I just finished reading an amazing book.

Oh, I’ve read lots of parts of it over the years, even memorized sections of it, but this time I read the whole thing. Cover to cover. Verse by verse. Chapter by chapter. Books within the book.

It took three months*, but I don’t think I’ll ever look at my life the same again.

There were stories of battles and blessings, victories and defeats, good people and evil ones. There were instructions and promises, words of encouragement and admonition, tales of testings and trials, calls for obedience and faith.

But mostly, it was about hope.

Hope in a God who created all things, and hope in a Savior who redeems all things. And that hope becomes amazingly evident when seen through the eyes of history, when one realizes God has been at work from the beginning, and He is still at work in our lives today.

He’s at work in my life today.

And so, I am grateful that I read the Book all the way through. It has made me see the big picture, it has drawn me closer to the One who wrote it, it has changed my perspective and increased my faith.

It was a good book. A perfect book. It’s really the only Book I’ll ever need.

I will delight myself in Your statutes;
I will not forget Your word. Psalm 119:16

Your word I have hidden in my heart,
That I might not sin against You. Psalm 119:11

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom… Colossians 3:16

For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Hebrews 4:12

So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
It shall not return to Me void,
But it shall accomplish what I please,
And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. Isaiah 55:11

*I used the “Bible in 90 Days” reading plan. I highly recommend it! You can use whatever version you are comfortable with. Let me know if you do it! I’ll be praying for you. Here’s a link to a bookmark with the reading plan: http://www.haventoday.org/bookmark.pdf

“The Christian community loves a success story.”

I wrote that in my journal a few weeks ago after listening to a radio interview with a Christian celebrity who had gone through some very difficult life circumstances, but who is now in a place of blessing with a husband who has been healed and a baby on the way after years of thinking there wouldn’t be one.

I didn’t begrudge her. We ought to celebrate with other believers when God intervenes and heals and provides! We ought to find comfort and hope in the examples of those who share what God has done in their lives.

But I wonder if we sometimes give more value to the stories of “I hung in there and God rewarded me” than we do to the stories of “I’m still hanging on and walking with God even though my blessing hasn’t come yet”.

Sometimes the success is that we hang on when the story isn’t wrapped up in a neat little bow, when the happily ever after ending hasn’t come yet, when no one is asking us for radio interviews to tell of the blessings being poured out on us after the time of testing.

If you are going through a period of trial or difficulty or grief and you are still walking with God and trusting Him and waiting patiently for your reward, then you are the celebrity. You are the success story that others need to hear about.

And so today, I applaud you. I thank God for you and for the things He is doing in your life during this time. And I’ll celebrate with you when the blessing comes.

But for today, you are the success story.

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:6

Therefore the LORD will wait, that He may be gracious to you; and therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the LORD is a God of justice; Blessed are all those who wait for Him. Isaiah 30:18

And it will be said in that day: “Behold, this is our God;We have waited for Him, and He will save us. This is the LORD; We have waited for Him; We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.” Isaiah 25:9

…that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain. Philippians 2:16-17

Do my prayers for complete strangers really make any difference?

That question has been on my mind this week. I’ve always believed that they could, but I guess I never really stopped to think about why.

When my heart breaks for the family of a local 4 year old boy who was killed in a tragic car accident here last week, will my prayers make a difference? Do my prayers for people caught up in the political upheaval in Ukraine and Venezuela really do any good? What about when someone on Facebook shares a request for prayer for someone I’ve never met and will likely never meet?

Does my intercession for something or someone that I really know very little about even mean anything?

It does. And I went looking for scripture this morning to back that up.

I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them…This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth.
(1 Timothy 2:1, 3-4 NLT)

When I don’t know the details about a situation, I can still bring it before the Lord, knowing that He is all-knowing and all-wise. When I don’t know the person or the situation or the state of their hearts, I can still intercede and ask that they come to an understanding of the truth of God’s presence and power and peace in the middle of their crisis or need or grief.

I don’t know how it all works, but God is pleased when we intercede on behalf of those we don’t know. And that’s good.

Because sometimes, that is all we can do.

In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done. On earth as it is in heaven.
Matthew 6:9-10

Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
James 5:16

For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;
Colossians 1:9

I bought the most beautiful calendar for 2014. It had gorgeous pictures of different spices for each month. They were spice pictures from around the world in sunset hues of red and gold and orange. I always hang my calendar in the kitchen and it fit perfectly.

Except for one thing.

Each week started with Monday. I bought the calendar online, so I didn’t know it was going to make the beginning of the week a Monday. And it drove me crazy. I thought I could work around it. I thought I could retrain my mind to know that the first column was Monday, not Sunday, but I couldn’t. I got so completely frustrated that within a few weeks that beautiful calendar was in the trash and I replaced it with some smiling cartoons of French pastry chefs.

I don’t think all of the frustration was just over retraining my mind. I think that somewhere deep inside, I know that Sunday is the first day of the week. And I think that somewhere deep inside, I knew that God wanted it that way.

I know that some people go to church on Saturday. But when I hear someone talk about “the Lord’s Day”, I know it means Sunday. And I think the Lord’s Day belongs at the beginning of my week, not at the end of it.

And so this morning, I’m happy that my calendar says this is the first day of the week that lies ahead. And I’m happy that I’ll be spending this first day of the week in church, with God’s people, rejoicing, singing, listening. I need to know that I’ve started the week with Him.

Happy first day of the week, my friends.

Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb and behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it…the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. “He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.” Matthew 28:1,2, 5,6

This is the day the LORD has made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace be with you.” John 20:19

Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love;
Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you. Jeremiah 31:3

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:4-7

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. 1John 4:16

Sometimes you just need to be part of a team instead of trying to do it on your own.

I needed a team this week. I needed a team to rally around me and support me with prayers and blessings and encouragement. And they did.

I had to do something that was scary. It shouldn’t have been scary. But they say that more people fear public speaking than dying. Seems I might be one of them. The crazy thing is, God keeps giving me opportunities to do the very thing that makes my heart pound and my knees shake. I know that if God puts the opportunity there, which He so obviously did this week, the only response is – yes.

I didn’t want to do it alone. But I also didn’t want to admit this “thorn-in-my –flesh”, this weakness of mine. It’s much easier to pretend self-sufficiency and strength and confidence. And much more difficult to open yourself up. But your team needs to know about your weaknesses so they can help.

So I told them. And my team of family and friends rallied around me and held me up in prayers and blessings and encouragement. And God heard their prayers and He came through and all the anxiety left me the minute I opened my mouth to speak. Imagine that.

God doesn’t want us to face our weaknesses alone. I hadn’t realized just how many scriptures speak of asking others to pray for us until I started studying it this week. God wants us to have a team of prayer warriors around us, people who know our hearts and our weaknesses. People who want to see our lives glorify God through and in spite of those weaknesses.

I hope you have a team. I had a great team this week. I couldn’t have done it without them.

Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Daniel 2:17-18

Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.” Mordecai then went away and did everything as Esther had ordered him. Esther 4:15-17

Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. Matthew 18:19

I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf. Romans 15:13

Two years ago today my Dad went to be with Jesus. I often think about the fact that he understands things now in an entirely new way. Things that didn’t make sense here. Things that were difficult or challenging or unexplainable.

When I’m going through my own difficult and challenging and unexplainable things, I’m reminded that Dad knows that they have a purpose. I’ve always known God knows they have a purpose, but thinking about the fact that those who have gone ahead know it now too is reassuring.

I found the words to a song called “Some Time We’ll Understand” in an old hymnbook. It’s a hymnbook I found on my Dad’s office shelf. And I like to think that today, Dad is cheering me on. I can almost hear him saying, “Sharon, sometime you’ll understand.” And that gives me hope.

And so for now, I’ll keep trusting. And believing. And looking forward to the day when I understand as well.

Not now, but in the coming years,
It may be in a better land,
We’ll read the meaning of our tears,
And there, sometime, we’ll understand.

We’ll catch the broken thread again,
And finish what we here began;
Heav’n will the mysteries explain,
And then, ah, then, we’ll understand.

We’ll know why clouds instead of sun
Were over many a cherished plan;
Why song has ceased when scarce begun;
‘Tis there, some time, we’ll understand.

God knows the way, He holds the key,
He guides us with unerring hand;
Some time with tearless eye we’ll see;
Yes, there, up there, we’ll understand.

Chorus:
Then trust in God thro’ all the days;
Fear not, for He doth hold thy hand;
Though dark thy way, still sing and praise,
Some time, some time, we’ll understand.

Maxwell Cornelius, 1891
Written for the funeral of his wife

For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known. 1 Corinthians 13:12

For we walk by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. Romans 8:18

I’ll never look at that plastic blue dustpan the same way again.

It was early Saturday morning. I was sitting on my couch thinking about the upcoming day. My houseguest was still asleep, but I was planning our time of sightseeing and fun around town. I looked out to the porch and saw some leaves that should be swept up, so I went to get my little blue dustpan from the hall closet. I hardly ever go in that closet. It’s not really a closet. It holds the air conditioner and the hot water heater. And my dustpan.

The dustpan God used to show me how He watches over me.

The dustpan was wet. And that’s when I looked down and saw about an inch of water in the pan under the hot water heater. I don’t know much about home emergencies, but I know that a leaking hot water heater is one of them. If I hadn’t seen the leaves on the porch, if I hadn’t decided to go get the dustpan so I could sweep them up, there’s a very good chance my apartment would have been flooded by the time we got back from sightseeing, and there’s a very good chance the lady who lives downstairs would have been very unhappy with me.

Some might say it was just fortunate coincidence that I went to get the little blue dustpan. But I think that so many things we write off as fortunate coincidences are really little acts of God in our lives. They probably happen everyday, but we just aren’t looking for them. I think God allowed me to see the leaves that needed to be swept up. Then He pointed me in the direction of the hall closet and the water and the potential disaster.

Sometimes bad things do happen and He works through those circumstances as well. Sometimes hot water heaters rupture before the leaks are found. But this time, mine didn’t. And even though I had to replace it and I went through every towel in my house to prevent the water from overflowing, I smiled to think how God watches over me.

And I’ll be reminded of that every time I get the little blue dustpan out of that closet.

You have hedged me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me. Psalm 139:5

The eyes of the LORD are in every place,
Keeping watch on the evil and the good. Proverbs 15:3

For His eyes are on the ways of man,
And He sees all his steps. Job 34:21

I did that “end-of-the-year/beginning-of-the-year” thing last night. You know, when you take the old calendar and transfer all the important dates like birthdays and anniversaries over onto the new one? (I was a little late, but that’s because I was delayed getting back home after the winter weather up north. But that’s another story for another time.)

It’s sort of a ritual for me. And usually I’ll write a blog about looking at all the blank days of a fresh calendar and how I wonder what they’ll be filled in with by the time we get to the end of the year. But something different struck me last night.

I spent more time looking at the old calendar. The one from the past year.

I saw things I’d documented on it. Things like dinners with friends and meetings at church and out of town travel and parties and movies and happy days. I saw sad things, too. Things like a memorial service for a friend. Things that got crossed off because they didn’t really happen as planned.

And I realized that I could look forward to the new year because God had been faithful in the past one. He’d been faithful on the happy days. And faithful on the sad ones.

I heard the song “Be Still My Soul” last night while driving home from church. The second verse says,

“Be still my soul; thy God doth undertake
To guide the future as He has the past.
Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake;
All now mysterious shall be bright at last.
Be still my soul; the waves and winds still know
His voice who ruled them while He dwelt below.”

God will undertake to guide this new year, just like He did with the past one. And so that old calendar represents not just 12 months of my life, but 12 months of God’s faithfulness.

This year I’ll present the new calendar to God and ask Him to guide each day represented by a presently blank square. But I’m also presenting the old one to Him. With a grateful heart.

He’ll guide the future, as He has the past.

I will remember the works of the LORD;
Surely I will remember Your wonders of old. Psalm 77:11

He has made His wonderful works to be remembered;
The LORD is gracious and full of compassion. Psalm 111:4

And you shall remember that the LORD your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. Deuteronomy 8:2

“Oh come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant…”

Why have I never really thought about this before? Why have I never stopped to wonder why the author of this very familiar Christmas hymn chose to use the word triumphant?

The “joyful” part I get. The “come and behold” invitation seems appropriate. But triumphant? Isn’t that a word reserved for Easter morning?

But the more I thought about it, the more I began to see that the word triumphant is a very appropriate Christmas word. The King of Heaven had come to earth! Sure, He was “disguised” as a newborn baby, and the circumstances and birthplace situation were less than ideal. But angels were proclaiming glory, shepherds were bowing down and a spotlight in the form of a big star was burning overhead. The baby’s arrival signaled the beginning of the greatest rescue of all time!

I still love the songs that talk about mangers, deep and dreamless sleep, all things calm and bright, the world in solemn stillness. I love the candlelight services and I’d love to see the world go quiet with some softly falling snow.

But I don’t want the triumphant part of Christmas to slip by unnoticed, especially when the songs have been sung, the presents have been opened and the big meals have been consumed. When Christmas day is over for another year, I want one word and one thought to remain.

Triumphant.

Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples! Shout to God with the voice of triumph! Psalm 47:1

Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ. 2 Corinthians 2:14

Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. Romans 8:37