Arms To Hold Me

This morning I awake before the sun rises as I love to.  I look across my bed, missing my husband's arms to awaken to and yet the arms of another calling me.  Going on day four of missing my husband in his work travels and yet a peace extends to my soul that even he couldn't give me.  I approach our dining room table in which I meet our Lord every morning, often long before anything stirs in our home.  I love this peacefulness and I have come to find He speaks so clearly to me in this time.  I share communion with Him, longing to partake of intimacy with my Lord.  I turn to our daily reading that we've been doing together as a church and it takes me to Isaiah and Hebrews.  Quite contrasting books.  And yet many thoughts flood my spirit as I meditate on them.  I see the awesomeness of our mighty God displayed in Isaiah and that same awesomeness displayed in a man named Jesus revealed in Hebrews, yet this awesomeness given as a sin offering a sacrifice for me.  I see how there is so much more than what we see on earth.  The tabernacle, the law, the burnt offerings, all of that was simply a shadow of what was coming, not the realities themselves.  Isn't this amazing.  Hebrews 10:1, "The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming - not the realities themselves."  ONLY a shadow.... then I think wow...everything physical is only a shadow, it's temporary.  My flesh, my physical being is a shadow.  My reality of who I am is yet to come.  Yet to be revealed... how exciting that is.  In this my faith is encouraged and my spiritual eyes enlightened that I am living for a life eternal that is my reality.  Therefore I find my attitude renewed even now.  Jesus, God of all displayed such humility and commitment in 2 phrases that follow to His father.  Hebrews 10:7 "Here I am... and "I have come to do your will, O God."  My heart then utters to the Lord, "Help me Lord to confess those 2 statements constantly to you. "  1. Here I am.   2.  I have come to do YOUR WILL O my Lord.

Changes my focus entirely for the day at hand that He would lead me to who and what He desires me to do.  That I would simply be ready to say Here I am.  Interesting but Isaiah's response was the exact same when God called Him.  Isaiah 6:8.

Then I read Hebrews 11.  What a fired up breath of inspiration that exudes!  Rolling through great lives of faith, all of them looking forward to the REALITIES of eternity, a HOME and a city that didn't exist here.  Oh once again I am fired up at the thought of the city He is preparing for us that will truly blow our minds.  If this beauty of our world is a shadow... can you even begin to imagine the REALITY itself.  ???

I am left with the gift God gives each of these men and women of faith in Hebrews 11:16  "Therefore God is NOT ASHAMED to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them."  Isn't that awesome!  He's not ashamed to call Himself our God.  We walk around thinking we own God, when I read that I stand in holy fear.  He will be not be ashamed.  He is glorious and awesome and deserves the best.  I want to live a life of faith that makes Him proud.  That simply means I believe this is all a shadow and that my Jesus holds the reality, the KEY that life eternal is found through Him.

Once I spend time digging through scripture like this I go to prayer, my conversations with God often in nature.  Untouched nature that resists man made buildings and the busyness of people, often with worship music in my ipod.

Now here's He's how He blesses me when He puts my whole worship experience together.

Roger showed me this app called SoundHound that allows my ipod to hear any song and give me the name and title instantly anywhere.  It's pretty cool and free.  :)  Sometimes I will hear a song and sense a strong anointing on it as my Spirit grabs hold of it.  This happened a few weeks and I captured the song and left it on a stick note until I could download it on my ipod.  Well I did last night finally.  I'd never heard this woman before, Nicol Sponberg.  As I'm praying and worshipping Him talking of how I long to be in His arms now, in the city prepared for me the song "Home" comes on.  Well.. it overwhelms me.  Overwhelms me.  Every word.  Captures all that I've read in scripture and my prayer now summed up in music in a picture that floods my heart as I listen to it, a gift from Him.  All I can say at the end in the middle of huge forest all alone is "I love you Jesus" and as the words fall from my lips I burst with tears just longing to have that fulfillment of every word of that song, that I know will come in time for I believe.  How did He put all of that together in one morning as if He was with me in every moment?  He is.  And in that moment I realize that though I love the arms of my husband more than any human being, the arms of my Lord, my First Love have embraced me from heaven this morning.

Jesus... do you know His warm embrace?  This isn't a shadow but a reality.

I attached a youtube video that has the song on it.  BUT the only request I have is simply click it to play but will you close your eyes, even lay your head down and simply listen.  Let it pour over your spirit.  May it refresh you and embrace you as it did me in the wee hours of this glorious morning.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUsd7lkLd40

Taste Test

We are living in a time in which deception is at an all time high, but the bible warns us of this.  Are we digging deeper to find the truth in all situations or do we just listen and accept what we're hearing?  Are we teaching our children not to be so gullible but to ask questions, to discern, to seek advice, to ask for the Spirit of Truth?


Jesus words remind me today that He's given us a code that tells us of true Christ followers.  It's the presence of good fruit.  


Matthew 7:18-20
¹⁸ A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. ¹⁹ Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.


You will recognize them by their fruit.  Hmm... think of that.  The fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, kindness, self control, goodness, longsuffering...


Rather than evaluating others first, I turn to look at my own life through this lense.  


"Do I exude this presence of fruit Lord?"


When people mention my name what is the first things that come to mind?  Is there something good I can offer them to taste and see, nourish and refresh them with?  Our fruitfulness comes from Him.  He causes our fruit to grow.  Therefore are we spending that relational time growing with Him that we would overflow such a harvest to all those that would come around us?


With this thought I am convicted. 


"Lord I want to bear an abundance of real fruit in this world, that many would know you.  The goodness you offer, the love so real.  Lord nourish me today with your presence that I could have the privilege of bringing Almighty God of the universe glory.  


Authentic Christ followers bear good fruit.