by Phyllis Ducey
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There are days my heart weighs so heavy I wonder how my body can carry it around. I listen… and people share. They share their heartaches: a cheating husband, an impending divorce, an abused child, money issues… oh so many money problems. Health issues: cancer, surgery, allergies, flu, autoimmune system problems, depression, chronic pain. Interpersonal problems: meddling parents, non-listening children, drug abuse, teenage pregnancies, alcohol addictions… the lists are endless. Oh my goodness, those are just the tip of the ice berg. I have not even touched on the world issues such as hunger, diseases, natural disasters, man-created disasters….
Have you ever been so overwhelmed you could not even pray? What is the use? The world just keeps going and gets worst by the day. What can my little prayer do? Why would God even listen to me? Is He a God who interacts with us or is He just the great chess player in the sky?
How do I reconcile all these questions, doubts and concerns in order that I can continue to function and have peace, even joy in life? I may not have answers and may have more questions than I have paper but I have peace. The peace comes from the Lord. It comes from trust. In God’s word it tells us that he who is faithful in little things will receive much.
I found it worked that way with my relationship with the Lord too. As I began to acknowledge how God was being faithful to me in little things, in spite of my sins, I began to trust Him. I was not an instant truster (I don’t think that is a word but it works for me). I saw God answer prayers before I was convinced that I needed Him or really wanted Him in my life. I knew He was there but was not convinced He cared about me.
I walked into the house and told my sister we ought to call the hospital but did not tell her why. We called and it was confirmed my dad had just died moments before. This was such a strange event to me that I did not share it with anyone for years.
God was faithful to me even before I was faithful to Him. His comfort came before I asked for it. He is God, He does not need to prove Himself to me or anyone but He chooses to. Amazing, isn’t it? God chooses to reveal Himself personally to each of us.
The only times all those overwhelming burdens get to me is when I do not give them to Him. When it is all about me. Then I am “so weighed down” by it all that prayer seems useless. In reality, I am never “so weighed down” unless I choose to be. It is my choice. God has proven His faithfulness… it is I who need to accept the gifts He gives me… including the gift of peace – the peace that guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. The peace that He knows the end from the beginning and He is in control. God tells us to pray about everything and He will give us peace.
So I can give it all to Him in prayer and I pray because He tells me to… not because I feel like it but in obedience to Him. When I am obedient to Him, I am not weighed down. I find that joy. It infiltrates its way into my being... sometimes ever so subtlety, other times powerfully!
Here are some selections from our awesome CAST Team members. Please check them out and give them some hearts!
pfdoriginalartworks
There are days my heart weighs so heavy I wonder how my body can carry it around. I listen… and people share. They share their heartaches: a cheating husband, an impending divorce, an abused child, money issues… oh so many money problems. Health issues: cancer, surgery, allergies, flu, autoimmune system problems, depression, chronic pain. Interpersonal problems: meddling parents, non-listening children, drug abuse, teenage pregnancies, alcohol addictions… the lists are endless. Oh my goodness, those are just the tip of the ice berg. I have not even touched on the world issues such as hunger, diseases, natural disasters, man-created disasters….
Have you ever been so overwhelmed you could not even pray? What is the use? The world just keeps going and gets worst by the day. What can my little prayer do? Why would God even listen to me? Is He a God who interacts with us or is He just the great chess player in the sky?
How do I reconcile all these questions, doubts and concerns in order that I can continue to function and have peace, even joy in life? I may not have answers and may have more questions than I have paper but I have peace. The peace comes from the Lord. It comes from trust. In God’s word it tells us that he who is faithful in little things will receive much.
"Well done, good and faithful servant!
You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things."
You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things."
Matt 25:21
I found it worked that way with my relationship with the Lord too. As I began to acknowledge how God was being faithful to me in little things, in spite of my sins, I began to trust Him. I was not an instant truster (I don’t think that is a word but it works for me). I saw God answer prayers before I was convinced that I needed Him or really wanted Him in my life. I knew He was there but was not convinced He cared about me.
"What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God's faithfulness? Not at all!"
Romans 3:3,4
One night I was at my sister’s house in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and we got a call that my dad was in the hospital in Arkansas with a gall stone. We decided that we would travel down there (an 18 hour drive) after he came home from the hospital to help my mom with him. I thought it would be best for us to head home the next day which would put us 6 hours closer. I remember that night clearly, it was beautifully peaceful with crisp air, a bright moon and lots of stars. I was out in my sister’s back yard (40 + acres) loading the van praying for my dad halfheartedly (because I doubted God really cared about gall stones nor was I convinced He was listening) when I felt something like a gentle hand on my shoulder. At the same moment I heard or felt a voice telling me I did not have to pray anymore, everything was alright because my dad had just died. Somehow this all was very comforting and reassuring. Strange isn’t it, being told your dad died but everything was alright and finding that comforting? But it was.Romans 3:3,4
I walked into the house and told my sister we ought to call the hospital but did not tell her why. We called and it was confirmed my dad had just died moments before. This was such a strange event to me that I did not share it with anyone for years.
God was faithful to me even before I was faithful to Him. His comfort came before I asked for it. He is God, He does not need to prove Himself to me or anyone but He chooses to. Amazing, isn’t it? God chooses to reveal Himself personally to each of us.
"All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and no one knows who the Father is except the Son
and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him."
Luke 10:22
and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him."
Luke 10:22
Have you seen Him do this? Have you felt His hand on you? If not, maybe you are not looking because each day, I see Him repeat His faithfulness in some way, shape or form to me. It could be in something as simple as the smell of a lilac, in the hug of my grandchild or the beauty of a butterfly.
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
Phil 4:6,7
Phil 4:6,7
So I can give it all to Him in prayer and I pray because He tells me to… not because I feel like it but in obedience to Him. When I am obedient to Him, I am not weighed down. I find that joy. It infiltrates its way into my being... sometimes ever so subtlety, other times powerfully!
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Here are some selections from our awesome CAST Team members. Please check them out and give them some hearts!
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