Albany got hit hard last week with ICE. The city looked like someone took a hose and watered down neighborhoods, tree’s, power lines, cars, etc and then everything instantly froze.

I awoke to an ice covered car and driveway. As I drove into work I noticed many tree’s down and branches everywhere…once I got to work, I overheard people saying that they lost power. I was blessed to have had my power stay on.

Later on, as I drove to my aunts house, I was amazed at what I saw in her neighborhood. HUGE trees were down…totally uprooted and on their sides. I am talking HUGE, old trees. FROM ICE????

I was shocked.

It baffled me that such big trees could be destroyed, not by wind or lightening, not even by something as powerful as a natural disaster (tornado, hurricane, etc), but by ICE..the same stuff that we can keep in our freezers. WOW..the revelation that God gave me was amazing…

Just like the ice that covered the tree’s and destroyed them…even though they were rooted in the ground and strong…standing tall just moments beforehand… is like the ice that can so quickly be around our hearts. Walls of ice that can come from anger, resentment, bitterness, jealousy, rejection, etc.

How many of you know that these walls of ice…can easily tear us down too? Even though we may be “big strong tree’s”, having been rooted in Christ for years…doesn’t mean that offenses don’t come or that people don’t build walls, even unknowingly sometimes.

I believe God was telling me to be careful of not having a cold heart towards him. The business of the holiday season, along with other things, has really gotten the best of me lately..and I had to repent to God for not allowing him to hold me, like he wants to. I’ve been running so much…not intentionally…well, sometimes…but just because let’s face it, sometimes it is easier to run than to deal with the problems. In reality though, this time around, I have honestly just been BUSY. I am not running from anything right now…I just haven’t taken a time out…and it has been playing a toll on my Faith.

God doesn’t want us running rampant. He says, “Be STILL and know that I am God.”

A cold heart can stem from many different things, but ultimately it is our own fault for letting it grow cold in the first place.

The bible says, “draw near to me and I will draw near to you.” We need to step out in Faith…embrace our lover, as we feel him embrace us. Jesus wants to melt that ice away today…let him be the SON that melts your cares away.

Jesus is the Reason for the Season

"Silent night...holy night...all is calm, all is bright..."


In the song "Silent night", it speaks of Jesus as being "tender and mild". Yes, amen..he is tender and loving and mild and gentle..and all that sweet stuff...but he is ALSO POWERFUL!


In this blog, I want to speak of the resurrected Christ.


I love the song by Misty Edwards that says, "He's not a baby in the manger anymore, he's not a broken man on the cross, he didn't stay in the grave and he's not staying in heaven forever!"
If this song doesn't speak of the Jesus that lives in you and me, I don't know what does.


I was contemplating on what I would write in this blog lately and I went to a women's breakfast at a friends church this weekend and found that the Pastor was speaking on this very thing. About how Jesus is not in the manger anymore! Yes, we can imagine him in the manger and Praise God how he sent Jesus to us that wonderful morning, but we need to visualize him where he is now in order to live the life that he created for us!


Today....the manger is empty, the cross is empty and so is the tomb where he was laid. WHY? Because we serve an awesome God...not a broken, weak one...but a POWERFUL one. One that sits at the right hand of God and is seated in high places...one that is able to come to our rescue and fight on our behalf...one that would never leave us or forsake us. GLORY TO GOD!!


So this Christmas season, picture baby Jesus in the manger...the bright star...the stinky manger in which he humbly was born....even picture Jesus on the cross...as he took on YOUR sins...as he bled and shed his innocent blood for you to be made whole and cleansed...healed..
But remember that he is no longer in those places...he is HIGH and lifted up!! He is with you at all times...he is glorified...he is resurrected.


Jesus is the reason for the season....and also the reason that you live.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Transparency

Last week I rearranged my bedroom.


I have two windows in my room, side by side, that were covered up by my dresser and other things lately. Well, when I changed my room around, I noticed how nice the view is out of the windows. It was like a new perspective.


I looked out the window this morning and realized that I can see through the small patch of woods that is right outside.. to the road that is on the other side. It is easy to see in the winter, because the leaves are off of the trees. The patch of woods has become transparent. As much as I love the leaves and the Summer, I really enjoy being able to see the road through the trees. Nothing is hidden.


This led me to write this blog. As I was gazing out the windows today, God brought to remembrance how the fig leaves hid Adam and Eve's sin. Hiding is easy to do...or so I have thought. It is easy to hide in a big group...put on a smile and no one knows you are hurting. It is so easy to hide in a busy church...dig into ministry and no one knows what you are dealing with.
But hide from God?? I don't think so. God knows our hearts and thoughts better than we know ourselves. We can try...sure...but who are we really hiding from? God or ourselves?


When God was "looking" for Adam and Eve, he called out, "Adam, where are you?" Do you REALLY think God didn't know where Adam was?? I heard it preached once that God knows exactly where you are. He knew exactly where Adam was. He knows what we are going through. He just wants to see if you know where you are. In sin? In hiding?


Be transparent with everyone. It is OK to cry...it is ok to admit your mistakes to others. No one is perfect. No one should condemn anyone...we have an enemy that does a good enough job at that alone.
God Almighty wants us to come to him in pure honesty. The word says to confess your sins one to another (James 5:16). Be honest...have accountability.

As in the days of Noah

As in the days of Noah…

While watching a Women of Faith DVD the other night, I was blown away by one of the messages. It was about having Faith, even when others might ridicule you or laugh at what you are believing in.

It was powerful. Allow me to shed some light onto this.

In the days of Noah, BEFORE he built the ark, it never rained. Instead, there was a midst on the Earth that came up from the ground and it watered things that way. Let me repeat myself…it never rained.

Wow. So here is this guy…Noah…building this gigantic ship (ark) out of wood…the thing was HUGE. People would pass by Noah and tease him…mock him… “Did God REALLY tell you to build that thing? You’re CRAZY!!” They most likely said.

Think about it…it never rained and here is Noah, working very hard to build something that you would think would be a waste of his time….

But it wasn’t…it actually saved his and his family’s life, not to mention the beasts of the field, etc.

The part of the message that REALLY struck me was that the woman said, we all think that Noah heard from God, built the ark in like two weeks and voila…the animals and his family were safe when the rain started coming. NOPE.

Noah actually built the ark over a course of 100 years or so…imagine that? Of course people lived a lot longer in those days…but could you imagine 100 years going by…that’s more than our lifetime!!

What great Faith Noah had to continue on with something that God called him to, even though he didn’t see the outcome for a very, very long time.

This really ministered to me, because how often do we as Christians say, “God told me this…” and people shrug it off or make comments behind our backs. How often do we become “nay sayers” and discourage someone in something because our OWN faith is so small? Or what about when we THINK we heard from God but have yet to see the fruition of the vision come to pass?

Just because we don’t see things happening over night does NOT mean that God didn’t say…or that he isn’t working on your behalf in that area.

For me to even be writing this blog is totally God, because I have had my Faith tested so much this past month. But God is still on the throne and reigning over me…praise him!

I encourage you today…do not give up. Don’t lose hope for that dream or vision that God has placed in your heart. I always think that if it bears GOOD fruit, it is from God. Let him minister to you today…

Also, the bible says that “as in the days of Noah, so shall the coming of the son of man be.” Non believers won’t expect Jesus to come back, especially HOW he is going to. But Children of God, I tell you today that we need to rise up and stand firm in our Faith. Put on the full armor of God.

When the rain started coming, it was too late for the people in Noah’s time. Don’t let the rain start falling on you as you are unprepared for what God is doing in your life. Have Faith and look up…be encouraged. Be strengthened. The King of Kings himself is coming back on your behalf. Hallelujah!

The Healing Power of Joy

This was in my devotional, "Come Away My Beloved."


"You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy." John 16:20


Say not within yourself, "Where is God?" for I am within you, yes , even in your heart, and my hand is upon you. You have looked in vain for me because you have sought to see me in circumstances and in people and have said, "I cannot find him."


Oh my child, look to me directly, and rest your heart in me. Do so with as little distraction as would be easy to do if you were the only human being in the world and therefore would have no one else with whom to converse.


Praise me. This I ask of you in times when it seems indescribably difficult to do so. I ask it of you in love that is stern at this point because I know unequivocally that praise is your only hope for survival.


Distress of soul and grief of heart can only bring on destruction of body. Joy alone is a healer, and you can have it in the darkest hour if you will force your soul to rise to me in worship and adoration. I have not failed you and you have not failed me. It is only that you have failed yourself- or the disappointment has come on the human plane, not on the divine. Why should you allow any human experience to alter or affect your divine relationship with the Father?


Bring me your sorrow, and watch for the sunrise of the resurrection. Yes, truly there comes always a resurrection- a morning when hope is reborn and life finds new beginning. Wait for it as tulip bulbs anticipate the Spring. The rarest blooms are enhanced by the coldness of winter. The snow plays her part in producing Spring's pageant. But when the blossoms break through, we do not then turn back to thoughts of winter, but instead, we look ahead to the full joys of the coming Summer.


So you must also do. Your God is your maker. He is your defender. And he is mighty to save. Yes, he is not only mighty to save from sin, but he is mighty to save from despair, from sorrow, from disappointment, from regret, from remorse, from self-castigation, and from the hot, blinding tears of rebellion against fateful circumstances. He can save you from yourself, and he loves you when you find it hard to love yourself.


Let his peace flow in you like a river, carrying away all the poison of painful memories, and bringing to you a fresh, clear stream of pure life and restoring thoughts.


This is not the end. Press on. The goal line is out ahead, and you may yet be a winner in the race of life.

Not your ordinary Election...

I’ve started reading a book called, “Revelation Unveiled” which deciphers the end times in the bible. It is powerful..the first few pages had me in tears at just the holiness of God Almighty. It brings such reverence to your heart. Jesus Christ is returning and sooner than we all think. The bible says that we will not know when he is coming, but to be ready at all times. This isn’t to instill fear or make us worry, it is to prepare us for the return of our King…the KING OF KINGS, LORD OF LORDS! To be sanctified, holy and cleansed. To be purified. To be in the word and prayed up. To know the TRUTH and to be walking in LOVE for one another.

God has been speaking one word to me that I have been over looking until now. Elect. I read it all the time in the word of God and it is also in the book that I am reading. I was thinking to myself, “what does that really mean?” What does elect mean? It says that his elect will come from the four ends..north, south, east and west..

I looked up the word elect in an online dictionary before writing this. It means CHOSEN. God’s elect are his chosen ones that he calls for his purposes. The bible says MANY are called, but FEW are chosen. Few are elect.

I was thinking about our recent election that we had in the U.S this past month, and how important it is to make the right decision while electing someone. To even ponder that amazes me…how God can choose (elect) some of us. To elect someone is also to show trust in them. Think about when you are a captain of a team and you are choosing your players…you have trust and hope in them that they will do good and make you proud…right? It’s a lot like that with Papa (God). He chose you before the foundation of time. God stands outside of time…time is actually in his HANDS. Can you imagine? He loves us that much that he elected us to be on this Earth as his ambassadors. PRAISE GOD!

So if you know that you have been elected to represent the Faithful One, let his light shine through you for all the world to see. You have been chosen, predestined, hand picked and most importantly equipped to do his will. He would not have chosen you if he thought that you would take his election lightly.

GLORY!

Is the glass half full or half empty?

As I have been going through some different emotions lately, I have been left feeling empty...as much as I press into God and worship, etc...I have still felt alone, sad, upset, etc. These are normal emotions when going through the grieving process, however, I was recently told "Debbie, these are normal emotions...allow yourself to process it and grieve yes...BUT do not allow yourself to stay in that place."

Wow...How true? While pondering the words that my Assistant Pastor and some others spoke to me recently about my situations, I realized that I CANNOT and MUST NOT stay in this place. I am ready for what God has...I am ready for the higher plains...for the joy that is promised to come in the morning...for the Victory that was already given to me and for the ability to OVERCOME as I have been given the authority to by Jesus Christ.

This led me to the question...

Is the glass half full or half empty?

While pondering this...I was asking myself how I view the glass. How often I focus on the fact that it is half empty...that I am half empty...that I am constantly missing things..waiting, just waiting to be filled (like the glass.) Like a refill.

But... but what about the part that is half full? What about appreciating and FOCUSING on the things that I have in life...on that portion of the glass that is full for once?

While having this revelation, I was very broken...but God was right there ministering, just as he always is.

Let this be our hearts cry...to focus on the glass being half full...on the anticipation to be filled, but on the acknowledgment of being half full.

Faithful Friend

This is a story that God put on my heart to write. I am sure you may have read something similar somewhere before. Be blessed.

Faithful Friend

Susie and Bob were closer than sister and brother. Every day, Susie would call Bob as soon as she woke up. Bob would answer immediately and they would talk for hours. They had a great relationship. Bob helped Susie out in many ways and even told her that she could always count on him to come through for her, even when situations seemed hopeless. There were many times that Susie called for Bob’s help and he was faithful with his word.

One day, Bob found out something about Susie that made him very sad. Susie had been dishonest with Bob and had been stealing money from others and also was doing things she should not have been doing. Susie lied to Bob. He tried approaching her about the situation and she hit him out of anger. She didn’t care what he said anymore and she even spit on him and hit him. Bob never gave up though, but eventually told her that she had her own choice and if that’s what she wanted then he couldn’t and wouldn’t stand in her way. He also still told her that he would be there to help her though if she called him. Bob was full of mercy. Susie didn’t care though. She had changed and was heading down the wrong path. She couldn’t sleep without hearing from Bob and also couldn’t eat much. She felt frustrated, lonely and like her life was spinning out of control.

It was a rainy, cold day and Bob had stopped over to see Susie and to help her out with something because she had called him out of desperation. She was very afraid. Someone had turned her in and the police were now looking for her. She had stolen more money and was caught on video tape. She cried to Bob for hours and Bob comforted her, although she had neglected him for months. Then there was a knock on the door. “Police, open up!” Susie cried. Bob held her and reassured her that everything would be ok again and to trust him.

The door swung open with a loud thud and Bob stood up with his hands raised in the air. “Take me instead”, he said. “No, sorry sir, but we are here for her.” They pointed at Susie who had no idea what Bob was trying to do. “If you take me instead, I will also stand in the gap for whatever crimes anyone committed that you are looking for. You can punish me to the full extent, just please, don’t touch her…I love her too much.” The police took Bob instead and he was tortured and murdered eventually. What the police didn’t know though was that Bob also took on their sins as well.

Jesus Christ did this over 2,000 years ago for you and the rest of mankind. He paid the price so that we never have to. He shed his innocent blood so that we could be free and live with him forever. He loves us that much. It should have been us on that cross, but he took our place.

“For God so loved the world that he sent his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

John 3:16-17

Presents Vs Presence

I was recently asked what I want for Christmas this year. Hmm...something I honestly haven't thought of...especially considering just spending ONE afternoon around the mall..with all the Christmas music already playing in the stores and the color red EVERYWHERE...
the already PACKED parking lots and stores...the singing/dancing Reindeer, Santa Claus's, Snowmen, ETC...was enough to remind me that someone is missing this year.....

Grandpa.

Sure, last year was technically the "first" Christmas without him, but it was only a month after he passed away...and all I was focused on was packing up the house and moving after New Years Day. My mind was very preoccupied and I also had a lot of support around that time. I didn't have much time to think that he wasn't there with us...I was still in shock to be honest.

But this year...the lights, the sounds, smells, etc...are all constant reminders that he is very missed. It is also my first year that I am not living in the house that I shared with him. The house that I woke up every Christmas morning in...the one where Darrell, Gramps, Cookie and I would open up our presents in and enjoy each other's company...and the years before that Grandma too. Last year I stayed with Aunt Kathy's family on Christmas Eve and spent Christmas day with them...what a blessing!!

If I could have ANY thing on Christmas, it would be to spend one more day with Gramps. Since I know that isn't possible....instead of asking for presents...material things...things that will fade in time...

I am instead just asking for God's PRESENCE...

Let us be reminded that as we enter into the Season of Giving...that it is the holy spirit that gives us what we need...it is our everlasting King and Almighty God that blesses us with his love...it is Jesus Christ that was born to die...for us.

Think about the baby that was born in the manger...the baby that would one day heal the sick, raise the dead, save the lost and eventually die for all of mankind. This Christmas, I ask you to sit with him...to take time out of your busy schedule and thank him for all that he has done for you. His presence is better than any presents I could think of.

JESUS IS THE REASON FOR THE SEASON~

New Keyboard!! : D

I bought an electronic keyboard yesterday!! Can't wait to learn how to play it now!! LOL...

Let it be used for your Glory, Lord!! Hallelujah~

The Answer

Praise God for answers...he is so faithful to deliver us out of trouble and is always with us in all circumstances.

We had Guest speaker, Wayne Anderson, at our church a few weeks ago and ever since his sermon, I have been meditating on one powerful line that he shared. "Sometimes we are afraid of the answers more than the problems."

During the service I remember I was a little antsy, just tired and distracted...but I tried to focus on what he was saying because I knew God was using him. He began speaking about these scriptures:

Matthew 14

24But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.

25And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.

26And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.

He went on to say something so profound...it spoke to me then and still is today.

The disciples were in a boat...the wind was fierce and strong...the waves were huge and wild...they were scared out of their mind (for lack of better words.) Wouldn't you be? Jesus was not with them at that moment, the verses beforehand say that he had gone to a mountain to pray alone. I can imagine the disciples crying in fear..."God help us!" "What do we do?" "We don't want to die." Their faith had been so diminished by their "circumstance" that they probably felt very helpless and possibly hopeless. I imagine they prayed..hard for an ANSWER.

All of a sudden, Jesus appears...walking on water!! Read verse 26 above again. They were troubled and cried out for fear because they thought Jesus was a ghost. Jesus told them to not be afraid and that it was him....

Wayne went on to say that how many times do we pray for an answer to something, yet when the answer comes we are more afraid of IT more than the circumstance...

Praying for a new job? The job of your dreams presents itself and boom...you are feeling inadequate, you are fearful that you are not the man or woman for the job...you are doubting yourself.

Praying for a new house? God blesses you with that house that you have had your eye on and all of a sudden you are fearful because you will have to work another job to afford it or there are leaks in the ceiling that you have to take care of before moving in, etc.

Praying for a spouse? God brings him/her into your life and you are now fearful of commitment, or not being all that he/she needs or wants. You are afraid of failure and aren't willing to step out in faith.

You get the idea. God is so good though and faithful to our every cry...our every problem. He himself is the answer to all that we need and want. We just need to TRUST HIM in all things. Great and small.

Called to Love

We are called to love. To love unconditionally for that matter. How can some people love if they don't first love themselves? Scripture says to "love your neighbor as yourself." If you don't even love yourself, let along LIKE yourself, then how can you possibly love someone else? We need to be transformed from the inside out. We need to be washed in the blood of Christ and our minds need to be renewed. The battle is always in the mind. I heard it once said that actions are always brought forth by thoughts. When reading the bible, our mind is transformed by the holy spirit. The words become life to us and we look at things differently. The more time we spend with God, the more we begin to love ourselves, because he FIRST loved us. God loves us unconditionally. It is by HIM and HIM alone that we are renewed and cleansed. It is by the blood that was shed from his son, Jesus, that died on Calvary and rose again, that we are FORGIVEN and offered hope and a future! We are set free and redeemed!! Nothing that we do can attain this great and wonderful salvation. No words, actions or thoughts can gain anything that the Lord has for us. It is written that "by Grace we have been saved." God offered us his grace when he sent Jesus to die for us. He was born to die. FOR YOU. When we offer our hearts to God in true devotion, that is when we are set free. It is by loving him that we can love others. We are made in his likeness, in his image…Hallelujah!! God has RISEN. He is alive and lives in us! God wants us to sit at his feet…to have sweet fellowship with him…to just BE, not always DO. He told me recently, "Debbie, before you can be a wife, before you can be a Pastor, before any of these things, you must first just be my daughter." We need to come into the realization that he is HOLY and loves us beyond our comprehension. We need to understand that his ways are higher than ours. His thoughts are not our thoughts. Ask him today to fill you with his love…to just soak you in his tender mercy…to speak to you so clearly and to cleanse you from all unrighteousness. He is faithful to do exceedingly and abundantly all that we can ask or imagine. Find it in your heart to love…first him, then yourself, and ultimately others. In doing this, you will flow in the plans that he has for you. The bible says that God is love. A recent preacher just preached a sermon last weekend that said "Satan cannot imitate love." That was powerful. When we love, we are representing God himself in our lives. God is love. Let us pray that we must decrease so that Christ can increase in us. Not 20% us and 80% God, but let him have ALL of you…100% Jesus Christ living and reigning in YOU. It's time my people, says the spirit of the Lord, to abandon all that you once knew as love. Redeem the time, for it is short. Let my words be your words and my actions be your actions. Follow me and I will make you a leader. Let my holy spirit have its way within you. Stop looking at the things around you. Come to me and repent, for the kingdom of heaven is surely at hand this day. Do not look to men but instead look to me…your loving Father. My mercy surely abounds and on judgment day, you will not be condemned. Sit with me, I desire to minister to you. Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks and so you too will speak with conviction when you spend the time with me. I love you my precious sons and daughters. Flow through me.

Thank you Jesus.

Apartment Hunting Testimony!

This was my testimony for my apartment...written back in July.

YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am SO grateful that God intervenes in my life. : ) He has ONCE AGAIN gone above and beyond and has met an urgent need of mine.

As most of you know, I have been apartment hunting and praying that God would provide something affordable and safe for my Dog and I to live. After a few weeks of really being tested…and ALMOST taking two apartments that I really wasn't too happy with (would have totally been settling)…God has provided the PERFECT place for me to live.

I gave this testimony in church last night, but isn't it awesome when we fully rely on God to provide and listen to his voice? He didn't ALLOW me to take the other two apartments and proved that by closing the doors QUICKLY. The first apt in Troy, I was trying to find the people to tell them that I would take it and I couldn't find them anywhere…don't you know the guy comes in like 10 min later and BEFORE I could say I'll take it, he said it was just rented out. WOW. What a blessing!! Sara and Adam came with me…thanks for your support and honest comments guys. : ) I should have listened, but thankfully God closed it anyways.

The next place I was about to take was in Albany by Lark Street and smelled like pot/cigarettes and had a possibility of having bugs. YUCK. I was willing to take it though cause it was so close to everything, figuring I could clean it up real good. Again- settling. Well God closed that door real quick too in different ways.

The gas is costing me an ARM and a LEG to go to Amsterdam, so God knew I needed something fast. I prayed while driving down Western Ave last week and said to God, "God, I really would love to live in this area…its clean, safe and SO close to work and 10 min from Church, family and friends…if its your will, I know you will provide something here."

Well I had NO CLUE that my friend Justin's place would soon be available to rent. (which is exactly in my price range, not to mention off of WESTERN AVE, next to Suny (work) and 10 min from Church!!!!...*clears throat* can we say WOW??!?)

I was told that if someone else didn't take the apt (the landlord had already asked another woman first), then it was mine if I wanted it!!!

I found out LAST NIGHT that the woman declined and it was offered to me and I accepted!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : )

I am SOOOOO happy! GOD, THANK YOU AGAIN and thank you for all of your prayers, my dear friends and family. I love you all.

Debbie

He Knocks

I have been re-reading alot of blogs that I wrote a few months ago and they have all been speaking to me so much today. I am posting them on here in hopes of encouraging someone in the word of the Lord. Be encouraged my friends! Love you~

God has been speaking to me about doors opening and closing. He had me read something the other day in Revelation…how John saw a door leading to the throne room and God said to come up into it. He opens doors, but WE need to walk into them.

The other night at home…I was half asleep and heard knocking from my pillow…REALLY loud…it woke me up all the way. It was like I had my head next to a door and someone was knocking. The scripture came to me the next day, "behold, I stand at the door and knock…if anyone hears let him let me in.." (paraphrased.) I told God that I allowed him in already…but have I let him into my deepest parts of my heart? WOW.

In Revelation, John writes that there was a door standing open in heaven and the voice of the Lord said for him to come up into it. How often do we see open doors before us, set by the Lord, and dont move or do anything about it!! God DOES open doors, but we need to WALK through them ourselves. It is our choice. He gives us choices!

Revelation 4

The Throne in Heaven

1After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this."

When I first heard the knocking (from my pillow) not from the other ear which was facing up (the one that was uncovered from my pillow)...I was a little scared, but again..I was half asleep so I just went back to sleep. I pondered this the next day, on my way into work. The scripture below came to mind:

Revelation 3:20

20Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.

He is always knocking. He doesnt give up on us...EVER. Can you hear him knocking and calling to you...saying "lover, wake up! Am I in your heart? Can you hear my voice? Will you let me go deeper?"

When I was looking up the scriptures for this, I came across this one also:

Song of Solomon 5:2

beloved

2 I slept but my heart was awake.
Listen! My lover is knocking:
"Open to me, my sister, my darling,
my dove, my flawless one.
My head is drenched with dew,
my hair with the dampness of the night."

WOW...is that totally God or what? Praise Jesus!
He is always asking us to come in...deeper...into our INNER courts. The bible says to draw close to God and he will draw close to us. Amen.

Detours

Wrote on 06/16/08


Detours are a pain the neck...all you want to do is get to your destination and 9 times out of 10 are in a rush. Detours add another 5, sometimes 20 minutes to your trip.

I was driving today on my lunch break and came across a detour. It was a relatively short one, but I somehow became annoyed. I took a deep breath and just as he always does when I am wondering why I am so upset about something so minscule...he gave me a revelation. Praise you God.

Sometimes there are things or places in our life that we want to be or to have...like NOW. "What do you mean WAIT?!?!?!" Why wait? And sometimes, just like detours, God has another way for us.

Just like Detours, God brings us a different way and many times it takes LONGER to get what we wanted. BUT how many of you know that God is a FAITHFUL, LOVING and PROTECTING God?

Who knows why the detours are there....sometimes road work is the cause...pot holes being fixed...bridges repaired, sidewalks being placed..etc...but other times it could be because of an accident, or maybe flooding on the roads or fire....sometimes it can be DANGEROUS....the road that we WANT to go on can be dangerous, but just like detours, our faithful Father protects us and leads us by the hand into the way everlasting.

God, I thank you for all of the times that you didnt give me what I wanted at the time...because you saw down "the road" and didnt like what you saw for me, had I continued on that path. Thank you for providing "detours" in my life and for eventually allowing me to see that the detour all along provided a safer alternative.

I praise you and I love you Father...amen.

Summer thoughts

This was a blog that I wrote in July of this past Summer. I can't believe how I felt while writing this because our God is SOO good and has delivered me from these feelings and has healed my heart since writing this. I am sharing because I feel like it may encourage someone today. God can do anything...with him all things are possible. At the time that I wrote this, I was feeling very low...very confused and hurt. He has really transformed me in the last 3 months. Hallelujah!

But remember, "without the rain and the pain there can be no growth."

Wow…this Summer has been going by so fast and through it all..so have my emotions. I am tired of moving. Since Grandpa died, 8 months ago, I have been on the go ever since. Between packing and unpacking THREE different apartments, moving not only my things, but also my heart..my dog…my life. Trying to be settled only to be uprooted again and again….not finding any peace or comfort in anything…

Don't get me wrong, I liked the places that I lived and believed I was there for a season..but it was hard. I had only moved once in my whole life and I just moved three times in less than a year. The post office got annoyed with me…changing my address yet again…trust me guys, I felt like saying, this isn't easy for me either!!!

I felt like I had JUST gotten comfortable and poof…I was up and running again. I was just picturing this…picture a dog roaming around the house…trying to find comfort…its hot, the dog's tired and just wants REST…he cant find any…but soon finds some kind of comfort in one spot…but then a bug comes and the dog has to get up and move again…roaming almost aimlessly around looking for another spot…

This is how I have felt the last 8 months…

I didn't grieve the loss of Grandpa right away, but instead found peace that he wasn't suffering anymore. I cried more before he died than I did after. It was grueling to watch someone you love so much go through all of that. I have to admit, I felt alone in the process, although I wasn't. I believe that God wanted me to spend those last precious moments with just Grandpa alone though. I remember visiting him in the hospital, especially one Friday night. I remember thinking, "I want to see him no matter what." I went and although he was in a lot of pain and not feeling well at all, I had one of the best times with him that I had had in a long time. It was just him and I…in a hospital room…the funny part is, he wanted to sit in the chair that I was in (cause his back hurt him) therefore I had to switch with him and sit on the bed! LOL. This is healing for me to talk about this….I really haven't reminisced about him and I am tired of burying the pain…in work…in friends…in my own hearts desires…in busying myself with church…etc. I am tired of packing up my own feelings, only to unpack them, then pack them up again…I am tired of moving. I am tired of moving my life…my emotions…I am tired of unpacking them and placing them on a shelf that no one can see…or even out in the open where they become stumbling blocks for others. I don't know what to do with these emotions. I cry, I get anxious, nervous, frustrated and confused. I haven't wanted to deal with them…or haven't before, but do now…so therefore I box them up again…only to keep doing the same pattern as I had been.

I need a way out. I need to vent…I need to cry…release the emotions and put away the boxes for good. I need to be settled. To be loved and cared for…I need to RECEIVE the love that others so graciously give to me. Including our Father. I need to stop focusing on the things of the past that I cannot change. I need to stop feeling like I am a burden to others and allow them to listen to me.

Wow…praise you Lord. Through it all, you have been a constant rock in my life. I am looking forward to the days ahead…to the break in the clouds in my life…I know that with you all things are possible and that you will never leave me…

First Love

I wrote this in early August of this year (2008). I had been going through a really hard time...just alot of rejection and confusion and deep sorrow that I had been suppressing for so long. I experienced a breakthrough a few weeks after I wrote this and was changed and brought to a new place in Christ, but it's always nice to look back on what we write and learn that even in the most difficult times, Jesus is still speaking to us and encouraging us to press in.

First Love

"I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love." Revelation 2:2-4

As the Lord has been bringing up past hurts and offenses that have been buried deep in my heart lately, I was reminded of the scripture above. As I read it again, I thought, "wow…imagine doing all of those things, only to have God say to you, I have this against you.." That's how much of a jealous God he is. And rightfully so. He pours out his love into us constantly…it is fathomless, uncontainable, unrelenting, etc. Why shouldn't we love HIM like he loves us? Why shouldn't we spend as much time with him as we can, he waits and longs for us…I'm preaching to myself here.

One of the deep hurts that God has been working on with me, is that of my first love. I am sure most people have dealt with the bitter sting of a first love. It hurts..there are no words for it. It cuts deeper than any knife and the wound can last forever. Honestly, the wound from my first "love" wasn't the worst one in my case…but the most recent. Since I am writing about the first love though, let me elaborate more on that.

I dated RJ for 3 years, when I was 17-20 yrs old. We had a pretty "solid" relationship and spent almost every waking hour together for those three years. We were best friends, not only lovers. Our families even knew each other over time and that made it all the more sweet….or bitter at the end.

RJ and I shared some intimate first times together (not sex) but other things. At the time, I thought I was going to marry him. I remember getting out of my classes (I was only in highschool) and thinking about what we would do as we hung out that evening. We ate at each other's houses, we talked on the phone all night, we played video games together, went out with our friends, went camping, played sports, etc. You name it, we did it, pretty much. I had NEVER before experienced these emotions that I had felt with him. I wanted to be with him forever. I loved him. I shared many of my most secret thoughts with him. Then one day, it all changed. I had found out that he was lying to me about some things..working late, smoking, hanging out with girls when he wasn't with me..etc. We grew apart over time and eventually I found out the last straw one night and broke up with him. I believe he had cheated on me, but I will never be certain.

I said all of this to say….that God is jealous of our time. He is jealous of what we set our affections on. Are our affections set on him? More so than anyone else? The bible says that before the foundations of the world were set it, Jesus loved us. Therefore, God is our first love. We are the APPLE of his EYE…one look from our eyes and heart and it makes his heart beat fast. He is our beloved and we are his.

Is Jesus looking at you through the lattice today? If so, let him inside your heart. He longs to go where no man has ever gone or will ever go again…he is your lover…he is your creator..he knows you like no man or woman ever will or could. He knit you together in your mother's womb and before you were born, he knew you. He chose you. Think about how a guy see's a girl that he likes…he approaches her and if the girl reciprocates than they start dating and he has actually chosen her. God is like this. He chooses us, before we choose him..therefore we are HIS.

Go back to the days where you and God would meet for hours….let him romance you…the holy spirit wants to caress you today…he wants you to set your face like flint on him and allow him to sweep you off your feet. He is our prince of peace…let him take you away to his Kingdom. I was watching Cinderella the other day and I fell in love all over again with just the romance of it all…the prince stopping at NOTHING to find her again. He lost her, but found her again and their romance was so fragrant and sweet. Allow Jesus to come find you today…wherever you are. Even if you are dressed in your soot and ashes again…hair a mess….he loves you…and always will.

Phil 4:5-7

My friend Angela wrote a blog this weekend and I was so touched by it that I have to share part of it in here. I only copied certain parts, but the message is loud and clear.

Philippians 4:5-7
5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

I realized my own anxiousness... I realized my own inability to put aside the desires of my heart in the pursuit of peace.. I've realized that my requests have gotten lost in confusion, and I have forgotten how to present those same requests to Him, trusting, and leaving... knowing that at that point.. His peace will guard my heart and mind.

I think it is so easy to present a request and then focus solely on that request. How often do we feel something so strongly in our heart.. have such a desire.. and present it to God yet still focus on the request.

Maybe you are being obedient with your tithe, and each time you place another $20 in the plate, you present your request.. focusing SOLELY on the request..

Maybe you have given away some of your favorite items, presenting your request for replacement... focusing SOLELY on the request...

Maybe you have had the desire to meet that "special someone" to come into your life and join together to start a family.... and when you present your request... you focus SOLELY on the request..

Whatever it may be for you personally, we are missing the second part of that verse.. when you present your requests to God, "...the peace of God which transcends all understanding....."

The Second Adam

The bible refers to the second Adam as Jesus Christ. Check out 1 Corinthians 15 for the scriptures pertaining this. I think it is so awesome...Christ overcame the fall of man by dying for our sins and being resurrected from the dead. He came so that we would have LIFE and have it more abundantly. Can someone get excited today!?

1 Cor 15:45 So it is written: "The first man Adam became a living being"^[e]; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. 46The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. 47The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. 48As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. 49And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we^[f] bear the likeness of the man from heaven.

50I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— 52in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. 54When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory."^[g]
55"Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?"^[h] 56The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

58Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

Dear God,

A song that I wrote 10/23/08

Verse 1

Dear God,

How can you love me for who I am when the world has rejected me?

How can you hold me in your arms when people just push me away?

God, how can you care about even my tiniest problems when the world is so big?

Dear God,

How can you think of me so much when my family hardly calls?

How can you know the pain I deal with when all I do is hide?

God, how do you know my hearts desires when I don’t tell a single soul?

Chorus:

But Somehow you do…somehow you know…somehow you feel the pain that I have,

Somehow you hold me and love me, no matter what I go through or do…

And God, I just want to say thank you…this letter is for you.

Verse 2

Dear God

How can you show love to someone who doesn’t feel they deserve it?

How is it that you have my very hairs numbered on my head, yet no one knows my name?

God, why would you want to protect me, when I just keep living in fear?

Dear God,

How is it you bring me such joy when I don’t even try to attain it?

How do you wait patiently for me even though I don’t always wait for you?

God, why would you die for me when I sometimes don’t even want to live?

Chorus

Bridge: (powerful and loud)

OH GOD…you are amazing, you are so awesome..

You love me so much…thank you my Lord…

You fill my cup, you are so worthy!

You are so worthy!

I don’t understand how you know me so well…

Chorus

Verse 3 (softly)

Dear God, I thank you for all of these things, teach me what your love means.

Love,

Me

Whatever You're Doing

I think we can all relate to this song somehow. I know for me, it was one of those songs that defined a season of my life and that season was most of this year. God revealed some deep things to me during some of the darkest times of my life over the last year and he gets all the Glory for getting me through it all. I could not have done it without him, and now that I look back, I see that he was indeed doing SOMETHING HEAVENLY. Praise you, Jesus! The song is called, "Whatever You're Doing" by Sanctus Real.

It's time for healing time to move on
It's time to fix what's been broken too long
Time make right what has been wrong
It's time to find my way to where I belong
There's a wave that's crashing over me
All I can do is surrender

[Chorus]
Whatever you're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos but somehow there's peace
It's hard to surrender to what I can't see
but I'm giving in to something heavenly

Time for a milestone
Time to begin again
Revaluate who I really am
Am I doing everything to follow your will
or just climbing aimlessly over these hills
So show me what it is you want from me
I give everything I surrender...
To...
[Chorus]
Time to face up
Clean this old house
Time to breathe in and let everything out
That I've wanted to say for so many years
Time to release all my held back tears

Whatever you're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos but I believe
You're up to something bigger than me
Larger than life something heavenly

Whatever you're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos but now I can see
This something bigger than me
Larger than life something heavenly
Something heavenly

It's time to face up
Clean this old house
Time breathe in and let everything out

1 Cor 13 kind of love

I Found this information on a website when I looked up sermons on love. I felt the tug on my heart to write about love and what it really means in God's eyes. Let us love like he loves. All of the below are words from a man who wrote this sermon...none of them are mine, although I strongly agree with what he has to say.

“If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding going or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. IF I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” 1 Cor 13

We can speak with the tongue of men and angels. We can have the gift of prophecy. We can fathom all kinds of mysteries. We can have faith that moves mountains. We can give all that we have to the poor and we can even give our lives in sacrifice and if we do not have love, it means nothing. So the first thing we learn about love is that it is essential. It's not an option for a successful life. When it comes to relationships, anything minus love equals nothing. Zero. Love is essential.

I think about a time that I was helping a person who was disabled and in a wheelchair, and I helped this person get up and down stairs and curbs and things like that, and when it was all over the person didn't thank me and it bothered me. I started to get angry inside. Here I was being Johnny Do-Gooder and they don't even thank me and I found out later that this person doesn't thank anyone for help because he feels like most of the barriers that are in his way as a disabled person are because society has not accommodated their needs. So he never says thank you as a issue of principle. Now whether that's loving or not, I am not going to worry about. What I am worried about is my response, because I got angry. We always have this sort of mixed experience even when we are doing something good and something bad is right there. Love is not easily angered. It always protects. It always trusts, always hopes and always perseveres. In other words, love expects God to work and love is constantly hoping for change in people and love doesn't give up after one good try. It's going to try again and it's going to try again and it's going to try again. This is real love.

God loves us like this. God is patient with us. God is kind to us. He is not easily angered with us. These things are true. If we put Jesus' name instead of love in this passage, Jesus is patient, Jesus is kind, Jesus doesn't envy, we see a picture of the kind of life that Jesus lived and so we have this assurance that this is the way God loves us. So that means that God accepts us right now as we are, but God loves us enough to not leave us there. He wants us to change.

God loved us so much that while we were still enemies Christ died for us. He gave his only begotten son, that whoever would take advantage of this and believe in him won't have to perish but can have an eternal relationship and purposeful life with him. We celebrate at this table love. We celebrate the vertical relationship we have with God. God loves us this much. This is how secure we are. Jesus died for us before we were his friends. Now that we have responded in some kind of way, how much more can we expect from the love of God? And it's also a time to celebrate our relationships with one another, because we are all going to take a piece of this and we are going to dip and that means that we are all part of one family. One family whom God loves this much and he then is saying love one another as I have loved you.

Let's pray. Gracious God, we thank you for these gifts of this table and for the big gift that stands behind it. Jesus Christ. Lord, who gave himself for us and that in Him we now have a relationship with you that can deepen and go on forever. We thank you that you accept us, that you accept us the way these words in 1st Corinthians tell us. This deeply, but we thank you too that you are out to work in our lives, to make us like you. And so we pray that you will do this work in us even as we use the words that you taught us, Our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: for Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

Sin Robs...

The bible says that God is love.

If the exact expression of God is indeed love itself than that leads me to believe, although NOT stated in the bible as far as I know, that the devil is sin.

I know it may sound a little far fetched to some of you, but think about it...God can only give what he is...which are GOOD things...the devil can only give what is bad. Maybe a better word for him would be evil rather than sin. However, I was prompted to write on sin and what it does.

This morning I was thinking, as I still lay in bed, about how much sin really destroys us. The bible says that the thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. Think about that...he comes to take away the things that we love...he comes to kill the desires that God has set in our hearts and he comes to destroy those things that God has given us...such as marriages, jobs, children, ministries, etc. And guess whose fault it is when he is able to do these things?!?
Not pointing fingers or placing blame...but we can't be complacent and let him take these things any LONGER! Since sin is so present in the world and will be until the second coming of Jesus Christ, than we need to (as children of God) take up our swords and fight! We should never let the thief come in...we should never open the door to him and welcome him in.

Picture this: We know a thief is on the loose and we are home...alone. We hear knocking on the door...we ignore for a time being...we choose to lay down on our couch or just pretend like it is the wind...we do NOTHING to protect ourselves or our homes...we are so lazy that we don't feel like locking the door, although we know what could come into our homes. We SLEEP with the door unlocked...the door to our hearts...the door to our souls. We lie dormant! Until eventually...the thief is able to break in...and sometimes too easily...sometimes we might as well leave the door wide open to the thief "sin".

People..we need to RISE UP and stop letting sin take control. The bible says that "He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins if we confess them"...and YES, our God is SO FAITHFUL...he forgives us, he is merciful beyond comprehension and altogether lovely....
but we need to be careful because as much as he forgives us...and loves us...sin STILL steals our blessings and destroys our lives. Just because he forgives us doesn't make things all better...we need to do some work in order for our lives to be purified.

What is it today that is holding you back from the fullness thereof??? Is it lying, cheating, stealing?? It is lust, envy, drunkeness? Or is it a cold, hardened heart towards God and his people? Ask yourself...be honest with yourself and with God...he knows your heart and thoughts anyway. The bible says that the word of God is a double edged sword and knows the intents and thoughts of the heart!!

Repent. Repent does not mean to ask God to forgive you over and over again....it means to literally TURN AWAY from your sins...to reject evil...to cleave to what is good...to turn towards God...never to return to your sins.

God loves you and longs to give you the desires of your heart...are you ready to give him the things that keep you from them?

Meeting

So, I just had a meeting with my boss...

It went really good and funny thing is...the ONLY thing that she told me that I could improve on...WASN'T being on the internet or talking on the phone, it wasn't even being late a few times or getting something into her after she asked (which btw doesn't happen) but the thing that she asked me to improve on was talking about GOD!!!!!! She mentioned that some people I work with have expressed concern that I speak so freely about Jesus. WOW...how sad.

I must be doing something good then!!! Look what God has to say about those that are persecuted for righteousness....

"BLESSED are those that are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the KINGDOM OF HEAVEN" Matthew 5:10

I will take persecution to receive the Kingdom of heaven any day.... : )

To oblige my boss though and my co-workers I will be obedient...

Greater is my reward in heaven!!

Let your light shine...but not too brightly

We have all heard it said, “Let your light so shine before men” and I am writing today to say that we absolutely need to let our light shine, but I was surprised at the revelation that I had while driving into work this morning.

The sun was bright…so bright that I could barely see a thing as I drove down Western Ave, towards Suny. Even my visor wasn’t doing much to block out the light that was penetrating my eyes. I was thinking of how beautiful and POWERFUL the sun really is. I believe that God showed me something through this moment…

How often do we witness to someone? And if we are bold enough to reach out and preach the Gospel, as God commands us to do, do you sometimes feel like it is overkill? I have been hesitant to write this blog, I have actually had it saved in my drafts for a few days, because I wanted to wait on the Lord and see if this is what he was really showing me.

I feel like sometimes we can say too much or be too overpowering to unbelievers. I have even heard it said that sometimes Christians can act Kooky. Sometimes we can start speaking “Christianese” and totally lose our once captive audience. I know personally, I have said some things in the past that I never realized could have been taken way out of context or have been received the wrong way.

Here are a few funny examples that a guest preacher actually shared at my church this year.
Never say to unbeliever:

“I am covered with the blood of Christ”

“Devil, I rebuke you in Jesus’ name”

“I’m drunk on the holy ghost”

And never start just speaking in tongues!!!

Now most of these are obvious and definitely could be frowned upon by unbelievers..leaving them to think we have ultimately gone mad. LOL

But God was showing me more than this…he was saying that YES he wants us to share the good news with others and encourage them to follow him, etc…but have you ever heard it said, “preach the gospel, use words when necessary?” I love that!! That is saying that your LIFE should be the light that others see and admire….they should see Christ in YOU…not just talking about him….but SHOWING him to the world by the way that you live.

I was thinking at how profound that revelation really is….just the way the sun was so bright that it hurt my eyes….sometimes our lights can be too powerful and overbearing and may actually HINDER people from coming to Christ.

We should never force anything on others...God gave them a choice…his will or free will and they will have to make their own decisions. After all, they will be standing in front of him on judgment day and they will have to answer for themselves…until then, let’s pray that our lights are just bright enough for them to see the truth and not overpowering in that we blind them.

Psalm 27

This is one of my favorite Psalms....I actually wrote it on my Grandfather's memorial poster at his wake. I witnessed him go through more suffering than anyone I had known in his last months with us...and I believe that the Lord really strengthened me during that time, so that I could be strong for him. This Psalm is a dedication to those that feel weak...or inadequate....know that he is God and he is where you should draw your strength from.

Psalm 27

A Psalm of David.

1 The LORD is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?
2 When the wicked came against me
To eat up my flesh,
My enemies and foes,
They stumbled and fell.
3 Though an army may encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear;
Though war may rise against me,
In this I will be confident.

4 One thing I have desired of the LORD,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD,
And to inquire in His temple.
5 For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock.

6 And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me;
Therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle;
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the LORD.

7 Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice!
Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
8 When You said, “Seek My face,”
My heart said to You, “Your face, LORD, I will seek.”
9 Do not hide Your face from me;
Do not turn Your servant away in anger;
You have been my help;
Do not leave me nor forsake me,
O God of my salvation.
10 When my father and my mother forsake me,
Then the LORD will take care of me.

11 Teach me Your way, O LORD,
And lead me in a smooth path, because of my enemies.
12 Do not deliver me to the will of my adversaries;
For false witnesses have risen against me,
And such as breathe out violence.
13 I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the LORD
In the land of the living.

14 Wait on the LORD;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD!