Good day to you dear readers! Today, the Spirit of the Lord answered me in prayer about something I believe we all deal with from time to time in this world. How do we keep that inner peace?
I have heard it said, in the book of Psalms; and will testify to its truth to sing songs of Praise to God the Father, and the Spirit of the Lord will lift you up. Yet, sometimes, it doesn’t seem to come so easy to sing. That’s why we have worship songs! Turn on the praise and worship songs and sing praises from your soul to remember who we are and whom God is! There is power in the Name of Jesus in a heart who believes!
May I share a short story with you?
It was the day before my son’s birthday –He was going to be 11! It was a beautiful and warm spring day when I picked him up from school. Excited for the beginning of Spring Break and his birthday on the next day, I said, “It sure is a pretty day today!”
My son hung his head down low and slightly shaking his head he said, “but it is going to rain on my birthday.”
My dad may not have been a preacher, but he taught me more about a relationship with God than anyone I have ever met in church.
A few years before he left this world to live eternally in the next –He reminded me that whenever someone would begin to doubt, “You say to them, ‘Where’s your faith?’” My dad left an incredibly destiny to me and my family with a wonderful statement of strength. “Where’s your faith?” Has strengthened me more than anyone may ever know!
So, my words of faith popped right back at the doubt that had attacked our son: “Son, Where’s your faith?” “Are you going to place your faith in the weather man or the words of prediction from man about something that our God is in control of? Don’t you know that the God we serve can part the clouds and He is the one who controls when we get the rain? Don’t you know that God knows the desires of your heart? Don’t you know that God chose your birthday? Don’t you know that God has had this day picked out for you from since before you were even born? Don’t you know that even IF God causes it to rain –that God has something better waiting for you to be found? So, Son, if God loves you this much and He is in control of the weather, what do you have to be down about?”
Our son perked up immediately; and I suppose my faith ignited his faith!
Sometimes we just need to be reminded,
“Where’s your faith?”
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1 KJV).”
Will you continue reading to hear what God has done? I hope this testimony reminds you that God loves you too! God wants us to see the True Light of His relationship with man. And, this is why I share this with you today too! I hope this ignites your faith to sprout and flourish in your trust in God too!
The next day, on our son’s birthday, our son woke up to a dry day –in spite of the 80 -100% forecast of rain! It was absolutely beautiful, warm and sunny all day -not a drop of rain!!!! And, this is not the first time we have prayed for God to hold back the rain for his special day! Praise to God!
Daniel walked outside on dry ground with dry skies and some sunshine already bursting through the parting dark rain clouds to pick the first 4 –Leaf Clover that God had waiting just for him to find on his 11th Birthday! God knew the desire of his heart!
A little history:
Years ago, Daniel asked me, “Why can’t I find a 4-Leaf Clover mommy?” One day, while I was talking to my brother on the phone under a beautiful Pecan tree, I looked down and noticed a very tiny 4-Leaf Clover. I couldn’t get my son’s attention, so I just reached down, picked it and took it over to him, but he said, “that’s nice mom, but I didn’t pick it.” Man, I felt bad, but the time just wasn’t right! God had put that desire on his heart as a message of God’s love for him and at just the right time; and Daniel found his blessing!
God gave us the Centerpiece!
The center PEACE is God’s LOVE!
I do not believe in luck, so please put that thought out of this testimony. I believe in blessings; and I believe in curses. I believe we have choices.
I believe when we choose to follow Jesus, our blessings are waiting to be found! YET, we don’t follow Jesus for the blessings, we follow Him because of LOVE! The love that God first had for us! We follow Jesus because we are blessed by grace! God loves us! And, God looks at and knows our hearts!
I don’t follow signs and wonders either, but I do follow Jesus. And signs and wonders will follow the Christ!
Because I follow Jesus, signs and wonders do follow FAITH that is in assurance of God’s Love for all whom will believe. For all who will trust God; and trust also in His Son. Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.
If you read The Train Whistle, you will learn of my own testimony of the 4-Leaf Clover that God gave to me and forever changed my heart to trust God forever unconditionally! That had nothing to do with luck. God was in the midst! God is in the midst now! God is near to you; and to all who will call upon the Name of Jesus.
Now are you ready to hear what God did?
To God be the glory! So that morning, Daniel come inside with the biggest smile and showed me and his grandma his gift from God! To God be the glory, Daniel went out to find a total of 7 Four-Leaf Clovers within that hour and on his 11th birthday! Praise God this was a blessing to us all and we thanked God for His love and this amazing wonder that was a sign of God’s power, love and devotion. God does know the desires of our heart! God is God and HE is capable to part the skies, just as God parted the Red Sea! Yet, first thing is first –We must trust God in our heart, with our whole heart and not replace our faith with doubt!
Don’t settle with just believing in Jesus with your mind. Believe and trust Jesus with your heart!
I share this story with you today to encourage you in trusting in the same love of God that God has for you! It is all God’s story and we are just living out our gift of life on this earth day by day; knowing the love of God and learning how to be the light of Jesus. And we need each other to stand firm in our faith in the True Light of God to encourage each other and lift each other’s spirit when we feel low!
You will also read in The Train Whistle that God gave me the words to say, “God loves each of us as if we were His only child!” I am just as amazed by that quote today, as I was the day that I wrote it, because those were the words God gave me to write!
I hope this is a blessing to you!
The Lord gave to me a demonstration that Hope in Today will be teaching on. As each believer has a flame (a light inside of Christ), when we put our flames together our flames become ONE! Jesus is the True light –The one True Light! We have this light of Christ living in us, but we are not meant to serve God alone. We need to come together and let our lights unite in the one true Light of Christ!
God’s Love has demonstrated His Love for us –God’s love is the Center Peace of our relationship with God. God IS LOVE! God is calling us to learn more and more about why God wrote the Bible:
That God wants us to see the True Light of His relationship with man.
At just the mention of His Name: Jesus Christ is a powerful Name to pray. Be patient and search for God’s higher knowledge. Ask Him –and know God as your Father God by believing in God’s Son in your heart, where your spirit lives. Holy Spirit your are welcome here! Trust God in your spirit to follow God –instead of trusting your mind that hopes God will follow you. Follow the Spirit of God. Roll your works upon the Lord, commit and trust them wholly to HIM, and He will cause your thoughts to become agreeable with His will and thus your plans will be established and succeed. Read Proverbs for more
Just as I knew my dad; and believed as his child that my dad knew everything (and now he does); God is our Father when we trust in His Son! God knows the beginning and the end –God is the beginning in life with Him that has no end. I hope this is a glimpse into the life God desires with you.
The Center Peace:
We placed the 7 Four-Leaf Clovers in water, as I found a glass pie plate. Then, to honor God, I put the glass pie plate on a glass pedestal. Later, as we were decorating, I put a final touch to the centerpiece of our celebration: I added a crystal candle holder; and we lit a tea light in the center of the floating 4-Leaf Clovers to honor what God had done; and the love that He showed to our son on his birthday.
I hope this is an encouragement in the Lord to you that will lift your spirit up!
Call to Persevere
…19These are the ones who cause divisions, worldly-minded, devoid of the Spirit. 20But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, 21keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.…
There is more I could say, but this is all the Holy Spirit is telling me to say now.
Praise to God and the Lord Jesus Christ, our beautiful Savior and King!
Jesus is our inner Peace! Make Jesus the Center Peace of your life!
God bless you.
Love in Christ,
Karen Rowe, Director
Hope in Today Ministries, Inc.
The Train Whistle, Sounding the call of God’s Love, by Karen Rowe (2012 Published Tate Publishing)
Let us pray together in Jesus Name:
14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.