God, my Exceeding Joy

"Then will I go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy: yea, upon the harp will I praise thee, O God my God." Psalm 43:4

Name:
Location: Oregon, United States

I met my husband while I was a missionary in Hong Kong. He had swum out of China after the Cultural Revolution. We have been married 32 years and have four children (2 biological and 2 adopted), ages 22-30. My mother also lives with us (she just turned 90). I am truly a blessed woman.

Friday, July 27, 2007

To know God

"Everything that happens is divinely appointed to give you an opportunity to know God." - Elisabeth Elliot

"That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death." Phil. 3:10

Friday, July 20, 2007

A continual feast

He that is of a merry heart hath a

continual feast.

T HE joy of the LORD is your strength.--The kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.--Be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

By him . . . let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.

Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.--Sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing.--We glory in tribulations also.





PRO. 15. 15. Ne. 8. 10.--Ro. 14. 17.--
Ep. 5. 18-20. He. 13. 15. Ha. 3. 17, 18.--
2 Co. 6. 10.--Ro. 5. 3.

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Rest again

Matt. 11:28, 29 - "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls."

"Young gives the meaning of rest as 'rest again, cease from, rest thoroughly.' Rest again is the word for today. We are not promised smooth roads, but rough. When things are smooth, we should look up in delight and thanksgiving thinking of them as breathing spaces rather than as the normal condition of things. Rough roads make it certain that we shall often come to our Lord for rest. Our dear Lord will never be surprised by our frequent coming. He will never tire of resting us, and in the rest He gives His strength. His invitation stands sure: Come unto Me and I will give you rest, rest again."From Whispers of His Power by Amy Carmichael.

Monday, July 09, 2007

"Secret of the Lord"

"'There is a place by Me,' (Ex. 33:21) a place of unapproachable safety. Affliction and tribulation may destroy all else, but the saint abiding in this secret place of the Most High is untouchable. There is no self-consciousness there, no uncertainty, but only Rest, unfathomable rest in God Himself, not in a vision of God, but in God Himself as a Reality, a living bright reality. Walking with God and talking to Him as friend with friend, knowing that...God knows He can do what He likes with us; there are no questions and no perplexities because He knows. Here, in the heart of this way of guidance by Himself, does God convey to us the 'secret of the Lord.'" Oswald Chambers, The Disciplines of Divine Guidance, p. 280.

Saturday, July 07, 2007

God hears

I've been thinking a lot about prayer, lately, and how much I focus on God's "answers". I have been told that God always answers prayer, although His answer may be different from what I was anticipating. If His answer is "Yes", I am grateful and happy. If it is "No", I can't help feeling disappointed and sometimes quite unhappy. If it is "Wait", then I settle in with my martyr's complex, and prepare to stoically await whatever is coming. I know, I know - not too spiritual, huh?

As I have continued to go slowly through Psalm 119, I have been so encouraged and thrilled in watching the Psalmist pray over and over for the Lord to quicken him, incline his heart, teach, strengthen, etc. The best part is NOT when he sees "answers" to his prayer, but when he realizes that God heard him. Psalm 119:26 - "I have declared my ways, and thou heardest me: teach me thy statutes."

Then this morning I read the following verses from Hebrews 5:7, 8. "In the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and WAS HEARD in that he feared; though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; and being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him." The very Son of God found His strength in being heard by His Father - not by having His prayer answered according to His desire. And that's how He learned obedience.

This gives me a whole new focus in prayer. Just knowing that I have been heard is enough, when I know the One who heard is the One who loves me with an everlasting love, and has wisdom and power to accomplish His perfect purpose in my life. That changes everything!