) wrote that faith without deeds is dead. Believing that God can and wants to change a situation is faith. Uniting with others in prayer is a deed; giving encouraging words is a deed. Faith indeed. Faith in deed.

God is Great. God is Faithful. God deserves all glory; He did reach into that pit. He did pull out one that I love. He did give him a vision and is leading him into a bright future. God deserves all the glory.

“And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” John 14:13-14.

Hallelujah, Lord. To you be all the glory.

The Strength of One

Perfect wisdom comes from God. Throughout history, God has given knowledge and understanding to those whom He chose to give voice to His message; today nothing has changed and tomorrow be no different – because perfect wisdom does not change.

This morning, pastor unfolded a passage of Scripture found in Deuteronomy 6: 5-9. In this particular passage, God was commanding Israel to love Him with all heart, soul and strength, from morning to night, in everything they did, and to teach their children about Him. His command was given to Israel as one – one nation – one people – one heart, one soul, and one mind.

People say: “there is strength in numbers”. I don’t believe that to be true. In reality, throughout the Bible – the Old and New Testaments – the Word of God teaches that true Strength is found in One. Those who unite as one have far more strength to love than the many who love but are divided. Those who individually and collectively unite first with God, in heart and soul, love and serve in the Strength of One; this is perfect wisdom.

“And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, ‘Which commandment is the most important of all?’ Jesus answered, ‘The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbour as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these.’" Mark 12:28-31 ESV.

Tell Me Something Good

Perhaps I’ve become overly sensitive since reaching the BIG 50! Maybe I always was and only recently have been awakened to the fact that I’m sensitive.

I have a message to share to all the wonderful people who feel it’s imperative to point out others physical faults and/or blemishes. I’m sure you mean well because I can’t imagine that you would deliberately set your mind to knock down or hurt another human being.

I have to ask … is it really necessary to tell someone, or everyone, that they have a blemish on their face, or that their eyes look puffy, or that they have a crooked tooth? Is it important to tell someone that you’ve noticed they’ve gained a bit of weight, or . . . whatever!? Is this information news-worthy? Has anyone ever been shocked to hear they’ve gained weight or have a pimple smack-dab between their eyes? How do you feel now that you’ve got that off your chest? Excuse me while I run after my friend who is now in tears . . . or my child whose confidence is beaten down.

How important is it to share this information? How do these observations help a person grow? How does this information encourage and edify? How will this help that person in any way?

Personally speaking, if my character is need of adjusting, point it out with grace before truth. If my heart isn’t in the right place, show me where it should be with grace before truth. If I’ve said something out of line, correct me with grace before truth. Tell me something good, but please - it’s really not necessary to point out, or overstate the obvious. People are all too aware already of our physical shortcomings and “blemishes”. I see myself in the mirror every single morning, and truth be told – I do my very best to hide from you what you so diligently point out to me and particularly to those whom I love.

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” Phil. 4:8.

Miracles Indeed

Make the Call

Have you been in that dark place? Maybe you're there now? The place where solitude has a strangle hold on your life? With every breath you breathe you long to reach out, but with each passing breath it becomes more and more difficult. The paralysis of loneliness has set in; the enemy has all but snuffed out every ounce of hope from your spirit. You cling to your faith with your very life. You’re battle-fatigued.

You have some great friends. They pray for you, they call or email you. They know you can’t make it through this crisis alone. They’ve all but begged you to call them when you need them, whether it’s to vent, to cry, or just to get away from your situation for an hour. You wanted to make one of those calls last week, but you thought – all I ever do is talk about the same problem, ask for the same prayers. You don’t want to be a burden. You don’t want to bother them, they all have issues and concerns to tend to in their own lives.

So you don’t call. You need to be the strong one in this situation. The pressure seems to lay squarely on your shoulders. You know God is working things out, but you just can’t hold yourself together anymore.

Have you been in this situation before? Are you in this position now? Can you, just for a moment, put one of your friends in your situation? Now, answer this question: wouldn’t you want them to call you? Would you think your friends are burdensome? Would you tire of listening to them, or would you just want to lavish your love, support, and encouragement on them? I thought so. Do yourself a favour, make the call. Let your friends fulfill their callings.

“Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Gal. 6:2.

Knowing Someone

Have you ever had someone say to you, “I know you!”? When someone says that to me there’s a part of me that secretly answers back, “You don’t know me at all.”

In order to know someone we have to be in relationship with them.  Both parties need to allow themselves to be known – and therein lies the issue that afflicts many relationships. Do we want to be acquainted with someone, or know them? Either one is fine, but a choice is inevitable.  The truth is that I don’t want to be fully known by everyone I meet and it’s my experience that many people tend to feel the same way. I find it pretty ironic that I can spill extremely personal parts of my life over the internet and not feel as if someone is peering into the parts of my life that requires a bond of trust between two people. So, I’m known to many, but I’m known by few.

There is more to knowing someone than being familiar with their likes and dislikes, their hobbies and interests, or the names of their children and family members. It’s more than knowing an intimate secret or two. Developing a healthy relationship with someone requires love, honesty, an investment of time from both parties, and a bond of reciprocal trust that thrives in perpetual growth. 

We can learn things about others, perhaps even enough to permit us to notice patterns of behaviour, but we can never know someone until they open the door and we take that step over the threshold of being in relationship.

“the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened,”  Luke 11:10 ESV.

A Light in the Darkness

I used to live my present in my past. It was a very dark and lonely place. The greatest gift I’ve ever received came from my past and that gift – that Gift – is the Light that lead me out of the darkness of despair and desolation. There are times when I’ll be looking into someone’s eyes and seeing a deadness, a lack of hope, reflecting from their hearts into their eyes; it’s as if there’s a barrier that prevents light from entering.

In his book, The Purpose Driven Life , Rick Warren wrote that God never wastes a hurt. I remember the first time I read that line; it was a relief. It was a relief to know that the darkness I had lived in for so many years would one day bring Light into someone else’s darkness.

If someone would have told me six years ago that I would soon give my heart and soul to Jesus Christ I would have laughed them right out of town. But today I can’t even begin to express the gratitude in my heart that exists because He chose me. He was the Light that shone in the darkness that was my life. He gave me life. He gave me hope – a hope that never fails because His love never fails.

“In him was life, and the life was the light of men,” John 1:4.