Habakkuk 2:1

I will stand on my guard post

And station myself on the rampart;

And I will keep watch to see what He will speak to me,

And how I may reply when I am reproved.

In my devotional reading yesterday in Streams in the Desert, this entry was a real gem.  As I read through it, I thought, "This is so good.  So good."  And then I got to the end and saw that it was written by Charles Spurgeon, one of my favorite writers/preachers, and said, "Oh, of course!"  And I reread it this morning.  I don't want to be a trifler.  

"I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me (Hab. 2: 1).

There is no waiting on God for help, and there is no help from God, without watchful expectation on our part. If we ever fail to receive strength and defense from Him, it is because we are not on the outlook for it. Many a proffered succour from heaven goes past us, because we are not standing on our watch-tower to catch the far-off indications of its approach, and to fling open the gates of our heart for its entrance. He whose expectation does not lead him to be on the alert for its coming will get but little. Watch for God in the events of your life.

 

The old homely proverb says: "They that watch for Providence will never want a providence to watch for," and you may turn it the other way and say, "They that do not watch for providences will never have a providence to watch for." Unless you put out your water-jars when it rains you will catch no water.

 

We want to be more business-like and use common sense with God in pleading promises. If you were to go to one of the banks, and see a man go in and out and lay a piece of paper on the table, and take it up again and nothing more--if he did that several times a day, I think there would soon be orders to keep the man out.

 

Those men who come to the bank in earnest present their checks, they wait until they receive their gold, and then they go; but not without having transacted real business.

 

They do not put the paper down, speak about the excellent signature, and discuss the excellent document; but they want their money for it, and they are not content without it. These are the people who are always welcome at the bank, and not triflers. Alas, a great many people play at praying. They do not expect God to give them an answer, and thus they are mere triflers. Our Heavenly Father would have us do real business with Him in our praying.
--C. H. Spurgeon

 

"Thine expectation shall not be cut off." "

A Diary of Private Prayer

A Diary of Private Prayer ~ A Devotional Classic ~ by John Baillie

This is an absolute gem of a book.  A friend from high school recommended it to me, and I have loved every day I've read in it.  Unlike most devotionals, it is prayer alone for the beginning and end of each day.  Thirty one entries for each, plus a morning and evening for Sundays.  There are no stories, no commentary on Scripture, life and relationships, etc. except as applies to praying for guidance and forgiveness according to the the Word.  It directs my heart and mind to the essentials of a day before I start it, and ends with true examination of what the day past has held.  Wonderful, wonderful book.  It's one I'll be keeping with my Bible and Journal for a long time.

Recovering From Losses in Life

The second book I've finished this year is H. Norman Wright's "Recovering From Losses in Life."
I highly recommend it for everybody.  That may sound strange, but after reading it, I now realize that we all deal with losses in life that may not register as true losses.  It seems that most of us think of losses in terms of the death of a loved one, or a divorce.  But the other losses in our lives can have as much of an impact as the more obvious ones.

The loss of a job.  Or a home.  Health issues resulting in the loss of what we are used to doing.  The loss of a dream.  A friendship severed.  The list goes on and on.

While the information stream bounces around a bit, I still gleaned a lot from it that I can practically apply in my own life, and in my understanding of how to be truly helpful to grieving family and friends.  He's really good at offering "do this, don't do that" guidelines that are illuminating.  And sometimes convicting as I recall things I've said to grieving people.

Something that really hit home for me in my current walk, is that nobody can tell me how I "ought" to feel about a loss, and I can't tell anybody else how they "ought" to feel about theirs.  I feel what I feel.  They feel what they feel.  There's no "ought" about it.  We should be free to feel what we feel and work it through with the Lord.

One of the most beneficial aspects of the book is the encouragement it gives in recognizing some key things: the stages of grieving; what "normal" is for most people; and how to track if you're making progress in recovering from your loss.

Highly, highly recommended.

Polishing God's Monuments by Jim Andrews

"A true story so gripping and moving and inspiring that one cannot put the book down.  To enter into this theological reflection on suffering is to accept the challenge to grow deeply in Christ, and to cherish the sure and certain promise of the Gospel."

Bruce A. Ware

This is the first in my self-designed reading list of good books for this year.  And, Wow!

As I have walked the path of infirmity rather intensely for the past 4 years, there have been many sources of input for encouragement and, in some cases, confusion.  In all of it, my desire has been to know what God thinks and hear His voice.  The voice of man can be so loud at times.  My own voice can be so loud at times!  This book has been an absolute and total blessing.  It has reinforced what I know to be true about God.  It has reminded me of truth that had gotten a little foggy in my mind.  It has encouraged me in amazing ways.  Here's just a taste of all that.

The book is written by the father of a young woman who, along with her husband, has experienced intense health issues for 20 years, beyond anything that our "normal" lives could imagine.  In the midst of that infirmity and suffering, this family has learned a great deal.  Jim Andrews does a fabulous job of telling the story, and of interweaving the Biblical and theological principles they have learned along the way.

"Polishing God's Monuments" refers to remembering the times when God's deliverance occurs, taking out those memories when He is silent and "polishing" them, reminding ourselves of His love, grace, kindness, goodness and faithfulness.  It reminds me of Psalm 105, remembering the works of God in the lives of the Israelites.  A memory box, if you will, of His deeds on their behalf.

Some of what I have gleaned:

• God is God.  I am not.

• His purposes are paramount.

• He works in mysteries as well as "knowns" and I need to walk in faith as I deal with "mysteries."

• God is not at my beck and call.  I am at His.

• He is totally sovereign and knows the beginning from the end.  I am not and do not.

• He is weaving a perfect tapestry, and He has no loose ends.  I can't see what He's doing and that is okay.  The dark threads reveal the brilliance of the golden ones on the top side, which only He can see.

• God's purposes are His own, and I may never know what they are.

• I am His, and He can do anything He wants with me.  I gave up my rights to myself when I bowed my knee to Christ.

• I need to trust that He knows better than I what "best" is.

• God's agenda is not to make me happy (in terms of temporal bliss), but to make me holy.

This is so, so, so worth reading.  I am grateful that He dropped it in my lap, so to speak.  A tremendous blessing.

Polishing God's Monuments in the used section of Amazon Marketplace.

Book List for 2014!

I think this was a really good idea! I posted this on Facebook:

"What books have had the greatest impact on your Christian life? I am making a list for this year. I hope to read one a month that will challenge and deepen my walk with Him. Ready, Set, Go!"

And these are the responses I got!  I can hardly wait to dig in!  The first three were recommended to me by friends apart from Facebook.

• Polishing God's Monuments by Jim Andrews

• Recovering from Losses in Life by H. Norman Wright

• A Shelter in the Time of Storm by Paul David Tripp

• The Lamb's Supper by Scott Hahn

• Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer

• Forgotten God by Francis Chan

• Future Grace by John Piper

• Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis

• Satan and His Plan of Evil by Keith Blades

• Life of the Beloved by Henri Nouwen

• The Wise Women Novella by George MacDonald

• The Heavenly Man by Brother Yun

• Secret of the Vine by Bruce Wilkinson

• One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp

• We Would See Jesus by Roy and Revel Hession

• Anything by Jonathan Edwards!

• New Evidence That Demands a Verdict by Josh McDowell

• Nestle Don't Wrestle by Corrie ten Boom

• A Diary of Private Prayer by John Baillie

• The Promise by Robert Morgan

At the recommendation of a high school classmate, last month I started reading Polishing God's Monuments by Jim Andrews.  Tremendous impact on me.  So, I'm hoping some of the above tomes will also have a positive impact on my walk with Him.

If anyone else has recommendations, please fire away!

Bear one another's burdens....

Yesterday was one of those days where the cares of this world weighed heavily on me and on some of those I love dearly.  In the midst of the weightiness, God in His lovingkindness, reminded us of Galatians 6:2:   "Bear one another's burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ."  What a striking thing!  Bearing each other's burdens fulfills the law of Christ.  And His law is love.  And grace.

And after reminding us of this, He gave us His body yesterday to help us bear our burdens.  Such blessing.

Then this morning I read this in Streams in the Desert:

If you have gone a little way ahead of me, call back--
It will cheer my heart and help my feet along the stony track;
And if, perhaps, Faith's light is dim, because the oil is low,
Your call will guide my lagging course as wearily I go.

Call back, and tell me that He went with you into the storm;
Call back, and say He kept you when the forest's roots were torn;
That, when the heavens thunder and the earthquake shook the hill,
He bore you up and held you where the lofty air was still.

O friend, call back, and tell me for I cannot see your face;
They say it glows with triumph, and your feet sprint in the race;
But there are mists between us and my spirit eyes are dim,
And I cannot see the glory, though I long for word of Him.

But if you'll say He heard you when your prayer was but a cry,
And if you'll say He saw you through the night's sin-darkened sky;
If you have gone a little way ahead, O friend, call back--
It will cheer my heart and help my feet along the stony track.

We can't -- shouldn't -- minimize the role we have in each other's lives of helping bear the burdens of this life.  God Himself gave us Jesus to erase our sin and reconcile us to Him -- the biggest burden there is -- and then Jesus gave us His body to help us walk this stony path, carrying the weight together.

Today I'm suiting up, getting ready to help someone else pack their burden, "calling back" to them, so to speak, to let them know He is sufficient.  Then we'll talk it out, and after that we'll take it straight to the foot of the cross and remind Jesus He walked this stony path before us, and would He please take this weight for us?  Because He longs to.

Awesome.....Again.....Always.

Quilted Nativity Advent Calendar

This fall I got a bee in my bonnet to make a quilted Advent calendar for my grandchildren.  I Googled those words and up came a pre-printed panel by Nancy Halvorsen from a few years back.  I did some more looking online and ended up finding a place that had some left.  I ordered a couple of them - you know, "just in case" - and then went on the hunt for border fabric.  One of the gals in our local quilt shop helped me find the right piece and off I went to put it together.

All the little figures are backed with felt and then have a loop attached with a button on the back.  There are also button-type fasteners on which the figures hang, both in the border (for before the date) and in the center (for after).  I also marked, with numbers, each figure and then underneath the fasteners in both the border and center, so the kiddos would know where everything belongs.  It didn't come with a solution for numbering, so it was kind of a "winging-it" thing.

Here are pictures of it before I gave it to them, and then a couple of shots of them with it.

 This one is at our quilt group when we were celebrating it.

All the figures are hanging in the border.

Close-up of some of the figures.

With the figures in the center hanging in their appointed places.

The kiddos with it on Day 2.....

.....and again on Day 13!

Oh, I love these two!