God took me to Psalm 3 this morning. In The Passion Translation this Scripture is entitled "Covered By The Glory"! Woo hoo! No matter what happens while we are on this earth we must live in God's presence to spend eternity with Him. This Psalm reminds me of how much I am surrounded by the Trinity every day. God is my Heavenly Father who loves on me every day. Jesus is my Lord who saves me. The Holy Spirit speaks and directs me to where He desires me to be. God the Father; Jesus my Lord; and the Holy Spirit. Life is so different when we allow these three to not just be names we speak but Ones we follow. It is different when we not only hear their voice but we walk in obedience to them. This week has been a challenging one. Traveling to Columbia for a time of training; another building inspection; thinking about my 'first' Easter as lead pastor; praying for so many people who are hurting for a variety of reasons; being emotional too many times to count; feeling alone...challenges have been great but my God has been greater. He has been there every step of the way encouraging me through the challenges and disappointments of life. Verses three and four in The Passion Translation read:
But in the depths of my heart I truly know
that you, Yahweh, have become my Shield;
You take me and surround me with yourself.
Your glory covers me continually.
You lift high my head.
I have cried out to you, Yahweh, from your holy presence.
You send me a Father’s help.
Pause in his presence
Praise His Holy Name for protecting me! I have felt the enemy coming on strong this week and am so grateful for the protection that has been around me. I know life would be so different without that protection. I am grateful for people God puts in my path who encourage me to not give up but instead to stand strong in Him. I also am grateful for the mindset He gives me when people say things they think are appropriate yet hurt deeply. I am grateful for the words He puts in my mouth, the thoughts He puts on my mind, the attitude He puts in my spirit, and the actions He gives me. He is "The Secret of Strength" in my life just as the last two verses of Psalm 3 are entitled in The Passion Translation.
Rise up and help me, Yahweh! Come and save me, God!
For you will slap them in the face,
breaking the power of their words to harm me.
For the Lord alone is my Savior.
What a feast of favor and bliss he gives his people!
Pause in his presence
I am reminded this morning of the words to a song called "Rise Up." The writer of the song wrote these words about life: “It’s this triumphant song about come on and rise up. My story is one of secret. As I felt myself feeling separated from God in cycles of destructive behavior & sin, the last thing I wanted to do was rise up. The last thing on earth that I wanted to do was to stand up and do what was right. When I feel defeated it’s easy for me to recluse, to become comfortable in that place but I know that the voice of Jesus is always gonna call me to rise up. If you hold onto that truth, that voice will get loud and it will eventually get louder than the voice that’s telling you to not rise up. There is no greater feeling of being alive than when you decide that I’m gonna take the power that’s given to me by the blood that was shed on the cross and I’m going to stand on top of this thing that has held me down. When you rise up anything that felt like life before that pales in comparison.” – Logan (CAIN)
I will admit there are times where I feel like the enemy is winning. I become tired from fighting against his antics. Then God reminds me I am not in this fight on my own strength but instead need to press more into His strength. I so agree with these words, There is no greater feeling of being alive than when you decide that I’m gonna take the power that’s given to me by the blood that was shed on the cross and I’m going to stand on top of this thing that has held me down. Woo hoo! This. This is where I need to live. This is where I need to make sure to spend every day of my life, 24/7. God is and will continue to be my Strength no matter what happens in life. I was thinking last night that I sure must be doing something right for the Lord with the way the enemy fights to pull me down. The enemy will not win. My God will always win! I will "Rise Up" like Lazarus and be who God is calling me to be.
Dear Jesus,
Thank You for Psalm 3 and this song that encourage me to allow You to empower me to "Rise Up" when the enemy comes knocking at my door! I am so blessed in the way You love me so greatly and encourage me through people, Scripture, songs, etc. Thank You for filling my emotional tank last night with time with Miss Lilly! Thank You for giving me a day of rest yesterday to fill my physical tank! Thank You for my Momma who encouraged me through conversation! Thank You for cleansing me so You can fill me to overflowing with more of You! I desire to "Rise Up" today so I can be the godly lady You have called me to me. Lord, I pray special healing prayers for so many but especially for: my sister Linda; my friends Kaye and Mary; Dave Stanley; Luke who has been diagnosed with an infection; Ed as he continues to heal from surgery; Sharon Martin; and Clara Jean who is facing surgery. I also pray for friends who need an extra dose of You in life. Elizabeth; Melanie; Sandi Stroud; a friend with job issues; a friend with relationship issues; a friend making some 'tough' decisions and another friend who needs to make decisions based upon You and not the world. Lord, be greater than the hurts of life. Be greater than the things the enemy throws our way and empower us to "Rise Up" for You. Thank You Jesus for being My Secret of Strength! Amen.
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