What if Your healing comes through tears?
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You’re near?
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise?"
This song just hits me right in the heart!!!
Showing posts with label Praise. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Praise. Show all posts
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Blessings
What if Your healing comes through tears?
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You’re near?
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise?"
This song just hits me right in the heart!!!
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Well...
WE GOT THE HOUSE!!!!!!!!
I'm so excited to now have an address! Thank you so much to those who were praying along with us!
I have to be honest here and tell you that it's very weird having other people find a house for you... and then getting excited about it even though you've never seen it! It sounds really great and I can't wait for someone to email me pictures of it! I'll have to post some when I get some.
It has a full basement. I've never had a basement before! It has not 1, not 2, but 3 garages (or so I've been told)!! I've never had a garage before! I'm not sure what to do with 3 of them! We only have one vehicle! It's funny because it isn't what they (the people who have seen it) consider a big house, but it sounds pretty big to me! It has 3 bedrooms, a kitchen, dining room, 2 bathrooms upstairs & 1 downstairs, a living room... sounds perfect to me! It even has a laundry chute! That means the washer/dryer hookup is in the basement. That's okay, though. Maybe I'll fit down the chute. ;) If not, I'll be able to perfect the "sit & scoot" stair method. It should be good exercise.
I do have to say that I'm still in awe of the way God is doing things! He's just going right down the list & checking things off! All these mountains to us are nothing to Him! Thank You, God, for being so AWESOME!!!!!
There is so much packing to do. I just keep trying to force myself to start. lol. Once I start then I'm fine. It's just getting started... Okay. I'm going to start now. Really. I'm going right now to fill a box. Right now... just as soon as I check my email I'm going to start! Really! I am!
Friday, January 21, 2011
I Stand in Awe of You!
Do you remember that song from, oh, 2 decades ago or so? Well, that sums up how I feel right now! I truly am just in complete and total awe of God! I don't know why I get so amazed when He does awesome things... I've seen Him do awesome things before. But each time I just get this feeling of, well, awe!
"Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life." (Prov. 13:12)
Have you ever prayed for something for so long (or at least what seems like a long time to you), and then when He answers the prayer get so humbly amazed that you are speechless? This is why I haven't blogged this until now. I needed to wait for God to give me the words!
My hubby is a sweetheart of a man. He truly is. I know none of you know him, but he's as good as they come. He loves me... not the ordinary, "I love you" kind of love, but he truly, deeply loves me and shows me that in a different way every day. I never realized how much until I had this last MS attack that left me completely helpless and at his mercy. He never once complained. He picked me up when I collapsed and realized I couldn't move anything from the waist down. He dried my tears. He made me laugh when there was nothing to laugh about. He cooked horrible meals and shrunk all my clothes, but he did it all out of love because he knew I couldn't do those things. He truly loves me, and I truly love him.
He is a caring man. He loves people. God has given him a compassionate heart -- a true pastor's heart. That's why it's been so hard to watch him these past 2 years get up each day and go to sell jewelry. He did it to take care of his family, but his heart stayed fixed on searching for where God wanted him to serve. Each time a door would open and we'd get excited, it would suddenly shut and we'd have to start the whole candidate process over again. He got narrowed down to the final 2 candidates out of over 200-300 I don't know how many times at this point only to find out they had gone with the other guy. But, after being disappointed we would remember that we only wanted to be where God wanted us. So, we'd begin again.
This time was different. It's a church that we'd never have really given a second glance had the door not been opened and closed so many times over the past almost 2 years. It's several states away from our home. But we'd told God, "Anywhere you want us, that's where we want to be."
Well, Illinois is where He wants us. He made it abundantly clear! He answered so many specific prayers that it is undeniably His will! In fact, when we got there on Jan. 8th, He began answering those prayers almost immediately! The church was having their annual beginning of the year fellowship and we immediately began getting to know the people. It was easy to see from the very start that these were people who were real. They are mostly hard working, blue collar types who work hard, play hard, and love God. They have a desire to serve Him and learn more of Him. It was so refreshing to see this in a group of people!
One of our specific prayers was for our daughter. She needs a friend. A good friend who will encourage her when she needs it and whom she can encourage as well. I have a friend like this. We've been friends since I was 12 and we are still very close. I could see that Gidget needed this. She's been so lonely... especially since her cousins moved. She hasn't really connected with anyone in the church we have been attending here. Every night we would pray together that God would send her a special friend. That night at the fellowship she just clicked with the kids who were there. It was so good to see her playing and laughing! But the true "WOW" moment came the next morning in church. After Sunday School, she sat down beside me in the pew. Then, this bubbly little blonde... cute as button... just came and squished herself in between Gidget & me. She had this beautiful smile and my daughter was just glowing. They both said at the same time, "GUESS WHAT???" I knew something good was coming. They proceeded to tell me that they shared the same birthday. Not just the same date, but the same year! What are the odds of that? I just was speechless. I felt in my heart like that was a real God thing! I just had a peace that God was answering that prayer.
We were praying that the church would be disability friendly. They have a chair lift to get you to the downstairs classrooms and fellowship area and an elevator to get you to the auditorium! The elevator was pretty cool. My husband was meeting with the pastor and I was waiting for him to help me upstairs. A very nice gentleman came over and offered his help. I was nervous, but accepted his offer because I didn't want to be late for the morning service. He pushed my wheelchair into a corner facing a wall. I thought, "Okay. This is odd." Then, he closed a gate behind me and pressed a button and the floor lifted! I'd never seen an elevator like that before! It was way cool! He said, "Just make sure that the elevator is at the top before you take your wheelchair off the edge here." lol. Yeah, I see the importance in that.
My husband had taught one of the adult Sunday School classes and then preached the morning service. After that, we went out to lunch with the Senior Pastor and his wife. Then, we went to the local nursing home and spent some time with the people there. I have to admit, after the long drive there (over 400 miles of it was in snow/sleet) and the Saturday night fellowship after we'd only been there for an hour... then the full Sunday we'd had so far, I was wiped out! I went over to the parsonage and laid down for about an hour while my husband met with the pulpit committee and Senior Pastor. He came back to the parsonage and we spoke for a while. We both had peace that this was where God wanted us. There was just this little issue of whether or not the church would vote us in. He had to have 75% majority vote. So, we headed over for the evening service.
That night the Senior Pastor did a short devotion and then they had their annual business meeting. After the other business was taken care of, they brought us up front and allowed the church members to ask us questions. Talk about being nervous! They asked good questions, too! After all the questioning was over, we were sent into one of the offices to wait for the church to discuss and vote. When the lady came and got us we couldn't tell anything from her expression. When we entered the back of the church, everyone was standing and the Senior Pastor had us come forward. He told us that the church had voted to extend a pastoral position offer to my husband and asked if he'd accept their call. He looked at me and we didn't have to say a word to each other. We knew God wanted us there. He accepted the position of Pastor of Outreach and Family. Then the Senior Pastor said, "I'm not sure how to feel about this, but you got a higher % vote than I did! You got 96%!" We were so excited to know that that many people voted for him!
That was such a HUGE BLESSING! We are still so thankful to God for putting us back to work!
You know, I've served in a church since I was a teenager. I served because I was a good girl and I knew it would please my parents and I knew it would please my pastor. I did the right things, but for the wrong reasons. Pleasing your parents and a godly pastor are certainly not bad things, but pleasing God is so much more important. That's what I want to do with the rest of my life. I want to serve Him however He lets me, and I want to do it to please Him. I don't want to get to Heaven and realize I haven't earned any rewards to lay at His feet! He has been so faithful to me and shown me such grace and mercy... I can't even begin to tell you and I'd be so ashamed to tell you of many things. I just know that I don't want to mess up this time. I want so desperately to get to Heaven and hear Him say, "Well done!" This is my desire and my prayer.
I know this is a LONG post, but I have more to tell.
So, where are we going to live? That was the question on our minds on the long drive back to PA. It's hard to search for a home when you are several states away! The day after we got home the Senior Pastor called and had already found a house for us! Then, two days later he said to hold off on that one because he'd found a better one! This is where I'm asking for you to specifically pray. We have 2 cats and a dog. They are well trained. The cats are old, declawed, and fixed. They are more like floor rugs than anything else. None of the animals are destructive in any way. The owners of this house are just finishing fixing it up because the tenants had animals that destroyed things. The husband is fine with pets. The wife isn't. Please pray that God would either change her mind and let us get this house OR that He'd show us where He wants us to live. This particular house is exactly what we'd been praying for... big enough for the wheelchair, a rancher with a basement & a garage. We're not looking for fancy, just practical and in our budget.
Then there was the issue of how to afford to move? Guess what? One of the deacons owns a trucking company and said just to let him know the day we'll be ready and he'll have a tractor trailer here to pick up our stuff and have it waiting for us when we got there! It was like God was saying, "Okay, what's next on your list?"
Well, that would be a real estate investment that we've been trying to sell for about a year. This week, it sold! No, not the way we expected it to sell... we're basically walking away without any profit... but it sold! Sure, we've got to get the paperwork all done, but it sold! I'm telling you, God was going down our check list that we'd been praying over!
What to do with our house? That's the next thing. I'm not worrying about it. I know He's going to take care of that as well!
I really shouldn't type all this at 3 a.m. I'm just wide awake and I'm excited and nervous. I hope you (if anyone still reads this blog) will pray for us as we head out on this new adventure!
The verse I shared above is one that has been on my heart for almost 2 years. It's SO TRUE! Our hearts were sick from our hope being deferred, but now -- WOW! That tree of life is an AWESOME feeling!
This is a great responsibility. We aren't taking it lightly. It's also going to be tough financially, but I know that God is going to take care of us. He always has. He is AMAZING!
"You are beautiful beyond description
Too marvelous for words
Too wonderful of comprehension
Like nothing ever seen or heard
Who can grasp you infinite wisdom
Who can fathom the depth of your love
You are beautiful beyond description
Majesty enthroned above
And I stand, I stand in awe of you
I stand, I stand in awe of you
Holy God to whom all praise is due
I stand in awe of you." by Mark Altrogge
Have you ever prayed for something for so long (or at least what seems like a long time to you), and then when He answers the prayer get so humbly amazed that you are speechless? This is why I haven't blogged this until now. I needed to wait for God to give me the words!
My hubby is a sweetheart of a man. He truly is. I know none of you know him, but he's as good as they come. He loves me... not the ordinary, "I love you" kind of love, but he truly, deeply loves me and shows me that in a different way every day. I never realized how much until I had this last MS attack that left me completely helpless and at his mercy. He never once complained. He picked me up when I collapsed and realized I couldn't move anything from the waist down. He dried my tears. He made me laugh when there was nothing to laugh about. He cooked horrible meals and shrunk all my clothes, but he did it all out of love because he knew I couldn't do those things. He truly loves me, and I truly love him.
He is a caring man. He loves people. God has given him a compassionate heart -- a true pastor's heart. That's why it's been so hard to watch him these past 2 years get up each day and go to sell jewelry. He did it to take care of his family, but his heart stayed fixed on searching for where God wanted him to serve. Each time a door would open and we'd get excited, it would suddenly shut and we'd have to start the whole candidate process over again. He got narrowed down to the final 2 candidates out of over 200-300 I don't know how many times at this point only to find out they had gone with the other guy. But, after being disappointed we would remember that we only wanted to be where God wanted us. So, we'd begin again.
This time was different. It's a church that we'd never have really given a second glance had the door not been opened and closed so many times over the past almost 2 years. It's several states away from our home. But we'd told God, "Anywhere you want us, that's where we want to be."
Well, Illinois is where He wants us. He made it abundantly clear! He answered so many specific prayers that it is undeniably His will! In fact, when we got there on Jan. 8th, He began answering those prayers almost immediately! The church was having their annual beginning of the year fellowship and we immediately began getting to know the people. It was easy to see from the very start that these were people who were real. They are mostly hard working, blue collar types who work hard, play hard, and love God. They have a desire to serve Him and learn more of Him. It was so refreshing to see this in a group of people!
One of our specific prayers was for our daughter. She needs a friend. A good friend who will encourage her when she needs it and whom she can encourage as well. I have a friend like this. We've been friends since I was 12 and we are still very close. I could see that Gidget needed this. She's been so lonely... especially since her cousins moved. She hasn't really connected with anyone in the church we have been attending here. Every night we would pray together that God would send her a special friend. That night at the fellowship she just clicked with the kids who were there. It was so good to see her playing and laughing! But the true "WOW" moment came the next morning in church. After Sunday School, she sat down beside me in the pew. Then, this bubbly little blonde... cute as button... just came and squished herself in between Gidget & me. She had this beautiful smile and my daughter was just glowing. They both said at the same time, "GUESS WHAT???" I knew something good was coming. They proceeded to tell me that they shared the same birthday. Not just the same date, but the same year! What are the odds of that? I just was speechless. I felt in my heart like that was a real God thing! I just had a peace that God was answering that prayer.
We were praying that the church would be disability friendly. They have a chair lift to get you to the downstairs classrooms and fellowship area and an elevator to get you to the auditorium! The elevator was pretty cool. My husband was meeting with the pastor and I was waiting for him to help me upstairs. A very nice gentleman came over and offered his help. I was nervous, but accepted his offer because I didn't want to be late for the morning service. He pushed my wheelchair into a corner facing a wall. I thought, "Okay. This is odd." Then, he closed a gate behind me and pressed a button and the floor lifted! I'd never seen an elevator like that before! It was way cool! He said, "Just make sure that the elevator is at the top before you take your wheelchair off the edge here." lol. Yeah, I see the importance in that.
My husband had taught one of the adult Sunday School classes and then preached the morning service. After that, we went out to lunch with the Senior Pastor and his wife. Then, we went to the local nursing home and spent some time with the people there. I have to admit, after the long drive there (over 400 miles of it was in snow/sleet) and the Saturday night fellowship after we'd only been there for an hour... then the full Sunday we'd had so far, I was wiped out! I went over to the parsonage and laid down for about an hour while my husband met with the pulpit committee and Senior Pastor. He came back to the parsonage and we spoke for a while. We both had peace that this was where God wanted us. There was just this little issue of whether or not the church would vote us in. He had to have 75% majority vote. So, we headed over for the evening service.
That night the Senior Pastor did a short devotion and then they had their annual business meeting. After the other business was taken care of, they brought us up front and allowed the church members to ask us questions. Talk about being nervous! They asked good questions, too! After all the questioning was over, we were sent into one of the offices to wait for the church to discuss and vote. When the lady came and got us we couldn't tell anything from her expression. When we entered the back of the church, everyone was standing and the Senior Pastor had us come forward. He told us that the church had voted to extend a pastoral position offer to my husband and asked if he'd accept their call. He looked at me and we didn't have to say a word to each other. We knew God wanted us there. He accepted the position of Pastor of Outreach and Family. Then the Senior Pastor said, "I'm not sure how to feel about this, but you got a higher % vote than I did! You got 96%!" We were so excited to know that that many people voted for him!
That was such a HUGE BLESSING! We are still so thankful to God for putting us back to work!
You know, I've served in a church since I was a teenager. I served because I was a good girl and I knew it would please my parents and I knew it would please my pastor. I did the right things, but for the wrong reasons. Pleasing your parents and a godly pastor are certainly not bad things, but pleasing God is so much more important. That's what I want to do with the rest of my life. I want to serve Him however He lets me, and I want to do it to please Him. I don't want to get to Heaven and realize I haven't earned any rewards to lay at His feet! He has been so faithful to me and shown me such grace and mercy... I can't even begin to tell you and I'd be so ashamed to tell you of many things. I just know that I don't want to mess up this time. I want so desperately to get to Heaven and hear Him say, "Well done!" This is my desire and my prayer.
I know this is a LONG post, but I have more to tell.
So, where are we going to live? That was the question on our minds on the long drive back to PA. It's hard to search for a home when you are several states away! The day after we got home the Senior Pastor called and had already found a house for us! Then, two days later he said to hold off on that one because he'd found a better one! This is where I'm asking for you to specifically pray. We have 2 cats and a dog. They are well trained. The cats are old, declawed, and fixed. They are more like floor rugs than anything else. None of the animals are destructive in any way. The owners of this house are just finishing fixing it up because the tenants had animals that destroyed things. The husband is fine with pets. The wife isn't. Please pray that God would either change her mind and let us get this house OR that He'd show us where He wants us to live. This particular house is exactly what we'd been praying for... big enough for the wheelchair, a rancher with a basement & a garage. We're not looking for fancy, just practical and in our budget.
Then there was the issue of how to afford to move? Guess what? One of the deacons owns a trucking company and said just to let him know the day we'll be ready and he'll have a tractor trailer here to pick up our stuff and have it waiting for us when we got there! It was like God was saying, "Okay, what's next on your list?"
Well, that would be a real estate investment that we've been trying to sell for about a year. This week, it sold! No, not the way we expected it to sell... we're basically walking away without any profit... but it sold! Sure, we've got to get the paperwork all done, but it sold! I'm telling you, God was going down our check list that we'd been praying over!
What to do with our house? That's the next thing. I'm not worrying about it. I know He's going to take care of that as well!
I really shouldn't type all this at 3 a.m. I'm just wide awake and I'm excited and nervous. I hope you (if anyone still reads this blog) will pray for us as we head out on this new adventure!
The verse I shared above is one that has been on my heart for almost 2 years. It's SO TRUE! Our hearts were sick from our hope being deferred, but now -- WOW! That tree of life is an AWESOME feeling!
This is a great responsibility. We aren't taking it lightly. It's also going to be tough financially, but I know that God is going to take care of us. He always has. He is AMAZING!
Too marvelous for words
Too wonderful of comprehension
Like nothing ever seen or heard
Who can grasp you infinite wisdom
Who can fathom the depth of your love
You are beautiful beyond description
Majesty enthroned above
And I stand, I stand in awe of you
I stand, I stand in awe of you
Holy God to whom all praise is due
I stand in awe of you."
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