stanpavkovich

“When God Ran”, I love that old song! It tells a little different story than what the title would presume. It talks about God running straight for us, taking us in His arms holding our heads to His chest proclaiming how happy He is that we came home to Him and offers us forgiveness.

Someone asked the other day if God actually walks away from us or “takes a break from us”… my response was; No ~ the bible has many verses on the subject~ such as “I will never leave you nor forsake you” , “I am with you always, yea even til the end of the earth”. He tells us He will be with us in the bad times as well as the good times. I know as a parent and even as a grandparent the love that I have for my kids and grandkids is so strong that I would never abandon them in their time of need. How much greater love does the “Father” have for us that He laid down His life for us. I have a hard time believing that a love so great would walk away from us even in the good time. When my kids or grandkids are having a great time doing something, I WANT to be there. I don’t see it as a time to walk away and just let them celebrate on their own. Just like when my kids are going through a hard time, I want to be there for them as well; not just ignore their pain and leave them stranded until times are happy and good again.

I think that sometimes we may not feel God’s presence or we don’t get the answers we want or perhaps no answers at all and we feel like God has deserted us or walked away from us. Perhaps we can’t feel His presence because we’ve been too busy, noisy, or preoccupied with our lives that we haven’t focused enough on Him to feel His presence or to hear His answers. Maybe, just maybe it’s US doing the walking away from or deserting and not HIM. Could it be that He is actually standing there waiting for us to turn around and run back to Him so that He can run to us. What an amazing thought!!!!

One sure fire way to know ~ turn towards God and start running with all your might towards Him and see what happens. He won’t let you down, He is standing there ready with his arms opened wide just for YOU!!!
One other old song that is appropriate for closing this thought is, “Soul be still, my… soul be still and know that… HE… is GOD!!!!!

May your running be full of pure JOY as you run after HIM… God Bless

I ran across a very moving story that John Trent, the President of StrongFamilies.com and the Center for Strong Families shared in an article.

A true story that  illustrates in a very real way, the power of our words. The Bible says that the power of life and death are found in the tongue.

Mary had grown up knowing that she was different from the other kids, and she hated it. She was born with a cleft palate and had to bear the jokes and stares of cruel children who teased her non-stop about her misshaped lip, crooked nose, and garbled speech. With all the teasing, Mary grew up hating the fact that she was “different”. She was convinced that no one, outside her family, could ever love her … until she entered Mrs. Leonard’s class.

Mrs. Leonard had a warm smile, a round face, and shiny brown hair. While everyone in her class liked her, Mary came to love Mrs. Leonard. In the 1950′s, it was common for teachers to give their children an annual hearing test. However, in Mary’s case, in addition to her cleft palate, she was barely able to hear out of one ear. Determined not to let the other children have another “difference” to point out, she would cheat on the test each year. The “whisper test” was given by having a child walk to the classroom door, turn sideways, close one ear with a finger, and then repeat something, which the teacher whispered. Mary turned her bad ear towards her teacher and pretended to cover her good ear. She knew that teachers would often say things like, “The sky is blue,” or “What color are your shoes?” But not on that day. Surely, God put seven words in Mrs. Leonard’s mouth that changed Mary’s life forever. When the “Whisper test” came, Mary heard the words: “I wish you were my little girl.”

That was a God moment for Mary… It was the turning point in her life …to know she was loved and valued…  Those 7 words began to change her life.

God wants to change our life as well.

But many times because of sins we committed and poor choices we have made… often times we feel like we can’t have a relationship with God…

That God no longer loves us or He has given up on us. But nothing can be farther from the truth.

To those who are crippled by sin or enslaved to things you know are not pleasing to God…
He says, “I wish you were my son” or “I wish you were my daughter.”

Remember what the book of James tells us draw close to God and He will draw close to you.

Isaiah 43:4 “You are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you… ”

Be Blessed,
Stan