Power Of A Moment

photo credit: caitlin marie

Her grief, confusion, hurt, and anger poured out across the phone lines.

All I could do was listen and sympathize.

I felt helpless in the onslaught of all this pain.

So I did the most powerful thing I could do…I prayed the entire time she was talking.

“Jesus, open her eyes! Let her truly see You!”

She has heard the gospel in all its entirety…twice.

Twice, she has reached out to me in her pain, searching…endlessly searching…seeking peace that never comes.

Because…she will not bend the knee to the Prince of Peace….Jesus…the only One who can give her the peace she so desperately wants to possess.

“I’m not ready….” she has whispered in the past, tears streaming down her face.

Ever the Gentleman, Jesus grants her request to pursue life without Him.

So she continues to be imprisoned by her pain…tortured by long nights filled with “what-ifs” and “if-onlys”…forever feeling unfulfilled because those she loves do not have the ability to make her whole…mentally ripping the bandages off wounds that remain unhealed and will not be silent.

The pain screams.

And the Healer waits.

He longs for her to turn to Him. He desires to release her from the enemy’s ruthless and relentless grasp.

He is the only One who can flood her soul with Peace and Joy. His  brilliant and powerful Light would dispel every bit of the deep darkness that now covers her heart.

He can take all her pain and transform it into something beautiful…beauty for ashes is His specialty.

He is the only One who will not be driven away by the depth of her need.

If she opened  His Word…His eternal love letter… He would tell her that she is lovely and precious to Him…that He rejoices over her life with heavenly song…that His plans for her life are grand and glorious (even when it hurts)…that He loved her enough to die for her and He wants to spend eternity showering her with His love.

She doesn’t want any of it.

This is incomprehensible to me and it breaks my heart.

I know this One.

He has set me free. He has healed—and continues to heal— what was/is broken in my damaged heart. Every day is a love affair with Him, no matter how hard or long the road.

He captivates me. He takes my breath away. He pours His love into my heart and opens my eyes to see that His glory and beauty truly does fill the whole earth.

He has made me whole.

I want this for her.

So…I will continue to pray for her as long as there is breath in my body, knowing that I have a Savior who desires that all would come to repentance and find true restoration and redemption.

“I have spread out My hands all day long to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, after their own thoughts…” (Isaiah 65:2, Amplified)

For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. —2 Corinthians 1:20

That is an absolutely amazing Scripture!

We have been given hundreds of “great and precious” promises in Jesus’ love letter to us, the Bible ( 2 Peter 1:4).

What is your need today? Find several promises that correspond to your situation and realize that Jesus answers every single one of them with a resounding and eternally joyful “YES!”

“Jesus, I need more of Your joy.”
“YES!” (John 15:11)

“Jesus, I need more of Your peace.”
“YES!” (John 14:27)

“Jesus, will you show me which way I should go?”
“YES!” (John 16:13)

“Jesus, I am filled with fear. Will You fill me with Your courage instead?”
“YES!” (John 14:27)

“Jesus, I feel like I’m not going to make it. My strength is so small. Will You pour Your strength into me?”
“YES!” (Phil. 4:13)

“Jesus, I am going to be honest. This person is driving me nuts! Please pour Your supernatural love into my heart?”
“YES!” (Romans 5:5)

“Jesus, I don’t feel very lovable right now. Please reassure me that Your love for me is powerful and unconditional, even when I mess up.”
“YES!” (Jeremiah 31:3)

“Jesus, my resources look awfully small. Help me to rest in Your promise that You will supply my every need.”
“YES!” (Philippians 4:19)

“Jesus, I am so confused. Things look so dark and scary right now. Yet, You say that Your plans for me are for good, to give me a future and a hope.”
“YES!” (Jeremiah 29:11)

“Jesus, You tell me that I am more than a conqueror and that is true whether I feel like that or not.”
“YES!” (Romans 8:37)

“Jesus, I feel very alone. Thank You for assuring me that You will never leave me or forsake me.”
“YES!”  (Hebrews 13:5)

“Jesus, I thank You that even now, You are preparing a place for me in Heaven.”
“YES!” (John 14:1-2)

Our great God is absolutely faithful. He cannot lie. His Word is eternal and His promises are absolute.

By faith, choose to believe His promises to you today.

Every single one of them will prove true in wondrous ways.

“Faith rests on the pure Word of God alone.”—George Mueller

My heart is heavy on this rainy morning.

From the earliest moments of this day, I began getting both emails and phone calls from dear friends and family who were at the end of their ropes, feeling totally overwhelmed and assaulted by life.

It is my honor and privilege to stand in the gap for these dear ones. My heart cries out to the Savior for deliverance for them…the same Savior who boldly and truthfully stated that He had come “to announce release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to send forth as delivered those who are oppressed, downtrodden, bruised, crushed, and broken down by calamity. ” (Luke 4:18, Amplified version). 

 I may feel and be helpless to do anything for them, but I go boldly to the One who is all-powerful and tender-hearted toward every soul that calls on Him in the midst of deep pain.

God’s Word tells me plainly that I am not just talking to air. I am entering the very Throne Room of the entire universe where my great and mighty God sits forever on His majestic throne, able, willing and mighty to save.

He hears our prayers and He records every single one of our tears.

The  Lord is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. –Ps. 34:18

I just heard this song by Travis Cottrell and I wanted to share the beautiful lyrics:

“I come broken… to be mended
I come wounded… to be healed
I come desperate… to be rescued
I come empty… to be filled
I come guilty… to be pardoned by the blood of Christ the Lamb
And I’m welcomed with open arms
Praise God…just as I am.”

If you are hurting today, come as you are to the only One who can set you free.

Come to Him in all your pain and let Him take it.

You are not alone.

You are seen.

You are heard.

You are deeply and eternally loved.

You are not in a hopeless situation.

There has been a resurrection!!!! You have a God that can redeem and restore anything! Jesus has come to make all things new. Nothing is impossible with Him!

“I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, ‘Fear not, I am the One who helps you.'” –Isaiah 41:13

A bruised reed He will not break, and a faintly burning wick He will not quench. –Isaiah 42:3

Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through the fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior…you are precious in My eyes and honored and I love you. –Isaiah 43:1-4

Come to Him just as you are this day and find healing for your soul.

Less than a week after my husband’s job was cut in 2009, he had an interview with a company that was literally within walking distance of our home. There was an opening in his field and the man who would be his boss was a member of our church.

I was elated. What an incredible testimony this would be! God’s provision would be lightning fast and this unemployment business would be a mere speed bump in our lives.

Except…it didn’t happen that way. The company decided not to fill the position.

I was devastated.

I had been so sure. It had seemed like such a perfect answer to prayer.

I went to bed that evening with a heavy heart. In the morning, I continued talking to Jesus about the situation, pouring out my sadness and confusion.

Suddenly, His Spirit spoke to mine so clearly that it was unmistakable: “Do not presume upon Me.”      

That is exactly what I had been doing.

I was stunned into silence.

It truly felt like I was standing on holy ground, His Presence was so thick. In that moment, I felt like the disciples did when they began to grasp who Jesus truly was and asked themselves in wonder and amazement, “Who is this?”

The word presume means: “to take for granted, assume, or suppose; to undertake with unwarrantable boldness; to take liberties.”

God forbid that I treat Him in this way.

I realized anew that He is GOD an I am not.

He is the Potter and I am the clay.

He is the infinite and I am the finite.

He is the Savior and I am the one who needs saving…sometimes (often) from myself.

It was an incredibly humbling moment.

I immediately asked Him to forgive me for my presumption and told Him that I would surrender to His plan and His path wherever it led.

I would no longer try to “write the rest of the story” as my friend Dianne says.

A few days later, I read this in my Streams in the Desert devotional:

“In no way is it enough to set out cheerfully with God on any venture of faith. You must also be willing to take your ideas of what the journey will  be like and tear them into tiny pieces, for nothing on the itinerary will happen as you expect. Your Guide will not keep to any beaten path. He will lead you through ways you would never have dreamed your eyes would see. He knows no fear and He expects you to fear nothing while He is with you.”—Annie Flint Johnson, p. 158

I didn’t know it at the time but Jesus was about to show me that the ‘Jesus’  I thought I knew so well was about to get a major and crucial adjustment.

Over the next two years, Jesus would (lovingly but firmly) expose the true state of my my heart:

*my security was actually tied to the things of this world rather than God Himself

*my focus was mainly on the passing things of this earth rather than on God’s eternal Kingdom

*without realizing it, I was sacrificing depth and lasting joy for fleeting, shallow happiness

*I had plenty of  tidy head knowledge about Jesus but as a result of this extended journey, I was ready to grant Him complete access to my restless, wandering heart and fully encounter Him as He truly is…in His fullness, majesty, and passion.

I am to have no other agenda than His.

Jesus wants—and because He is Lord, rightfully demands—it ALL. No holding back. No hesitation. No double-mindedness.

Just complete and total surrender to a Savior who “is gentle and merciful and kind. But He is also strong to save. And He loves us so much He refuses to pamper us.” –Mark Galli.

As Bible teacher James MacDonald is fond of saying, “God’s love is not a pampering love but a perfecting love.”

Following Jesus is not for the faint of heart. The longer you walk with Him, the more you will realize that He truly does not ever lead you by a predictable path.

Yet, this I promise you…He will surround you with His tender mercies and loving-kindness every step of the way (Ps. 40:11).

Don’t be afraid.

Having  just gone through a long season of pain and fear, I just wanted to offer a “battle plan” that enables a believer to endure trials from the place of victory and hope that Jesus’ death and resurrection permanently secured for us. This helped me and I pray it does the same for you…

1) The Word of the LORD is right and true; He is faithful in all He does. —(Ps. 33:4).

All means ALL.

All means the good and the bad. Jesus pulled no punches when He said, “In the world, you will have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer ( take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted!). For I have overcome the world. (I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you).”—(John 16:33)

No doubt about it…this life can be rough. However, we must prioritize His Word over our circumstances.

His Word tells us over and over that He is a loving God and everything He says is true. His ways are not our ways, but they are always right. Regardless of what we can see, we can know with absolute certainty that He will prove faithful to us.

2) When we stumble and fall (which we will), it is not the end of the world, as evidenced in Micah 7:7-8: “As for me, I watch in hope for the LORD; I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me. Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I  have fallen, I will rise. though I sit in darkness, the LORD will be my Light.”

Notice that Micah did not say that he was hoping and waiting for his circumstances to change.

His focus was on his God, who is the Author of Hope.

Even so, he experienced setbacks, as we all do. The enemy loves it when we stumble and fall. He is a shameless opportunist and works hard to convince us that we will never change, that God is disappointed in us and can never use us.

However, we can join with Micah and refuse to stay down. Jesus knows that we are frail and our weaknesses and failures never catch Him off guard. We can thwart the enemy’s plan by accepting Jesus’ outstretched hand and choosing not only to stand up again, but to move forward out of the darkness that surrounds us and into His Light, bold and unafraid.

Don’t you dare stay down when you fall. You have a Savior who is ever-ready to lift you up. (Ps. 40:1-3)

3) You may say, “I don’t have the strength to get up again. I’m too tired and the battle has raged too long.”

Jesus would disagree. He tells us in His Word that we can do all things through Him because He gives us His strength. (Philippians 4:13). Once again, all means ALL.

Due to the fact that the Holy Spirit lives inside of us, we possess the same power that raised Jesus from the dead. There is nothing that comes our way that we cannot handle in the strength that Jesus offers us.

You are not at the mercy of your circumstances. They are to be firmly under your feet. Claim Philippians 4:13 and refuse to live in fear and weakness.

Your legacy is supernatural strength and victory.

4) Do not live in fear of lack.

Jesus promises to supply all your needs according to His glorious riches (Philippians 4:19). Notice that the text does not say that He will provide “out of” His riches, but “according to.”

If I have $100 and I give you $5.00, I only have $95 left.

Jesus is infinite and has infinite resources that can never be diminished in any way! He knows exactly what you need when you need it and He will always provide your needs.

My husband and I saw this time and time again in the months following his lay-off. We absolutely marveled at God’s abundant provision. As a result, we learned that everything we have truly comes from His hand. Knowing this leads to the peace that does pass all understanding.

(Quick note: much of what we classify as ‘needs’ are actually ‘wants.’ If you need it, He will always provide it. If you don’t have it, it was a ‘want’ and not a true need. Oh, this was a tough lesson for me to learn! After many tears, I finally submitted to the fact that He sees the big picture and I don’t. I came to accept it when He said no because I learned that I could absolutely trust His heart and that He could only give me good things ( Psalm 84:11). And you know what?  He is such a lavish Giver that He does give plenty of ‘wants’ too…as long as we seek Him above all else).

5) Regardless of your circumstances, claim the liberating and awesome truth of this Scripture: “… pray that you may be invigorated and strengthened with all power according to the might of His His glory (to exercise every kind of endurance and patience (perseverance and forbearance) with joy, giving thanks to the Father…” (Colossians 1:11-12).

It is verses like these that vividly illustrate that the true Christian life is a supernatural life. If you pray this Scripture and believe that your desire will be granted, I guarantee you that everyone around you will know that you have been with Jesus.

When going through a trial, never lose sight of the fact that you follow a risen Savior who will always lead you in triumph!

The Lord your God is in the midst of you, a Mighty One, a Savior who saves! He will rejoice over you with joy; He will rest (in silent satisfaction) and in His love He will be silent and make no mention of past sins or even recall them. He will exult over you with singing.—Zephaniah 3:17