To Dig or Not to Dig~A Question of Faith.

“And he said, Thus says the Lord, Make this valley full of ditches. For thus says the Lord, You shall not see wind, neither shall you see rain yet that valley shall be filled with water, that you may drink, both you, and your cattle, and your beasts. And this is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord: He will deliver the Moabites also into your hand.” 

2 Kings 3:16-18 (KJV)

One of my favorite "old" devotionals is Charles H. Spurgeon's "Faith's Checkbook."  Today's particular devotion has been a favorite of mine, since 2001.  Bryan was out of work from a ruptured disc, and awaiting back surgery.  We had two "itty bitty" children, ages "nearly 3 and almost 1"---and no money...no paycheck coming in..whatsoever!   Our youngest needed baby formula, and we didn't even have enough money to buy a container of formula.  After reading the above-mentioned verses in the devotional, we prayed and "dug the trenches," having faith that God would fill them, somehow..  Next day arrived, and nothing out of the ordinary happened, and I remember as the sun was setting, with no "sign of water" in the "trenches," just wondering, but still trusting.   The phone rang, and it was Bryan's dispatcher, who has since passed away.  He called and asked if he could stop by.  He came by and said, "You know, I thought that maybe you might like to get out of the house sometime and go to Wal-Mart." (He had given us several boxes of groceries a few weeks before.)   He continued, "I got to thinking that maybe I've not brought something that you need, and it would do you some good to just get out of the house a while."   He handed us a gift card to Wal-Mart.   Bryan and I both began to cry.  We shared with him how we needed baby formula, and had prayed just the day before for the Lord to provide somehow.  Bryan's dispatcher was unsaved at the time, but he was a tool in God's hands to provide for us. . . and we were able to share this with Bryan's boss, and later led him to the Lord before he passed away in 2006.

Anyway, ever since then, I can look back, and remember how God brought us through, when we literally had NOTHING, except of course, TWO little children who looked to us for their daily needs.  I've often considered the verses in Deut. as God's promise for meeting our PHYSICAL, MATERIAL needs. All we have to do is "dig the trenches,"  trust Him---and prepare for Him to unload His provision for our daily needs.  

"Give us this day our DAILY bread."

However, this week, even though economy has pinched our wallets, pockets, and everything, AGAIN, and the pressure of the "upcoming holidays" and "birthdays" loom in the not-so-distant future, the Lord opened my eyes to something else:  

Have you ever felt you were in a wilderness?  A "dry spot"---maybe even a place of non-blessing? ?  Perhaps you'd wandered off into a "wilderness" away from fellowship with the Lord?   Trials brought you in to the valley of discouragement, and you'd run dry??   Take heart!!   In verses 7 and 8, King Joram asked Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, to go with him to fight Moab.  When Jehoshaphat agreed, King Joram asked, "Which way shall we go up?" and the reply was:  "The way through the wilderness of Edom." 



I don't see how ANY OF THIS can be a "Means" for a blessing  ?? 



Does your wilderness seem to be a way "UP" ? ? ?  Probably not!    They were going UP to fight a battle.   Our tests and trials are a BATTLE, but they WILL take us UP~~to the One Who can FIGHT and WIN our battles for us.  

We've been TOLD to DIG trenches...and SEE that HE will provide WATER.  This is not only for our physical needs, but our SPIRITUAL~~We NEED to be FILLED with the Living Water, the Power of the HOLY SPIRIT, in order to WIN ANY BATTLE, or do ANYTHING for the Lord!  We must be completely EMPTIED of ourselves in order to PREPARE for the FILLING of the Holy Spirit, THE Living Water.   They did dig the trenches~~but before that, they had to BE THIRSTY?  ARE YOU?  If so....Have YOU dug the "trenches?"  Are you PREPARING for a BLESSING from above??  We tend to wait for Him to bless us, and think that "Once we see the blessed Rain begin to fall~~THAT's when we'll prepare to receive the blessing."  NOT SO with FAITH!!  You and I must dig, prepare, and then BELIEVE He will bless.  . . Even in the dry wilderness~~The "Land of NO HOPE."   (See, He's not telling us to get out the shovels in order to bury us!)  There IS hope!!!   ;o)

Are we ready for a blessing from ABOVE??

The key is what do we do each morning?   Verse 20 says "...in the morning, when the meat offering was offered, that, behold, there came water by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water."   How can WE offer a meat offering to the Lord each morning, when HE HIMSELF has already become our Lamb?  We can take THIS very wilderness~ the discouraging, overwhelming trials (even our desire to be filled by His Holy Spirit), and offer them to Our Heavenly Father as a our meat offering!  That's when our trials, coupled with our humble spirits, offered up to Him as worship, becomes a sweet smelling savor to our Father.  As Spurgeon says, this is "Our Duty!"   The Divine Omnipotence has allowed this for our good, and now we can become a reflection of HIM by doing Our Duty: availing ourselves to HIS power! 



Are we a reflection of HIS power? 
Being STILL and being FILLED
by His power is the way to reflect HIM!



Are we willing to dig trenches?   What happens when I get squeezed into the midst of Divine Grace??  You see it don't you?  The word D.I.G.   Hmmm....Think I better go find me a shovel!   :)  The faith to dig is given to us by Divine Grace.  So let's get in the middle of it....and start digging!  Trust HIM for not only our daily material needs, but most of all for our SPIRITUAL need---to be emptied of ourselves and FILLED by His Living Water!! The Holy Spirit!  Moving water has POWER...has ENERGY!    Make no mistake, when the Holy Spirit moves, there is POWER....DIVINE Energy!   



OK...since He does say all we need is "Faith, the size
of a mustard seed,"  I'll accept it if you choose this size. 

So...

I'm ready to start diggin'...

how 'bout you? 

What size shovel are YOU going to grab?  



But for me, I think I'll grab one of these:



Now, LET'S Start DIGGIN'!!!    :)



Dear Father, Thank You for revealing even DEEPER truths from the very same passage I've read every November 4th for years in my devotional today.  It's so easy, Father, to get BURIED by the troubles in life~be it financial, marital, emotional, physical---just to name a few!  But Father, You don't want us to be BURIED, but to be DIGGING~~Preparing the dry, dusty wilderness to be WATERED!  You can bring forth much fruit from even the driest of lands, Father.  Here we are, a thirsty people. . .but we come, shovels in hand, to start digging the ditches.  We trust FULLY that You can and WILL fill these empty, dried up trenches with everything we need to be a blessing to others, bearing fruit, MUCH fruit, for Your glory.  And You'll do it by using no "ordinary means" too!!

In Jesus' Name, Amen.

I encourage you to click on Faith's Checkbook and read the devotion by Charles H. Spurgeon.  I'm sure it will be a blessing to your heart!  November 4th's is the one I'm referring to.  :)

The Divine Stabilizer

And He arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 

Mark 4:39

Saturday night, when everyone else in the Yates' household was sound asleep, I was awake...Talking to the Lord.  Having an honest conversation.  Realizing the importance of going to our Heavenly Father through our Advocate or Representative, Jesus Christ, I pretty much "stated the facts of this case" I find myself grappling.   "Dear Jesus, here are the facts, as plainly as I can state them..." 

Have you ever felt like "Maybe if He'd just calm the stormy seas, His reflection in my life could be seen more clearly?"    I have!  In fact, remembering how He rebuked the wind and calmed the sea, I begged for Him to "do it again, Lord....for Your image to be clearly seen in my life...for Your glory."

Oh....how quickly I received a response to my "9-1-1 call to heaven!"  The very next morning, in my devotional, "Unto the Hills," by Billy Graham, he spoke of a ship's stabilizer, a gyroscope.  That is a device that is used for measuring or maintaining orientation.  Now I will not even attempt to explain the mechanics behind this instrument.  Basically, it remains stable no matter what direction force (or motion) is coming from.  The key is.....STABILITY.  Keeping the ship stable, even if the vessel is being tossed about violently. 

For Christians, our stabilizer is the Holy Spirit.  He enables us to keep going in the right direction, no matter the amount of force "our vessels" are experiencing.  So here I was "suggesting" that the Lord just speak PEACE to these storms, "calm the storms, so that Your image can be reflected even clearer," and He quickly responds, "Dearest, I've equipped you with a Divine Stabilizer....You empty your vessel of your fleshly nature, and allow My Holy Spirit to fill you up from 'bow to stern,' and you shall remain stable from the inside-out, able to reflect My image, even ON stormy seas."

So...maybe He will speak Peace and a great calm will come to the raging seas of life.  Maybe not.  Either way, God expects us to reflect the image of His Son by allowing the "Eternal Son" to rise in our hearts.  No matter what, He's there in the midst of us, able to speak peace, or to bring (and KEEP) peace from within the very depths of our hearts. 

Dear Jesus, we humbly and readily admit that You ARE the Master of the wind, the Creator of the universe, and You will do what is best in order to bring us closer to You.  You reflect the Heavenly Father to us, and You then enable us to reflect Your image right back to Him, so others will see and be drawn to YOU.  Have Your way within our hearts, no matter the stormy seas that may be raging around us.  In Jesus' Name, Amen.

A big thank you to Michel Mayerle for granting permission

to use his beautiful picture of the sunrise!

http://michelmayerle.blogspot.com/

(To find more detailed info about the gyroscope, click here.)

The Empty Well

"Sir, Thou hast nothing to draw with."  John 4:11

It's Monday.   Need I say more?   *sigh* 

"Okay, here we go, Lord...just You and me...or is that You and I?"  Too tired to check out the proper grammar.   Anyway, here we go...I can't face this day..nor can I do anything productive without YOUR help.   Thank You for showing me something last night...the something about the woman at the well.   You asked her for something to drink...knowing she had absolutely NOTHING to offer You...nothing.   But You asked her in order to make a point. . .to show her a need...a very important need..her need for YOU. . You offered her Living Water.   She replied, "But Sir, Thou has nothing to draw with, and this well is D E E P."    Whew!  That reminds me of ME today.   You have asked me for something today, Lord.   You have given me a set of duties to accomplish, for Your glory.  But I reply, 'Sir, You have nothing to draw  with....and this well is too deep! It's impossible!'

Just Look at My Hands

Who his own
self bare our
 sins in his own body on the tree,

that we, being
dead to sins,
should live unto
righteousness:

by whose stripes
ye were healed.

I Peter 2:24

Well, as I sit here waiting for yet another load of clothes to wash, I am extremely thankful for the fact that our washer/pipe problem has been fixed!  Yee-HAW!  (can you believe I'm actually EXCITED to be able to do laundry again?  Me neither!  But, as they say, "this (happy-to-do-laundry-feeling) TOO shall pass!")  LOL

If you haven't read yesterday's blog, you may want to read it, or at least the "Breaking News" Part at the very end.  Today's blog picks up from that.  

What do you think when you read the part that said:  Local 'Plumber and Son, Co.' left with a final statement: "It's just a shock that anything could GO DOWN!"  Son added, "Yeah, when my dad said it was clogged with junk, he was NOT KIDDING! Just look at my hands!"   As soon as I read that the Holy Spirit opened my eyes!   "LOOK, Tammi!~~~'the SON added.....'LOOK AT MY HANDS!'  Did you catch that?"   I thought of Jesus, God's only uniquely born Son.    I could imagine, our clogged main pipeline as a spiritual lesson.