Oh this is hard.

Got the GRANDS settled in again; they had waited so patiently to do something fun as I worked to complete  this devotion. It was all but finished; only needed to tweak it for presentation.  I clicked all the right buttons for it to be saved, both in Word and on-line. But perhaps the thunderstorm had its way instead of mine – no words survived. Not one. Anywhere.  Other than my mind and what’s there, well that is questionable. So I am here to begin again, getting to practice what I “preached” so well just a little bit ago. :)

Isaiah 59: New International Version (NIV)
10 Like the blind we grope along the wall, feeling our way like people without eyes. At midday we stumble as if it were twilight; among the strong, we are like the dead.
via Is 59:10 – Passage Lookup – New International Version – BibleGateway.com.

I wrote earlier that this is a graphic picture for me this morning, depicting life lived by FEELINGS and not FAITH.  Or something like that – I need not insist that this new one be like the old one. Romans 8:28.

And right now I have feelings galore. Feelings vying for top position, and all of them detrimental to FAITH – so I prayed for help. And I’m still here; albeit jumpy.  The greater struggle in this moment is a desperate want to recreate what was. How many of you know that is not going to happen? Romans 8:28. So forgetting what is done, we press on. :)

Hebrews 10: 21st Century King James Version (KJ21)
38 Now the just shall live by faith; but if any man draw back, My soul shall have no pleasure in him.”
via Hebrews 10:38 – Passage Lookup – 21st Century King James Version – BibleGateway.com.

Blind groping a wall, trying to get somewhere; trying to journey this life with all its decisions and responses and defenses that bumping up against others demands. Feelings scream to rule. FAITH waits quietly to empower.

At midday we stumble as if it were twilight. Feelings do that. They ignore the Ever Present, Voluminous, Abounding (redundant, I know – but you get it) LIGHT we have at our finger tips, as close as breath, that we could call upon by FAITH. But feelings don’t want to, so we don’t.

Even in this land, Strength and Might surround us; but feelings refuse to receive and we are paralyzed. We are like dead men moving about in chains as we push and shove to get to where we think we should be or else we just despair and roll over and play dead.

That’s Feeling Life – it keeps us blind and weak, stumbling, falling, crabby, complaining, negative, pessimistic, and moody.  Trust me, I know whereof I speak.

Just this morning as I sat to write (the first time), feelings came – big and bad.  Big and bad would have won and the first devotional message would not have been written (much less this second one in process now) had not Faith Life rescued me.  More than just breathe out a prayer, I had to write it.  It’s a legacy thing.

“I cannot do this – I cannot let this happen. I am praying now for help to release these adverse emotions that have come upon me to drive me to sin and frustration.”

And so Faith Life prevailed. Faith Life won’t always prevail. Not because it’s too feeble. No it is well able to succeed every time; yet Feeling Life will in all probability deceive us again, catch us off guard and we will plunge in again. But even so we have hope.

Let me share a picture in closing.  We had a gardenia bush (more like a tree) in our side yard. It was diseased to near death.  Black soot disease was choking out the sun, preventing photosynthesis; and you know that is certain death for vegetation. Yes. Had we not waited so long other treatment might have spared drastic measures; but we didn’t. (You are getting the analogy here, aren’t you?) I finally prayed over it.  And the clear word that came was prune to nubs and burn.

Yes. Deep, deep pruning and fire. Is the picture worth a thousand words? Shall we refuse Feeling Life to embrace Faith Life so that deep, deep pruning and fire (refining) be not necessary?

Even so – New Beginnings are possible.

Just one of the LORD’s handmaidens,
Kathie

Please pray. PFT Click HERE for names.

ABBA, I see with this piece there are many avenues You could highlight, many messages You could give to Readers as they come here; even so, ABBA, as You will in JESUS Name.  Amen and amen.