New Beginnings - Part III

New beginnings can sometimes take us down familiar roads. At that point, it's a choice: 1) Do we go back or do we proceed forward? 2) Is the door opening for a past desire or is it going to stay closed?

Only time will tell. In the meantime, I follow the Lord always. If He wants me to turn back to finish something I started five years ago, He'll make that way.

And even if God does want me to finish something I started five years ago, He still has plenty of new things He's getting me involved in...although some of them I've been doing for quite a while. Now, it's a new level of activity.

I encourage you to seek the Lord if you are going through something right now. Here's what God showed me in Scripture last night.

Isaiah 57:15b/c and 18-19a - it was so appropo for my situation yesterday, I marvelled that the prophet Isaiah had written so very long ago! God is speaking here in this passage.

"...I live in the high and holy place with those whose spirits are contrite and humble. I restore the crushed spirit of the humble and revive the courage of those with repentant hearts...I have seen what they did, but I will heal them anyway! I will lead them. I will comfort those who mourn, bringing words of priase to their lips."

Most of the time, the Lord wants us to proceed forward. If you've read the total book of Isaiah, you know that there are numerous times that God says to forget the past. But there are a couple of places where He says to remember.

One passage in particular gave me great comfort about 8 years ago in the middle of a testing time. I came to a place where my understanding was crashing. People in authority were in authority saying one thing. Teachers were saying the opposite. My spirit was aligning with the teacher. How could they both be right? Severe brain crash led to a questioning in my heart and a gut-wrenching experience in my soul.

"God!" I cried out at 4:00 a.m. "Do you I hear from You at all? Have I not heard right from You all these years?" And I waited.

A very quiet, little thought came to mind. "Isaiah 46." I started reading. When I got to verse 9, I began to weep. "Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me." Yes. I'd heard. I got perspective the next day.

New Beginnings - Part II

What a picture! Transformation out of harshness. Something beautiful in the midst of something rough.

This is how we look after we go through something. We're as beautiful as the butterfly, because we are standing on The Rock - which is Christ.

I am amazed at God's grace, His love, and His abundance. When we can't see the nose in front of our face, He is still there, gently leading us through the fog. Even though we can't see how we're going to turn out, He does.

He knows we're going to look like that butterfly, sitting on The Rock.

Photo credit: The Cape May Times

New Beginnings - Part I

Here's a new beginning! While my friend Linda sets up her blog, I'll help her out by posting this.

This is a picture of her and her new dog Grace. Linda's previous dog just graduated to doggy heaven on July 4th.

Within a week, both Linda and Grace have a new beginning. Linda has a new companion and Grace has a new home. How exciting for both of them!

I happen to know that dogs go to heaven! Here's a picture of Maggie when she was about 12-13 years old. She lived to be 14.

During a spiritual vision activation service just a scant one year after she died, I "saw" Maggie as a young dog. She ran across a heavenly plain and jumped into my arms. I began to sob.

A friend, who has also "graduated" to heaven since that time, was sitting next to me. She said, "Are you OK?" I said, "Yes. I'm seeing something. I'll tell you later."

What new beginnings are you experiencing right now? Post a comment and let me know.

Ends and Beginnings - Part VII

What what IS our "real" ending and our "real" beginning?

I've been thinking about this a lot recently because of all the people who have been dying around us. Kirby & I have 'lost' two friends to cancer within the last few months. One was a mother who left four children and a husband. The other a father to his son and husband.

However, those two that are now 'dead' are actually more alive than ever! They were followers of Christ and here's what they're lookin' at!! The Throne Room of God in Heaven!!

The book of Revelation, although it contains a lot of destruction and violence, is also such a book of hope, beauty, awe-inspiring wonder. It also contains a lot of heavenly vision and worship. Those who think Heaven will be quiet and reverent, haven't read Revelation. There's actually only a one-time half-hour period that "heaven was silent." Read about it Revelation 8:1, that says:

"When the Lamb broke the seventh seal on the scroll, there was silence throughout heaven for about half an hour." Otherwise, read parts Revelation 4, 7, 11, 12, 15, 16, 18, 19, and of course 21 and 22.

Many modern-day music composers, as well as George Frederic Handel have used the worship songs in Revelation to inspire us to get our minds off this world, and focus in on the next! The first worship song I learned to play on guitar when I was a freshman in college was from Revelation 5:9-10. Jerry Williams wrote the melody, but John the Apostle copied the words from the 24 Elders and the Four Living Creatures.

"Worthy art Thou to take the Scroll and open all its seals. For Thou was slain and by Thy blood didst ransome men for God. From every tribe and tongue and people and nation have made them a Kingdom. And they shall reign on all the earth!"

And so ends the Ends and Beginnings. Next up: who knows?