FOREVER

What really matters?
What matters for forever?
What matters is FOREVER.
Forever He's faithful.
Forever He's true.
Forever He is Savior.
FOREVER.
And He came for you
For your FOREVER.
And he came for me
For my FOREVER.
Oh how He loves.
Oh how He cares
About our FOREVER.
Jesus, Jesus,
Jesus is Lord.
Jesus, Jesus,
Jesus is FOREVER.
Come to the Savior,
His arms open wide
To hold you FOREVER.
And go to the world,
Go far and wide,
And tell them of FOREVER.

My Heaven Babies Sisters

We all joined the club,
But it was that one club
That none of us wanted to join.
We are the one in four.
We've all had to say goodbye,
Goodbye way too soon,
Before we wanted to,
Not that we'd ever want to...
Mothers of heaven babies,
We are united in our sorrows,
United in our struggles,
United in our walk,
Which can feel oh so lonely.
My heaven baby sisters,
You mean so much to me.
That same great God that loves us,
That holds our dear sweet babes,
He sent us to each other
So we wouldn't walk alone.
Now united in our healing,
United in our joy,
United in our love for Him
That mends our broken hearts.
Forever we're united,
My heaven baby sisters.

Guest Post: Poetry by my children for National Poetry Day

Dr. Pepper, Dr. Pepper,
I love Dr. Pepper!
I would really much rather
Drink Dr. Pepper
Than Sprite, Sprite, Sprite!
I do like Sprite,
But I'd rather drink
Dr. Pepper!
(Timothy, age 7)

I can't write a poem,
and I'm not sure why.
Jack Prelutsky's are so good, about so many things and people.
I couldn't write a poem even if I tried.
Oh, wait! I just did!
(Lydia, age 9)

Siblings.
Younger than me.
Brothers, a sister, babies too.
Times I with they'd leave me alone.
There's four.
(Luke, age 12)

I love my name.
I love my name.
My name is Alexander...
The Great!
I love you.
You love me.
I love my name.
I love all our names.
(Alexander, age 3)

The Message of Hope

Say it with a poem.
Spread the message,
the Message of Hope!
Everyone is looking for something,
Searching, searching, for something... Someone perhaps.
And there's Someone to be found.
There's Someone that can make all the searching cease,
For He is the Answer.
He is Hope.
He is Mercy.
He is Grace.
He is Love.
He is Salvation,
The Way, the Only Way
To life everlasting.
He is Jesus.

Back in Genesis

Well, after three days in Genesis, then twelve days in Job, we have been back in Genesis for ten days.  Having read Genesis many times, it can be easy to just skim over it and not pay attention because it is very familiar, but I don't want to miss what God is showing me here, whether it is something new or just a reminder.  Looking at Genesis after spending time in Job reminds me that this book, the Bible, is one book and should be read as such, not looking at Job and Genesis as two completely separate stories but part of one long story.  I see the same God, the Sovereign creator in the beginning of Genesis, being sovereign over His creation in Job and continuing as we come back to Genesis.  God's plans prevail no matter what man does.  Redemption is there all along the way.  He is due all our praise!

I love seeing those personal relationships God has with His people, from walking in the garden with Adam and Eve, to Noah and His preserving the human race through him and his family, to Job who was handpicked to be an example of keeping faith through hardships and redemption, to Abraham, who God chose to create a covenant with, whose faith was credited as righteousness, to Joseph who trusted God to use evil for good, and others in between.  We have some great examples of faith here.  We can learn to trust God no matter what, to pray to Him, sharing our hearts with Him, the One who created those hearts, and trust His plans even when we don't understand.  We see God do what man would think impossible, opening a womb that was old and never had conceived.  Though we may laugh at the thought of such a thing, we see God's power, and how nothing can stand in the way of His purposes and plans. We see God entering into covenant with man, THE COVENANT of the Old Testament.  We see beautiful imagery of God's presence as He establishes this covenant.  He loves us.  He truly loves us.  He wants us to be His people.  We see obedience to God's call to move one's family to an unknown land.  We can trust God with the unknown.  It's not unknown to Him.  We learn that though the whole world might seem against us, God can use all the unfortunate circumstances for His glory.  We can trust Him.  At the end of Genesis 40, it says that the cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.   When I read this tonight, I thought, "But God didn't forget him.  God remembered Joseph."  God was still working out His plan, and Joseph was faithful to not sin against God just because everyone else was doing wrong, even when it would be the easy thing to do. What great examples of faith we have here and also truth about our loving God who does not leave forget us.  Isaiah 49 talks about how even when it feel like we have been forsaken and forgotten that God will not forget us, that He has engraved us on the palms of His hands!

On the other hand, there is some bad stuff in Genesis, some grievous sin.  It is amazing to see God continue His plans to redeem His people through some pretty shady folks.  There were quite a few people we met in Genesis that would be best not to emulate.  We see deceit, murder, rape, incest, to name a few.  But God's plan would not be thwarted, and He would even use some of these shady folks in the very lineage of Christ.  It is good for us to see that even with obedience to God, everything will not be perfect for us, but God's plan will prevail.  It is also good for us to see that despite grievous sin, God's plan will prevail.  God is completely Sovereign. He loves us enough to have His redemptive plan in place for us. He loves us enough to show us that we are never too far to be reached by His grace, and He loves us enough tho show us that our deepest hurts can come around to bring Him glory and be used for great good.

I also love those glimpses of things to come, of salvation, and those physical things that have a profound spiritual parallel.  We see the covenant of circumcision, a physical act, and we can thank God, who cuts away the sin from our hearts and cleanses us as we by faith trust in Him.  We can listen to God promise a seed to Abraham and know that many grandsons later, there will be Jesus!  We see Abraham trusting that God would provide a sacrifice as he obediently went, willing to sacrifice his son Isaac, the promised son.  Isn't is great to see God provide the lamb, knowing He would provide again, the ultimate sacrifice that we all need, Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world?!  We see Abraham send His servant to bring back a wife for His son, and we can think about how God the Father sent the Holy Spirit to our hearts to draw us to Jesus as part of the bride of Christ.  How awesome is it to serve a God of Redemption so full of love for His people!

There is so much in this book of Genesis that I haven't even touched on.  I hope you are continuing this journey with me through the Bible chronologically in a year.  There is so much God wants to teach us and remind us, about Himself and His plans for us.  I pray that He may find us listening to His truth and not keeping it to ourselves.

Job 38-42

Here we are in the final chapters of Job.  Here above the large 38 marking the 38th chapter in my Bible, I see the words "The LORD Answers Job."  After all those men tried to come with wisdom, but lacking true wisdom, not having all the knowledge necessary to truly understand, the Lord will answer, and we will see the rest of the story.

Not only is God now answering (giving Job his day in court), but He (Yahweh, the covenant LORD) is answering out of a whirlwind, and He comes forth reminding Job of both of their places.  Before Job's vindications, he needs to be reminded of who God is.  He speaks of His Sovereign rule over creation.  He asks Job where he was when He laid the foundation of the earth and shows him that he simply cannot understand everything because he does not know everything.  I often think of this passage when I cannot understand why something is happening and might be tempted to be angry with God for allowing something.  I remember who am I to understand the ways of God.  He is so mighty and wise!  He is Sovereign Creator!  How very foolish of man to accuse almighty God of not being fair.  Let us really think about creation, about biology and physics, astronomy and chemistry.  It is God that knows the why and caused His creation to act in the way that it scientifically does.  He is God, and He can be trusted even when we do not understand.  God does not answer Job's accusations with an explanation of what happened with Satan and why Job had to experience the troubles.  He rather questions Job and his understanding of Himself.  He asks Job if he knows how all of creation works and can create and control it, many parties of creation with their varying ways, giving lots of examples from the natural world.  Job obviously is humbled, reminded that dominion is the LORD's.  God then (in chapter 40) gives Job a chance to answer.  No longer seeking vindication, but completely humbled in comparison to God's greatness, Job has nothing to say.

God continues to speak to Job, telling him that He will continue to question him and give him a chance to answer.  Of course God knows all the answers to His questions, but He asks them to help Job see the ere in his questioning God's justice, his need to trust in God's all-wise, sovereignty.  After establishing Himself as Creator and Sovereign over the natural world, we see God challenge Job about His dealings with morality, and judgement of the wicked.  He basically asks Him to do his work for Him if Job thinks that he can do a better job.  He then speaks of His great creation of the Behemoth and Leviathan of the land and sea.  While man cannot control these mighty creatures, the Lord can with ease for they are his creation, as is everything under the whole heaven.  The Lord asks Job is he would be willing to stand against these creatures.  Of course he would not, so why does he dare stand before God who is far greater than these.

The final chapter of Job (42) is quite full.  It begins with Job answering God, still without knowledge of why this all happened but in faith declaring God's sovereign rule, repenting of his rash words and doubts, fully humbled before God's magnificence.  Job's eyes have been opened to truly see God's greatness, and his faith grows.  Praise God for revealing Himself to us and growing our faith!  (Even now as we read His Word!)  Satan is proven wrong.  While Job's faith is tested and he has to repent of his wrong thoughts of God, he never turns from God as Savior.  Job's friends are also proven wrong.  The Lord turns to Eliphaz, angry with him, Bildad, and Zophar for their wrong accusations.  He commands them to sacrifice burnt offerings and have Job pray for them.  They do as they are told, and the Lord grants them all forgiveness.  Praise God for the ultimate sacrifice paid for our sins, for Jesus Christ's death and resurrection! Finally we see the end of the story.  The Lord more than fully restores Job's fortune.  He gives him twice a much as before.  All Job's family and friends come together and eat and comfort and bless him with money and gold rings.  The Lord also blesses Job with three more beautiful daughters and seven sons (and he has plenty inheritance for all ten of them).   I love that while we see Job's livestock replaced with double the number, we see the children replaced with an equal number because though his first children were gone from him, their souls live on forever.  Sometimes I think about how the Lord granted me children in my womb after my two losses and that they are not replacements for their siblings, rather additional children, for my sweet Hope and Kyson are alive in heaven, and we will be reunited one day.  Job lives a long life and sees his children to the fourth generation.  What a beautiful story of restoration!

I will end with this: God is in control.  He is wise and faithful.  We can trust Him.  No matter what we are going through, we can rest in Him.  And when we fail to fully trust in His will, and we question and complain, He lovingly reminds us of who He is and is faithful to forgive us.

Job 32-37

Instead of one post to finish out the book of Job, I decided to just look at Elihu's speeches found in chapters 32 through 37 today.  I'm happy that many have continued reading and seeking to understand this book.  When we remember that all the scripture is "breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work," (2 Timothy 3:16-17), it helps us to continue on.

We meet Elihu in chapter 32.  He is younger than Job and the three counselors that initially spoke with him, and he waited to speak until they had finished their discourse, respecting his elders.  Many commentators see Elihu as a haughty individual, but looking forward to the epilogue, we do not see Elihu rebuked when God chastises the others.  Also Job does not answer back to him.  Elihu is angry with Job, not for living a wicked life deserving of punishment, but for seeming to be more concerned with his own vindication than how he speaks of God, for criticizing Him instead of recognizing that He might have a loving purpose in allowing Job's suffering.  He is angry with the three friends for only blaming Job and not finding an answer for him.  He does wait his turn and even speaks of his own fear and timidness to share before his elders.  This seems humble of him to me and also courageous, so I will not be quick to call him a self-important know-it-all, although I think he could have been a bit gentler with suffering Job.  It makes me think about my interactions of others, that I might be gentler so that I do not come across haughty and uncaring.  There is so much to take from each passage we read.  From Elihu's words in chapters 33, we see that he, unlike the previous three, leaves room for grace and mercy from God.  He challenges Job to not assume that God was silent, rather to look for how He might be speaking, and to remember that God does not have to answer man for His ways.  Elihu uses quotes from Job, to show him his ere in how he spoke and defends God's goodness and justice.  He spoke to Job about his argument of not seeing wickedness punished and reminded him that God is just whether it is evident or not.  He chastised Job for not speaking more wisely about the ways of God.

This brings us to chapter 35 with Elihu still speaking.  He speaks of God's greatness above man and Job's wrong thinking that God is indifferent to his cries or that there is no difference before God for the righteous and wicked.  His advice is to come humbly before God, not at a place of defensiveness and pride.  While this was good advice, it was still not completely appropriate to Job who God found righteous before Him.  When Elihu continues to speak, he is trying to prove before them that he is worthy to listen to, which I do feel comes across as prideful, but I really do not know the appropriate speech for the culture so I will not give that judgement.  He continues to discourse on God's mightiness and His dealings with man, including mercy and justice, watching over the righteous, bringing about repentance, teaching, rewarding obedience, and punishing sin.  He speaks of how God opens the ears of man by adversity.  We see the new suggestion that suffering might be used to draw us closer to God.  I think this is a very important point for us to take note of.  I know that I have grown in my walk with the Lord during hard times.  Elihu also cautioned Job to not get caught up in his complaining, leading him to sin against God, but rather to remember to praise God in His power and works, His greatness that we cannot comprehend.   How often to we fall in to the trap of being negative and miss the greatness of the Lord all around us?  I like the saying, "Do not miss the roses for the thorns."  He continues in chapter 37, proclaiming God's majesty that we see through creation.  I have to stop and really think about this.  Do I take notice of God's greatness and power in the clouds, in the thunder and lightning, in rain and snow, in the animal kingdom?   We cannot even look into the sun when the storm has passed and it is bright in the sky.  How much mightier is God than the sun, and we must fear Him and remain humble before Him in all His majesty!  He is mighty and just and completely righteous!

I hope that this section of scripture has left you, like we, reflecting on God's goodness and our humble place before Him.  Continue reading because we are going to hear God speak beginning in chapter 38 and also find out what happens with Job!