Laugh With Joy

When I had to learn how to read, write, walk and talk again, there was something so deep and so profound that God could only provide and that was the joy that surpases sorrow, that overcomes misery, that triumphs over adversity and that was and is the joy of the Lord; knowing that even in the darkest times God always brings the sunshine of His promises, the joy that overcomes the deepest valley. When I was able to literally laugh again, it was and is a sweet simple joy that I shall use until it is no more ;)

By Ernie Kasper ~ Stroke Survivor

Under A Thousand Tears

   Sometimes we bear the weight of our deepest fears in silence. We put on a brave face and all the while we cry on the inside, we break into pieces, thinking, pondering, wondering if anyone knows our pain and do they really care. The bible says this in Psalms

When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.
                              Psalm 34:17-19
     The comfort we receive is in this very thing, that God is ever attentive, He is ever prepared to easily overcome anything we are enduring. He promises that He will deliver us out of all our afflictions. The great joy we receive is in knowing that God stands by His word, even to the cross! His mercy is ever enduring, ever compassionate and full of love and joy. We have hope because God does exactly as He promises and has never failed, His record is 100 percent perfect and He knows exactly everything there is to know about you and how to make all things new in His perfect grace. So take hope in this very thing, you are loved and that love that is so profound that it causes us to soar above the impossible, to do the very things we thought would leave us in the dust of weakness. God delivers! God Heals! God Restores! God Renews!

 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
                               Isaiah 40:31

When I Am Weak

                      It has been my greatest inspiration for poetry, artwork, photography and everything else I do, my stroke broke me and God healed me in ways I thought would never happen. He brought me confidence when my flesh was weak, He brought me faithfulness when faithfulness in friends could not be found, He restored my courage when no courage could be seen. My faith is in His devoted love and His perfect plan.

I Will Be With You

I can't see how this will turn out...

It's that moment that makes us shake sometimes, especially when we are at our weakest moments, the moments that challenge our worst fears, our silent whispers but it's in those very moments that God speaks the loudest. He begins a good work in us and what He starts, He finishes! That's the comfort we can receive through each and every challenge that begs us to break, to give up, to throw in the towel. The real beauty is in God's perfect plan and His devoted compassionate love that abounds in wisdom and kindness...

Another Step In The Right Direction

     FEARLESS

     Some might say that fear encompasses the first step, after that moment it's just a matter of diligence and courageous living. I agree, the fear is in the unknown, the "what ifs" of our imagination. We fill our minds with "what ifs" and God encourages us to put all that aside and fill it with "By Faith" now the amazing thing about faith is this, the bible speaks of it in this beautiful description

1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.
Hebrews 11:1

That verse alone is so powerful and encouraging because it speaks of an assurance of what we do not see! God establishes His purpose in our lives and has solidified His plans and by these precious words we know that what God establishes, He finishes. Our job is to simply walk in it, pray in it, live in it and trust that God who is perfect in every way, who is deeply passionate about His children, the ones He loves with an uncompromising devoted love that never fails, that never tires, that never becomes weary. That is the God we serve and His promises are eternal and perfect and what He has started in you, He will finish.

Philippians 1:6

 6And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

For The Call

   

     Today is one of those days, the kind of day that when you wake up you just feel thankful. You wake up and you realize that God in all His wonder and grace, somehow made your life amazing not by what you can do but rather what God can do in it. A moment comes and goes without distinction sometimes but when there is love it soars through the skies of joy and when we suffer pain or loss we drudge through the mud and mire of hurt. It's inevitable, change is always happening but it's when we are in our darkest moments that we see an even greater light of hope, it's because of it's sheer brilliance when in darkness we wander that it becomes so precious, so paramount, so inspiring that it leaves an indelible mark that can spur us onward and upward.
     When I woke up this morning I had that very feeling, that type of praise to a God of wonder and absolute faithfulness. I had realized that through my stroke, my learning how to read, write, walk and talk that God made that mark, that profound statement in my soul that said "I will never leave you or forsake you!" and that is what He did. He prevailed over my suffering, He conquered over my doubts, He triumphantly showed is everlasting love over my hurts and pains and today I am doing things that once were deemed impossible because I have a God of all possibilities.
     No matter what you face you can face it as long as God is the rock by which you stand or crawl or what have you, you are not alone and on His strong promises you are victorious.

Count Your Blessings

     A beautiful day to praise God and remember that counting your blessings makes you forget all the things that were never really worth complaining about in the first place.

     When I can't talk I sing praises in my mind, when I can't walk, I pray for all those God wants me to reach with the gospel, when my mind is angry I pray for all those who have hurt me most. So whatever struggle I go through I'm keeping my eyes on Gods purpose and focusing less on my struggles. God always triumphs over the worst of adversity, I just have to know that He has me in His hands and that everything is going to be okay, in fact everything will be so much better because I walk with God or in my case RUN.