It's now December, season of the calendar being full almost every day. I've wanted to write for a while (not that I have anything that enlightening), but sleep has always called me first. Or Christmas cards, or trips to town, or kids needing help, or something.
Anyhow, I had meant to share my own encouraging thoughts, if anyone should need them. (to tie into the previous post) This one is a story that my dear husband told the Sunday School class a few weeks ago, which I overheard. Some of the kids have really been into rock tumbling and polishing this past summer, especially after they got a rock tumbler and didn't have to painstakingly polish the rocks by hand anymore! (from a garage sale) Anyhow, the kids had all been seeing the "before" and "after" states the rocks had been in. Greg questioned the kids on what the rocks looked like before and got the answers rough, bumpy, dirty, poky, etc. Then what were the rocks like after and he got shiny, smooth, pretty, etc. He then likened our lives to those rocks. How when we start out we are rather rough, bumpy and dirty and then how God tumbles us around and in the end we're shiny and smooth, and beautiful. But...that tumbling is never fun. Going around and around in a tumbler can't be very fun, but if the rocks never got tumbled, they'd never get smooth. If we never face hard times in our lives, or allow God to turn us in the right direction, we'll never have that beauty of Jesus shining out from us (only our sinful selves). How wonderful if we can be willing to be used for His honor and glory, no matter what life may throw at us!
One of the things I like to do when faced with adversity is to sing. Because usually when I'm low, that's when the devil likes to put evil thoughts in my way. But when I sing praises to God, those thoughts vanish. Reciting Scripture does the same thing. There is no room for evil, when our hearts are filled with Jesus and His love, His forgiveness and His truth. My absolute favorite song in these times is "Because He Lives" and I belt out the chorus loud and clear, to convince myself more than anything, and to reassure my kids of where our strength lies. "Because He lives, I can face tomorrow, because He lives, ALL FEAR IS GONE, because I know, He holds the future, and life is worth the living, just because He lives!"
There are so many other hymns and songs that have been written in times of trouble that can really help us in our own tough times. I recently had a decorative plate holder I wasn't using, and put it in my kitchen window as a songbook holder so that I can sing while I do dishes. The better we know our hymns and our Bible verses, the more "arrows" we have against the temptations we may encounter. When we try to face him on our own, we will most certainly fail, but with Jesus on our side at every turn, we can do nothing but win!!
Anyhow, I had meant to share my own encouraging thoughts, if anyone should need them. (to tie into the previous post) This one is a story that my dear husband told the Sunday School class a few weeks ago, which I overheard. Some of the kids have really been into rock tumbling and polishing this past summer, especially after they got a rock tumbler and didn't have to painstakingly polish the rocks by hand anymore! (from a garage sale) Anyhow, the kids had all been seeing the "before" and "after" states the rocks had been in. Greg questioned the kids on what the rocks looked like before and got the answers rough, bumpy, dirty, poky, etc. Then what were the rocks like after and he got shiny, smooth, pretty, etc. He then likened our lives to those rocks. How when we start out we are rather rough, bumpy and dirty and then how God tumbles us around and in the end we're shiny and smooth, and beautiful. But...that tumbling is never fun. Going around and around in a tumbler can't be very fun, but if the rocks never got tumbled, they'd never get smooth. If we never face hard times in our lives, or allow God to turn us in the right direction, we'll never have that beauty of Jesus shining out from us (only our sinful selves). How wonderful if we can be willing to be used for His honor and glory, no matter what life may throw at us!
One of the things I like to do when faced with adversity is to sing. Because usually when I'm low, that's when the devil likes to put evil thoughts in my way. But when I sing praises to God, those thoughts vanish. Reciting Scripture does the same thing. There is no room for evil, when our hearts are filled with Jesus and His love, His forgiveness and His truth. My absolute favorite song in these times is "Because He Lives" and I belt out the chorus loud and clear, to convince myself more than anything, and to reassure my kids of where our strength lies. "Because He lives, I can face tomorrow, because He lives, ALL FEAR IS GONE, because I know, He holds the future, and life is worth the living, just because He lives!"
There are so many other hymns and songs that have been written in times of trouble that can really help us in our own tough times. I recently had a decorative plate holder I wasn't using, and put it in my kitchen window as a songbook holder so that I can sing while I do dishes. The better we know our hymns and our Bible verses, the more "arrows" we have against the temptations we may encounter. When we try to face him on our own, we will most certainly fail, but with Jesus on our side at every turn, we can do nothing but win!!
