Date: January 29th, 2010

Psalms 41:1-3 “Blessed is he who considers the poor! The Lord delivers him in the day of trouble; the Lord protects him and keeps him alive; he is called blessed in the land; thou dost not give him up to the will of his enemies. The Lord sustains him on his sickbed; in his illness thou healest all his infirmities.”

Pslams 44:5-8 “Through thee we push down our foes; through thy name we tread down our assailants. For not in my bow do I trust, nor can my sword save me. But thou hast saved us from our foes, and hast put to confusion those who hate us… and we will give thanks to thy name forever.”

Psalms 34:7 “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who hear Him, and rescues them.”

Isaiah 43:1-3 “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters I will be with you; (or when the waters pass through you) and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.”

Words from Kristi Harkson in an email dated November 26, 2007

“I wanted to tell you something that I hope will encourage you. A few weeks ago, right after Becky emailed me the news of your illness, I had this experience…. I woke up in the middle of the night precisely at 2:30am… After looking at the clock I said “Is there someone who want me to pray for Lord?” Immediately I heard him say “Rosie!” I thought it was strange because i have never called you Rosie before.. but apparently He calls you Rosie! I got down on my knees next to my bed and prayed. It made me realize how close you are to God’s heart that He would make me up to pray for you! He is a loving, personal, caring God, isn’t He? We will continue praying for you!”

II Corinthians 2:14 “But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumph, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. God we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing…”

Matthew 19:26 “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Psalms 3:14-4 “O Lord how many are my foes! Many are rising against me; many are saying of me there is no help from him in God. But thou, O Lord, art a shield about , my glory and the lifter of my head. I cry aloud to the Lord, and he answers me from his holy hill.”

Isaiah 40:28-31 “Eagle Verses”

…The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary, his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths  shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; 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.”

Psalms 103:1-5 “Blessed the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his beliefs, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy; who satisfies you with goods as long as you live so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”

Psalms 3:3-4 “But though, O Lord, art a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. I cry aloud to the Lord, and he answers me from his holy hill.”

Malachi 3:16 “Then those who feared the Lord spoke with me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. I cry aloud to the Lord, and he answers me from his holy hill.”

Isaiah 60:1 “Arise, shine for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.”

Isaiah 61:1-3 “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good tidings to the afflicted; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant those who mourn in Zion, to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit, that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.”

Psalms 147:3 “He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds.”

Psalms 146:5, 9a “Happy is he whose help is in God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God.”….”The Lord watches over the sojourners”

II Corinthians 2:14-15 “But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumph, and through us spreads the fragrance  of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.”

Psalms 69:1-3 “Save, O God! For the waves have come up to my neck. I sink in the deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deeps waters, and the flood sweeps over me. I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched. My eyes grow dim with waiting for my God.”

Psalms 40:1-3 “I wanted patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the desolate pit, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust int he Lord.”

Psalms 138:3 “You answer me and encourage me by giving me the strength I need.”

Habakkuk 2:3 “For still the vision awaits its time; it hastens to the end– it will not life. It it seems slow, wait for it, it will surely come, it will not delay.”

Psalms 23

“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want; he makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me besides still waters;

HE RESTORES MY SOUL.

He leads me in paths of righteousness, for his names’s sake.

Even Though I walk through the valley of the SHADOW of death,

I fear no evil; for thou art with me;

Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; thou anoint my

head with oil, my cup overflows,

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life;

And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

Psalms 143:8 “Let me hear in the morning of thy steadfast love, for in thee I put my trust. Teach me the way I should go for to thee I lift up my soul.”

Isaiah 50:4 “The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him that is weary. Morning by morning he wakens, he wakens my ear to hear as those who are taught.”

Psalms 20:4-5 “May he grant you your heart’s desire, and fulfill all your plans! May we shout for joy over your victory, and in the name of our God set up our banners! May the Lord fulfill all your petitions!”

Psalms 20:1 “The Lord answer you in the day of the trouble! The name of the God of Jacob protect you!”

Psalms 18:28 “Yes, thou dost light my lamp; the Lord my God lightens my darkness.”

Psalms 3:3-4 “But thou, O Lord, art a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. I cry aloud to the Lord and he answers me from his holy hill.”

Job 22:21-22 & 28 “Agree with God, and be at peace; thereby good will come to you. Receive instruction from his mouth, and lay upon his words in your heart….. (28) You will decide on a matter, and it will be established for you, and light will shine on your ways.”

Ecc 3:1 “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.”

II Samuel 22:33-34 “This God is my strong refuge and has made my way safe. He made my feet like hinds feet and set me secure on the heights.”

Mark 13:11 “And then they bring you to trial and deliver you up, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say; but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit.”

Luke 21:13-15 “This will be a tie for you to bear testimony. Settle it therefore in your minds, not to meditate beforehand how to answer; for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict.”

Jeremiah 1:7-8 “But the Lord said to me, Do not say, I am only a youth; for to all to whom I send you you shall go, and whatever I command you you shall speak. Be not afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.”

Matthew 10:19-20 “When they deliver you up, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.”

Isaiah 41:10 “Fear not, for I am with you, be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victories right hand.”

Isaiah 41:13 “For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you'”.

Psalms 61:1-3 “Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer; from the end of the earth I call to thee, when my heart is faint. Lead thou me to the rock that is higher than I, for thou art my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy. Let me dwell in thy tent forever. Oh, to be safe under the shelter of thy wings.”

Psalms 91:14-16 “Because he cleaves to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name. When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will rescue him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him, and show him my salvation.

Isaiah 43:18-19 “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do not perceive it. I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the dessert.”

II Corinthians 4:7-12, 16-18 “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For while we live we are always being given up to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you….. So we do not lose heart. Though our momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, because we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen; for the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”

Psalms 121:7-8 “The Lord will keep you from all harm, he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going, both now and forevermore.”

II Cor. 1:3-5 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our afflictions, so that we ma be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”

James 1:2-4 “Count it all joy, my brethren, when you meet various trails, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect that you may be perfect and complete lacking in nothing.”

Jeremiah 31:25-26 “For I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish. Thereupon I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me.”

Psalms 34:17-19 “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.”

Isaiah 55:12 “You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace. The mountains and hills will burst into song before you!”

Psalms 139:5 “You both precede and follow me, and place your hand of blessings on my head”

Romans 12:12 “Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.”

Psalms 105:4-5 “Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his presence continually! Remember the wonderful works that he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered.”

These are some thoughts given to me on Thursday morning December 8, 1994.

Thinking about my missionary friend, Alma Hagen, and her illustration of actually putting out your open hand, palm side up, in a gesture of giving our burden, desire, fears, anxieties…. to the Lord, and not grasping onto it with our clenched fist.

Thinking of Romans 13:14 “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.”

Give it to Jesus– Not only the bad things in your life, but also the obsessive desires for good things. Even these can rob us of peace. Give it ALL to Jesus on an open palm. “Whatever Lord, Your will.. You know Lord my desires, my hopes, but is your plan better?”

Isaiah 55:8,9 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

God may it be: Your plan for how my marriage should be…. Your plan for how my children should be….. Your plan for how my life should be… Your plan for how my house should be…

1 Peter 5:7 “Cast all your anxiety on him, for he cares about you.”

Psalms 55:22 “Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved” (We might be moved from our physical house or our neighborhood, but never moved from the closeness to God).

Think about fishing. Are we like fisherman, throwing out our burden to the Lord, and then reeling it back in? Just cast it and leave it! The definition of cast: to throw with a quick motion and sudden release.

Let us quickly with sudden release- cast our burdens on the Lord and then experience the peace that passes all understanding.

Thoughts from Rosemary: 6:20am Monday February 9, 1986

I’ve been feelings strongly for a couple weeks to have a lesson on tithing or at least sheets to pass out for you to read. This morning as I sat down for devotions the thought keeps coming to prepare some papers to pass out. I feel as though I should start with some thoughts from Haggai before verses on tithing.

Memories come flooding back to the first time I was led to Haggai and I have it noted in my Bible, September 24th 1970. I can remember asking the Lord that morning, “What should I read this morning?”, and the thought kept coming back to me, “Read Haggai”. Read Haggai? I don’t know anything about Haggai and wondered, “Why Haggai?” But thought… “ok, ok, I’ll read Haggai”. At the time I didn’t know exactly what the Lord was trying to tell me through Haggai, but this is what I did notice and it made a deep impression on me. In Haggai 1:15 it says, “on the 24th day of the month”.

• 2:10 says “consider from this day onward, from the 24th day of the 9th month”
• 2:18 says “consider from this day onward, from the 24th day of the 9th month”
• 2:20 says “The word  of the Lord came a second time to Haggai on the 24th day of the month”

As I read, I had to go look at the calendar, yes, this was the 24th day of the 9th month, September 24th, 1970. I was excited and knew the Lord has something in this little book He wanted to bring to my attention to, but I was not sure what it was. There was so much there regarding putting the Lord first, in all areas, but especially in our finances. Through the years I know I have forgotten these lessons at times, but the Lord will again bring them to mind, as he has been doing lately. So now I want to share with you thoughts to bless you and your family from the little book of Haggai and other verses related to tithing.

Haggai 1:5 “Now therefore, thus says the Lord of Hosts. Consider how you have fared. You have sown much and harvested little. You eat but you never have enough. You drink but you never have your fill. You clothes yourselves but no one is warm. And he who earned wages, earns wages to put them into a bag with holes. (Do you ever get that feeling?)

Do you every feel that when the check comes in and you pay the bills nothing is left? As if it has run through your fingers, or been put into a bag with holes in it?

WHY? verse 1:9 gives the answer: “You have looked for much and lo it came to little and when you brought it home, I blew it away, Why? says the Lord of Hosts. Because of my house that lies in the ruins, while you busy yourselves each with his own house.”

The House of God can mean much more than just our own church facility. What about God’s house and work on the mission field, in our community, and in our nation?

Some other verses on tithing:

• Lev: 27:32- The tenth shall be holy unto the Lord
• Malachi 3:8- Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed me. But you will say, how have we robbed you, in your tithes and offerings
• Genesis 28:22- of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee
• Luke 18:12- I gives tithes of all that I possess
• Malachi 3:10- Bring the full titles of the storehouse that there may be food in my house and thereby put me to the test says the Lord of Hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing. I will rebuke the devourer for you so that it will not destroy the fruits of your soil and your vine in the field shall not fail to bear says the Lord of Hosts

Put God to the test…TITHE… and see if He is not faithful to His word, AS WE ARE FAITHFUL UNTO HIM.

I felt I wanted to get down on paper all the Lord had done for me these past few weeks. 1982 has been a very hard year financially for us and as I entered 1983 I had a great Hope that 1983 was going to be different. I just knew it was going to be a turning point.

In the middle of the night, upon Pollyann’s first day back at PLU we received a call from her saying that she had severe stomach pains. She ended up being taken by the paramedics to Good Samaritan Hospital where they couldn’t find out what was wrong but drugged her until the pain subsided. Dick picked her up at 4:00am and she slept until 5:30pm on Tuesday afternoon. She seemed better and we planned on taking her back to school Wednesday evening, when the pain returned. She spent 3 hours that evening at Tacoma General Emergency room in extreme pain and then spent the night when they couldn’t find out what was wrong and came home at 3 the next afternoon. (In addition, Pollyann was no longer under our insurance as of November 19. She was now 19 and at this time was uninsured.) She came home Thursday and seemed better but the pain returned Friday evening and we took her to Allenmore Emergency for shots for pain. On Monday morning she had Upper GI x-rays but still nothing could be found. All the doctor could tell us was that it was probably stress related.

During that week I became very depressed and felt that I had been forsaken by God. I felt I was lying face down in a pit and just decided to stay there until the Lord decided to pick me up. It was just too painful to feel hope and then be knocked down again.

Dick was in a very similar state and we did not feel like going to Sunday School and leading the class on the Sunday following that horrible week. I did feel strong though, that we couldn’t just go into the lesson without sharing our feelings and what had happened that week. I did just that and then at the of the class John Weber said he felt the class should pray for us and for Pollyann.  And he did pray for us, as did Wes Anderson and Bob Brooke. And healing began to come to me as those dear men prayer so beautifully and so powerfully. As we left class several people gave us scripture and that, along with some Jane had given me during the week, began to speak to my heart. I saw the situation from a different perspective.

These were the verses that were so helpful to me:

• II Corinthians 4:8 “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed but not driven to despair; persecuted but not forsaken, struck down but not destroyed- always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.”
• Matthew 7:25 “And the rain fell, and the floods came and the winds blew and beat upon that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.”
• Romans 8:24-25 “Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with with patience.”
• Psalms 39:7 “And now Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in the thee.”

And also these verses: Romans 12:12, Psalms 131, Psalms 103:1-5, Psalms 39:7, Proverbs 10:28, Psalms 3:3, Psalms 28:7, Psalms 84:11a, Psalms 119:114

As I began to really HEAR what these verses were saying, this is what the Lord showed me… I was putting my hope in the wrong things, and hoping in “a job”. Or hoping in 1983 when I should be hoping “in God” and “In the Word” and “In the Unseen”.

Then as I read II Corinthians 4:8 I realized that this hadn’t really been a life verse with me and I recalled Juan Carlos Ortiz words as he said he could tell what kind of Christian you were by what you had underlined in your Bible. I took offense at this because I probably had every happy verse underlined in mine. Perhaps I just hadn’t needed a verse like II Corinthians 4:8 before, but now I did and was blessed by it, as well as Psalms 103:4.

As I read Psalms 131 and Matthew 7:25 together a beautiful picture came into my mind. I was no longer in the bottom of a dark pit. But I was inside a cozy house, our living room on Fox Island with a big fire going and the rain beating outside and the wind howling and the waves were wild, but I was quiet, secure, warm, and peaceful because I was resting in the arms of God. He was my shield and protector from the storm about me.

As I sat in my protected place looking down at where I had come from, I was feeling ashamed and guilty for having been there and for feeling that God had forsaken me. In this moment, the Lord very gently spoke to my heart saying “Both Jesus and David cried out, ‘Why have you forsaken me’, and I can forgive you for this also.”

Theses two verses have new meaning to me too. Rather than saying when the storms come, “Oh, why has this happened to me!”, I shall claim I Peter 4:12,13 and James 1:2-4.

During that week our hearts were lifted in so many ways as so many were praying for us. Through gifts of many that week, all the hospital bills were taken care of. That was very hard to receive, but we are so thankful and we take it as from the Lord. I have never felt such a distinct separation between my Spirit, Soul, and Body as I did during this healing time. It was interesting to me to see each part touched and healing separately and then to see how uniquely each part affected the whole.

We just want to thank our Sunday School Class and our family for being so supportive and for praying for us during these past two weeks.

(Editors Note: The post titled “Inner Beauty” was posted before it was completed. I will blame pregnancy brain and I hope you enjoy the rest of Rosemary’s thoughts on Inner Beauty)

“The Beautiful woman whose life shows the fruit of the Spirit, exhibits some other practical qualities as well. They are the qualities that make her personality real and down to earth.

1. She has a fragrance of humor: She might now have been born with a great sense of humor, but she trains her mind to look at her life’s happenings in good humor.
2. She has the fragrance of friendship: “A cheerful heart does good like medicine, but a broken spirit makes one sick”. (Proverbs 17:22) The friendly woman greats you with a warm smile whether she knows you or not. She recognizes the tremendous therapeutic value of a smile to her husband and to her children.
3. She has the fragrance of organization: She does not have this fanatic thing about cleanliness and being neat and tidy always. She does not drive anyone up a wall over a speck of dirt, but she is neat. Her house, according to the present rate of speed of their family, has a semblance of order. She is sure God does not want her to live in an unorganized mess of a house.
4. She has the fragrance of hospitality: She opens her home to others even when her couch is rather threadbare, the walls need paint, and she doesn’t have enough dishes or chairs. She shares her dinner table, without apologies, and can be gracious even if its only “hamburger night”. If you drop in on her unexpectedly, you take her (and her house) as is, and instantly she puts you at ease.
5. She has the fragrance of wonder: Nothing is too small or insignificant to catch her attention. She is interested in everything. She teaches her children the sense of wonder by pointing out the little brown bug on the ground, the sleeping kitty and the orange sunset. She smiles and talks with her eyes, her face lights up over the wonder of little things. She is a joy to see.
6. She has the fragrance of honesty: She does not lie- even about little things. If she is busy and does not want to answer her phone, she does not say to her children “Tell them Mommie is not home.” She says “Tell them Mommie is busy and will call them back later”. She teaches them honesty in the best of ways- by example.
7. She has the fragrance of learning: She is not afraid to develop new skills. She tries to do something creative at least once a day- even if its only adding a dash of paprika and parsley to her mashed potatoes. She reads a wide range of books. She takes instruction from a Bible study course to a needlepoint classes. She I enthusiastically dedicated to increasing her learning powers and her willingness to tackle new projects is gorgeous.
8. She has the fragrance of balanced priorities: The beautiful woman is one who has asked God about the goals and priorities of her life, and He has opened several new doors. First, she found she is a person- a woman- she is somebody.
9. She has the fragrance of appreciation: She knows that in life the essence of appreciation is like butter on the toast: it makes it go down much easier. The has sincere thankfulness running through her veins. Just think… HE MADE US! The woman who understands the truth of who she is and why she’s loved is completely surrounded by fragrance. It is an unmistakable fragrance, swirling around her in a fine, penetrating mist. It is the real, the God-given fragrance of beauty!  This is what every Christ-centered women can and should be.

How to be a Beautiful Woman

(based on a tape by Rev. Jerry Cook)

“Beauty may be only skin deep but ugly is clear through.”

We as people and as a country externalize beauty. We are so caught up in outward appearance. That is not to say it isn’t important. But…. The bible does not say that we should run around looking like a bunch of uglies. And it does not say that Holiness is next to Ugliness, or Plainness is a virtue. But the bible does recognize the true source of beauty, being something much greater than an external adjustment.

These are some thoughts from 1 Peter 3:1-6 “Likewise you wives, be submissive to your husbands, so that some, though they do not obey the word, may be won without a word by the behaviors of their wives, when they see your reverent and chaste behavior. Let not yours be the outward adorning with braiding of hair, decoration of gold, and wearing of robes, but let it be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable jewel of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very previous. So once the holy women who hoping in God used to adorn themselves and were submissive to their husband, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him Lord. And you are now her children if you do right and let nothing terrify you.”

1. A beautiful women knows how to be subject to her own husband and how to keep her mouth shut. She also is not subject to any one else’s husband and not in subjection to all men in general.
2. A beautiful woman has a pure life style. “When they see your reverent and chaste behavior.” She has the kind of life that is transparent- you can look solidly at it and it doesn’t blink. A life that you can surprise and it is not embarrassed. Purity in life is just a consistently wholesome life.
3. A beautiful women is one whose adorning is not just hair decorations (not that this is wrong). But the real issue is the hidden person of the heart with meek and quiet spirit. Meekness in a feminine sense means consideration. We notice people who are considerate, who sense a persons need and moves toward it. A person with a restful spirit. One with whom you are able to relax. A quality of beauty that ministers rest. Some homes are that way and others so full of tension you can cut it with a knife.

If you do not have the inner qualities we have talked about, no matter how you remake your face, or how much weight you lose, or how expensive your clothes are, or how proper you walk, you are not beautiful. Even if you don’t have the external, but have the internal there will be a beauty about you that cant be missed. That only comes from Jesus Christ.

We all can be beautiful women with Inner Beauty, if we allow ourselves to be all God would have us be, with His help, and the Holy Spirit within us.

I am going to share with you some thoughts from a paper I got from Dave Wilkerson and the title was as above. My whole life I had heard the expression, “being at my wit’s end” but I didn’t know it was scriptural until I read this paper. I love it when we keep finding things new in scripture that we didn’t know were there.

I can remember my mother saying that a lot and I am sure I was the one who drove her there a great deal of the time.

This is the reference: Psalms 107:23-27

“Some went down to the sea in ships, doing business on the great waters; they saw the deeds of the Lord, his wondrous works in the deep. For he commanded, and raised the stormy wind, which lifted up the waves of the sea. They mounted up to heaven, they went down to the depths; their courage melted away in their evil plight; they reeled and staggered like drunken men, and were at their wit’s end.

Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble and he delivered them from their distress; he made the storm be still and the waves of the sea were hushed. Then they were glad because they had quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven.”

The verses tell of sailors on a ship being tossed by the storm. Powerful winds and waves so they were like drunken sailors being tossed into the heavens and down to the depths. Can’t you just picture it. Frightening. It says they have come to a place called “wit’s end”. I think the following thoughts of Dave Wilkerson are very good and applicable to our lives.

“These sailors have come to a place called “Wit’s End”. It is a condition that afflicts all Christians at one time or another. This phrase means simply, ‘having lost or exhausted any possibility of perceiving or thinking of a way out.’ In short, it is the end of all human ability and resourses. There is no escape – no help, no deliverance, other than in God himself.”

“Like the sailors aboard the ship, you have simply been going about your business, moving on in your walk with Jesus. Then one day, out of nowhere, a storm hit – and waves of trouble came crashing down on you from all sides! Like the sailors in Psalms 107, your ‘…soul is melted because of trouble’.

“I must note: God himself has initiated the storm! ‘…for he commanded, and raised the stormy wind…’ vs. 25. 1Peter 4:12-13 also says, ‘Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.’”

“First the sailors came to their wit’s end, giving up on all human hope or help. Second, they cried to the Lord in the midst of their trouble, turning to Him alone for help!”

I think this is a good thought. “God keeps bringing us to Wit’s End until we learn to trust Him completely – no matter how hopeless we appear.”

“We see this happen time after time with the children of Isreal in the wilderness. Again and again God brought them to wit’s end – to test them, to see of they would trust Him. But each time they refused!”

“Wit’s End is a place of suffering, pain and insecurity.”

“Our loving heavenly Father would never lead his children into a dry desert only to let them die of thirst – especially when He has a reservoir stored in a nearby rock! God had always had a plan for His people. And He has a plan for you right now, to deliver you from your present trouble. There is no problem you have that He can’t unravel!”

“When you are at Wit’s End, one of two things will happen to you. You will either emerge trusting in man, or trusting fully in God – that is either cursed or blessed. Which way will you respond in your time of trouble?”

“Jeremiah writes, Chap 17:5-8 ‘This is what the Lord says: “Cursed is the one who trusts in man,
who draws strength from mere flesh
and whose heart turns away from the Lord. That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes.
They will dwell in the parched places of the desert,
in a salt land where no one lives. “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”

To me (Rosemary) this is summed up also in Habakkuk 3: 17-19. That tells us in the midst of our life falling apart we will STILL rejoice in the Lord. “Though the fig tree does not bud
and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen
and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
he enables me to tread on the heights.”

Wilkerson ends with these words. May it be true for us. “God help us surrender our wills, our personal agendas, when we come to this place called wit’s end. May it become a place of renewed faith and trust in our loving Father. Amen!”

[Editor’s note: The photo below is a photo copy of Gr.Rosy’s Utmost for His Highest devotional (one of her favorites), the entries for Aug 11th & 12th both contained references to “Wit’s End” and were included in the folder with this teaching.  Grandma wrote a personal note below in her devotional, “95 – Mother at Cottesmore”.]

Psalms 34:5a “Look to Him and be radiant”.

Psalms 90:17 “Let the beauty of the Lord be upon us.”

Proverbs 11:22 “Like a ring in a swine’s snout is a beautiful women without discretion.”

Ecc. 3:11a “He has made everything beautiful in its time.”

Proverbs 31:30 “Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.”

Proverbs 31: 25 “Strength and dignity are her clothing and she laughs at the time to come.”

The following are some thoughts from the book “Fragrance of Beauty” by Joyce Landorf:

Dear God,

Here I am, problems and all, Forgive me. Forgive my sins. I’m worn out, broken, and I cant be patched up. I need a new life. Please come into my soul and touch me with Your healing hands. I want to exchange-

my hates for your loves.

my anger for your forgiveness.

my insecurities for your high evaluations.

my worry for your words in prayer.

my fear for a measure of your fade-less faith.

my bitterness for your thanksgiving.

Now thank You, Lord, for doing all this, even before I see change or results. Amen.

“The woman who prays this and accepts God’s forgiveness has connected her spirit with God’s. She has entered into a joint enterprise with the God who made her.”

“Her personality begins to show some special traits and spiritual qualities”

The inner beauteous glow begins

1. She has a sense of spiritual things. She does not merely quote Bible truths, she transforms them into solid realities.

2. She has a sense of indescribable sweetness about her. This is not a saccharine, phony sweetness but a genuine one. When you talk with her, you feel the presence of the altogether lovely One, and you know He is dear to her.

3. She has a sense of victory over temptations. She very definitely admits to having temptations- big and small, but she has made up her mind to be habitually triumphant over them.

4. She has sacred sense of concern for others. Because of the nearness and presence of Jesus in her life, her develops the God-given urge to share Him with others.

5. She shows a great sense of spiritual power. She does not fear people- individually or in groups. She knows the Holy spirits power is at work within her.

Oh, I see! You’re a sinner- a real bad sinner! Well, Scripture says, “While we were yet sinners Christ died for us” in Romans 5:8. But can God use a person who is short of perfect? One who loses their temper? Who gets depressed? Yes! And you’re in good company!

David’s armor didn’t fit

John Mark was rejected by Paul

Moses stuttered

Hosea’s wife was a prostitute

Amos’ only training was in the school of fig-tree pruning

Jacob was a liar

David had an affair

Solomon was too rich

Abraham was too old

David was too young

Timothy had ulcers

Peter was afraid of death

Lazarus was dead

John was self-righteous

Naomi was a widow

Paul was a murderer

So was Moses

Miriam was a gossip

Gideon and Thomas both doubted

Jeremiah was depressed and suicidal

Martha was a worrywart

Mary was lazy

Samson had long hair

Noah got drunk

Moses had a short fuse

So did Peter and Paul and…

You?

Satan says, “You are not worthy”. Jesus says, “So, what? I am!” Satan looks back and sees our mistakes. God looks back and sees the Cross. Yes, there are lots of reasons why God shouldn’t want us, but if we love Him, He’ll use us in spite of who we are, where we’ve been, or what we look like.

God wants to use each one of us, if we’ll let Him!