Healing Tears

"O Lord My God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed me."  Psalm 30:2 (NIV)

It has happened to me before.  Events of my life take place.  The stress and anxiety is great.  I pray and pray, wondering if God has heard me.  I struggle and try to solve things myself.  Does any of this sound familiar to you?  Have you been stuck in a spot of your life where you are wondering if God is listening?

As I was going through the struggles of cancer treatment, I prayed.  I talked to God on such a different level than I ever had before.  I knew He knew what was going on in my heart, my head and my body.  Yet, it didn't seem as if things were getting better.  The chemo was creating havoc with my body.  The stress of cancer and having to be mom and wife was great.  I cried to my Lord almost every day.  Then, it happened.   On a rock on Jackson Falls.  The tears started.  They flowed as hard and long as the water on the falls.  Through the tears came the real healing, the feeling of peace I was yearning for.  Healing Tears.

Just last week, I was there again.  This time, it was in this beautiful chapel at a hospital where my mom had just come out of surgery.  The stress of the previous months had taken its toll.  The constant prayers for mom's healing were continuous throughout the day.  Bring in the constant pressures of work and, well, I'm sure you can figure out the rest.  Then, it happened again.  I am having a turkey sandwich in the cafeteria and I felt the same welling up of emotion.  I practically ran to this empty chapel and God and I talked, and once again, there were Healing Tears.

There is so much happening in our world today.  So much that we question God on why He would let these events occur.  Whether they are personal to us or our families or whether they span the world, the question of "why" remains.  Sometimes, God gives us glimpses of the answer.  Other times, we will wait until we see Him in heaven.  The best part, though, is that He does provide the healing when the tears are flowing.  He holds His loving arms around us, hugs us, and lets us know that peace is coming.  

As we all face these times in our lives, I encourage you to let the crying to begin.  God knows your heart, let Him see your tears.  In doing so, we pour out our emotional baggage and become filled with emotional peace.  I can't speak for you, but I'll take peace over baggage any day.  Find that special spot where it all makes sense.  It doesn't have to be a beautiful spot in nature or a chapel.  I've had such experiences in the shower in my home.  It's wherever we release and find relief.  

Dearest God, how I thank you that I can come to you with my tears and you provide the healing.  May I be confident in the knowing that you are a few tears away.  Take my baggage from me Jesus, and replace it with your precious peace.  In your gracious name I pray.  Amen!

Dearest Father

"May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word."  2 Thessalonians 2: 16-17 (NIV)

Growing up in the '70s was an experience.  As with any generational decade, the '70s brought us so many epic trends - 8 track players, mood rings, pet rocks and the great disco music.  Parenting in any generation can prove difficult and the '70s did not disappoint.

Yet, there was my father.  He truly didn't care which decade it was, he was going to be the father that he believed he needed to be.  Growing up in a coal mining town in Pennsylvania, heading off as a Marine to the Korean War and attending William and Mary proved that he had many life experiences to share with his children.  He was many things for us:

A Disciplinarian:  We knew who ruled the roost at our home.  He had strong expectations and when we fell out of line, we knew it.  Although we may not have known it at the time, that discipline served us well growing up and ensured we received his strong values.

A Knowledge Provider:  Each day had a learning moment in it.  Whether it was a grammar lesson on a paper I had written or how to identify certain trees by their leaves, Daddy always exported knowledge.

A Problem Solver:  Nothing beat the way Daddy solved a problem.  Whether it was chewing gum to stop a leak in the bathroom or duct tape to fix ANYTHING, Daddy solved problems HIS way.

A Caring Soul:  He may have been a strong disciplinarian, but we always knew he cared.  There were moments where he listened and shared his feelings in such great letters we all keep today.

A Loving Heart:  We ALWAYS knew Daddy loved us.  Through each word, each hug, each phone call and especially through his wonderful smile, we knew that he always loved us.

I was fortunate to have such a great father.  Yet, as wonderful as my father was, he had flaws.  We all have flaws - mine show every day.  There is a Father, however, who doesn't have one flaw, Our Heavenly Father.

His is a disciplinarian, helping to guide us away from poor choices with the Holy Spirit.    He is a knowledge provider, giving us all the knowledge we need in The Bible.  It's just our job to go and get all the knowledge that He has given to us.  He is a problem solver -  the best I have encountered by far.  He knows each problem I have and always solves them, as long as I give them over to Him with a willing heart.   He is a caring soul, always listening to me.  There has yet to be a time when I have talked to my Heavenly Father when He wasn't willing to listen to me - no matter how many times I've turned my back on him.  Most of all my Heavenly Father has a loving heart - He is always there loving us.  We can feel His love through each word He speaks to us, each hug He gives us and even through the wonderful smile He shines down on us each and every day.  

My Dad, who has been in paradise now for 17 years, I miss so dearly but I am so grateful for all  he gave me.  For our Heavenly Father, help us to know that each day should be Father's Day.  May our praises, our worship and our love shine on Him always.

Dearest Father, thank you for helping us set aside a day to truly appreciate our earthly fathers and all that they give to us.  May we appreciate them and love them as they love us.  Help us to also remember that you are truly the Father who provides everything we could ever need -  including eternal salvation.  Let our joy surround both our earthly fathers as well as you, our Dearest Father.  In your loving name we pray, Amen!  

Waiting

"Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord."  Psalm 27:14 (NIV)

Waiting has never been my strong point.  I believe that God has provided many wonderful gifts for me, but waiting is something I may be getting better at, but have always struggled with.  How have I gotten better?  Waiting in the grocery line when I have a time line used to put me over the edge.  Now, I force myself to find something positive.  Maybe it's smiling with the people in front of me.  Maybe i think about the meals I will make with the food.  Waiting in traffic?  Even that has me a bit more jovial.  I know I can't go anywhere so I think of a certain situation I might be able to problem solve or enjoy the music.  Overall waiting, yes, I'm getting better.

It's the "tough" waiting!  Waiting for my mom's surgery to be scheduled.  Waiting for certain things to happen at work.  It's the tougher waiting that I still struggle with.  I am a firm believer that God controls the time lines of our lives.  Yet, sometimes, it doesn't make the wait any easier.  I pray. I read my Bible.  I go to my devotions.  I try to do all the "right" things that I believe will influence God's timing.

Then it is a certain verse, like the one for today, that jolts me out of the "my time" thinking and into the "God time" thinking.  When I truly search these verses and personalize them, they become the peace and calm to the chaos and frustration. How do I do this?  For instance, I read today's verse saying:

   Wait for the Lord SUSAN, be strong SUSAN and take heart and wait for the Lord Susan.

When I put my name into the verse, I fully understand that the Lord is not sharing information, He is talking directly to me.  I know, then, that it is time to be Waiting on God - waiting for His very perfect time, not my time.  Often I remind others of this, and need to remind myself of that as well.  My dear husband is great at being that gentle reminder - sharing the frustration and the peace.

Our time lines are just that - OURS.  They are not the time lines that God always has for us.  When we start orchestrating our time lines into His journey, the peace turns to chaos.  May we all remember this as we have moments in our lives when we need to wait.  Although we may struggle, He is telling us that the time is not right now.  We need to be cognizant of that, so very aware, so that our chaos can turn to peace.  It's not easy - hey this is life.  Nobody said it was going to be a relaxed journey down the river.  When we rely on our Heavenly Father, though, we gain the strength, the courage, the patience and the love that only He can bring.  Take our waiting to God - He will provide!

"Dearest Jesus - help me!  I need you to help me see what I sometimes can't see myself - your perfect timing.  In moments when the wait is longer than "I" want, help me to be still and know that it is YOUR time that is truly perfect.  Bring peace to my chaotic waiting period.  Let me trust in you always.  Amen!"

One

"...one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all."  Ephesians 4: 5-6 (NIV)

It's my Saturday morning ritual.  I get up (fairly early) and brew that one cup of coffee.  Just a single cup of coffee the way I like it.  As the coffee was brewing, it made me think of how much I enjoy that one cup.  The rest of the week I am "moving and shaking" to get chores completed before I head out the door for work or church.  On Saturday, it is my one time to take my time - and watch the coffee brew.

As I was anxiously awaiting my coffee, thoughts of "one" came through my mind.  I thought I would take today to share some of those thoughts with you.

I am God's chosen one - He made just one of me - for the purpose of fulfilling His path.

    "For you are a people holy to the Lord your God.  The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession."  Deuteronomy 7:6

God will always be with me - although I may stray from the rest - He will stay with the one, with me.

   "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them.  Doesn't he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?"  Luke 15:4

Jesus was the one, the ONLY one, to die and rise again for ALL of my sins, so I may be saved.

   "For Christ also suffered once for sins,the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.  He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit."  1 Peter 3:18

God knows me, one person, and I am worth everything to Him.

   "Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies?  Yet not one of them is forgotten by God.  Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered.  Don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows."  Luke 12:6-7

As wonderful as my one cup of coffee is to my Saturday morning, I learned through all of these verses that I am that wonderful in God's eyes.  There are certainly times when I don't believe I am worthy of God's wonders and blessings.  Through grave sin, it is hard to believe that He would still love me.  Yet, through the verses of "one", I can see that I am precious in God's sight - ALL the time.  May we always remember that the One who created us, the One who sustains us, is the One who loved us enough to die on the cross for as little as One, but certainly for all mankind.  

"Dearest God, sometimes it is hard to digest the thought that you are with me, just one person. Yet, your heavenly word helps me to see that although I am one, you are with me always.  You will never leave me or fore sake me.  Help me to always remember that, especially during difficult times, so that I may always revel in your love.  Amen!"