If I am being honest, most days I feel rather inadequate as I share my thoughts with you about the authority of God, the love and sacrificial nature of Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit  in our Christian life.  My thoughts are often incomplete, I don't elaborate well on key points and concepts and most of the time the stuff that I am talking about only makes sense to me and my very warped and limited understanding of God and how that plays out in the lives of the believers.  Most would say that I have made agreements with the enemy; that he has me right where he wants me and in making such agreements, I am limiting my potential to walk in the fullness of that which God has for me.  While there may be a certain amount of truth to that, what I do know for sure is that Christ has redeemed me from my sinful nature and my faith in Him has created a new life within me.  A very big part of that new life is the empathy that I feel for those whom I walk with....

In Isaiah 29, we read about the Woes that will transpire in David's city of Ariel.  Once again, history is repeating itself and mens hearts have become hardened to the glory and full authority of God as they have leaned upon their own wisdom, own strength and own understanding of life.  In short, the people have begun to see things only as they would see them and have rejected the truth and the glory of Him who created them (v 14-16).  But God, the Almighty, the Alpha and the Omega, responds as such...

"In a very short time, will not Lebanon be turned into a fertile field and the fertile field seem like a forest?  In that day the deaf will hear the words of the scroll, and out of gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see." (Isaiah 29:17-18)

I love God's response: out of gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see.  What a great picture and what an incredible promise for those of us who earnestly seek the Lord but sometimes feel as if things are not as we thought that they would be.  You see, after it is all said and done, God is still God and He is the one who restores our sight in the midst of a fallen world so that our focus may not be on what is seen, but rather, on what is unseen.  During those times, even if only for a moment, we get a glimpse of "reality" and not this mirage which has been pulled over our eyes and feed to us as the truth.  During those times, God is glorified...

It is my belief that my wife Marcy is being molded by God right now as she has literally turned away from most of the things of the world which provided her comfort and peace and is learning to trust in God.  This process has not been an easy process for her and in her desperation, she is being attacked by the enemy.  But during this time, however, I have been able to witness the work that God is doing in her and where He is leading her.  It is a glorious thing to be sure, and I am honored to bear witness to this transformation, but it has also been a tough thing for me to watch.  On one hand, I see the authority, love and power of God working in the life of my wife and on the other hand, I am watching my wife struggle in and with unfamiliar territory and feel quite helpless and powerless.  I want very desperately to fight for my wife but the question that keeps coming to me is "Who am I really fighting with?"  The attacks by the enemy are easy to see and those battles, I can handle.  But the struggles, how do I battle that?  I could fix her present circumstances and ease her suffering, but in the end, what I have really accomplished?  And at what cost...

Angel, I love you and although I understand your struggles and confusion, God really is present and He is working all things out for you as you are now, and always have been, a special child of God and are important to Him.  I wish that I could help you see it right now and that I could give you a very clear picture of what "that" will look like so that you may find strength and comfort in that knowledge.  For now, however, I give you the Scripture from above with the reassurance that God is still God, He loves you and He will lead you out of the gloom and darkness into a place of understanding so that your "blind" eyes can see.  Until then, I will continue to walk with you, love you and support you to the best of my ability.

My love forever,

Jim