Category: Scripture

From the Holy Bible

Excited About What God Will Do Next

On By vickleaIn Scripture15 Comments

Okay, so I confess that lately I have been in what my grandmother used to call the mulligrubs. Yes, my friends, that is a real word and it means that I have been bad-tempered and grumpy. Most people who don’t know me well would not have noticed because I hide my feelings, but I am certain that my poor husband has felt the brunt of my dissatisfaction with life in general. Anyway, this morning started as most do, with morning meds, feeding the cat and then sitting down with a heating pad against my back while I start reading my devotionals and my Bible. Zing! Right between the eyes!

Well! This verse really spoke to my heart today! I have been in the mulligrubs since I found out two weeks ago that once again I have to give up foods that I enjoy because of a health condition. This time, I have to eat only low potassium foods and believe me, from one who reads labels constantly, that is no easy thing. Gone…all of the canned soups that I enjoy, even the low sodium ones that I have eaten since my stroke. Gone…the clementines that I had daily just because I like their sweetness. Gone…all tomato products, including tomato sauce and catsup. And gone…milk chocolate! You get the idea. I was feeling bad for me. Poor me! I have a kidney that is not cooperating and as a result, if I want to continue to live (which at points during the last two weeks I was not sure I did, to be honest), I have to follow these new restrictions. I’m sure that God has tired of my whining, and in His grace and mercy He spoke to me this morning with this verse.

I may not get to enjoy certain foods, but God is still right there with me. God is carrying me through this current valley and one day I will be delivered from it. I personally think that day will come when He carries me to Heaven to be with Him eternally, but the Scriptures don’t really say. I just needed the hope that comes from believing that all in my life may change, but God does not. You would think that after almost five decades of walking with Him I would have already known this. In my heart of hearts, I’m sure I have known it, but I needed a reminder, a gentle push in the right direction, if you will.

This was an eye-opening verse for me. I wanted things to stay the same. After all, I had gotten used to my low sodium diet and was almost content with it. Then I was zapped with the new diet and the complaints began. Nothing tasted good or enticed me to eat much. But God tells me in His Word that He is doing a new thing. My wilderness right now is a new diet and I sincerely believe that God is going to create something good and new in this situation, like rivers in a desert. I don’t know how He is going to do it; I just know that He is because He loves me and wants me to know that He is right there with me, in my wilderness, taking care of me through this valley.

My question to you, my friends, is what wilderness are you in today that you need to trust God to supply water for you? In what way does God need to carry and deliver you? God supplies our needs: physically, spiritually and emotionally. I may not like where I am, but that is just what it is. Did the fact that my kidney function is going down surprise God? Of course not! Did He already know that I would need to change my dietary habits in many significant ways? I’m sure that He did, but He wasn’t at all bothered by it or by the fact that I have been in the mulligrubs. He has brought me out of the mulligrubs into a place of new thankfulness for His loving care and provision. As I eat my blueberry cheerios with almond milk today, I will be thankful that there are things that I can still eat. Perspective changes when God gets hold of you; instead of thinking of all that I can no longer eat or drink, I am thankful that I can eat or drink some things and that God has provided us with enough funds to buy those things.

“Desert Song” by Hillsong

May you each find your way through the wilderness to the place of rest in Him. God bless you!

God Is My Refuge

On By vickleaIn Scripture13 Comments

www.bible.com/1171/psa.62.1-2.mev

I had a rather rough day yesterday with some disturbing results on medical tests. Nothing terribly major for now. It’s just that my single kidney has lost more of its function, so now I am in stage three. My physician was not very forthcoming on what that means for me, but he did tell me to limit eating foods with potassium since my filtration system isn’t working well right now. That means limiting oranges, potatoes, tomatoes, melons and bananas. I was already on a limited diet because of my stroke (low sodium, low sugar), so this seemed like a heavy blow to me. I cried and mourned the loss of more things I enjoy, but God got hold of me and showed me that He is my refuge. He is my shelter. The absence of certain foods in my life should not totally shake me up. It’s just one more thing to deal with as I age with my numerous medical problems.

I am thankful to be alive. Do I wish that things were different? Of course! But there are worse things. Meanwhile, I am going to see my PCP and talk to her more about this Stage 3 thing and ask about a referral to a different nephrologist. This is the first time I had seen this doctor although I did have three virtual visits with him via the phone. On one of those calls, he decided that I should be taking a new blood pressure medicine. I filled the prescription and took it and the next morning, my BP was 80/40 and I was very dizzy. So, I called his office and he returned my call, telling me that if I could not tolerate that medication, I would need to see my cardiologist for advice about what to take. I did see my cardio and he changed my meds, telling me that the med the nephrologist had started me on often causes BP to suddenly drop. Hmm. So, after yesterday’s visit and his lack of communication, I’m ready for a change. I was asking questions and he was typing away on the desktop. Since being ignored was not helpful, I think that I should seek medical assistance elsewhere. But I am first and foremost depending on the Great Physician.

I did not sleep well last night. Insomnia has become a regular thing with me, and I usually get about five hours of sleep. Anyway, I awakened this morning with the Scripture that I am fearfully and wonderfully made. God made me, not the physicians. God is taking care of me, not the physicians. The doctors are God’s helpers on earth and some are better helpers than others. That being said, back to the verse above. God alone is my rock, the One on whom I can depend; He is my refuge, the shelter for me when my world seems to be shaking. Everything around me might shake, but God is still the same and He will not allow me to be shaken as long as I am trusting in Him.

I hope that I have not bored you too much with my medical status today. I also hope that you will remember me in your prayers, but mostly I pray for God’s blessing on you and your day. May you fulfill His purpose in your life!

Blessed to be a blessing!

Rejoicing

On By vickleaIn Scripture6 Comments

www.bible.com/111/hab.3.17-18.niv

As I read this verse today, I applied it to what is making me wring my hands in despair these days. Although the President does not make Godly decisions, although Congress is corrupt, although the Supreme Court is undependable, although my state government is liberal to the extreme, and although the pandemic is still around, I will rejoice. It is a choice! We choose to rejoice in our circumstances, giving the circumstances and the worries to God to deal with and rejoicing because God is still on the throne. The sun that He created still came up this morning. It’s a new day to rejoice in the Lord!

Be blessed with the knowledge that the earth is the Lord’s and He is in control!

God’s Law

On By vickleaIn Scripture7 Comments

www.bible.com/111/psa.19.7.niv

There are not many laws that I do not think are necessary, but the recent surfeit of legislation that is ungodly has had me upset and crying out to God. I don’t like that our nation is being turned into one that accepts abortion and the LGBTQ+ agenda. I am appalled that the American people are so easily led to believe and lie.

But then, I read this Scripture this morning and it calmed me. God’s law is always perfect. It’s always timely and meets the needs of all individuals in all situations. His statutes are trustworthy. We can trust that what God says is for our good, always. Finally, it is in studying God’s law that we become wise. Even the wisest men on earth cannot hold a candle to our God with His infinite wisdom and He shares His wisdom and love for us in His law.

Laws are not meant to shackle us or to ensnare us. They are meant to protect us from harm. So, man’s law? 😕 But God’s law? It is perfect and trustworthy, imparting wisdom to those of us who will study it. Good news! God is still on His throne!

Have a blessed day, my friends. Go out and make it a good one, looking for opportunities to help others and to show that you truly believe in a Higher Power and His laws.

Prayer for Family Members Who Are Distant

On By vickleaIn Scripture3 Comments

www.bible.com/1171/php.1.9-11.mev

So, yesterday was a good and hard day. Mother’s Day is generally a difficult day for me because my children are no longer at home. Of course, they aren’t! They grew up, spread their wings and flew away, just as they are supposed to do. But the fact that this is the natural order of things doesn’t keep me from missing them and my grandchildren. But I pray for them daily and in my devotional this morning, I had this perfect prayer for each child, grandchild and distant family member. I am sharing it with you so that you can pray for your loved ones to abound in love, knowledge and discernment. Don’t you just love that word “abound”? It is more than enough…flowing over. You can also join me in praying for our loved ones to be found blameless and pure in Christ and filled with the fruit of righteousness. What a prayer! Having prayed this prayer for each child and grandchild, naming them each individually, I feel closer to each of them and not so alone here. God has placed them in my heart, just as they are in His.

May God bless each of you with a good day filled with love for your family and for Him.

A Prayer for You

On By vickleaIn prayer, Scripture4 Comments

I used to sing a song in church with the children and I was reminded of it this morning in my devotional.

Deep and Wide

Now, I would like you to look carefully at this photo.

Photo from http://www.wallpapersafari.com

If you have ever been to the ocean, you know that you can’t see the end of it. Oceans actually seem to go on forever. That is how Jesus’s love for us is. It has no end. It is deeper than the deepest ocean, wider than the widest sea and longer than any body of water imaginable. We cannot put Jesus’s love for us in a box and then use it daily and say one day, “Well, I used it all. It’s all gone now.” That’s not how His love works. It’s like a fountain that continually flows from the throne of Heaven into our lives. Likewise, we have that fountain flowing in us to others. So deep and wide!

May God bless each of you today with a renewed understanding of just how much He loves you and desires you to spend time with Him getting filled up with His great love.