Who shall a helpless worm redeem...

"In age and feebleness extreme,

Who shall a helpless worm redeem?

Jesus, my only hope Thou art,

Strength of my failing flesh and heart:

O could I catch one smile from Thee,

And drop into eternity!" ~John Wesley

"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." ~Philippians 1:21

"15 For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.
16 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.
17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal."

~2 Corinthians 4:15-20

One of my heroes of the faith...Susanna Wesley

"I am content to fill a little space if God be glorified." ~ Susanna Wesley

The story of Susanna Wesley's life is incredibly amazing. She was one of the loveliest women of the faith, I believe, that ever lived. I admire her greatly. My husband & I read about her life, and couldn't put it down, it was so inspiring. The book is Susanna Wesley: Servant of God, by Sandy Dengler. You can find it by clicking here. Susanna's life was filled with incredible heartache & tragedies. If you know of someone facing severe trials, or going through the grief process, this book is made for them...her faith is a wonderful example of always leaning on the sovereignty and grace of Jesus, rejoicing in His goodness, no matter what.

"At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: 'Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised.' In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing." Job 1:20-22

We will never walk alone...Hallelujah!

I'm subscribed to Day by Day's devotional, and this came in my email today from them. May it give you encouragement to know that God has you exactly where He needs you, even if you don't understand any of His placement at all!

"We know the loneliness which the great missionary David Livingstone experienced while serving the Lord in Africa. We also remember how Martin Luther spent his time in loneliness in a fortress, where he used this time to translate the Bible into the German language. No room for bitterness, 'Lord, deliver me from this place so I can serve you better.' No, he served the Lord right where he was, despite the limitations.

And what about John Bunyan, confined to a prison for 10 years, where he wrote his famous book, The Pilgrim’s Progress?

Yes, we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. From the Bible and from church history. People who lived by faith, not by sight.

At the same time we realize that sometimes we can live by sight, and not recognize God’s presence. We feel like the two men on the road to Emmaus, who thought they were walking 'alone', while Jesus walked with them.

'...Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?' (Luke 24:32).

There are numerous examples from the Scriptures and from history which tell us that a Christian will never walk the road of faith alone. Whatever the circumstances may be, even if our feelings or perception dictate the contrary, the Lord will be with us, in us and for us. Hallelujah."

"...and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen." ~Matthew 28:20

Dying to Self...

"If we do not die to ourselves, we cannot live to God, and he that does not live to God, is dead." ~MacDonald, George

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"

2 Corinthians 5:17

I want to be the prettiness of Christ

I get a newsletter every day in my email, called Proverbs 31 Ministries. I loved what today's said. Here is an excerpt from it:

"Psalm 84:1 reminds me that God's dwelling place is lovely. So, I ask God to dwell in me richly. I want Him to be what radiates about me. I want Him to be my pretty today. Not my hair. Not my outfit. Not my efforts. But simply Him and His spirit dancing invisibly about me... shifting a wrong attitude, guarding my words, and whispering constant truths into my heart." ~Proverbs 31 Ministries newsletter for 9/24/09

May you be the prettines of Christ as you go about your day.

"Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel—rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God." 1Peter 3:3-4

Jonathan and Sarah Edwards...a synopsis of their life together

Noel Piper on Jonathan and Sarah Edwards...click here to listen.

"...imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised." ~Hebrews 6:12

The church family

Are you helping others feel welcome in your church...do they feel they have not only a church home, but a church family, as well?

Remember to:

"Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ." ~Galatians 6:2

“Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.” (Romans 15:7)

Chief of sinners....

Do you think you have fallen too far for God to care? Think again...the Bible says:

"This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief." ~ 1 Timothy 1:15

“If ever Thou permittest me to declare that faithful saying, Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, surely the words, of whom I am chief, would be peculiarly expressive and convincing in my mouth. I could stand forth and propose myself instead of a thousand arguments in proof of the doctrine, and might well hope to be of singular use as a pattern of Thy longsuffering to all that should repent and believe.” ~John Newton, 4 August 1758, author of they hymn Amazing Grace; (if you haven't seen the movie, it is excellent. You can find it here.)

Is there an intellectual in your extended family, who thinks they can debate God right out of existence?

If there is, as there is in my extended family, know that God is a redeemer...your loved one is never too tough for God to reach, to pierce them through to show them how very lost they are, and how very much they are in need of Jesus as their Saviour.

This is the audio about such a man, Adoniram Judson, as told by Ravi Zacharias here. There is also a book about Adoniram that is supposed to be so excellent, although my husband & I haven't read it as of yet. You can read about it here. After hearing Ravi tells Adoniram's story (albeit a much shortened version), we definitely moved this book further up on our to-be-read-soon list! :)

Never doubt God's ability to reach those that seems the most difficult to reach...those that think their intellect has it all figured out. God specializes in reaching through to such...just keep bathing your loved ones in prayer, keep sharing the Gospel, & keep letting them know how much you love them!

Enjoy the audio...it is one of the best, most encouraging stories of God's redeeming power I have ever heard. (give the audio a bit...it eventually comes to the story, but does not start right into it)

"Then Jesus said, 'He who has ears to hear, let him hear.'" ~Mark 4:9

God's Hand is Always at Work!

If you're like me, there have been some things you've encountered in life that just seem to make no sense...the burden of them seems so overwhelmingly heavy. You don't understand why God chose to do some things the way He did, but you know & trust that the Lord is good...that His ways are perfect. Many things that have caused me such great sorrow, I have seen over time, God has used wonderfully to grow me, to use for His glory alone. I read this quote this morning, in my Voice of the Martyrs' email devotional. It talks about this very thing. May it bless you as it did me:

"Vanilla, butter, sugar, flour, and cocoa headline the list of ingredients for a perfect chocolate cake. Mixing all of these ingredients together makes a sweet dessert. But if we take any one of these individual ingredients alone—like vanilla—the taste is not so sweet, but even bitter. In the same way, God is a master chef, mixing together the ingredients in our lives to make a sweet offering to him. An individual experience by itself may be bitter; yet mixed together with the whole, our lives turn out to be a divine creation. Are you experiencing a bitter trial right now? Wait to see how God will use that experience and bring other events into the mix. Trust him, wait, and see." ~VOM email devotional, Sept. 10, 2009

I wish you a lovely day in Him, resting in His goodness. May you "...taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him!" ~Psalm 34:8

They will know we are Christians by....?

How *do* others know you are a Christian? Do they see Christ in you? The Bible says:
"Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law." (Romans 13:10)
Are you fulfilling that law today? Are you loving your neighbor, your family member, your co-worker, the strangers you run across while running your errands? I'm not just talking about the amiable ones that are so easy to like & love...but rather, the ones that like to get under your skin...and not only that, but take great pleasure in doing so, as well. Christ speaks specifically re: how to treat those individuals:
"You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven...." Matthew 5:43

Joni Eareckson Tada says:
"We bear in our body the bruising and battering intended for Christ. What's more, we bear it in a godly manner. Jesus is not around in the flesh right now to do this, but we are. We are the walking billboards of his finished work. We are showing people his power is displayed, and we are telling them of his death on the cross - we take the punches on the chin from the world to show and tell that the cheek can be turned, the cross can be carried, the burden can be borne, the thorn can be accepted, the temptation can be opposed, and the wicked can be loved. People don't know the reality of what the Lord did 2,000 years ago; they only know it when they see him show up through our lives.
Lord Jesus, you received so many afflictions when you walked on earth. People misunderstood you, turned their backs on you, and abused you. It probably will happen to me, too, as I do 'show and tell.' Give me strength to walk in your shoes today. Give me courage. Be powerful through me. 'Fill up in my flesh' what is lacking!"

My prayer as we go through each new day...with each person He so purposefully sends across our paths...is that we always remember we are His light to each and everyone we encounter.
"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." (Matthew 5:13-14) May our days find us as salt...full of much flavor...giving others reasons too numerous to number, to praise our Father in heaven!