Yesterday was not a 'normal' day that's for sure. Thursdays have become our day to do something. Go out to eat, shopping, taking a drive, etc. because Doc usually has a 'decent' day from the steroids he has with the chemo. Yesterday it was raining so hard all day long and he wasn't feeling the best so we stayed in. I can't even remember the last time I stayed in my nightgown all day but that is exactly what happened. I tried a new recipe for a pot of soup for dinner and we were lazy all day. I read a book, we watched some TV, etc. There were phone calls that needed made, papers that needed filled out, etc. but nothing like that was accomplished and that was OK. Sometimes you just need to have such a day. Today is a new day. I pray he feels better when he wakes up. I also pray God will use me as I go visit my friends at the Assisted Living facility. I pray for opportunities to love with His love. As I say this, I'm reminded they encourage me as much as I encourage them. They are precious people who I've grown to love over the last year. My heart breaks when they have family members who come in and speak nasty to them. It breaks to see those who have no one that visits them. God has put me in their path for a reason and I pray I fulfill what He desires of me there. This morning my friend Rickey sent me a Scripture with a message that it reminded her of Doc and I having daily strength through the Lord. II Corinthians 3:18 reads in the NIV: And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into His image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. Yes! I love the words Paul wrote earlier in the chapter. This is how Doc and live out our life daily. Such confidence we have through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant--not of the letter but of the Spirit, for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life (vs 4-6). Woo hoo! ...the Spirit gives life...Yes! Paul continues writing about how those who lived under the Old Covenant did not have the opportunity to see Christ as those after the veil was torn. We have a light they did not have. Paul spoke about how those called to preach the Gospel need to do so in a way people will desire to have Him in their life. Verse twelve tells us, Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. We must be bold in our speech and in our actions so more people will come into relationship with Him. I like how Matthew Henry puts it.
Those who lived under the law, had a veil upon their hearts. This veil is taken away by the doctrines of the Bible about Christ. When any person is converted to God, then the veil of ignorance is taken away. The condition of those who enjoy and believe the gospel is happy, for the heart is set at liberty to run the ways of God's commandments. They have light, and with open face they behold the glory of the Lord. Christians should prize and improve these privileges. We should not rest contented without knowing the transforming power of the gospel, by the working of the Spirit, bringing us to seek to be like the temper and tendency of the glorious gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and into union with Him. We behold Christ, as in the glass of his word; and as the reflection from a mirror causes the face to shine, the faces of Christians shine also.
Verse seventeen is the 'icing on the cake' for me! It reads in the NIV, Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. Amen! Even when going through such things as pancreatic cancer we do not have to be tied down to worry, fretting, etc. Instead we can live in the knowledge that God knows the end result. The enemy places fear upon us but God eliminates such fear as we stand in His love and empowerment (II Timothy 1:7). I am reminded once again this morning of the miracle of Doc still being with me after ten months from diagnosis. It is not the 'normal' but it is God's timing not man's. God is in control of every moment of every one of our days. Woo hoo! The freedom Paul describes in II Corinthians 3:16-18 in The Message is what makes such a life possible.
Whenever, though, they turn to face God as Moses did, God removes the veil and there they are—face-to-face! They suddenly recognize that God is a living, personal presence, not a piece of chiseled stone. And when God is personally present, a living Spirit, that old, constricting legislation is recognized as obsolete. We’re free of it! All of us! Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him.
Yes! I love how God is described as a living, personal presence! That is exactly who He is in my life. I strive to live in His presence 24/7. As I do, I receive freedom from worry over things only He knows the outcome. Doctors can give statistics but God is the Only Statistician I desire to follow. The more I allow His Holy Spirit to transform me, the more freedom I receive. Woo hoo!
Dear Jesus,
Thank You for the rest You provided yesterday! Thank You for being with Doc today as he goes through another post chemo day! Father, may You be greater than his issues. May You give Him Your strength to not just get through this day but to shine brightly through it. Father, cleanse us so You can fill us with more of You. May You go before us and be our words, actions, attitude, and thoughts throughout this day. Lord, there are so many people who are going through 'tough' days. I pray they all will feel Your empowerment today. Thank You for the testimony Amanda wrote yesterday of the way You are working in and through the cancer in her body. May You continue to put people around her that will encourage and love on her and her family. I also pray for Jim as he continues his adjustment to a new life. May You continue to be His strength. Thank You for my friend Rickey who shared Scripture this morning that You desired me to ponder upon. Thank You for being My Only Statistician! Amen.
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