16 October 2012

destroy ... rebuild


This past Saturday I went to a store and, to my surprise, demolition was in progress. One of the other buildings in that shopping center [one which has stood vacant for the past four years] was in the process of being torn down.

But the interesting thing about it was that there was a sign stating that a grocery store was going to be coming to that space. However, the previous occupant of the building was a grocery/department store. It seemed somewhat of a waste to me as I thought: they could have just re-purposed the old building and modified/remodeled it to suit their purposes.

Then on Sunday I was sending an email that took me straight back to that building (or should I say debris field) that I had seen the day before. I was writing to a couple of friends commenting on how God will allow situations that confound us at times and expressed, 'You cannot fill a cup that is full. Therefore, I believe there are times when He will empty you of everything to make room for the new thing He desires to do in and through you.'

Likewise -

There are times when something in our lives will need to be torn down in order to build the new thing. These are instances where a redesign is utterly insufficient, where no amount of reconstruction will achieve the desired end result. Yes, sometimes things will need to be leveled just like they did with that building.

Currently there are so many have lost so much - houses, cars, jobs, reputation and even relationships.

Yet I want to encourage you today. While some of things that have been torn down and removed may seem like a waste to us - the plans of the LORD are perfect. His ways truly are not our ways. And His wisdom is far above ours.

It is difficult to conceive that what we had or who we were could not be somehow repurposed. And there are times when He does that. But, there are also times when the old thing must be completely eliminated in order to accomplish the current move of God.

'No one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost and the skins as well; but one puts new wine into fresh wineskins.' Mark 2:22

Take heart friends -

In this stage of 'destroy and rebuild', things appear to look worse before they get better. Yet, in time, with patience, the perfect plan of God will manifest and will reveal something beyond what you are able to imagine - something that will bring Him glory and honor.

The new owners of that property paid a hefty price for that building - just to turn around and tear it down - so they can ultimately build what they desire. Likewise, Jesus paid a tremendous price for us: empty shells desiring usefulness, sitting without purpose or longing for fresh purpose ... for years in some instances. By His blood He took possession of what He desired and set about the process of 'destroy ... rebuild'.

And as we submit to this work in our lives, His work, we become useful instruments/agents for effecting the change that must take place in our world:
'See, I have appointed you this day over the nations and over the kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.' Jeremiah 1:10

The Message Version Reads
"I’ve given you a job to do
among nations and governments—a red-letter day!
Your job is to pull up and tear down,
take apart and demolish,
And then start over,
building and planting.”


God is raising up an army in these days -
Lives emptied of everything to be filled with what is pleasing in His sight
Individuals taken down to bare bones, to be rejuvenated by the power of His Holy Spirit
Selfish agendas destroyed to make room for building & exalting His kingdom purposes

'Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,  to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.' Ephsians 3:20-21

10 October 2012

close encounter ...

This has been a good day!

It started the way it always does ...
Alarm going off at 5AM,
Racing to get dressed ... timing every minute,
And then out the door at 5:40 to do the two mile walk to the bus stop.

Although I take the daily trek out of necessity, I don't mind the walk. I actually enjoy it ...
I love the quietness and have found it an ideal time to pray and sing and think ... alot!

Last week, that touch of serenity was interrupted when something unexpectedly ran across my path. It was not a bunny. Although I have seen a few of those in the months I've been walking. It was not a stray cat ... seen a couple of those. It was not a duck ... can't count how many of those I've seen. Neither was it a beautiful bird. IT WAS RAT! And it was not just any rat ... it was a huge rat. I think he was almost as big as my Min-Pin ... no exaggeration.  It completely grossed me out.

Getting back to this morning ...
My quiet stroll had another unexpected visitor.
And was it ever a close encounter ...

As I walked down the dark sidewalk with forests on both sides of the street, I froze at the same time a car coming down the other side of the road applied his brakes. And there she was ... the most beautiful doe I have ever seen, leaping across the road with such grace that I saw her before I heard her. She was only about four feet in front of me and this was no baby ... she was full grown. It was abolutely wonderful!

She stopped right at the edge of the forest to my right. And as I walked past her, she just looked at me as if to say, 'Did you see that? He almost hit me!' And I looked at her as if to say, 'Wow! You almost hit me!' Then she started to walk into the woods and I continued on my way.

I think I grinned the rest of my walk ... it just made my morning! I love nature always. But when something like that happens, it is just like getting a little present from my Heavenly Father. And somehow it seemed fitting with how I have been feeling lately and after that awesome time in His presence last night and this morning.

Absolutely Beautiful!


'He makes me as surefooted as a deer,
enabling me to stand on mountain heights.'
Psalm 18:33 NLT


'Say to those who have an anxious heart,
“Be strong; fear not!
Behold, your God
will come with vengeance,
with the recompense of God.
He will come and save you.”

Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
and the ears of the deaf unstopped;
then shall the lame man leap like a deer,

and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.
For waters break forth in the wilderness,
and streams in the desert.'   
Isaiah 35:4-6 ESV                                                             

Powerful!

It is 2AM ...
I should be in bed, especially since I have to be up at 4:50AM
I've been up praising God and praying in the spirit ... and just had to share this

Powerful!

Hillsong United - From the Inside Out, A Song to Sing and With Everything

standing at the edge ...

Sitting here on my sofa ... enjoying the quiet of the evening. It seems the older I get, the more satisfaction I find in the simplest pleasures. Yet there is a small 'something' hovering in my mind and heart tonight.

You see, I have a very big decision to make...

And, if I am honest, it is times like this when being a single woman is most challenging. I have been saved long enough to understand the power that exists in agreement. Scripture tells us in Matthew 18:19, 'if two of you shall agree on earth concerning anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in Heaven.' Yet what is one to do when you have no one to come into agreement with ... no one to pray with ... to truly pray with? Please do not misunderstand me. I know I can pray on my own (and do), but it would just be nice sometimes ... to have some help.

I'm not nearly as strong as those closest to me seem to think I am.

As I talked to a good friend this afternoon, I was sharing how surreal it feels to be standing at the edge of something you've only imagined.
  • Was Abraham pacing outside the tent as Sarah was being prepped for birth? What was going through his mind? What had been going through his mind in the weeks leading up to that moment?
  • I wonder how Moses felt when he was finally able to see with his eyes (albeit from a distance) what I am certain he had imagined many times ... what had been promised.
  • As Mary began to feel the pain of regular contractions, was the discomfort overshadowed by the excitement of what was about to happen? I mean the promise was real to her the moment the words were spoken, And, she carried the promise, feeling the flutterings and kicks. But what were those weeks and days and hours like just before she held the promise?
I cannot begin to count the number of times in my lifetime that I have heard the quote, 'If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.' And, if I am honest, I think it is causing me to hesitate. Yet deep down I know that when it has come to the best things that have happened in my life ... when it seemed too good to be true, it was usually God!

There is this strange feeling of expectancy mixed with something else that I can't quite put my finger on.


Even with so much standing before me, I know so much more will be required of me. To just grab hold of what is right in front me requires such FAITH. It will require a move a God, a miracle similiar to what He did for the children of Israel as they circled the walls of Jericho. Theirs was to take the steps of faith to enter the promise and to leave the results to God Almighty. I know my situation is not very different. There are still a couple of walls that need to come down and doors that need to swing open. Yet He remains unchanged, the same faithful God He has been ... forever. 

I so need to hear from the LORD ... directly ... with great detail and clarity.
Praying earnestly ...

Have a Blessed Evening!
 

06 October 2012

You Are For Me ...

Wow! I haven't written here is quite some time. I was without use of my laptop for about one month and have just been so busy.

Last night I think I got my first glimpse of what it will be like when I have an 'empty nest'. My oldest son was out at his college campus, my youngest son was at a homecoming game and my middle son was at work (today is his birthday by the way ... 20 years old!). Where has the time gone?

It is so rare that they are all gone at the same time. And, while it was oddly silent, I am so thankful that I had an opportunity to just sit quietly last night ... to still myself, to listen to the LORD and to truly hear what He was speaking to my heart.

It is hard to explain but I have been filled with such an expectation ...
I can't even say with complete certainty what I am expecting,
But something keeps bubbling up on the inside.

All week I have been singing this song by Kari Jobe ... You Are For Me


'And so, after he had patiently endured,
he obtained the promise'
Hebrews 6:15

Have a Blessed Day!

'The LORD of Heaven's Armies is here among us,
The God of Israel is our fortress.'
Psalm 46:7 NLT