Looking at the Cross

As I look up at the cross I see,
The Guiltless Lamb who died for me.
I see the thorns that adds to the pain,
In the form of a crown, His born for my gain.

It’s hard to look upon those stripes
so bloody & wide, deep & thin,
Not that they were undeserved,
but just payment for MY sin.

So how is it that Jesus is up there,
while I remain unscathed?
Because of what He Himself has said…
“There is NO OTHER WAY”!

The sky grew dark, the thunder rolled,
the very earth shook;  rock and stone,
The penalty paid;  “It is Finished” crossed His lips,
and the furious wrath of God was shown.

Indeed the innermost veil of the temple
was torn by God above,
Not only was God’s wrath poured out
but Grace,  such undeserving Love.

For by the supplying His very own Son
Jesus came as both sacrifice and priest,
that we might be reconciled to God,
and partake in the Passover Feast.

Don’t you see what’s been done here?
What a great price has been paid!
When the sins of the world,
were upon Jesus Christ laid.

And He willingly bore them,
ought of His perfecting love,
that we might be with Him
forever, in eternity above.

====================

Please join me Dear Friend in honoring what took place on this Good Friday!
He who was without sin became sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Blessing and Honor and Glory to the Lamb who was slain, forever and ever- Amen.

©2011E5e attribution rights reserved

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Here is today’s note from the Silverbergs:

Dear Praying Friends,
 
PTL, it seems that Jonah is making small progress. Three drainage tubes were taken out of his chest yesterday, with some minor damage to his insides. He remains somewhat stable, still on the ventilator and feeding tube. He is mostly unconscious. No other major heart or blood pressure problems. We hope and trust the little guy is healing. He’s been thru quite an ordeal. Jonah is now 22 days old.
Please continue to pray with us and for us.

In Christ’s Love,
Marty for Val

I am going to pray that Jonah’s body will continue to normalize in relation to his heart and that the entire family can REST for a bit in the surpassing peace that only God can give! Surely, little Jonah’s battle has been and is being a powerful testimony to not only to the unsaved, but slso as an encouragement to those of us who so often fail to see the many blessings that God favors us with every moment!

May we make each and every moment be filled with thanksgiving for all that God is!!

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I know that many people have been prompting me for news, but I simply didn’t have any until right now. Although it is difficult not to worry over a weekend without updates about dear ones for which we pray. Thanks be to God, He never stops blessing the prayers we lift up even when they are vague but filled with sincerity. The news is good in that our tiny little warrior continues to battle grave circumstances with God’s strength.

Here’s the update:

Jonah’s surgery went well Friday and his chest was closed.
He had some serious and dangerous Blood Pressure issues, but after a lot of intervention, those were resolved.
Saturday, Sunday, and Monday were good days with no additional issues, PTL.
He is still very critical and on a ventilator and by no means is he out of danger or doing well, but we are very thankful for where he is at.

In Christ’s love,
Marty and Val

Marty and Val have access to view your comments, so please leave a comment of encouragement, or just that you are praying. What Scriptures do you believe speak to you and them right now? What part of the world do you call home? I know there are people worldwide who are tune with this story; however you writing it here may be a testimony for all to see! All for the glory of God!

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This morning I have good news to report.
I see (via Twitter) that Matt from Sanctus Real has not only joined in this prayer mission but has also encouraged others to pray. There are a number of people who have tweeted that they are praying now! Praise God!

Truly, it is a special blessing that prayer accomplishes God’s will; drawing us closer to God, giving of saving grace, transforming work, victory over sin and death! So divine is it when we pray.

Personally, my body has kept me physically debillitated today, but spiritually on fire. I am buried in prayer, fasting and song while my body rebels. Singing “Draw Me Close to You”, “Take My Life”… Ever, always, ALL for Thee, Open The Eyes of My Heart, Lord”. A concert of prayer is surely wafting up to Heaven from all of us who pray.

The Enemy of God cannot have victory because God is sovereign and powerful!! I am humbled by the great mercies that God shows on the weak. He redeems people that to man appear unredeemable. He takes our battles in the flesh and overcomes them by the power of His Holy Spirit.

It is very “eye opening” to know that I am actually having a greater impact at a time when human logic sees me as useless! This allows the truth of God’s Word to “open our eyes” to the fact that when things seem darkest to us, this is our time to shine His light in a dark world. Thus, we are like His stars as we allow God’s power that is within us to shine through to bring the light of His glory into a dark world.

Now, here is the latest update on Baby Jonah:

Dear Praying Family,
Jonah moved his eyes and fingers yesterday, his eyes were open for a while. The doctors are satisfied that he has sufficient brain function to go forward. We are thrilled, but cautiously, as anything can happen at any time.
 
We have not enjoyed this emotional roller coaster, but we are praising God. Jonah is still too swollen to close his chest. His first surgery was 9 days ago. Risk of infection remains high. Please keep praying w/ us.

If you would … Please leave a comment for the Silverbergs. They will ve able to read it and be encouraged just to know that we are praying for God to shine through this situation to save the lost & hopeless.

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Please keep all these things in prayer as the Silverbergs are going through this trial. It would be a special blessing if you were to leave them an encouragement by posting a comment to this post.

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From the Silverbergs (Missionaries in New York)

This is another update from a family whose baby is fighting for his life after some intense heart surgery. See previous postings for more information and join us in prayer!

Dear Praying Family,

I just found out from Val what happened to Jonah on Saturday, as I was unable to get to the hospital because I was caring for Josh. Val thought she told me,but she didn’t.

Aparently, when being moved for a cat scan to check his brain function, Jonah, “coded”. He went into cardiac arrest, could not be revived with the paddles, and had no vital signs for some time. They did eventually revive him.
Thus, they are afraid to move him again, so they have taken him off pain medication to hope he feels pain and reacts. If he does not react, he could have irreversable and severe brain damage, or no brain function at all.

Please pray with us. It sounds terrible, but we hope he reacts to pain, and not just feel it.

In Christ’s Love,
Marty for Val

So dear praying friends, you can see several prayer needs here:
•that someone could care for sibling Josh so that both parents can get to the hospital;
•great physical needs for baby Jonah;
•guard the health of Val & Marty, give them supernatural peace
•wisdom, insight and skill of medical staff
•Godwilling, a miracle so profound that God receives great glory and observers come to faith and spiritual growth
•that they all are comforted by love & support of our prayers.

Please take this time to let them know that you are praying; let us shower them with the love of God. Please add a comment, Bible verse, or whatever encouragement that you feel lead to post for them.

I created this edited photo of Baby Jonah as an encouragement and entitled it “Showers of Prayers for Baby Jonah”.

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First, honestly assess where I am. I am in poor health and am driving myself unrealistically to do more things which only increases stress and puts importance on achievement of activities to determine my success. WRONG! This Christmas, God gave me the gift of honestly facing the fact that I have serious physical limitations that may never go away. Rather than being mournful over the time that I’ve lost, I want to celebrate what I can do.

So, secondly, I used the current Women in the Word Bible study materials that we are using called “Seeking Him” to launch me into personal inspection for the purpose of spiritual revival. I have been searching for how I have been falling short of God’s best for me. As a result, I went to my husband and a pastoral mentor and we did a great deal of growing.

Thirdly, this friend suggested that we follow the Bible’s instruction “Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord.” –James 5:14.  On December 27th, 2009 Steve, Michelle and I went into Pastor’s office and were surrounded by the deacons of the church and I received encouragement and much prayer. Many of them had not been aware that the Chronic Fatigue has been a battle for fifteen years, the chronic pain since Sept. 1987 and now the mysteries of the Foreign Accent Syndrome posed it’s own challenges. These men blessed our family greatly at that event.

Through a series of events and with the help of FaceBook on the internet, I met a Christian lady who did network marketing of a supplement product that we believed might help me. I was given a two week sample and I tried it. It is called MaxGXL. It is a glucothione accelerator which works at the mitochonrial cellular level and has had wonderful effects! There was a period of some detox side effects like headache, but my energy increased so that I was actually able to do more.

I am experiencing more stamina now, and so have been able to actually reorganize my pantry. It may sound like a little thing to most people, but it is something I count as a blessing.

Next, I came to the understanding that I do have great mental challenges when it comes to categorization. However, I simply don’t know what to do about it. It greatly effects my inability to file papers and organize things. I do well with my artwork materials because I have those relationships ingrained, but many other things have me stumped.  I have noticed the problem over the last two tax seasons, but it has gotten increasingly worse. I have told Steve of the problem, however, whether he doesn’t understand that I have a problem or simply doesn’t know what to do about it, in either case I am still in need of help.

Therefore, I did the next hardest thing to admitting I have a problem. I asked for help!  Now, when it comes to finding that person to help me, I am not asking someone to just come in and work at cleaning my place up. No! I am more than willing to do the work, although I wouldn’t turn down the help :0) because there is so much backlog. What I really need is someone to come in and teach me methodology. I need to be taught a process which before now just came naturally. What do I do with this? It is very humbling, but I am desperately in need of that help.

I have set, what I believe to be a realistic goal for myself, to have things in order around the house before the end of March. It really needs to be straightened out yesterday, but I am trying to be sensitive to what is a reasonable goal so that I can break it down to doable tasks.

I would appreciate your prayers in this, as that certain person or persons to come meet this need that I have so earnestly prayed for has not yet arrived. And as I attempt to do it on my own, I seem to make more messes, before I make any small progress.

All in all, January has been a time to “turn the page” as I start a new chapter. I have been attempting to accurately assess where I am, address what I can reasonably change, ask for help, and make definite progress as I seek God’s best for me. Prayer and studying God’s Word have been foundational in keeping me moving forward through the trials. It is so hard, but so worthwhile when I realize that as I put forth my best God will honor my efforts by transforming me to be better than I was before.

Here’s to new beginnings . . . and the God of all grace who makes it possible!

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The manger stays empty until Christmas Eve.

As economic times are tough, I have had a real challenge of figuring out about what gifts I might be able to afford. There is just no way to be able to do the usual extended family Secret Santa gift exchange this year. The family vehicle needed repairs that cost more than our Christmas gift-giving budget would have been.

So, I have had a chance to think even harder about the really important aspects of Christmas being so much more than pretty presents under the tree.

I want to share with you a family tradition that we have had for several years. Front and center under our family Christmas tree is placed a small manger. We place raffia straw in it and it sits that way until Christmas Eve. The last thing that I do before going to bed on Christmas Eve is to take a baby doll and swaddle the doll in burlap and lay it in that manger. THAT is the greatest gift of all.  That reminder greets our family when we desend upon the tree Christmas morning.

Emmanuel, God with us…. what a wonderful gift! To know that God gave His only son so that we may be called His children forever, if only we accept Him as our Savior. We were in such great need when we were dead in our sins. And now, as we celebrate with the lights of the season, the Light of the World has come. We have received the greatest gift of all!

There is no greater gift that I could wish for you my friend than that of Jesus Christ the Savior. Do you have Him? If not, He is waiting to be invited to be your Savior and Lord. Once you have received that gift, what more could you possibly desire?

When it comes to the very real human feelings of sadness that I cannot just go out and buy some things that I know would make my friends and family happy to unwrap on Christmas morning; I just acknowledge that I am sad. But, then I think back to that wonderful traditional claymation video that used to be shown every Christmas season on television called “The Little Drummer Boy”.

The little drummer boy was extremely poor and had absolutely no gift to give to the baby Jesus. However, he was able to play his drum for Him….  par rup up pum pum…rup up pum pum…rup up pum pum.  And then, the baby Jesus smiled at him. How cool is that?  Just a fictional story, perhaps, yet it is true that Jesus doesn’t require anything from us other than our desire to have a relationship with Him. Everything else that we do from that point on will bring honor to Him as we get to know Him more and obey what He teaches.

Merry Christmas!

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Here is a video that someone sent me a link to. This was the inspiration for finally writing this blog. Something that I had been meaning to write for some time. LOL

WHY do I procrastinate.  Why wait to do what I know NEEDS to be done?  I believe there are a few things worth considering here. Perhaps the greatest deterrent to getting something done is FEAR. Fear of failure, or that I will mess things up. Maybe my bent toward perfectionism is screaming at me to “Wait! You SHOULD do it this way. This other way may be better.” It’s the dreaded “Shoulda, woulda, coulda”s of an overly creative mind that can bog me down. And, just maybe, it is that FEAR that overrides our desire to just get on with the task at hand.

Don’t get me wrong. I do believe that one shouldn’t just barge forth without any direction or preparedness. But I see that there is this (sometimes hard to define) borderline between appropriately pausing and taking careful steps to proceed versus stopped and not willing or apparently unable to proceed. A procrastination paralysis produces a productivity nightmare!

The solution? Ha! If I knew that I could be a millionaire as a result of all the motivational speaking engagements that I could do at the conventions full of the myriads of people who are searching for a way out. I would right a book and go on book signing tours.  Well, maybe someday.

Seriously, as I think about it now, I believe one of the biggest solutions to my bouts of procrastination is to face the fact that I am doing it. Call it what it really is. Procrastination in my case is a sin.

Does that seem harsh to you? Well, remember, this is in dealing with my own procrastination. I am going to treat it as a sin because sin is defined as being “off the mark”.  I believe that God does call me to be holy as He is holy; to strive to live a righteous and productive life. I also believe that the ONLY way for me to do that is by utilizing the grace of God given to me as a free gift when I became His child. At the moment of my salvation, I was saved. That is past tense. It’s a done deal.

Now, as I “seek first the Kingdom of God,” I am challenged to grow up into a better way of doing things. I daily “walk by faith” when I study the Bible and use God’s Word to transform my old ways of thinking and doing things into a better way. So, you see, if I am applying what I am learning,  I am always growing. There is no room for procrastination there.

As I face this personal sin of procrastination I need to remember to say “STOP! This is wrong.”  I must admit that I am choosing to allow my fear of the unknown future to allow me to enter into an old, prideful way of thinking that based my success on what I did and how well I performed.

So, for me, stopping procrastination is getting back on track. Stop what I am doing wrong, learn the correction, and do that. I actively choose to say, “Lord help me: remind me to place your love before my fears.”  I need to remember that perfect love casts out fear and practice that.  It does take practice.  That perfect love is available to me (and to you too) in the redeeming work of Jesus Christ who provides a way . . . the ONLY way out of the fear and into the love.

1 John 4:18 (NASB)
There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.

At this moment, I can say I am not procrastinating. How about you?

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Either way I see it as both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand I can say that this perfectionism has given me the “eye” for detail. I can generally tell with a quick glance if something is amiss, awry or off-kilter. This especially comes in handy when I am rendering a drawing or painting that is realistic. It also gives those I work for the assurance that I am going to give great attention to the accuracy and detail of a job. I am by nature highly motivated, driven to do the best I can, and determined to see a task through to the end.

So what’s the downside? I am the most critical of my own work. It was so bad when I was younger that I couldn’t keep any of my own paintings because I would look at it and see something that was a bit off or could have been done better. As a runner, I would always strive to go further, go faster. As a daughter, wife or friend I would do everything to be the “best”.  Oh, I was what some would call an overachiever, a competitor that didn’t know when to quit. Why? Because, I felt that my best was NEVER good enough.

It was in college, working for the Department of Graphic Communications Chair (he was also a perfectionist) that I learned a bit of a trick in fighting this troubling trait. He told me, “If the client likes it, it is good enough.”  Never mind that you think it would be better this way, in these colors or whatever. If my job is to produce a piece that the client likes, then the moment he says “that’s good,” it IS good. Period.

Wow!  What a revelation. Just by proclaiming something good, it IS good. There really is such a thing as “Good Enough”.  What a concept.

As I am currently struggling with some physical challenges right now, I have been forced to look at the increased frustrations and disappointment associated with the realization that I simply cannot do what “normal” people can expect to do. Nor, even, what I could do myself in years previous. I am starting to have those thoughts of not measuring up. Maybe those who used to love me will tire of me and discard me as “a problem” or “broken” and unable to be “fixed”.

However, these are feelings that I cannot trust. These feelings would have me believe that I am what I do; that it is my performance that determines my worth. You know what I am learning? (Not that I have attained a full working degree of mastery here, yet).  I am learning that these thoughts based on feeling are untrustworthy. Lies!

My value really is not based on what I can or cannot do. It is not based on quotas of projects completed, grades, money earned or invested. It is not based on if my hair is styled just so, or if I am wearing the latest clothing fashion. My value is not even determined on if my husband or child is pleased with my cooking or even if they are angry with me.

No. None of that is the real basis of my value. What I believe to be true as I study my Bible (if only my feelings would grasp that truth more) is that my value comes not from what I DO, or to what degree of perfection I perform, but from WHOSE I am.

I believe wholeheartedly in the Truth of God’s Word which declares I am a child of God. He loved me even when I was at my all time, absolute, disgustingly worst. When I came to acknowledge my absolute inability to even approach anywhere near a degree of perfection when it came to dealing with such an awesome and Holy God, I all but melted away.

It was then, at my most imperfect, that God lifted my face to look into His. He invited my broken spirit to be mended by His Holy Spirit.  He let the love of Jesus Christ do the perfecting for me. WOW!!

Right now, as I struggle related to chronic pain, fatigue and even Foreign Accent Syndrome I must face the fact that these are major hurdles that are guaranteed to keep me from normal goals of excellence. In working with these difficulties  I am finding that nasty old bent toward perfectionism rearing it’s ugly head again. This time, thanks to God’s promises which sustain me, I am learning to say, “Yes. I am a failure. Yes, I have messed up. Yes, I cannot do this under my own power.”

These very thoughts that in the past were used to try to depress me to the point of being totally ineffective are now the very same thoughts that I can accept and answer. “Though each one of those accusations is true. All those imperfections are present in me…but..’I AM doing my best. And (here is the real gem)… GOD LOVES ME ANYWAY!”

This really is too wonderful for me to understand. It is not by denying my failures, or pretending they do not exist, that I find peace. Rather, it is by embracing the fact that it is despite my imperfections that I can enjoy the bliss of perfect love and acceptance of my Blessed Savior.  SELAH.

Do you know this peace too? It really is perfect.

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