Thursday, April 14, 2011

Proclaiming His Name

So often I feel my posts come across as having arrived, that I have all the answers, that life is easy with all my ducks in a row, that my quotes to 'honor God, glorify God in everything, put God at the center of your life, etc' are just words. I have given more thought to this post wanting to communicate to you that my posts are not just words on a blog.  Far too often I santize my life on this blog...which I shouldn't do because I am committed to living an authentic and transparent life. Enough rambling...
  • How does a young mother five months pregnant make much of God when she is involved in a head on collision and the unborn baby's heartbeat is no where to be found?
  • How does a new pastor's wife keep God at the center of her life when all she feels is lonliness and isolation because she has moved far away from everything familiar and friendly?
  • How does a young mother of three children all under the age of 4 find time to spend with her Lord knowing that is what she needs to do to be the mother they so desperately need?
  • Where does a lonely housewife battling depression turn when her only desire is to leave her husband and children and head back to all that was once familiar?
  • How does a wife live day in and day out loving her husband who deals with unrelenting chronic pain?
  • How does a mother value God above all things when her only son is being deployed to the Middle East for over a year?
  • How does a daughter honor and praise God when her dad dies unexpectedly with grief invading every nook and cranny of her heart?
I don't tell you these experiences to say how great I am or to garner some emotion. I tell you these things about me to tell you how GREAT GOD IS.
That it is possible to glorify God in everything (1 Cor. 10:31).
With a story to tell that God is writing I want to proclaim his Name.

4 comments:

Ellen Coulter said...

Wow! Praise God, for He is our strength and our deliverer! After reading this post, a favorite hymn came to mind:

Victory in Jesus

I heard an old, old story, how a Savior came from glory,
How He gave His life on Calvary to save a wretch like me;
I heard about His groaning, of His precious blood's atoning,
Then I repented of my sins and won the victory.

O victory in Jesus, my Savior, forever, He sought me and bo't me with His redeeming blood;
He loved me ere I knew Him, and all my love is due Him,
He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood.

I heard about His healing, of His cleansing pow'r revealing,
How He made the lame to walk again and caused the blind to see;
And then I cried, "dear Jesus, come and heal my broken spirit,"
And somehow Jesus came and bro't to me the victory.

O victory in Jesus, my Savior, forever, He sought me and bo't me with His redeeming blood;
He loved me ere I knew Him, and all my love is due Him,
He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood.

I heard about a mansion He has built for me in glory,
And I heard about the streets of gold beyond the crystal sea;
About the angels singing, and the old redemption story,
And some sweet day I'll sing up there the song of victory.

O victory in Jesus, my Savior, forever, He sought me and bo't me with His redeeming blood;
He loved me ere I knew Him, and all my love is due Him,
He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood.

Jody said...

AMEN!

Kirsten Phillips said...

7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 8 We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 10 We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 11 For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body.

This has been one of my favorite parts of scripture over the last few years. I love the idea of being an ordinary, worn jar of clay that glorifies God through hardships.

Thanks for sharing your heart and your wisdom.

Gigi said...

It's hard being transparent, isn't it, Jody? It just isn't our nature to strip our selves bare to the world. I have tried over the past (almost) three years that I've had my blog to be crystal clear. I blogged openly about my husband's cancer diagnosis, our journey and then, his death. I've blogged about my struggles to continue on without him. Up to a point. Perhaps one day, with His help, I'll be brave enough to be clear as glass. God bless you on your journey.