The Strength of Christ

"Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."
1 Cor. 1:31

God has given me so many reasons to boast in Him lately, and I must tell the blogger world! (Even if no one reads this haha) It seems that scripture is taken on a new meaning anymore these days. God is truly speaking and showing me new promises each day. I want to share a few of those with you.

"Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

In Webster's Dictionary, the word 'desire' means to long or hope for. Likewise, 'delight' means to have extreme satisfaction. I have always thought this verse was about me, self. If I wanted something, God was surely going to grant it to me. But, truth is that this life is not about me at all! And, God does long to give you the desires of your heart as long as it is in His will and His plan, not yours. AND, and, look again at the word 'desire.' Desire is more than just wanting something, it is something so deep down, something you yearn for, and sometimes maybe something you honestly didn't expect. That last part may not make sense, but see if you can understand this. I don't always go about saying everything I long for to everyone who passes by, and often not to even my closest friends and family. But, at times there is something deep inside of you that you have put off for so long and when the time has come, and in God's plan, he will grant you that desire. Sometimes you almost forget it is there. In Matthew, God says He has numbered the very hairs on our head. Don't you think He cares about our most intimate details of our lives such as our desires? I think so! I won't go into detail what brought this about, but I have to give God the glory for showing me He does care...even in the things that may not be a big deal, it was a big deal to me.

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake , I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Cor. 12:9-10

God has once again shown me His timing is perfect. I have thought about writing this specific blog for a couple of weeks now, but I just haven't until tonight. God showed me His strength again today and the need for us to draw near to Him in times of suffering. Part of the lyrics by Francesca Battistelli in "Beautiful, Beautiful" states "But even perfect days can end in rain." Every time I hear this song, those words stand out to me like bright flashing lights. This made sense again when, after a decent day at work, I entered my car and within 5 minutes received a text message saying my high school English teach had passed away. Mind you, I was on my way to Vacation Bible School and had to be strong for everyone around, correct? So my on and off again crying spells led me to the church parking lot where I fixed my makeup and headed into the church where I went to my mom's room to hand her my keys. Right then, I broke down. I had prayed for God's strength to get me through the next couple of hours. I realized when I was crying that sometimes God's strength comes through other avenues such as my mom. He allows us to completely fall into His arms, broken and hurt. You see, that is His strength to me. It isn't about being the tough person, but surrendering yourself to Christ and His power.

I sat through the funeral today of my beloved teacher and did fairly well. However, I noticed the pain and hurt of her grandson and daughter. You might expect it from the daughter, but the grandson is a 'manly soldier' who could not hide the pain. And, I felt so little. I have always been one to want to help stop others from hurting, but sometimes you are helpless. You see we all have hurt, and it doesn't all come in the same package. Sometimes it hurts at times more than others and sometimes you may just feel numb. But, speaking from experience, God is the Ultimate Healer. His strength is incomparable to what we can do alone. I can't say that it is always easy, but I have no idea how I could go through pain in my life without the hope of Jesus Christ. Allow His strength to be your resting place today, friend.

I am leaving you with a picture of my niece and me at VBS this year...