"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
-Matthew 5:3
We are all poor in spirit sometime or another. Spiritual poverty is something that can overtake even the strongest of faith in a period of deep loss. No one asks to have something taken away from him/her; loss is a brutal tyrant that enters without permission and pillages without mercy. My heart is broken today for those whose stable happiness has been devastated as a coast land in the midst of a hurricane. I know what that feels like, and I also know the fullness of overwhelming satisfaction.
My prayer tonight, more than anything, Lord, is for you to mend the broken hearts out there. For those grieving people or lifestyles lost, please guide them in your mercy and show them your immobile love for them. I wish I had the power to heal broken hearts, but I don't and I believe, Lord, that you do. Your kingdom is theirs for the taking. Amen.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Christ the Lord
"I wasn't sent here to find angels! I wasn't sent here to dream of them. I wasn't sent here to hear them sing! I was sent here to be alive. To breathe and sweat and thirst and sometimes cry."
-Anne Rice
-Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt
-Anne Rice
-Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
God Does Heal
Psalm 107: 1, 20
"Give thanks to the Lord , for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever.
He sent out his word and healed them,
snatching them from the door of death."
As I floated along the surface of the pool, I contemplated the healing powers of chlorine. I remember my dad would tell me as a little girl, when the mosquitoes feasted away at my skin in southeast Louisiana, that the chlorine of the pool would heal them, and it did.
More recently, I have suffered the battle wounds of playing with my dad's new kitten, and after spending a little time in the pool, the scratches were completely dried and scabbed--healed, in no time! It seems simple, really, that a chemical you put in a pool to prevent contamination and the spread of bacteria could so easily remedy skin problems like bug bites and kitty scratches.
What does chlorine have to do with God? Well, it is a reminder to me of the fact that he heals us. I have been reading Anne Rice's novel, Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt, and there is a section where Jesus, as a little boy of 7, is bathing in the Jordan River with his Uncle Cleopas who is suffering from a terminal illness, and in this moment, Jesus is overcome with a desire to pray for this man, his uncle who he loves dearly. Cleopas, as characterized by Rice is ornery and opinionated, but at the same time he is wise, protective, and jovial, and Jesus does not want him to depart. As a child of 7, Jesus prays to the Lord for Cleopas, so that Jesus and his family can keep him around, and sure enough, the Lord answers his prayer, and sends his spirit from the boy to heal the ailing uncle.
Granted, this is a work of fiction, based on Anne Rice's own conjecture of what life would have been like for a boy Jesus; nevertheless, this scene reminded me of an essential truth I hold as a Christian: Jesus is a healer. Jesus and God are one. God heals.
I cannot help but feel uplifted by the thought. God heals. He heals our illnesses, and physical ailments, but he also heals our minds and our thoughts, and for that, I am thankful. I can stand before the Lord, knowing that all the murky contaminates in my soul will be cleansed, as simply as chlorine cleanses a pool of water.
"Give thanks to the L
His faithful love endures forever.
He sent out his word and healed them,
snatching them from the door of death."
As I floated along the surface of the pool, I contemplated the healing powers of chlorine. I remember my dad would tell me as a little girl, when the mosquitoes feasted away at my skin in southeast Louisiana, that the chlorine of the pool would heal them, and it did.
More recently, I have suffered the battle wounds of playing with my dad's new kitten, and after spending a little time in the pool, the scratches were completely dried and scabbed--healed, in no time! It seems simple, really, that a chemical you put in a pool to prevent contamination and the spread of bacteria could so easily remedy skin problems like bug bites and kitty scratches.
What does chlorine have to do with God? Well, it is a reminder to me of the fact that he heals us. I have been reading Anne Rice's novel, Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt, and there is a section where Jesus, as a little boy of 7, is bathing in the Jordan River with his Uncle Cleopas who is suffering from a terminal illness, and in this moment, Jesus is overcome with a desire to pray for this man, his uncle who he loves dearly. Cleopas, as characterized by Rice is ornery and opinionated, but at the same time he is wise, protective, and jovial, and Jesus does not want him to depart. As a child of 7, Jesus prays to the Lord for Cleopas, so that Jesus and his family can keep him around, and sure enough, the Lord answers his prayer, and sends his spirit from the boy to heal the ailing uncle.
Granted, this is a work of fiction, based on Anne Rice's own conjecture of what life would have been like for a boy Jesus; nevertheless, this scene reminded me of an essential truth I hold as a Christian: Jesus is a healer. Jesus and God are one. God heals.
I cannot help but feel uplifted by the thought. God heals. He heals our illnesses, and physical ailments, but he also heals our minds and our thoughts, and for that, I am thankful. I can stand before the Lord, knowing that all the murky contaminates in my soul will be cleansed, as simply as chlorine cleanses a pool of water.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Groanings Too Deep for Words
Romans 8:26
"We do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us, with groanings too deep for words."
Today I found the spirit within me praying restlessly, as does happen on occasion. I don't really understand it, but intense, fervent prayer floods my throat, subconscious and heart, and while most people may think I am only slightly distracted, my mind is wrestling in an attempt to understand the spirit within me.
I think today's overflow of the spirit was brought about by the death of my cousin's maternal grandmother. My heart is heavily burdened for him and his family, and I believe the Lord's spirit is taking over where my conscious mind is far too inadequate to formulate the appropriate petitions for the hurting friends I ponder over.
Nevertheless, I am deeply gratified to the Lord for his presence in my life, in my heart, and for making Himself known to my mind and soul by creating within me a guttural response that though I do not wholly understand, I am aware of His life and truth and peace. Amen.
"We do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us, with groanings too deep for words."
Today I found the spirit within me praying restlessly, as does happen on occasion. I don't really understand it, but intense, fervent prayer floods my throat, subconscious and heart, and while most people may think I am only slightly distracted, my mind is wrestling in an attempt to understand the spirit within me.
I think today's overflow of the spirit was brought about by the death of my cousin's maternal grandmother. My heart is heavily burdened for him and his family, and I believe the Lord's spirit is taking over where my conscious mind is far too inadequate to formulate the appropriate petitions for the hurting friends I ponder over.
Nevertheless, I am deeply gratified to the Lord for his presence in my life, in my heart, and for making Himself known to my mind and soul by creating within me a guttural response that though I do not wholly understand, I am aware of His life and truth and peace. Amen.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)