Hope in the midst

Dave is out for the night at a board meeting and I find myself sitting here reflecting on the events of the last week and the things that I have been experiencing and I can not help but share. This may be too much information for some and may seem "preachy" to those that are not religious, but here is an honest reflection from Shelby Knight should you decide to read it. For once, no pictures included.

I have gone to the depths of my soul and back this week. Starting with a minor conversation with a doctor to a blog I read yesterday (about someone I knew from high school who's wife and unborn child were killed in a car accident- Click here to read his blog) to conversations about struggling marriages. I have felt for lack of a better word, discouraged. I have had numerous conversations some of which made me feel better, some of which made me feel worse, some of which challenged me and some of which brought me hope. Over all, nothing brought me more hope or encouragement then that of what God gave me this morning in worship and this afternoon as I spent time reflecting and praying. I can not say as if this has happened in a while, but I felt like God spoke to me and said, "TRUST ME...I am the Lord...I am the Lamb".

I started this Bible study at Christian Assembly(a local church) with a friend of mine and we are studying the story of Moses. It seems hard to find hope in the part where the plagues killed all the firstborn sons of the Egyptians and the Passover. But this story is one that shows that God brings things together for glory and ultimately it is the story of hope and a foreshadowing of the redemption that Christ would bring. Crazy! I may not understand why things happen, but He does. Jesus endured the most undeserved suffering in the world. That isn't fair, but he did it and that is what sets Him apart from the other gods. It didn't seem right that these firstborns had to die and God let them, but as I read further into the story He rescues those that want to be rescued by passing over them. They had to make a demonstration of their faith by putting the blood of a specific lamb on their door. This was a substitute for the judgement they would have faced if they decided not to do what Moses had said. They had to "trust"! It must have been scary!

I feel like right now I have to trust Him and it is scary. I don't know how things will turn out for our birth, for our baby girl, for Tyler, for friends who are ill, for people who are hurting, for marriages ending, for the father who lost his wife and newborn daughter, for the weight of the world, but I can trust God with the moments in my day. I can trust that He is the Lamb and will rescue me someday. In the mean time, I will rest in His glory and trust Him! I will not let anything pull me down or let satan beat me up anymore. Good bye fear and discouragement!

In the mean time I will sing one of my most recent favorites:

Hallelujah We Will Sing (click to listen to this song)

On that white horse he'll ride
With blazing eyes of fire
He'll judge and make things right
Turn all the dark to light
When he'll split the eastern sky
With heaven's wings I'll fly
And I will say good-bye
To these tears I've cried

Around his throne of grace
We'll see him face to face
With those who've gone before
Oh We'll be apart no more
And we will hear that sound
As all are gathered round
Like hills of thunder loud
We will shout

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Salvation and Glory and Power
Belong to our King
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, we will sing

Our King of king's we'll see
Faithful and true is He
Our faith at last insight
No more fears and doubts to fight
In heaven's choir we'll be
With robes of majesty
From sin and death now free
We will sing

What a day that will be
When all darkness final flees
When all bow and sing to the King
What a day that will be
When his glory we will see
When all bow and sing to the King

WE WILL SHOUT
WE WILL SING
WE WILL SHOUT
WE WILL SING
WE WILL SHOUT
WE WILL SING
TO THE LAMB
TO THE LORD
TO OUR GOD
TO THE KING