"Hill Country Thoughts:Walking Daily With The Lord -Thoughts, Hopes,and Living in the Real World" "Without having seen Him, you love Him; though you do not [even] now see Him, you believe in Him and exult {and} thrill with inexpressible and glorious (triumphant, heavenly) joy.
Sometimes it is really rough to get up, to press on, to push forward when everything within looks like one big battle after another, struggle after struggle that seems to never end.
But yet there is within, that still small voice, that speaks to us, lets us know, that it is all right, that our Lord is with us.
And it is as we learn to respond to that still small voice in the midst of all that is going on, that we begin to grow and begin to move forward in the Lord.
It is a day by day, moment by moment walk with the Lord that gives us the strength to press forward.
It is the hope within, knowing that we don’t have to have a spirit of fear, of anxiety, but rather to put on the full armour of the Lord. That He has given us a spirit of strength and hope.
That our focus is turned from us, to Him and to others. In doing so, healing is brought to us and makes us stronger in our weakness because our dependency is on Him.
It is one of those things that is hard to put into words, in our weakness we are made strong, in becoming a servant, we become free. It is realizing that it is Christ within that lives, no longer us that lives, yet we live.
In other words, we are ourselves in Christ, becoming that portrait, becoming all that we are meant to be and to fulfill His will in our lives.
There are days and sometimes weeks that we have to choose to rise up each day over the pain, over the battles, the wounds and the hurts and make a sacrifice of praise and worship, of adoration to the Lord.
In that action, we are lifted by the spirit of the Lord to overcome those obstacles, events in our lives, by the word of God, by the spirit and enabled to walk in the Lord.
Sometimes the Lord will send people our way to encourage us. To remind us that greater is He that is within us. I had the privilege of meeting a new friend this week, a member of CWG who took time to come and visit me here in Kennesaw.
We talked about writing, life and about the Lord. It was a time of encouragement to me and I came away blessed and strengthen in my spirit. I want to say thank you because you indeed blessed me, encouraged me and reminded me how blessed I am with my children and grand-children here in Georgia.
As I look back I can see how the Lord is slowly but surely bringing me forth into His purpose for this day and time. That He is given me the honor and privilege to be a pen in His hand. To write what He puts on my heart.
Sometimes daily, maybe weekly. That He is molding me and shaping me into His image, His character, to reflect the Christ within. Most importantly He is teaching me to look beyond myself, to look to Him and to draw strength that I need each day to walk with Him.
There is hope and there is purpose for each of us and it is only when we cry out to our Father, that He lifts us above the wounds, the pains, the hurts, to walk with Him.
To draw His strength, that overcomes the dark nights of the soul and brings out of that darkness into the light of His presence and enables us to walk each day, to reach out and to focus on Him, to give to others what has been given to us.
I know that it is only as I write, as I share, as I talk that I can express the things that the Lord has and is writing on my heart, that which hopefully will cause others to draw closer to the Lord, to find their strength in Him.
It is during this time of writing, of sharing, of giving out of what the Lord has given me, that I am coming into the purposes that the Lord has for me.
That it is as we yield to the Lord, that we will find the strength to press on and in and know that we are pleasing our Father and that He will teach us to focus on others and thus setting us free to receive healing from Him.
Yesterday was a beautiful day in spite of the overcast skies and the rain.
The Lord’s presence was so strong, making me aware that He truly is in control of all things, all events in our lives and as we yield to Him, His purposes in us will be fulfilled.
Yesterday, as I was sitting in the living room relaxing, taking it easy, thinking about things. My young grand daughter Rebekah came up and gave me a hug and said “Grandpa I love you.” She then asked and answered a question and it made me realize how much the Lord is in charge and always confirms things to us and often times it is out of the mouth of a child!
The question Rebekah asked and answered was “Grandpa, does Jesus want you to stay here in Georgia? Because I think He wants you to stay here.”
I was in awe of the Lord for I knew this was His way of speaking to my heart through my seven year old grand daughter and letting me know this is where I will be for a season.
As I sat at Starbucks last night, just relaxing and thinking of the events of the day I counted myself blessed because I know my Father loves me and His plans are good plans and He is allowing me the privilege of putting pen to paper, to share my heart. To share with others the hope that is within.
I pray that which the Lord gives me to share helps others to soar to new levels, new depths in their relationship with the Lord, that they will find strength in the word, in His presence and hopefully in the things shared from the heart.
Each one of you who blog's by, who write, who comment or just take time to read are very special to the Lord.
We are each unique to our Father and as we press in, as we yield to Him, a change is brought within. We begin to grow and mature because of what the Lord is doing. That we are learning to walk in the here and now and that we can serve an ever present Lord!
We are being brought to a place to truly know our Father. That we are being brought to a place of abiding, of dwelling, of learning to hear the heart beat of God. How awesome is that!
I know that this is something that I share often but I feel like it is something that the Lord wants repeated and it is this.
Do not ever think what you have to share is not important, for it is. I cannot tell how many times the Lord has used many of you to speak to my heart, to my spirit and gave me the extra boost in the spirit that I needed.
Don’t let the enemy rob you of the gifts that your heavenly Father has given you. A few words shared in the spirit goes a long way.
Be blessed my friends. Rejoice in that which the Father has given you and hold tight to His hand as you follow Him, for He will guide you through this path called life!!
Actually it is a very, very sad tale about an old friend!
Someone that I literally leaned on, who was part of my life, who always gave me support when I needed it. I could always grab him and off we would go to venture into a new day. He was a very special gift, given to me by some very special friends, Marietta and Keaton, but now he is gone.
Earlier today, I went to Starbucks to have coffee and write and relax, to see what doors the Lord would open for the day. It was a beautiful day. It was nice to be out and about and meeting new friends.
When it was time to go, I grabbed my pack, my hat and my cane and went to the car. I got everything loaded and headed to the house.
All of a sudden I heard a rumble on the roof and in the rear-view mirror I saw my cane, my walking stick, roll off the roof unto the highway, a very busy highway and I also noticed an 18 wheeler bearing down on it and I was hoping that by the time I got to the corner and turned around, that my cane would survive.
But, my once strong cane became a very splintered pile of wood, scattered on the highway, with just a little left to remind me that it once exsisted.
So, sadly, I am no longer Able to raise Cane. So goodbye to a dear friend, a good companion. Thanks for all the support and for all the times you enabled me to go just a little further.
Thanks for being a strong supporter, for indeed, I could always lean on you!
“I will lift up my eyes to the Hills, from whence cometh my help - my help comes from the Lord, maker of Heaven and Earth” ... "The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth and even for evermore.” Psalms 121:1, 2 & 8 [KJV]
Indeed my help comes from the Lord. He is the one that has been with me each and every step of the way over the last couple of years. He has given me the strength to endure even when I thought no more Lord, no more!!
It is the Lord who opens one door and closes others and brings us to the place that He wants us and for me, the place for now, is here in the Hills of Georgia, in Kennesaw. It is almost impossible to put into words the peace and presence of the Lord that I have felt since being here.
Most of this week has been staying here at home, resting and getting stronger from the events of last Sunday evening.
Last Sunday was a tactic of the enemy to try and put fear in my heart, that maybe I am missing the Lord but I know that I am not, so again what the enemy meant to use to stop me did not work, it caused me to draw even closer to the Lord and to find my strength in Him.
I know that the Lord is getting ready to open doors, to allow me to give an even stronger testimony about the awesomeness of God.
We really need to learn to lift up our eyes and look to the Lord knowing that it is from Him, that we receive strength to walk in His ways.
To know the Lord will watch over us and protect us even in the darkest moments. Even when we are under attack, He is there to comfort and strengthen us and bring us through.
Even last Sunday, when all the bleeding began and a voice kept trying to convince me this is it, your not coming out of this.
The enemy was trying to instill fear, but even at that moment, I was able to lift up my eyes as it where to the Hills, to the Lord and to draw from His presence the peace that passes all understanding and it carried me through.
And here I sit, almost a week later, at Starbucks, having my coffee and sharing about the awesomeness of my Father, who watched over me and brought me through.
Last Sunday, January 9th, is an evening that I will remember for a very long time!
I was at Starbucks having my coffee, sitting in my favorite chair and was beginning to write the post for Sunday evening when I felt a trickle in my right nostril when all of a sudden blood began to gush forth from my nose and from my tear duct in my left eye and my throat filled with blood and I was sitting in the chair trying to get someone’s attention because I couldn’t say anything with blood gushing out of my mouth and finally someone figured out that I wasn’t waving at them and they immediately came to my assistance, along with the store manager.
The manager Sue, and the two people that helped me were super, they stayed with me through it all till my son-in-law Sheridan and daughter Gloria where able to get there, along with the fire department and EMS from Kennesaw, who also were super and were very assuring.
The rest of the night went like a blur, going to the Emergency Room, having my right nostril and sinus cavity packed with two balloons, then admitted to the Hospital. I spent the night and most of the day there at Kennastone Hospital where I received excellent care from everyone.
During the whole time that all this was going on, I had the peace of the Lord. I felt His presence, even while all the bleeding was taking place, I had a peace and rest and yes I was a little scared and I let the Lord know that I believed I was ready to be with Him but that I was not in a particular hurry to get there.
I just want to say thank you to all of you who prayed for me, for those who called and sent notes and e-mailed me and for all of you who blogged by. It meant a lot to me and it was very comforting. It was good to know that even in the midst of this that my Father was there. That He made Himself real and gave me the peace that only He can give.
I know the Lord has purpose yet for me and that nothing the enemy may use to try and put fear in my heart will work. For my strength, my hope is in the Lord. That the more the enemy attacks, the more it causes me to draw closer to Him.
Remember that no matter what you go through in life, you can draw strength from the Lord and that He will enable you to walk the path that He has sit before you. That He will replace that fear with faith.
The Lord never ceases to amaze me how He does things. The doors He opens, the people that we meet.
When I went to Starbucks this morning for my morning coffee, to sit and read, write and just ponder things for awhile I noticed a group of men sitting where I normally sit and I just sensed a presence of the Lord so I went and sat near them.
They were talking about the Lord, the word, just fellowshipping and after awhile I was fellowshipping with them and I gained four new brothers in the Lord as we talked and shared over the next couple of hours. It indeed was a blessing from the Lord!
It reminded me today that no matter where we go or where we are, that the presence of the Lord is with us. It is not limited to a church building. The presence of the Lord is were two or three or gathered together in His name. It can be in church, on the front porch or sitting here at Starbucks or Isaacks Restaurant back in Junction, Texas, drinking coffee and fellowshipping with new friends.
The presence of the Lord is with you when it is just Him and you. When your in prayer, reading the word or just enjoying His creation. His presence is with us at home, at work, in whatever we do if we but allow Him to be there. That we can enjoy His presence, His Spirit.
Each day we are given the chance, the opportunity to reflect Him. To be ourselves in the Lord, that we live in the power of His spirit, reflecting the reality of that new life that we have in Him.
Yes, we stumble at times, we make mistakes, but we get back up, we press in and pursue Him and move forward. Each time that we get back up and press in, we become stronger in our walk with the Lord, for our dependency is on Him, not ourselves.
Each day is a new day. A new revelation of who He is in our life. That we indeed can walk in His ways, knowing that where ever we go there He is, if we will but allow Him to shine forth from our hearts, from our spirit, that He will draw others to want to know more about Him.
As His presence did this morning. It drew me to have fellowship with four new friends and brothers in the Lord!
The thing that has really amazed me the little time that I have been here in Kennesaw, Georgia, is the number of people that the Lord has put me into contact with.
I was at Starbucks this morning with my son Joshua and daughter Gloria, sitting in my favorite spot just visiting and talking, enjoying time with my son before he heads back to Colorado Springs.
While sitting here we struck up a number of conversations with people coming in for their coffee and waiting for it and we would just begin to talk and during this time I made new friends and connected with fellow believers.
The Lord will always open doors when we make ourselves available to Him. He gives us opportunities to share, to write, to talk and visit with others if we but say here I am Lord, use me!
Again this evening, I am sitting here at Starbucks and the Lord again has open opportunities to share what He is doing in my life and with Hill Country Thoughts.
The people here at Starbucks are some of the friendliest people that I have ever met and I look forward to many visits while in Kennesaw.
I really am at peace here. It is like the Lord is moving me another notch in the direction that He wants me to go at this point in my life. I will be here for awhile in Kennesaw while I am waiting for my Social Security hearing, then I will go back for the hearing, to pick up my car and come back here for a season.
I want to encourage you my friends to launch out, to allow the Lord to lead you in new paths, in new ways. To expand your tent pegs.
Let 2005 be a year that we allow the Lord to use us to the fullest, to expand His purposes in our lives. Let it be a year of expectation!
New doors, new opportunities and launching out in the Lord. Let that be the cry of our heart. Sense the excitement of the Hope of the Christ within, to be alive in 2005. Let life flow forth from the words we write, the things that we speak, let us be moved by the impulse of His love.
You just never know what doors will open each day as you wake with an expectancy in your heart. Knowing that the Lord has a purpose for you and that your walk with the Lord is not based on "feelings" but on the Word of the Lord.
Learning to live by faith, trusting the Lord, taking a step off the cliff, knowing that He will be there to catch you. It is not an easy thing to do but I am finding that the Lord is causing me to more and more trust in Him!
That He is teaching me to live the 23rd Psalm, that the Lord is indeed my shepherd. That He is our Shepherd. That He will lead us and guide us as we simply trust in Him!
He wants us to know what it means to walk with Him day by day. Trusting in His provision. Trusting in His guidance as we walk with Him. To give to others what He has given us. To share a word or thought of hope, to be real in the Lord!
We have a purpose, a calling and that is to reflect the reality of who He is. Lord of our life. He gives us purpose, even when it does not seem so. He enables us to touch others as we share out of that which we have gone through, out of the path that we have walked.
We are His hands extended, to reach out to minister to those around us, to meet them were they are at. At home, at work, on the phone, even online, to give out of what has been given to us, Hope!!
My youngest daughter, my son and my grand daughter and I went to the morning service at NorthStar Church here in Kennesaw. It is about a block away and a nice walk.
What an amazing service, a tremendous presence of the Lord and what a blessing to find a church so close. The people where very friendly and outgoing. They made you feel like you were part of the family already and that was how I felt. It was just like the Lord to give me a place close by and to have the little park as an added blessing.
One of the songs that they sang this morning really spoke to my heart. The one verse that really touched me and was a confirmation and answer to a prayer. The verse “Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of your love.”
That really spoke to my heart. That is the desire of my heart, as a writer, that my hands would be moved by the impulse of my Father’s love, to express the heart of our Heavenly Father, His love to others in this New Year.
What a tremendous thought to ponder. That all we do, as writers, as fathers, mothers, grandparents, as husband and wives, as ministers, teachers, in whatever we are called to be in life, to be moved by the impulse of our Fathers love, of His heart and His purpose.
That our motivation would be to express the hope that we have within. That it would bring hope to others who need to see it, in a world that needs hope. It is because of this hope, because of the Christ within, that we can walk this path called life, for we indeed as Christians, are a people of hope and expectation.
Let us cry out to our Lord, “Take our hands Lord, lead us in your ways, in your paths, let us be moved by the impulse of your love in all that we do.”
Till later,
Paul
This Post was for Sunday 1-2-2005
Hill Country Thoughts Paul E. Dawn Jr.
Kennesaw, Georgia
Think on This:
“As we spend that time with the Lord, as we ponder His word, it will bring forth fruit in due season, and it will be life to others as we share those things that the Lord has made real in our lives as we walk with Him, as we go through the trials of life, the dealings, as we mature little by little, we will be able to share with others that which has been made real in our life, not theory but the life changing power of the word" - Paul
Words Aloft
Let my words soar on the
rising currents of your spirit
Let my words be powered by the
heart of your inspiration
Let my words lead others on the
incredible journey to your heart
Let my words reflect the vastness
of your Mercy, new every morning!
