Soaring Joy

I think today I am challenged to really be transformed in a specific way of thinking. I was finishing Micah, and I came across Micah 4:9-13. It is not so much that those verses jumped out as me as that a concept jumped out at me. God is telling His people, through Micah, that He is about to bring the worst calamity on them they have ever endured. He is about to allow them to be conquered and carried away from the land He gave them. Total devastation. Total destruction. Total removal from their very way of life. I have always been a little depressed when reading through some of the prophets and their words of doom and destruction. But, this morning even as my heart broke for the grief, it soared as well. Mixed within those words were promises of restoration, and somehow I felt it. I felt a joy and peace - a sense of "this is finally it - after this your hearts will be Mine. This is the moment when all that you have been taught will suddenly become a part of your hearts." A lot of really crushing "moments" seem to be going on all around me in the lives of so many people. I am praying hard and grieving over each one. But, this passage today just filled my grieving heart with soaring joy - no, the grief is not gone, but the joy is making the grief beautiful and giving new life to my prayers. When in the lives of believers there comes a moment when all seems to be lost, we must hang on to hope. Beauty is coming. He sees what we cannot. And what He sees is beautiful.

To Know More

Surely I am more stupid than any man, and I do not have the understanding of a man. Neither have I learned wisdom, nor do I have the knowledge of the Holy One. Prov 30:2-3 (NASB) I read these verses every month, and they are good for me. Why? Because each month I learn a little more and I grow a little more. But, then I get to Proverbs 30 and I am reminded how little I know. I am reminded how much I have left to learn. I am reminded that, really and truly, I have barely scratched the surface of what is available to me here in this life, much less what awaits me in eternity. In a way it seems that these verses would be discouraging and would tear me down, but the truth is so opposite. These verses increase my hunger and drive. They make me want to know more and more about the incredible God described in the pages of this precious Book. He loves me infinitely more than I could comprehend, and I want to know Him. I want to acknowledge His ways. I want to be more equipped daily to share His incredible love with everyone around me. So, being reminded of how little I truly know is a good thing. Being reminded that I have far to go is wonderful. Day by day, step by step, little by little, I will continue to grow and learn. And then one day, I'll be in His immediate presence and I will be able to spend eternity learning and praising even more.

Bold as a Lion

The wicked flee when no one is pursuing, but the righteous are bold as a lion. Prov 28:1 (NASB) According to the Word, I have been made righteous through the blood of Christ. According to this verse in Proverbs, I am bold because of that righteousness. Do I live with boldness? A lion is quite bold. It is at the top of the food chain. It has very little to fear from its fellow creatures. Yes, there are threats to the lion, of course. We live in a fallen world. There are threats to every form of life. But, when I think of a lion, I think of great boldness and very little fear. That is the type of boldness I am to have. I have to admit - I do not live out that boldness in my daily life. I am timid. I am insecure. I hold back. I cannot live that way anymore. Lord, help me to live out the boldness that You have given me!