When illness gets you down…

At some point in our lives, all of us will deal with significant or ongoing illness for ourselves and/or in the lives of those we love. Many individuals have the blessing of general good health for most of their lives. Sometimes we take that for granted. For others, dealing with injury or with a medical condition of some kind is a life-long challenge. There is a refining of the soul that seems to happen sometimes when one faces constant physical illness or challenges. I have known many such individuals who had at some point made the choice to live lives of extraordinary grace and strength, with God’s help. Choosing to see the blessings of life and even the blessings of illness or of injury or other medical and physical issues is not easy. Our natural instinct seems to be a very keen awareness of our own suffering and a desire for that suffering to be removed. After all, who doesn’t love to feel wonderful? And yet, we must remember that we have only one life, and the “sick days” or even the on-going health issues are a part of it.

How, then, can we deal with illness? How can we cope with our own suffering or the suffering of someone that we love? How can we make the most of life when illness or injury or a medical condition seems to limit our time, our energy, and our enjoyment of life? In a way, I feel unqualified to answer this question. After all, I have enjoyed general good health for much of my life. And yet, I have had experience with both illness and injury, and I’ve definitely known the heartache of experiencing sorrow and pain with loved ones who were suffering. There are many wonderful books about the theology of suffering or the spiritual, emotional, and practical considerations of dealing with physical challenges. There are many stories of amazing people who have refused to let physical challenges or illness define them. I’ve read many such books, which cover these issues much more comprehensively than I will attempt to do here. All that I can offer is a simple observation, born out of my own recent experience.

I have been dealing with a health situation for some time that has greatly affected my ability to function as a wife and mother and to plan ahead. I never know when I am going to have a bad day. I have recently been very frustrated by the frequency and duration of my health problems and how they affect my family. Last week, I was up very late one night. I didn’t want to try to sleep because I felt so nauseous. This was on a Wednesday night (actually early Thursday morning). Because I was feeling so sick and could not sleep, I had a lot of time to think about how my illness was impacting those I loved. I had missed church due to my illness the previous Sunday, and then I’d been forced to miss church again on that Wednesday night. I had felt okay for most of the morning but started having symptoms around before lunchtime. Often, when that happens, symptoms progress so quickly that I am not able to meet the bus carrying our little boy who has special needs when it comes at 3:00 p.m.; so I have sometimes been forced to call my husband and have him come home from work to meet Logan’s bus. (His bus must be met by an adult). On that Wednesday, symptoms were progressing a little more slowly, so I was able to meet Logan’s bus myself and be downstairs when 3 of Logan’s brothers arrived 30 minutes later.

On that day, I thought that if my symptoms would hold off for a couple of hours, I could get our 5 school-age boys to church for the Wednesday night meal so that they would not miss Children’s Choir or Missions, but I knew that I was in no shape to stay. In addition to feeling awful and knowing it was going to get worse, I didn’t want to be around food since I hadn’t had anything since breakfast and the thought of eating made me sick. So, I made sure the boys got their homework done and then took them to church at around 5 p.m., with my husband, Travis, planning to meet us in the parking lot. I pulled our Suburban around to the back of the building, near the fellowship hall where the meal is served, and then I pulled to the right beside a row of cars in the parking lot to let my boys get out and meet their Dad.

I didn’t expect any difficulty with safely dropping off the boys since I’d called my husband as soon as we arrived. He was on this way out of the building to meet us. In addition, due to homework and needing to wait for our Middle School age son, who arrives home from school much later than his younger brothers, we were almost 30 minutes later arriving for the meal than most people who eat at church on Wednesday night. I thought everyone else would already be in the building. However, as it turned out, I almost got one or more of my boys run over that day, just because of being sick. I had gotten out of the Suburban myself and was supervising the boys as they were getting out of the car on both sides when a sweet lady who had come up behind our car decided she would drive around us. I had five boys ages 7 & 7 (twins), 8 (special needs), 10, & 12 around the car on both sides, was pulled over to the right obviously unloading, and was out of the car trying to get all of the boys safely across the parking lot to the sidewalk, and yet I could not see where all of my boys were right at that moment. If she had waited for one more minute, I would have had all of the boys safely on the sidewalk and Travis would have been there to get them inside, but she must have felt she couldn’t wait. I had pulled really far to the right, but she came around us on the right, with hardly any room between vehicles. Even though I was out of the car trying to make sure all of the boys got safely to Travis and trying to watch the boys on both sides, I was unable to keep my boys safe. If one or more of the boys had come running around the front of our vehicle right into her path, they would have been toast. From the moment that the woman began to pull around my car until the moment when she could have hit one or more of my boys if they had happened to run around the Suburban was just a couple of seconds. It had happened so quickly that I could not get in front of her and was powerless to stop this upsetting and potentially lethal incident, and it was all because of me being sick. The thought of what could have happened completely undid me.

Later that same night, after Travis got home with the boys and they had all gone to bed, at one point my hubby wanted to talk about Spring Break and what our plans would be. He wanted to do a short trip, and I had to tell him that I am not in any shape to do it. After all of these incidents had taken place in just a few days, I was feeling very frustrated. My illness has not just affected me. It affects my family in many ways. It’s even more frustrating since I have already had lots of tests and scans but still don’t have a firm diagnosis. In fact, my Doctor referred to me at last week’s appointment as “a mystery”. So, I had gotten pretty down and had no problem at all thinking about all of the things I dislike about being sick. I had quite a mental list going. I might not have been outwardly griping around my family, but I certainly was feeling frustrated and upset inside.

In this state of mind, a thought occured to me. I should make a list of all of the good things about being sick. I honestly did not expect to get very far. I thought that I would be doing well to come up with 3 or 4 things and that even those reasons might be a bit of a stretch of the imagination. I decided to call this exercise my “Top Ten List of Good Things About Being Sick,” and I began to think things through. My original thinking was that after I’d named 3 or 4 lame reasons that being sick can be good, then I would put down the same phrase for all of the other slots to round out my top ten list, “Sorry. That’s all I’ve got.” At least I was thinking about the subject with a little bit of humor, but I certainly can’t say that I was optimistic. Perhaps what I was really looking for was an excuse to stay in my frustrated mindset and proof that there really was nothing good about being sick. However, a strange thing happened. When I began to think about things that I could be thankful for about being sick (even though my effort was half-hearted at best), suddenly all sorts of reasons began to occur to me. Before I knew it, I had a list of 8 things that can be good about being sick. (Although, honestly, I’ll take wellness any day). I thought for a little while more and could not come up with any additional good things, so I did end my list the way I had planned, with “Sorry. That’s all I’ve got.” I put my list on my facebook status, with my little attempt at humor as my closing statement. Just a few minutes after I posted my list of 8 good things, two more reasons really did come to me. I added them to my status as a comment, surprised that I really had come up with a list of 10 good things about being sick.

For me, the whole exercise was a lesson. Here’s what I learned:

1. It’s okay to acknowledge feelings of frustration and spend a little time analyzing yourself and figuring out what was most upsetting to you and why. (For me, the root of the greatest frustration was definitely not feeling that progress was being made toward getting better and, primarily, the negative impact on my family.)

2. After taking some time to think about what you are feeling, there is one thing that seems to begin to turn things around and change an attitude of frustration, fear, or doubt (that there could be anything good in the situation). The simple cure is very effective. It is thankfulness. Even though I didn’t feel thankful yet when I began making my list of good things, I soon began to see my own illness and even sickness in general through a new lens.

3. When I began to make even the slightest effort to see things differently, it was as though God met me right where I was and opened a window so that I could briefly see the (sometimes) hidden value of things that are hard to experience in the here and now.

4. I surprised myself, but it really was God surprising me all along. He promises to work everything for good in the lives of those who love Him. (Romans 8:28) Could that possibly mean even nasty germs or cancer cells? Could it include tragic injuries or even lifelong medical conditions?

Yes.

The answer is … yes.

It’s not that those things are good in themselves. After all, when we reach Heaven, illness, injury, pain, and physical limitations will not be there. The truth that we hold on to is He will take even these things and cause them to work together for good. What a promise that is!

Am I a completely reformed grouch? Well, perhaps I am semi-reformed. I can’t say that I will never wish something hard or painful or yucky would just go away. I know that many times in my life, the removal of a trial will be my fervent prayer. But what I do hope to remember is that if I look for reasons to be thankful, I will find them. If I look for the good, it will be revealed. I still won’t understand everything, because God’s ways are higher than my ways. Now, I know I see through a glass darkly; but someday, I will have full understanding. Right now, one of my main questions might be, “Isn’t there some other way I could learn this?’ Then, in Heaven, when I suddenly know even as I am known, I believe that all of my questions will be answered before I can even ask them.

So, here is my list of the top ten good things about being sick. (What was written on that sleepless night is in italics below.) This really is so much more than just a list. For me, it was really an exercise… in thankfulness and trust.

Cindy’s List of the Top Ten Good Things About Being Sick

1. Being sick makes you really thankful for the times when you are feeling good so that you don’t take health for granted.

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2. It is really something to be thankful for that most illnesses don’t last very long. (With all of the germs around us, how miraculous it is that we are so often well!)

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3. Being sick helps one to appreciate the amazing complexity of the human body and the capacity for healing.

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4. Beling sick can slow one down long enough to re-focus priorities.

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5. I’ve heard people say that they would not choose to have missed what they have learned and experienced through an illness or injury. (not sure I’m there at this point, but I’m thinking about it)

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6. When you are sick, the people who love you are always there with a prayer or some other kind of caring. You love and appreciate them already, but the experience of ministering to one another bonds hearts like nothing else.

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7. When you are sick, you realize again how amazing it is to never be alone and to have God’s presence with you through everything. It is a comfort to know the hope of healing, the hope of Heaven, and the hope of tomorrow (and to have peace when nothing makes sense because you know that your life is held in loving Hands).

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8. When you are sick and you look in the mirror, you realize that your normal look is not so bad after all (compared to the bleary-eyed stranger staring back at you).

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9. ?….? I’ve got nothing.
(Note: this is the way I originally wrote the list. I had nothing here, but God was not finished teaching me yet.)

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10. Hey, I was doing well to come up with 8 good things, don’t ya think?

Just a little humor. Gotta keep smiling, right? 🙂

🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

At this point, I thought that my list was finished. I certainly did not think that I could not come up with anthing else to add. I was ready to give myself and “E” for Effort. However, it wasn’t even five minutes before I had added the following:

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Okay, I thought of 2 more, so here are my amendments to the list:

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9. Going through any kind of struggle (including being sick) can make one more compassionate.

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10. Going through trials helps me grow as a Christian. “…the trying of your faith worketh patience…”
The bad part is that now everyone knows for sure that my patience needs work (as if anyone was fooled in the 1st place).
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The funny thing is that when I started typing the list I had only thought of 3 or 4 good things, so it was going to be more of a joke to only go that far and then say, “I’ve got nothing” for the rest. But, when I started out with thankfulness, the other good things just kept coming to me. This thankfulness thing really works! 🙂

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It may seem simple, and some people may label me a Pollyanna; but I have discovered again and again that being thankful is the way to go. What’s the alternative? Being miserable. Sometimes I may spend a little time in misery land, but I don’t want to stay there. If I’m going to be dealing with something difficult, at least I can recognize that there is still beauty in life, there is still good in life, and that I am never alone through any of it. Choosing to see the good and to be thankful is not rocket science. We all know that keeping a good attitude and staying optimistic is important. Sometimes, illness just squeezes the life out of our optimism, and we need a reminder to take back our mental, emotional, and spiritual power over frustration and despair by choosing to look for the good and be grateful. So, when illness gets you down, take a step of faith by choosing thankfulness (even if you don’t feel like it), and then wait on the Lord. He will lift you up!

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“Blessed be the Lord! for He has heard the voice of my supplications. The Lord is my strength and my shield; in Him my heart trusts; so I am helped and my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to Him.”

– Psalm 28:6 & 7

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“Do not be over-anxious about anything, but by prayer and earnest pleading, together with thanksgiving, let your request be unreservedly made known in the presence of God.” Phil. 4:6

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This post was written by Cynthia Boyd

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Thank you for spending your valuable time reading the contents of this page. We hope that it has been helpful to you. If you or someone that you know is looking for answers about life, we hope that you will visit our page called “Do You Know Jesus?”. The links provided on this page will help to answer life’s deepest questions. Here is the link to “Do You Know Jesus?”: http://www.worshipsounds.wordpress.com/do-you-know-jesus/

Please feel free to share this URL with anyone who is looking for answers about life and eternity.

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Patience

Here you will find scriptures and quotes about patience… great reminders that seeking to respond to life’s challenges, irritations, and delays with patience is a choice based on faith in God’s promise that He will work all things together for our good. (Romans 8:28). When we choose to respond patiently (even though we may not be feeling patient at all), we take the step of faith that allows God’s Spirit to work in our lives and bring forth the fruit of patience that becomes an inward reality rather than just an outward expression.

I’m still working on choosing to respond with patience (and trust) more consistently and with a hopeful expectancy to see the fruit that it will bear, not only in my own life but within our family. Remember that the first part of the definition of love in 1st Corinthians chapter 13 is, “Love is patient.” Tender hearts are waiting to see how we respond. Patience reveals our love for them, and ultimately speaks to their hearts of God’s love. I can do all things through Christ, who gives me strength (and patience).  It’s time to put our trust in the Lord and believe that when we choose to respond with patience, His Spirit will enable our obedience.  Impatience and anger will eventually dissolve into relief that, through Him, we have been able to demonstrate Christlikeness in spite of our human emotion and frailty.

Scriptures about Patience

Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Ephesians 4:1-3 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Colossians 1:11-12 May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

Colossians 3:12-13 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.

Read more: http://www.whatchristianswanttoknow.com/bible-verses-about-patience-20-scripture-quotes/#ixzz2IxnWheZr

Quotes about Patience

“Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones; and when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace.” – Victor Hugo
(Note: The source for this quote is http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/patience.html )

“Patience is the companion of wisdom.” – Augustine

“Never cut a tree down in the wintertime. Never make a negative decision in the low time. Never make your most important decisions when you are in your worst moods. Wait. Be patient. The storm will pass. The spring will come.” – Robert H. Schuller

“I think Christians fail so often to get answers to their prayers because they do not wait long enough on God. They just drop down and say a few words, and then jump up and forget it and expect God to answer them. Such praying always reminds me of the small boy ringing his neighbor’s door-bell, and then running away as fast as he can go.” – E. M. Bounds

“We could never learn to be brave and patient, if there were only joy in the world.” – Helen Keller

“Some of your greatest blessings come with patience.” – Warren Wiersbe

“Through the dark and stormy night Faith beholds a feeble light Up the blackness streaking; Knowing God’s own time is best, In a patient hope I rest For the full day-breaking!” – John Greenleaf Whittier

“Teach us, O Lord, the disciplines of patience, for to wait is often harder than to work.” – Peter Marshall

“Endeavor to be always patient of the faults and imperfections of others; for thou hast many faults and imperfections of thine own that require forbearance. If thou art not able to make thyself that which thou wishest, how canst thou expect to mold another in conformity to thy will?” – Thomas a Kempis

“The times we find ourselves having to wait on others may be the perfect opportunities to train ourselves to wait on the Lord.” – Joni Eareckson Tada

“Appearances can be deceptive. The fact that we cannot see what God is doing does not mean that He is doing nothing. The Lord has His own timetable. It is we who must learn to adjust to it, not vice versa. When God’s time comes nothing will stand in His way. We can therefore wait for Him with this happy confidence: “As for God, His way is perfect” (2 Samuel 22:31).”

“God’s guidance will require patience on our part. His leading is not usually a direct assurance, a revelation, but His sovereign controlling of the circumstances of our lives, with the Word of God as our rule. It is therefore, inevitable that the unfolding of His purposes will take time – sometimes a very long time.”

Author of the last 2 quotes above: Sinclair B. Ferguson Source: Discovering God’s Will

“There is nothing which so certifies the genuineness of a man’s faith as his patience and his patient endurance, his keeping on steadily in spite of everything.” – Martyn Lloyd-Jones

“The Bible says the fruit of the spirit is longsuffering. I’ll tell you one thing about fruit: you will never see a fruit factory. Isn’t that right? You see a shirt factory, but you see a fruit orchard. You see, there is no fruit without life. You cannot manufacture patience. The fruit of the Spirit is patience.” – Adrian Rogers

“Humility and patience are the surest proofs of the increase of love.” – John Wesley

The group of quotes above was found at http://christian-quotes.ochristian.com/Patience-Quotes/

“Patience is the transcendent radiance of a loving and tender heart which, in its dealings with those around it, looks kindly and graciously upon them.” – Billy Graham
(Note: This Billy Graham quote and the one below are from http://books.google.com/books?id=MdedttIGeZcC&pg=PT250&dq=billy+graham+on+patience&hl=en&sa=X&ei=HBsCUfOEFo-C8QSpuIDAAw&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA

“Patience includes perseverance – the ability to bear up under weariness, strain, and persecution when doing the work of the Lord.” – Billy Graham
(Note: the work of the Lord includes building a home and family that honors Him.)

“God does not demand patience from us, He offers it to us. Patience is a fruit of His Spirit.” – Max Lucado, from A Love Worth Giving

From Billy and Ruth Graham (spoken by Billy in a recent interview):

“Long before she became bed-ridden, Ruth was driving through a stretch of highway under construction. After sign after sign warning drivers to be cautious, she came to the last one that said, ‘End of Construction. Thank you for your patience.’

When she got home, she laughed and said she wanted that phrase engraved on her tombstone. While we enjoyed the humor, we also appreciated the truth those words conveyed. Every human being is under construction from conception to death. Each life is made up of mistakes and learning, waiting and growing, practicing patience and being persistent. At the end of construction – death – we have completed the process.”

Source: http://www.mariashriver.com/blog/2011/10/qa-billy-graham-his-new-book-nearing-home-life-faith-and-finishing-well

⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  ⁸ Love never fails.   I Corinthians 13:4 – 8a

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.   Galatians 5:22-23

“And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”   2 Corinthians 3:18

New International Version (NIV) Scripture verses are copied from http://www.biblegateway.com

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Thank you for spending your valuable time reading the contents of this page. We hope that it has been helpful to you. If you or someone that you know is looking for answers about life, we hope that you will visit our page called “Do You Know Jesus?”. The links provided on this page will help to answer life’s deepest questions. Here is the link to “Do You Know Jesus?”: http://www.worshipsounds.wordpress.com/do-you-know-jesus/

Please feel free to share this URL with anyone who is looking for answers about life and eternity.

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Song Story: “Walking by Faith”

The song, “Walking By Faith,” was composed by Travis L. Boyd, inspired by scripture and by the testimony of an Oklahoma Minister of Music and Worship.  Royce Brown lived his life by faith, walking with Jesus and serving the Lord through every challenge he faced.  Though he had lost his eyesight, Royce not only served faithfully in his ministry calling but also in his community.  He was known as an effective, servant leader, whose community involvement and faithful perseverance was an inspiration to his family, friends, neighbors, and his colleagues in ministry.   “Walking by Faith” was written with the ministry and character of this man (and the faithfulness of God as our Shepherd and guide) uppermost in Travis’s mind.

Royce Brown, a long-time Minister of Worship and Music, community volunteer, charter member of The Singing Churchmen of Oklahoma, and Minister of Music Emeritus for the First Baptist Church of Sapulpa, Oklahoma, was a man who walked by faith, both spiritually and physically.  He left behind a legacy of service and faithfulness as well as a testimony of trust in God and a transparent love for his Lord and Savior.  Royce and his family moved to Sapulpa, Oklahoma in 1966, when he became the Minister of Music at the First Baptist Church there.  After more than 5o years of service in ministry at Sapulpa and in other communities such as Blackwell, Ada, and Pauls Valley, Royce retired from full-time ministry. Continuing to live in the community of Sapulpa, Royce sang in local nursing homes every week.  He was also involved in the Sapulpa Ministerial Alliance and in the local Lions Club.  Royce was named Citizen of the Year by the Sertoma Club of Sapulpa, and June 9, 2002, was proclaimed Royce Brown Day by the Sapulpa Mayor, in honor of Royce’s long history of community service and ministy.

The Logo for The Singing Churchmen of Oklahoma

Royce had been widowed in 2001, and he had also lost his eyesight.  However, he never lost his love for the Lord or his desire to serve.  He continued to sing with the Singing Churchmen of Oklahoma, depending on friends within the group for transportation to and from concerts all over the State of Oklahoma and around the world on Churchmen Mission trips.  Royce inspired fellow Ministers of Music and Worship with his dedication and perseverance, memorizing all of his music and accepting the help of others as he navigated through the buildings and upon the worship center platforms of the churches where concerts were held.

Due to his longevity and faithfulness in ministry, Royce was recognized by the Historical Commission of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma as Music Minister Emeritus of the First Baptist Church of Sapulpa.  In addition. he was also presented the Lifetime Music Ministry Award, instituted in Royce’s honor, by Dr. Bill Green, Associate Executive Director of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma and, at that time, Director of both The Singing Churchmen and The Singing Churchwomen of Oklahoma.  This award continues to be given to Music and Worship Ministers in the State of Oklahoma who have served faithfully for many years.

Introducing “Walking by Faith”

Travis played “Walking by Faith” for Royce in the Worship Center of First Baptist Church of Sapulpa, Oklahoma.

After Travis had written a TTBB arrangement of “Walking By Faith” with a tenor solo; and Dr. Bill Green had selected the song for inclusion in the repertoire of The Singing Churchmen of Oklahoma, Travis and I travelled to Sapulpa to share the song with Royce and introduce him to the solo.  Royce had a mellow tenor voice, and he did not hesitate to use it in praise to his Lord.  I am smiling even now as I recall meeting Royce in the Worship Center of his church, where Travis sat down at the piano with Royce just behind him, listening and ready to sing.  Royce picked up on the song so quickly that it seemed miraculous.  He was singing along with portions of the song before he had even heard them being played or sung and without the benefit of being able to see the music.   It was definitely a very spiritual experience to hear Royce singing “Walking By Faith”, knowing that the Lord had inspired Travis to write the song so that Royce could have further opportunity to proclaim the message of God’s goodness and guidance throughout life.  Travis knew that the message of “Walking By Faith” would be shared with integrity and conviction by this man who had lived his own faith walk through many decades of ministry and service.

From the July 11, 2002 Baptist Messenger: HONORED: Royce Brown, left, Music Minister Emeritus at Sapulpa, First, accepts congratulations from Ron Fannin, Associate Executive Director of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma, right, and Bill Green, BGCO Associate Executive Director of Church and Family Equipping Ministries and Director of The Singing Churchmen of Oklahoma, of which Brown is a charter member. Brown was honored by Sapulpa, First, for more than 50 years of ministry. Fannin presented an award from the BGCO Historical Commission, and Green announced the establishment of the Royce Brown Award for Lifetime Achievement in Music Ministry.

Hearing Royce sing “Walking By Faith” was something very special to Travis, to our brother, Dr. Bill Green, and to all of The Singing Churchmen and the audiences at each of the Worship Concerts.  Beyond the sound of Royce’s beautiful tenor voice singing a pleasant tune with with a message of encouragement and challenge, the Holy Spirit used the life and spirit of the man singing the solo and the testimony of The Singing Churchmen singing the choral parts to touch the hearts of all who heard “Walking by Faith” during this time period. On one occasion, Travis and some friends stopped at a restaurant after a concert during which “Walking By Faith” was one of the anthems sung by The Churchmen, with Royce as the soloist.  Royce and his traveling buddy had also stopped at the same place; and Travis witnessed a woman who had been at the concert and recognized Royce as she told him how blessed she had been by his solo on “Walking By Faith.”  Royce had beamed as he thanked her, and we are so pleased that God allowed Royce to share the testimony of his spiritual journey with Jesus through this song.

Our brother Royce went home to be with His Lord in June of 2003.  The Singing Churchmen sang “Walking By Faith” and other songs of testimony at his funeral service.  For those who witnessed his life, there remains an unforgettable testimony of the faithfulness of God and the faith journey of a man of God that will live on in our hearts.

There are so many faithful servants of God who have the same testimony of walking by faith and trusting the Lord throughout their lives.  Along the way on our journey, we are thankful to have met so many wonderful people who love the Lord and are walking with Him one step at a time.  Most of all, we are thankful to know the Lord and to be able to trust Him throughout our lives as we continue walking by faith.

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The track below is the publisher’s demo version of,”Walking by Faith,” with the solo sung by Sue Martin.  Click “Listen in browser” to hear it (unless you already have or want to install the Sound Cloud app).

“Walking by Faith” was published as an SAB Choral anthem with Solo by Shawnee Press/Hal Leonard.  The anthem is still available at the links below, and a Performance/Accompaniment CD is also available.

One step at a time…

Lyrics for “Walking By Faith”:

Walking by faith and not by sight,
Guided by a Holy light.
Step by step, the way is clear.
The Spirit of the Lord is near.

I will follow where He leads,
For I know the path is right
When I’m walking by faith
And not by sight.

Trusting in One I cannot see,
For He knows what’s best for me.
Tenderly, the Shepherd guides.
The Spirit of the Lord abides.

I will follow where He leads,
For the Lord will be my light
When I’m walking by faith
And not by sight.

(Bridge section)
Though at times I stumble,
I will never fall;
For I know God is always faithful
To hold my hand, and lift me up,
And see me through it all.

When I’m living by faith, I’m not alone.
As I travel on toward home.
When the road is hard to bear,
The Spirit of the Lord is there.

I will follow where He leads,
For the way is always right
When I’m walking by faith
And not by sight.

(Tag ending)
I’m walking by faith and not by sight.

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HERE IS THE PUBLISHER’S DESCRIPTION of “Walking By Faith”:

“Full of youthful confidence and motivational lyrics, “Walking By Faith” is a challenge to Christians of all ages to “walk by faith and not by sight.” Gentle syncopations are easily learned and help give the piece a nice contemporary feel. The SAB voicing is particularly well suited to youth choirs.”

“Walking by Faith”  is available from:

Shawnee Press at:  http://www.shawneepress.com/product/viewproduct.do?itemid=35024936

Hal Leonard at:  http://www.halleonard.com/product/viewproduct.do?itemid=35024936&lid=1&keywords=TravisBoyd&subsiteid=1

Sheet Music Plus (with 2 sample pages to view plus a listening link) at http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/Walking-by-Faith/5206355

J. W. Pepper at  http://www.jwpepper.com/8065838.item

 

The first page of “Walkig By Faith”, copyright Shawnee Press, with the dedication, “For Royce Brown”, appearing above the title.

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This post was written by C. Boyd

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Do you know Jesus? 

The decision to ask Jesus to come into your heart and life as your Lord and Savior is the best decision you could ever make!  The one true God is ready to give you forgiveness and eternal life as soon as you understand your need for Him and believe on the name of His only Son, Jesus, for your salvation.

Here’s a blog page link to help you find the answers to your questions about Jesus.  http://www.worshipsounds.wordpress.com/do-you-know-jesus/

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When You Feel Like giving up….

Life can be very challenging.  We are constantly confronted with needs, attitudes, questions, problems, heartbreaks, ailments, issues, and an endless list of things that need to be done.  Sometimes, we feel as though we are pushing a giant boulder in circles and making no progress.  We feel like giving up the fight.  However, the simple fact that we are pushing is progress!  When the boulder of life’s burdens does not seem to budge or when you feel that any motion is either backwards or in circles, remember that the act of refusing to give up is always progress.  How many times have we given up too soon or been on the verge of a breakthrough when we decided to quit?  It’s impossible to know the impact of those past decisions.  It is not productive to focus on lost opportunities, but it is always good to consider the opportunities of this present moment and what we can do with them.  When God has placed a task in front of us or given us a vision for ministry or for utilizing the gifts that he has given in a way that maximizes our potential and brings glory to Him, we can visualize the victory that the completion of this task or the faithful performance of this task could bring, knowing that God’s vision is always greater than our own.  If we were to also visualize the barriers and challenges that will have to be overcome, the largest barrier by far would be the temptation to quit when we feel that our efforts have been in vain or that the task is too big or too hopeless to continue.

Quitting is the most effective form of breakthough and victory prevention.  When what we are doing or trying to do is a positive, healthy action that ultimately brings glory to God because it is wholesome and right, quitting and giving up the fight can rob us and the world of something that could be a blessing to many lives.  We may need to re-group and spend some time in prayer about how to proceed further.  We may need to share the vision that the Lord has given with others and ask for their help and prayer support.  We may need to re-focus priorities.  We may need to remind ourselves daily that quitting would prevent a breakthrough to victory which could be just around the corner.  Whatever it takes to keep going is what we need to do, unless God himself re-focuses our priorities in a different direction.

I must confess that the feeling of being overwhelmed in a task or with day to day living overtakes my mind frequently.  It is a battle that I must fight with more than my own resources in order to keep going.  I need the joy of the Lord that is my strength, and I must rely on Christ within me, the hope of glory.  If I am going to refuse to surrender to thoughts of futility, my encouragement is the joy that comes from knowing my Lord and knowing that His plans for my life are to give me a hope and a future.  If I am going to be able to push on past feelings of hopelessness and fears of failure, the sure knowledge that Christ has redeemed my life and will ultimately sanctify it fills me with the hope of fulfilling my purpose through God’s mercy, which will allow me to bring glory to God though His grace.   This battle of the will requires that we place our trust in the Lord.  We must trust that He will bring about good from our efforts and that He is at work in ways that we do not see.  Trust is the foundation for perseverance.   When we can trust the Lord with the results of our efforts and continue to strive onward because we know that God will use our obedience to strengthen His Kingdom in some way (even if that change occurs only in our own hearts). our determination to persevere is refined by hardship or a seeming lack of results rather than being extinguished like a wisp of fading hope.   Through this trust and faith, we seek goodness by obedience, growing in our knowledge of what God would have us to do as we continue to seek His ways.  Peter spoke of this sequence of spiritual growth in II Peter 1:2 – 9.

² Grace and peace be yours in abundance   through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

³ His divine power  has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. ⁴ Through these He has given us his very great and precious promises,   so that through them you may participate in the divine nature,   having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

⁵ For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; ⁶ and to knowledge, self-control;   and to self-control, perseverance;   and to perseverance, godliness; ⁷ and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. ⁸ For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive   in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹ But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind,   forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins. *

In the above passage, perseverance is listed as a quality that is necessary for becoming an effective and productive Christian (and, as a result, being effective and productive in our other life roles…parent, spouse, employee, friend, leader, communicator, encourager, helper…).  God considers perseverance to be an extension of our desire to know Him and to grow in the faith and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Because the goal of Christlikeness is of primary and eternal importance, we refuse to give up.  Because our trust is in Almighty God rather than in our own human efforts, we hold on and persevere.

Sometimes, when we feel like giving up, we just need someone to talk to.  Of course, prayer is always important.  God can speak to our hearts when we pour out our struggles honestly in prayer.  He can also speak to our hearts through the encouragement of others.  If you have a trusted friend or family member to whom you feel you can honestly share your feelings of being overwhelmed, or fear of failure, or loss of hope, it can be a good thing to just get these feelings out in the open and see them for what they are.  Hopefully, your loved one will point out to you the progress that has already been made and remind you of the necessity of perseverance and the importance of your task.  It could be that some human encouragement to go on will result in a fresh determination, to which the Lord will add His strength.

Hold on!  FROG!  (Fully Rely On God !)

If can be so difficult to keep going when we don’t know what the future holds and the circumstances don’t look good.  We don’t know the future, but we do know the Creator of all life and of time and space and everything that is.  Here’s what the Bible says about his plans for us in Jeremiah 29:11.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” *

 

God has great plans for your life and for my life.  He is at work even when we can’t see His hand.  Part of what he wants us to learn as we travel through life is to trust Him when we feel that all is lost.  We walk by faith, not by sight.  It’s almost like stumbling across a dark room in search of a light switch that we know is just beyond our reach.  We have to take a step of faith in order to get there.  When we reach the wall, it could seem to be an obstacle; but if we keep reaching, we’ll find the switch.  Suddenly, it will become clear that our effort was not in vain!

When it comes to the tasks that God has placed into your life, remember that He is the God of possibility even in the darkest of circumstances.  We don’t have to stumble blindly through life.  We have His life and light and power within us as we walk through the plains of sameness and climb the mountains of challenge and trial.  He is also beside us through the dark valleys.  Just as the seeker found in the illustration of the dark room, the light and power was available all along.  He just had to take a step of faith (which means a step toward persevering) in order to find it.

Galatians 6:9   “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”  *

 

Prescription for Living

* New International Version (NIV) Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society

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This post was written by C. Boyd

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Here are some additional posts that may be helpful to you:

You Have a Lot to Give!

Psalm 23 (scroll on to the Japanese version that begins, “The Lord is my Pace-setter…”)

Disappointment…and Grace

All of us experience disappointments in life.  These can be relatively minor circumstances (that sometimes come in bunches), disappointments that turn out to be merely a misunderstanding, devastating choices or circumstances that lead to major life upheavals, or even heart-breaking betrayals of trust.  I believe that every disappointment has the potential to change us in some way.  If we can learn to respond with grace to the disappointments that come our way, they can lead to growth and perhaps to eventual reconciliation where there is a need for that.  Many times, situations have consequences that reach far into the future, but that just makes it even more important to respond in a way that prevents bitterness from taking root and leaves an open door for God’s grace to bring good out of the pain of disappointment.

There are several types of disappointment that we need to consider.   First, there is what I’ll call a Circumstantial Disappointment.  Secondly, there are Relational Disappointments.  Third, we will deal with Regretful Disappointments.  Finally, we can sometimes feel disappointment with God when the answers to prayer are long in coming or seem not to be coming at all.  We’ll call that Spiritual Disappointment.  There are some general truths for dealing with all kinds of disappointment and some specific considerations for different types of disappointment.

Some people feel that the best way to avoid disappointment is by choosing not to expect too much.  I remember not long ago hearing some dialogue in which an individual took issue with the phrase, “Don’t get your hopes up.”   I don’t recall the source of the dialogue in question, but it may have been in a movie.  The response to being told, “Don’t get your hopes up!” went something like this:  “Why not?  Why wouldn’t I want my hopes to be up?  That’s a very good place for hopes to be.”   There’s a lot of truth in that.  It’s certainly much better to be hopeful  than hopeless.  Yes, we will sometimes be disappointed; but it’s still worthwhile to live hopefully.

Hope can bond the hearts of people and give individuals something to look forward to.  Hope can give us a reason to keep working and trying and overcoming.   Most importantly, hope can become a testimony of faith and trust, speaking to the world around us with a message that the life of Christ within brings us  “strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow…blessings all mine with ten thousand beside.”   (lyrics from the hymn “Great is Thy Faithfulness.”)

KEY #1:  The first key to dealing with disappointment is to hold on to hope.

Our hopefulness is an indication the we are holding to our trust in God.  Even as we are trying to hold on, this truth holds us securely:  God is good, and He loves us.  When we know in the very depths of our souls that God is good and has our best interests on His heart, we can trust that whatever circumstance comes our way, God will use it to bring about good in our lives and in His Kingdom.  So, the first and most important key to dealing with disappointment is a choice.  We must choose to live hopefully.  We must choose to reject the negative thoughts that enter our mind when we have been disappointed.   Thoughts like “No one really cares about me” and “nothing ever works out in my life” are counter productive and depressing.  To counter these kinds of thoughts, you may have to sit down and make some lists.  Make a list of everyone who has been kind to you and demonstrated caring.  Make a list of the blessings in your life.  Make a list of the times when things have worked out well for you, and include times when something that seemed negative at first eventually turned into a positive.   If you are dealing with a disappoinment that involves relationship, list the good qualities of the other person(s) or positive things about the relationship(s).  Seeing these truths written in black and white can do a lot to help you choose hope.

Precious promises for you!

KEY #2:  Secondly, it is essential for us as Christians to look to scripture for help when we are dealing with disappointment.

*  Study the ways that Biblical characters such as Joseph dealt with disappointment and even betrayal.

*  Read the Psalms.  Here, you will find a desperate longing for God, and sometimes the broken-hearted pleas for God’s deliverance from trials.  No matter what the circumstance, the writers of the Psalms turned to God as their source of help and hope.

*  Another helpful thing to do is to fill your mind with the promises of God.  If you don’t have a little book of God’s promises from scripture, buy one and keep it on your nightstand.

• Remember who God is!  He is mighty in power!  The very same God who re-wrote the story of our lives through the sacrificial life and death and the victorious resurrection of Jesus Christ is still changing lives, healing broken hearts, and mending fractured relationships today!  The circumstances of today are NOT the end of the story…. because He who created Heaven and Earth lives in you.

Or, go to websites such as these:

God’s promises arranged by topic:  http://www.smilegodlovesyou.org/promises.html
Daily scripture promise blog:  http://www.365promises.com/
God’s promises in every book of the Bible:  http://bible.org/article/selected-promises-god-each-book-bible
John Piper’s sermon on the promises of God:  http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/all-the-promises-of-god-are-yes-in-christ

New International Version (©1984)
“For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through Him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.”
II Corinthians 1:20

Romans, Chapter 5, NIV
1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we^c also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

(Scripture references above are copied from the Online Parallel Bible)  http://bible.cc/

SPECIFIC TYPES OF DISAPPOINTMENT

Circumstantial disappointment

All of us face times in life when circumstances change in a way that we did not expect or that seems less desirable than what we had hoped.  These kind of circumstantial disappointments may involve something that didn’t happen as you had hoped.  Or, they may involve something that happened which seems contrary to everything you had hoped.  Sometimes these disappointments lead to eventually letting go of one dream for your life and grabbing hold of God’s promises and His new dream for you.  Circumstances will happen to disappoint us all, and each time we must choose to look at the positives in the situation.  The reactions we have to the disappointment of our hopes can range from mild irritation (having to re-arrange your schedule because a flight was cancelled, for example) to feeling absolutely devastated (the sale of your home fell through, or you were laid off, or you didn’t get admitted to the University of your choice).  No matter how strong our reaction may be, each disappointment results in the following choices:

1.  Choosing to continue to dwell on what has been lost even though nothing can be done about it  OR  eventually choosing to let it go and move on.

2.  Choosing to give up on a hope or dream  OR  seeking God’s direction about whether to allow Him to give you a new dream or to persevere in seeking this hope but perhaps through another avenue.

3.  Choosing to become bitter about what has been denied  OR  allowing God to use disappointment to refine our character.

4.  Choosing to become stuck in the past and our unfulfilled hope  OR  moving forward with trust and faith in God, knowing that He will work all things (even this disappointment) for our good.

5.  Feeling hopeless  OR  allowing God to restore our hope as time passes and the mental and spiritual adjustment is made not only to the reality that the disappointment has occurred, but to the possiblities of the future!

There is a grieving process with any disappointment, and it is necessary.  After all, it takes time to re-adjust your thinking to a new reality.  However, we must always be seeking God as the Source of our comfort, our transformation to the likeness of Christ, and ultimately, our hope.  God wants us to be honest with Him in prayer.  He knows we are devastated and disappointed, but He wants us to talk to Him about it.  His Spirit can only minister peace in a situation that has been turned over to Him.  A new dream can only be given when we choose to allow Him to turn our disappointment into possibilities that we’d never imagined.  Give yourself the grace of seeing each day as a new beginning, full of possibilities and promise as you release the disappointments of the past and surrender each moment to the Lord.  The reality of your disappointment can become a stepping stone to newness in your life and even to a reality more joyful or profound than anything you could have dreamed.  Hold on to your relationship with God through the grieving and adjustment period, and hold on to hope!

Relational Disappointment

Relational disappointment can be the most devastating type of disappointment.  Someone has let us down or even intentionally hurt us…often in a BIG way.  Broken hearts result from relational disappointment.  Here, we are not only dealing with our feelings about what has happened.  We are also dealing with the ongoing relationship.  When we have been badly hurt, anger is often our response.  However, the expression of anger can cause even more relational difficulty.  It’s good to keep in mind some considerations of the other person and the relationship you have to them.  As you work through the process of dealing with the disappointment and hurt that you feel, you can choose to show grace by valuing the person and the relationship more than your right to be angry and hurt.  Although the grieving and adjustment process for relational disappointment is the same as for any other type, the feelings and the potential relational consequences involved require careful consideration of a few additional factors.

First, remember that you, too, have at times disappointed someone.  None of us can perfectly meet the needs of another person.  We will all make mistakes, forget something important, or fail to handle a situation appropriately from time to time.  We all will have times when we need to apologize for disappointing someone else (as well as times when we need to forgive someone for disappointing us).

Secondly, we need to realize that what seems a big failure or disappointment may have been out of someone’s control or may have resulted from a miscommunication of some type.  Here, I will give an example of something that occurred at one of the churches where Travis had served.  There was a person who was a part-time employee in Music Ministry at the church, and this individual had been serving for a number of years.  Travis was new at the church and was still learning how things were done.  Procedures and policies very widely from church to church, and that fact would be brought home in this situation.  At the church Travis had left prior to coming to this new church, the Personnel Committee had always taken care of farewells and thank yous to those who were leaving a paid position in the church.  However, when this person was no longer employed by the church, nothing was done by that committee.  By the time that Travis realized that things were handled differently at the new church, the former employee was already very upset and feeling unappreciated.   Though he tried to correct the mistake he’d made by assuming procedures were similar, the attempts were rejected by the former employee.  Travis would have liked to have had the opportunity to show appreciation properly; but because of a misunderstanding and the resulting disappointment, that never happened as it should have.

Many times, relational disappointments do result from some sort of misunderstanding.   When there seems to have been a mess up or a large oversight that affects you, try not to automatically assume the worst and get all upset without knowing the facts.  There may be reasons why things happened as they did of which you are unaware.  Sometimes, knowing what happened can help and can even save a relationship.  Therefore, we all need to give each other the grace of refusing to jump to conclusions.  If you can talk to the person or persons who were involved in whatever led to your disappointment and tell them, “I really felt… (disappointed, betrayed, unappreciated…fill in the blank) because….”  (Keep it short and mention only one or two main factors, without detail.  Hopefully, this can come across without condemnation or anger.)  Then, ask for clarification, “I didn’t want to assume anything without giving you the opportunity to explain, so can you tell me what happened?”  Give the person some time to think and consider a response.  Just sit and wait without saying anything further.  It could be that there are real reasons for the way things happened that you never knew about.  The problem could even have resulted from something that you did or said that the other person did not know how to handle.  The truth could immediately make you feel better.  If so, you may have prevented permanent damage to a relationship by seeking understanding.  Or, the truthful answer could hurt at first.  It may be that the truth is a mirror, reflecting an area in your own life where some change needs to take place or just an outright failure or oversight by the other party.  Either way, these kinds of hurtful truths can be stepping stones to growth and to better understanding eventually if we keep the door of relationship open and work to have better understanding and resolve problems.   Regardless of the steps that need to be taken, forgiveness is always appropriate.  Even if something happened that was totally wrong, forgiveness will ultimately set you free from bitterness and from living in the past.  Ask God to give you an open heart to any changes that you need to make and grace for the other person, just as you have been shown grace and mercy.

When you think that you have someone figured out and that you are disappointed in who they are, remember that there may be many things that you do not know about this person or about their life.  Some of your asumptions may be totally wrong.  Give others the grace of forgiveness and a second chance.  You may be making yourself totally miserable by harboring negative feelings that are not even based upon fact.  Pray for this person, and allow God to work in them and in you.  You may be surprised at what He will do!

If a relationship proves to be totally unhealthy, seek counsel about what to do.  No one has to stay in an abusive situation.  You cannot change another person.  Change can only come when the other person desires to change, and a lot of changes require God’s help.

Regretful disappointment

Sometimes, our lives can become filled with regret if we dwell on past mistakes or on what we wish we had done in a situation.   These things are truly beyond our control.  They are in the past.  What matters is how we live NOW and what we do to make things better NOW.  Give yourself the grace of letting go.  Learn from past mistakes, fix what you can, and then remember Paul’s testimony and advice:

“It’s not that I have already reached this goal or have already become perfect. But I keep pursuing it, hoping somehow to embrace it just as I have been embraced by the Messiah Jesus.  Brothers, I do not consider myself to have embraced it yet. But this one thing I do: Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I keep pursuing the goal to win the prize of God’s heavenly call in the Messiah Jesus.”   – Phillippians 3;12 – 14  (International Standard Version)

The Serenity Prayer can also be helpful.

Spiritual disappointment

Spiritual disappointment can be extremely difficult.  As Christians, we know that God is good and that He is able to do anything and to meet our needs.  We feel that we should be content to trust His wisdom about the when and the how.  We often don’t feel that we can even talk to other Christians about our disappointment.  This kind of scenario can lead to feeling totally alone, as though one is abandoned by God but can’t talk about it because to do so would only lead to rejection from other believers who may want to comfort you but who actually fear the pain and loss you have experienced and want you to repeat phrases like “God is so good!’ or “His timing is perfect” for your good and for their comfort.   The Book of Job is about just such a struggle.   It’s a battle for Job between what he knows he should feel and what other believers are telling him to feel versus how he actually does feel.  At the beginning of the time of trial for Job, God expresses confidence in the faith of Job.  And yet, even for a mature believer, there is a process of sorting through thoughts, grieving loss, and finding that your faith still holds true.   Job wants to know why.  He knows that he has done nothing wrong to provoke God’s judgement in the form of the calamity that has come upon his household, and yet He acknowledges that God is sovereign over all.  God Himself speaks with Job, and the truths that come out of this conversation are that God does not have to reveal His reasons to us and yet, He wants us to come to Him with our questions.  There is no way that we could fully understand the interactions of every human heart and every circumstance as God does.  We don’t have the infinite understanding to fathom God’s reasoning, but God gives us the mercy and grace to allow us to question Him, to ask why, and to express our pain, our deep grief, our disappointment, and even our anger.  After we have asked out questions and cried out our pain, peace comes only when we finally choose to trust.  It is a process, and that process is part of the healing and growth.  So, the ultimate message about spiritual disappointment is that it will come to everyone, that we must take it to Him, and that He will teach and comfort us through the pain.

KEY #3:  Turning to God in our disappointment and being honest with Him in prayer is the third key for dealing with disappointment. 

In earlier paragraphs, I had stated that the other two keys are choosing to live hopefully, based upon your knowledge of God’s goodness and your desire to have a positive outlook, and then turning to scripture for help in coping with disappointment.  So, my friends, choose hope!  Seek answers in God’s word, and turn to Him with all of your questions and hurts as you work through the process of moving forward in your life after you have been disappointed.  These three keys to coming through a disappointment and moving forward without bitterness are not a ‘quick fix’.  There is no easy answer and no quick solution.  Allow yourself the grace of processing all that has happened and thinking through what this means for the future.

God wants to bring possibility and promise out of this situation for you.  He wants to heal your heart and give you new hope.  He wants to communicate His love for you and renew your confidence in His goodness.  Blessings to you in the journey!

 

*  A  SONG  FOR  YOU  *  Here’s a link to a song that may be helpful to you:  http://soundcloud.com/travis-l-boyd/god-is-faithful-satb-choral

* HERE’S A BONUS *

Check out this excellent teaching about disappointment by TV host, author, and speaker Michelle McKinney Hammond on the 700 Club’s “Voices of Hope” series (segment #2) about facing life issues.  Here’s the link to the series.  (You will have to select and click on the Segment #2 link to see the video with the teaching about disappointment.):  http://www.cbn.com/700club/features/voiceofhope/

Interestingly, in the 700 club interview that allows her to explain her teaching on disappointment, Ms. Hammond also speaks of the need for demonstrating grace when facing disappointment, saying, “Don’t expect divinity from humanity.  Have grace for<em> people, </em>and place your expectations <em>on God</em>.”  Additionally, she also speaks of trusting God through the disappointment (as in our blog article), but she does state some of her teaching in some unique ways that will be helpful to anyone who is seeking additional insights to learn the lessons of disappointment while holding on to faith, preserving relationships, and dealing with pain.  Listen near the end of the interview for your assignment, when Ms. Hammond speaks of God’s plan in the disappointment and our corresponding job as the steward of the experience.

Here is a link to information about her book called How to Get Past Disappointment; (Note: I have not read the book, but I am recommending it based upon hearing the teaching in the above link, which is a portion of what is contained in the book.  – C. A. Boyd) Book info:  http://www.amazon.com/How-Get-Past-Disappointment-Finding/dp/0736937862

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This post was written by C. A. Boyd

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Do you know Jesus?

The decision to ask Jesus to come into your heart and life as your Lord and Savior is the best decision you could ever make!  The one true God is ready to give you forgiveness and eternal life as soon as you understand your need for Him and believe on the name of His only Son, Jesus, for your salvation. Here’s a blog page link to help you find the answers to your questions about Jesus. http://www.worshipsounds.wordpress.com/do-you-know-jesus/

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