When He Speaks

My heart is overflowing

with Praise

to the Lord

who has granted to me

a good report for the biopsies:

All are benign, Praise HIM!

But at the same time, my body

is not fully healed yet.

The Chronic Illness remains.

And my heart aches for friends of mine 

in deep trials:

the friend whose son is newly diagnosed with cancer,

the friend whose children face court battles,

the friend whose own life hangs in the balance

with a terminal illness

and so many others . . .

 

Where is God in the midst of our questions? 

Where is He in the midst of our longings?

He is still Good, and HE still has blessings

to pour on us,

wherever we find ourselves walking.

He never leaves us alone 

to face the trials,

He walks with us through

every step.

And His Grace is sufficient,

for

HE, Himself, is our blessing.

Thank you to a dear friend who blessed me with this song,

I pray it blesses you as well:

 “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
    I have summoned you by name; you are mine.  

When you pass through the waters,
    I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
    they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
    you will not be burned;
    the flames will not set you ablaze.

For I am the Lord your God,
    the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;"

Isaiah 43:1-3 

 

Day 20: Remember as we Listen

It was the day after a biopsy, and I knew I was in for another waiting time,

wanting to know the results,

wanting to find my strength renewed,

wanting to just be done with this questioning.

But as I realized that none of those answers would be

forthcoming,

I also realized that I am really good at pining for

The Good Ole Days.

Perhaps you are like that as well?

I tend to either look back longingly at the days gone by,

and think they were all rosy-pie-sweetness,

Or I dwell on all those if-only-I-had . . . 

and try to fill in the blank with anything BETTER

than the mistakes I know I've made.

I can surely relate to the author of this Psalm when he is looking back:

Psalm 77:5-7 (NIV)  I thought about the former days, the years of long ago; I remembered my songs in the night. My heart meditated and my spirit asked: “Will the Lord reject forever? Will he never show his favor again?


Does that smack of nostalgic-remembering that is laced with cynicism, or what?  


So, in the middle of a beautiful autumn day, that 
I was NOT enjoying,
I found myself catching up on my
Biblical Blog Reading
yet again.


Have you visited Anna Smit and Debbie Barrow Michael for the series they are sharing as their part of the
#Write31Days Challenge?

Click here to read their series 

because they are sharing the right kind of remembering,
#31Days of Miracles: Who is our God.


This is the kind of remembering that the Psalmist went on
to speak about,
in just the very next passage:

Psalm 77:10-11 (NIV) Then I thought, “To this I will appeal: the years when the Most High stretched out his right hand. I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. 


And my own remembering began to change as I listened to what God desires for me to remember:


I will cling to the Greatness of my God,


The ONE who opened up homes for us to live in
when the doors had all been closed,
time after time.

The ONE who sent the anonymous gifts of money
just when the bills were due
time after time.

The ONE who protected my husband
from the angry and hysterical boss
who was threatening jail.

The ONE who sent a permanent job
when the way had been closed
for years.

The ONE who healed my daughter's lazy eye
when the surgeon said
nothing else could be done.

And the ONE who never changes
the ONE who still moves mountains
the ONE who holds my hand.



What are you remembering today?
Are there miracles in your past that you need to cling to?
Or are there if-only's from your past that you need to let go of?


The ONE who gave you life is
The ONE who stretches out HIS hand
to you today. 




This is Day 20 for the #Write31Days Challenge,
and my #31Days of Listening with Chronic Illness.

Thank you for following along! If you missed any posts,
and would like to catch up,

click here for the Series Index 

Today I am linking up with some great bloggers over at

#LiveFreeThursday with Suzie Eller