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The Love Letter

Christian encouragement, Discouraged Christian, Encouragement for Women, Grace, Hope, Jesus Christ, Love of God, Spiritual Encouragement, Surrender, To Rest in Christ, Trials, Troubles, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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The Love Letter

There was a young couple who met, fell in love and married.  As in all good love stories, they adored one another.  Joe and Sally had a wonderful marriage.  The only problem they faced was the war.  They were in the middle of a world war and Joe knew that he soon we be called to serve.

The call came, and Joe accepted the call with honor.  He was scheduled to leave in two weeks, and he wanted to make each moment count before he left.  The couple had one small child with one on the way.  He spent a lot of time with William and was hoping to spend time with the new baby someday.

Joe left.  Sally and William heard from him almost daily.  Suddenly the letters stopped.  Two weeks passed, the four and soon eight weeks had passed without hearing a word from Joe.  Sally was obviously concerned.  She prayed and honestly assumed the worse.

Joe had indeed become a prisoner of war.  He was told that he had the chance to write only one letter during his captivity.  He carried a torn up piece of parchment paper with him for weeks, praying about what to write his expectant wife and son.  Finally, with tears spilling down his face and hitting the paper, Joe wrote the letter.

Four weeks later, Sally trudged out to the mail box and there it was…a letter from Joe!! She ran into the kitchen, weeping with joy at the arrival of the letter.  She ripped it opened as little William and her mother stared.  

“Dearest Sally, William and family,

Daddy loves you more than words can adequately describe.  I am a prisoner of war and I have one piece of paper to write one letter on.  It is the only letter I am allowed to write and the last letter you may ever get from me.  So, I have carried the blank paper around for a long time, praying about what to write to all of you.  Sally, I love you with all my heart.  Words cannot describe the unconditional love I have for you.  I need you to love the children with all your heart.  As William grows, let him know how much he is loved by his Abba Father.  Teach him these things when he gets up in the morning, walks at noon along the creek and does his chores before bed.  Our little unborn baby needs to be taught these things as well when she(hope) or he is able to understand.  Spend time with them, tell them that I will love them forever.  Talk to the banker about the money we have, pay off the bills, tithe weekly, share what eggs you can with the neighbors…..”

The letter went on to tell Sally everything she needed to know about life.  As if Joe were right there with her.  Sally read the entire letter, wept openly and folded it up, placing it near her heart.  The next day, when she went into the bank, she got the letter out and did exactly what it said.  When she and the children had questions (it was a girl, Grace) she unfolded the letter to see what Daddy said about the situation.  Joe had not missed a thing.  He had given her all the love and guidance she needed to go on.  Everything had been filtered through love.  She almost felt as though he was standing right there beside her as she made each and every decision.

And then the closing said…”I love you all, and will see you again soon.  We will all be together someday.  Everything I have written, all I have said with all the love I have in my heart for you….my wife, my children, my family, my friends, strangers…until we meet again..love to you…Daddy Joe.

Wow, what a letter of love.  Can you imagine receiving this letter?  Well beloved, we have gotten a letter like that….it is from our Father, our Abba, our Daddy…He has given us all we need to live out this life here on dart.  His advice is given because of His deep love for us.  Like the letter from Joe, He is right beside us..guiding us with His Holy Spirit.

Oh yeah, Joe did make it home!  And so will Jesus.

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Be blessed~

IN CHRIST ALONE
Isaiah 55:8-9

*google image, NIV Bible*

 

Checklists and Ropes…Part 1

Spiritual Encouragement, , , , , , , , , , , ,

RopeManilla2Inch_Quest

Yoo-Hoo!  Over here…look at what I am doing!  Is she upset with me?  Did I make her mad?  Did I do that right?!?! Did I , could I, should I??

Good grief! Ok, confession here.  These are not the rantings of an adolescent, but that of a 52 year old woman!  Not out loud where people could actually hear it….but ah, those thoughts ran through my head many a day!

Last time I talked about my “performance based acceptance” and the legalism that bound me for several years.  It took me a while to quit making those checklists and get “free” and realize I was to live under grace! I had to break my pencil to quit those lists! Well let me tell you, the checklist reappeared and with it a very tight rope. And I helped tighten it!

I just re-read a blog from last year during this time and I was indeed swirling.  I was in a deep, dark hole…spiritually, emotionally, physically and mentally.  I did not realize how deep until I cut that rope and threw away that list!  I felt I was just “going through the motions and hanging on to God.”  Actually, I see now that He was “hanging on to me.”

I had re-entered the public school system as a teacher about 10 years ago.  I felt led to do so and the Father opened up a job.  In one day I had an interview and got a job.  I really was only half way looking since my wise husband had been praying for a way to pay for our son’s college education.  I had homeschooled them and they were about to further that education.  It was a total God thing to get a job that I did not know even existed!! I always felt it was for a season.  A time to help financially, and then I would be released.  

I stayed two years too long.  How do I know that?  The youngest graduated two years ago…but I thought I could hang on long enough for a partial retirement.  A “dangling” carrot of sorts.  Not that there is anything wrong with a pension, but it became my primary goal and I truly wasn’t listening when the Father was trying to get my attention. At the end of that checklist I saw a small bunch of carrots and had to get to them!

The rope almost choked me in October.  I started the school year, trying to muster up a good attitude.  I had started losing my hair in tremendous volume and all over ( but thick, curly hair provided a good comb over on my head..) and had a bout with a very curable skin cancer ( its placement kept me from raising my left arm for several weeks..long enough for my husband to have to basically set up my room) But I was strong, I could do it!!

Therein lies the issue.  I could not do it in my own strength.  Last year at this time I had to increase my anxiety medicine. (Another blog) and I felt awful.  The rope around me continued to tighten, and I just stood there! The checklist increased in length.  October 1st…. I gave up.  I quit. I bailed.  

I will share more of this story next time…stay tuned!
Blessings,
IN CHRIST ALONE
Isaiah 55:8-9
*google search image*

New Beginnings! New in Christ!

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A New Year!!  New Beginnings…who are we in Christ?


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I remember as a little girl only imagining the year 2000…and now we are at 2014!  As I have aged, time has decided to go faster.  Interesting how that works, isn’t it?

How exciting to think that the New Year brings new beginnings.  And to know that the Father is the author of new beginnings does my heart good.  Starting a new year reminds me that I was made new in Christ when I trusted him at 12 years old.  I need to be reminded of that daily.  One way is for me to keep my thoughts on Him in the midst of life and it’s swirling circumstances.  

Psalm 119:105 says “They word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”  How?  Worship can lead us into His presence, as well as the word of God.  The Bible illuminates our path and helps us to see truth and the “new” of who we are in Christ. Remember our “lighthouse” entry previous to this one?  He is our light, He is our Word.

As we enter into this new year, I wanted to remind myself of the truths that I often lose sight of.  I had many misconceptions of myself for many years.  Even though I was “new” in Christ, I never really grasped it.  I was not into the Bible, nor was I encouraged in that way by other believers.  I believed lies and that was disasterous for me.  I lived my life trying to perform for others, perform for the Father thinking I could gain His love.  What a lie that was!!

I am loved unconditionally because of what Jesus did for me on the cross.  You are loved unconditionally!!  Let me identify some of those “untruths” and give you scripture to prove it wrong. Read and hear the truth…may it speak to your heart.

1.I cannot resist sin….. “For we know that our old self was crucified with Him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin-because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.”  Romans 6:7…..SO, Christ freed me from sin’s control.

2. I feel like God has given up on me….”Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.”  Romans 8:1…..SO, I am not condemned either now or in the future.

3.I feel like no one loves me….“Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.”  Romans 15:7…….SO, I am fully accepted in Christ.

4.I am not a saint you know….“To the church in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ-their Lord and ours.”  1 Corinthians 1:2…SO, All those who are in Christ are saints.

5. I am so inferior….“Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.  If the foot should say ‘Because I am not a hand, I don’t belong to the body.’  And if the ear should say, ‘Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,’ it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body…As it is, there are many parts, but one body.”  I Corinthians 12:14-16, 20   SO, I am a part of Christ’s body equal to all.

Isn’t is wonderful to realize who we really are IN CHRIST?  We have to know this, commit this to our heart and remind ourselves these truths over and over.  The enemy would prefer that we did not know these truths, thus rendering us “unusable”.  When we have this confidence, we choose life and we choose love.  We cannot help it, it is a natural by-product.

I will continue to share these truths from the Word through these next few entries.  I believe that I need to review it again, and someone else needs to be reminded as well.

Be blessed dear ones!

IN CHRIST ALONE

Isaiah 55:8-9
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