Grains of Sand

Pixabay I once asked my pastor why it seemed as though my prayers hit the ceiling and bounced back at me without ever reaching heaven. He reminded me that unconfessed sin creates a barrier that needs to be removed so that communion is restored between the Creator and His creation. As I read the verse for today, I was reminded of his words. Isaiah writes: “Y our iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear .” (59:2) The expression of the prophet reminded me of a series of messages I prepared recently for a ladies’ retreat and of a revision of that series that I am going to start today. In the first session we talk about seeking first God’s “face” rather than always looking for His “hand.” In other words, desiring God Himself more than we desire His gifts. As I reviewed yesterday I was reminded that when the Scriptures speak of God’s “face” they are referring to His presence, to that intimacy of relationship that we ne...

Pixabay David wrote: “ …I trust in you, O Lord; I say, ‘You are my God.’ My times are in your hands. ” (Psalm 31:14, 15a) Few of us understand just how vulnerable it feels to be completely at the mercy of someone else. David understood. How often the shepherd/psalmist/king/fugitive was forced to run for his life, pursued by those who, had they been able, would have left him bleeding in the dust. I wonder if he ever wished for more control over the circumstances of his life? Today, as we celebrate the resurrection, I marvel again at the One who has control over all things, giving over control to those who arrested, condemned, and crucified Him. But in the celebration of today, we are reminded that the control His enemies thought they had as they sealed the tomb and set a guard over it, was no control at all. He had never lost it—appearances to the contrary—even on the cross. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 tells us that, “ There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under hea...