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Archive for the ‘Spiritual Growth’ Category

Incredible

Posted in God, God Stories, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, Prayer, Prayers, Spiritual Growth, The Father, Trials, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on December 1, 2023| Leave a Comment »

It is a day and a half since the surgery.  The nerve block they gave me has worked well, but it is finally wearing off and I am beginning to feel the fact that a portion of my ear is missing.  Not too much pain, but a reminder of something lost.  But this is nothing compared to what I have gained through this.  I can truly say this has been one of the most blessed experiences of my life.  The LORD’s presence has been so real and tangible that I have experienced a peace that has truly buoyed me and a joy that has stirred my soul.

The word that comes to mind as I ponder this is “Incredible”.  Something that is credible is believable.  With the prefix added in-credible means something that stretches belief.  I already had a strong belief in God and a vibrant relationship with the Lord through Jesus, but that belief has been strengthened and stretched in the most blessed of ways. 

One of the things I’ve found interesting is how I have been led to pray.  My prayers for myself have been that the Lord would be glorified.  I have not been led to pray to be healed.  The Holy Spirit told me to share my journey, hence you are reading this post.  From that I know others have been praying for me, many praying for my healing, but I have not. 

There was one night a week or so after we learned I was dealing with melanoma that Lisa and I watched a series where one of the lead characters had cystic fibrosis.  In the final episode she passed away.  Her passing as portrayed in the show played out over a 2-year period.  For both Lisa and I the reality that I could be on the front end of a similar journey really weighed on us as we went to bed.  In the middle of the night I awoke restless and I hesitantly prayed, “Lord Jesus, please heal me”.  Well, the Holy Spirit clearly spoke, “It is not yet the time”. 

I have not prayed specifically for my healing since.  I am fine with others praying for it and I do hope the Lord heals me, but that has not been my focus.  I simply want to walk faithfully through this knowing the LORD said, “Trust Me” at the outset. 

The returns on this approach have been amazing.  I have known a peace through this that has lifted me.  As I already mentioned, I can feel such love and affirmation, that I am truly thankful for this experience.  I have even walked in periods of great joy.  And to imagine this is amid losing part of my body and still not knowing if cancer has spread to other parts of my body.  (Since I am being transparent, not all of my body is still working like I would like for it to, but I attribute that to things done at an earlier age that are now catching up to me 😊)

Friends, I can see how the LORD was preparing me for this journey even as late as this summer.  A theme that played out over several weeks in my studies and meditation was that we are “eternal, spiritual beings living in a temporary, physical body”.  Our time on this earth is truly limited.  These bodies all have an expiration date.  But the part of us that lives on is what we should be nourishing and growing.  Our spirit is where we commune with our Creator.  It is the part of us that needs to know who we are and why we are here. 

We are created to be God’s children and our purpose is to know and love Him even as we are fully known and loved.  While this is the answer, it is only the merest surface of the reality.  The depths of it are only realized when it goes from our head to our hearts and fills our spirit with His Holy Spirit.  We are given one lifetime for this to happen.  I guess my situation has simply given me, and those who have joined me for this journey, an opportunity to consider that my expiration date, and each of theirs, might be closer than we realize.  I believe the Lord’s response to each of us is the same as what He spoke to my heart shortly after I learned I had cancer… “Trust Me!”

Our next medical milestone is December 11 when we learn the results of the biopsy and the genetic testing to see if I am prone to more melanoma.

It has been my honor that you have joined me in this journey.  Hopefully the LORD has taken my posts and used them to encourage you in some way.  That is my desire and prayer. 

Be blessed my friend and be a blessing to someone today!

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God’s Not Through with You

Posted in exercise, God, God Stories, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, love, Prayer, Spiritual Growth, The Father, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , on November 24, 2023| Leave a Comment »

In addition to my current journey through cancer, I am a heart disease survivor, and it is only by the grace of God that I am able to tell you about it nine years later. Looking back, in addition to being a pretty cool story, there are many takeaways, not the least of which is that the LORD, who saved me back then, is the same God who is with me, and you, in each and every challenge we face.

SIGNS (March 2014)

The last couple of signs that something was not right was getting winded heading up the stairs to the daily meeting I attended at 9 am. It was only two flights, but it was enough that I noticed. My thought was that I had to get back into shape. The wild weather that winter combined with lots of long days at the plant had gotten me out of my fitness routine. That same evening when I arrived home, I pushed a wheelbarrow with tools about 100 yards and the same squeezing sensation occurred. At 15 seconds I was still thinking I was simply out of shape, but it continued. At 30 seconds, now I was praying and asking the LORD if there was more of an issue than just being out of shape. At 45 seconds I decided to tell Lisa about it.

After supper I took Lisa for a walk and told her what had been going on. We agreed I needed to get checked out.  I am not positive that I would have gone before our big trip though.  You see we were a week and a half from heading to Rome and then Israel.  I went to sleep wondering if I went to the doctor and there was a problem, I might not be able to make the trip. I wondered if it would be okay to wait until we returned. But that night I had this dream…

THE DREAM

I was standing on the driveway in front of an open two car garage on a very sunny, but windy day. It was a beautiful blue sky with a few white puffy clouds. The door of the garage was open.  It was dark inside the garage, and I could not see anything in there as I was standing in the sun.  As I stood there a little whirlwind picked up some leaves from around me and blew them into the garage.  I thought to get a broom and sweep them out.  

As I walked in to sweep the leaves out, I paused just as I straddled the threshold and my eyes immediately adjusted to the dark.  There were no cars in the garage, but there was a coffee table in the middle of the room.  Underneath the table was a ball of writhing snakes. As I looked at them, I realized they were poisonous snakes.  As soon as that realization came, one of the snakes broke free from the ball and came at me. Our eyes met and I knew it was coming to get me. As I write this morning, I can sense the malice in the snake’s eyes. I took one step back across the threshold and thought to myself, “I’ve got to deal with this.” At that instant my alarm went off. And resounding in my memory was the thought, “I’ve got to deal with this.”

DOCTOR’S WORK AND WISDOM

That morning I was in the doctor’s office before 10:00 am. Vitals all looked good, but the EKG was A-typical. A call to the cardiologist and I was in their office the next day. I thought a stress test was the next step but after looking at my EKG and hearing my symptoms, the cardiologist put me in for a heart catheterization the next day.  

I went in hoping / expecting a 1-hour inspection where they would find everything fine.  Two and a half hours later the doctor woke me, still on the table in the heart cath lab, with images of my heart on the monitor where I could see the three blood vessels he had unblocked and put in stints.  Two were 90% blocked. The third, which was the widow-maker was 99% blocked.

An overnight stay in the hospital and I was home before noon on Saturday with 3.5 inches of Stainless-Steel mesh tubing in my heart.

That return home from the hospital was exactly one week before we flew out for Rome for 5 days and then on to Israel.  The day before we flew out, I had a final check with the cardiologist to make sure everything was still a go.  I met with a different doctor this time and I shared my story with her.  She listened politely and as I finished, she said, “You quite possibly would have died on that trip.”  My wife now completes the story by letting everyone know that I would have died. 

ISRAEL

One of the sites we visited in Israel was Masada, Herod’s Mountain top fortress in the Judean desert.  It is on a high plateau above the Dead Sea.  When we arrived, the guide gave us two choices.  We could ride the cable car up the 1000 plus feet or we could hike up the winding trail.  Because of the doctor’s orders to take it very easy for six weeks I really had no choice, it was the cable car for me.  But as Lisa correctly points out I am adventurous, and I would have chosen the steep trail… in the desert… in the hot sun which almost assuredly would have brought on a heart attack. 

And the name of that trail… the Snake Trail.

(The image on this post is from the top of Masada looking down the mountain at the trail.)

As I mentioned before, my head spins as I think of the implications… I had a time bomb in my chest getting close to going off… I almost missed the warning signs… I can’t hide behind being “fit” to ward off everything that can take me down… God knows me well enough to know I needed a nudge (OK more like a push) from that dream to move and move quickly.

On the morning of the first cardiologist visit as I was heading to work when all I knew was that my EKG was A-typical, I turned on the local Christian music station. While I was not scared exactly, I was running through my mind the likely paths this could take. The possibility that there was a problem with my heart was high on the list. You can’t help but to think about the what if’s in such a situation. What if I don’t survive and my family has to deal with my loss?

About that time a song came on and the refrain repeated God’s words to us – “I will never leave you. I will never forsake you”. As the melody and these words soaked into my soul the tears came. Not tears of sadness, but tears of joy and release. I KNOW that God lives and that He is in control of my life. He has given me stewardship my time on earth, but as I release my life to Him, I can trust Him completely. He gave me a crazy dream about snakes at exactly the time I needed it to motivate me to head to the doctor. I celebrate the reality of Who He is and yet another marvelous thing He has done for me and my family.

TODAY (November 2023)

Today as I re-read what I posted right after my stents, I am overwhelmed anew by thankfulness.  The LORD has given me such a clear assurance that He is present with me now, every bit as much as He was then.

Last Sunday the LORD impressed Romans 8:28 into my Spirit and then He had others mention it to me throughout the day including my 8th grade history teacher, Mr. Humbert, in a Facebook post earlier this week. “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28. This morning I am to add Paul’s conclusion to that thought. “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:37-39

Let me close with the two reasons I am led to share this today. One, as His children, the LORD is with us on a constant, moment by moment basis. It is His desire that we grow in intimacy and awareness of His presence not just on Sundays, not just in a daily quiet time, but moment-by-moment. In the busyness of life though, we can sometimes miss that. He gives us times and instances where His presence is more tangible, more real. His manifest presence breaks through and we KNOW, if for only a little while, that He is right there with us. He gives us those moments to draw us closer and to give us an anchor when we do drift. He simply wants us to remember and return.

The final reason is because God wants you to know how precious you are to Him and that He is not through with you. You may sometimes think you are too weak in your faith or too broken for God to use. Friend, He is not looking to use you. He wants to love you in a real and tangible way. He created you for fellowship, for a life in Him. I have made my share of mistakes and at times I’ve not put in the time to cultivate this intimacy with the LORD, but thanks be to God, He doesn’t move away, He moves toward me. Just like He is moving toward you right now. Just talk to Him. Ask Him to guide you home to Him. He loves you and He’s not through with you.

Lord thank you for this life you have given me.  I surrendered my life to you many years ago, but I realize that this process is on-going.  Today I give you thanks for my body and how it is made – even the heart disease and melanoma that I live with, because I know you are able to use it for the greater good.  Draw me closer and closer to you each and every day. Please use me in my frailties and limitations to faithfully proclaim the Good News of Who You are and what You have done.  Open eyes, ears, and hearts to the beautiful, wonderful reality of You.  I love you, LORD.

And for those who are reading this, I pray your blessings upon them to know your heart for them, to become aware of the desires you have for them. Help them, and me, to walk in the love you have for us. Remind them Lord that you are for them and not against them. That you have a hope and a future in store for them. By your Spirit Lord, let it be done… Amen!

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Yahweh Nissi – The LORD’s Banner Over Me Brings Joy

Posted in God, God Stories, Holy Spirit, Prayer, Spiritual Growth, Trials, Vision, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , on November 21, 2023| 2 Comments »

The LORD draws us close in our weakness.  I can honestly say I am thankful for a cancer diagnosis because of the Lord’s and the Lord’s people’s response.  I have been buoyed by the prayers and I know the Lord is walking with me.  His presence is real and tangible. 

Three days after receiving the diagnosis, I was in a hotel in Atlanta.  I woke up around 5 and immediately slipped into prayer.  We are commended to “pray in the spirit” and pray with understanding.  I did not have to be at the office until around 9 so I was able to tarry and do both.  Interestingly, one of the Old Testament names of God came to me as I was praying – Jehovah Nissi which is from the book of Exodus when God had saved the Hebrew people from the Amalekites. 

Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. Ex 17:15

I incorporated that into my worship that morning as I gave praise to the Lord under whose Banner I live and move and have my being.  I remember a specific exchange when I said, “LORD, thank you that your Banner over me is love and it is very good, but I was kind of thinking and hoping you would have given me your name, Jehovah Rapha.”  (Jehovah Rapha is the LORD is my healer.)  I said it with a smile and in sincerity.  The Holy Spirit immediately brought to mind James 1:2-4 to mind. 

2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

As soon as that scripture came to mind, joy bubbled up within me.  I started chuckling realizing that the Lord has a perfect plan through all of this and that I can trust Him completely.  God’s Word is faithful and true.  He has allowed this time of trial and uncertainty to build perseverance and maturity in me.  From His perspective there is nothing uncertain about this.  It is for my good, and for the good of others around me.  (My fervent prayer is that you, my friend, are one of those God blesses through this.)

Now that alone would have been enough to make my day.  I went to work with a song of praise in my heart and joy percolating within.  I got a call from a previous co-worker that I hadn’t spoken to in several months.  I knew he was a believer so at the end of our conversation I shared the news.  His first wife had passed from a battle with cancer about a decade prior so he could relate.  While he shared a few words of encouragement from his own experience, the blessing came when he said, “Let me pray for you.”  As he began to pray, he didn’t ask immediately for me to be healed, he prayed, “Lord, you are sovereign and in control.  We love you and trust you because you are in this with Dan and you will be victorious…”  When he prayed you are victorious, I saw the LORD’s Banner unfurl and begin waving. 

I didn’t hear the rest of what he prayed because the Lord had given me a clear sign that His Word is true.  I am not alone.  The victorious King is walking with me.  Whatever may come, God is going to get the glory.  And when He is glorified, I am satisfied.

It doesn’t require a cancer diagnosis for us to look to the LORD for His peace.  He desires we walk-in ever-increasing intimacy with Him day-by-day.  Just talk to Him.  Ask Him to illuminate the scripture then read it.  Find a believer and ask them to pray with you.  Friend, I pray the Lord’s encouragement upon you today wherever you are and in whatever situation you are dealing with.  God loves you and He is fighting for you because He is Yahweh Nissi – the LORD is my Banner!

Be blessed and be a blessing!

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Love Wins

Posted in God, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, love, Salvation, Spiritual Growth, The Father, worldview, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , on November 18, 2023| Leave a Comment »

THE most powerful force in the universe and beyond is love.  Love existed before there was anything else.  Within the Trinity of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit there has always been an immutable, living-giving love that pulses with joy, and beauty, and holiness.  That love is other focused.  It is an eternal reality of the Trinity that the three persons exude love.  It is why they created.  It is why humanity exists.  Look at the conversation within the Godhead revealed in Genesis 1:26-31.

26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.

31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

The creation of mankind was God’s penultimate creation.  We are created in God’s image.  This is known as Imago Dei.  ALL of humanity is created in God’s image.  That includes those you like and even those you don’t!  With a war in Israel right now, it’s easy to take sides and hate those who instigated the war.  But even they were created in the image of God.  It is sad the evil one has so corrupted the minds and hearts of people created in the image of God.  But God has a plan!

There are many facets of what it means that we are created in God’s image, but I want to focus on two aspects that I believe are primary.  First, God has given mankind a will and the ability to choose.  In the greatest risk and reward gambit of all eternity, God allows each person to choose their own path.  The risk is immense.  God’s creation can choose to move towards Him or they can choose to move away.  The reward is a family that joins Him in true unity… heart, mind, soul, and strength.  The risk is a creation that moves away from Him and devolves into brutal, ugly chaos.

I recently read that the fall in the garden (see Genesis chapter 3) was less about breaking God’s one rule and all about choosing to love something other than God first.  WOW!  I had not seen that before, but it makes sense.  And that brings me to the second point of being created in God’s image and that is our capacity to LOVE, which is intrinsically who God is (1 John 4:7-21) for God is love. 

With the ability to choose, we have the ability to cast our love wherever we so choose.  This was the temptation that Adam and Eve fell prey to.  They turned their love onto the lesser thing.  They chose to do what they wanted.  The devil tempted them, but it was their choice to turn their love from God to something other than Him. 

All of humanity has this same tendency to turn our love to lesser things.  Now the point is not that we cannot love others.  Let’s go back to the garden.  Adam and Eve had an intense loving relationship with God AND His creation.  But the order was correct, they loved the Creator first and the creation second.  They were empowered to love because God created them in His image as an expression of His love and with the ability to love.  That has not been taken away, but it has been twisted and broken.  Fortunately, God has a plan!

When I came to faith some 40+ years ago the song that first captured my heart was “Your Love Broke Through” by Keith Green.  The chorus goes:

“Like waking up from the longest dream

How real it seemed

Until Your love broke through

I’ve been lost in a fantasy

That blinded me

Until Your love, Your love broke through

Like waking up from the longest dream

How real it seemed

Until Your love broke through

Until Your love broke through”

God’s plan… His risky, wonderful, amazing plan is that He, God the Father, sent Jesus, God the Son, to rescue us through the penultimate act of love.  We still have the ability to choose, but when we choose Him, when we surrender love of all lesser things and choose to love Him above all else, He moves into our spirit with Himself in the form of the Holy Spirit and we are restored into fellowship with Him.  We move from simply being created in His image to being Children of God.

The greatest reality in the universe is that God loves and He desires us to live in His love.  It’s a love that transforms us into the child of God we were created to be.  It’s a love that empowers us to place others first.  It’s a love that connects us one to another in a faith-building unity.  It’s love that fills life to the full. 

I know this love and God’s ongoing work in me is continuing to change me into the person He created me to be.  I’m not there yet.  And I have my moments when I need to be reminded of whose I am and that the love He has for me is to be shared.  But thanks be to God, I’m not the man I once was and I can see that I am becoming the man He has called and equipped me to be. 

Today, I pray you get a sense of the love He has for you.  You were specifically on His mind before you were formed (See Psalm 139). He set in motion the plan to rescue you from all the lesser things that vie for your attention, your focus and your love. You are created in His image, and He loves you so much He died to eliminate anything and everything that would stand in the way of you coming to Him.  Wherever you are reading this take a moment and just tell Him how much you love and appreciate what He has done for you.  Then receive His love.

Because you see in the end, love wins!

Be blessed my friend.  And let the LORD’s love empower you to love Him and love others well today!

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Clarity!

Posted in Spiritual Growth, Trials, tagged , , , , on November 6, 2023| 2 Comments »

Thus far I have experienced many more positives from a cancer diagnosis than negatives.  I am feeling fine… okay at 63 I am feeling fine for being 63, but I have no real complaints.  The rallying of family and friends has been inspiring.  The peace which I know to be from the LORD even as we sit in this “bad news, but how bad” phase is simply amazing.  I am experiencing the “peace that passes understanding” that the apostle Paul talks about in Philippians 4:7 and it is wonderful.  But this morning I want to dwell on an aspect of blessing that is perhaps the most edifying, and that is clarity.

Today I am seeing and understanding my life’s purpose in high definition.  The LORD wants me to live in such deep friendship with Him that the joy, peace, and love that He has for me (and for you) spills over.  God has called me to love with His love.  The time I have left, whether it be 3 months or 30 years, is to be spent immersed in this experience of loving God with all my heart, soul, and strength and loving my neighbor as myself.

This past summer as I was sweating it out at the beach lugging way too much stuff from the beach back to our condo, I was pretty uncomfortable.  To battle my discomfort (and maybe a little frustration from lugging too much stuff) I was focusing upon ”reflecting” God’s love.  The Holy Spirit whispered to my heart, “I want you to radiate my love.”  What?  Not reflect?  As I let that sink in, I realized I was trying to put on a smile.  I was trying to think kinder thoughts even in the midst of frustration.  I was thinking about “doing” the right things to be nice even though I felt anything but nice. 

As I examined the difference between reflecting and radiating I realized in my instance it was the difference between doing and being.  If we consider the story of Martha and Mary (Luke 10:38-42), we get a picture of doing and being.  Martha was busy doing all the things necessary for everyone to be fed and cared for in her home as Jesus was teaching.  Mary was busy sitting at Jesus’ feet listening and learning.  She put the priority on being in Jesus’ presence before doing other things.

Now this is not an indictment of Martha, but it is making the distinction in priorities.  When my life’s priority is to draw close to Jesus, then the remainder of my life falls into place.  This is a daily thing.  This is a moment-by-moment thing.  As I spend focused time on Jesus, the Holy Spirit works this on-going transformation in me that brings about those characteristics that God has purposed for me.  I don’t have to work up the smile.  It just comes without effort.  I don’t have to work so hard to ignore the rude person, but kindness seeps to the surface of my thoughts.  I don’t have to try to be loving.  Love radiates out of me.

These outward manifestations come supernaturally, naturally.  God’s inner working in my soul is making changes in me such that the Holy Spirit has ever increasing sway on how I think and act.  It is less of God’s goodness shining on me and bouncing off and more of God’s goodness doing something miraculous in me that causes His goodness to radiate out of me. 

As I sit on this plane heading across the country, I think back to the mature believers who demonstrated this in my life.  I think of Sandy and Steve, a couple with three young children who took a 23-year-old new believer under their wings and nurtured him.  I think of Larry who encouraged me to go to this retreat and prayed for me to experience God in a deeper way.  I surrendered my life completely to Jesus that weekend.  There are John and Angelique who discipled me in the school of prayer for years as we met in the Prayer Tower in our small town in Tennessee.  I think of my beloved Lisa who put up with (and still puts up with) the person in the process of becoming who God created me to be.  These people and so many more demonstrated God’s love and care in marvelous ways.  And there is my faith community of today – dozens of beloved brothers and sisters in Christ who, like me, are in the process of becoming all God has created them to be.

I hope you will join me in this journey.  I believe in God’s sovereignty; therefore, He knows about this cancer battle and has allowed it for His good purpose.  That first wakeful night I felt the Lord give me a few “To Do’s”.  One was to journal this journey in a totally transparent manner and share it with others.  It is my earnest prayer that God meets you where you are and provides exactly what you need – whether it be encouragement, guidance, or perhaps even the first step in your journey of discovery with Him.

Until next time, be blessed my friend and be a blessing!

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Out of the Comfort Zone

Posted in God, God Stories, Mission to Kenya, Photography, Service, Spiritual Growth, The Father, Travel, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on May 21, 2019| Leave a Comment »

I recently traveled to Kenya to support some friends who are serving in an orphanage and school in Nairobi. It was an awesome trip and I was greatly encouraged by the Davis family’s faithfulness in serving the Lord and the dozens of young people under their charge. I told a friend last night that the trip was amazing, but somehow that word really isn’t sufficient. My wife and I travel for leisure a fair amount and seeing new places, experiencing new cultures, and making new friends is not a new experience for me. My common response is that a trip is “amazing”. This was so much more than that. It was inspiring. It was hard work. It was uplifting talking to LJ and Danee about the work. It was wonderful to hear from the Lord frequently and be able to obey with the encouragement and activity that He directed.

 

It weighed on my heart to see the poverty, filth, and lack of opportunity that is so much more prevalent than in the USA (or any of the places we travel to for fun). But as heavy as that was, the light of God’s goodness in the work being carried out stood out in stark, highly desirable contrast. There are many lessons that I have taken from the trip. Some were fully formed while I was there. Some are still being processed. Yesterday we hosted friends for our home group and the Lord brought a new consideration to light that I want to share today.

Maturing in faith and becoming a seasoned Christian will always include steps out of our comfort zone. In fact, growth as a believer will be an on-going series of steps that progressively move us from a place of comfort and ease into new territory that will often be a little scary and uncomfortable. But it is in stepping into the new that we learn to trust in Jesus’s presence and provision more than our own abilities and strength. I used to think that the word comfort meant ease and leisure. The actual root of the term comfort means “with strength”. Com = with, fort comes from the same root as fortress or fortification – a place of strength. When we are comforted, we are given strength to endure whatever difficulty, trial, or challenge we are encountering. Being comforted is a good thing. Being comfortable is in itself not a bad thing. However, as I have discussed in previous posts, there are times when the good can become an enemy of the best. And God wants the best for His children.

So what is the problem with being comfortable and why does God want us to move out of our comfort zone? The issue is not that God is a killjoy. Joy, comfort, and peace are great gifts He provides. But these are by-products not the end product. The end is a deepening relationship with Him and a greater intimacy with the lover of our soul. It is God’s desire that each one of us grow to know Him so well that we live in constant communion with Him. Prayer without ceasing is more than a pious platitude, it is an accurate description of the life God wants to lead us into. Which is where our personal comfort zone can become a hindrance rather than a good thing.

The Creator of the universe is without limits. His love is truly beyond our comprehension, but He wants us to experience it in ever greater amounts. To do so often means we must let go of our existing beliefs and understanding to experience the next greater level of His love. The same is true of His wisdom, His faithfulness, His mercy, His grace. Each time we let go of our current state of satisfaction and lean into a holy hunger for more of Him, we will experience a stretching and growth that reveals more of God’s nature, and by definition, will result in a degree of loss of the negatives of the world’s perspective. For me personally, this stretching often includes a letting go of self-reliance in some area to gain a greater God-reliance.

I saw this in Kenya. It was evident in my friends LJ and Danee. Masai Village-14It was also true in me. God’s specific word to LJ was “to prepare the land”. The orphanage had fallen into disrepair. Mismanagement had resulted in the loss of the license as a children’s home and much of the 14-acre compound was overgrown with brush and vegetation. The entire family responded to the call to prepare the land. Now for many of us, traveling overseas can be a daunting experience. That increases when the travel is to a third world country. Raise it another notch when we are placed next to the 2nd largest slum in the world. Kibera Children's Center-43Oh, for good measure, take the entire family with children ages 15, 14, 13, and 9 in tow. Kibera Children's Center-53I know very few people who would be able to be stretched that far. But the path the Lord has led Danee and LJ on has been a path of consistent next steps of trusting God as they go a little further out of their comfort zone, only to see Him provide exactly what was needed after each step.

While I was there, I witnessed LJ assuming the new role of overall Operations Manager for the entire compound. By his own admission, LJ is a country boy from rural South Carolina. He did not aspire to running an orphanage and school, but as I witnessed while I was there, LJ and Danee are faithfully doing whatever is required in leading, guiding, and serving the community. And the land itself is beginning to flourish. A ¾ acre vegetable garden is up and growing. Kibera Children's Center-91Soon it will be a major supplement to the food provisions for the 84 children getting their meals at LifeSpring. The livestock are multiplying. The third fluffle of rabbits are being nurtured and rabbit hutches were built while I was there.

 

Chickens roam the grounds during the day with baby chicks sticking close to mama hen for protection. Goats graze on grass where brambles once grew. To support the growing campus, LJ has hired widows and young men in desperate need of employment. The land is well on its way to being prepared.

LJ’s work as an instrument and controls technician prepared him for some of the work. I chuckle though because Google has come to the rescue many times as they encounter new situations they have never dealt with before. (Like letting me know that a group of baby bunnies is called a fluffle!) In one instance they were talking to one of the widows who had been hired to tend the garden. In Kenya all the schools are in English, so if you have had the benefit of attending school you are liable to speak decent English. This widow, who cares for her grandchild in the Kibera slum, knows zero English therefore she has never been to school. Kibera Children's Center-98Trying to communicate to her that LJ had bought four tin sheets to replace the plastic she was living under in Kibera was both humorous and deeply touching. Google translate had to translate into Swahili so the widow could understand that some men would be coming by to help her. Kenyans don’t cry. Stoic persistence to survive doesn’t leave room for expressing much emotion, but the emotion flickered on her face when she realized the act of kindness being done for her. Kibera Children's Center-93

LJ and Danee went to Kenya following the Lord’s clear leading. But following the Lord’s leading and knowing all that we are getting into are often two different things. In some cases, the Father will give us a degree of insight into what’s ahead. I think of Paul the apostle heading to Jerusalem where he would be arrested. God clearly told him to go to Jerusalem. And he was also clearly told that difficulty was ahead. But God gave Paul an assurance that walking this difficult path was God’s will and that God would be with him. Paul was called out of his comfort zone over and over again. In stepping into God’s call out of the comfort zone and into the unknown, Paul grew into the apostle God created him to be. Today the Church is blessed because of Paul’s faithfulness in living outside of his comfort zone since much of the New Testament was written by Paul.

As the Lord opened my eyes to the reality of our growth as believers being tied to stepping out of our comfort zone, I realized all the saints in the Word were taken out of their comfort zone. Abraham left his family, his land, and ventured many long and difficult miles to a “promised” land. There was comfort in the land of Haran, but God’s call was to step out and follow Him. Mary was a young woman engaged to a kind carpenter, when an angel said you have been chosen but it will take you out of your comfort zone. Mary said “let it be done to me as you have said” and she stepped out of her comfort zone and into God’s plan for the salvation of humanity. Jesus was a good Jewish lad, well versed in the law, but God had a plan and a call upon His life. Jesus was unique. He was fully God, but at the same time fully human. Being fully human, He experienced a degree of comfort as a carpenter’s son, then apprentice, and finally working as a carpenter in His own right. But when God said step out of your comfort zone and into my call upon your life He did. Jesus ministered for three years outside of His comfort zone – forty days fasting in the desert, speaking to crowds that wanted signs and wonders, but not necessarily the all-in life with God He was espousing, doing battle with the persons of power and influence who chaffed at His familiarity with God, and finally suffering a painful and humiliating torture and execution at the hands of both Roman authorities and Jewish leaders. Jesus modeled a life of stretching our human boundaries of comfort in faithful response to God’s call to something better, something richer, to life in union with God and His unique plan for each person.

Friends I am deeply stirred that God has a call upon every person into a life that is beyond amazing. He has a call upon you. But it is a journey that will frequently take us out of our comfort zone. God will ask us to step in faith in Him and not in sight by using our own wisdom and strength. We will have to rely upon Him. We will be stretched. At times it won’t be “fun”. At times it will even be difficult. But as we listen and lean upon Him, He will be with us to bring about His good will in us and through us. And this is so much better than the “good” we might experience in the comfort zone. Because it is the best.

What burden or desire has the Lord put on your heart that gets shelved because it is outside your comfort zone?

Where do you see injustice, need, or sin that really pushes your buttons, but thus far you have done little beyond complain about it?

Do you have a passion for something the Word says to do, yet thus far you have not truly considered the possibility of you doing something just because?

Take a few moments and ask the Father to bring your next step into clear focus. Ask with a willingness to take the next step. Realize these will not usually be huge leaps out of the blue, but a gradual revelation where God draws you to a faith place that makes each progressive step a stretch, but doable with a little courage and trust in the One Who has provided for you in the past. For the Davis’ it was a few years walking out many progressive next steps into mission work. For me going over to help them was similar, taking about a year of progressive faith steps. Having been, my faith is stirred to help even more. Will I be more comfortable? Walking in God’s grace and lifted by His love, I reckon I have all the strength a person needs. So the answer has to be yes, but in a new way. When we walk His path, taking new steps into the unknown that He directs we will be comforted with His great comfort. And that is way better than just being comfortable.

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What’s In Your Hands?

Posted in God, God Stories, Prayer, Spiritual Growth, The Father, tagged , , , , , , on May 14, 2018| 1 Comment »

I experienced one of those “ah ha” moments this weekend.  I was speaking with a new friend about God’s goodness and blessings.  We had taken turns sharing how God had, in His grace, provided healing and protection at different points in our life. It is good to take time to remember God’s faithfulness in the past because it is a helpful reminder that when we face a trial of any kind, that God, Who has been faithful before, will be faithful in the future.

My eyes were opened to a new perspective when she shared about praying for a woman for healing on multiple occasions.  The person was very vocal about her need.  She carried her pain and woundedness around constantly asking for prayer and comfort.  My friend had prayed for her and had even gathered a group together to pray for the woman.  After some time of praying though my friend sensed the Holy Spirit tell her that it was time to stop praying.  That the woman being prayed for didn’t really desire to be healed, but rather she wanted the attention and sympathy her illness brought her.

When she said that I suddenly realized what a big truth that is.  ‘When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. ‘  James 4:3  What pleased this woman more than receiving God’s healing was being the center of attention.  She had become comfortable in her condition and was satisfied with the sympathy of others.

The picture that came into my mind was of a person lifting their hands to God in supplication asking for a gift from Him, but their hands were full of tightly clenched “other stuff”.  Even if God offered to give what was requested they would have to release what they currently had to receive the gift from the Lord.  And many are not willing.

Lest you mistakenly think I am condescending in this, please know that the hands I am seeing are my own.  This is not simply a believer versus non-believer issue.  This is true of all gifts and all growth in faith.  As a believer I have grown by steps and stalls.  I can see that some of the stalls have been when I have tightly held onto a thing, a desire, a belief, that the Lord wanted me to lay down.  And the steps have been when in obedient trust I have released and lifted open hands to Him for whatever He has in store.  In some cases it was a blessing pure and simple.  In others it was a blessing disguised as a trial, but a blessing none-the-less.

For the person who does not yet know the Lord, the things they hold onto can cause them to miss out on the greatest gift of all, a relationship with the living Lord.  Holding onto pain from the past, unforgiveness toward someone, lifestyle choices contrary to God’s plan are all abundant life limiters.  The Lord is a good, good Father.  He is perfect in how He parents.  He is neither over-indulgent nor overly stern.  And like any good Father, He enjoys blessing His children.

Today, I encourage you to ask the Lord, “What is it I’m holding onto that I need to release?”  And then listen… and obey.  The second question is then totally appropriate.  “Lord, what do you want me to receive?”  The follow up to this question is a bit more open-ended.  He may answer that long requested prayer… or put a new desire in your heart… or simply bless you with His overwhelming peace.  Regardless, you can know that in releasing what’s in your hand, you make room for God’s “something better” in your life.  And that’s the path to the abundant life He desires each of us to experience.

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The Power That Raised Jesus

Posted in God, God Stories, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, Prayer, Spiritual Growth, The Father, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 26, 2018| Leave a Comment »

As Jesus followers we have access to the most powerful force in the universe.  Paul writes about it in his salutation to the church in Ephesus.

‘I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, ‘   Ephesians 1:18-20

My last post discussed how our emotions can lead us to believe a lie.  There is so much information being disseminated that is not accurate, whether intentionally or simply in error, that it is easy to absorb, believe, and emote based upon untruth.  Once we have believed a lie, especially when it has evoked strong emotion, it becomes easier to believe supporting lies and harder to discern the truth from the lie.

I do not believe it coincidental that the word in my quiet and prayer following that post was power.  Repeatedly yesterday the reality of God’s power was emphasized… beginning with God’s power demonstrated in raising Jesus from the dead, continuing with the power Jesus exhibited in healing the sick, casting out demons, raising the dead, and ministering to the humble and meek.  That power was then compared to our sun which provides our light, warmth, and sufficient energy to sustain life on this big, blue ball we call home even though it is over 93 million miles away.  While the sun in powerful, the One who created it had to be even more powerful to create it and all that is.

Finally, I saw the power of God in the ability to change a mind… to direct us onto the right course… to deliver the opioid-addict and bring them to health and wholeness… to turn a prodigal toward home… to open our eyes to the lies and half-truths we have embraced and to see and seek truth… to bring us ever closer to Him Who is the Lover of our souls.

That same power is continually available to us as Jesus’ followers.  We are encouraged to embrace that truth and to allow Him to guide us into how He wants to make that real in us and through us.  You are saved for a reason – to know Him and to make Him known.  The Holy Spirit living within the believer is the direct connection to God’s power.  In Jesus’ last recorded words before His ascension into heaven He said,  ‘But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” ‘ Acts 1:8

I encourage you this morning to lean into Jesus more and more.  Trust in His power which saved you, sustains you, and guides you.  Read the Word and allow the truth of it to saturate your mind and spirit.  As you do so, you will become more aware and dependent upon His wisdom, His grace, and His strength to live the life He has called you to.  You will learn to discern His promptings and respond to them.  I have been fortunate to participate in miracles He has brought about.  My role was 1% of the work which was accomplished simply by being obedient to what I sensed the Holy Spirit wanted me to do.  It was God’s power that did the work – healing in some cases, deliverance in others, salvation at times. In every case God was glorified and people were blessed.

Wherever you are in your faith walk, God has next steps for you which are for your good and His glory.  He will not leave or abandon you, but rather He is right there with you encouraging you to take that next step.  I don’t know exactly what your next step is, but I know God is cheering you on, whispering words of peace, hope, and guidance.  Let today be the day you take that next step in faith.  Let today be the day you take hold of the power Paul said is available.  Let today be the day you experience joy in a new and exhilarating way.  Seize the day my friend by saying yes to Jesus and stepping out in faith.

If you are interested in watching some excellent sermons, our church broadcasts the services on Sunday and they are also saved and accessible free online.  Just go to newspring.cc/sermons.  We are in a series on the Holy Spirit right now which is very balanced and biblically accurate.  Check it out.

With the benediction today, I think I will do a throw-back to the 1970’s and say:

“More power to you!”

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Disquiet in Paradise

Posted in Beautiful Places, God, Marriage, Photography, Priorities, Spiritual Growth, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 9, 2018| Leave a Comment »

I have a problem that I must confess. I have wanderlust. Wikipedia defines wanderlust as the strong desire for or impulse to wander or travel and explore the world. It has become a passion of ours to see new places, meet new people, experience new cultures, and learn new things. This week my wife and I are on a getaway celebrating our 33rd anniversary. We are in Oahu, Hawaii at a hotel on Waikiki Beach. While most of our trips are planned out a year or more in advance, this one dropped into our schedule 2 months ago when a “deal” fell in our lap. Now wanderlust itself is neutral, not necessarily good or bad. Like any strong impulse though it has the potential of becoming an idol. And this morning a disquiet has settled upon me as I realize I must deal with this reality in my life.

The standard definition of idol is an image representing a deity or god. A little broader definition of idol that better captures the message conveyed in scripture is anything that takes the ultimate place of priority in our life other than the Lord God. When I look around I see many people giving the place of priority in their life to people, things, and experiences other than God. It is incredibly sad to see a child so doted upon by their parents that they begin to actually believe the world revolves around them. In this case the parents often make the child an idol reinforcing the natural self-centered tendency that most of us struggle with. Or the person who is obviously wealthy to the point they lack no material comfort, yet they continue the quest to acquire, have, and hold onto because stuff, or position, or power has become their god. Not only can I see this in others, but when I turn and look inside, I realize this tendency to elevate people, things, or experiences to an unhealthy level still resides in me.

I recognized the uneasiness stirring in me later in the day yesterday as we filled a second day with adventure. Meeting our photography tour guide at 5:20 am to begin a Sunrise Photography tour, we had the briefest of times for our devotional. From then on the day was busy. I laid my head down at 10:00 pm Hawaii time with thoughts of things done, things still to do, plans still to be made. Body exhausted, my mind was still busy, but sadly, God was not in my first thoughts. Honestly, I didn’t pause to really spend time talking and listening to Him much at all.

For me, clarity often comes in the morning and so it was today. It is a real issue and I am ready to deal with it. I slipped out on the balcony about 4:30 am, confessing my waywardness and ready to make changes. The Lord put in mind capturing my thoughts (hence you are reading them now) and to open the Word. As He often does a snippet of scripture was persistent in my mind… “Why are you so downcast, oh my soul?”

I looked it up and had to laugh. Psalm 42 is what I was looking for. I made bold the verses that made me laugh because we are in Hawaii, visiting waterfalls and swimming in the pounding surf. God can be very specific (or in this case Pacific) when He needs to be. At the end I will close with the Psalm since God fully deserves the final word.

You see, God wants us to enjoy good things. He loves people and wants us to love them fully… with His love. He has no problem with our use and enjoyment of things. He lovingly provides them for our benefit and use. And life is made rich by new and varied experiences. God works in these experiences to stretch and grow us. The issue is simply do we have God in the proper place in our lives or is He an after-thought?.. Or is He even considered at all? Are we living a life that makes knowing God and growing in that relationship with Him the pivot point of our life? Are we living in such a manner that others recognize that He is real by the way we live?

I see my disquiet for what it is, a gentle nudge from the Holy Spirit to check my priorities and be sure God was not lost in our enjoyment of this beautiful place. And so, Lord I do. You are my priority. I put my hope in You.

‘As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God.

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?

My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”

These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng.

Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.

My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar.

Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me.

By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me— a prayer to the God of my life.

I say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?”

My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, “Where is your God?”

Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.’ Psalm 42:1-11

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Life in the Crucible – Submit to One Another

Posted in Church, God, Photography, Prayer, Spiritual Growth, tagged , , , , , , , , , on March 8, 2018| Leave a Comment »

I was surprised.  We’ve been married for almost 33 years and attended a half dozen marriage retreats and conferences.  We have a strong marriage that has effectively navigated a number of major challenges, always coming through stronger on the other side.  So when we attended the XO Marriage Conference this past weekend, I wasn’t expecting to hear anything new.  I expected to be reminded of biblical truths about marriage that I needed to emphasize and I hoped to be an encouragement to others.   The Lord fulfilled these expectations and, as usual, He went above and beyond.

My “Ah ha” learning was the inclusion of verse 21 in the pre-eminent scriptural description of marriage.  From Paul’s letter to the Ephesians we read.

‘Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— for we are members of his body. “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.’  Ephesians 5:21-33

The divisions in the bible are a fairly modern literary inclusion designed to aid in reading, marking, and discussing the bible.  They were not in the original manuscripts.  As such, later editors of the bible inserted the chapters, verses, and the topical breaks.  These are meant to help us compartmentalize our thoughts and better remember what we read.  There is an unintended consequence with this though.  In few instances these breaks may cause us to overlook an intended point.  Verse 21 is such a case.  The majority of translations tag verse 21 with the preceding verses and insert a break between verse 21 and 22.  The verses following are referred to as “Instructions for Christian Marriage” or something similar.  While still true and supportive of Christian marriage, these verses benefit greatly from the foundation that verse 21 – “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ” provides.

In the past when I read these verses I have seen the two admonitions – wives submit / respect your husbands and husbands love your wives sacrificially.  But undergirding the marriage instructions with this verse to submit to one another literally ties the whole together.

Marriage was God’s idea.  It was ordained from the beginning.

‘The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone… So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.” That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh. Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.’ Genesis 2:18,21-25

Marriage is one of God’s pre-eminent ideas.  It’s a crucible in which some of God’s best work is done.  A crucible is a bowl used by chemists specially designed to take very high heat.  Into the crucible the chemist places different materials.  Sometimes the elements are crushed, sometimes stirred , often heat is used as well.  In the end the materials are mixed together and something new is created.  In the best scenario, the two materials, which prior to mixing had little clear purpose, combine to form something altogether different and new.  It may be a compound that serves as a new medicine able to save lives or a fragrance that sweetly perfumes a room or a food ingredient that enlivens and pleases the taste buds.  The good outcome is only possible because of time spent in the crucible and the melding that takes place there.

When a man and a woman enter marriage they slip into the crucible together.  In most cases they do so because they have “fallen in love”.  They usually enter with a host of ideas and expectations about marriage.  Some of these may be met.  Some may be discussed and compromises achieved.  But many will remain unmet.  The falling in love phase is not a permanent state for most.  In fact unless the falling in love phase is replaced with Agape love, the intimate feelings will fade, sometimes quite rapidly.  This in itself is a type of heat applied to the marriage.  There are of course numerous other ways crushing, stirring and heat is applied to the marriage – financial strain, medical issues, differences in parenting, not to mention that marriage is the joining of two different people who each carry around their own set of emotional, mental, and spiritual baggage.

Unlike two chemicals that have no choice but to remain in the crucible, people can leave.  They can physically leave or they can emotionally leave, i.e. remote in one hand, beer in the other.  Either way, the potential good the crucible can bring is thwarted because we leave.  Another alternative is to resist and fight.  We do not see the good that can come so we resist the heat and the mixing, the coming together that the crucible can bring about.  Coming back to Ephesians 5:21 when we submit to one another we allow the crucible time to do its work, to blend us into something new, something better than the sum of just two individuals living under the same roof.  As we read in Genesis above – the two become one.

We celebrate 33 years of marriage next month.  We have been blessed with four wonderful children and four grandchildren thus far.  We are part of an awesome church and a great home group of friends that are truly part of our family now.  But we have been in the crucible for more than just one heating.  I know I have at times resisted the lesson in the heat.  Crucible times are not usually pleasant.  But, God, Who is rich in mercy, has always brought us through.  And what has come out of the crucible has been better and stronger than what went in.  Learning to submit to one another out of reverence for Christ is the foundation for living through crucible times.  And there are blessings in store for those who do.

Be blessed and let the God of all grace use you to bless someone who needs it today.

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