A Blessing and an Opening

Hello Bloggers!  :-)  Once more I am writing for Chris as he travels home today. It has been a blessing for me to help out and I do pray that something I have written has blessed your heart and your life. Today we are reading Psalm 12. It is largely about how people misuse their tongues -- specifically by flattery, lying, boasting and deception. Please join us by posting your thoughts at the end. You can choose "Anynonymous" as your format and add your name if you wish to. It is so good to share!

Everone lies to his neighbor; their flattering lips speak with deception...

I will now arise, says the Lord. I will protect them ....

And the words of the Lord are flawless... [vv. 2, 5, 6]

God is angered by all the sins of the tongue He sees in our world today. He has promised that He will arise and protect from such people. We wait for the Lord to take vengeance because that is for Him to do, not for us. I am reminded of James 3 which has some great lessons on the tongue and how dangerous it is to misuse it. As God's children we must learn this hard lesson well, and then keep on learning it again! I know that is a battle of flesh against spirit that never ends. Everyday we should try our best to find a way to use our tongue to bring someone else closer to the Lord.

The blessing of life is something that should never be taken for granted. This morning my brother-in-law was released from the hospital in a large city nearby. I drove from our small town to pick him up and bring him back home. I have been praying recently for more opportunities to talk with him about spiritual subjects. He is a good man but has never been one to think about Christianity or serving God. There are few times when I am alone with him long enough to bring up the subject at all, but I have been looking for opportunities to talk about my salvation -- about faith and trust in Jesus, about God's  care for us everyday of our lives.

All went well on the way to the hospital and we were happily heading home. As we were driving along I was talking about what a tremendous blessing just an ordinary day of life is, especially after something like an operation or a prolonged illness. He has never been sick and works hard all the time. His own strength is something he really trusts in. But now he has some health problems and after an operation it was clear that he was more attuned to what I was saying than usual. We observed a beautiful sky and I said that the sunbeams streaming through the clouds remind me of God and our home in Heaven.

We came through a long tunnel and made a turn onto the 3-lane freeway. Picking up speed, I was thankful that at last we were out of the city traffic and well on the way home. Ahead of me in the right lane I saw a van pulling a very large boat. Otherwise, the road ahead was clear so I relaxed and continued to accelerate. Suddenly the boat began to sway back and forth. In an instant it swung suddenly to the left, sliding across the freeway and directly toward us! There was no time to think, I simply "put the pedal to the metal"and swung as far to the left as I could, missing the boat by a hair! There was a loud crash and I was sure we had been hit, but thankfully, whatever it was landed behind us. We were spared a terrible accident that could certainly have been fatal. The entire freeway behind us was shut down and many other cars were involved.

As we recovered ourselves, I looked at my brother. He was white and shaking. He said, "Boy, were we lucky!"Then, at that moment, I had the opportunity to speak of God's  care for his children. I said, "No, John, we were greatly blessed!" I prayed then and there, thanking God for sparing us and guiding us to safety. I told John that I had prayed to God before leaving to come and pick him up, asking for a safe journey and return home. Then for the first time John was open to such a discussion. He was also very thankful for our safety! We praised God several times as we drove on home. I can tell you for sure, coming home today was a tremendous and beautiful blessing!

It is very true that our troubles bring out the beauty of our peace! Health and happiness are so often taken for granted by God's people. We should constantly use our lips to speak words that help others see their blessings and in thankfulness come to Jesus too. The peace that passes understanding can only come through Christ as we live our lives in this perilous and sinful world.

May God bless you as you go about your life today...and may you always be a blessing to someone else. The Lord protect you and give you wisdom.

K.B.