Friday, January 29, 2010

And Still We Praise Him

Each time I say it, it becomes more real. My husband was diagnosed with kidney cancer on January 22, 2010. He is in Stage 2 and will have surgery on February 17, 2010. Wow. It became even more real. Dr. Daily is hoping to remove only the tumor and part of his kidney but told us that having to remove the whole kidney is a possibility, a strong one. The good news is that you can live with just one kidney. The great news is there will be no chemotherapy or radiation as the tumor is contained. The awesome news is that the survival rate is in the high 90%'s.

Of course we are concerned about the surgery, the possibility of removing the whole kidney, the recovery, etc.

And still we praise Him.

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." ~ Romans 8:28 (NIV)

While we don't rejoice because of our sufferings, we can rejoice in the midst of them. How? Through faith. We know that faith is the victory that overcomes the world. Why? Our faith is in God! God is the ultimate Victor!
We are reminding ourselves to never forget to praise Him in the storms of life.
"Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God." ~ Psalm 42:11 (NIV)
We also are reminding ourselves to come before Him constantly in prayer.
"Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful." ~ Colossians 4:2 (NIV)
The Greek word for devote is proskartereō. This verb means:
1) to adhere to one, be his adherent, to be devoted or constant to one
2) to be steadfastly attentive unto, to give unremitting care to a thing
3) to continue all the time in a place
4) to persevere and not to faint
5) to show one's self courageous for
6) to be in constant readiness for one, wait on constantly
This is where we are right now. We are perservering and continuing steadfastly to pray about this situation. Quite frankly, it's the only thing keeping me going. I'm nervous about it but I feel a peace when I pray that is like a healing balm. I know the Lord has not forgotten Steve and holds Him in the palm of His hand. We know that we must remain courageous as an example to other believers and to show our faith to the One who can heal.
The Greek word for watchful is grēgoreō. This verb means:
1) to watch
2) metaph. give strict attention to, be cautious, active
a) to take heed lest through remission and indolence some destructive calamity suddenly overtake one
Oh, be sure we are watching for what the Lord will do through this trial. We are not going to waiver and fall asleep on the job, as far as recognizing His blessings and mercy.
The Greek word for thankful is eucharistia. This noun means:
1) thankfulness
2) the giving of thanks
We are already thankful for the good news that has followed. Things could definitely be worse, and we thank God daily that they aren't.
And still we praise Him.
Will you join me in prayer and praise for what we are dealing with? Cancer is a scary thing and we need our friends and family to join in prayer regarding the outcome of this, that it's as good as the news we've heard so far, that the surgery goes well, that the recovery is speedy and easy.
Thank you,


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Thursday, January 07, 2010

Thankful Thursday - Wisdom


Lynn at Spiritually Unequal Marriage is hosting Thankful Thursday for the month of January.






I am so thankful for the wisdom God grants us. Truly the fear of the Lord is what leads to this wisdom.

The Hebrew word for fear is yir'ah. It means:

1) fear, terror, fearing
a) fear, terror
b) awesome or terrifying thing (object causing fear)
c) fear (of God), respect, reverence, piety
d) revered

I do fear and revere the Lord, not in a scary kind of way, but in what I call "holy fear". It's a healthy respect of honoring God for Who He is. Once we have this fear of the Lord, the wisdom that comes from Him begins in our lives.

The Hebrew word for wisdom is chokmah. This noun means:

1) wisdom
a) skill (in war)
b) wisdom (in administration)
c) shrewdness, wisdom
d) wisdom, prudence (in religious affairs)
e) wisdom (ethical and religious)

The Hebrew root word for the word for wisdom above is the verb chakam. It means:

1) to be wise
a) (Qal) to be or become wise, act wisely
b) (Piel) to make wise, teach wisdom, instruct
c) (Pual) to be made wise
d) (Hiphil) to make wise
e) (Hithpael) to show oneself wise, deceive, show one's wisdom.

This week I am thankful for the wisdom that He has given me in choosing the right doctor to go to, the wisdom to know my physical limitations during illness, and the wisdom to learn more about prudence and discretion in conversations. I'm also grateful for the wisdom that has come through reading His Word. He has given me a spirit of wisdom in seeking Him and thirsting for His Word that I have never found before.



Each time I think I am full, my cup just overflows with the blessings found in His Word. If I hadn't ever feared the Lord, I know I wouldn't recognize the signs of wisdom He has placed before me in seeking Him through His Word. I have really enjoyed reading through Genesis and Exodus as of late, as well as Acts and Psalms. I'm beginning Exodus 26 tomorrow and in the New Testament will be reading beginning with Acts 24.

There are many ways to exercise the God-given wisdom we have been given through fearing the Lord. I am so thankful for each opportunity to use wisdom and pray that I do use it often and in a way that brings God glory.

W - Wisely seek God's will for your life. "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails." ~ Proverbs 19:21 (NIV)

I - Intentionally spend time in the Word of God. "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path." ~ Psalm 119:105 (NIV)

S - Show your wisdom by being obedient to the commands of God. "Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him." ~ John 14:21 (NIV)

D - Determine to remain humble in your wisdom. "The fear of the LORD teaches a man wisdom, and humility comes before honor." ~ Proverbs 15:33 (NIV)

O - Offer good characteristics with wisdom. "But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere." ~ James 3:17 (NIV)

M - Maintain a healthy fear of the Lord. "The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of the LORD are sure and altogether righteous." ~ Psalm 19:19 (NIV)

Thank you, Lynn, for hosting this month, and for choosing such a great topic! Be sure to visit other Thankful Thursday posts by clicking on the button below and link up, leaving a Thankful Thursday post of your own.



Note: this post originally ran 03.04.09

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Tuesday, January 05, 2010

Possibilities

‘Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not
with God. For all things are possible with God.”’ ~ Mark 10:27 (ESV)

Have you ever looked at a situation or circumstance you've faced and thought, "This is impossible! I'll never be able to..." I've done that several times. What are your hopes and dreams for the future? Do you find some of them difficult, if not impossible?

The Greek word for impossible is adynatos, which means:

1) without strength, impotent, powerless, weakly, disabled
2) unable to be done, impossible

I wonder how many of our dreams we render powerless and disable by this thinking. When we despair over the things we see as unable to be done we need to turn them over to God in prayer. We can be sure that if our dreams are His will, they will certainly be possible and will most definitely come to pass. As we saw in the verse above, Jesus Himself declared, "For all things are possible with God."

The Greek word for possible is dynatos, which means:

1) able, powerful, mighty, strong
a) mighty in wealth and influence
b) strong in soul
1) to bear calamities and trials with fortitude and patience
2) strong in Christian virtue
2) to be able (to do something)
a) mighty, excelling in something
b) having power for something

Possible is a word infused with faith and hope, assurance and trust. In times of crisis, we can trust that God will step in where we are weak and be our strength. He loves us so much and wants to do the possible for us.


I've seen time and again in my life how He has shown Himself able, powerful, mighty and strong, how He has born calimities and trials in my life with such astounding patience, and how His power and strength have worked in me to cause me to believe in His ability and strength when all else was bleak.


This week I am thankful that God has shown that He is able to do the impossible. I rejoice that He is not a weak or powerless God but that He has shown Himself to be more than able and ready to do the possible things He desires in my life.

I look back at how far I've come through so many seemingly impossible things (infertility, miscarriage, divorce, illnesses not only for myself but also for family and friends) and praise Him that I have grown stronger in my faith and in my walk with Him. Each time He has strengthened me in faith by revealing Himself to me as a God of the possible. When He reveals Himself to us in this way, we should always be quick to give thanks. I've been able to leave alot of the old behind, and what I haven't, I have certainly gained new perspective on. He truly is a God who makes all things possible!

Are you struggling with something seemingly impossible right now? Many times we try to make things possible ourselves, but we must remember the promise from Jesus in the verse above. Take heart that with God all things are possible!

P - Pray about your desires. "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails." ~ Proverbs 19:21 (NIV)

O - Openly praise Him for His blessings. "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ." ~ Ephesians 1:3 (NIV)

S - Simply delight in God. "Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart." ~ Psalm 37:4 (NIV)

S - Strengthen yourself in your walk with God. "So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness." ~ Colossians 2:6-7 (NIV)

I - Imitate the faith of those who have gone before you. "Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith." ~ Hebrews 13:7 (NIV)

B - Believe that you can do all things through Christ and not of yourself. "I can do everything through him who gives me strength." ~ Philippians 4:13 (NIV)

L - Leave worry behind. "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" ~ Matthew 6:26-28 (NIV)

E - Exalt God and remain humble. "Once more the humble will rejoice in the LORD; the needy will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel." ~ Isaiah 29:19 (NIV)

Note: This post originally ran 01/15/09.


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