Fears and Doubts

Greetings, friends. Thanks for your visit. I trust that you will be refreshed as you take a moment here. May this be an oasis in the midst of a hectic day...or evening.

Elisabeth Elliot in her book, Secure in the Everlasting Arms quotes Thomas Carlyle who commented, "Doubt of any sort cannot be removed except by action." Elliot adds, "There is wonderful therapy in taking oneself by the scruff of the neck, getting up, and doing something. While you are doing, time passes quickly. Time itself will in some measure heal, and "light arises in the darkness" - slowly, it seems but certainly."

She continues, "I myself have been hauled out of the Slough of Despond by following the advice of the simple Saxon in an old English parsonage: 'Doe the nexte thynge'."

Many a questioning, many a fear,
Many a doubt hath its quieting here.
Moment by moment, let down from heaven,
Time, opportunity, guidance are given.
Fear not tomorrows, child of the King -
Trust them with Jesus. Do the next thing!

Whatever is happening today, know that as a believer, a follower of "the Way", you are secure in the everlasting arms."

"The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms." - Deuteronomy 33:27 (NIV)

Lessons Learned in a Crisis of Life

Greetings, friends! A man I really respect is Dr. Al Mohler, a strong defender of the faith. He recently had a medical setback as is just now getting back his strength. He writes about what he learned during this very difficult peiiod in his life on his blog. Please check it out. See the link below. I'd reproduce his post in its entirety but I don't want to break any copyright laws. PLEASE CHECK OUT THE LINK. It will encourage you!

Note: Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., serves as president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminar, the flagship school of the Southern Baptist Convention and one of the largest seminaries in the world. He is a theologian and ordained minister, as well as an author, speaker and host of his own radio program The Albert Mohler Program.

Check out this link:

http://www.albertmohler.com/commentary_read.php?cdate=2007-01-22

I trust that you have a rewarding week!

Desert Reflections

Greetings, dear friends, as you begin a new week. I trust you had a great weekend! Here's a post from the Pilgrim Scribblings archives that, hopefully, will be an encouragement to you.

Sitting By the Lake

What a beautiful Lord's day! A clear blue sky, a warm breeze and a place to sit by the lake at Elim Lodge, a place of refreshment! As I sat by Pigeon Lake watching Matthew and Nathan swim and play on the beach, I was reading Nancie Carmichael's excellent book, Praying for Rain. This is my second reading as I went through it a year or two ago. As I read her chapter on depression there were a couple of quotes I couldn't wait to share so I called in this "audio post" using my cell phone. I added the text you're reading now later after I arrived home.

As we encounter our desert experiences on life's pilgrimage we are not alone! The One who Himself was tempted in the desert (yet sinned not), walks with us through our droughts and desperations. We can choose to make these desert places a meeting place where we encounter the living Christ and then, as we emerge from our trials, we can "comfort others with the comfort wherewith we ourselves have been comforted".

"Blessed are those whose strength is in You, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage. As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools. They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion." - Psalm 84:5-7 (NIV)

Morning Stillness

Good morning, dear friends! I finished work this morning (Sunday) at 7:00 a.m. and took my time coming home. It was such a still, quiet morning. A misty fog covered much of the city of Peterborough as I drove home.

The sun hadn't risen yet but I could tell that it would be spectacular sunrise. I had my trusty SONY with me so I captured some of the morning beauty. Check out some of the pictures on PILGRIM SCRIBBLINGS.

The stillness gave me a quietness in my spirit as I slowly took the long way home. Normally it's about a 20-25 minute drive but I took the back roads. After the sun had risen I could see its reflection on the snow and on other buildings.

The verse that came to mind was Hebrews 1:3. I love the King James Version rendering of this passage. The writer penned these words, "Who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high." (Hebrews 1:3)

I remember some of the "saints of old" who would stand up in our "breaking of bread" service and reflect on the first few verses of the Hebrew epistle. A word they often used which I have never forgotten is "effulgence". This morning I checked again on its meaning. Effulgence means "radiant splendor" or "shining forth".

Jesus was the "express image" of the Father. He was God, manifest in the flesh or "shining forth" in the flesh. He was and is the "radiant splendor" of all that God the Father is. He was and is "very God" and "very man". God incarnate!

This morning I was capitivated by the sun in all its glory. More important, I reveled in God's Son, who created and upholds all things by the Word of His power. Rejoice in Him today, this Lord's day. Rejoice that He is now enthroned at God's right hand, a Prince and a Savior.

Be encouraged today! The Son has risen and lives for evermore. He inhabits the praises of His people. Give Him praise today!

Forget Your IQ...What's Your KCP?

Last weekend I heard someone with the Windsor Police Services speak about my friend, Chuck Congram's work as police chaplain. They spoke of his "presence on the perimeter"...being there but not getting in the way. Three (3) key words were mentioned as being essential for a chaplain...he/she must have a knowledgeable, compassionate presence. So true!

We can have all the knowledge in the world yet lack compassion or the reverse...being very compassionate but have no idea what to do. Have you ever had a doctor or a nurse who was very informed but had a terrible bedside manner? Of course you have. It's not nice! At times just being there is the best gift for the one we're ministering to.

Jesus is the Perfect Example. He was and is omniscient, all knowing, knowledgeable. Without question He was a compassionate Savior! And He was ever-present or omnipresent.

What is your KCP quotient? Let's work on all three so we can be effective agents of encouragement and hope to those who desperately need us. Let's point them to the One who "looked with compassion on them as sheep having no shepherd".

"God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble." Psalm46:1 (NLT)

Try to just "be there" for someone today!

Healing Silence

Dear friends, don't negate the importance of silence and solitude as disciplines in your pilgrimage to Christian maturity. They are absolutely essential! Here's another challenge from a modern day prophet (in the true sense) who, being dead, yet speaketh.

"And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray." - Mark 6:46 (KJV)

A. W. Tozer writes:

"Very few of us know the secret of bathing our souls in silence. It was a secret our Lord Jesus Christ knew very well. There were times when He had to send the multitudes away so He could retire alone into the silence of the mountainside. There He would turn the God-ward side of His soul toward heaven and for a long time expose Himself to the face of His Father in heaven.

My eyes and ears and spirit are aware of the immaturities in the so-called evangelicalism of our time. The more noise we make, the happier we seem to be. All of the signs of immaturity are among us. We are seeing a general abhorrence of being alone, of being silent before the Lord. We shrink from allowing our souls to be bathed in the healing silences."

taken from Men Who Met God, 103-104.

Encouraging Athletes For 32 Years

Please keep EPISTLE SPORTS MINISTRIES in your prayers.

We are into our 32nd season of ministry to professional and amateur athletes and we are trusting God to do great things this year.

We depend on the prayers and financial support of the Lord's people.

Last night we had 21 of the Peterborough Petes in attendance at our bi-weekly MONDAY WE HAVE FISH Bible studies.

Thanks again, dear friends!

"We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ." - Colossians 3:28 (NIV)

My Friend Writes...

My friend Pauline Stringer penned the following masterpiece of prose and passed it along to me. I previously posted the poem, Sweet Hush of God, that Pauline refers to. I'm adding it to this post for those who didn't read it before. Great work, my friend!

Enfolded in Love

Taking a stroll down memory lane can often lead a person into the nooks and crannies of their most favourite places. For me, that journey back in time is graced with the pleasure of settling down into an old, cozy wing chair nestled into the farthest corner of my family room. I am transported back over a decade to a much younger, (and thinner, I might add) me. No longer is my hair speckled with gray; nor does my face harbour any wrinkles. I am a young mom. The old chair is an oasis, a resting place from the unending activity of raising five small children close in age. It is a place where that which is simple delights the soul. To slowly sip a cup of coffee in the early morning light, to read a treasured portion of Scripture, as if seeing it for the first time or to daydream of exotic places yet unseen are the gifts the chair offers me.

The most prized moments come, however, when one of my little ones sneaks downstairs to crawl onto my lap just to be alone with me as the sun rises. In my usual custom, I wrap them up under my housecoat, cocooning them in my love. There they lie, relishing the warmth of my arms around them, sometimes drifting back to sleep to the rhythm of my heartbeat. Such precious remembrances are those cuddling times shared between mother and child, where hugs and kisses flow. Pure bliss!

At eveningtide, that priceless, old chair would once again be my refuge after the whirlwind of another day. Tucked away in my corner, I would sit longing to talk to God, yet far too weary to formulate the words I knew He was longing to hear. It was at this point, when the house echoed of quietude, my babies fast asleep, that God would visit me right there in my chair. Only now, it was I who would climb upon His lap where He would tenderly enfold me in His robes of righteousness, drawing me close to Himself. Often, feeling the need, I would make another deliberate attempt to articulate something, anything in the form of prayer. Then I would hear God’s gentle “Shhh.” Closing my eyes, I knew no words were necessary, only His embrace. The sweet hush of God! In this intimate bond, I knew I was His child. Once more, the old chair offered to me its simplistic joy. I loved God and He loved me.

The following poem was penned many years ago to capture the essence of these precious moments. As you might have guessed, it was written in the blessed solitude of my favourite
chair.

Sweet Hush of God

In the stillness
Where I find You
There I know You
And I love You;
In the stillness
Of Your presence
Where I find
My hiding place.

Sweet hush of God,
Sweet hush of God,
Breathe on me now
Sweet hush of God.

In the stillness
I will listen
To Your heartbeat
I surrender.
In the stillness
I will trust You
As You enfold me
In Your love.

ALL Means ALL

Amy Carmichael in her excellent devotional book Edges of His Ways writes today about a sermon she heard the beloved Andrew Bonar (pictured) preach. Bonar was on in years and his voice was weak. He was challening his audience from Paul's 2nd letter to the Corinthian church. Carmichael was seated near the back of the auditorium in Scotland and couldn't make out most of what Bonar was saying. He put every bit of strength he could muster into the 8th verse of 2 Corinthians chapter 9. The words "all" and "always" rang out loud and clear.

"God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work." - 2 Corinthians 9:8 (KJV)

Amy Carmichael goes on to say that this message helped her time and time again over the years she spent in India. She says she has forgotten thousands of great sermons but not that one.

She closes her devotional thought for today by writing, "All means all, not some, always means always, not sometimes. Lord, today, help us to live upon this 'all'."

And...I close this post by adding a hearty AMEN to what Amy has written. Two people who I'm anxious to meet in heaven are Amy Carmichael and Andrew Bonar.

WHAT A DAY THAT WILL BE!

Maid In Heaven

Dear friends, have you checked out the STRENGTH FOR THE JOURNEY link on this site? It's worth the visit. I hope you'll go back often and get strength for your journey through the inciteful thoughts of Joseph Stowell. In today's devotional he shares one of his favorite stories. I'm not going to go any further. Drop over for a visit. Be thrilled by this account of God's intervention! Enjoy!

To make it even easier, here's the link!

God's best to you today!

NOTE: If you are checking out the STRENGTH FOR THE JOURNEY site on any day but January 16th, 2007, go to the archives and enter the January 16th date. You'll be directed to this wonderful story.