The candle flickered in the night, its reflection dancing across the ceiling. bringing radiant light into a darkened place. My eyes fixed on the flame. My thoughts fixed on my heart where I had encountered many unexpected darkened corners.
Self-examination is not my idea of fun.
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Father, You are sovereign. You are mighty … You are good. Your faithfulness is a sure place I can cling to and rely upon. When I cry out, You hear me — heaven meets earth and I am helped. Always.
All my life You have been faithful to me. You are just a breath away, a word spoken and You race through the heavens to help me.
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This post is a bit different than my usual Thursday message. My heart is heavy for loved ones. My heart is heavy for the condition of our world laden with wars and rumors of wars, wildfires, earthquakes … I’m sure you feel the same at times. I’m searching for thankfulness in the difficult places.
I thought I’d grab your hand and perhaps help you find it, as well.
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I’m learning a lot about thanksgiving — maintaining a thankful heart despite very difficult circumstances, understanding the importance of a thankful heart, and recognizing how a thankful heart is a gift and tool straight from God’s heart to lift us above the difficult places.
This type of thanksgiving runs deep through our veins bringing life to our weary bones.
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Father, You are who You say You are; You do what You say You will do. You are not a man that You should lie. Therefore, like Abraham believed against all hope when there was no reason that he could be the father of many nations, so I believe that I will see Your goodness in the land of the living.
I believe that Your goodness will conquer the evil.
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The windswept branches snaked around the body of the tree, curling, grasping. Weather-beaten, the tree defied all odds. It stood its ground. Roots dug deep, clinching their fists into the rocky soil of the mountain ridge, challenging the gale-force winds in battle after battle.
And stood it did.
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Father, I remind myself often that You are a God of peace and not a god of confusion or chaos. With You all things are done in order — there is an appointed time for all things under heaven.
The certainty of who You are is a beautiful reassurance for me as I watch world events unfolding. It’s frightening, Lord, alarming. It’s as if evil has been unleashed and decency has run out the door.
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Autumn reds have transformed into deepest burgundy velvet; lemon yellows now reflect burnished gold. Stark branches stretch towards the heavens and yield their transition to the new season of winter into the hands of their Creator, the Lord our God.
I picked up my steps as I rounded the curve along our country road. A strong north wind watered my eyes and blushed my cheeks. But my thoughts turned towards Jesus and His unfailing love and especially towards His mercy, new every morning.
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Father, I am so very thankful for Your mercy every morning that refreshes and sustains me. It beckons me to Your side, reminding me of Your love. Because of Your mercy, I am not consumed in the difficult place. Your compassionate love sustains me and gives me strength.
You are good to those who wait on You, to the one who seeks hard after You. In the seeking I find You, and in the finding, the promise of new mercy awaits me every morning.
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Bursts of copper and ruby red mingle with the green boughs of the hemlocks. Russet-colored leaves blanket the path, crunching and crackling beneath my feet. A bluejay bounces from branch to branch, chatting as he goes. I watch him flick his head back, and stretch his robe of cobalt blue as he proclaims the glory of God to the heavens.
A gust of crisp autumn air caught the outstretched arms of a maple. In unison, its flaming fingertips began to sway back and forth, back and forth. The worship, is tangible.
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Father, I’m so thankful for Your mighty power, but lately, I’ve been even more thankful for Your tenderness toward Your children. The world as we know it is crumbling. There are wars and rumors of war. Hatred. Violence. Evil, and corruption.
I don’t want to be afraid.
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“‘Am I a God near at hand,’ says the Lord, ‘and not a God afar off? Can anyone hide himself in secret places, so I shall not see him?’ says the Lord; “Do I not fill heaven and earth?’” (Jeremiah 23:23-24).
My spirit is restless to understand the ways of the Lord. I know His thoughts are not my thoughts, nor are His ways my ways, but still. I’m His child, and I want — I need — to see His hand at work in the world around me.
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