In my first blog I talked about how trusting God was so hard. Recently, I've found myself truly trusting Him without any difficulties, just comes naturally. Something completely ridiculous happened, and it was easy for me to take it to Him and say, "what was that? It made no sense and it was obviously not from You. I don't understand, but I know from Your Word that You are working out Your Master plan, and I trust You."
How was it so easy? Because I know Him. You can't trust someone that you don't know, right? You wouldn't trust a stranger to hold your wallet or watch your children. It's the same thing with God. Sure, you've met Him, been filled with His Spirit, are acquainted, but you can't know Him without studying His Word. Pray His Word, and ask Him to reveal Himself through His Word. You've got to really know Him to completely trust Him.
It's natural to trust someone you know. It's easy to believe what they say. Once you start getting to know God, you will see. You will see specific prayers He has answered. You will see Divine intervention in the hardest of times. Then when you again are faced with an issue, you can say, "Lord, You did that last thing for me, I know You will not fail me. I trust You."
King David was known as a man after God's own heart. He most certainly knew the Lord. In Psalm 91:1-3 he wrote, "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, "My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." For he will deliver you from every trap..." This lets us know that when you dwell (meaning to live in or not ever leave) in the shelter of the Lord, you can trust Him and He will deliver you. You have to constantly chase after Him to get to know Him. It's a way of life, not a one time action. It's a commitment to a relationship with the King of kings.
Psalm 37:5 says, "commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. Fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!" When you commit your way to the Lord, He will be your Defender. He will act. He sees your righteousness and will bring justice. Once He forgives you of your sins, He can only see your righteousness. This was written by King David, who was very familiar with sin, but He knew that God no longer sees those sins once they are forgiven, even though men try to carry out evil devices!
It's such a relief to be able to let it go and let God handle the situation. He brings peace and joy, when you would usually be worried and upset. He brings love and hope, when you should be lonely and afraid. Oh! Trusting in the Lord will also make you fruitful! Jeremiah 17:7-8 says that the man who trusts in the Lord is blessed, is like a strong tree planted by the water who does not fear, is not anxious, and does not cease to bear fruit!
It all goes back to that "putting Him in charge" thing. I've always known of Him, but I've never allowed myself to get to really know Him until everything fell apart. This is very common among believers.
Even Job was described by God as blameless and upright, fearing God and turned away from evil (Job 1:8), but he completely fell apart when he was tested and had to repent. At the end of the book after God tells him that he was wrong to ever doubt Him, Job tells God, "I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eyes see you, therefore I despise myself and repent.." Job 42:5-6. Job admitted that he had heard God, but did not really know who He was. He despised himself for this. I'm sure he was wishing that He had known God before, so that He could have fully trusted Him throughout all those trials.
Don't wait for your world to fall apart! Seek Him now! Then, when you find yourself in a situation you don't understand, you can say, "I trust You, Lord," and really mean it! You can't trust Him, if you don't know Him. It's impossible.
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
Sunday, March 15, 2015
I Caused a "Trauma One"
Working in the hospital you hear many different messages called out over the paging system. Most people are familiar with a "code blue, " which pretty much means someone has died. Sometimes the person is able to be resuscitated (revived), and sometimes they are not or it was expected for them to pass.
Most people, including a lot of nurses and doctors who do not work in the emergency room setting, don't know what "trauma one" really means. After working in the emergency department and seeing patients brought in labeled as a "trauma one," I cringe when I hear that called out over the paging system.
The initial arrival of a patient in the trauma one status is chaos to an observer. There is usually an unresponsive victim with massive amounts of injuries and body fluids going everywhere. Dozens of people are swarming to save the person's life, which is hanging in the balance and seconds can make a huge difference in the outcome.
Some of the criteria for a "trauma one" include:
Airway/Breaching Unstable, requiring immediate airway intervention
Severe Facial Injuries
Moderate-Severe Respiratory Distress
Arterial Bleeding
Spinal Shock, Spinal Cord Injury
Head Injury with Loss of Consciousness
Chest/Abdomen/Pelvis Injury
Cardiac or Major Chest Wall Injury
Multiple Long Bone Fractures with Shock
Pulseless Extremity with Evidence of Trauma
Penetrating Trauma to the Head, Face, Torso
The trauma team includes, but is not limited to: Trauma Surgeon, Emergency Department Attending Physician, Chief Surgical-Trauma Resident Physician, Emergency Department Resident Physician, Several Emergency Department Nurses, Paramedics, Emergency Department Charge nurse, Emergency Department Tech, Respiratory Therapist, X-Ray Technologist, and CT Technologist.
You may wonder why I'm telling you all this, but I want you to get a good visual image of how we respond to someone who meets the trauma one criteria. When someone has suffered these injuries, it's a HUGE deal.
This morning a minister came to our church and preached a message about the crucifixion of Christ. The picture verbally painted by the minister was of a man most certainly in a trauma one status. Read the criteria for trauma one that I listed above again...that was Jesus. I was thinking of how I would have felt if I had walked up and found this Man in that condition today. I know the deep wounds from His beating and torture and agonizing pain He experienced would have required a trauma center and an entire team of medical staff to respond to this Victim.
Then I thought about how I was the cause of this trauma one Victim. My sin beat Him and nailed Him to that cross. My sin induced torture and agonizing pain. My life meant so much to Him that endured great trauma and death to save me. His resurrection allows me to have the gift of eternal life. Why? How? Who am I that the King of kings would endure that for me?
Maybe this isn't profound to you, but picturing Jesus as a trauma one Victim made me realize how serious sin really is. I don't ever want to take for granted the price that He paid at Calvary. I don't ever want to forget that I caused Jesus to be a trauma one Victim, and He loved me enough to endure it.
Just as serious as sin is, His blood is that much more powerful. My sin has been covered by His blood. His crucifixion brings Power to cover that sin. Ephesians 1:7 says that we are redeemed by His blood. Isaiah 43:25 tells us that once He forgives us for our sins, He remembers those sins no more! That is how powerful His blood is!
What an awesome, powerful, merciful, loving God we serve!
Most people, including a lot of nurses and doctors who do not work in the emergency room setting, don't know what "trauma one" really means. After working in the emergency department and seeing patients brought in labeled as a "trauma one," I cringe when I hear that called out over the paging system.
The initial arrival of a patient in the trauma one status is chaos to an observer. There is usually an unresponsive victim with massive amounts of injuries and body fluids going everywhere. Dozens of people are swarming to save the person's life, which is hanging in the balance and seconds can make a huge difference in the outcome.
Some of the criteria for a "trauma one" include:
Airway/Breaching Unstable, requiring immediate airway intervention
Severe Facial Injuries
Moderate-Severe Respiratory Distress
Arterial Bleeding
Spinal Shock, Spinal Cord Injury
Head Injury with Loss of Consciousness
Chest/Abdomen/Pelvis Injury
Cardiac or Major Chest Wall Injury
Multiple Long Bone Fractures with Shock
Pulseless Extremity with Evidence of Trauma
Penetrating Trauma to the Head, Face, Torso
The trauma team includes, but is not limited to: Trauma Surgeon, Emergency Department Attending Physician, Chief Surgical-Trauma Resident Physician, Emergency Department Resident Physician, Several Emergency Department Nurses, Paramedics, Emergency Department Charge nurse, Emergency Department Tech, Respiratory Therapist, X-Ray Technologist, and CT Technologist.
You may wonder why I'm telling you all this, but I want you to get a good visual image of how we respond to someone who meets the trauma one criteria. When someone has suffered these injuries, it's a HUGE deal.
This morning a minister came to our church and preached a message about the crucifixion of Christ. The picture verbally painted by the minister was of a man most certainly in a trauma one status. Read the criteria for trauma one that I listed above again...that was Jesus. I was thinking of how I would have felt if I had walked up and found this Man in that condition today. I know the deep wounds from His beating and torture and agonizing pain He experienced would have required a trauma center and an entire team of medical staff to respond to this Victim.
Then I thought about how I was the cause of this trauma one Victim. My sin beat Him and nailed Him to that cross. My sin induced torture and agonizing pain. My life meant so much to Him that endured great trauma and death to save me. His resurrection allows me to have the gift of eternal life. Why? How? Who am I that the King of kings would endure that for me?
Maybe this isn't profound to you, but picturing Jesus as a trauma one Victim made me realize how serious sin really is. I don't ever want to take for granted the price that He paid at Calvary. I don't ever want to forget that I caused Jesus to be a trauma one Victim, and He loved me enough to endure it.
Just as serious as sin is, His blood is that much more powerful. My sin has been covered by His blood. His crucifixion brings Power to cover that sin. Ephesians 1:7 says that we are redeemed by His blood. Isaiah 43:25 tells us that once He forgives us for our sins, He remembers those sins no more! That is how powerful His blood is!
What an awesome, powerful, merciful, loving God we serve!
Thursday, March 5, 2015
News Flash: Life's NOT About You!
One of the most important lessons that I've learned as a parent is that life is not about me. Oh, it was a pretty hard lesson to learn. You know what I'm referring to....
You don't get to sleep when you want to. You don't get to spend your money on what you want to. You don't get to eat what you want to. You don't get to pee in private. Yea, you know what I'm talking about! The list goes on and on.
My kids and I had a theme last month: OTHERS. We had Philippians 2:4 posted all over the house. I tried to teach them to think about others. Help others. Encourage others. Forget self.
It wasn't until I started trying to teach them this, that I started realizing all the selfishness in our world. So many people are searching for happiness and contentment. Their loneliness is so overwhelming, they can't think of others. They are thinking, "what about me?" or "who is going to take care of my needs?"
God will always provide. Your needs greatly diminish when you see the needs of others. If you are focused on what you are holding in your hand, you can't see the world around you. Put what you are holding back on the altar, let Him take care of it, and go find someone in need. Pray for someone else. Encourage someone else. Reach out to someone else.
Some people have a personal story for everything. Forget your personal story and listen to someone else's personal story. They might be making their last cry out for help before they attempt suicide. They might be crying out for direction to the Prince of Peace.
Matthew 16:25 says that whoever loses his life for His sake will find it. Jesus walked this earth focused on others. He was healing others, saving others, teaching others. We have to "lose" our own life being like Him, focused on others, and we will find true fulfillment.
So, yea, life isn't about you, really. It's about others. Give God your mess. Let Him give you peace while He's working on it, and go help someone else. Leave the pity party and join the Peace party! It's a much better place to dwell in!
You don't get to sleep when you want to. You don't get to spend your money on what you want to. You don't get to eat what you want to. You don't get to pee in private. Yea, you know what I'm talking about! The list goes on and on.
My kids and I had a theme last month: OTHERS. We had Philippians 2:4 posted all over the house. I tried to teach them to think about others. Help others. Encourage others. Forget self.
It wasn't until I started trying to teach them this, that I started realizing all the selfishness in our world. So many people are searching for happiness and contentment. Their loneliness is so overwhelming, they can't think of others. They are thinking, "what about me?" or "who is going to take care of my needs?"
God will always provide. Your needs greatly diminish when you see the needs of others. If you are focused on what you are holding in your hand, you can't see the world around you. Put what you are holding back on the altar, let Him take care of it, and go find someone in need. Pray for someone else. Encourage someone else. Reach out to someone else.
Some people have a personal story for everything. Forget your personal story and listen to someone else's personal story. They might be making their last cry out for help before they attempt suicide. They might be crying out for direction to the Prince of Peace.
Matthew 16:25 says that whoever loses his life for His sake will find it. Jesus walked this earth focused on others. He was healing others, saving others, teaching others. We have to "lose" our own life being like Him, focused on others, and we will find true fulfillment.
So, yea, life isn't about you, really. It's about others. Give God your mess. Let Him give you peace while He's working on it, and go help someone else. Leave the pity party and join the Peace party! It's a much better place to dwell in!
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