sunrise thoughts 18 October 2015

New every morning... a Sunday morning sunrise post :)

photo credit T. Getz 2015

I donned the LOML's oversized robe & waterproof boots to walk through the dew-covered grass to "get my sunrise shots" a week ago today and was laughed at by our daughter (Mommy to the Little). "You picked a hard topic this year Mom!"

PAIRINGS - Beginning of the Day

Some mornings... it's best to remind myself that the promises of God are NEVER broken! I need some peace & assurance today. I am going to focus on His promises today & turn my cares and concerns over to God! Will you pray with me today?

"Morning by morning new mercies I see;

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided!

Great is Thy faithfulness, LORD, unto me!" 

~ Great is Thy Faithfulness lyrics by Thomas Chisholm, 1925

"The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, 'The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!'" Lamentations 3:22-24 NLT

PAIRINGS - Lamentations 3:23

Do you ever feel like you don't have the strength to face another day? I've had plenty of those days! And, I cry out to God for strength & mercy. Every morning, He's there waiting for me with new strength. I must admit, it's one of my favorite parts of being a follower of Christ for me. I tend to depend heavily upon God for each day's strength!

Have you ever thought things like this though? 

I wish they'd get what they deserve! 

Why can't they wake up in the morning & get what they deserve!

What if I got what I deserved for the choices I've made? That's another question!! As a Christian I'm thankful for the gifts which come from God. But, I need to be reminded that God gives those gifts FREELY to all.

God's word tells us...

"The faithful love of the lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning." Lamentations 3:22-23

Used in...
Every Morning... A New Start! 
I Wish They'd Get What They Deserve!

Linking with Ann Voskamp - A Holy Experience today... 

Time Heals All Wounds...

Time heals all wounds... or does it?

Today, I'm a bit numb. Yesterday I was a bit numb. And, the day before... I was a bit numb. And, if I am numb, how are those who are personally walking this road this very moment? I'm experiencing this from afar. I'm not related by family or by community. I'm experiencing this from a distance.

How do we make sense of the senseless... 

One of the two pedestrians who was struck by a car Thursday night in south Nashville has died...

As I slept this past Thursday night, I received a text from a friend whom I call my sister. I refer to those friends as my sister-friends. They are the ones you cry with & laugh with through all of their journeys & your journeys, as well. They are the ones who "get you" and yet continually help you become a stronger, better version of "you"! I don't know why the Lord didn't wake me up when the text came in so that I could begin my prayers then. When I checked my cell before 7am that next morning, I read her text & immediately replied assuring her that prayers were being lifted up. The next 8 hours was full of uncertainty, question & earnest prayers to the Father on behalf of this child of 18 and his family.

This child... or should I say this young man... was someone I'd met & adopted as family in my heart years ago. I'd prayed for him growing up as a big brother of two little sisters after the untimely death of their mother. I'd prayed for him & those sweet girls after the untimely & unexpected death of their caretaker, their maternal grandmother. I'd prayed for him as he was choosing his path for a career and for further education. I'd prayed for him as though he was family!

In this moment, I can make no sense of the senseless death of this young man. He was a mentor & guide for his younger sisters. He was a joy to those around him - full of energy & life. He was full of potential. And WHY, I ask God, can that be gone in a moment?

There are no answers to my questions today. There is only HOPE that we will see God bring comfort in this time to those most hurting... HOPE that eyes will be drawn to God as this young man is laid to rest... HOPE that assurance of God's love will be felt in the hearts of those agonizing over this senseless passing.

My heart breaks for those who love this young man. My heart breaks too, for I chose to take him & his family into my heart all those years ago. I hurt. But, my pain can be nothing compared to those who will live this horrible reality on a moment to moment basis for years to come.

My sister-friend, his aunt & in my opinion his "mom" for the past 10 years, posted a note in his honor this morning. It said... 

"For baby boy, we love you forever, and your sisters - our angel girls... Κύριε ελέησον"

Κύριε ελέησον" is Greek and means "Lord have mercy". That is the cry of my heart today... Lord, have mercy! For we have placed all our HOPE in YOU! Claiming this verse and so many others today... 

"And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7

Only through the strength of God...

"For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength." Philippians 4:13

Linking with Ann Voskamp - A Holy Experience today...

 

I Wish They'd Get What They Deserve!

I am a Christian.  Yet, there's this sense within me that people should get what they deserve. How often we, as Christians, take for granted the grace & mercy which God bestowed upon us as His children, while secretly wanting others to NOT receive that same grace & mercy. We seem to think we know the perfect punishment for other people's sins. But, God's promises are for everyone...

His mercies are NEW every morning.
Great is His faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:23

When Jonah complained about God's sentence upon Nineveh, God told him, "... Nineveh has more than 120,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals. Shouldn't I feel sorry for such a great city?" Jonah 4:11. This didn't really sit well with Jonah.

It often doesn't sit right with us when others don't get the punishment we think they deserve. A verse that has taken on a very special meaning for me in the past year or so is... 

"The Lord isn't really being slow about His promise, as some people think. No, He is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent." 

2 Peter 3:9

God's grace is greater than all our sin... all of everyone's sin! His grace & mercy is great enough for the little sins... and the big sins -- as we often see them! God gives every single one of us "second chances".

Perhaps we (I) should be less concerned about what others deserve and more concerned about expressing thankfulness to God for the mercy & grace which He has extended to... each of us.

Linking with Ann Voskamp - A Holy Experience today...