Hope

Scripture Memory:

because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth,

(Colossians 1:5-6 ESV)

Insights:

A double one again today. It seems God is always ready to open up these verses each time I look at them. If I had any doubt that God's word is alive and active, my experience in the last few days would certainly dispel that notion!

The first one is from the phrase "the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth." For most people the day they heard and understood the grace of God occur on the same day. In my case from the day I heard to the day I finally understood it took 16 years. My cousin, Tony, shared the gospel with me in the kitchen of our rental home in Daisy Place. We were eating dinner and I scoffed when he said if we accept Jesus Christ as my savior, all our sins are forgiven - past, present and future. That was 1987. I did not fully understand the grace of God in truth until 2003. It took three deaths - that of my maternal grandmother, my good friend and my mother - for everything to finally sink in. I finally got it. And I thought I was smart....


This morning the word hope caught my attention. February 28 has always been special to my husband and me. Today is the 31st anniversary of when Agent G and I started our relationship. We were young and so in love. I admit there are days when everything is difficult. But God! This morning, He gave me a special gift. I smiled when I saw it. Right there where that black blob is - wait, what IS that thing? A bird? A plane? Superman? Dirt on my window (most likely)? Anyway, right there - do you see it? The very faintest of rainbows curving down to the "N" in the sign. Just because He knows I love rainbows so much. It's His way of saying there is hope, no matter how faint. It's still there. 


Yes, even in the midst of unidentified black blobs, the things that I don't understand and dark clouds, overwhelming circumstances, dark emotions ~ there's hope. Thank you, Father.

Ten Thousand Reasons

Scripture Memory:

We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints,

(Colossians 1:3-4 ESV)

Insights:

When I first memorized these two verses, the phrase that jumped out at me was on verse 3 "when we pray for you," in particular the word "when." I wrote down "continual intercession for my brothers and sisters in Christ should be a part of my daily prayer life. My prayers should not just be focused on my comfort and my needs alone (and there are many). Like my reading in Revelation 5 this morning, it says that my prayers are like incense in a golden bowl. May it be a pleasing aroma to God, my Father!"

That was on February 15th. I thought I was done. A short and concise post - for a change.

But at the last minute, God gave me something else.

As I have shared with a friend, so far life has been a tad hard the last couple of days, weeks, months, okay, really it's the whole year. I suppose when you start 2012 with a visit to Urgent Care for your child it is sending you a message: "Girl ~ Hi, this is 2012. You're in for a ride. Watch out!" Thanks, 2012 I hope the Mayans were right about you.

Inspite of the challenges though, I find myself clinging more to God lately in the form of a song. "Bless the Lord, o my soul, oh my soul, worship His holy name, sing like never before, O my soul, worship Your holy name."

At home = sing. At church = sing. At work = sing (softly). In the shower = sing (LOUDLY). Earlier when I read Ann Voskamp's blog, she had a link to a YouTube video - and I couldn't believe it - it's my song! Well, it's Matt Redman's actually but you know what I mean. I felt like I just received a kiss from God. I took out my headphones and spent my lunch hour just singing, praising and crying. I felt my soul soaring. That is my when eyes fell on Colossians 1:3 "We always thank God...." In this context, my song sounds even better especially after reading the rest of the lyrics (I was stuck in the refrain). I'm posting it below. May it bless you as it has blessed me.

Matt Redman - Ten Thousand Reasons (10,000 Reasons) (Bless the Lord), New Album - 10,000 reasons, Year: 2011

Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name

The sun comes up, it's a new day dawning
It's time to sing Your song again
Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me
Let me be singing when the evening comes

Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name

You're rich in love, and You're slow to anger
Your name is great, and Your heart is kind
For all Your goodness I will keep on singing
Ten thousand reasons for my heart to find

Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name

And on that day when my strength is failing
The end draws near and my time has come
Still my soul will sing Your praise unending
Ten thousand years and then forevermore

Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name

Jesus, I'll worship Your holy name
Lord, I'll worship Your holy name

Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name
Jesus, I'll worship Your holy name
I'll worship Your holy name

May you find your 10,000 reasons to praise God today.

Adventures in Colossians

Hi, again. Excuse the dust. I have been busy posting twice a week on this blog and have neglected this one. You might ask, "But, Grace & Peace, you can't even keep up with this blog, why start another one?" Trust me, I'm asking that question myself. All I can say is: It's all God's fault. :) It's His idea not mine.

Sometimes God can be a tad...demanding. Not only does He want me reading His Word daily in 2012, He also wanted me to memorize Colossians in a year. Ahem, actually, He asked me to do that last year. But due to my son's illness (and my inherent laziness), I let it fall through. So, truthfully, it's not His fault.

What I plan to do is to post the two verses each day (or week or let's be realistic, however long it takes me) plus the insights that He gives as I ponder those two verses. I chose the ESV instead of the NIV used in Ann's blog (see, another excuse - I'm good at finding those).

Shall we begin?

I admit my weakness, I'm motivated by cute. And this notebook I found at Staples from the Martha Stewart line is very cute:

I printed the verses on the Avery 8164 labels (6 to a sheet) so I couldn't use the excuse of "I don't have time to cut and paste the verses!" The label fits perfectly in the notebook. It was done in no time!

What are we waiting for? Let's go!

[x] Memorize:

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father.

(Colossians 1:1-2 ESV)

Insights:

Paul became an apostle by the will of God. He was a Pharisee (Philippians 3:5-7) and in his own words, a "persecutor of the church." But God (I love this phrase - anytime you see that it means something good is about to happen) had something in mind for him (see what I mean?). Something that is beyond his imaginings. Paul preached the gospel to the Gentiles and his writings live on today.

God can give someone a Damascus experience where the blindness and scales will fall afterwards. No one is beyond the reach of God's mighty hand. Amen and Amen.

What hope that gives me!