Saturday, May 30, 2015

Saturday's Scribbles: The Sacrifice of Praise Continues

It is cold, damp, and windy in our corner of the world today.  Our bird from hell continues his relentless torment on us and mosquitoes have already hatched making porch sitting impossible right now.  We are enjoying our flowers from the living room windows.  Welcome to the Midwest!

It has been a week where tragedy and sickness seem to be in abundance.  That stinks.  Like all of you I have been saddened by the loss of life in Texas and other states due to the flooding.  A prayer request came to me as leader of the Knee Team regarding a mom and young son who were killed in a tragic car crash after a wedding, taking with them the baby that entered the world and lived only briefly.  A woman from a former congregation died this week after a brief battle with recurring cancer.  A good friend of ours is battling a terrible fungal infection called mucra, that is in her lungs.  A pic line is delivering massive medications with nasty side effects into her body twice a day for at least the next seven weeks to combat a disease that came out of nowhere.  They are trying to trace the point of contact but are not making headway.  They are checking her whole body for cancer, wondering what has compromised her immune system.  I received two phone calls from people this week in need of prayer and encouragement for the journeys they are on.  It all makes my battles with health seem small, yet, the struggle is not.  A UTI that is gone, but symptoms linger, and now learning after this week's appointment with the eye specialist that the laser surgery last fall did not work very long, the pressure is up, and the Dr. is looking at surgery to make new drainage channels in my eyes to protect my sight.  Most of my optic nerve fibers are already gone and what is left needs to be protected.  It was a significant blow and I confess it has brought us to our knees. 

So, while on our knees, stunned and discouraged, we have a choice. We can live in fear and confusion, or we can lift our eyes and hands up to God in praise and thanksgiving remembering who God is.  We can give praise from our place of fear or discouragement for God being our Healer,  For God fighting for us.  For His great love.  For the many promises and truths we find in His Word. A sacrifice of praise while praying for all those who lost loved ones this week, for those who are hurting in our broken world.  Yes, God fights for us!

Today God brought to mind again, 2 Chronicles 20 that tells the story of Jehoshaphat and the armies that came against him.  He reminded God of His faithfulness, His guidance and direction and he pleaded for help to defend them against such a mighty army of several nations that were coming their way.  God sent a message to him through a prophetic word that told them to not be afraid.  God would FIGHT FOR THEM.  So Jehoshaphat put his SINGERS up front as the army of Judah marched forward to battle. Before they could even come into contact with the army, the warriors had all turned on each other and every single one died.  They all died as Jehoshaphat and Judah, in obedience to God, sang His praises with loud voices.  As they stood still and watched the Lord's victory.   In our battles we praise God for who He is and Whose we are.  We ask, we seek, we obey, we praise.  We STAND STILL, resting and trusting. 

Guess I am "sneaking in a preach" as our daughter Bethany would say!  It is as much for me as it is for anyone reading this post today.  As we wait, we are at times tossed about by the waves, and need to be reminded and give thanks for God's faithfulness. 

On a positive note we went shopping this week for a wedding we will attend.  My niece is getting married in a beautiful setting near the Mississippi River.  Joel will officiate.  We have been walking a mile daily, and hope to get back up to 1.5 miles soon. 

I have not been reading much this week..  At the doctor's office someone put the wrong drops into my eyes which caused quite a stir as they did not know how I would react.  It was written on my chart to not use them, but accidents happen.  They then put steroids in my eyes twice and other drops and that caused my corneas to be scratchy which required drops every hour for a couple of days and now drops 4 times a day.  Yep, it was a tough week.  The good news is I did not react as they thought I would to the first drops.  Expect that my body handles meds better now than in the past.

We have watched some TV and e njoyed a PBS special called Home Front that chronicled several military families as they deal with deployments and the damage caused by war.  Also watched several teachings on praise and worship that came up on Bethel TV.  Appropriate for this season.

Until next time.............

1 comment:

Sharon said...

Such a beautiful post, Renee. Yes, full of heartache and pain and struggle, but also full of faithfulness. We so often cannot understand the tragedies and suffering that take place in this broken world, but we can always turn to The One who still sits on His throne. And though we might not find *answers* - we will find comfort and peace in His presence.

I like how you called it the "sacrifice" of praise. For yes, indeed, our praise (in spite of life) is a gift we can present at the Lord's feet. A gesture of worship to an always-good God, even when we don't understand His thoughts or ways.

GOD BLESS.