The Light Bearers

I am very honored to be a part of the newest book by Patricia Bradley "The Light Bearers". It is a mall synopsis that my family went through last year. I am just one of the many stories of the faithfulness of God. I know you will enjoy the book and be encouraged by it





The Light Bearers: Witnesses of the Redeeming Love and Amazing Grace that's Available for You (under HIS SHADOW) (Volume 2) Paperback – October 28, 2015

by Pat Broomfield Bradley (Author)  available on Amazon        

Faith is for the courageous

In time we all endure suffering of some kind. The fight to survive the crisis is sometimes not in the crisis but in the journey afterward. The aftermath of devastation that surrounds us. When a tornado, hurricane or natural disaster hits you see the houses, the cars, the memento’s scattered through the streets. In that rubble is the lives that were affected by the disaster.  In other moments of disaster you may not see the physical aspects of live blowing down the street but you can see and feel the spiritual and emotional effect of the event.

The onslaught of emotion that we feel after we have stood and the draining of those resources and life ebbs back into routine. The wounds that are left behind from the crisis of the moment.

We all quote the scripture, we all hit our knees in the harshest moment but what happens after?  What happens if things don't work out as we asked God to intervene in the crisis? What if we lose a limb? Lose a loved one? What if what has been before will never be again? As we walk, we need to keep this in mind: 

Isaiah 40:31

For they that wait on the Lord, shall renew their strength,

 They shall mount up with wings like eagles

They shall run and not be weary

They shall walk and not faint

 

Even though our mind is racing with all the devastation, we stand. We stand on the character of the one that holds our life in His hands. Instead of allowing the cares of this world overtake us, we make it clear that we serve God in every way. We hold steady. We don’t look to the right or left but let our eyes focus on the one who loves us more than we can ever know. We look into those eyes of grace and know in our hearts He is our strength.

We stand firm in all kinds of trouble, hard times and suffering.  Even though the emotions will overwhelm, we stand. Then, as we stand, one day we will realize we took a step, then another and then we will be running again.

Faith is not for the faint of heart, it is for the courageous. But at the same time the weak. Because in our weakness, the glory of God shines brighter than we can ever know.

How do we walk on water with Jesus?

This morning I am reading in Matthew 14 and I ran across this parable that a little light glimmered across It:

 

28And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” 31Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.

 

 We all know it this parable. We have heard sermon after sermon about it. I just saw something new in it that I thought might speak to someone else as it did me.

 

Peter, being a fisherman, was not afraid of sinking in the water. He was a fisherman after all and in the water all the time. I am sure he had seen a lot of times in the water and well equipped to swim. What caused him to get his focus off God was not the water but the wind! As a fisherman he knew that the wind would create a storm and quickly. His mind is quickly calculating how fast they can get back to the boat. How far are they from the boat? How are they going to be able to stand through this storm without the safety of the boat to hold them up? He rushes through all the scenarios in his mind of how they can best handle the situation until he realizes, he has never been in this situation. How do mortal men walk on water and get to safety with a storm coming? All these thoughts must have rushed through his mind in a matter of seconds  He wants to protect them both but his quick exhaustive list has run dry. There is nothing he can do so he cries out “Lord, save me”. And Jesus acknowledges his heart. He was the first out of the boat but he wants so much more for him. So much more to give him. Peace in the midst of the storm. Eyes trusting not on earthly things but trained to see past that to trust the Father in all things.  Jesus admonishment was not about his faith out of the boat but his lack of faith that something bigger could change his focus. That his first thought was not trust in Him but trusting Peter’s abilities until Peter could not see a way they he himself could fix the situation. That he did not realize that Jesus would hold him through the storm, through the hard times, through the darkness of the unknown. That something as small as the wind would not take away from his care and protection.

 

Peter took his eyes off of what Jesus had for him. We all think that if we stepped out of that boat onto the water to walk, that we would be so in awe of God that we would have made it all the way. But how many times does God do a huge miracle in our life and then we turn around and have forgotten what He has done because the next crisis is on the horizon and our fear overcame our trust.

We all have a story to tell

I have been working on my book and I know I need to use this part some where. I don't think it is fitting with the book but I know the Lord had me write it. So enjoy and comment. Thank you all for your faithful encouragement too.

 

We all  have a story to tell.  We have a place where we found God so profoundly that we made Him not only our Savior but Lord of our life.  The Bible talks about these profound moments.  The scripture says in Revelation 12:10-11:

For the accuser of our brothers and sisters,

Who accuses them before our God day and night?

Has been hurled down.

¹¹They triumphed over him

By the blood of the Lamb

And by the word of their testimony;

I know this to be true. Many of us hear someone else’s testimony and are encouraged. We can hold on stronger to our faith, we can take just one more step, we can confess and allow God to heal that brokenness and our strength is renewed. When someone tells their testimony with such honesty and truth it breaks the yoke that is upon us. It allows us to give our burden to the Lord in the light of what we know to be true about Him. It makes our burden lighter, easier to carry, easier to have faith in the road unseen. Sometimes the Lord uses that testimony in our life so we can see how loving and giving and easy it is for Him to love us and help us have more faith.

We also have a place where life  changes our foundation, view, perception When that moment comes, it seems like we are facing head first into a hurricane .  The waves are crashing on top of us and we can’t seem to catch our breath. All we know, all we are, all we seem to be unravels and we desperately seek to anchor our footing so we can have a solid hold on the things we have known. In that moment, inside the eye of the hurricane we don’t see the changes the water has made. The shifts of the sand beneath our feet. The way it moves the water around us and strengthens our stance as we place our feet on solid footing and weather  the storm.

.In the midst of the storm we hear that still small voice. A whisper of truth to hold on. We struggle to grasp the grip of His hand, to hold on to our faith, our love and the Father who we know ultimately has it all in control. Finally we feel our hands in His, and the grasp is so strong we know without a shadow of doubt that He has us, in His grip

In those times doubt creeps in before you find that strong grip, that solid ground, you wonder if He knows the storm is raging. Much like the time Jesus was asleep in the boat and the Disciples shook him awake and asked “Lord Do you not see the waves crashing around us”? You know He is there, but[ the struggle to find Him while you are battling the wind, is hard. You see darkly in the midst of the trial and can’t seem to find solid ground. This storm might be the one [JG14]  ravages us and leaves us in a heap with no energy to fight another day. This storm is raging may leave us all alone and gasping for air.

Have you been there? Maybe you have walked alone for so long that the only things you allow yourself to do is keep the smile pasted on, the hard things in your luggage compartment locked and closed, and the heart walled away so the pain can have a nice hiding place and maybe, just maybe there will not be another storm.

When we have been hurt or struggled so hard, I know how easy it is to close the pain off and not want to look at it again. To try and  hold things at bay until the storm passes. I don’t deny wanting rest and restoration[ . But, I know that if we truly want to know God we must understand His heart for us.  Seeing the wind for what it can create in our heart if we lean into the Father for strength, healing and hope. Then those raging waters will come and we can see the true things that lie in the dark in our hearts and bring light to them, truth. His desire for us and the love He has enveloped us in.  David puts it best with

Psalm 139:23-24 

²³Search me, God, and know my heart;

Test me and know my anxious thoughts.

²⁴See if there is any offensive way in me,

And lead me in the way everlasting.

I am not sure where you are[, but my life faced one of the moments more than a few times. But, the  year I faced death was one of the most profound. As I pen this book each day, I must face what I’ve written. The questions I] asked out loud to myself and to you, the reader. Every question, every doubt, and every dark moment I have painfully endured, do I  have the faith to hold on? All those times I can say that “joy comes in the morning” and I finally found that faith. But the road is difficult and “the morning” represents time, and we need  time to see all those things that give us peace, love, understanding, patience, kindness…the fruit of our relationship with the one who loves us more than we can ever comprehend.

“That which does not break us, makes us stronger”.

See, I am doing a new thing!

Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?

I am making a way in the wilderness

And streams in the wasteland.

Isaiah 43:19

 

This is my new favorite verse.  Over this last year I have gone through so many trials, tribulations and changes in my personal life. This line from Steel Magnolias so depicts the footsteps this year “That which does not break us, makes us stronger”. A great line with so many implications.

 As people, we tend to want to run from pain and heartache. Sometimes we don’t have a choice, we have to lean in to it. I have a friend battling cancer right now, she doesn’t have the choice to NOT DEAL WITH IT. Other places, we try to hide from it. The pain of it can be too much at times.

The blessing we have is first God and the Holy Spirit to give us hope and encouragement. Then prayerfully we are surrounded by our brothers and sisters in Christ to help us keep from breaking and throwing in the towel. Through these trials we can lean in to God and hold on to His Hand, grip it tight and see the stream in the desert. At the end of that process we are stronger