February 21, 2013

At 4:55 am I walked (carefully) out to get the paper, and there was a slight amount of ice covering the road and grass. It seemed like a whimpy amount for all the forecasting of a winter storm, but enough to make me glad I do not have to drive on it. Now that I am sipping hot lemon tea with honey, the rain is hitting our skylight, and the wind is beginning to howl. With the temperature at 27, this rain will continue to coat the area with ice, and if it continues the wind will begin to take down trees and power lines.  Now this is a winter storm! Schools are cancelled, the church office is closed, and Springfield will hunker down for a change of pace. I could be sleeping in, but my body seems ready to be up.

Job 40 – 42

Job repented with a truly contrite heart (42:1-6). God rebuked Job’s three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar. Job prayed for his friends, and then “the Lord restored his fortunes. In fact, the Lord gave him twice as much as before!” (42:9-10) “So the Lord blessed Job in the second half of his life even more than in the beginning. For now he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels …(42:12).  After slogging through all the speeches and replies of this book, it is great to get to the end and remember that God is uniquely above everything, and not to be argued with. It is also very good to see Job blessed and to see him prosper for his remaining 140 years.

As I read this final chapter of Job, I thought about a book given to me last November by a couple at Wesley. It is called The Blessed Life, and it has been on my nightstand ever since. I have just now read the introduction and the first chapter. It is by Robert Morris, and it is his account of how God has blessed his life as he and his wife over an 18 month period listened to God and gave everything away, including their cars and house. God blessed them with even more than they gave. He defines the blessed life as “having supernatural power working for you” (Page 27) and being cursed as “having supernatural power working against you.” This book, written in 2002 about the blessed life will be an interesting read. Ted Haggard is one of the endorsers, and so I read this book with discernment, holding it before God, comparing it to scripture, reason, experience and tradition.

Thank you Lord for this wintery day in the Ozarks. Keep us all safe and guide us even as travel is treacherous today. Thank you Lord for the blessed life, now 30 years of marriage, ministry, and family. Lead us into your future by faith, and I follow with joy and excitement walking with You.