Another Reason to Arise

Arise for our help, and redeem us
for thy mercies' sake.   
Psalm 44:26

Ever come to the end of your day and felt as if you'd been beaten to a pulp?  Feeling as if you were "still standing" or maybe not QUITE standing, but still determined to keep on fighting?   The determination to keep on running the race, even though so many obstacles have been thrown into your path, justifies the bruises and scrapes you've received.  You realize "from whence this is coming"---the enemy is trying to thwart God's plan.   Or...could there be another reason?  Could it be a test straight from the Lord, to check our determination?  Sometimes I'm not even sure, but it is helpful to remember that no matter what, the Lord does have to approve all things before they come into our lives.  So that means He is totally aware of what's going on!   Knowing this gives us hope!  He's watching...and thankfully He's in control too.

Earlier I had written about letting the Son rise in our lives before we speak to others about Him.  Here, in Psalm 44:26, we find a cry for Him to "arise for our help..."   Oh!  Another reason for Him to Arise!  Not only to shine forth His beauty and grace to others through us, but also ARISE for our help! 

Sometimes we encounter storm clouds....testing and trials roll in, and suddenly the Light of Jesus in our hearts is obscured.  If we're not totally prepared and fully "suited up" in the Armor of the Lord, we can be caught off guard by these sudden storms, and His Light is quickly obscured. . . Never fear!  There is hope! 

 
Of course we desire to let the Son shine in us so that others may see Him, but we also want Him to arise and redeem us in the event we find ourselves taken "aback" by the sudden onset of a "major storm."    Maybe a discussion ended up a little bit "too heated," or you're suddenly standing on a pile of rubble where your home once stood.  These types of situations can certainly obscure His light.  Thank God He understands we have this Treasure of Salvation in an earthen (leaky) vessel!  
 

Oh to have the refreshing waters pour down on us like rain, and restore our souls!    Dear Father, we so desire for Your Son to truly shine through our lives.  But how quickly we can find ourselves in the midst of sudden storms, being beaten down by hail, tossed around by gail-force winds, drenched by downpours of tears!  These situations can obscure the Son from within us!   We pray for You to ARISE for our help this very evening, and redeem us for THY mercies' sake!   You ARE mercy, Father.  Therefore we are surrounded by Your mercy!  This is plenty of reason for You to Arise and Redeem us.   Thank You for understanding..and how do we know this?  Because as the Creator of all sunrises, You sometimes bring clouds into the scene in order to reveal breathtaking colors at the dawning of the day!   Please use these clouds that once seemed to obscure Your light to ENHANCE the Son-Shine in our hearts!  Take OUR breath away as we see Your Son rise again tomorrow!   And by the way, as You take our breath away, breathe NEW life into us, by the Power of Your Sweet Holy Spirit!  In Jesus' Name I pray, Amen.

"No Good"

With the Super Bowl being just a week ago, and a son who finished playing his first season of football, it comes as no suprise to me that terms like "Touchdown," "Fourth and Ten," and "No Good!" are still fresh in my mind.  But what in the world do these terms have to do with being a Christian? 

Of course, we all know we're running a race....Hebrews 12:1 reminds us of that---Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.   The object of football is to make as many touchdowns as your team can...Get the most points on the scoreboard.  Play to WIN, not just FINISH.  Everyone finishes...but only one team WINS.