He Marches Forward

Who is this who is marching forward?
 Marching forward in royal robes, stained red?
Who is this who is marching forward?
Marching forward in greatness of strength?

"It is I," says the Lord.
"It is I, the Lord, who is mighty to save...
 It is I, dear one...it is I."

"I have trodden the winepress alone,
 I have trampled all your enemies, all your foes are under My feet.
 My robe reveals the victory."

"Your enemies, dear one, have been destroyed.
 Observe My scars, My wounds,
 My blood that was shed for your victory..."

"You are safe now...
 Safe from the proud oppressor,
Safe from the one who attempts to steal, kill and destroy."

"You have called...
 And I have marched forward.
 I stand before you now with victory!
 Victory that is yours because you are Mine,
 Victory that has been won with suffering love!"

"Precious one, I love to come...
 I love to fight for you,
 I love when you ask,
 I love to give you all you need..."

"Because I am in love with you,
 Because when you suffer, I suffer..."

"Be assured that My love will always rescue you...always save you,
 For My love for you will never end!"

Isaiah 63

Is There an End?

Is there an end to the discovery of the greatness of our God?
Is there an end to the outpouring of His blessings?
Is there an end to the stories of His faithfulness, His provision, His goodness?

There is no end...
There is no stopping...
There is no measurement that can contain or word that can describe
The magnitude, the continual outpouring,
The untold, even forgotten answers to prayer,
And the outpouring of His love upon us...

Generation after generation
He continues to reveal more of His goodness, more of His glory.

Sometimes it is brilliantly displayed for many to observe,
Sometimes it is in the every day,
The protection, the favor, the grace, the divine appointment at the appointed time...

Other times it is all around
But only available to be seen when the scales fall off and the Light invades...
Occasionally it is hidden,
And needs to be dug up and rediscovered...

But the truth remains,
Day in and day out,
There is no end of the greatness of our God, no end to His faithfulness, His goodness!!

May my heart bubble over with observation,
Stirring me to proclaim His goodness...

Yes, this is the marvelous goodness and beauty that You desire to pour out upon us
With specific intent to reveal that abundant life You desire for us!!!

That Beautiful Broad Place

That beautiful broad place
That You bring us to Jesus,
After You rescue us and draw us into Your embrace,
Is green pastures
 And still waters of peace, hope, and freedom...
It is the place where burdens are lifted,
The place of a child-like trust,
A place where we skip upon the mountains, and laughter resounds...
Yes, that beautiful broad place
Is the place where I know all my sins are forgive, present, past and future...
It is the place where the Light is bright and my vision is clear,
It is the place of sparkling refreshment...
This beautiful broad place is a place of cherished unity,
It is the place of smiles and hugs, and where love abounds...
It is the place of new ideas, creativity, and favor,
It is when the harp within me is bursting with a happy song...
Yes, when I am here,
I know that this is the place I was created to be,
It is the place of good plans that You planned to delight me with as You thought me into being
And breathed life into me...

Thank you Lord for coming to my rescue...breaking through...
Transporting me into that beautiful broad place with You!

The Righteousness of Christ

There is something about believing His Word,
Believing His Word,
About how He loves me, sees me,
Who He is and who I am
That is life-changing...

So often I read it
And think...That's nice...but He can't mean that about me...

When He calls me lovely,
His loyal dove, His royal daughter, His perfect partner...

Surely He knows that I don't measure up,
I don't come into that category of being loyal, royal, lovely...

But then He reminds me of the difference...
My eyes see only the natural,
With the limitation of a physical body, limited space, and so limited knowledge.
His eyes see from all of eternity,
From all wisdom and revelation.
His eyes see what happened when I believed in His Son Jesus...
His eyes see the robe of righteousness of His Son that covers me,
His eyes see the plans and purposes He has for me,
His eyes see from heaven's perspective,
From a good Father's heart,
From the riches and abundance of heaven...

So I have to believe His Word,
Even when it doesn't seem fair, just, or valid to my thinking.

I am the righteousness of Christ
I can't step in or out of who I am.
This is the gift that was transferred to me
When He took all my sin, guilt, shame, condemnation, and curse upon Himself...

Yes, it is grace unexplainable,
Grace way beyond my understanding,
Grace yesterday, today and forever,,,

It is a truth I can cling to,
A truth that lifts my head as I get out of bed in the morning,
 And encourages me as I retire at night,
No, there is no condemnation or accusation from His glance,
Rather, His loving favor, protection, and abundant provision surround me,
Because I am His, His beloved, His daughter...

Even when I fail,
He picks me up...
And reminds me who I am...the righteousness of Christ"
And the waves of His grace...flow upon me afresh,
Erasing the old and transforming my thinking,
Until I too bear fruit of joy, peace and love...

"The happiest one on the earth is the one who keeps Your Word and clings to righteousness
   every moment!" Ps. 106:3

The Courtroom

You do not bring me into Your courtroom for judgment...
No, I have already been judged.
All my sins, all my failures have been judged,
Yes, I was found guilty...
But the precious blood of your dear Son, Jesus,
Washed the guilt away,
He took the guilt, curse and accusation of my sin upon Himself,
 Paid my debt with His life...and transferred to me His righteousness!

Yes, Father,
When I enter Your courtroom,
You see Jesus,
You see the blood of Your Son,
You see Christ within me,
You see the righteousness of Your Son covering me...

My heart sings,
Because now when I enter Your courtroom,
We are family...
You are my Daddy...and I am Your daughter.

And You welcome me and ask,"And what would you like Daddy to do for you?"

And I tell you my longings...my desires...my hopes...my dreams...
And willingly You listen , bless, and gift me with Your goodness,

"Because You are a good good Father that's who You are, and I am loved by You, that's who I am."

What Will Keep Me?

It is not the message of
    I must
       or
    I have to
       or
    I am trying
       or
    I did
That will keep me, protect me,
Impart to me the blessings that the Father wants to give me.

No,
It's only
The message of grace,
Of what He did,
Of what He is doing,
How He sees me,
And who He says I am
That will keep me strong in the faith...receiving that abundant life.

Yes,
It's His Work, His Grace, His goodness,
And me just believing and receiving,
That unceasingly magnificent love, that unmerited favor, that poured-out grace.

The Question

The question...flaunted toward me... from that proud oppressor,

"What are you trusting in that makes you so confident?"

"Do you think positive thinking will win this battle?
 Do you think you can fight this enemy alone?
 Didn't you hear the news, read the report?
 Didn't you hear the accusation?
 How can you trust in God? What makes you think He will help you this time?
 You have no reason that your God should listen to you after that time of failure the other day.
 How about a compromise?
 I will only rob you of half of your faith, half of your peace, and then I will let you alone..."

 That oppressor goes on and on with his accusations, pleas for attention, and lies of promising good.

Yes, King Hezekiah heard the taunts,
He heard the reports of disaster, the threat of failure, the lies, accusations,
He heard the offer for compromise
And the promise of flourishing delight attached to the demands of this prowler...

He heard, and his first response was to enter into the Presence of God!
And as he magnified his God,
And reminded himself of the bigness, strength, power, and goodness of His God...
The Word of the Lord came with a promise,
A promise of deliverance,
A promise of rescue,
A promise of divine help...
Yes, Hezekiah's promise of a miracle came as He worshipped and remembered his God!!
And the Lord came and destroyed that enemy...
And that enemy marched away without King Hezekiah's army lifting a finger!

So the question remains...
What am I trusting in that makes me so confident?
Confident that restoration and return are coming,
Confident that light will break into that darkness,
Confident that the promise that were given will come to be,
Confident that my God hears my pleas, knows my needs, and desires to bless me,
Confident that my God is good and that He loves to pour out His riches on His children,
Confident that the miracle will manifest!

How could I put my trust in any other
Or turn my face away from His adoring glance
To engage in compromise with an enemy, with this one who taunts my Beloved?

My answer...
My trust is in my best friend, my precious Savior, the Mighty God, the Prince of Peace,
My trust is in the Healer, the Maker of heaven and earth,
My trust is in my Beloved,
It is Him I am trusting in,
Because He is the only One who loves me completely!!!

Isaiah 36,37