Recovering What Was Taken........

"David recovered what the Amalekites had taken from him...." I Samuel 30:18

       I went to hear Jim Cymbala last night. If you have been in hiding for the last 25 years or so, Jim is the pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle Church in New York and has written many books on the Christian church. He encourages Christians to remember that the Holy Spirit is in them and that we have God's power in us to overcome the things we are struggle with. I admire his teaching because he is simple and to the point. Last night was no different. I was at a banquet for Harvest Ministries in Opelika, AL. They minister to men and women who are in some form of bondage including addictions. There were several testimonies of healing in people's live, the residents did a great presentation of the Cardboard testimony and the challenge was great. TELL THE GOOD NEWS to those who are struggling and God can restore that which was taken. 

(See this example of a Cardboard testimony..very powerful. http://youtu.be/JnKkw5F8drc)

Anyway, these verses got me to thinking about how God loves us so much that as we come into a personal relationship with Him, He can RESTORE what has been taken from us. He restored David's family and livelihood from the robbers(the Amalekites). He restored many others in the Bible. So...........

                                  He can help us as well. 

 

 I think of our two boys. A LOT was taken from them when they were young...stable parents, healthy living, the right to have a childhood. Even though they did NOT have those things, they CAN be restored and that "life" is being restored through our family. 

I think about the fact that though I did not have a "father" growing up, I found my Heavenly Father at the age of 12 and He brought "many father like figures" to me throughout my life. 

He CAN bring back what has been taken from you. 

When I was in NYC at Graffiti Community Ministries, I knew  A LOT of people who had had their life taken from them from either bad choices they made OR that others made for them and when they invited Jesus into their heart, their lives began to be be restored to wholeness. Was it the same life as before? No! It was a BETTER life...

 Here in Montgomery, I have been working with a woman whose whole life(husband, possessions,etc)was taken away in a flash because of someone else's wrong choices. She is being restored. Is  it the same life as before? No! It is a BETTER life. 

If God can bring back to David, his family and all his possessions that had been stolen, he can bring back what was "taken" from you!  

           I wonder what has been "taken" from you today?

  

 Here are a few verses to encourage you. They bring me HOPE!

Joel 2:25-26 ESV  "I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army, which I sent among you. “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame".

John 10:10 ESV "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly". 

Matthew 11:28 ESV "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest".

Running into Traffic and Becoming Road Kill

On the way to take Son#1  to school today, we had come to a 4 way stop and in the middle of the road was a baby squirrel who was frantically trying to decide what to do. He was so frightened he couldn't move. I stopped(and backed up school traffic-I am sure there were some explicatives in the cars behind me)and got out. Tried to shoe it to the curb and he jumped up on my pants and clung for dear life. I walked him over to the grassy yard let him go and ran back to the car before someone pulled out a pistol! (this is the south you know!)Got back in the car, drove on. Son#1 looked back and told me it was out in the road again..RATS! We rode on to school and I was determined to go back and get him to safety. After dropping Son#1 off I went back to the same spot and there he was still in the road being paralyzed with fear!  Before I could get to him, a bunch of teenagers in a souped up car ran over him flipping him over, but not killing him. They were hooping and hollering(they will be the sociopaths of tomorrow I am sure! That is a whole other blog post)as they drove off. I walked out into the street and he was dragging his injured leg in circles still frantic. I gently picked him up and he was chattering away, frightened and hurt. I laid him by a tree.By the time I got to the tree, he was dying. Probably internal injuries. I was sad for him. I just looked at him and said, " I tried to help you get out of harm's way and you went right back to the place that was harmful to you. I am sorry you didn't accept my help the first time". 

I got back in the car, very sad for him. Then it hit me.....is that the way God feels about us? We ask for help. He sends relief. We don't listen or accept it. We go back out to the danger. We get run over by whatever comes our way. We die physically OR emotionally.

IF that little squirrel had stayed on the grass, he would have been safe. He ran back to the same place of danger. Now he is dead.

 

There is a great proverb that says this: "He will die for lack of discipline, led astray by his own great folly". (Proverbs 5:23) 

When I got to my office this morning I read this:  "No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it". (Hebrews 12:11) 

Lord, help me to trust your guidance and the help that you send. You are my heavenly Father and today, I will trust in you! 

Legacies

This past year, I have taken an interest in my family's past. I have been working on finding out information on the Chilson side of my family and have met some great ancestors along the way! A few have been published, particularly, a fourth great grandfather named Rev. Amos Chesebrough. It is amazing what he has written on some important spiritual issues regarding being a disciple. I am reading some of his books and gleaning from his experience about what I need to be as a minister of the gospel! Because of the beauty of books, I have the privilege of reading his thoughts and learning from my past.

One such relative that he wrote about was William Chesebrough, who was one of the co-founders of Stonington, CT. When William came to America in the early 1600's, he took some bold steps of faith but what stood out to me was this description of him at his death: " And further, it needs only to be added that he was a man of decided Christian principle, and that wherever he planted himself, he was an earnest supporter of following Christ, worship and meeting together as Christians."

 As I have gotten older, I have been wondering what kind of legacy I will leave behind. So, 400 years from now, what will my ancestors be reading about me? It made me proud that a relative long ago, who took a HUGE step of faith would be remembered the way he was.

My hope is that my legacy will be one of service and dedication to my Lord. My prayer is that others will SEE my RELATIONSHIP with Christ and not just DUTY to Christ.

What about you? What will your legacy be 400 years from now?

The Bible has some thoughts on this too! 

Psalm 78:4 ESV

"We will not hide them from their children, but TELL to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders that he has done". 

Psalm 78:5-6 ESV 

"He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers to teach to their children, that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children".