Reflections of Psalm 62

"My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from Him. He ALONE is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will never be shaken."

Salvation makes me think of the cross. The price HE paid for my sin and the sin of the whole world. My heart's desire is to share His love so people can come to know Him.

Rock makes me think of the strength of the Lord. He is strong enough to handle the whole world so of course He can help me.

Fortress is a place where it is completely safe and it is where HE is.

"But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord., I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me. Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light." Micah 7:7-8

"There is hope for your future, declares the Lord." Jeremiah 31:17

I am the Light of the world. Whoever follows Me will not walk in darkness , but will have the light of life." John 8:12

Funny how suddenly while you have going along just fine something will sideswipe you and leave you feeling powerless... it could be anything .. for everyone of us it is something different.
For me it was a negative thought that pounded at me .. leaving me feeling hopeless.
I have to ask myself though was I really going along just fine ...or had I missed a few times of meeting with the Lord ... I was slowly letting my guard down.

Missing time with Him and then wondering why we struggle is alot like this~
Eat whatever you want and never brush your teeth and never exercise ... never ever drink water and then find out your teeth is rotting you are overweight and dehydrated... and then look shocked as to how this could have possibly happen...

It's funny how a good routine can prevent so much!!!!

But there is hope for getting back to a good routine... don't be fooled into thinking this is religious... DO IT!!!!
It takes practice and determination... I for one am asking God to get me back into a place of dare I say "religious" time with Him and His Word.

Friends and Jesus

Dee Brestin, in her book, The Friendships of Women, describes our relationships "like gently moving streams joining into one river, we round the difficult bends of life together, strengthening each other with a fresh water supply. We are free and flowing and unconcerned with boundaries....We are afraid to run toward the ocean alone. We feel a sense of panic in solitude." (Dee Brestin, The Friendships of Women, (Wheaton Illinois: Victor Books, 1988) p37.)


This is from Sharon Jaynes GIG devotional~
What a beautiful picture of the refreshing, refueling, and renewing power of friendship. However, our friends were never intended to meet our greatest need to be in relationship. No woman - or man- can fill all our emotional needs, and if we look to one friend for everything or even a few, we'll be doomed to disappointment. That is an empty place only Jesus can fill.

I have found that when I feel empty inside and try to grasp desperately at friends to fill the void, I come up emptier than before. At those low points, friendships seem to elude me. The more frantically I grasp, the more elusive true friendships appear. However, if I go to Jesus Christ, allow Him to fill me with His love, I move from needy to full, and from being a taker to a giver. Then I find friendships are plentiful.

When God calls us to come "a little father" away to be completely alone with Him in the garden of our souls, but we go to others instead, we will be sorely disappointed. People are a poor substitute for God.

However, I do believe that there are times when God gives us the wonderful gift of friendship with another. When we find such a friend, we have found a treasure indeed.

This is so true of my life...God has blessed me with wonderful friends but it has always been that He will make sure I know that He alone can fill my heart completely.

We spend our days with family and friends and there are moments we deal with petty issues and major ones. They become our focus ~ slow us down. We forget how precious the person is ~ the relationship. WE do our best to love one another, guide hearts along safe paths ~ sometimes we need to take time to just be. Being together and getting to know the people we call family. Often if we could take a step back ~ stop pushing down our true feelings we might see we really do love and care but just not sure how to help our loved ones. Sometimes just being there ~ listening ~ is all people need.
It is not easy though always listening to someone talk about their problems and not even look for a solution. I find it wearisome. I pray...and try to stay UP.

I wanted to share my testimony with you ...I wrote something this morning and thought it would be a good time to share it with you.I am so glad I have Christ in my life~ been thinking about the fact that it will be 25 years this August that I have been rescued from my sin and self. AWESOME~ If He had not wooed me into His embrace back then where would I be today? Everyday there may be a struggle in me to change into His image but everyday He pours out new mercies and fresh grace into me. My parents were on the verge of divorce when in August of 84 my father committed suicide. That was a horrible day! I can not imagine what went through my mom's mind as she found out he was gone. Did she think it was her fault? Did she have unresolved feelings and wished she could have had some resolution before he died? I know I had feelings of guilt and mean thoughts toward my dad that needed healing ~ I didn't understand what was going on I was only 10 years old. As we went to his gathering the Pastor said "Jesus' arms are always open" ~ that hit a nerve in me and that moment on the couch in the funeral room I crawled into His arms asking Him in my own way to be my Savior. I wasn't smart enough to realize this was the best thing that could have happened to me that day. I didn't realize my Knight in Shining Armor had just rescued me from darkness and depression. It was beyond me that He just stepped in at that moment to start the unveiling of The Perfect Father. It took years of Him showing me who He was really... not someone to be feared that He would explode in anger at any minute. He was not someone who would get impatient with my childish ways. He was full of love ~ tenderness ~ compassion~ words of hope and healing were the words on His lips and in His Word. Often I read Psalm 145 and replaced any reference to God with the name FATHER just to retrain my mind of who He really is... He is ABBA ~ the one I can turn to anytime anyplace with anything on my heart. He is full of laughter not a sad and angry God. He is approachable. HE is my ABBA!

growth is a process

This morning I read my GIG devotional (Girlfriend in God). When I was first saved anything with a cross on it was sooo incredible to me....then as life went on and after several years I grew weary of different Christian symbols because of overuse perhaps in the church world. It was becoming a sign of religion to me. This Easter there is a difference in me... not that I did not appreciate what Christ did for me before...but I have grown in the area of sharing Him with others. There is a fresh desire in me to see many people experience His Salvation and Love. I am not finding the right words to fully express my heart ... God has planted something precious in me and it is being watered by different things (some people and His Word and life's experiences)...It's been in me for a long time and I am beginning to see a little more clearly what He has called me to. I want a glimpse of His plan for me that I might grab hold of it and make it richly part of who I am. April 6, 2009 A Simple Wooden Cross Sharon Jaynes
Today's Truth "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God" (1 Corinthians 1:18 NIV).
Friend to Friend The sea breeze blew the tangles from my knotted nerves as a choir of various birds sang revelry to greet the day. Myrtle bushes, bursting with fuchsia blossoms added splashes of color to the sandy landscape. Jumping fish performed acrobatic feats for an audience of One.
Perhaps my favorite place in the entire world is the beach. God seems to speak to me through each intricately carved sea shell, soaring gull, and majestic wave. On this particular spring morning, I had gotten up before the others stirred from their slumber, to have a cup of coffee with the Lord. I sat rocking on the cottage porch surrounded by coastal beauty and watching the water of the lazy canal meander by. As I talked to God and thanked Him for all the splendor of His creation, He urged me to look closely at a reflection in the water. My eyes followed the wavy reflection to the side of the canal where there stood two pieces of weathered wood, forming a simple cross. Upon closer inspection, I realized that this was actually one end of an old forgotten clothesline, but to me it was much more.
I knew at that moment the beams were there just for me. The owner may have viewed them as merely part of a clothesline in disrepair but this cross was God's reminder to me that in all the majesty of His creation, the cross of two wooden beams is still the most majestic of all. Two simple beams display to the entire world for all time the surpassing greatness of His love, the incalculable riches of His grace, and the unfathomable depth of His mercy to all who will believe. More beautiful than any blooming flower, more melodious than any song of my feathered friends, more powerful than the surf of the sea -- the cross.
Let's Pray Dear Heavenly Father, thank You so much for the cross. Through the work of Jesus on those two simple beams of wood, You have given me eternal life. I pray I will never forget Jesus' incredible sacrifice. Yes, the world may think the cross is foolish, but the message of the cross is the power of God.
In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Now It's Your Turn What does the cross mean to you?
How would you explain that to someone who doesn't know Christ?
Why is the cross called the message of the power of God?
Have you, like me in this story, ever felt that God placed something right before you as a special gift or reminder of His presence?
More from the Girlfriends Did you know that God is speaking all around you and in your life? Would you like to learn more about how to hear His voice? If so, you might enjoy Sharon's book, Becoming a Woman who Listens to God. And for more inspirational stories to spiritually jump start your day, see Extraordinary Moments with God, Sharon's beautiful daily devotional.
Seeking God? Click here to find out more about how to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Girlfriends in GodP.O. Box 725Matthews, NC 28106
info@girlfriendsingod.comhttp://www.girlfriendsingod.com/

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