Thursday, April 5, 2012

God is Able

Here we sit in the NICU, quite possibly the most depressing place I can imagine, yet Thatcher is laying on mom and laughing at jokes that we crack with the nurse.  He was breathing off of his CPAP machine for several minutes straight just because he knocked it of his nose and we wanted to see what he could do.  God has shown up every day with some mercy, some sign, some event, or word, or song, or something that just reminds us that He is with us, and He is in control.  We have said that over and over.  Yet, out of this awful roller-coaster, some of the most joyful moments spring forth, and contrasted to the oppression that this place exudes they are so bright and made even more joyful by the very fact that they were able to break through the darkness.  Thank you, Lord that you have made yourself known in this place to us.

I had a realization today, one that seems to me to be exceptionally important on our journey, and as we progress toward healing.

Psalm 29 speaks about simply the voice of the Lord, and how powerful his voice is.  How majestic, and simply with his voice he can break cedars, can shake the wilderness, can strip forests bare.  Everything in His temple says "Glory!", so we say Glory to God in the highest!  We see again and again in scripture, Jesus healing by simply speaking a word.

Psalm 29:
Ascribe to the Lord, O sons of the mighty,
Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
Ascribe to the Lord the glory to to His name;
Worship the Lord in holy array.
The voice of the Lord is upon the waters;
The God of glory thunders,
The Lord is over many waters.
The voice of the Lord is majestic.
The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars;
Yes, the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon.
He makes Lebanon skip like a calf,
And Sirion like a young wild ox.
The voice of the Lord hews out flames of fire.
The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness;
The Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.
The voice of the Lord makes the deer to calve
And strips the forests bare;
And in His temple everything says, "Glory!"
The Lord sat as King at the flood;
Yes, the Lord sits as King forever.
The Lord will give strength to His people;
The Lord will bless His people with peace.

Nahum 1:2-7 speaks about God and His power.  The clouds are dust beneath His feet, He can dry up the seas, Mountains quake and hills dissolve.  By his presence, the earth is upheaved.  His wrath is poured out like fire.  Surely God is a God to be feared, yet God is good.  In His power and might, He knows those who take refuge in Him.  We see Jesus calm the storms and the waves even as he walks on the water.  This is the God who created all, and has dominion over all.

Nahum 1:2-7
A jealous and avenging God is the Lord;
The Lord is avenging and wrathful.
The Lord takes vengeance on His adversaries,
And He reserves wrath for His enemies.
The Lord is slow to anger and great in power,
And the Lord will by no means leave the guilty unpunished.
In whirlwind and storm is His way,
And clouds are the dust beneath His feet.
He rebukes the sea and makes it dry;
He dries up all the rivers.
Bashan and Carmel wither;
The blossoms of Lebanon wither.
Mountains quake because of Him
And the hills dissolve;
Indeed the earth is upheaved by His presence,
The world and all the inhabitants in it.
Who can stand before His indignation?
Who can endure the burning of His anger?
His wrath is poured out like fire
And the rocks are broken up by Him.
The Lord is good,
A stronghold in the day of trouble,
And He knows those who take refuge in Him.

So if this is just a glimpse of the God we serve, (not to mention this is the God of creation), why then do I find myself asking, "What more do I need to do, God?  Why are we still waiting for you to heal Thatcher?  Do I need to somehow glorify you more? pray harder? longer? Praise you louder?  Be more courageous?"  I've come to realize that these questions are a trick, there is nothing I can do to earn your grace, or this miracle that I'm asking for, nothing I can do to earn your mercy.  This is something I've known, and heard and been taught, but this principle has become very real, and I feel like God is screaming in my ear to listen.  By their very definition and nature grace, miracles, mercy are in and of themselves unearned, and unable to be earned.  If something were earned it becomes a reward or something like it, and then the focus becomes on me, and the glory and praise would be mine.  I can do nothing to help Thatcher, my prayer has nothing to do with my abilities, therefore, God must be glorified.  God must be praised.  This is, to my knowledge, and in my understanding biblical, at this time all we can do is wait on God.  Anything else takes away from God's glory.  If we worry, we are proving our lack of trust in God's control, thus depriving the One who is worthy of glory from gaining exactly what He deserves.  If we try to earn the miracle we are asking for, then we are simply shifting the focus to us, and therefore we are the ones who should be thanked and praised, because it would be because of us that the miracle occurred.  Impossible, we can not earn a response, we can not earn God's grace.  All we can do is rest in who the Lord is, rest in the power of his voice, in the very nature of who He is and wait patiently for Him.  All we can do is be still, and know that He is God, and that He will be exalted throughout the earth, and correct me if I'm wrong, but the NICU is certainly still within the earth, God will be exalted even here.  We can not fear, we can not worry, and we must stand firm on who God is, and take refuge in Him.

Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him
- Psalm 37:7
Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.
- Psalm 46:10
Do not be afraid.  Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today...The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.
- Exodus 14:13-14
I am the Lord, the God of all mankind.  Is anything too hard for Me?
- Jeremiah 32:27

Plain and simple.  Our trust is in the Lord, it must be.  We will proclaim the power of the Lord, and glorify Him.  We will seek the Lord. Thank you, God, for who you are.

9 comments:

  1. God, as we wait for You to heal Thatcher according to Your will, I pray that You will provide a peace for Eric & Whitney that they've never felt before. I pray that You will comfort them & provide much needed rest & restoration for them. I pray that You will breath for Thatcher & control his seizures. Please show Yourself in a mighty way this day as they remain faithful to You. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen!

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  2. Praying for you two and your sweet little Thatcher. Know that your posts are touching the hearts of many. Your steadfastness in proclaiming God's goodness and Glory are testimony of that Goodness and Glory. I have a grandchild who has spent months in PICU and know it's only the grace and strength of God that sustains during these times. He is good. He is worthy of our praise. Yes, Lord!

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  3. You both amaze me every time I read your blog!! God is using you both and your precious Thatcher. I understand how hard having your child in NICU is and how alone you feel. My daughter was in NICU for 3 weeks. God blessed during that time and gave us the strength to make it through. He will do the same for you. I heard a song the other day on my way to work that said that God would allow us to bend but would not allow us to break. Know that God is with you and will continue to be with you!! You are constantly in my prayers! I praise God with you for all He has done for Thatcher and you both! Keep the faith and know that you are all loved and being prayed for!!!

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  4. Your strength and your journey has moved and touched me. Praying for baby boy Thatcher right now. Enjoy holding him!

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  5. Paul Family,
    We continue to lift you up in prayer! There isn't a day that goes by where I do not check Facebook or your blog to get an update on your precious family.

    I’m running back to your promises one more time, Lord that’s all I can hold on to, I gotta say this has taken me by surprise, but nothing surprises you. Before a heartache can ever touch my life, it has to go through Your hands, and even though I, keep asking why, I keep asking why,



    No matter what, I’m gonna love You, no matter what I’m gonna need You, I know that You can find a way to keep me from the pain but if not,if not, I’ll trust you, no matter what, no matter what.



    When I’m stuck in this nothing-ness by myself, I’m just sitting in silence, there’s no way I can make it without Your help, I wont even try it. I know You have Your reasons for everything, so I will keep believing, whatever I might be feeling, God you are my hope, and you'll be my strength,


    Anything I don’t have You can give it to me, but it’s ok if You don’t, I’m not here for those things, the touch of Your love is enough on its own, no matter what I still love You and I’m gonna need You

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  6. Praying for complete healing and for God to continue to be glorified in every inch of that NICU. Praying for sweet Thatcher to continue to feel your comforting and loving arms as you both are the hands and arms of Christ. He will be glorified and His will will be done! Thank you both for being so transparent as you share your journey!

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  7. Thank you for sharing your realization! Awesome.

    Thinking of and praying for Thatcher and you two constantly.

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  8. The Burton Family is praying for baby Thatcher and you both! You are blessed with such a beautiful baby boy.

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