MY SIGH IS NOT HIDDEN

Oh Lord, all my longing is before you; my sighing is not hidden from you.

Psalm 38:9 ESV

Another semester has come to an end, along with a deep sigh of relief. The light at the end of the tunnel seems so much brighter with three semesters of Nursing school behind me and one more to go before I graduate. It's a breath of fresh air when you take your last exam. It's like my head is finally above the water, until the next semester of course. But still, it's like I can breathe again.

I've wondered, especially after reading this verse in Psalm, why do we sigh? I know it's different for everyone. Just as every other process of the body it's individualized in that specific situation. To me, it's like a reset button, physically and mentally. I sigh and I suddenly feel like, "Okay, I just might make it through this" or I can finally begin to accept the situation I'm in. It's the turning point, whether positive or negative. Throughout this journey of school and planning a wedding, I know there have been countless times that I've sighed.

I sigh in despair & sadness. I sigh in exhaustion. I sigh in awe & happiness. I sigh in relief. 

I sigh in the unknown. I sigh for reasons I don't even know about.

I throw all my wants, desires, cravings at the cross. I demand, I question, I argue, I sigh in the absence of my own patience and He never fails to listen to the small, hushed breath that comes from my lips. Not only does he know our every thought, hears our cry, sees our tears, smiles at our joy, listens to our anger, feels our pain -- he hears our sighs. Not one of them goes unnoticed. What love, that even our quietest sigh is heard from our almighty Savior! Take these few verses below and remember that not even your sighs are hidden from Him. He is always loving you, fighting for you, and pursuing you.

It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.

Deuteronomy 31:8 ESV

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Psalm 73:26 ESV

And my God will supply every need of yours according according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:19 ESV

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Also, don't forget to join in on Kristin Schmucker's Scripture Challenge this month with #lampandlight!

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Love won that day

February 14th. The day for cute heart candies, delicate flowers, yummy chocolates and those sweet valentines. Don't sigh, this isn't going to contain a list of pros and cons. Personally, I love Valentines Day with all the fuzzy feelings and smiles that accompanies it! But God has been laying a "forgotten" perspective on my heart recently, not just about today but EVERY day. A refreshing new addition. It was simply a reminder to love, be kind, forgive endlessly, encourage and to speak graciously.

Holidays make it easy to give, to remember who we love, what we're thankful for, and so on. 
What about all the days in between? The days we don't think twice about just giving a simple smile. The days we let anger take control. The days we forget to love. The days we dwell on the hurt. The days we miss the opportunity to just encourage a friend, a stranger. The days it's all about "me". I'm guilty of it. 
Yet, in the midst of my selfish ways, I remember what true love did for me. Jesus didn't stop at the cross and say, "You are not worth the pain and agony. I don't feel like loving you today." Why? Because He is love.

Love won that day.

The cross, that was done out of love for us (see Romans 5:6-8) so we could share that same love to others and give them the opportunity to embrace their Savior. This is where we need to reflect that love and grace to others (whether we think they deserve it or not) that we are given by Him.

1. How do you motivate and encourage others?
Hebrews 10:24-25 
And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Proverbs 12:25 NLT 
Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up.

2. How do you speak to others?
Colossians 4:6 
Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

Proverbs 16:24 
Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.

3. How do you love? (Family, friends, relationships, co-workers, strangers and even enemies)
1 Peter 1:22 
Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart.

John 13:34-35 
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.

1 Corinthians 16:14 
Let all that you do be done in love.

Proverbs 3:3 
Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart.

4. What should you be equipped with?
Colossians 3:12-14 
Put on then, as Gods 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. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

Micah 6:8 
He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does The Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

Allow this verse to change the way you treat those who you encounter daily.
Hebrews 13:1-2 
Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unaware.

When you honor each other, you honor God. Remember: through all the guilt, lost friendships, broken hearts, the just plain ol' "bad day" -- Love already won. Let your love be anew everyday... just as He loves you.

He is Inescapable

Aegean Sea, Greece

"If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me."
Psalm 139:9-10 KJV

Verses 9 and 10 have laid heavy on my heart today. Christmas is right around the corner (NEXT WEEK, YAY!) and these verses brought me such peace and comfort!

I experienced that wonderful leading hand of God during my Missions Trip to Greece in 2011. His presence was so revealing and real to me and I was forever changed. When I was stripped of all my comforts and I only had Jesus, I learned that He was all I needed. 

Aegean Sea & Me

Even there His hand led me.

God will never leave me or forsake me. Whether I go as far as the east or the west, His hand will always be my guide. Even when I'm discouraged, or things don't go exactly as planned, He will never cease to hold me. I must place my trust in Him, not in this world and all it's inadequacies.

In verse 9, it uses two extremes: the sky and the sea. It is to show us that no matter where we go in all of His wonderful creation, He will always be present. The love and watchful eye of God is inescapable! You are never alone.

Take a few minutes today and read Psalm 139.