Psalm 148

It's 67 degrees in Michigan this morning, and I was able to have my quiet time outside on my patio for the first time since late last October. I've been waiting for this day with such great anticipation, because something about being outdoors with my Jesus makes me feel ever so close to Him. I thought it appropriate to read Psalm 148 while I enjoyed spring awakening all around me. New life. Here's my personal take on what I saw and felt in relation to the psalmist's words so many years ago.

HalleluYah! If I could part the morning curtains, just an inch or two -- would I see Your Majesty seated on a throne of glory, right above my head? Are you THAT close, just on the other side of those white puffy clouds? It gives me great comfort to imagine that you are.

If my ears could only hear the seraphs and a great company of the heavenly host singing "HalleluYah", I would cry, "Woe is me!", fall on my face, and join their chorus of "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of His glory". (Isaiah 6:3)

HalleluYah! A new day! Pink hues on the horizon announce the rising of the morning sun. The moon moves aside to take its rightful place until dusk. Your faithfulness on grand display!

HalleluYah! You fashioned the stars, the clouds, the galaxies and the highest heavens above out of nothing. "Let there be..." There they will remain, day after day, year after year, until that same Voice cries, "I am making everything new!" (Revelation 21:5)

HalleluYah! Praise Him on the earth! He walks on the waters. The clouds are His chariots. He rides on the wings of the wind. Lightning goes before Him and righteousness is the foundation of His throne.

At His Voice the mountains and oak trees bow. HalleluYah! Praise Him all creatures, great and small. Praise Him, squirrels (yes, squirrels!). Praise Him rabbits and all you cardinals, blue jays, chickadees and sparrows.

HalleluYah! You kings and rulers and presidents. Men and women of all ages, nations and tribes. Mosaics of people, tapestries of color. Different. Diverse. Dearly loved. Each and every one.

HalleluYah! His name is wonderful, awesome, exalted above all. His splendor is greater than all the heavens and the earth!

HalleluYah! He has raised up Jesus, the Lord's Christ -- for us -- for you and for me -- the people close to His heart.

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world." (Psalm 19: 1-4)

HalleluYah!

Love Hurts

My one year old daughter, Miss Ashton as Gammy affectionately calls her, has been battling a stuffy nose for the past few weeks. This up and down, Topsy Turvy Michigan weather has sent her nasal passages awry. Daily I have to pin her down and suction out her nose with an aspirator as she screams, kicks, flails, and cries her little heart out. It breaks my heart into pieces inflicting discomfort and maybe even pain on her, but I have to do it. It is what is best for her. If I don't, something worse could happen, like an ear infection. She doesn't understand that though. She doesn't see that she must go through that momentary "hell" in order to keep her safe and healthy.



Don't we do the same thing as adults with God? Sometimes it seems like we are pinned down in pain and discomfort asking God "Why are you doing this to me?" tears streaming down our faces. We pray for it to stop, and we don't understand why God would let such bad things happen to us? Have we done something wrong? Is He mad at us? Are we being punished? Where is He in our time of need?



Just as I am doing what I know is best for Ashton, God does what He knows is best for us. Even if it means some pain and discomfort in the mean time. We get so caught up in the little blip on the grand scale of eternity that is our life, and the even more microscopic blip that is this day or week or month, that we often fail to see the bigger picture. I know that there have been so many times in my life that I have cried out "WHY GOD? WHY?" Looking back, hind sight is 20/20. Knowing where it has gotten me, what was accomplished, what I learned, and even what I've brought to other peoples lives through my own personal pain and discomfort, I see it. I get the big picture, after the fact at least.



I pray that we can stop living for our own glory and live for His. That we can understand that sometimes we need to be "held down and tortured" to achieve what His plan for us is. We need to remember that these are not spankings, but growing pains. And even if we don't understand now, we need to trust in Him, that He has a plan, because He ALWAYS does.



Miss Ashton may hate me while I aspirate her little nose, but when it's over, and she takes a deep breath through her freshly unclogged nostrils, she knows why I had to do it.



"For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

In Christ's love,

Kelly