Lean

"Who is this coming up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved?"- Song of Songs 8:5

Some one gained a good lesson from a Southern prayer meeting. A brother asked the Lord for various blessings--as you and I do, and thanked the Lord for many already received--as you and I do; but he closed with this unusual petition: "And, O Lord, support us! Yes support us Lord on every leanin' side!" Have you any leaning sides? This humble man's prayer pictures them in a new way and shows the Great Supporter in a new light also. He is always walking by the Christian, ready to extend His mighty arm and steady the weak one on "every leanin' side."

"Child of My love, lean hard,
And let Me feel the pressure of thy care;
I know thy burden, child. I shaped it;
Poised it in Mine Own hand; made no proportion
In its weight to thine unaided strength,
For even as I laid it on, I said,
'I shall be near, and while she leans on Me,
This burden shall be Mine, not hers;
So shall I keep My child within the circling arms
Of My Own love.'
Here lay it down, nor fear
To impose it on a shoulder which upholds the government of worlds.
Yet closer come: Thou art not near enough.
I would embrace thy care;
So I might feel My child reposing on My breast.
Thou lovest Me? I knew it.
Doubt not then;
But Loving Me, lean hard."

Excerpt from 'Streams in the Desert.'

Proverbs 3:5-6: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;  in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.

I Wouldn't Have Chosen This, But ...

If you love pain, raise your hand.

Disappointment? Rejection? Loss?

What! No takers? Yeah. Me neither.

No one likes to go through hard times, rough patches, or difficult circumstances. None of us would choose pain, suffering, rejection, or loss.

But ...

God is in the business of taking those things that we would never choose and turning them into something for our good. Here are some examples.

Joseph wouldn't have chosen to be sold into slavery by his brothers (Gen. 37). Or to be wrongfully accused and thrown into prison (Gen. 39). But ... God used it to feed a hungry nation (Gen. 41).

Daniel wouldn't have chosen to have his country taken over (Dan. 1:1) or to be forced to live in the palace of the invading king (Dan. 1:6–7). He wouldn't have chosen to be betrayed by his coworkers or to have to choose between his faith and his life (Dan. 6). I am sure that if Daniel was writing his own story, he wouldn't have picked to be thrown into a den of hungry lions (Dan. 6:16–18). But ... God used it to turn the heart of a pagan king and to show a nation God's power and mercy (Dan. 6:25–27).

Mary wouldn't have chosen the public humiliation of becoming pregnant out of wedlock. She wouldn't have picked to risk losing her fiancé either (Matt. 1). Later in life, she never would have chosen to watch her son die on a cross. But ... God used it to offer redemption to sinners, hope for the hopeless, home for the lost.

These stories aren't just stories. They are hard evidence that God means what He says when He promises He can redeem any disappointment, challenge, or difficult circumstance.

Romans 8:28 says, "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."

God's promise is that He is able to work all things—including hard things, painful things, sad things, uncomfortable things, and scary things—to our good.

This doesn't mean that God causes things to "teach us a lesson" or that we will always be able to see the purpose for a trial. It also doesn't mean that God is reactionary, waiting to see what happens and then scrambling to make something good out of it. Even when we can't understand why something is happening, God's promise is that we can rest in knowing that He is busy working so that the end result will be for our good.

I've seen this promise hold true in my life many times. For example:

I wouldn't have chosen for my parents to divorce. But ... God has used it to give me a passion for strengthening my own marriage and the marriages of those around me.

I wouldn't have chosen to have a baby with serious health problems in the womb. But ... God has used it to strengthen my faith in him and to allow me to minister to others with serious health scares.

I wouldn't have chosen to suffer with chronic headaches. But ... God has used it to increase my dependence on Him, to press me into prayer, and to remind me that when I am weak, He is very, very strong.

What about you? Are their circumstances in your life that you wouldn't have chosen? Have you seen God working them for your good?

Written by Erin Davis, http://www.liesyoungwomenbelieve.com/

Fearless

If that's the way you love 
you've got to learn so much  
If that's the way you say goodbye  
Then this is how it ends 
and I'm alright with it  
You're never gonna see me cry 
'cause I've cried
 
So go on,
go on and break my heart  
I'll be okay, 
there's nothing you can do to me  
That's ever gonna bury me
 
So go on, 
go on and leave, my love  
Out on the street, 
I'm fearless  
Better believe I'm fearless, 
fearless
 
If this is how it hurts
it couldn't get much worse  
If this is how it feels to fall  
Then that's the way it is, 
we live with what we miss  
We learn to build another wall 
till it falls
So go on, 
go on and break my heart
I'll be okay, 
there's nothing you can do to me  
That's ever gonna bury me
 
So go on,
go on and leave, my love  
Out on the street, 
I'm fearless  
Better believe I'm fearless, 
fearless
If it's between love and losing
And to never have known the feeling,
I'd still side with love
And if I end up lonely
at least I will be there knowing
I believe in love
Go on,
go on and break my heart
I'll be okay,
I'm fearless
Better believe I'm fearless,
fearless
Go on,
go on and break my heart
I'll be okay,
there's nothing you can do to me
That's ever gonna bury me
So go on,
go on and leave, my love
Out on the street,
I'm fearless
Better believe I'm fearless,
fearless
I'm fearless
So go on and leave, my love
Go on and leave, my love
Go on and leave, my love
Better believe I'm fearless,
fearless
Fearless,
fearless

Lyrics by Colbie Cailatt

Colbie Caillat - Fearless - Live Walmart Soundcheck