O Lord of Grace
may you be
my arm to support
my strength to stand
my light to see
my feet to run
my shield to protect
my sword to repel
my sun to warm
my shelter to protect...
#ValleyofVision
when browsing the beautiful stores in even more beautiful Leipers Fork, in amazingly beautiful Tennessee on our heavenly beautiful Honeymoon... ( you get the drift.. it was out of this world..)
I stumbled across this little black book... looked like a little hymnal or something you would have found in a church a long time ago..
I picked it up, this little book called Valley of Vision, containing the prayers and contemplations of different Puritan pastors... and such a fountain of wisdom and deep devotion to God it is..
so when I read the one titled "God All-Sufficient".. the words I was reading gave me one of those wonderful "Aha" moments..
as a passionate Christian, all about serving Him, this has been my prayer so often....
let me be your feet, your hands, your smile, your words and your hugs to those around me.. despite myself, and let me in no way hinder what you want to do through me today.....
having just gone through an extremely tough time having to rely on God and wait on Him and trust Him in a big way, the "All-Sufficiency" of God took on a new meaning.. on a different, far deeper level than ever before.. kind of being on the other side of this trial, reading about His arm to support me standing, His feet actually the ones allowing me to walk at all, those prayers when serving all of a sudden took on a different meaning...
thinking this through it dawned on me... unless I have found myself totally wanting, lacking in all that's needed, unless I have experienced and acknowledged my total depravity and dependancy on God for anything good, those feet that most sincerely want to be His feet, are still my feet, those hands are still my hands... those smiles and hugs and words still mine..
I will still be doing even the things I know God wants me to do, the good things, the meaningful things, in my OWN strength... not in His.. all His.. but that's what I have always wanted.. to be His feet ...
so, once again it makes so much sense... the trials He allows.. to show us that we are not in control, that we need Him, that He is all powerful, that He is reliable, faithful.... all that changes us... we have a better understanding of ourselves, just how weak we are, that without Him we can't do anything, but with Him we can...
when we come to the end of our rope, totally aware of our helplessness, that's when His feet become ours, His hands become ours .. He takes over and accomplishes what we could never accomplish on our own, no matter how pure our motives..
so ... thank you Lord... thank you for showing me who I am, and most of all who you are...
thank you for never giving up on me.. thank you for using me in the past, despite my self reliance, my pride, my deceived and self-absorbed mind...
YOU ROCK!!!
