Apron Strings Devotional for 12/15/97

12/15/97

Good morning....
Jesus loves You!!

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Many a man has kept straight because his mother bent her knees.

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The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. James 5:16

An old woman with a halo of silvered hair--the hot tears flowing down her furrowed cheeks--her worn hands busy over a washboard in a room of poverty--praying--for her son John--John who ran away from home in his teens to become a sailor--John of whom it was now reported that he had become a very wicked man---Praying, praying always, that her son might be of service to God. The mother believed in two things, the power of prayer and the reformation of her son. God answered the prayer by working a miracle in the heart of John Newton. John Newton, the drunken sailor became John Newton, the sailor- preacher (who wrote the words to "Amazing Grace.")

Among the thousands of men and women he brought to Christ was Thomas Scott.....(who) used both his pen and voice to lead thousands of unbelieving hearts to Christ, among them William Cowper.....(who) in a moment of inspiration wrote "There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood." And this song has brought countless thousands to the Man Who died on Calvary. All this resulted because a mother took God at His word and prayed that her son's heart might become as white as the soapsuds in the washtub---
*Spring in the Valley by Mrs. Charles E. Cowman*

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*Quote*
I have discovered the secret of the Spirit-controlled temperament. The key is spending quality personal time with the Lord and receiving help from Him on a regular basis.
Joyce Meyer

Isa 40:31
But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

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Wait

Desperately, helplessly, longingly, I cried:
Quietly, patiently, lovingly God replied.
I pled and I wept for a clue to my fate,
And the Master so gently said, "Child, you must wait".

"Wait? You say, wait! " my indignant reply.
"Lord, I need answers, I need to know why!
Is your hand shortened? Or have you not heard?
By Faith, I have asked, and am claiming your Word.

My future and all to which I can relate
hangs in the balance, and YOU tell me to WAIT?
I'm needing a 'yes', a go-ahead sign,
or even a 'no' to which I can resign.

And Lord, You promised that if we believe
we need but to ask, and we shall receive.
And Lord, I've been asking, and this is my cry:
I'm weary of asking! I need a reply!

Then quietly, softly, I learned of my fate
As my Master replied once again, "You must wait."

So, I slumped in my chair, defeated and taut
and grumbled to God, "So, I'm waiting.... for what?"

He seemed, then, to kneel, and His eyes wept with mine,
And he tenderly said, "I could give you a sign.
I could shake the heavens, and darken the sun.
I could raise the dead, and cause mountains to run.

All you seek, I could give, and pleased you would be.
You would have what you want~~But, you wouldn't know Me.

You'd not know the depth of My love for each saint;
You'd not know the power that I give to the faint;
You'd not learn to see through the clouds of despair;
You'd not learn to trust just by knowing I'm there;

You'd not know the joy of resting in Me
When darkness and silence were all you could see.

You'd never experience that fullness of love
As the peace of My Spirit descends like a dove;
You'd know that I give and I save.... (for a start),
But you'd not know the depth of the beat of My heart.

The glow of My comfort late into the night,
The faith that I give when you walk without sight,
The depth that's beyond getting just what you asked
Of an infinite God, who makes what you have LAST.

You'd never know, should your pain quickly flee,
What it means that "My grace is sufficient for Thee."
Yes, your dreams for your loved one overnight would come true,
But, Oh, the Loss! If I lost what I'm doing in you!

So, be silent, My Child, and in time you will see
That the greatest of gifts is to get to know Me.
And though oft' may My answers seem terribly late,
My most precious answer of all is still, "WAIT."
Author unknown

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Hello Brethren!

I hope this day finds you well. As you are waiting upon the Lord, I'd like to bring to your attention, that the definition of "Wait" in Isaiah 40:31, according to Strong's Concordance, means: qavah (kaw-vaw') a primitive root; to bind together (perhaps by twisting), i.e. collect; (figuratively) to expect.

Do you see that? As we are waiting...We don't sit on our hands! We are binding together...with expectancy! Now, I don't know about you...but I think that is something to get excited about! There aren't any scriptures that come to my mind that say, "Hurry"....There are quite a few that say "Wait"......But as we wait...as we bind together....as we "expect"......we are growing inwardly...and our faith is increasing.

Galatians 6:9
And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

God Bless You All!!

In Christ!!

Carol
Justaservn@aol.com

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