THE GLORY OF GOD

"There is nothing -- No circumstance, No trouble, No testing that can ever touch me until, first of all, it has gone past God and past Christ. Right through to me if it has come that far. It has come with great purpose, which I may not understand at the moment - but as I refuse to panic, as I lift my eyes up to Him and accept it as come from His throne for some great blessing of purpose of blessing to my heart. No sorrow will disturb me, no trial will ever disarm me, no circumstance will cause me to fret, for I shall rest in the Joy of what my Lord is - that is the rest of Victory." Unknown -

I Cor 15:57 But thanks [be] to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

How many springs of joy to the saints, and of thanksgiving to God, are opened by the death and resurrection, the sufferings and conquests of the Redeemer! When I think of the many folks that have been persecuted, I think how they look at their suffering and give God the Glory, in most every circumstance...they give God the Glory. . I fail horribly at times. I sometimes go through a trial and question God, why me Lord when I should be saying, for what purpose do you have me here for? What can I do that will Glorify you, my Lord. What can I do, so folks see you glorified through my reaction. There is absolutely no room whatsoever for fear or anxiety in the life of a believer…It's sin...period.
BUT We as believers still live in the flesh, we still struggle in every day things. God wants us to trust Him in all things and as we grow in the Lord we do just that. God never says we will not suffer, but He sure does promise that He will walk through the suffering with us, we are never alone and as we deal with suffering he will give us the grace to sustain us. The Bible says "Psalm 23: I will walk through the valley of the shadow of death" and Isaiah he tells us "I will pass with you through the high waters and will walk with you through the fires"
Our God is sovereign, there are no accidents that happen in our lives, He knows all, planned all and is the mighty hand that allows suffering to happen...for His purpose and we know it is GOOD.

So next time a trial comes into your life, remember God put it there for a reason and it will glorify Him in the end, if you except it and trust Him.

Psalms 23 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. 5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:

" Andrew Murray quoted "In times of trouble say,
First: He brought me here ; it is by His will I am in this strait place: In that I will rest.
Next: He will keep me here in His love, and give me grace in this trial to behave as His child.
Then: He will make the trial a blessing, teaching me the lessons He intends me to learn, and working in me the grace He means to bestow.
Last: In His good time He can bring me out again - how and when He knows.
Say: I am here
(1) by God's appointment
(2) in His keeping
(3) under His training
(4) for His time.

Cristina

THERE IS A NEED...and it's for you!

I want to share a post from a dear sister in Christ who is a voice for the Martyrs. Her concern and love is found here http://www.luvvom.blogspot.com/
and her other blog is found here http://sarahsjournal-luvvom.blogspot.com/

I encourage you to read this and to really think about about joining others by writing to our brothers and sister that are putting thier lives on the line for our Savior Jesus Christ. Here is Sarah's post......

I don't normally write about the persecuted on this blog. I have a blog designated especially for them. But I just received some disappointing news today from my sister and so I thought I would talk about these two subjects.

My sister lives in Canada and was going to come to visit us in a few days and spend nine days with us. Last night someone stole her passport which makes it impossible for her to come...unless they find the person who stole it and he confesses. I'm not going to hold my breath on this one! I miss her so much and feel very lonely right now. I really, really want her to come down, but "if wishes were horses all beggars would ride".

I began to think about how sad and lonely it made me to know she was going to come and visit and then just like that she isn't. Then I began to think about our brothers and sisters who are in prison for the faith that is within them. Besides all the hardships they endure, many times they are denied visitors who would not only meet their physical needs but would also give them a ray of sunshine and something to which they could look forward. I'm not even beginning to know their sufferings. I don't even know if they get lonely, because I don't know their level of spiritual maturity. But they're human, right? God made humans to have relationships. So everyone needs someone in their lives to encourage them and comfort them. To cry with them and laugh with them. They too need human contact in some form. I can't visit them or call them, but I can write to them. I can't even imagine how wonderful the letters are that they receive from different people! Perhaps every day they look forward to getting a letter from us. Every day they wait for the prison guard to throw that white envelope at them. The joy that springs up in their hearts that there are people outside those prison walls thinking of them, praying for them, and loving them! Not only that...these letters contain precious verses from the Bible!

I know that God sustains our brothers and sisters in prison, but what a bright moment (brighter than we could even know!) we could make in their lives. It means so much. If you have ever felt isolated, then you can know in a small way how our persecuted brothers and sisters feel. Do something for them. Go to the link I provided to my other blog and write to them. Once you've clicked onto a link I have provided at my other site (which you can find under the heading of "Love Letters To The Saints"), it will take you to Voice of the Martyrs and you can write to many different people.

MOTHERS

(Exo 20:12 NRSV) Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.
(Prov 23:22 NRSV) Listen to your father who begot you, and do not despise your mother when she is old.
(Prov 20:20 NRSV) If you curse father or mother, your lamp will go out in utter darkness.
(1 Tim 5:4 NASB) But if any widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to practice piety in regard to their own family, and to make some return to their parents; for this is acceptable in the sight of God.
(Mat 12:48-50 NRSV) But to the one who had told him this, Jesus replied, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?" 49 And pointing to his disciples, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother."


Home is the true wife's kingdom.

Very largely does the wife hold in her
hands, as a sacred trust, the happiness
and the highest good of the hearts that
nestle there. In the last analysis, home
happiness depends on the wife.

Her spirit gives the home its atmosphere.

Her hands fashion its beauty.

Her heart makes its love.

And the end is so worthy, so noble, so divine,
that no woman who has been called to be a wife,
and has listened to the call, should consider any
price too great to pay, to be . . .
the light,
the joy,
the blessing,
the inspiration,
of a home.

The woman who makes a sweet, beautiful home,
filling it with love and prayer and purity, is doing
something better than anything else her hands
could find to do beneath the skies.

A true mother is one of the holiest secrets of
home happiness. God sends many beautiful things
to this world, many noble gifts; but no blessing is
richer than that which He bestows in a mother who
has learned love's lessons well, and has realized
something of the meaning of her sacred calling.