Focus

When I was at church yesterday, I was inspired to paint this picture. It was initially supposed to be a storm. Before I was able to paint the raging waves and a vessel in the midst of the storm, I sensed the Lord telling me to paint a blooming garden instead of the raging waves int he sea. So while painting the garden, I finally understood why.

Instead of focusing too much on the storm, the waves around us and even the vessel that’s in the storm, keep your focus on the One who is with you in the storm. For it is He who is able to calm the storm outside, and the storm in you.

When you abide in Him, you will bear fruit regardless of where you are. It’s all about Him.

John 15:5 New King James Version (NKJV)

⁵ “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

Mark 4:39 New King James Version (NKJV)

³⁹ Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.

Tune Out the world, Tune In to God

Last night I did some reading and felt led to meditate on these verses. (See below)

Philippians 2:14-15

New King James Version (NKJV)

14 Do all things without complaining and disputing, 15 that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,

1 Corinthians 10:10

New King James Version (NKJV)

10 nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer.

Numbers 14:2, 36

New King James Version (NKJV)

2 And all the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in this wilderness! 36 Now the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and made all the congregation complain against him by bringing a bad report of the land,

There is one word that appears in all those verses. Complain. At least that’s the root word for complaining & complained. The more I read and think about those verses, the more I see that God takes it seriously.

I think about those men who were sent out to spy the land. They not only came back with bad reports, but doing so led the congregation to complain (murmur). What happened to those men? They died by the plague.  Wow! That itself makes me think twice when I feel like complaining. (But it is hard not to complain, isn’t it? I can almost see a scene in my mind, showing me driving to work and having a rude driver cut the queue I’m in etc…, and not forgetting the nasty hot weather etc…) The list seems to grow long.

Since complaining doesn’t please God, doing the opposite should please Him, I thought. It’s time to tune out the world and tune in to God. Instead of complaining, I should try to change and thank Him.

Not easy to do….

Psalm 100:4

New Living Translation (NLT)

4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
    go into his courts with praise.
    Give thanks to him and praise his name.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

The Message (MSG)

16-18 Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.

Echoes In The Valley

I visited the chiropractor on Saturday as a follow up from my last appointment a few months ago. I wanted to know my progress. If you’re reading this for the first time, I came down with knee injuries back in October/November 2011. It’s been a year. I almost went for the operation in February 2012 but for some reason, I felt myself unable to go through it. I thought I had peace but on the night before the operation, I was unable to sleep and fear just took over. In the morning, I made the last minute decision not to go for the knee arthroscopy.

This entire experience (which isn’t over yet) is the darkest valley I’ve ever experienced. The earlier months, I found myself questioning God. I  know that some of the unpleasant things we experience in life is caused by ourselves. However, I know that if God commanded my knees to heal, they would heal. But it took me so long to see that God would heal me in His way, and in His time.

I praise God that things are looking positive and that the recovery is progressing. My knee ligaments are still weak and therefore I need the knee braces for stability. The difference is I feel the peace now, that I never felt in the beginning of the year.

Over the months, I had to learn to tune out the other voices as I walk in that valley. It got lonely at times because nobody really knew how I felt. I could show a strong front but that was because I was breaking on the inside. The fear of not being able to walk was real. What I learned  in this valley is you need to focus on God. Keep looking to Him. When you’re facing the Son, you won’t see the shadows.

Tune out all the negative words spoken to you and listen to Him – the One who is with us even unto the end of the world.