Mosaic of Grace

Staring ahead, seeing nothing. Surrounded by sounds but i don’t hear anything. The sun is shining but i don’t recieve it’s warmth. Thoughts flood my mind but i refuse to think. If i see…if i hear…if i recieve…if i think…then i feel. If i feel i will hurt and if i hurt…i become vulnerable. If i trust You with the hurt will You earn my faith…or will You turn me away? Is Your love truly greater than my sin? My hurt? My shame? Will Your love be enough to take away my fear?                                                                                  ”Look around and see the love I show you. Listen closely and you will hear My voice calling to you. (Rev. 3:20) Accept My grace and let the hardness of your heart melt away. (Ez. 11:19) Bring your thoughts to me and I will give you a new way of thinking. (Col. 3:2) If you see…if you hear…if you recieve…if you think…then you will feel. If you let Me, I will heal your hurt. (Luke 4:1 Be vulnerable with Me. I’ll never let you down or turn you away. My love is so great nothing can seperate my love from you. No sin…No hurt…No shame. (Romans 8:38&39) My love is perfect and perfect love drives out fear. (1 Jn. 4:1 If you accept My love as truth the truth will set you free! “(Jn. 8:32)

“For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.”  Romans 8:19 

                                                                               When i awoke this morning i heard a wonderful sound. The house was quiet. Everyone else was sleeping still. That is how i was able to hear. It came from outside my window and it was the sound of creation praising God!                                                                                                                                                                                                        

The trees stood tall, their uplifted branches swaying in the breeze sang,”Raise your hands and worship the Creator of heaven and earth!”. The surrounding hills joined in the chorus. Their voices were deep and resonated with strength,”No one is greater than He!”. The changing colors of the morning sky reminded me,”His mercies are new every morning.”(Lam.3:23) As the sun began to rise, it sang with a voice so sweet,”The glory  of the Lord shines over you!”(Isaiah 60:1) The wind blew,making the winchimes dance, “Make a joyful noise to the Lord!”(Ps. 100:1) it said. I was enjoying this delightful symphony when the rocks cried out, “Don’t keep silent, praise the Lord yourself.” (Luke 19:40) So that is what i did and i will continue to sing praises to my God and King. Will you join me today?

“So we do not focus on what is seen, but what is unseen; for what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”  2 Corinthians 4:18                       There are things i just cannot see but i know they exist. I cannot see the air i breathe but without it i would cease to be. I cannot see see the wind but i feel it upon my skin and see its movement in the trees. The thoughts of others i cannot see but i hear them as they are spoken to me. Though i have never seen love i have known its manifestations. I hear it in the voices lifted in worship on Sunday morning. I see love expressed in the kindness of strangers. I feel love in my husband’s embrace and in my children’s good night kisses. I cannot see love but i know it exists. God is love and without Him i would not be.                                                                                                              “Dear friends, let us love one another, because love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God knows God. No one has ever seen God. If we love one another, God remains in us and His love is perfected in us.”  1 John 4:7&12

I saw your picture today and was reminded of all the times i said i’d call but didn’t; like last week when i was so busy and forgot. Then there were the times we said we’d get together but our schedules never allowed even a moment. So many times i would think of you and remember your smile then i’d smile too. But today i look at your picture and cry. Today i remember all the missed opportunities and broken promises. Today i also remember the times i wanted to tell you about Jesus but never did. “Maybe tomorrow,” i’d think. Tomorrow never came and now i regret. When we would part we’d say,”I love you.” but did you ever know that God loved you and gave His Son for you? These are the things I wonder as i look at your picture today and i am reminded of the friend i should have been to you.

As the kids and i did our Bible lesson the other day Rachel expressed something i’m sure we’ve all thought ourselves at one time or another. She thought it would be neat if we were born knowing the Bible. Sounds pretty good,huh? Maybe. But really think about it. If we were born with knowledge of the Bible, would we take the time to know God Himself? Is it not the time we spend reading and meditating on God’s Word that we get to know Him? All relationships take time and effort. Our relationship with God is like that as well. Of course God knows this and that is why we must study to learn the Bible. And it really is a blessing to read His Word. Take the time to see for yourself today!

Why is it when we recieve news of someone suffering or going through a diificult situation we say something like, “All we can do is pray.”? Isn’t prayer the greatest thing we can do for anyone? When we pray we are going to the throne room of the all-powerful God. Maybe that is where we have a problem. When we pray we are admitting that we are powerless. We do not have the answers. Our trust must be in Him alone to decide the fate of our loved ones. It is in His sovereign control-we have no control. What if we don’t like His answer? Do we assume He didn’t hear us or that He is cruel? When we are told God knows best and works all things for the good of those who love Him we question that because all we see is hurt and grief. Where did our prayers get us? This was not what we hoped for. Since that question is often not answered in our lifetime we often doubt the power of prayer. But we must remind ourselves that though we may not understand, God does have a plan and His plans are much greater than our own. His ways are perfect. I point my finger at myself as I say these things. Help me, God, to remember there is power in prayer!

“My dearly loved brothers, understand this: everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger, for man’s anger does not accomplish God’s righteousness.”  James 1:19 20   

There is no grace in anger. When we act in anger we are hearing only our own prideful voices telling us that we have been done wrong and someone must pay. Our tongues and sometimes our hands become instruments of destruction. When all is said and done the pain remains. There may be no physical evidence but there are scars just the same. Though we may ask for and recieve forgiveness we cannot change what has been done. Our words come back to haunt and to taunt. The ghosts visit both giver and reciever of the angry exchange.

If we are to accomplish God’s righteousness we must not act in anger. Things happen and we all get angry at times. Sometimes our anger is even justified but we are never justified when we react in anger. We are so quick to give a piece of our minds we lose our peace of mind.  That is why we are told to use our ears before we use our mouths. When we take the time to listen to the Voice of Truth-God, the anger is lessened and He shows us a better way to deal with our emotions. He can even show us the other side of the issue so instead of compulsion we feel compassion for those who offended us. God will also show us when our anger is not justified. No one wants to hear when they are wrong but it is necessary that we know. It is also necessary to know that when God rebukes us He also gives us a resolution. It may not be easy(it usually isn’t) but if we just do it God’s way we will accomplish His righteousness.

What is the thing you desire that consumes your every waking thought and makes sleep difficult? What is it that fills your heart with passion? What stirs your emotions so deeply that you think you might explode? Is it a dream you have only just begun to allow yourself to dream? Maybe you’ve always had the potential but did not recognize it. Maybe you were told not to dream so you hid it away but that dream was just beneath the surface calling out to be set free. You supressed it for so long for so long that in time you forgot that dream and wondered what was that nagging in your soul. On the outside you would smile and hope no one would notice the tears. Then you got tired of the mask and wondered what life would be without it. The desire for change became greater than the fear of the unknown so you stepped into the light and began to remove the mask. At times you remembered your scars and wanted to cover up again. But it was your dream that made you put the mask back down. Without the mask you could see more clearly the truth you could not see before. The light was Christ and God was the One who gave you your dream. Free to dream you set out to be the dreamer God created you to be. So why now you worry and fret? What God has given as a gift you have allowed to become a burden. Your best intentions have become your worst nightmare because God did not expect you to be perfect, you put that unrealistic expectation  on yourself. Just let God direct your steps, beautiful dreamer, and He will make the dreams He gave you come true!

Charis. I wasn’t sure of the proper pronunciation but it’s meaning was clear: grace, goodwill, loving-kindness, favor, thanks, recompense, reward. The definition alone is beautiful so i was sure the word itself would be beautiful and it kept popping up in my Bible study. Then we talked about charis in Sunday school where i learned it’s pronunciation-khar’ece. Yes, just as i imagined…beautiful. When i expressed my delight to God He increased my joy and wonder by telling me, “I want you to have it. It is your new name.” Whenever God changed someone’s name in the Bible the person was changed as well. Just read Genesis 17 and 32:24-28 and see what i mean. There are others too but i’ll let you do the research. God has changed me a lot in the past few weeks and months but still i wondered if this could really be happening to me. When i asked God what i would say to people when they ask why i now go by Charis He answered me clearly, “You tell them Sherri was the frightened girl that i set free and Charis is the woman i am calling you to be.” Yes! It has happened to me. God has given me a new name and it is Charis!

Note:Last night i threw  a party-a pity party. As usual, i was the guest of honor. One by one the guests arrived. First, came resentment followed closely by anger.  Bitterness came knocking next and it wasn’t long before jealousy arrived with a pout. By the time depression crept in it was getting crowded and i was tiring of the company. That is when i picked up my pen and with a prayer, started to write. Slowly my guests took the hint and started to depart. So as you read this, my friends, do not pity me. But read to the end and remember, God has me in His loving hand.