A Companion Word for 2009

My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast;
I will sing and give praise.
Awake, my glory!
Awake, lute and harp!
I will awaken the dawn.
I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples;
I will sing to You among the nations.
For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens,
And Your truth unto the clouds.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
Let Your glory be above all the earth.
Psalm 57:7-11

This is the portion of scripture that the Lord spoke to my heart during the closing prayer in our Sunday service yesterday. I’m calling it a companion word from the Lord, because just like the Lord has given Harvest Church a word for 2009 regarding the harvest – the lost – a promise from Psalm 65 in which God is watering the soil (the hearts of men) in preparation for an ingathering – the Lord also has a word for those in the church – a word pertaining to their own hearts in this season of the Lord’s abundant watering.
For the last two months, I have heard the song in the Spirit over the church. The song of the Lord is “My Love Endures Forever”. And I am still hearing that song!
Now I hear the Lord calling to the church to awaken and begin to sing that song back to Him.
In the scriptures above, the word “steadfast” in regard to our heart means “stable, established, securely determined, to prepare, to be ready”.
Not only is the Lord telling us that He is watering the earth in preparation for a harvest of souls, He is calling us to be prepared, to be ready.
On a personal note… In May of 1999, the Lord spoke a word to my heart from 1 Peter 5:10 “And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To him be the power forever and ever. Amen.”
As I read Psalm 57 this morning, the Lord spoke to me that this season is fulfilled – or come to its fullness. By faith, I am saying that the Lord has completed this word in my life – that I am restored, strong, firm and steadfast.
But this word is not for me only. This word is for those who are reading this message.
I say to you, along with my own soul – AWAKE!
When the psalmist said “Awake, my glory”, do you know what “glory” meant?
It is astonishing considering the word of the Lord to us in this season!
It means “abundance, riches, honor, reputation.”
ABUNDANCE.
That is amazing!
We are to say “Awake, my abundance” – just like Pastor Tim encouraged us to be praying yesterday during his message. Do you see why I believe this is a companion word to us? It goes hand in hand with what the Lord spoke.
What does it mean to “awake”? “To rouse oneself, to stir up, to be excited, triumphant, to act in an aroused (or awakened) manner.”
When the psalmist committed and said, “I will awaken the dawn”, he was saying, “I will awaken at the dawn.” The “dawn” is the beginning of something. I say that in the Spirit, the Lord is calling us to awaken to His word at the beginning. Do not hesitate. Awaken your abundance now. Respond to the word of the Lord immediately.
In many ways, my heart and mind have been in a fog this year. I have wrestled with my own heart before the Lord and I am believing that the fog has lifted and that abundance and victory await me and my family.
My circumstances have not changed. But the word of the Lord is not based on circumstances. The word of the Lord is true IN SPITE OF the circumstances!


My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast;
I will sing and give praise.
Awake, my glory!
Awake, lute and harp!
I will awaken the dawn.
I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples;
I will sing to You among the nations.
For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens,
And Your truth unto the clouds.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
Let Your glory be above all the earth.
Psalm 57:7-11

Colors

I love colors - colors of all kinds - especially when they are seen in concert with one another.

Some great places to see colors in this way?

Crayons!

Haha!

I know, it may seem silly for a 46 year old woman to say that (and I don't mind telling you I'm 46 because everyone says I look younger than my age ;).

I have always loved crayons - probably for two reasons.

The first is that I adore the sight of colors - they bring me deep joy.

The second reason I love crayons is that I enjoy coloring. Yes, you heard right - a woman of my age enjoys coloring - and drawing - and painting - all of which I don't take near enough time to do in this season.

And I don't love just any crayons - all crayons are not created equal.

Some come with dulled colors.

Some have dull papers.

Some are waxy and don't produce bright hues.

Some of the papers are waxy, making the crayons difficult to hold.

So if you're considering purchasing crayons for someone you love, you really must get the best.

And from what I've found, that means you must get the original - Crayola.

No, this isn't really a commercial for Crayola - and I will not be compensated by their company. I just happen to have enough experience with crayons to know a good crayon when I see one!

Where else do I find color that brings me joy?

I have a candle holder in my bathroom window. I keep the holder there because it has little plastic prisms hanging from it that create the most beautiful rainbows of color when the sun hits it just right. The whole room can fill with little swatches of color - what JOY!

So if you're looking for something to brighten a dreary, winter day - find color.

Open a box of crayons, shine a light through a prism... anything.

I promise you will instantly be smiling.

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
by Robert Frost (1923)

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Eva K. Logue

A Christmas candle is a lovely thing;

It makes no noise at all,

But softly gives itself away;

While quite unselfish, it grows small.