Sorry for the delay in posting. Things are really crazy here. There hasn't been much progress on the flood damage due to the erratic showing up of some of the workers and the poor jobs they do once they show up. It is just overwhelming. It is hard to imagine but my rather cluttered house has reached new heights of clutter and we are all really at a loss for what to do next. Please pray for this situation - it is hard to continue to live this way - and we've been like this since the end of March.
I see Dr. Brooks again tomorrow - He is concerned that the hernia will recur, so he is having periodic check-ups to make sure everything is still in place. There is a 2" lump in my abdomen that he needs to look at - I am not sure what it is, and my imagination is of course coming up with all kinds of diagnoses of this lump. I have a CT scan on July 11th and I see Dr. Berkowitz on July 18th. I also have to see the naturopathic doctor about how the supplements are working.
This morning when I was praying, I really appreciated that Lord's throne in the heavens is a throne of grace. I can have boldness to come forward to this kind of throne.
The verses in Hebrews talk about this throne and the One who sits upon it:
Hebrews 4:15-16:
15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot be touched with the feeling of our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all respects like us, yet without sin.
16 Let us therefore come forward with boldness to the throne of grace that we may receive mercy and find grace for timely help.
Here are the wonderful footnotes from the Recovery Version Bible for throne of grace and mercy:
16-1 [throne of grace] Undoubtedly, the throne mentioned here is the throne of God, which is in heaven (Rev. 4:2). The throne of God is the throne of authority toward all the universe (Dan. 7:9; Rev. 5:1). But toward us, the believers, it becomes the throne of grace, signified by the propitiation place (the mercy seat) within the Holy of Holies (Exo. 25:17, 21). This throne is the throne of both God and the Lamb (Rev. 22:1). How can we come to the throne of God and the Lamb, Christ, in heaven while we still live on earth? The secret is our spirit, referred to in v. 12. The very Christ who is sitting on the throne in heaven (Rom. 8:34) is also now in us (Rom. 8:10), that is, in our spirit (2 Tim. 4:22), where the habitation of God is (Eph. 2:22). At Bethel, the house of God, the habitation of God, which is the gate of heaven, Christ is the ladder that joins earth to heaven and brings heaven to earth (Gen. 28:12-17; John 1:51). Since today our spirit is the place of God's habitation, it is now the gate of heaven, where Christ is the ladder that joins us, the people on earth, to heaven, and brings heaven to us. Hence, whenever we turn to our spirit, we enter through the gate of heaven and touch the throne of grace in heaven through Christ as the heavenly ladder.
16-2 [mercy] Both God's mercy and God's grace are the expression of His love. When we are in a pitiful condition, first God's mercy reaches us and brings us into a situation in which He is able to favor us with His grace. Luke 15:20-24 tells us that when the father saw the prodigal son returning, he had compassion on him. That was mercy, which expressed the father's love. Then the father clothed him with the best robe and fed him with the fattened calf. That was grace, which again manifested the father's love. God's mercy reaches farther and bridges the gap between us and God's grace.
God's mercy and grace are always available to us. However, we need to receive and find them by exercising our spirit to come to the throne of grace and contact our High Priest, who is touched with the feeling of all our weaknesses. By this word the writer of this book encouraged the wearied Hebrew believers to receive mercy and find grace for timely help, that they might be set upright (12:12).
The revelation I received was two fold - at least - that God's throne to us who believe is a throne of grace and that this throne of grace is accessible through my spirit which is God's habitation in me. Is this not so wonderful? In the midst of all the chaos in our environments, or in our thoughts or our emotions, we can exercise our spirit to come to the throne of grace to enjoy and fellowship with our wonderful High Priest who is touched with the feeling of all our weaknesses. What a mercy! That the Lord Jesus is not sitting on a throne of judgment for us today but a throne of grace and we can come to Him just as we are to get the supply of grace is too wonderful! Human language is just inadequate to express how marvelous this is.
This hymn is about our Wonderful High Priest:
1 Before the throne of God above
I have a strong, a perfect plea;
A great High Priest, whose Name is Love,
Who ever lives and pleads for me.
2 My name is graven on His hands,
My name is written on His heart;
I know that while with God He stands
No tongue can bid me thence depart.
3 When Satan tempts me to despair,
And tells me of the guilt within,
Upward I look, and see Him there
Who made an end of all my sin.
4 Because the sinless Savior died,
My sinful soul is counted free;
For God, the Just, is satisfied
To look on Him and pardon me.
5 Behold Him there, the risen Lamb!
My perfect, spotless Righteousness,
The great unchangeable I AM,
The King of glory and of grace.
6 One with Himself, I cannot die;
My soul is purchased by His blood;
My life is hid with Christ on high,
With Christ, my Savior and my God.
So dear ones, my prayer is that today will be filled with much enjoyment of accessing our Wonderful High Priest Jesus, Whose throne is a throne of grace! Praise Him.
Joanne
Monday, June 30, 2008
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Hi Everyone,
Sorry for the week off - our family went on a vacation together to Lewes, Delaware where Paul's family has a condominium. It doesn't really have reliable internet access so I wasn't able to post. It was the first time we'd been there in 6 years and probably the last time we will all get to be together due to everyone's schedules and life changes. It is a really nice place and close to the beach. I am so thankful that I was able to be there with my family. We even were able to attend my graduation at Drexel University - I was able to finish the course work in spite of so many obstacles and I am thankful to the Lord for allowing me to have such a great distraction from all the other "stuff". I am also thankful that He enabled me to use my brain cells, which I thought were really deteriorating. They were able to get a workout and be used!
I have significantly less pain today - only when I get in and out of bed, a car etc. and use those abdominal muscles to I feel any. I have a CT scan and blood work on July 11 and see Dr. Berkowitz on July 18. I am still taking those supplements but they have caused some digestive problems so please pray for the Lord's leading in this area. These supplements are very expensive so I don't know how long I will be able to take them, but they are strengthening my immune system, which is necessary. I am still trying to eat healthily but it is harder in the summer since due to the heat no one wants to eat soup.
The house is still torn apart on all 3 levels - it is quite difficult to move around, find things or relax much in this kind of atmosphere. It is a good thing that we can find refuge in a wonderful person, the Lord Jesus.
Hebrews 6:18-20
18 In order that by two unchangeable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we may have strong encouragement, we who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us,
19 Which we have as an anchor of the soul, both secure and firm and which enters within the veil,
20 Where the forerunner, Jesus, has entered for us, having become forever a High Priest according to the border of Melchisedec.
These verses are so wonderful - we have strong encouragement - we who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us - and that hope is an anchor to our soul and it is also within the veil where Jesus is! These verses are too marvelous.
Here is an excerpt from the Life Study of Hebrews, Message 30 about the refuge, the anchor and the forerunner:
How wonderful that we can flee for refuge! How wonderful that we can flee to our spirit where the Lord Jesus is!
Here is a wonderful hymn by Charles Wesley about all that we have in Christ. Here is a link to the tune, which is quite lovely:
1 Thou hidden source of calm repose,
Thou all-sufficient love divine;
My help and refuge from my foes,
Secure I am, if Thou art mine;
From sin and grief, from guilt and shame,
I hide me, Jesus, in Thy name.
2 Jesus, my All in all Thou art,
My rest in toil, mine ease in pain;
The med'cine of my broken heart;
In war, my peace; in loss, my gain;
My smile beneath the tyrant's frown;
In shame, my glory and my crown.
3 In want, my plentiful supply;
In weakness, mine almighty power;
In bonds, my perfect liberty;
My light in Satan's darkest hour;
In grief, my joy unspeakable;
My life in death; my Lord, my all.
So, in the midst of troubles, we can flee for refuge!
Praise Him.
Love you all,
Joanne
Sorry for the week off - our family went on a vacation together to Lewes, Delaware where Paul's family has a condominium. It doesn't really have reliable internet access so I wasn't able to post. It was the first time we'd been there in 6 years and probably the last time we will all get to be together due to everyone's schedules and life changes. It is a really nice place and close to the beach. I am so thankful that I was able to be there with my family. We even were able to attend my graduation at Drexel University - I was able to finish the course work in spite of so many obstacles and I am thankful to the Lord for allowing me to have such a great distraction from all the other "stuff". I am also thankful that He enabled me to use my brain cells, which I thought were really deteriorating. They were able to get a workout and be used!
I have significantly less pain today - only when I get in and out of bed, a car etc. and use those abdominal muscles to I feel any. I have a CT scan and blood work on July 11 and see Dr. Berkowitz on July 18. I am still taking those supplements but they have caused some digestive problems so please pray for the Lord's leading in this area. These supplements are very expensive so I don't know how long I will be able to take them, but they are strengthening my immune system, which is necessary. I am still trying to eat healthily but it is harder in the summer since due to the heat no one wants to eat soup.
The house is still torn apart on all 3 levels - it is quite difficult to move around, find things or relax much in this kind of atmosphere. It is a good thing that we can find refuge in a wonderful person, the Lord Jesus.
Hebrews 6:18-20
18 In order that by two unchangeable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we may have strong encouragement, we who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us,
19 Which we have as an anchor of the soul, both secure and firm and which enters within the veil,
20 Where the forerunner, Jesus, has entered for us, having become forever a High Priest according to the border of Melchisedec.
These verses are so wonderful - we have strong encouragement - we who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us - and that hope is an anchor to our soul and it is also within the veil where Jesus is! These verses are too marvelous.
Here is an excerpt from the Life Study of Hebrews, Message 30 about the refuge, the anchor and the forerunner:
I. THE REFUGE
Verse 18 speaks of having “fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us.” Have you ever heard that the New Testament tells us to flee into a refuge? The Greek word translated “have fled for refuge” means to flee intensively; it refers to an intensified fleeing. The Greek word does not have the meaning of refuge. The simple English equivalent is “fled.” The Greek word is the same word used in Acts 14:6, where we are told that the Apostle Paul fled the persecution in the city... From what are we fleeing? From everything other than Christ and the church life. We must flee from the world...and from ourselves. We must flee the department stores, the course of this age, religion, our old concepts, and every kind of tradition. We must flee anything that keeps us away and holds us back from Christ. I have consulted a number of translations of this verse. Some versions say, “fled the world.” We must flee our old position, ambition, and self-love. We must flee everything. The writer of this book undoubtedly wanted the Hebrew believers to flee Judaism, their old religion. It would have been dangerous for them to remain in it; they had to flee. The Greek word for flee implies fleeing to a safeguard. This is the reason the translators added the words “for refuge.” The writer seemed to be saying, “Hebrew Christians, you are in a very dangerous situation and you need to flee to a safeguard.”
Where is this safeguard, this safety, into which we must flee? It is in the spirit, in the church, and in the heavenlies. What is there in the heavenlies? The Holy of Holies within the veil. The Hebrew Christians were in danger of being held back in the camp. They had to flee into the veil. The writer seemed to be saying, “Flee within the veil, into the Holy of Holies, into your spirit. Don’t stay in your staggering soul. Flee your wandering mind. Flee into your spirit where you can be safe.” Although it is difficult to say definitely what the refuge is, we may say that it is the heavenlies where the Lord Jesus is today.
II. THE ANCHOR
According to the context of 6:9-20, the writer, using the word “anchor,” pictures us all as being on a stormy sea. Since we are in a boat sailing on a stormy sea, we need an anchor. Undoubtedly, the safeguard into which we must flee is our haven. This haven is in our spirit, in the church life, and in the Holy of Holies in the heavenlies where the Lord Jesus is. If we would stay in this haven, we must have an anchor. The anchor is our hope (vv. 18-19) which is constituted with two unchangeable things—God’s promise and God’s oath (vv. 12-18). God’s promise is confirmed by His oath. God’s promise is God’s word, and God’s oath is His final confirmation. By God’s promise and oath, both of which are unchangeable, we have our faith and patience, issuing in our hope which is the anchor of our soul. Our hope, as a secure and firm anchor, has entered into the Holy of Holies within the veil and holds on to it, and we may now enter in spirit (10:19-20). By this anchor of hope we are held to the Holy of Holies. Without it, we may shipwreck (1 Tim. 1:19).
We must flee whatever situation we are in. Every situation is a stormy sea. Are you rich? Your riches are a stormy sea. Are you poor? Your poverty is a stormy sea. To say that every situation is a stormy sea simply means that it can hold you back, keeping you from entering into today’s rest. This is the danger. Consider the type of the children of Israel who came out of Egypt. Although maybe two million came out of Egypt, only two of them entered into the rest. All the others were distracted. Do we not face the same possibility today? There is not one thing which cannot hold us back... We are the fleers. We even must flee our own country and locality. The writer included himself in this matter of fleeing, for he used the word “we” in verse 18. After saying so many good things in the foregoing chapters, he concluded with the word “flee.”
III. THE FORERUNNER
The writer now tells us that Christ is not only the Captain of our salvation, but also our Forerunner. The Lord Jesus as the Forerunner took the lead to pass through the stormy sea and enter the heavenly haven to be the High Priest for us according to the order of Melchisedec. As such a Forerunner, He is the Captain of our salvation (2:10). As the Forerunner, He has cut the way to glory, and as the Captain, He has entered into glory, into the Holy of Holies within the veil. In order to enter into the Holy of Holies within the veil, the Lord Jesus fled everything. He fled His mother. He fled His brothers (Matt. 12:46-50). He fled Judaism and entered within the veil. Here we are not told that Jesus entered into the heavens, but that He entered “into that which is within the veil.” He entered into the presence of God. He fled everything to enter into the presence of God within the veil, where we anchor our hope with full assurance (vv. 19, 11).
How wonderful that we can flee for refuge! How wonderful that we can flee to our spirit where the Lord Jesus is!
Here is a wonderful hymn by Charles Wesley about all that we have in Christ. Here is a link to the tune, which is quite lovely:
1 Thou hidden source of calm repose,
Thou all-sufficient love divine;
My help and refuge from my foes,
Secure I am, if Thou art mine;
From sin and grief, from guilt and shame,
I hide me, Jesus, in Thy name.
2 Jesus, my All in all Thou art,
My rest in toil, mine ease in pain;
The med'cine of my broken heart;
In war, my peace; in loss, my gain;
My smile beneath the tyrant's frown;
In shame, my glory and my crown.
3 In want, my plentiful supply;
In weakness, mine almighty power;
In bonds, my perfect liberty;
My light in Satan's darkest hour;
In grief, my joy unspeakable;
My life in death; my Lord, my all.
So, in the midst of troubles, we can flee for refuge!
Praise Him.
Love you all,
Joanne
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
The 5 minute Doctor and the Lord
Hi dear ones,
I saw Dr. Brooks yesterday morning. He really is a 5 minute doctor. No session I have ever had with him is more than 5 minutes! He said that the hernia repair was still intact and that everything was perfect at this point. He is concerned about it not holding however, due to the fact that the tissue has been weakened by the chemotherapy. I need to continue to take it easy for another month and see him again July 1. So, as the Lord leads, please pray for the strengthening of that tissue so that the mesh will stay where it should and the hernia will not recur. I have been having a lot of pain this past week - perhaps I did too much (I couldn't resist cleaning the refrigerator on Sunday....really not a good idea). Dr. Brooks said the pain is not surprising because they had to suture across the abdominal wall and it will pull. I am quite tired from dealing with the pain and from all the stuff going on in the house. Please pray that the delays would lessen and the work would be done so that our house can be inhabitable and useful again.
After seeing Dr. Brooks today, for those brief moments, I was reminded that although the Lord upholds all things by the word of His power and is really the center and circumference of the entire universe, He has time for us. He encourages us to linger in His presence.
2 Corinthians 3:18 says:
18 But we all with unveiled face, beholding and reflecting like a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord Spirit.
I am reminded of the Lord when he visited with Abraham in Genesis 18. It is really a marvelous story:
Genesis 18:1-8
1 And Jehovah appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre as he was sitting at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day.
2 And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and there were three men standing opposite him. And when he saw them, he ran from the entrance of the tent to meet them. And he bowed down to the earth
3 And said, My Lord, if I have found favor in Your sight, please do not pass on from Your servant.
4 Please let a little water be fetched, and do wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree.
5 And let me fetch a morsel of bread that you may sustain yourselves. After that you may pass on, since you have come to your servant. So they said, Do as you have said.
6 And Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah and said, Quickly prepare three measures of fine flour, knead it, and make cakes.
7 And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to the servant, and he hurried to prepare it.
8 And he took curds and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and set them before them; and he stood by them under the tree while they ate.
Here is a portion from the Life Study of Genesis, #50.
It is so marvelous that the Lord took the time to have a meal with Abraham and converse with him about the things that were very much of concern to Abraham. The Lord took the time. I’m so glad He’s not a 5 minute God! He enjoys fellowshipping with us, spending time with us. Praise Him.
I thought of the first verse and chorus of an old favorite: Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus:
O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There's light for a look at the Savior,
And life more abundant and free.
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.
Spend some time today looking full in His wonderful face - even 5 minutes or more. He’s available to all who call on Him.
Much love,
Joanne
I saw Dr. Brooks yesterday morning. He really is a 5 minute doctor. No session I have ever had with him is more than 5 minutes! He said that the hernia repair was still intact and that everything was perfect at this point. He is concerned about it not holding however, due to the fact that the tissue has been weakened by the chemotherapy. I need to continue to take it easy for another month and see him again July 1. So, as the Lord leads, please pray for the strengthening of that tissue so that the mesh will stay where it should and the hernia will not recur. I have been having a lot of pain this past week - perhaps I did too much (I couldn't resist cleaning the refrigerator on Sunday....really not a good idea). Dr. Brooks said the pain is not surprising because they had to suture across the abdominal wall and it will pull. I am quite tired from dealing with the pain and from all the stuff going on in the house. Please pray that the delays would lessen and the work would be done so that our house can be inhabitable and useful again.
After seeing Dr. Brooks today, for those brief moments, I was reminded that although the Lord upholds all things by the word of His power and is really the center and circumference of the entire universe, He has time for us. He encourages us to linger in His presence.
2 Corinthians 3:18 says:
18 But we all with unveiled face, beholding and reflecting like a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord Spirit.
I am reminded of the Lord when he visited with Abraham in Genesis 18. It is really a marvelous story:
Genesis 18:1-8
1 And Jehovah appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre as he was sitting at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day.
2 And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and there were three men standing opposite him. And when he saw them, he ran from the entrance of the tent to meet them. And he bowed down to the earth
3 And said, My Lord, if I have found favor in Your sight, please do not pass on from Your servant.
4 Please let a little water be fetched, and do wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree.
5 And let me fetch a morsel of bread that you may sustain yourselves. After that you may pass on, since you have come to your servant. So they said, Do as you have said.
6 And Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah and said, Quickly prepare three measures of fine flour, knead it, and make cakes.
7 And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to the servant, and he hurried to prepare it.
8 And he took curds and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and set them before them; and he stood by them under the tree while they ate.
Here is a portion from the Life Study of Genesis, #50.
“God likes to appear to us in this way. He does not come in the form of God but in the form of man, without making any declaration that He is Jehovah God. God talked with Abraham as one man talks with another. Suddenly He asked Abraham, "Where is Sarah thy wife?" This might have shocked Abraham, and he might have thought, "This man knows my wife! How could He know her? Isn't he a stranger?" Then the Lord said, "I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life" (v. 10). Abraham might have said, "Who are you? You must be the very El-Shaddai who gave me the promise of Isaac's birth" (17:19, 21). Probably Abraham was still uncertain about this until God said, "Sarah thy wife shall have a son." Sarah laughed when she heard this. No human being could have known at that time that Sarah was laughing within, but the Lord said, "Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old?" (v. 13). At this juncture, the Lord clearly unveiled to Abraham that He was Jehovah God by saying, "Is anything too marvelous for the Lord [Jehovah]?" When Sarah denied laughing He said, "Nay; but thou didst laugh" (v. 15), indicating that He was the omniscient God, the One who knows everything, even what is in man's heart. At this time Abraham was clear that this man was the Almighty Jehovah, the very El-Shaddai. In like manner, the disciples of Jesus gradually came to know that the man Jesus was God.
We all need to experience God in this way. …Many times God comes to us while we are sitting at our tent door. Although we may be unprepared to worship God, we may see someone approaching and ask him to stay with us for a while. Eventually we learn that this One is God. Have you not had this kind of experience? …But God often visits us in a very normal way, in a way which is extraordinary as far as religion is concerned. I like the God who appeared to Abraham in the form of a mortal man at his tent door. Many sisters have the experience that while they are cooking in their kitchens or doing the laundry, the Lord comes to them in a very intimate, human way, and they have a pleasant time of sweet fellowship with the Lord, conversing with Him as with a friend. Many brothers have the same kind of experience. While they are working on their jobs or resting at home, the Lord comes to them as a dear friend, and they have an intimate conversation with the Lord. This is the experience of the Lord coming to visit us on our human level so that we can commune with Him as with an intimate friend.”
It is so marvelous that the Lord took the time to have a meal with Abraham and converse with him about the things that were very much of concern to Abraham. The Lord took the time. I’m so glad He’s not a 5 minute God! He enjoys fellowshipping with us, spending time with us. Praise Him.
I thought of the first verse and chorus of an old favorite: Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus:
O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There's light for a look at the Savior,
And life more abundant and free.
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.
Spend some time today looking full in His wonderful face - even 5 minutes or more. He’s available to all who call on Him.
Much love,
Joanne
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