I am in a great mood, especially since we just got back from church and then went out to eat at the Golden Corral afterwards.
As usual, being Sunday, it was crazy busy at the Golden Corral, and our party certainly didn't help. (It takes two vans and several cars to transport all of us. We were a party of 56--50 kids, and 6 adults.)
We attend Christ Community Assembly of God Church here in Nashville, and we go each and every week; we try NOT to miss church because we so enjoy the sermons Pastor Bruce preaches each and every week, and we enjoy the presence of the Lord that is so evident in our church. (To me it feels like a soft, gentle breeze; and it gives me a feeling of peace and security.) We also enjoy the worship time and the singing of the choirs. We have made many friends at our church, and they are so supportive of our family.
Today Pastor Bruce (Bilkey is his last name; he is originally from Louisiana, and he's been at this church going on 10 years, ever since the church had been built) preached about how Jesus loves even those people who are going through unspeakable trials and how He would never, EVER consider abandoning them, even when other people--be they family, friends, or even acquaintances--have done so. It was a very powerful sermon, and he made all of those who heard it realize that Jesus loves each and every one of us, even when we turn away from Him and even when we are at our lowest point in our lives. Yet if we turn back to Jesus, He is more than willing to welcome us back.
I was wondering about that because lately it seemed that Ronee' was depressed; she had been suffering from one of her "flares", and had just gotten out of the hospital last week; and she was still feeling weak and tired from her ordeal; and she seemed quite unhappy. She was wondering if God was mad at her because she was suffering so much in the way of pain; and she was tired of being in and out of the hospital. She wasn't acting like the happy-go-lucky kid I knew, that was for certain!! But then Pastor Bruce said that Jesus loved even those who were poor and homeless and the lonely elderly shut-ins who resided at home or in care facilities and He wouldn't EVER think of leaving them. He even loved people like my little sister who were battling chronic illnesses that were beyond their control; and that He hated to see them suffering. But, as Pastor Bruce stressed near the end of the sermon, he said that one way to get "through the valley" was to look towards Jesus and ask for His help. And considering the fact that I am faced with the inivitable passing of my little brother, Johnny, who has an incurable disease that has no treatment or cure; what sort of mental hell must HE be going through, I kept wondering as I looked at my little brother eating his cornflakes with milk prior to our going out to eat. (He was a bit hungry, even though we were going out to eat at the Golden Corral for breakfast.)
Which really makes a lot of sense, if you really think about it. See, Jesus suffered horribly upon that Cross at Calvary, and He died because of our sins; and He took it upon Himself to die in our place. This means he took all of our problems and made them His Own, and He wanted to take away our sins and our problems, so He performed the Ultimate Gift: sacrificing His Life so that WE may have life if we turn to Him. No matter how big or how minute the problem was, Jesus took it upon Himself to take it to the Cross; and He died because He loves us that much. Plain and simple.
If that isn't a true act of love, then I don't know what is.
After the sermon, Pastor Bruce then had anyone who was suffering from problems come up to the altar for prayer and ministering; and of course, Ronee' went up. She was prayed over and then fell out in the Spirit; and her depression was long gone; she lay there on the ground, crying and laughing. It was so nice not to see her sad anymore. She now seemed to be at peace; Jesus had just healed her of depression. Johnny went up for prayer, too; he was worried about people making comments about his being in a wheelchair or people saying that he was only using it to bring on sympathy and wanted others to feel sorry for him. (Kids have told Johnny this very thing; it has really upset him--and us; people can be so cruel at times, especially to those who are suffering needlessly like Johnny so happens to be!!) He, too, fell out in the Spirit; he didn't fall onto the floor as his sister had done, but he started laughing uproariously; and all of the tension left his little body. He, too, was soon at peace.
Ever since, Ronee' has been in a good mood, and she was acting like her former self. It was as though the cloud of depression had vanished completely. And seeing Johnny being delivered of the spirit of fear and sorrow was really AWESOME!! Which, in the long run, made all of us feel better because when one of our family members is hurting we ALL HURT.
But at the restaurant one couldn't keep Ronee' quiet; she was beside herself with joy; and she was telling everyone about her healing. And Johnny was just as talkative; he was telling everyone just how happy he was because Jesus had healed him, too, and he was as "happy as a clam" (as he put it).
Sure, there are people who still suffer--Ronee' still had her arthritis, but in time, Jesus would heal her of it, if not here on earth but in Heaven when He comes back to take His Children to Heaven--, and Johnny still had to deal with the implications of his muscular dystrophy, but, like Ronee', he was going to get healed SOMEDAY; but the point of the matter is this: NO problem is too great for the Lord Jesus Christ to handle; if one turns to Him in times of trouble or need He will surely take care of the problem. Now, it may not be right away, but one thing IS certain: Jesus WILL handle the problem, and that is a GUARANTEED PROMISE!!!!
--------------------------------------------------
Author's Note: I got the idea for this story while watching CBN. The man on there was talking about this very thing, how people are suffering, and how Jesus loves them,even those who are ill, forgotten, or lonely, and how if the person turns to Him He will handle the problem; and he then explained about how Jesus took our iniquities with Him to Calvary; and how He took it upon Himself to bear our problems as He died on that Cross. I was also praying because my back was really hurting, and now it no longer does; Jesus has healed my back; it no longer hurts!!! God be thanked!!!
He Keeps Me is a devotional journey of revelation and insight birthed out of prayer.Searching the Word of God revealed the many ways that He has kept me and continues to keep me. Each day is an opportunity to recognize that God is mindful of you, eve
