Tag Archives: meditation

Meditations of my heart #3

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A few weeks ago something happened that left me feeling very discontent with my life. I lay in bed one nite and cried and prayed in anger telling God how much I hated him for making me go through this.

God has used a series of events to change my heart – and be excited about that very thing I hated not so long ago. And tonite he used a sermon and a song to gently remind me of that nite and the ugliness of my sin.

He did this first through a man named Job.

Job 1 & 2 tell the heart wrenching story of a man who lost EVERYTHING he had – including his children. His response??

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised.”

After the sermon we sang an amazing hymn. It is well with my Soul was written by Horatio Spafford in 1873 after the tragic death of his 4 daughters. (The Resurgence also blogs about him)

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Refrain

It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

Refrain

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

Refrain

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

Refrain

But, Lord, ‘tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh trump of the angel! Oh voice of the Lord!
Blessèd hope, blessèd rest of my soul!

Refrain

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

What a contrast these men are to my pitiful response to God.

So I pray for myself, and for you, that we would have faith like these men and, in good times and bad, respond as they did – it is well with my soul.

Meditation of my heart #2

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2 Corinthians 4

What a great passage to read the week before MTC mission.

The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. (vs 4)

A great reminder of the state of our world – so many people are blinded to the good news of Jesus, by his enemy, Satan. (For interesting discussions on demons read this or this)

Paul also remind us about what we are doing when we go on mission.

For we are not proclaiming ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your slaves because of Jesus. For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness” – He has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of God’s glory in the face of Jesus Christ. Now we have this treasure in jars of clay, so that this extraordinary power may be from God and not from us. (vs 5-7)

We go to proclaim Christ as Lord!
To be reminded that I am a jar of clay is humbling and exilarating. Humbling because I realise anything good that I do is not of my own ability, but God’s powerfully work. Exhilarating because I know I am not doing this work – the glory is God’s because the work is his.

Mission will be a long, tiring, fun and maybe at time disappointing week. But

we do not give up; even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner person is being renewed day by day. For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolute incomparable eternal weight of glory. (vs 16-17)

Amen!