Savior – Page 3 – Jesus is for the Wounded

He’s so dreamy. I mean that if I close my eyes it’s like I can imagine soft blue eyes looking lovingly at me, telling me He knows me just as I am, He loves me just as I am, and He will always be the love of my life.

He’s so tall as well. He towers over me and it is good as He protects me, carries me when I collapse, lifts me up when I am weak, and draws me up close to His warm embrace. Somehow I feel taller and stand straighter when He is near.

He’s so strong. It’s as if I can feel the strength of His arms, His words, His promises to me and all good things whether or not He is actually present. Makes me stronger too. I can face this or that, good or bad, when His strength goes before me. Always.

He’s so smart. He knows what I am thinking even before I say it or I might raise an eyebrow or lower a tear! Wow. That goes beyond intuition, friendship, or our times together getting to know one another. He crafts many special times for me that may look questionable at the time, yet if I but trust Him, it all works out o.k. over time. It’s like He’s always known me and knows what is best for me.

He’s so encouraging. He brings me to the window to see the bluebirds back at the bluebird house this Spring before the little cutie flies away and would otherwise be missed. What a wonderful encouragement on a day that starts in the afternoon! Oh and His words are filled with hope and promise of a better day in addition to the reminders of our sweet times together in the past too. Thank you for helping me to remember.

He’s so thoughtful. He reminds me of the blessings of many days gone by when my stinking thinking has gone to a place of darkness. He also places in my path the loving arms of my hubby when my Stevers would normally be at work already and not able to calm the shaking of my tender frame. He allows him to become like Him with skin on.

He does want the best for me. Like a perfect father, like a perfect grandparent, like a best friend, he will be with me now and forever, leading me on to be the best woman I can be if I but follow Him. He’ll let me know what I need to know if I but wait at His feet with an open heart, an open mind. What an adventure we have together!

Yes, this person is my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is real. He is in my heart now and forevermore.

Do you know Him too?

world-map — He’s got the whole world in His hands

So much to let go. So much that still haunts this troubled mind and body. Troubled? Yeah, a side effect of battling an illness that affects your central nervous system. Negative emotions are magnified, fears are stronger than they need to be, stress responses come more easily, and a cynical attitude creeps into more and more moments. It’s a battle and little of needs to be mine, actually.

As a believer in Jesus Christ, we have THE warrior on the throne, can embrace HIS spiritual armor, and trust that HE will be the victor in the end. He promises all this to those who love Him and call Him Lord. It honors Him to call upon His name with our praises and requests. Remembering this fights against the workings of my brain these days a little more than the distractions and temptations we all face. No, I’m not special. I’m just selected! And I get to write about what I learn along the way!

I used to have a God Box. It was a tool introduced to me during my years in Al Anon Adult Children of Alcoholics’ meetings. The Lord used 12-Step meetings as a first step to finding a personal relationship with God (AKA Higher Power); I now know God as my Savior, Jesus Christ. By writing a prayer request, troubling thought, or need on a slip of paper, I had a symbolic way of turning people/places/things over to Him when I put the paper in the God Box. My Box was a little plastic folder with imprinted with a world map. Somehow it seemed significant to me as a reminder that the Lord is everywhere, cares about everyone including me.

So this blog is another form of a God Box. Here’s the list on my piece of paper today:

Lyme Disease. Treatment decisions. $250 per week out of pocket for medical expenses. Restitution I feel my ex-husband owes me. Amount of money I was entitled to but didn’t take from the settlement of my father’s estate. Daily physical pain. Dreams for my jewelry business. Upcoming craft show. VISA bills. Yard work I’m unable to complete. Last few CEUs for my OT license that need to be done even though I ‘m not working. Seizure attacks. Headaches; will the new OTC med. that worked for me yesterday work when I need it again? The need to exercise and the intolerance of most exercise. Oh dear. There is so much and it escalates to near panic if I don’t stop when the avalanche starts. I’ll stop here. I need a good word badly!

¹⁵For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. ¹⁶Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. From Hebrews 4 (NIV)

Lord I give you these heartaches this day. I lay them at Your throne of grace. I pray for your mercy and help in my time of need. I also place before you the readers of this blog. Bless them, Lord for caring about me and perhaps considering the role You may have in their lives. I pray that each one would come to know you as Lord, lover of his or her soul, friend, and sojourner through this life. Strengthen those who already know You. For Your glory, Lord. In Jesus name. Amen.