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E-mailed Every Friday - Isaiah 55:1
"The floods have lifted up, O Lord, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves." (Psalm 93:3)
When our second son was born, he was placed in the intensive care unit within a couple of hours after birth. He had developed a hole in one lung, and then later, the other lung. After about a week, he seemed to be fine. The doctors had taken him off the respirator and he was breathing normally. They had taken the tubes out of his chest. Our hopes and spirits were lifted that he would be coming home soon. Then suddenly, his abdomen began filling with fluid, his was dehydrating, and he was fast approaching death unless emergency surgery was performed. We were overwhelmed. Where once there was hope and faith, suddenly there was despair. The enemy had come in like a flood.
Not only did the flood come in, it also lifted up its voice. "God doesn't care!", the flood's voice declared. It screamed at us, "Your baby is going to die! There's no use! You might as well give up!"
Perhaps the flood you are enduring now is screaming these same words at you. Your trial may be different, but the voice is always the same, "Give up! God doesn't care! There's no hope! There's no use in going on!"
Listen my friends. I have good news for you. Sometimes the noise of a storm is more terrifying than the storm itself. The floods may lift up their voices, and they may make a lot of noise, but "The Lord on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea." (Psalm 93:4). Hallelujah!
Best of the Trade
The
Lord gave me beauty for ashes,
And for sorrow He gave to me joy.
I was sad and oppressed, Jesus gave to me rest.
And a peace that this world can't destroy.
I
was poor and had nothing worth having,
Disappointments had saddened my life;
But now I'm rich as can be,
Since He traded with me,
This river of peace for my strife.
Chorus
I
traded my sins for salvation,
I traded my load for relief;
I obtained peace for my condemnation,
And the joy of the Lord for my grief.
I traded a life that was wasted,
For a temple to dwell in God-made;
What I got was so much more,
Than what He received, Well, I sure got the best of the trade.
-- Author Unknown
Spiritual Burnout
Jackie joined me for breakfast while I was conducting meetings in a Midwestern city. She and her husband had been members of a mainline denominational church since they had moved to the city some years before.
"I suppose I am being unthankful and asking for too much," she smiled nervously as she spoke, "but I sometimes ask myself about the Christian life. I mean, is this it? Is this all there is? Don't misunderstand me; it's so much better than anything we ever had before. God is real to me, but honestly, what we call church is not much more than a religious club. I get so frustrated sometimes. Did Jesus die and rise again to be the founder of a club... sing in the choir, drive our kids to concerts, send them to church school, listen to pep talks every Sunday and say 'Amen' in the right place and go bowling with church people on Tuesday nights? If this is what Jesus is all about, He's very boring!"
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You can know Christ today as your Savior. Pray this prayer: Dear Jesus, I know I am a sinner. I know that you died on the cross for my sins and have risen from the dead. I open my heart to receive You as my Savior and Lord. Forgive me of my sins. Change me, and make me into the kind of person You want me to be. Help me to live for You and to share Your love with others. Amen.
Did you pray this prayer? Please tell us!
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