| God's Hands |
| This is a picture of the sky in Kentucky sent to us by Joel David, a member of our Grieving Hearts group. What an amazing and inspiring photo! |
| "It is not God's plan to give you everything you want for your life or to ensure that you are always comfortable and problem-free. God has made life so that it is filled with times of receiving and times of letting go. And He wants you to learn to be content where you are now, because He is with you." -A Season of Grief Daily Emails by the Church Initiative, Inc. "The Lord sees to it that you find yourself in a lonely position sometimes, not necessarily geographically. You can be in a crowded room and still be lonely. You need to recognize God's discipline of loneliness when it is assigned to you and receive it with both hands saying, 'Lord, I would not have chosen this, but I will receive it. Now teach me what I can only learn in loneliness." -Elisabeth Elliot "God places His saints where they will bring the most glory to Him, and we are totally incapable of judging where that may be." -My Utmost for His Highest daily devotional by Oswald Chambers, 8/10/07 "In bereavement, you contemplate the beloved and the beloved's death and...'enjoy' the loneliness and grief;" -Suprised by Joy by C.S. Lewis, Chapter XIV, p. 217 "All Joy reminds. It is never a possession, always a desire for something longer ago or further away or still 'about to be.'" -Surprised by Joy by C.S. Lewis, Chapter V, p. 78 "Everyone cries. Everyone sheds tears...I don't think you should ever apologize for your tears because you never apologize for something that is a gift from God." -Dr. H. Norman Wright “Peace comes through a sincere belief in God's presence and in His promises; it is not dependent on our feelings or sensations.� -A Season of Grief Daily Emails by The Church Initiative, Inc. "The mention of my child's name may bring tears to my eyes, but it also brings music to my ears.� -Anonymous "If you let your grief lead you back to God, in the end your soul will be purified, and you will come into an experience of God greater, deeper, and closer than you have ever known before." -Dr. Ray Pritchard "I began to absorb more penetratingly than ever, what I knew in my head but had not yet experienced with my heart: that none of my children belonged to me. Each had been given a purpose uniquely her own, and I could exert little or no control over that. Like Mary, I could only live fully by responding, I am the Lord's servant. May it be to me as you have said." -A Table for Two by Alisa Bair, Chapter 8, p. 54 "...I see that loving others as Christ loves us is what matters. You changed the way I see everything. Just when I got to thinking that my career or success or my waistline were what really mattered, I looked at you. And you didn't care. You didn't care because they aren't really worth caring about in the grand scheme of life. They come and go, and they bring us no lasting happiness. The petty problems that rob us of joy, the ones that steal away so much of our lives, meant nothing to you. You brought reality home to us, and you made us laugh at ourselves. You knew what really mattered in life." -Room of Marvels by James Bryan Smith, Chapter 17, p. 132-133 "The most beautiful stones are the ones that have been tossed by the wind and washed by the water and polished to brilliance by life's strongest storms." -Room of Marvels by James Bryan Smith, Chapter 17, p. 133 The Christian life is not static. It is a walk with God that moves you forward into a larger life with God. -A Season of Grief Daily Emails by The Church Initiative, Inc. "Christ was a man's man. Eight of the twelve disciples were fishermen. At times, the disciples wept and they felt grief. They had all the normal emotions that God intended people to have." -Jim Grassi "What we have once enjoyed and deeply loved we can never lose, for all that we love deeply becomes a part of us." -Helen Keller |
| From the Bible: "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him." James 1:12 (NIV) "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:12-13 (NIV) "Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin. As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God." 1 Peter 4:1-2 (NIV) "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." 1 Peter 4:12-13 (NIV) "For he has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help." Psalm 22:24 (NIV) "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." Matthew 5:4 (NIV) "being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Philippians 1:6 (NIV) - BibleGateway.com verse of the day for 7/10/07, Evan's birthday "And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us." Romans 5: 3-5 (NASB) "Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head, and he fell to the ground and worshiped. He said, 'Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I shall return there. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.' Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God" Job 1: 20-22 (NASB) ...but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31 (NIV) "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55: 8-9 (NIV) "I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy." John 16: 20-22 (NIV) "Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn." Romans 12:15 (NIV) "I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." Revelation 21: 2-4 (NIV) "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Matthew 6: 19-21 (NIV) "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." Matthew 7: 13-14 (NIV) But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you. Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4: 7-12, 16-18 (NIV) Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls. 1 Peter 1: 3-9 (NIV) |
| "Farther Along" Tempted and tried we're oft made to wonder Why it should be thus all the day long While there are others living about us Never molested though in the wrong Farther along we'll know all about it Farther along we'll understand why Cheer up my brother live in the sunshine We'll understand it all by and by When death has come and taken our loved ones It leaves our home so lonely and drear And then do we wonder why others prosper Living so wicked year after year When we see Jesus coming in glory When he comes down from his home in the sky Then we shall meet him in that bright mansion We'll understand it all by and by Yeah we'll understand it all by and by |