Psalm 73:26

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Psalm 73:26

I came upon this verse while studying for my Tuesday morning Bible study. I LOVE IT!!! We are studying Liz Curtis Higgs book, Bad Girls of the Bible. The first chapter is about Evie and temptation. When I read this verse, I praised God that He is my strength and He will be with me forever. When the enemy tempts us, he is with us for a short time and praise God doesn't dwell in our hearts like Christ does. God's strength is our strength at all times--Praise His Holy Name for that! I also praise Him that we don't have to worry about having the enemy around forever. His Word tells us in Revelation 20:2-3 that the enemy will be bound for a thousand years. "He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time." Those that will once again be tempted during that short time will need to lean on God's strength. Praise God, after that short time, the enemy will be gone forever. Revelation 20:14 reads, "Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death." What a comforting thought to know that God's strength is with His followers FOREVER! The enemy won't be around FOREVER! Thinking about this makes it even more important for people to realize that God is the One to follow and not the enemy. He may give temporal pleasures but the eternal pleasures come from a relationship with Christ.

Philippians 4:13

I can do everything through him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13

When I was in bed waiting on my diagnosis, God gave me Philippians 4:13 for "my verse". When I first read it, I thought He was telling me that I would eventually be back on my feet on my own strength. It didn't take Him long to get it through my thick skull that I WOULD be back on my feet but it would be on HIS strength. It also didn't take him long to get me to understand that I need His strength not just for physical needs but also emotional and mental needs as I deal with the MS. Today is one of the days where my legs aren't cooperating. Some people may think that is just a physical problem but it is more than that. When I have to use my cane or hold onto things around the house, it makes me feel like the disease is winning and I don't like that. But sometimes when I really think about it I wonder if God doesn't allow times such as this to remind me that I need to depend on His strength and not my own. As I look back on the time prior to my diagnosis I know that I was living more on my own strength and not His. I also know that I've changed that and depend more on Him but I'm still guilty of falling back into bad habits of getting caught up on doing things on my own. I pray for His strength every day but especially on days such as this.

Sunshine vs. Sonshine

A year or two ago I was told about the importance of taking Vitamin D in a high dose on a daily basis to help with my M.S. I decided to give it a try after talking to my neurologist. He said there were studies that say it helps and if I wanted to try it, he was OK with it. I began to feel different after several months and continue taking it. It really makes sense that I feel so "alive" when I'm in the sunshine because Vitamin D comes naturally from the sun. Of course, living in Ohio we don't see the sunshine every day so this helps. As I was thinking about the whole thing with taking Vitamin D I began thinking about how when we have a "daily dose" of the Heavenly Son we feel more "alive"! When I don't get my full daily dose of the Heavenly Son, my day is just not the same. Things seem to go wrong, my emotional state goes downhill, etc. But when I have a full dose of Him I do have better days. One of my favorite places to be is sitting in the sunshine (preferably on a beach!) soaking in both the sunshine and the Sonshine! I saw a sign when we were in Florida last February that read, "I was born in the wrong state!" I can really relate to that but I praise God that I was born a child of the Son!!!

Rest...Rest...Rest

I am trying to get some rest while we are visiting with Adam and Amanda in Nashville but it's so hard to want to do things and not feel like it! Mark 14:38b reads, "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." There are days that I can really relate to that verse! I praise God for helping me through days like this. The song "His Strength Is Perfect" plays over and over in my mind and encourages me. I thank my Heavenly Father for encouraging me to continue on as I deal with MS and I thank my earthly Father for giving me a great example of perseverance to follow.