Whispers from God

Sometimes I am afraid I do not love enough.

You love more than almost anyone I have seen. 

You have a source of unending love, Me.

Sometimes, when you love, you are not going to be loved back,

 or you will be hurt, but don't let it keep you from loving other people.

Thank you, Lord, for helping me to see I should not be afraid to love.

The Light of God's love is covering the dark gray sin in the background.

God's love covers all.  His love covers the sin in my life.  

His love can cover the sin in yours too, because Jesus paid it all when He died on the cross.  He was the sacrifice for all our sins.  

He arose from the dead on the third day, and he is in heaven with Father-God:  and, He will be coming back for those who believe and follow Him.

God, Larger Than My Pain

The Psalms have ministered to my soul and filled my heart with gladness time after time.  How blessed is the man or woman that knows God through the Lord Jesus Christ!  He is larger than my pain, larger than my sins, and larger than any temporal happiness on this earth.  He is everything.  The devotion today is based on Psalm 119: 81-88, with an emphasis on verses 87-88. 

God Is Larger Than My Pain

When life on earth is fraught

 With pain and anguish

With darts undeserved

With arrows that have buried deep within my soul,

I look to you oh God, my Savior.

I cry,

I do not understand.

I ask you to help me to love,

To forgive;

Yet, 

Those who are supposed to love me 

Never say they're sorry.

And, I wonder if I will see them when I leave this earth

Will they want to be forgiven then?

Will some of them be in heaven and others not?

I only know of one who ever took the time to say it was wrong

To spoil the song with lies.

My heart fills when I know how this woman cares, 

In obedience, she loves God enough 

To go to her sister and brothers

To mend what has been broken.

God makes her strong.

Life's stresses and strains.

Pounding the body and soul of God's child, 

Sometimes feels like an ocean's undertow,

That threatens to drown.

Yet,

There is hope for me the sinner, saved by grace.

Though I am weak, He is strong.

He carries me along, 

Until the song can be sung

Loudly in glorious praise.

My God, my Jesus has not forsaken me, 

Nor, I Him.

His precepts live within.

He will not let me fall.

He holds me, 

And waits for me to reach,

To trust,

To be ready to step out again,

Even when, 

I am afraid, my Lord is here

with me.

© D. Bolton 2013 

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, thank You for Your love and for Your mercy.  Thank You for loving me so much, that You sent Jesus to be my Savior. As a sinner saved by Your grace, I often wonder how I could not spend more time with the One, who is everything, who will never let me down, who will  always love me.  And then, tonight I read the  words of David:  They had almost consumed me upon earth;  but I forsook not thy precepts (KJV, Psalm 119:87).  *The word "forsake"

took on new meaning for me, as I knew in my spirit, that though I may fail and become weak -- it does not mean I have forsaken your precepts.  Help me to do the thing that has been hard for me because of the associations it brings back to my body, mind, and emotions.  This is different for each person, Lord. You know mine. I am trusting and thanking You for Your answer. 

In Jesus'  Holy Name I Pray, 

Amen.

*Note:  To forsake something means to leave it forever.  King David in the Old Testament sinned, as we all do.  He also suffered unjustly in his life;  yet, the true desire of his heart was to follow God's precepts.  That is what I see:  it is the true heart, the one given you by God that counts.  I would never have seen this if I had not been feeling badly for not spending more time in God's word.  The Holy Spirit within me motivated me to put down my other pursuits that were not bad in themselves, but I had let myself stray by not putting aside time to study the Bible. I am so glad I listened.  God filled me with His joy.

The Lord's Love Supported Me

As I read Psalm 94: 17-19, I was reminded of God's presence, His truth, His mercy, and His comfort.  I was reminded that I have called upon Him and felt certain that He understands and loves me. 

Psalm 94: 17-19 (KJV)
17 Unless the Lord had been my help, my soul had almost dwelt in silence.
18 When I said, My foot slippeth; thy mercy, O Lord, held me up.
19 In the multitude of my thoughts (anxiety) within me thy comforts delight my soul.

Even when I have not known how to pray as I should, when I have not had the words to say how I felt, when all I could do is cry, and I had no answer other than the promise of His salvation -- I knew I could trust and that God had heard.  Verses 26 - 27 of Romans 8 make this absolutely clear.  And I knew what was a bad situation was in God's hands, because all things work together for good to them that love God, to them that are called according to his purpose (KJV, Romans 8:28).

If you have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, then I am sure you will see the glorious truth that God cares for you, even when you  despair, even when you experience the infirmities that come upon you while you are a sojourner, waiting for the glorious coming of our Lord. 

Romans 8: 26-28 (KJV)

26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Prayer:  May God bless you and keep you.  May He fill you with the peace and comfort of His love.  Amen

Our Heavenly Father of Lights

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.  In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of the truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures (NASB, James 1:17-18).

Image courtesy of nuttakit/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How I love these verses!  Can you picture our Father-God in the heavens, the creator -- not the created?  He exercised His will to bring  forth man -- that's us;  moreover, he made us to be special -- a kind of first fruits among His creatures (v. 18).  Man is not ordinary:  he is beloved by God.  

Not only that, but God brought Jesus Christ into our world in the form of man, and He is a kind of first fruits, as well.  He is the only-begotten son of God (John 3:16), he died , was buried, was resurrected and lives in a glorified body.  According to 1 Corinthians 15:20, Jesus is a kind of first fruits of those who have died and will be resurrected.   And someday, we who believe will be with Him.  

Image courtesy
of Nuttakit/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

There is more that touches me in this passage:  God is the Father of lights (v. 17).  All the stars that we see in the skies, the planets, the beautiful pictures that astronomers have taken of nebulae and other things that exist in outer space.  That is His territory too.  He made it, and it is wondrous and beautiful.  

Finally, James tells us with whom [God] there is no variation or shifting shadow (v.17).  God never changes:  we can always depend on Him to be God.  He has no hidden agendas:  we can trust Him.  And we can trust the words that He sent us in the Bible.  Our God is loving, faithful, and reliable.  He loves you and me.

Prayer:  Father of lights, Creator of all that is good, I praise you.  I lift my voice up in thanksgiving for your many blessings.  And, I thank you for the reminders of your great power and love You have left in the heavens for us to see.  As I watch the night sky, I am in awe of the immensity of your creation and You.  There are not enough words to express how You fill my heart.  In Jesus Name,  Amen

Free from Doubt

There have been times during my illness, that I have begun to doubt important things I know about myself. The most crucial aspect of my life I doubted was my relationship to God;  and this is something I thought I would never doubt.  However, I felt guilty because I wasn't doing the activities that I felt were part of my spiritual service, and even though, I knew my fellowship with the Lord did not depend on activity, I struggled with being too sick to attend church, teach, or sing in the choir.  Your activities may be different.  Perhaps, you have been a volunteer in your community, and you felt like that was your service.  It is hard to give it up.  

I lacked discipline in studying God's word, my prayer life suffered--so it seemed to me.  I couldn't concentrate, and I watched too much television.  I had more time than ever on my hands  to spend time with God, but that was sporadic at best.  I never seemed to be able to finish a Christian book.  I even thought I was a failure as a Christian -- you see, I felt like a failure, because I couldn't get well;  and,  that  is just stinkin' thinkin', as my husband would say.


One of the verses that I have had to read over and over again is Romans 8:35:  Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  (NASB).   I  have been reminded that illness does not separate me from God or His love.  In Romans 8:38-39, I am told that ...that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Absolutely, nothing can separate me or you from God's love if we are in Christ Jesus.