We celebrated our church's hundredth birthday in an outdoor service which had been planned for months. It rained. I'm not sure why we were surprised, after all Oregonians live in rain much of the year; however, we were. But. We were in the presence of God.
Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory (Romans 5:2, NLT).
The key to facing a storm, is to intentionally stand in the divine place of undeserved privilege, the place Christ has given us to stand in, the place where nothing and no one is able to harm us, the place of grace and glory. And, yet, it's a choice to let the storm take hold of us or to weather a storm with faith, intentionally standing firm in the divine place of undeserved privilege without losing balance, drawing closer to Christ in a new and fresh encounter, confident there's a supernatural use for the storm. In the end, we intentionally choose whether or not we will stand in the place Christ has given us to stand in or find ourselves pushed down, unable to get up, whether or not we live with confidence and joy or defeat and depression, whether or not we will be more than conquerors in Christ, courageously facing all things.
Give thanks for the life Christ has given you.
Face the storm.
Stand in the presence of God, the divine place of undeserved privilege.
Encounter Christ in a new and fresh way, confident God will work out all things for good.
Learning to Kickstart the day standing in the divine place of undeserved privilege,
Kerrie
(written by Kerrie Carlisle Palmer © 2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED)
The thing is . . . standing in the presence of God . . . is a more powerful place to be than in any storm we may face.I'm the first to say the storms of life are difficult, challenging, and sometimes downright impossible, creating havoc and causing pain. BUT. And, this is a big BUT:
Our response to a storm delineates the power it has over us. When we become consumed with the storm, we lose our balance, becoming less aware of God; when we intentionally look for God's presence, we realign ourselves to what really matters in life; when we learn the reality of the presence of God is much bigger than any storm, we are released to see life from a vantage point beyond ourselves.Consider.
Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory (Romans 5:2, NLT).
The key to facing a storm, is to intentionally stand in the divine place of undeserved privilege, the place Christ has given us to stand in, the place where nothing and no one is able to harm us, the place of grace and glory. And, yet, it's a choice to let the storm take hold of us or to weather a storm with faith, intentionally standing firm in the divine place of undeserved privilege without losing balance, drawing closer to Christ in a new and fresh encounter, confident there's a supernatural use for the storm. In the end, we intentionally choose whether or not we will stand in the place Christ has given us to stand in or find ourselves pushed down, unable to get up, whether or not we live with confidence and joy or defeat and depression, whether or not we will be more than conquerors in Christ, courageously facing all things.
Give thanks for the life Christ has given you.
Face the storm.
Stand in the presence of God, the divine place of undeserved privilege.
Encounter Christ in a new and fresh way, confident God will work out all things for good.
Learning to Kickstart the day standing in the divine place of undeserved privilege,
Kerrie
(written by Kerrie Carlisle Palmer © 2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED)