Claire's Prayer

1 John 4:19. Says; “𝙒𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙃𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙪𝙨.” Beautiful words. Words that breath refreshing and life into any weary soul. “𝗛𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁.” In this sweet and simple verse we hear the Father declaring His love for us, right from the beginning of time. A shout through the ages from creation to kings, from wars to prophets, down to the birth of His Son. “𝑰 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕!”

Our wonderful Heavenly Father is the initiator and we are the responder. “𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚𝙣 𝙢𝙚, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙄 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪.” John 15:16. He chose us, we didn’t choose Him. So often we tell the story of how we chose God, when the reality is, He chose you! He chose you way back when you were formed in your mother’s womb and your days were written in His book. God is the initiator we are the responder.

We don’t give, in order to move God to give us more! We give because He has already given, a thousand blessings, an abundance of miracles, the assurance of salvation. He gave first. Our response is to give back out of gratefulness and thankfulness for His generous love. We don’t praise Him to experience His presence. We praise our Savior as a response to His majesty, as a response to His greatness, His mercy and His grace. Creation responding to the Creator! God is the initiator, we are the responder.

Our motivation to give, to love, and to praise is a response to the Great I am loving us first. He gives in abundance, He never leaves us or forsakes us! You cannot read your bible long enough, pray enough, or do enough good works to make Him love you more. He loved you first, with a perfect love, a love that knows no bounds, to which there is no end. Should we not fling our arms to heaven and declare our love for Him when we know the depths of His love. Our response should be written into every detail of our lives, in our giving, in our doing, in our praising and in our living. “𝙒𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙃𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙪𝙨.”

Report cards!  The sound of those two words still fills me with dread.  Knowing that when my Dad saw those grades there would be big trouble!  The days of skipping classes and not doing my homework were recorded on a page that my Father held in his hand.  My sin had found me out!  For days I would be sick with fear, dreading the punishment I knew would follow.  The wooden spoon was not just for stirring soup in our house!

1 John 4:18 says this: “There is no fear in love.  But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment.  The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”  Jesus’ perfect love drives out fear, the nightmare of punishment, the thoughts that take root in your head, their ugly tentacles wrapping themselves around your mind.  “God is going to punish me for this, the Father is going to discipline me for that,” and the fear of retribution rises and tastes bitter on your tongue.

“Perfect love drives out fear!”  The one who paid it all, loves you so completely that He has already taken your punishment.  Take heart, rest in His perfect love for you.  God is not a god sitting angrily on His throne waiting to shell out retribution the moment you put a foot out of line.  In fact, He already knows you will fall, you will sin, and you will stumble.  But, in His great mercy, in His great love, He sent Jesus to pay the price, to take that sin to the cross, for you.

When our wonderful, Abba Father gets your Report Card, all He sees are A-pluses, well done, and great work!  Washed by the blood of a Savior, all the bad marks redeemed by the perfect love of our Jesus. We need not live in fear.  The love of Jesus cleanses, purifies, makes us holy, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish.  He puts a fine robe upon your back and a ring on your finger.  He is the lifter of your head, He is the one who gives your confidence, boldness to stand before your Father.  Made perfect in His love.

It’s a funny thing. So often the way we see something is not the same way others see it at all. In 2013, Dove launched a fascinating experiment called “Real Beauty Sketches.” They asked a forensic artist to draw a portrait of a woman as she described herself and then asked a stranger to describe the same woman to the artist while he did a 2nd portrait. The results were startling, each time the 2nd portrait described by the stranger was much more flattering and closer to reality than the one where the woman described herself. Dove had proved their point; you are more beautiful than you think!

What if you could sit down and describe yourself and then our wonderful Abba Father would describe how He thinks about you. What would He say? What would His perspective be? You see, Almighty God sees you through the blood of Jesus. He looks at you and says you are without spot or blemish, totally beautiful in His sight. He thinks you are valuable, more valuable than the sparrows (Matt 10:31), He knows you are fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14) He sees You as a new creation, free and not condemned! (2 Cor 5:17, Romans 8:1). And you are loved, Oh so loved, unconditionally! (Is 54:10)

What would life be like if we could have a change in perspective and begin to see things from the Father’s point of view? Would we be less defensive, more willing to love on others, confident, and perhaps even brave? Today I pray that the LORD would give me His perspective, that I would see things from His point of view, and I pray the same for you – 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒅, 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒗𝒂𝒍𝒖𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒇𝒖𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌!

January 2024! When I say that out loud it doesn’t seem possible that we could be in 2024 already! Along with a new year comes new visions, resolutions, a brand-new page to be written upon. It’s a time to sit and ponder about what 2024 will bring, a time of hope for the future. We want to do better, be thinner, get fitter, save more, love more. A desire for change is birthed every New Year’s morning!

As I sat and considered my own life a study came across my desk, it is called The Power of 4 Effect. The Center for Bible Engagement surveyed over 400,000 people around their world and their findings were astounding. If you are not reading your Bible four times a week, then your life is statistically the same as that of a non-believer! Your life will not change in any significant way than that of one who never reads His Word! This survey also discovered if you are in God’s Word four times a week, you are 30% less likely to be lonely, 59% less likely to view pornography, 228% more likely to share your faith and 407% more likely to memorize Scripture! Those are some mind-blowing stats!

John 8:31-32 says this; “Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” If you tarry and remain in the Word of God, then you will know the truth! Not only that, His Word will set you free and deliver you from bondage! What a beautiful promise, a promise of change and freedom.

As the sun rises over 2024 may I encourage you that if you make any resolution, make it one of being in the Word of God. He will change you, remold you, and set you free. You will be a radically different person by the end of this year. Not only that but when those hard times come you will have something to stand on, God’s Word hidden in your heart! 

For ten long days, the disciples sat in the Upper Room waiting on a promise from the LORD.  “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.”  They did not know what it would look like, how it would sound, or even when it would come, only that it would!  So, they waited, they trusted, they prayed, united in a promise from their beloved Saviour.  Waiting.  Not something I do well.  Waiting and trusting that the Holy Spirit would come.

Acts 2:1 says; “When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.”  Pentecost was a day of great celebration for the Jewish nation – a day when the first fruits of the wheat harvest were offered up to God, it was the Feast of Shavuot.  The holy city of Jerusalem was jam-packed to the brim with God’s chosen people.   In the middle of all the hustle and bustle, a group prayed, a group waited – trusting in Jesus for the gift of the Holy Spirit.

What happened next was absolutely revolutionary, changing the world as they knew it forever.  It was incredible, unprecedented, and something totally brand new;  “and suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a mighty, rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.  Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them.”  This was a gift given to them straight from The Great I Am himself!  I have so many questions about that day.  How loud was the wind?  What did it feel like to have tongues of fire settling upon you?  Were they all afraid?  Did they remain standing in the presence of the Holy Spirit or did they drop to their knees in worship?  Was it totally weird to speak in a language you had never known before?

Acts goes on to tell us; “those who gladly received his word were baptized, and that day about three thousand souls were added to them.”  Three thousand souls!  That’s a lot of people!

Did I say earlier that this was unprecedented?  Well, mostly unprecedented!  God was indeed doing something new and totally miraculous!  But, way back in the book of Exodus, we see the shadow of something else quite revolutionary.

Another Pentecost day.  The Jewish nation had fled from Egypt and after forty days they reached the base of Mount Sanai.  The Great I Am descended upon the mountain in fire and smoke and the whole mountain quaked greatly!  There was a blast of a trumpet that grew louder and louder and the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain.  Moses spent many days upon the mountain with the LORD, coming down about 10 days later – on the day of Pentecost!

How terrifying and absolutely thrilling it must have been, thunderings, lightning flashes, trumpets, and smoke!  During the time Moses was on the mountain, God gave His covenant to him, written by the very finger of God on tablets of stone!  But here, way back in the time of the exodus, the people of God did not wait for the promise of God.  Their impatience caused them to sin and when Moses came down the mountain with the Covenant of God in his hands the Israelites had already turned to idolatry!

Exodus 32:28 tells us; “so the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses.  And about three thousand men of the people fell that day.”  Three thousand men fell that day!

How fascinating the parallels! At Pentecost in the time of Exodus, God gave His law to the newly free Israelites.  His commandments, engraved in stone, a gift to His chosen ones.  Amidst thunder, trumpets, smoke, and lightning, the covenant of God was given to God’s people.  Ironically, three thousand people died that day.  At Pentecost in the time of Acts, the people of God waited for the promise of God.  Amidst fire and the sound of a rushing wind, the Holy Spirit was given to the newly free people of God.  So great was the infilling of the Holy Spirit that about three thousand souls were added to them that day!  The day our Father gave His new covenant to His chosen people!

St. Augustine said this, “Here is a great and wondrous mystery, brethren: if you observe closely, on the day of Pentecost the Jews received the law written by the finger of God and on the same day of Pentecost the Spirit came.”  The Holy Spirit is the sign of the New Covenant given to us from the heart of God.

You see, it is all in the waiting, back in the time of the exodus, back in the Upper Room, and it is still in the waiting even now.  Waiting for the promise!  Waiting to receive power from on high!  Waiting!  Will we wait on God during these days leading to Pentecost or will be consumed by all the many distractions.  All the idols that beckon to us, Netflix, TV, new projects, more work, another Zoom call?  Join us in the virtual Upper Room as we wait on the Lord, as we cry out for healing across the nations, as we believe for an unprecedented harvest?  Then when Pentecost comes, we can mount up with the wings of eagles, run and not grow weary, walk and not faint.  What a wonder it is to realize that God had everything planned from the very beginning of time!  So many tiny details went into Almighty God’s strategy, this plan to be in a beautiful covenant with the people God chose and the people God loves!  A covenant to see you set free, restored, and empowered!  What an incredible God we serve, a God with intricate plans for your life!

I like clear directions, distinctive, and well-defined. A GPS versus instead of a vague turn right by the blue house or go north at the end of the road. You could say I like to hear; loud and clear! There are times in the Word of God when God’s people hear that audible voice of the Great I Am, but more often it is that ‘still, small voice.” Take Elijah for example; “After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.” (1 Kings 19:12)

As Elijah rested in a cave at the top of Mount Horeb an incredibly powerful wind tore through the mountain, ripping apart the rocks. Then a fierce earthquake shook the mountain and finally a burning fire, but the LORD was not in any of these significant events! Finally, a small, gentle whisper breathed into the air, in Hebrew, ‘the sound of thin silence!” A quiet voice, a powerful whisper!

You see, so often a loud shout or yell can frighten us or make us nervous, but a soft, gentle whisper is the sound of soothing calm, quiet serenity. Absolutely, a loud noise can certainly get your attention, but that whisper is the sound of closeness, of intimacy. If I would like my husband’s attention in the middle of a crowd, I may raise my voice, but at night, just before the lights are turned down low, in the closeness of our bed, I whisper – “I love you.”

When our loving Father takes the time to whisper in that still small voice; it means He is near! God’s desire is to be close to you and He wants you to draw near to Him and so He whispers! He speaks to you in that still small voice. In the secret place where it is simply the two of you, our LORD leans in and whispers gently! Draw close, draw near, and listen carefully, our Abba Father is in that still, small voice!

Silent Saturday

Silence.  A Holy Hush descended over the heavens and the earth.  Waiting.  Suspense hanging in the air like the ticking of a clock. 

It’s Saturday.  That in-between day.  A day of mourning.  A day of grief.  A day when the sun refused to shine.  A day of gloom, and shadows, and melancholy moments.  I like to imagine it is a day when it rained all day and the children couldn’t go out to play, but that might not have been the case.  This was a day of separation, when the eternal detached from the divine.  This was the day Jesus had been dreading.  Separation.  Estrangement from His Father, the one He had not been separated from since eternity began. 

I’m sure the Father’s heart was broken too, unable to be in communion with His only Son.  I remember when my daughter moved back to Canada, it felt as though my arm had been amputated.  I felt so lost without her.  No cellphones or FaceTime to be found here.  The pain within the Father must have been immense.

But dare I say it?  Within myself, I wonder if this was also a day of anticipation.  A day when heaven held its breath in hope and faith.  I can imagine our Abba Father and Holy Spirit sitting together, anticipating the next day.  Can you see the Holy Spirit saying to the Father, “I can’t wait to see their faces!!  They are going to be so surprised!” 

You see with anticipation comes expectancy.  They were expecting Jesus to rise.  It was a given.  It was promised that Jesus would fulfill the prophecy, just like He had fulfilled all the rest. 

Did the angels know?  I would think they did, the disciples had been told on the way to Jerusalem, but had they really heard or understood?  “On the third day He will be raised to life again.” Matthew 20:19. I would imagine heaven would have been a buzz, whispers of excitement in every corner.  “Jesus will be raised to life, just wait, and see!  The prophecy will be fulfilled.  Oh, isn’t this just so exciting!”

Anticipation, like faith and hope, expectancy and trust, the forerunners of a promise fulfilled.  As so many have quoted before me – Sunday’s Coming!  And Jesus will rise again, completing the picture, finishing the task set before Him, against all odds.  The Apostles Creed says it so well, “On the third day He rose again from the dead, ascended into Heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.”

And so, I ask myself, what is the level of anticipation in my barometer?  Not just for Sunday because we know that Jesus rose again, we celebrate this, He lives!  But am I anticipating His return?  Am I looking forward to that day that Jesus returns with expectancy, trusting that not only did Jesus rise just as the prophecies predicted but He will return for His bride?  Is there a longing in my heart to see the coming King?

Revelations 1:7 tells us this, ““Look, he is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him”; and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.” So shall it be! Amen.”  It is foretold, it is prophesied.  Jesus is coming again.  He will return and so we wait with anticipation and expectancy and cry with all the saints, “Come LORD Jesus, Come!”

He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly.” Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!”  Revelations 22:20,

“And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing.”  2 Timothy 4:6-8

Hundreds of years ago, right back at the time of the Exodus, the Jewish people were instructed to make sacrifices twice every day for the atonement of their sins.  God was very detailed about how the sacrifice was to be done; it was to be two male lambs without blemish and had to be done at a specific appointed time.  (Numbers 28:1-8) 

For 1400 years the tradition of killing a lamb twice a day continued, a lamb was chosen and led out at dawn.  At the 3^rd hour that lamb was sacrificed.  At the 6^th hour a second male lamb, spotless and without blemish was chosen and led out to the altar where it was given a drink from a golden cup and tied to the altar!  At the 9^th hour that second lamb was sacrificed, and the priest raised his shofar and blew it to signal to the people that there had been atonement for their sins. 

Now picture this – Good Friday.  Early in the morning.  In fact, it was at dawn when the first lamb was being chosen by the priest, at this very same time Jesus is standing before the Sanhedrin who condemned him to die.  At the third hour, they nailed my Saviour’s hands and feet to a cross and crucified him – the high priest killed the first sacrificial lamb at the third hour.  At the sixth hour, darkness covered the land, and the priest chose the 2^nd male lamb, without spot and blemish to be sacrificed for the people’s atonement. 

But get this, this is extraordinary.  “And at the ninth hour, Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which is translated as “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Mark 15:34) “And Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and breathed His last” (Mark 15:37)

At precisely the ninth hour the priest slaughtered the atonement lamb for the forgiveness of sins and raised his shofar to notify the people that they were forgiven.  At that very moment my Saviour, my Redeemer, the precious Lamb of God cried out “It is finished” “And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.” John 19:30.   IT IS FINISHED!!!  As the priest raised his shofar to tell the people they were forgiven the veil of the temple was torn in two!  IT IS FINISHED!!!  No more did we have to make the daily sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins, Jesus paid it all!

Do you think all these times are purely coincidences?  I think not!  It was all part of God’s perfectly orchestrated plan, planned for you from the beginning of time.  A plan to bring you back to Him, back to His heart, and Jesus Christ was the one who paid it all!

Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!  John 1:29

Isn’t it a mystery how you can read a passage of scripture dozens of times when all of a sudden a sentence will jump out at you as if highlighted, and you’ll wonder – “Why did I not see that before!”  This is the absolute miracle of the Word of God, it is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword!  The words etched on these pages are not dead, they are not passive or lifeless, but alive, endless, they have a power of their own!

While reading Luke 22, the story where Peter denied Jesus three times, I noticed a few details that I hadn’t seen before.  One small sentence containing eight little words!  “Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, “Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean.” But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are saying!”  Immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. And the LORD turned and looked at Peter.”

“And the LORD turned and looked at Peter!” The LORD was there!  Our Saviour heard each and every denial Peter made, one blow to His heart after another.  Jesus heard every defiant renunciation that fell from Peter’s lips.  How did I miss this, how did I miss the fact that Satan sifted him right in front of Jesus?!  Oh, how that must have stung, how personal and painful this particular rejection!  And from Peter too – the one who knew that Jesus was the Messiah!  The one on whom Christ promised to build His church.  But even more than that, this denial came from one of His closest friends!

The LORD turned and looked at Peter – a look of compassion, a look filled with love and a look of understanding.  It was this look that broke Peter causing him to weep bitterly, this look that finally brought Peter to the end of himself.  If Peter had not been completely broken, he could not have been completely transformed.  Wholly changed.  Peter’s transformation was so dramatic that he did indeed become the rock on which God’s church was built, bringing the gospel to the gentiles.  He died a martyr’s death being crucified upside down upon a cross. 

Of course, Jesus was there!  He always is.  He is always standing beside you, watching over you, taking care of you, looking upon you with a love that is simply never ending.  He is there in the good times and the hard ones.  He is there when you fail, when you stumble, flounder, or fall.  He sees the potential within you and believes wholeheartedly in you.  He knows that when you come to the end of yourself, then His story can begin in you.  The purposes and works that He has planned for you can begin and be established.  When you find yourself at the end of your rope, remember, Jesus is always there.  Where else would He be?!