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| watercolor of the empty garden tomb in Jerusalem, Israel |
I love this story by Alexander Maclaren from the Streams in the Desert devotional...
Martin Luther was once found at a moment of peril and fear, when he had need to grasp unseen strength, sitting in an abstracted mood tracing on the table with his finger the words, “Vivit! Vivit!” (He Lives! He Lives!) It is our hope for ourselves and for His truth and for mankind. Men come and go; leaders, teachers, thinkers speak and work for a season, and then fall silent. He abides. They die, but He lives. They are lights kindled, and, therefore sooner or later quenched; but He is the true light from which they draw all their brightness, and He shines for evermore.
These two simple Latin words proclaim the Truth of the Gospel that changes everything about our everyday lives and our eternity--Because He Lives, we too, shall live...Pass It On!
Martin Luther was once found at a moment of peril and fear, when he had need to grasp unseen strength, sitting in an abstracted mood tracing on the table with his finger the words, “Vivit! Vivit!” (He Lives! He Lives!) It is our hope for ourselves and for His truth and for mankind. Men come and go; leaders, teachers, thinkers speak and work for a season, and then fall silent. He abides. They die, but He lives. They are lights kindled, and, therefore sooner or later quenched; but He is the true light from which they draw all their brightness, and He shines for evermore.
These two simple Latin words proclaim the Truth of the Gospel that changes everything about our everyday lives and our eternity--Because He Lives, we too, shall live...Pass It On!
When I was a senior in high school, our youth group performed the 1970’s folk musical “Tell It Like It Is.” It was such a spiritual milestone in my life, standing up for my faith before secular audiences, expressed so well in these lyrics to the song, Pass It On....
It only takes a spark to get a fire going...And soon all those around, can warm up in glowing...That’s how it is with God’s love...Once you’ve experienced it, you spread His love to everyone...You want to pass it on...What a wondrous time is spring,
when all the trees are budding...The birds begin to sing, the
flowers start their blooming...
That’s how it is with God’s love...Once you’ve experienced it, you
want to sing“It’s fresh like spring”;
You
want to pass it on...I wish for you my friend, this
happiness that I’ve found...You can depend on Him, it
matters not where you’re bound...I’ll shout it from the mountain
topI want the world to know;
the
Lord of love has come to meI want to pass it on.
The providence of God is like Hebrew words—it can be read only backwards, wrote Puritan John Flavel, referring to the fact that the Hebrew language is read backwards from our perspective–that is, right to left instead of left to right. A component of the Beth Moore Bible Study, “Believing God,” was to complete a timeline of our life in 10 year segments, asking God to reveal to us all the spiritual mile markers in our lives--broken places, hurts, disappointments, accomplishments, and joyful times--to help us see that God had been there all along. His grace is sufficient. To accomplish this task, I discovered a very helpful tool for a “Timeline Template” through Microsoft. It’s free, and it’s very easy to use, the text boxes expand to whatever size you need, and the arrows on the boxes can be moved to any location on the timeline. It really helped my memories come to the surface, and God has used it to encourage me in so many ways.
Looking back at spiritual mile markers in my life encourages me. Is this encouraging to you? Please feel free to leave a comment in the box below, I’d love to hear from you!
Day 18 of 31 days of encouragement...click here to see all the 31 days of encouragement!
Day 18 of 31 days of encouragement...click here to see all the 31 days of encouragement!
Beth, that song, it only takes a spark...planted seeds of love in our hearts, didn't it? Seeds we just had to plant in the hearts of others....how precious were those days of presenting such musicals to our churches....I can remember several, and they were just so very special.[spiritual markers, for sure ;) ]
ReplyDeleteI haven't done Beth Moore's study, but have certainly taken part in asking God to reveal to me all the spiritual mile markers in my lives--broken places, hurts, disappointments, accomplishments, and joyful times--to help us see that God had been there all along
Such healing~!
It's good to journal, and record . significant events and how God proved strong on our behalf...so that just like David did, we can encourage ourselves in remembering all God's goodness and mercy in troubled times.
I am so enjoying this series Beth, and God is encouraging me through what he is inspiring you to share.
Glad to know you~!
xxxxxxx
Thank you so much for your thoughtful, heart-felt comments, Mary! You so encourage me in my writing...so often I share my heart praying that God will use my words to encourage and inspire others. When you take time to write such insightful and caring comments, it is a confirmation to me from the Lord, and that is such a blessing, thank you!
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