Reflecting and Reaching

This morning my pastor talked about remembering the year that's past, seeing God's hand in it. I can do that, no problem.
He then challenged us (me) to place the future in God's hands rather than worrying about it myself. I say I do that, but do I? I'm not sure. I worry about a lot of things coming down the pike--health, money, stability--am I fully putting it in God's hands, or do I keep taking it back from him when he doesn't work as fast as I think he should?
Its funny, my daughter's pet rabbit is sitting in a box in my living room right now. No cage, no lid, and the sides of the box are fairly low. He doesn't realize how easily he could hop over the edge of his box and have the run of the house. But he just sits. And he seems content to be there...would we be able to catch him again if he figured out what he really possesses? My chains are gone, too, do I act like it, or do I just sit there like they're still there?

Is it possible?

Is it possible to be sad yet still have faith? To question God about his timing? To be just a little impatient with him?
I cling to him with my every molecule, yet I wonder what and how his plan is going to play out. How much longer do I have to wait to find this part out? Its been a long time to me, yet I know a thousand years are like a day to him, and I'll be long gone a thousand years from now...
Waiting...still...

Merry Christmas!

This struck me...

Humbled and Exalted (author unknown)

The maker of the universe
Came as a man, for man was cursed,
The claims of law, which He had made,
Unto the uttermost He paid.

His holy fingers made the bough
Which grew the thorns that crowned His brow.
The nails that pierced His hands were mined
In secret places He designed.

He made the forest from whence sprang
The tree on which His body hanged.
He died upon a cross of wood,
Yet made the hill on which it stood.

The spear which spilled His precious blood
Was tempered in the fires of God.
The grave in which His form was laid
Was hewn from rocks His hands had made.

The throne on which He now appears
Was His from everlasting years,
But a new glory crowns His brow
And every knee to Him shall bow.

Being met at the Corners

Following is a devotional I receive via email each day...it spoke to my heart, I pray it does yours, too.

Psalm 59:1-10
Deliver me from my enemies, O God;
protect me from those who rise up against me.
Deliver me from evildoers
and save me from bloodthirsty men.
See how they lie in wait for me!
Fierce men conspire against me
for no offense or sin of mine, O LORD.
I have done no wrong, yet they are ready to attack me.
Arise to help me; look on my plight!
O LORD God Almighty, the God of Israel, rouse yourself to punish all the nations; show no mercy to wicked traitors.
Selah
They return at evening,
snarling like dogs,
and prowl about the city.
See what they spew from their mouths--
they spew out swords from their lips,
and they say, "Who can hear us?"
But you, O LORD, laugh at them;
you scoff at all those nations.
O my Strength, I watch for you;
you, O God, are my fortress, my loving God.
God will go before me
and will let me gloat over those who slander me.

(NIV)

God Meets Us at the Corner
by Lou Lotz

My God in his steadfast love will meet me. (v. 10)

Have you ever thought of life as a succession of corners? Not for long do we go in a straight line in life. Rather, things happen that take us in a completely different direction -- we turn a corner. When you get pregnant, you turn a corner. When you become a parent, you turn a corner. The death of a spouse is a corner. Getting a new job.
Moving to a new house, a new neighborhood. Getting married -- now there's a big corner. Graduating from school. The death of a parent.
There are a lot of corners in life, and you never really know what's waiting for you around the corner.

In the King James Version, Psalm 59:10 reads: "The God of my mercy shall prevent me . . ." The Elizabethan word prevent means "to go ahead of, to go before." The NRSV says: "My God in his steadfast love will meet me." I like that. Whatever corner we come to, God meets us there.

You're coming to a corner. Can you see it up ahead? All this time you've been going in a certain direction, but now comes the corner, and things will be different. Your life is about to take a turn. Hang on. We don't know what awaits us around the next corner. But we know who awaits us.


Lord, meet me at the corner.

Today's Words of HOPE daily meditation is available on the web at http://www.woh.org/devo/

Being Gripped

I was just thinking about the title of my blog, "In His Grip."
What a comfort those words are to me! To know that nothing that happens to me is unknown to my heavenly father. To know that nothing that happens to me is without a purpose for my own good. To know that I can do nothing to wriggle out of his grasp. To know that I can question with confidence and know that though my world seems shaken Jesus will never let me go.

I am not my own, but belong, body and soul, in life and in death to my faithful savior Jesus Christ.
He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood, and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil. He also watches over me that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my father in heaven. In fact, all things work together for my salvation.
Because I belong to him, Christ by his Holy Spirit, assures me of eternal life and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him.

God is good--all the time.

Long time, no postings

Suffice it to say that its been an interesting couple of weeks, and I haven't had time to or felt like posting anything. Sorry if you've been checking and not seeing anything new. So here's something new...there's nothing new! Hee-hee!
Hope you're enjoying a Merry Christmastime and remembering WHY we even have this holiday in the first place!

A promise to cling to, today and always

For the Lord gives wisdom,
and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
He holds victory in store for the upright,
he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless,
for he guards the course of the just
and protects the way of his faithful ones.

Proverbs 2: 6-8

State Drill Team Competition

We spent about 24 hours at the State Drill Team Competition this past weekend, hope you can see the little lights in this video--this routine earned our girls 2nd place in their class!

The 2nd half of the video is the kick routine, which they were .375 points shy of a Division I rating...still did a great job!

The pom routine took a Division I rating, but I only took stills of it.

The biggest concern was the roads, which were thankfully not as bad as we'd anticipated. We were able to lay our heads on our own pillows at 3:00 Sunday morning. Slept through church at home, since I would've done that anyway had I gone...