Easter – psalm37fretnot

84271254_2696067740446706_1742200264682635264_o

(Photo Credit – Kim Clayton Lance)

One of my favorite pastors is Dr. David Jeremiah (senior pastor of Shadow Mountain Community Church in California and founder of Turning Point Radio and Television Ministries). I love his books. I love his style. Mainly, I love his steadfast passion for the Lord! He is a great teacher. A great preacher. Yesterday, I saw a YouTube clip from one of Dr. Jeremiah’s current sermons offering a great perspective on the Covid19 pandemic. It was very encouraging. Dr. Jeremiah highlighted the prayer of King Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 20:5-12). It is an ancient prayer, long past. But, the prayer could so appropriately be the prayer of our hearts right now.

Years ago, I had already highlighted this prayer of King Jehoshaphat in my Bible…

2 Chronicles 20:5-12 New King James Version (NKJV)

⁵Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new court, ⁶and said: “O Lord God of our fathers, are You not God in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations, and in Your hand is there not power and might, so that no one is able to withstand You? ⁷Are You not our God, who drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel, and gave it to the descendants of Abraham Your friend forever? ⁸And they dwell in it, and have built You a sanctuary in it for Your name, saying, ⁹‘If disaster comes upon us—sword, judgment, pestilence, or famine—we will stand before this temple and in Your presence (for Your name is in this temple), and cry out to You in our affliction, and You will hear and save.’ ¹⁰And now, here are the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir—whom You would not let Israel invade when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them and did not destroy them— ¹¹here they are, rewarding us by coming to throw us out of Your possession which You have given us to inherit. ¹²O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.”

Most of our responses to things are based upon our focus. This I know. When my eyes are upon Jesus, there is no room for fear. When my eyes are upon anything else, my anxiety will surely rise up. I heard it said one time that “we are what we look at.” Ouch! So true. What we look at indicates what our heart desires. I am praying that the eyes of my heart stay focused on the God who rules over all the kingdoms and nations. The God who hears and saves. The God whose power and might no one can withstand.

Psalm 141:8 (NIV) “But my eyes are fixed on You, O Sovereign Lord; in You I take refuge – do not give me over to death.”

But keep our eyes upon You, Lord, I pray.

God surely has a way of lifting up His countenance upon us! My husband and I recently welcomed a beautiful new granddaughter into our family. A baby! In March 2020. In the middle of a pandemic. God has a way! We recently enjoyed some home-smoked barbecue from our son-in-law. Delicious! God has a way! We have had regular FaceTime visits with our grandchildren who live 45 minutes away. Ages almost 2, 4, and 6. Blessed chaos! God has a way!

I am not usually a participant in chain letters. I’ve never had much trouble saying no to invitations to anything “chain.” I’m not even comfortable with text chains with unrecognizable numbers. But, I recently made an exception. The purpose of the chain was to provide an “uplift” to women. And yes, I got a few “no’s” and I didn’t really expect the 20 of my friends that I thought might participate to actually participate… They might not even speak to me again…

But, I received some pearls in the desert! Refreshing. Encouraging. Unexpected. Smile-producing. Heart-warming. Grace-filled. God has a way! And, I happened to recognize two out of the four responders (small world!):

One sister-in-Christ wrote: “John 1:14 ‘And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld His glory. The glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of truth and grace.’ One of my favorite verses. Praying for all. Hope this finds you and yours well. And sane!” The sanity part is up for grabs. But, this happens to be one of my favorite verses too!

Another sister wrote: “I want to encourage you today that, no matter what your circumstances say, God is Sovereign, Wise, and Good! He is love and He loves you. Trust in Him! I Chronicles 5:20 ‘…for they cried out to God in the battle, and He granted their urgent plea because they trusted in Him.’ Your sister, Angela.”

Another wrote: “Hope you and your family are well during this strange time in our lives. Here is what I wanted to share with you… Isaiah 41:10 ‘So do not fear for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.’ ” She attached a YouTube original song, written and sung with additional encouragement. God has a way!

The fourth one wrote: “Numbers 6:24-26 ‘The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.’ Have a great night!”

Words can be used for amazing good. And yes, The Lord surely lifts up His countenance upon us. Even now. These words provided me with a whisper of Easter.