God Is Our Refuge

 So many people seem to be struggling at this time.  There is so much going on in the world around us. Covid, Lockdowns, Illnesses, Financial struggles, Loneliness and the list goes on and on.

With all of these struggles going on around us God can seem like he is disinterested or in the distance.  When we feel this way it can bring up the question of "God where are you?"

All the issues can bring forth fear as well.  I know I have found myself in fear a few times this last year. Worrying about the "What ifs"

"What if my loved one dies? What if they never find a cure for covid? What if I have the vaccine? What if I don't? Will I ever see my family members again?" The What ifs can be endless. 

Psalm 46:1 says

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” 

This verse tells us that God is with us. God is our refuge, our fortress and shelter.

The dictionary defines refuge as “a shelter from pursuit or danger or trouble; or a person or place offering this”. It defines fortress as “a military stronghold, especially a strongly fortified town fit for a large garrison”.

God is also our strength, our help. He is the one who deals with the uncertainties that surrounds us. We can take comfort in knowing that because God is our refuge and help, we have nothing to fear, even if life throws us the worst curveballs. God is with us. No matter the storm or trial that comes our way. We are not alone. We can take comfort in God's presence. We can trust in his promise of eternal life. He cares about our daily struggles and he shares them with us.

Nowhere in the bible does God promise a life without those difficult times but he does promise that he will be with us when those times come.

We live in a world of uncertainties, that can quickly spiral out of control. Our leaders are in a state of confusion and are unsure of the next steps to take. Our enemies seem to be increasing around us. We need to take our eyes off of the circumstances and place our eyes on God. We need to trust that he has it all under control.

Luke 12:7 says

"Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows."

He loves and cares for us so much that he has the hairs on our heads numbered.

As we trust in him and we give our struggles to him he will provide us with the rest that we need. By placing our trust in him we are allowing him to give us the peace that passes all understanding.

I encourage you to read his word and to trust in him. We may not have all the answers but he does and he has it all under control.

Love your Enemies

Mathew 5:44 tells us to love our enemies and to bless those who curse us. It tells us to do good to those who hate us and pray for those who spitefully use us and persecute us.

I don't know about you but the last thing that I want to do is love the person who abused and hurt me, however God wants us to love them anyway. 

I once heard a story of a man. One day he was relaxing under a tree and the trees roots stretched over a river bank. While he was resting, he noticed that the river was rising. A scorpion was caught in the roots and it was about to drown. This man took pity on the scorpion and he stretched out on the roots and reached down to free the scorpion. Every time he did this, the scorpion would strike back at him. There was an observer sitting near the man.  The observer saw what was happening. The observer turned to the man and asked  “Don't you know that's a scorpion, and it the nature of a scorpion to want to sting you? 

The man turned to the observer and said, “ That may very well be, but it is my nature to save. Do I need to change my nature because the scorpion does not change his nature? 

Sometimes it is impossible to help those who are hurting or are in need of something. Sometimes it is thier nature to stick at you and hurt you, much like the scorpion. Sometimes it is an instant reaction to hurt you before you hurt them. We may not know why they react this way. It could be passed experiences. It could be thier nature it could be a factor of many different things. We may never really know the reason.

The reason is not what is important. What is  important is that we embrace the nature of God.

In Luke 6:27-36 we are told again to "Love our enemies. 

We do this in how we respond to painful events. As Christians, we are to pray for those we don't like- even those we are mad at. We pray because it changes our hearts. It helps the hearts of the other person to change. It also heals. So next time that person hurts you or you try and help him and he don't want help. God wants us to love them anyway. And pray for them.

He is Defeted!!

       Have you ever gone through a situation when you find yourself questioning God what did I do wrong? Why am I being punished? I don't get it.

    I have recently been experiencing a lot of health issues. These issues are very serious issues and I have found myself in this exact situation.
Did I ever question God's existences? No. I just wanted to understand why.

    As I lay in my hospital room alone and in solitude I found myself battling with so many thoughts. I was discussing my feelings with God and crying out to him. As I sat quietly and waited on him. I heard a still small voice say "My precious child I love you and your doing nothing wrong. If anything your doing it right and that is why you are under attack. I got this.

    I was soon reminded of Mathew 4:1-4 where Jesus is in the Garden of Gathemane. He is alone and in solitude that is when Satan tries to attack him. Jesus fights back and soon reminds him of his future. How does he do this? He throws scripture at him.  Reading the bible and mesmerizing verses is our best defence.

   John 8:44 describes Satan as a murder, never holding the truth. He lies and he is the father of lies.
He will tell you anything he can to pull you down. The bible is our sword and when we throw those verses at him he realizes he can not win. God's Power is greater then his sceems.

  If I have learned anything from this experience I have learned this to be true in my life.

    I encourage you to read your bible and memorize his word. This will be your greatest weapon. You will defete Satan and his sceems.

    "Lord Thank you for your word. I Thank you for love and for your protection. You are a good Father and nothing is too difficult for you.



 

Like the Birds

            

    Yesterday I was sitting in my kitchen relaxing after I had just finished the housework and going about my day. I could hear the birds singing and thought what a beautiful day. Then I looked out my kitchen window. It looked like a blizzard had struck us. A blizzard in May?

 I quickly thought why God why? It is spring what is this white stuff I see before me?  I found myself complaining to myself and whining about this crazy weather. God you really do have a sense of humor.

    As I sat quietly at my kitchen table, I could hear this still small voice speaking to me. This voice was saying “Do you hear those birds singing? Why can’t you be like these birds? In the mist of the storm they still sing praises. They are outside in the snow with very little shelter and yet they are still thankful.

1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18

 “Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in everything; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 

    God wants us to give thanks for all things. Yes, even the snow storms. When we are thankful, we become more aware of his presence.  We learn how to express our gratitude even when we feel that we cannot.   Our thankfulness helps us to rise above the problem. When we are thankful and we rejoice in him we are then energized by his glory.

    I quickly found myself asking God to forgive me for being so selfish. I have so many blessings in my life. I was sitting in my warm kitchen drinking my hot cup of coffee when there are many who are homeless and on the streets. They do not have a warm shelter. Here I was looking at the negative instead of the positive.  I was being ungrateful for what I do have. I was taking for granted the things that I do have in life. When situations come and we don’t feel like being thankful God wants us to be thankful by praising him.

“Lord help me to sing your praise in every situation. Help me to be more like the birds.”

Under His Wings

Psalms 91:4

“He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge.”

               

With all of the craziness that is going on in this world right now. This verse has become a comfort to me.  There are many people in panic of the unknown. Many questions and concerns. What if I contract this virus? How will I make ends meet? How are my loved ones? Will this ever end?       I may not know what the future holds and I may not have all the answers. I do however know who holds my future. I can take comfort in knowing that he has me covered with his feathers and I am protected by his wings.

Have you ever watched a mother goose with her goslings? When my kids were younger, we use to take them to the local duck park every spring. They loved going to see the new goslings.  From time to time we would see a mother curled in a ball with her babies tucked under her wings. As long as those babies where under her wings they were completely protected and no harm would come to them.

When looking at a bird wing what do you see?  They seem flimsy. They don’t look very strong.  However, there is more to a bird’s wings then the eye can see.  

For example, each feather has stiff barbs with tiny hooks that lock together much like the prongs of a zipper. The fluffy part keeps the bird warm but the barbs give the feather support. Both of these parts put together are what keeps the birds safe from wind and rain. Until the babies develop fully, they are only covered with the fluffy down. They do not have the protection like its mother.  For this reason, the mother bird needs to cover them with her feathers to protect them from the wind and rain. They are safe under her wings during the storms.

When I read this verse, I think of God covering us with his feathers much like the mother bird covers her little ones with her feathers. Her feathers are a safe place to retreat when the storm comes along. We can take refuge until the storm passes. God is there to comfort and shelter us from life’s storms. When we are under his wings we are loved. We are covered and protected. We are reassured that no harm can come to us.

I often wonder how many times God wants to protect us with his wings but we do not take refuge in him. We try and rely on our own resources.  I know I have been guilty of this at times. It is our human nature to try and do it on our own but when we take refuge in him that is when he can cover us fully with his wings. He covers us where nothing and no one can harm us. Not even the force of Hell can prevail against him.

We may feel that we are going through a great storm.  Some of us are dealing with great troubles and heartaches. Some of us may feel alone and abandoned. Some of us may be feeling defeated or discouraged.  The good news is we can deal with this storm without fear as look as we turn our eyes to him. He is there with his wings stretched wide so we can take refuge under his wings.

I encourage you to take refuge under his wings. God has this all under control. He knows the beginning and he knows the end.

“Lord Thank you for your protection. Thank you that we can take refuge in you and you will keep us safe from the storms. Thank you for your faithfulness and thank you for your peace.”

He Calms the Storm

Have you ever been in the middle of a great storm?

  I remember a few years ago we were hit with a pretty bad wind storm. Hydro was knocked out lasting for many days for some. Trees were ripped out of the ground by the roots. Schools were canceled and the after mass from this storm was great. During the storm I found myself praying for my family and friends safety. Later I watched on the news, they had talked about a group of kids that had been out on a school trip. They were out on the lake in boats when the storm hit. They had to go out and bring them home safely . I was soon reminded of another boat that was on the water during a storm.

Mark 4:35-41

That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped, Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?" He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!"

   Many times we go through storms like this storm. I know even now we are all going through a storm.  We are all dealing with Covid-19. I find myself once again praying for my friends and family's saftey.

  We think we are going to drown, we just can not handle anymore. The disciples worried about the outcome of the storm, Just like now. When things seem out of control, we tend to worry and sometimes our minds start to play games. 

Isaiah 26: 3 says that he will keep us in perfect peace when we trust in him.

  When we trust in God and we allow him to take control then he can calm the storm. We need to have the faith that no matter what this storm brings our way.

Remember...God is in control!

Dolphins

     These last few months I have been busy and some trails have come along the way. I have also been battling some health issues.  At times it feels like my somewhat normal life has been turned upside down. It is through these times that I have learned two things.

#1 I am never alone because God is always with me.

#2 God has blessed me by placing some amazing people in my life.

I remember watching a show on the television a little while ago.  It was one of those nature shows. It was about dolphins.

    Did you know that dolphins are very intelligent animals. A dolphin is a small member of the whale family. A dolphin may swim in the ocean, however it breathes like a whale through the opening at the top of its head. They must come to the surface often to get their air supply. They travel in groups and are often seen leaping and swimming together in this group. Something that I found interesting about dolphins is that they care for one another in a very special way. When one of them gets hurt. They will stick close to the injured dolphin. They will protect it and make sure that no harm comes to that injured dolphin. They will help the injured one retreat by using their own lives as bait to attract the sharks and opponents away from the injured one. When the shark attacks, other dolphins come to help and aid in battle. They may even push that injured dolphin up to the surface from time to time to get it the air it needs. If the other dolphins did not help out, the injured dolphin could drown. Without the other dolphins that injured dolphin would surely die. God wants us to help one another in our time of need.

Proverbs 17:17

" A friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need."

    Often we see someone struggling, or someone that needs our support. God wants us to be there for them. How many times have we seen someone being attached by Satan?  God wants us to step out to help them. We need to protect and give the guidance to the one hurt. We need to pray for them and encourage them in their time of need. Satan tends to attach us more when we are hurt or down. God wants us to direct each other to the top, so we can get that much needed breath of fresh air.

  Sometimes it may be a challenge for us to help that person. Maybe that person has hurt you. Sometimes it may be easier to kick that person while they are down but God wants us to help lift that person up no matter what the situation may be.

    I encourage you to look around you and if you see someone that is struggling or needs that little extra push to the surface. God has put them there for a reason. He wants us to help and protect each other in our times of need. God has given me a great support group. I am so thankful for each and every one of them.   Not one of us can make this journey alone. We need the support and encouragement from those around us to get us through. Without each other we would not be able to make it through all the trials life has to offer us. We all need that push to the surface to help us breathe through every situation.