Staying Strong
Joshua 1:9
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
This morning, I was going to send this out in my Monday morning devotional, but I just ran out of time. This new job is really cutting into my free time. = ) I really wasn't feeling a need to "stay strong" but it's always good to remember the message.
First thing this morning, I had an email from Oscar - the kids don't have any food again. I told Larry we just have to send some money. Oscar's kids need food and I can't stand it that they don't know where the next meal will come from. Well, let me say, I didn't know where their next meal would come from. I'm sure Oscar knew God would provide. He always trusts and God is always faithful to make a way. Well today, I figured God was giving Larry and me the opportunity to help in some very small way. As I left for work, Larry said he would send money. I felt better.
But then, later today, I got an update from Lost Orphans. I knew there might be some small amount in the Happy Choice account but I had just asked that they send a wire early last month because we had another urgent need. I decided not to impose on them again this soon. Larry and I could just send the little we had and hopefully it would be enough until Lost Orphans sent the monthly wire. But God is so good. About 10:00 I received an email from Lost Orphans giving me an update of donations for the month, letting me know that a wire was being sent today for over $600.00!
I almost cried with joy. Oscar never doubts our God. He's got 12 kids plus his own three with no food and no prospects of food, but he's trusting God. I, on the other hand, have a full stomach, never miss a meal, and I wonder where the money for more food, for school needs for the kiddos, for a barbed wire fence to surround the Happy Choice Compound for protection - where money for all those things will come from. You'd think I would have figured it out by now. God is our Provider and when we trust Him, He will out do our little human efforts every time.
Then I got an update on Jessica Boone, the sweet young girl who has been coming back from a traumatic head injury that nearly killed her. This young girl has such amazing faith. Her pain is excruciating right now. Her mom, Lisa, who is a living testimony to faith herself, is overwhelmed with watching her daughter suffer, unable to give her any relief from the pain. Saturday, when mom Lisa is at the point of despair, Jessie turns to to her and wants to know if they can go to church on Sunday. Lisa says, "no Jess, you aren't able to sit on the pew for that long right now with your pain." Jessie tells her mom, "it will be better tomorrow. I asked God to make it better and He will."
Oscar and Jessica Boone know how to stay strong.
Faith is believing when we cannot see. Jessie and her family, Avery Grace Akeman and her family, Oscar and Emma and their ministry... so many others I could name - these precious believers are my encouragement to stay strong, to never doubt, never fear.
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. ” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 2 Corinthians 12:9
Holy Father, I thank You that You have already defeated the enemy. I submit to You this day and resist the onslaught of the enemy upon my life, knowing that he will flee from me when I do. Lord Jesus, help me to recognize those seemingly innocent compromises I am tempted to make for what they are - the beginning of a spiral downward into darkness and away from You. You alone are my strength and my God. My allegiance is with You, my Redeemer. Lord, keep my eyes focused on You and all You have for me.
Help me to stay strong, to trust Your strength when I have none of my own. Help me to remember that You are always with me. What or whom should possible fear with You by my side?
This day is for You, for Your glory. I worship You in the midst of everything I face, knowing that in Your presence there is safety and peace.
In the precious Name of Jesus, my Savior and my God. Amen.
This hymn came to mind. I couldn't find it on youtube but I'll share the lyrics here. Lord give me such a faith as this.
William Hiley Bathurst (1796-1877) wrote:
O for a faith that will not shrink, though pressed by every foe,
That will not tremble on the brink of any earthly woe.
That will not murmur or complain beneath the chastening rod,
But in the hour of grief or pain, will lean upon its God.
A faith that shines more bright and clear when tempests rage without;
That when in danger knows no fear, in darkness feels no doubt!
Lord, give us such a faith as this; and then, whatever may come,
We’ll taste even here the hallowed bliss of an eternal home.
http://youtu.be/ZbnKW1gHRzE - Stay Strong - Newsboys
You're in the moment now
A bitter root
A wandering eye and then
The ties that bind start wearing thin, thin
You're in the moment now
When all you've been blessed with
Is not enough
Here's where the ground gets loose
Here's where the devils call your bluff
Stay strong
You are not lost
Come on and fix your eyes ahead
There's a new dawn to light our day, our day
You've gotta stay strong
You and I run
For the prize that lies ahead
We've come too far to lose our way, our way
We've seen the tragic flaws
The tortured souls
The saints with feet of clay
Here's where sin becomes cliché'
We've come through wilderness and watched
The cloud by day
The burning sky into dawn
Have you forgotten who you are?
Did you forget whose trip you're on?
Stay strong
You are not lost
Come on and fix your eyes ahead
There's a new dawn to light our day, our day
We've gotta stay strong
You and I run
For the prize that lies ahead
We've come too far to lose our way, our way
Get up, there's further to go
Get up, there's more to be done
Get up, this witness is sure
Get up, this race can be won
This race can be won
We've gotta stay strong
You are not lost
Come on and fix your eyes ahead
Our Father's dawn will light our day, our day
Come on and stay strong
His grip is sure
And His patience still endures
There'll be no letting go today, no way
Come on, and stay strong
You and I run
For the prize that lies ahead
We've come too far to lose our way, our way.
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. James 4:7-8a
It's not about me.
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