The Faithful Provider

"But my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:20


Before school was out, I was looking for a job that could help me save for college. I was thinking about trying to get a job at my local Chick-fil-A since my brother had worked there on Saturdays during the school year. I pursued it and the Lord opened the door widely for me to get the job. He even worked it out to where I have gotten good hours that can help provide for my future education and the equipping for God's calling for me.
After I got the job and had worked there for a little while, it really struck how much the Lord richly blessed me number one with getting a job so quickly and number two with getting needed hours. I was so unworthily blessed to get this great job especially when so many others are struggling to find work.

I had a great need in my college education and the Lord knew that. Thankfully, our wonderful Father promises to provide for all our needs and He gave me the opportunity to work to provide for that need. God's promise is the same for you. He says that when we put the Him first, He will provide for all our needs (Matthew 6:33). So no matter who you are and what your situation, don't worry about your needs. Put God first, trust in Him, and then do what you can do, and you will find that God will provide for all of the needs in your life.

"Therefore take no thought saying, What shall we eat? or what shall we drink? or Wherewithal shall we be clothed?...for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." - Matthew 6:31-33 

Perplexed over Your Problems?

Have you ever felt overwhelmed by the problems that may be in your life? I definitely have felt that way before. Unfortunately what happens is that we become so focused on our own trials or difficulties that eventually they seem to overwhelm us and we feel like we're sinking in a sea of hardships. I think that when God sees us in that state His message to us is," My child, why are you so wrapped up in your own problems? You are completely missing the big picture. Start serving and helping others and you will find freedom from your perplexity." We get so wrapped up in ourselves that we forget that there is a world of need around us. It really is a sin when we become that selfish and self -centered. Yes, selfish and self- centred. It may be a different sort of selfishness that we are used to , but nevertheless, it is still selfishness. I am definitely as guilty of that sin as anyone. When we get to that point we need to realize the sinfulness of our "me-centeredness" and turn our eyes on others. I have found myself that when I become too focused on my own difficulties, sharing the gospel with the lost and ministering to my brothers and sisters in Christ helps me refocus on the big picture: that of glorifying God and being a light to all for Him.
So if you're discouraged because you are overwhelmed by your current problems, get your mind on others and their needs which many times are much greater than our own. 

The Dangers of Pride

"Let not the foot of pride come against me..."- Psalm 36:11

Pride. It was the root of the very first sin and the downfall of Lucifer who is now known as Satan. It so easily slithers its way into our hearts without us even noticing it. The Bible refers to pride as an abomination to God, and that it is something the Lord despises (Proverbs 6:16-17). Although the world tries to tell us it is harmless, nothing could be further from the truth. Pride severs us from receiving the blessings and mercy that is given to a humble heart. The Devil whispers in our ears the lie that we are self-sufficient, that we are "pretty good" and we believe him all the while forgetting the Source from whom all blessings flow. In fact, Daniel 4:23 mentions that even our very breaths are in God's hands. That means that, whether we are saved or unsaved, God gives us every breath we have and at any time He could stop those breaths. Whatever a person is prideful about I can guarantee two things about it. Either it is a gift from God and we have no reason to be prideful about it or we actually do not have what we are prideful of (I.e. we are deceiving ourselves into thinking that we have a talent, quality etc. that we don't actually have). Also if anyone is reading this and saying,"I think I'm pretty humble; I don't have a problem with this," please think again because, believe me, pride has already taken a foot hold in your life.
As those who have put our trust in Christ alone for salvation, it is extremely important that we deal with pride in our lives. Christ died and rose again so that we could walk in newness of life and be free from the chains of sin and pride, yet we go right ahead and put those chains on again. We don't realize how much that grieves our Lord. Let's turn from this sin and walk in the new life God has given us. It is essential to see that all we have is from God. Everything is His gift. Read verses like Romans 12:3 and Proverbs 6:16-17, 16:5,18. These verses can help us with the pride in our lives.

Coach Tom Edinger

The Lord has really blessed my basketball team and myself with a great coach. He has made it a goal to instill in us not only a deeper ability to play basketball, but also a deeper relationship with God. Before my team's basketball season ended, I asked our coach Tom Edinger if he could write a post for me about what is like to be a Christian basketball coach. He accepted and here it is:


When I was asked to be a Christian Basketball coach four year ago I had apprehensions. First: never coached boys in an organize program. Second: has God prepared me for this journey? Third: if I do take this position, will it be for the glory of God my Savior.


Today, the praise of God for all the blessing received, not only from seeing boys grow into young men, but also their testimonies of what God has accomplished in their life’s these short four years.

Playing football, basketball, Track and Field from 6th– 12th grade in public school bring lots of glory to one’s self, but years later finding myself empty of the enjoyment and competitiveness of sports. Don't get me wrong, I'm very competitive now and still hate to lose.

But now, a measure of grace to testify to the one called “The lamb of God” Jesus.

Christ, who now sits at the right hand of the father executing the father’s will has moved within my soul to bring back the love of the game called basketball, with a new desire serve him.

The event of being “Born Again” changed not only attitude towards competitiveness but also gave me the patience to let the work of the Holy Spirit change my heart in which all the issues of life come.

Now, coaching a basketball team has brought great joy and peace to my heart and a ministry unto him who deserves it.



The team called Charger’s;

It's now at the point where losing a game would disappoint their teammates more than me. When that happens, I've done all I can. Now I just have to coach the game. They’re starting to play for each other and have come together like a family.

We predetermine how we would conduct ourselves in public, especially during games. Corinthians 10:31, which simply states, “Whatever you do….do it all for the glory of God.” This is our testimony in which God has blessed this team. As a coach I could not be more proud of them for their love of the Lord Jesus and the abilities God has given them to use for his glory.

To be a Christian Coach:

Teaching the fundamentals of the game, including dribbling, passing, shooting, rebounding and handling the ball through drills at each practice, Determine the best offense and defense for the next game based on their skills and instruct them in floor position. Combining different types of defense based on the opposing team's strengths and weaknesses running man-to-man defense or using a zone to defend. Be patient. A major part of being a Christian coach is teaching. (Corinthians 10:31) Spend as much time on the basics as possible.

Not every coach is a great one, but by the “Grace of God” I can be a good one.

Charges’ Coach

Re-Post

Just recently I was going through a list of old posts, and I came across this one. I have seen alot of hurt and trials in the life of many people recently. My family and I just came out of one recently so I know the great need for encouragement that is there for a child of God going through a very difficult time. I wanted to re-post what I wrote here in last July, and I hope it will be an encouragement to those who need it.

"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." - Romans 8:28

My family and I came back from visiting a theme park recently. My brothers and I love rollercoasters, so those were the major attractions we went to. After going there, I was thinking about rollercoasters and the spiritual applications that could be drawn from them. There were a whole bunch that were brought to my attention but I just wanted to give one for now. Whenever I'm on a rollercoaster and I look ahead at a huge twist or turn in the tracks, I'm thinking," O no, this does not look good!" But once I'm actually on the other end of that huge twist in the tracks I usually think," Hey, that wasn't all that bad. That was actually pretty good!"
As children of God, we will go through twists and turns in the "tracts of life" so to speak. One of our comforts during those twists is that just as a rollercoaster track is all laid out and planned, so God has our life all planned out and He will work everything out for good (Rom. 3:23). The twists in the tracks of our life will seem scary to us when we aproach them, but if we remain faithful to God and stay on the tracks He has for us, we will look back after going through those twists and think,"God did use that twist in my life for good." I have been through a "twist" in my own life recently and I can tell you that Romans 3:23 is true. I look back at the twist that I went through and yes, I didn't like what I had to go through. However, I can tell you this: I am glad that I went through it because God used it for such a greater good. The joy of the after result out-weighes the pain of the "twist". This is another promise that God has given us so that we can go through the trials of life.

"...for He is faithful that promised." - Hebrews 10:23

The Basketballathon

  Earlier this month my basketball team had our annual "Basketballathon" which basically is a huge one night tournament. This tournament was really special and important because this year was my brothers senior year, and I and everyone else on the team wanted to make sure we won first place for his last year. First up, we played the Calvary Cougars and we won that game fairly easily. After waiting while other teams played, we played a school named Victory Christian Academy. They were a bit tougher. In fact, in the fourth quarter, it was such a tight game that we had to go into an overtime. However, we managed to pull away and secure the victory (no pun intended). Next up, in the game which if we won, the tournament would be over and we would win first place, we played a charter school named the Eagles. This team was probably our highest rival team partially due to the fact that each of us had one victory over each other in the regular season games. In the first half of this game were up by ten points; however, we let our lead go and with approximately three and a half minutes left in the second half, we were down by nine. Our coach huddled us together during a time-out and said,"You've got to trust the Lord. When storms arise in life, you trust the Lord." So I went out trusting the Lord that He would help me do my best. Then, miraculously we came back. With just a few seconds left we were down by two and we were taking the ball out of bounds under the hoop. It was all riding on this play, and we all knew it. My teammate taking the ball out of bounds, Christian Weidler, slapped the ball telling to begin our out-of-bounds play. I set the screen for my brother Jesse to swing around the three point line and receive the ball. Christian made the pass and Jesse shot an extremely difficult two pointer which sunk through the basket sending the game into overtime. All through the overtime it was neck-and-neck. However, with around ten seconds left one of the Legacy players hit a three putting us behind by one. In the final seconds of the game, we ran the ball up the court passed it to Jesse, and he launched another extremely difficult shot. Everyone who was there says it was like the ball was in slow motion as it spiralled up towards the hoop. Finally, the ball sank through the basket, and the buzzer sounded. We had won! We all ran down the court and jumped up and down together. It was such a sweet victory because it was my brother's final year and I really wanted us to win this one for him and all our seniors.  I thank the Lord for helping us to pull this one out because if it were not for Him we couldn't do anything.

Playing against Victory

Jesse making the pass against Legacy

Just after the celebration of hitting the game/tournament-winning shot.

Holding the trophy!

Post- game celebrating and giving glory to Whom it is due

The Lord really used this victory to help encourage my family in a really difficult time. The tournament took place right in some of the toughest times of taking care of my grandma. God used this tournament to remind us of the need to never give up in adversity or after failures. We were down by nine points with three and a half minutes to go. I specifically remember thinking that the game was lost and there was no hope left. In spite of these thoughts, none of us gave up fighting, and as a result we pushed it into overtime and won.

No matter what you may be going through or what you might have done, never give up and never let the Devil get you discouraged enough to get you out of the game. God is on your side, and His forgiveness is always there for you. When you hold on to God's strength and promises you will have the victory; just trust Him.

In Loving Memory Part 2

After my Grandma's homegoing, all of my family gathered together for her funeral service. We had a great time together, and I know my grandma would be happy about that. Because my grandma was born and raised in Indiana and that is where my grandpa is buried, we took the trip up to Indiana to bury my grandma just a couple of days after the funeral service. Here  are some pics of our time together and of the Indiana trip.

                   My nephew Timothy and I had fun playing around with each other on the long trip to Indiana.

           My grandma and grandpa's tomb-stone.

             It is encouraging to know that one day at the Rapture, my grandparents glorified bodies will rise out of that ground to meet Jesus in the air.

Being from Florida, I'm thankful I was able to see snow for the very first time. Here I am with two of my brothers Ben and Jesse.

                           Making a snow angel.

The army placed a memorial some time before our trip at the burial site of my grandpa who was a veterin of World War II.

My grandma's going home to be with the Lord has been tough for all my family. However, the Lord has given us the grace to go through this time. I like what 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 says,"But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.'' I know that my grandmother is with Jesus now because 2 Corinthians 5:8 says that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. As I said previously, at the Rapture (John 14:1-3, 1 Cor. 15:51-54, 1 Thes. 4:13-17) my grandma's body will be glorified and made flawless and incoruptable as Christ's was. We have the assurance that my grandma is with the Lord and that it is not over as many atheists and evolutionists might say. On the contrary, it has merely begun for my grandmother.

In Loving Memory

Amelia Shaffer,  March 10, 1919 - February 15, 2011

 As some of you may already know, my grandmother had been staying with my family and because of a terminal health condition that she had. Just a few days ago, however, at 1:45 P.M., February 15, 2011,  she went home to be with the Lord. I am very thankful to the Lord that we could have the four months with her that we did. It was a very special time where we could cherish our last days with her. I was even give the priviledge of holding her hand and doing my best to be of whatever comfort I could to her in literally her very last hour here on earth. My grandmother was going through lots of pain and misery before she went home to be with the Lord. Now she is totally pain free and full of the most unspeakable joy while worshipping at the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ. I am so glad she is finally able to see the glories of heaven. She longed for it so much especially during the times she was experiencing the most suffering. Even inspite of her suffering, my grandmother always said,"God has been so good to me!" I know she is especially saying that now.

I know that my granmother would want to have everyone reading this blog post who might not know the Lord Jesus Christ as their personnal Savior to have the opportunity to recieve Him as their personnal Savior. I am glad my Grandmother had the assurance that she was going to heaven because she knew that she was a sinner and could not save herself or be good enough to get to heaven (Romans 3:23). Because she realized this, she turned to Jesus as her only hope for salvation from the pentalty of her sins. She believed that Jesus, the Son of God, shed His blood on the cross, died, was buried, and rose again on the third day so that our sins could be completely forgiven and we could live eternally in Heaven. She then asked Jesus to save her from her sins, and He did. He will do the same for you if you will put all your faith in Him to save you for your sins.

My grandmother's chair may be empty, but the legacy and memories that she left will always fill our hearts.

Faith Without Sight

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." - Hebrews 11:1


Have you ever cried out to the Lord in times of sorrow or trouble, and it seemed like God did not hear or answer that cry? I certainly have felt this before. Just recently I had something going on in my life that I really needed the Lord's help in. I told Him about it, trusted Him to handle it, and moved on. Well, when the time came that I needed Him to really work and help me, it seemed like He was just not there at all. I did not feel Him helping me, and I basically felt like I was abandoned by God. Extremely discouraged and unable to understand why He had "let me down," I asked God why this had happened. I thought I had enough faith, and I did not see any sin in my life that could withhold God's help. I just did not understand why all of a sudden God just seemed to have left me by myself when in the past He had proved Himself to be always there for me. The Lord later showed me that He was trying to stretch my faith, to see if I still believe even though I did not see. The Lord helped me to choose to believe that He is faithful and that He is my helper (Heb. 13:6). Later, the Lord opened my eyes to see how during that time that I thought God had not been there for me, He really was there for me. He did answer my prayer for assistance, just not in the way that I was expecting or wanting Him to.
Sometimes God hides Himself and seems to not answer our prayers so that our faith can be strengthened. When we do not see God yet still choose to believe, God is very pleased with our faith and He will, in His time, show Himself to be faithful and true. He never stopped being faithful, and this is key to remember. He may not be playing according to our "rulebook," but He is always faithful to His word. We do need to examine ourselves however, to see if there is any sin our life that could be breaking our fellowship with God. If there is and we confess it and forsake it, God is ready to receive us again with open arms as it says in 1 John 1:9. Again God is always faithful to His word.

"...for He is faithful that promised." - Hebrews 10:23

I Will Lift Mine Eyes

This Monday I want to look at Psalm 121:1-3 that provides us an assurance that we can cling to through even the worst storms in life.

"I will lift up my eyes to the hills, from whence cometh my help? My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer your foot to be moved; He that keepeth thee will not slumber." - Psalm 121:1-3

Too many times we have a distorted view of God. We think that He is a God who expects us to do the things we need to do and carry out all the responsibilities that are before us on our own. But that is not the case. The Lord is a God who cares for us more than we can imagine and that is why He gave us His Son, Jesus to die and rise again for our sins. He is not a God who expects us to live this life on our own. He is here for us to give us strength, to lead us in the way we should go, and to hold us up when we can seem to go on any longer. Lift up your eyes and look to the One who is your help and your strength. He will never never let you down when you truly put your trust in Him.

Holding God's Hand

" For we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in the time of need."- Hebrews 4:15-16

I remember when one of my nephews was just learning the basics of walking, but he couldn't walk on his own yet. Whenever he would try, he would take a few quick steps and then fall straight down. One of the only ways he could walk was if he would hold on to someones hand. Whoever was holding his hand would hold him up whenever he would lose his balance or begin to fall.

So many times we as Christians try to do things on our own and in our own strength. We are spiritually just like a young toddler who can't quite walk on his own. Even though this truth is clear in the Scriptures, many Christians don't seem to grasp the concept. We can't resist temptation in our own strength. The only way we can stand and walk is if we call upon our great High Priest, Jesus Christ. He has been through the same temptations that we experience every day. He knows how we feel and He offers us His special grace to go through our trials and resist our temptations. We must trust the Lord that he will keep His promise and then rely on His strength. The Lord will always be faithful to us ( Lamentations 3:23b ). We just need to do what we can do during temptations and trials and trust the Lord for the rest.

Mike

The Priviledge of Prayer

Not too long ago I was watching a sports special on television. It was featuring a fairly famous basketball player and they were allowing people to talk to him through skype. While one kid was talking this basketball player a question, the thought came to my mind about how much of a huge occasion it would be to be able to talk to a basketball star like this person. However, the Lord just seemed to speak to me about how if I think that talking to a mere human just like I am is special, how much more special is it to talk to the very God Who holds the universe in His hands. There is no person on earth who is more special, great, powerful, or famous than He is. It such a priviledge to talk to Him! However, if this is true, why do we not appreciate it as we should? I am terribly guilty of this, yet I pray that I will not take for granted the priviledge of prayer. We  are all unworthy to have any fellowship with this great and holy God, but He has given us the gift of His Son, Jesus Christ, so that by His shed blood and ressurection, we can be justified and reconciled to Him. Let's ask God to help us truly appriciate this priviledge that is ours.

Letting the God of Peace Do the Job

"Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the evrlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen" - Hebrews 13:20-21

"For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." - Philippians 2:13

 I just have something quick but important to say about these passages. As time has gone on, God has been teaching me the importance of these verses. They tell us that it is God who is the One who produces in us the desire (will and right motives) and power to be what He would have us to be and consequently do what He would want us to do. Our job is to submit to His rule in our lives and to daily exchange our will for His. As we do this and read God's word, pray, and go to church, God begins to work in our hearts and produce what He would have in us. So join me in seeking to let go and let God work our hearts and lives.

His Heart for the Lost

 "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying,'All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever i have commanded you: and lo, I am with you alway[s], even unto the end of the world. Amen" - Matthew 28:18-20

This passage from God's Word is known as the Great Commission. Every believer in Christ who has been taught the basics of the Bible has heard of and read this passage. The trouble is that we have heard it so many times that we forget about the urgency of its message. Jesus has commanded us to go and make disciples (that is what the word teach means in this passage). Why? Because there are billions of people in the world who are dying and going to hell. They need to hear of the living Savior, Jesus Christ who died and rose again for their sins. The Lord has convicted me about how I have not had the heart that He has toward the lost. I need to have the love of Christ toward the lost. When we all let God produce that love in our hearts we will truly be a more effective witness for Christ.
Here is some song lyrics that my brother Jesse wrote having to do with this same topic:


Emergence



I see you there again layin' in the low light,

You're sayin its okay, I've got bigger better plans tonight,

But if you can, just take a look around

You see a world thats shaken up, dragged around, and beaten down,

So...shake the dust off, we're scraping all that rust off,

Tonight we're breakin' out to show this world what we're all about.



Chorus:

Ohhh oh Emer-emergence now we're surfacin'

Emer-emergence, Lord for you we're shinin',

Emer-emergence yeah we're through with hidin',

We'll never know the difference we make,

Until we start living our faith,

So father won't you give us your grace.

(Ohhh ohh so Father won't you give us your grace!)





You're sayin that you're strong, but I feel the pressure rising,

The grip of fear thats captivated you from realizing,

Our God, our Shield has given everything

For us to live out loud and show the people what His love's about..

So shake the dust off, we're scrapin' all that rust off,

Tonight we're breakin' out to show this world what we're all about!



Chorus:

Emer-emergence now we're surfacin'

Emer-emergence, Lord for you we're shinin', Emer-emergence yeah we're through with hidin'

We'll never know the difference we make,

Until we start living our faith,

So father won't you give us your grace.

(Ohhh ohh so Father won't you give us your grace!)







Ohh, though this world tries to break you,

I will never forsake you,

I will...never leave you.

Oh! though this world tries to break you,

I will never forsake you,

I will never leave you!



Chorus:

Emer-emergence now we're surfacin' (Ohhh, though this world tries to break you...)

Emer-emergence, Lord for you we're shinin' (I will never forsake you...)

Emer-emergence yeah we're through with hidin'(I will never leave you...)

We'll never know the difference we make,

Until we start living our faith,

So father won't you give us your grace.

(Ohhh ohh so Father won't you give us your grace!)

Lessons from the Baketball Team

As some of you may already know, I play basketball for the Clermont Christian Academy Chargers. Being apart of the team has been great for many reasons. It has been a great outlet that the Lord has provided and it has also taught me some valuable lessons. For instance, when you play basketball, you don't always do everything perfect. There are some mistakes that are made (sometimes pretty embarrassing ones). If you let them, these mistakes will drive you nuts with thoughts like,"I can't believe I just did that" or "I don't how I'm going to recover from that one." However common sense tells you that those thoughts are to be put away and focus needs to be re-centered on the game and and what needs to be done now not what should have been done in the past.

If this simple principle is common sense to us, why do we not apply it to our spiritual walk. When we mess up, we tend to beat ourselves over the head and then sit and wallow in our mistakes. However, when we do this, we wind up being of no good to God or to others because we are so wrapped up in ourselves. God's grace is there to hold us up spiritually even when we mess up. For us who have trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ alone as our Savior, we do not loose God's love or His salvation just because we messed up no matter how big or small that mistake may have been.God still loves us and holds us in His hand no matter what. The Lord has given us the guarantee in 1 John 1:9 that if we confess our sin to Him, He will forgive us. Don't get me wrong, we do need to be take sin seriously and be grieved whenever we do wrong. In reference to the proper attitude a believer should have towards sin in his life, James 4:9-10 says,"Be afflicted and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned into mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up." Whenever we do wrong we should be truly sorry for that sin, ask God for forgiveness, look at how we can do better, and then move on in the forgiveness of God with that knowledge of how we can do better in mind so we do not commit that sin again. So next time you fall, even if it is with that same old thing you have battled for so long, get back up and move keep moving forward. God's grace will always be there for you.

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Instead of having a usual post, I wanted to tell how you can know subscribe to Pillars of Grace via email. Every time something new is posted you will automatically recieve an email of that new post. If you would like to do this just look to the left side bar where it says "Subscribe to Pillars of Grace via Email" click on it and it will bring you to a new page where you will type your email adress in. Thanks!

Strong on Your Behalf

"For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect towards him." - 2 Chronicles 16:9


Have you ever felt like God is a distant God? You may think,"Other people talk about how God has showed Himself mighty in their lives, but He never seems to do the same for me." Many people ask this question in their hearts but fail to ask themselves why it seems to be the case. You see, God wants to show Himself to be mighty on your behalf even more than you do. Second Chronicles 16:9 says,"For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong on the behalf of them whose heart is perfect (loyal) towards him."

If God desperately wants to do great things in our lives, then why doesn't He? Well, one very possible answers to that question is that we may not have a totally surrendered to God. If we are holding on to the controls of our life, God cannot have His way and as a result, we will live a sad life of mediocrity in which we will not see God as our defence, strength, and sustainer. The verse in 2 Chronicles validates this when it talks about how God looks to shew Himself strong on the behalf of those who are loyal to Him. Surrender is absolutely necessary for us to see the mighty hand of God the way we should.

God uses trials to shows us that He is with us and that He is our Strength. It is the unwillingness of many of God's children to go through the trials and valleys that keeps them from seeing the Lord's mighty hand in their lives. You see, in order for us to be able to say,"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me"(Psalm 23:4), we have to first be willing to go through the valley. The Bible is filled with examples of people who went through difficult circumstances. However, they remained faithful to God and trusted in Him. As a result, the Lord showed Himself strong on their behalf. Afterwards their hearts were filled with joy and peace because of their confidence in the Wonderful One who proved himself to be for them. These people in God's Word had to first go through a trial in order to be able to experience the joy of having the Lord prove Himself mighty to them. The same is true with us. God is not going to let the trials that He, in His good and sovereign will, allows into our lives to destroy us. God is good in everything He does and He just wants to use trials for a far greater purpose in our lives (Romans 8:28).
With all this in mind, I encourage you to make sure you have surrendered your life to the Lord. Tell Him that You are willing for Him to lead you where He would have so that your heart may be filled with a joyful song about your strong Redeemer. Believe me, you will not regret it.

Something To Think About...

Where would you be at this point in life if it were not for Christ?

A Holiday Tradition Re-done for the Better

I don't know about yours, but my family has tons of holiday traditions. Some have faded as we have become a little older, but most have remained the same. One of the traditions that we do every Christmas is that my family and I go out to the Olive Garden on Christmas Eve. That tradition had to be somewhat changed this year due to complications with my ninety-two year old grandmother who is currently living with us. She is on Hospice of the Comforter, and we do not know how much time she has left on this earth. Because of her inability to go out anywhere and her having to have someone with her at all times, we all knew that we would have to change our Christmas Eve tradition in some way. One night my family and I were talking about the situation and my sister-in-law Rachel suggested the idea that since my Grandma could not go to Olive Garden we would bring Olive Garden to her. We planned to carry-out from Olive Garden and take in to the house where we had the dining room table all made up and some Christmas music playing in the background. Rachel and my mom volunteered to be the "waitresses" of the event and they served the meal in just the order they do at Olive Garden: salad or soup and bread sticks, main course, and the optional dessert.
In a big way, having our annual tradition at home was better than having it at the restaurant. It felt good knowing that we were giving up what was special to us in order that we could make this Christmas more special to Grandma. We all knew and still know that this Christmas will probably be her last on earth, and we wanted to make it a great one for her.
The Lord really gave my family the opportunity to exercise the attitude that Christ had at Christmas: the attitude of servant hood. There were many times we had to sacrifice what seemed to be best or most fun for us and in turn, do what was best for my grandma. That is exactly what Jesus did for us. He gave up the worship of angels and the glories of heaven to come to earth and die for our sins and rise again so we could live with Him in heaven forever. Christ set the example that we need to follow: the example of servant hood.