We may think of strength in practical terms as in physical stature and ability or mental confidence through knowledge and practice but this is a natural view and is not what truly sustains us. It is the power of Christ’s Spirit that gives us inner strength; a fortitude that keeps us pressing forward in hope. When we are weak then He is strong. “For though He was crucified in weakness, yet He lives by the power of God for we also are weak in Him, but we shall live with Him by the power of God toward you.” (2 Cor 13:4). We are constantly faced with our inabilities, knowing that we lack and do not have the resources we need to be able to overcome in the battle(s) we face in life. We need strength to believe, strength to get up when we get knocked down, strength to persevere, strength to withstand the enemy. Basically, we need the power of God who is the source of all strength (1 Chron 29:12; Ps 68:35). STRENGTH we find is a title given to Yahweh “And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor relent. For He is not a man, that He should relent” (1 Sam 15:29). I love the biblical stories of men and women who overcame great adversity through the empowerment of God. Despite years of silence where there may have been no manifestation of their personal promise. Our biblical heroes may have been discredited, ridiculed and scoffed at but we see God through His providence using the weak things of this world to confound the wise. One such story is that of Zerubbabel.

 Zerubbabel was the first governor of the repatriated Jews (Hag 2:21); a descendant of King David and an ancestor of Jesus Christ (Mt 1:12).  In 586BC, Jerusalem was conquered by Babylon and the original temple that Solomon had built 400 years prior was destroyed. They took captive and exiled the Jews, including Zerubbabel, forcing them on a 1000 mile march to Babylon. I can imagine these people being worn down with malnutrition, sickness, wounds from battle and dying along the way. After arriving in Babylon many began assimilating into the Babylonian culture of comfort and ease. Fifty years later, King Cyrus of the Persia conquered Babylon. He was stirred up in his spirit by the Lord to make a proclamation that any person from Judah held in captivity could return to Jerusalem to help rebuild Solomon’s temple. Zerubbabel, with King Cyrus’ blessing led a remnant group of Jews that were moved with compassion in their spirits to return back to Jerusalem to help rebuild the temple (Ez 1:1-8).

 As they approached Jerusalem, the people of the land may have said, “Who are these pathetic looking people coming out of the wilderness”? After finding out these people were the remnant Jews that were returning from Babylon to rebuild the temple; this might have given them reason to scoff, laugh at, and despise their intentions. After arriving to a hostile crowd they began the work of rebuilding the altar and foundation to the temple.

 No sooner had the altar and the foundation stones of the new temple been laid then spiteful opposition arose to stop the work. “Then the people of the land tried to discourage the people of Judah. They troubled them in building, and hired counselors against them to frustrate their purpose all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia” (Ez 4:4-5).

 For approximately the next 16 years Zerubbabel had to overcome discouragement, doubt, fear, and accusations with the thought that he may never see the temple rebuilt in his lifetime. By sight only the altar and foundation stones for the temple had been laid. Any attempt to continue the work of building the temple itself would have been quickly shut down. Where was Zerubbabel going to find the strength he needed to accomplish such great endeavor?

 Around this time Zechariah the prophet received a vision from God that he was instructed to tell Zerubbabel (Zech 4:1-10). The temple would be rebuilt by the perfect work of the Holy Spirit that flowed through the weakness of Zerubbabel!! “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the LORD of hosts” (vs.6). God’s Spirit would equip Zerubbabel with supernatural strength and provision to finish the work of rebuilding the temple.

 The second temple would be built within the next 4 years (516BC), after King Darius reaffirmed the original Decree by King Cyrus. The mountain of obstacles that previously hindered the temple from being rebuilt would be leveled as a plain before Zerubbabel, “Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain!” (Zech 4:7) Zerubbabels own hands would finish the work he had started some 20 years earlier (Zech 4:9-10). Most likely not what Zerubbabel had expected when he first set his hand to the work but it was God’s plan. “Then the children of Israel, the priests and the Levites and the rest of the descendants of the captivity, celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy” (Ezra 6:16).  

 God also has a unique work for you and me to do while we are here on the earth. Don’t be discouraged if you do not see progress in the work. Over time God will make it plain, “who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began” (2 Tim 1:9). We have been set apart for a divine purpose. God has something he wants to do through our lives. Invite God to be conformed to His Son in your soul.  “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” (2 Cor 3:18).  In trials, temptations, adversity and wilderness times or success, notoriety or blessings that God adds; we must agree with Paul to be content whether we are abased or abound and trust that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us (Phi 4:11-13).  “For with God nothing is ever impossible and no word from God shall be without power or impossible of fulfillment” (Lu 1:37). As my good friend Natalie Nichols has said, “Our job is to rest, knowing nothing is impossible and GOD IS FAITHFUL! His job is to determine when and how he fulfills.”

“Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me”(Matt 11:4-6). What wonderful good news Jesus gave to the disciples of John the Baptist! The gospel was being preached and physical miracles were taking place. The prophecies in Isaiah were being fulfilled that only the coming Messiah could complete. Why then would John lose faith in Christ and tell his disciples to find Jesus and ask Him, “are you the one or should we look for another (Mt 11:3)?”

Perhaps it was because John was in prison and King Herod was about ready to have him beheaded! John’s physical reality caused him to question what he professed to believe. What about his deliverance? What about his miracle? John had prepared the way for the Messiah  to set up HIS Kingdom (Is 40:3). His life’s calling and purpose was in doubt. John’s idea of a reigning Messiah did not tolerate this kind of injustice. Doubt and unbelief silently crept into his dark prison cell. The devil, like a roaring lion was encircling John the Baptist; ready to kill him and his witness of Jesus Christ. If the devil could get John to have disbelief and regret for proclaiming Jesus, then John’s claims of the Messiah would be lacking creditability. In fact, all of John’s life and dedication to God would be called into question. In His response to the inquiry made by John’s disciples, Jesus, lovingly told them to convey to John not to be offended by Him (Greek scandalizo-to trip up, trapped, ensnared). John was not to lose faith or be ensnared by the devil because of the trial he was in.

I have often wondered what happened to all the people after they were healed by Jesus (Mt 11:4-6) . Would they have been offended because physical healing did not fulfill all their expectations? Would they have lost their testimony because of persecution? Many probably wanted a healing so they could return to their old lifestyle. Others genuinely were converted to become living testimonies to God’s saving and healing power. Others may have been persecuted and forced to distant lands, thrown in prison or martyred for their faith in Christ. Some of us are also going through or may soon enter into trials that test our faith. The devil wants to steal our testimony and destroy our life by wearing us down. “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another” (Mt 24:9, 10). Be of good cheer, Christ has overcome the world! The trial of your faith is more precious than gold and our suffering is never wasted. God bottles every tear. You are so precious in His sight and He is not slack concerning His promises.

I continue to believe God for healing despite the many setbacks and losses I have faced. I get impatient at times and wonder why I still believe the dream/visitation I had one night In March 1998, while visiting Arizona. Jesus was loving and so personal throughout my encounter with Him that particular night; He put His hope and faith in me for healing. Although visibly and otherwise, it would appear impossible to fulfill the quest given to me; I cannot ignore, justify or reason it away. I just cannot shake it! I think of it daily; it has kept me alive. It is through patiently enduring  that we inherit the promises (Heb 6:12-15). God is working patience in my soul and wants me to depend on Him to fulfill what He has started (Rom 4:20,21). GLORY be to GOD!! Although I may get impatient and falter because my prayers have not been answered in the way and within the time I wanted them; I have set my heart not to be offended in Christ. I don’t want to let the enemy project to my mind that God does not have my best interest for HIS GLORY as the over ruling determiner. Only He really knows the works of believing I am to do for Him (Jn 6:29) . We overcome the devil “by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony, not loving our lives to the death” (Rev 12:11). Fellow believer, we are to rejoice and trust Him during the trying of our faith.

The enemy of our soul wants to trip us up, causing us to lose faith in our loving Father and to think that there is no way out and we are stuck in a hopeless situation. As we pray for understanding and bring our petitions to the Father; stand on the promises in the Word of God. The Holy Spirit will give you grace and enlarge your capacity to withstand testing. Hold onto the promises and direction God ministers to you in particular. The promise for your future is an anchor for your soul and gives you steadfastness to endure. What has God ministered to you personally? His thoughts toward you are good and not of evil to give you an expected end; seek His face and cling to the promises He imparts to you.

“Knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing” (Jm 1:3, 4)

 Scott Brodie Praises w/daughters July 25 2010

Thomas, Semhar, Kelati, Iyda, Azieb with grandaughter, Lily

Our hearts are with Kelati Weldegaber who lost his wife, Azieb, to ALS  earlier in August of this year. We met Kelati while we were looking for a mobility vehicle. He and his younger daughter, Semhar, drove their van to our house in late August for us to see. When Scott and I came outside to view the vehicle, we were instantly struck by Kelati’s generous smile and kind disposition. His countenance seemed to radiate a supernatural joy. There was an immediate connection between us that is uncommon to total strangers. Semhar, had a quiet attentiveness that seemed beyond her 22 years. We test drove and learned more about the purchase of their vehicle but we were more taken with our new found friends. We invited them into our house, as we visited for the next few hours we learned more about the journey they had unexpectantly traveled this year.

Kelati and Azieb were originally from Eritrea (North Africa) a tiny country between Sudan and Ethiopia. The couple had just been delivered the diagnosis of ALS earlier this year, only 5-6 months before her passing. During these months, several things were important for her to do. Of these things they had traveled to Spain to see their son, Thomas, play basketball and had gone to Los Angeles to be in their older daughter, Iyda’s wedding. Azieb died days after the joyous wedding celebration.

As we sat in our living room visiting, Scott and I witnessed the comfort of the Holy Spirit and a settled assurance in God that rested on both Kelati and Semhar although they had many unanswered questions. The group of us were faced with the stark difference of the abrupt loss of a very much loved wife, mother, grandmother and friend and the slower progression of Scott’s 13 year sojourn into his ALS diagnosis.  Our common bond of fellowship, however, was not in the destruction and devastation of this disease but rather in the sufficiency of Christ. God had been meeting the needs of each of us and we were trusting Him to continue to do so. There was no awkward comparisons but an agreement of heart knowing that our loving Father has a reason and a divine purpose. One day we will each understand, when all things are revealed and God makes known His eternal plan.

Arise from the depression that has caused you to bow to circumstance and has kept you from shining your light!! “For the glory of the LORD has risen upon you” (Is 60:1)!

 Jesus said; “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Mt 5:14-16).  Praise the Lord!

 We are not to hide the light of Christ within us with fear and shame; allowing the devil to paralyze us because of past sin, insecurity or unworthiness that hinders us to take a step of faith into the unknown. Do not lose heart fellow believer; Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith (Heb 12:2 NIV)! For those that love Him, He will redeem the things that are seemingly against them, so that they are all for their sakes that the life of Christ may be glorified. Jesus endured the cross, despising the shame for the joy that was set before Him. What seemed like defeat was actually the greatest victory ever won! Yes, the Lord had JOY set before Him. JOY that overcame shame, humiliation, pain and suffering! JOY; that the eternal purpose was being fulfilled. Jesus paid the price for our redemption so that sin would not stand in the way of our reconciliation to the Father. He is the light of the world, those that follow Him shall not walk in darkness but shall have the light of life (John 8:12). Through the same joy in purpose He took away the keys of death and hell from Satan so we would no longer have to fear death. He has conquered the Grave! Praise you Jesus! I am restored to the JOY of my salvation, upheld by His generous Spirit (Ps 51:12)! Yes Lord, your Joy is my strength (Neh 8:10)! Praise you my King!

Many people drift away from Christ when they become weary of life’s struggles, overcome in the battle of life. They are just plain tired of all the trouble; financial, emotional, physical or marital stresses. Pressures are all around, concerns for things out of our control.  These burdens we cannot carry, they are too heavy for us. People are worn out and inwardly know that they don’t have all the answers within themselves for a lifetime of trials. Many just want to give up or sublimate in temporal fulfillment. The more they pray, the more trouble they see, with no end in sight. The great unanswered question “what is the purpose?”

Paul said, “But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear” (Phil 1:12-14).

Paul wrote this from a Roman jail, while being chained between two guards. He was chained to a circumstance beyond his control. He could have lost sight of his future because everything had changed for him. Paul’s tomorrows were taken away. He had two options; he could ask “why me? I do not deserve this” and begin to complain and murmur which would lead him into bitterness and a hardening of his heart or he could think with God and consider how he should react to the circumstance that had now come into his life. He could decide that he would let it count for Christ by letting it preach to others in the way he reacts. He chose to be a testimony and ministry for others. His afflictions had become a cause for his rejoicing. He did not say he was happy he was in prison. I’m sure he cried out for God to deliver him; praying for God to give him the grace to get through each day. Paul did not need people to pity him saying; “Poor Paul, he was dealt a bad hand in life” Paul did not just resign and give up by only saying “this is Gods will for me”. But rather he said, “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!” Phil 4:4. He was able to see that God was turning his sufferings around and working something good for others, so he could joyfully say that his sufferings were for the Philippians and other Christians.(1) What is your reaction when affliction comes your way? Does your life preach Christ?

I have some dear friends from South Africa and Texas who having been faced with terrible tragedy and suffering. They have chosen to allow Christ to be preached in the midst of their trial. As a result, thousands and thousands of lives have been saved and touched for the kingdom of God!

Retha McPherson of RethaMcPhersonMinistries.com recounts from her book; A MESSAGE FROM GOD:

“The entire McPherson family was involved in a terrible motor car accident. Retha, her husband Tinus and her youngest son Josh walked away with little or no injuries, but her eldest son Aldo felt the full brunt of the impact. He was thrown from the vehicle and found unconscious on the other side of the highway…Aldo was on life support for a long time after the accident, and during that time Retha was lifted into a new level of walking by faith and not by sight. Although Aldo sustained severe brain injuries as a result of the accident, Retha testifies: “God is good! He has awakened my Sprit to Him and I have come to know Him as a holy God who wants my life, not only my heart.” After a few weeks in a coma, Aldo finally woke up. While he was in a coma, he had a supernatural experience where he went to heaven, saw God, the angels, Moses and Abraham. Aldo came back with one message: “Jesus is alive!” Due to the seriousness of his injuries to his head Aldo was not able to speak for a long time and related his miraculous journey by writing letters lead by the Holy Spirit – which he is still doing today”.

Natalie Nichols shares from her website ShadesofGraceMinistries.com.

“In 1991, at 20 years old, Natalie was a senior honor student at Baylor University, a talented musician, and a gifted motivational speaker. In a matter of weeks, an undiagnosed illness suddenly progressed, taking her on a downward spiral. Finally in 1996, a correct diagnosis was made – late-stage Lyme disease. By this time there was little left that resembled the teenager who had begun the journey. What began with a flu, fatigue, stiffness, and pain had progressed until she was confined for over seven years in a wheelchair, a bed, and then within her mind, as the infectious disease caused severe cognitive destruction. It was only God’s grace that carried Natalie through this ultimate test of her faith. His Word literally became her sustenance from day to day. As with Job, the Lord brought her through her trial with His love and grace”

Natalie, Retha and Aldo are precious examples to me of people who, because of pure joy in serving their King, took up their cross, despised their shame and allowed Christ to be preached to others. One day soon we will all have to stand before Christ and give an account for our lives. Our eyes will be open, we will see His glory, we will see all the Angels that encamped around us. The Holy Spirit will reveal to us how He was always there in comfort and power; we will see our Father; the Great “I AM” in all His glory and majesty!! We don’t want to miss this because we allowed the devil to blind our eyes and ruin our testimony by his deception! NO! NO! Instead, we want the light of God’s countenance to rest on us in our lifetime having all joy and peace in believing, abounding in hope for the coming day. We will stand in heaven REJOICING!!! Knowing that we did not waste our sorrows in vain, but our affliction became the message of Christ’s faithfulness (Rm 14:10-12, 2Cor 5:10).

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(1)Thoughts from “Trusting God for all your Tomorrows” David Wilkerson 2006

Our Little Star 

Have you ever come to the place where you set your heart to seek God? You say “I want to go deeper and further in the Lord” “I don’t want to be lukewarm anymore” God begins to answer your prayers and move in your life. Suddenly in the midst of it you find yourself spiritually dry in a wilderness or desert place. Your thoughts are full of more questions “Why am I here?”, “Does anyone really care?” “Is God displeased with me?” “Is my life used by God to be a blessing to anyone to make a difference?”

These types of questions usually come when we feel alone in the wilderness. The things we had hoped for or expected seem empty. We begin to evaluate our lives and ask how we have failed God. I have also been contending with some of these nagging questions “Where is God in this time of trouble?”  My body and mind have been fatigued from repeated emergency room trips, hospital/nursing home stays, supportive equipment, supplies, medications, appointments, therapies and procedures. Notwithstanding the persistent humiliation of a life of dependence with an inability to give back. My mind continually fights a barrage of accusations urging me to give in. To quit trying to survive this recluse life, tube fed on formula with rounds of lung infections that compromise my ability to breathe. My physical body alone is seemingly powerless to survive several near death experiences. Truly, it has been the spirit that has sustained me on my bed of affliction.

“The spirit of a man will sustain him in sickness, but who can bear a broken spirit?” Proverbs 18:14

A voice came to me during these days of weakness and suggested to me, “if you want to go to heaven, you can go there now!” This sounded good to me. I could finally find rest from all the struggles of life.  I reasoned that God’s promise to me of healing must have been a spiritual promise only to be fulfilled in heaven and not on earth. I was so captivated with an escape to heaven that I told my wife I would be going very soon. She discerned the deceiving spirit immediately and asked me a question, “did God tell you something different about your promise?” I mused on that question for a moment trying to recollect why I had come to this conclusion. Had God really given me consoling grace and dying mercies? Had the Holy Spirit spoke anything different into my soul than what I have clung to for more than 13 years? With decisive revelation, I replied to my wife, “NO!” God had not changed his mind! I had been lied to by the enemy who had worn me down (Dan 7:25 KJV).

One night not too long ago, as my wife was getting me ready for bed, I was tired of the daily battle of my will in this weakened state. I broke down weeping and said to her “I just want God to hug me”. I had become so overwhelmed by the inability to communicate my struggles with anyone having walked this path in faith. I knew only God in His Word could help. I knew I hadn’t been forsaken by God and He would still fulfill His promises to me, but I needed a hug of reassurance! Despite years of service to the Lord, many church services and conferences, momentous times of faith, theology and scripture I thought I understood, devotions and prayers; even the scriptures that I confessed were not reaching me at this time. It was as if it were all a distant tale and wishful thinking. With my plea and need for the comfort of God, my wife with her eyes brimming with tears, bent over as I sat on the side of the bed, wrapped her arms around my frail body and gave me a big, confirming hug. As she withdrew she tenderly and confidently said “That was from God”. My Father had kept her with me throughout all these years and He used her again to express His loving care.

God wants us all to know and be assured that His everlasting love will never leave us; we are the object of His love. The confidence of love is where we must begin to face any trial placing our trust on the rock of our salvation, Jesus. He has paid the penalty for sin, we can come to His throne of grace to find help in the time of need (Heb 4:16)….Oh yes, we have many needs! “Many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivers him out of them all” (Ps 34:19). Through His faith impartation, we can rise above our trial and be at rest in the midst of our storm. He will give us His grace and mercy to overcome. God will strengthen us for the battles we are in, showing us the way to victory. As we cry out to Him we magnify His Name above any situation. David said in Psalm 40:16 “Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; Let such as love Your salvation say continually, The LORD be magnified!” Each time we depend on our Savior to help us; we exalt His Lordship in the earth. Paul said in Philippians 1:20 “according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death”.

The wilderness experience is an impossible place for our fleshly nature because this is where we must die to the way of natural thinking. Only our spirit man can survive in such a harsh desert place being tested and humbled by the devil. God loves us unconditionally and uses the wilderness to strengthen and perfect us, causing us to depend on Him. Desert places are dry paths that lead us to new revelations and victory in Christ. These dry paths lead us through the Jordan River into the Promised Land. Jesus, our example, was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tested by the devil (Luke 4:1-2). When he returned, he revealed Himself  full of the power of the Holy Spirit (vs.14).

“The poor and needy are seeking water when there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. I the Lord will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the wild olive; I will set the cypress in the desert, the plane [tree] and the pine [tree] together, that men may see and know and consider and understand together that the hand of the Lord has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.” Is 41:17-20 NKJV

What do we make of someone who has been given a dream or promise by God but experiences no evidence of that promise? When in the midst of trial or affliction with no end in sight, we can still have a testimony of God’s love and faithfulness although we may be mocked by the god of this world.

I wonder what Abraham was thinking when God told him at the age of 75 he would have the promised son and 25 years later Isaac was born. I wonder what Joseph thought 13 years after his dream while he sat in an Egyptian prison? Or Paul when he was stoned and left for dead at Lystra? How about the woman who had the issue of blood for 12 years or the paralytic man at the pool of Bethesda, who for 38 years waited for his chance to have a changed life. We meet many throughout the Bible who had earnest needs and were looking for deliverance and fulfilled promises to them, even in their lifetime.

I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Psalm 27:13

These individuals hoped in the miraculous with an expectation of the faithfulness and mercy of God, despite the long periods of silence. I am sure that at times they grew weary or exhausted, losing heart and fainting in their minds. Even in the despondency of the psalmist of Psalm 88 knows to petition and cry out to the Lord although the psalm itself does not reveal his deliverance.

“My eye wastes away because of affliction. LORD, I have called daily upon You; I have stretched out my hands to You. Will you work wonders for the dead? Shall the dead arise and praise you?  Selah. Shall your lovingkindness be declared in the grave? Or your faithfulness in the place of destruction? Shall your wonders be known in the dark? And your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness? But to You I have cried out, O LORD, and in the morning my prayer comes before You.” Psalm 88:9-13

Despite despondency in my own life, my spirit has been encouraged considering Hebrews 12:1 “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us”.  This cloud of witnesses is a metaphor referring a great amphitheatre with tiers upon tiers of seats rising up like a cloud surrounding an arena full of runners that are in a race.[1] In heaven, these witnesses are in the bandstands cheering us on as in the spectators of an athletic competition. We as the contenders of life make every effort to overcome present discouragement while making strides to run the course set before us. The witnesses refer directly to those just spoken of in Hebrews 11 having gone before us testifying  from their own experience to God’s fulfilling His promises. Great men and women of faith like Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph. Multitudes of believers throughout the ages have followed their example. Our relatives and loved ones are among them; moms, dads, grandparents, brothers, sisters, sons, daughters and untold number of friends and acquaintances who have finished their race trusting God and are now filling  the heavenly amphitheatre seats cheering us on.

Hebrews 12:1b continues to exhort us to lay aside every weight and sin that so easily ensnares (or clings to us) to slow us down in our race. What we need is endurance; to finish what we have begun in Jesus Christ – a race that is set before us. Our race is before us and we must run it!  In Acts 20:24, Paul pictures himself as a runner who had a race to finish and nothing would keep him from finishing his race with joy. In that passage, Paul speaks of my race – he had his race to run, we have our own – but God calls us to finish it with joy; and that only happens when we look unto Jesus. The NAS Bible version translates this: fixing our eyes on Jesus. We run this race of faith as we look to Jesus the author and finisher of our faith. He is our focus, our inspiration, our example and our prize.

Take encouragement, do not lose heart. Your race is not hidden from the Lord. Isaiah declares in Is 40:28-31:

“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the LORD, The Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength.  Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”

  Glennis and I  just celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary! We were married in Steilacoom, Washington on September 1st, 1984. We  made our wedding vows at this time “in sickness and in health.”

My devoted wife has kept her vows to me and before God as being sacred. Glennis has sacrificed many of her own needs so that she could attend to mine as well as to our families, home and business needs. She is a beautiful illustration of the “bride of Christ” who has set her affections on the things of God. I am very humbled by her willingness to go beyond her own strength and to allow “Christ in her” to minister supernatural love and life to me and anyone else that she touches. Through our faith and love for each other, we have been strengthened in our marriage. As one, we have overcome discouragement and despair, with hope and opportunity. We see each day as a new beginning and a blessing from God. Together we know that through the power of love anything is possible.

                                                           Sept 1st, 2009