Comfort for the weary.

A friend of mine, who has been reminding me of who I live for and what my ultimate purpose is, wrote me an email today with this quote...

Question 1. What is thy only comfort in life and death?

Answer: That I with body and soul, both in life and death, (a) am not my own, (b) but belong unto my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ; (c) who, with his precious blood, has fully satisfied for all my sins, (d) and delivered me from all the power of the devil; (e) and so preserves me (f) that without the will of my heavenly Father, not a hair can fall from my head; (g) yea, that all things must be subservient to my salvation, (h) and therefore, by his Holy Spirit, He also assures me of eternal life, (i) and makes me sincerely willing and ready, henceforth, to live unto him.
----(Heidelberg Catechism)

This is my prayer...this is why I was given breath today.

The stirring works...

"And I didn't understand why as usual God couldn't give me a loud or obvious answer, through a megaphone, or thunder, skywriting or stigmata. Why does God always use dreams, intuition, memory, phone calls, vague stirrings in my heart? I would say that this really doesn't work for me at all. Except that it does."
----Anne Lamott

God has spoken more to me in the past few weeks than He has in over a decade of my life. I wake up and listen, and still myself at moments throughout the day to listen again. And He speaks. Just like He spoke the entire world into existence, He still speaks. Sometimes I want it loud and obvious. In a way I think it will "work" better on me. But the truth is...when I take a walk and turn off all noise from the day, I hear the still, small voice and it sends me to my knees. In essence, it really works. He won't compete with the noise of life, the flash of culture and the bang of wealth...He simply stirs. And it works.

If you look carefully, you can see a bud...

"Flowers grow out of dark moments." ---Anita Corita Kent

This is showing itself to be true in my life. I'm sure in one fashion or another you can relate. I have been living in what feels like a cave of seclusion and darkness. I have wondered who I am, and who God is. I have asked questions that have softened my heart and solidified my faith. My knees hurt, my mind is vulnerable, my spirit is held up by the hand of God...but today one of my students said to me, "Miss Poulterer, did you have a lot of coffee this morning? You seem really hyper or happy, or something...." And my response to him was, "I feel the presence of the Lord today, and for what seems like a moment, He has lifted this cloud." Now the truth is, it comes back here and there. And my heart still feels fragile. But a moment can go a long way for a weary pilgrim. My position at the school was affirmed today, I see purpose beyond what I could create. I look into the eyes of these kids and see a desire for God and stand amazed that He would even give me a platform to share with them the faithfulness of God...the love He has for sinners like me, and the grace that falls in surplus upon them each new day. This was what I was made for, these other things that too often dominate...Self-satisfaction, security, mere personal pleasure and approval...they are what I have settled for.

Today, I saw a flower peek out.

(Thank you Lord...You are all I have, and all I really want.)

Home is where?

"God makes a home for the lonely." Psalm 68:6 (NAS)

Home for me is in a 1,000 different places. I live with a family, I stay with random friends, and in the meantime, I wonder who I am. But tonight my friend gave me this verse and it spoke to a deep part in my soul...the Lord is my home. He is my place of refuge. He is my portion and my peace. When life is unsettled--which it is...when life is disappointing and heaven is so far away...I have a home in Him. And when I really stop and reflect, I recall it being said of Jesus, "He had no place to lay His head."

"Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens." Psalm 68:19