Open the Book of Your Heart

From Tuesday, March 2, 2021.

I passed two school buses on my way to work yesterday. I cannot tell you how happy that made me. It has been months and months since I have seen a school bus in the morning. It was a very brisk morning yesterday, as it is today. There was a bit of low fog with breaks here and there, and the sun shining brightly above.

That whole scene reminded be of simper days. Of normal days. Of days before Covid and all the restrictions it has brought. It made me happy! And I thanked God for it.

No sooner had I thanked Him but I asked Him, "How much longer Lord? How much longer must we endure this? How much longer until I can visit my mother? When can we remove the masks? When can our children, who are suffering and struggling, go back to school, full-time? How much longer until people stop dying from this dreaded thing?"

He remained silent, as did I, for the remainder of my drive to work. But often throughout the day I would think about it.

If you are anything like me, you miss life the way it used to be. You miss the freedom to meet a friend for lunch, inside, with no fear. You miss all the activities that freedom from Covid offered. I could spend an hour writing about all the things I miss. Family gatherings at the coast. Potlucks after church. Hugs and handshakes to name a very few.

We have had to learn how to navigate on-line meetings and conferences and yes even on-line birthday celebrations, on-line school and working from home.

But, what else can we do?

We keep looking to Jesus! We keep up our prayer life; perhaps even make it stronger. We begin each morning in prayer. We study our Bible more. And we hold on to Faith!

I am starting a Bible study on the life of Elijah with my dear friend Mo. I have known Mo for several years but she really became a dear friend soon after I was let go from my job in October of 2020. My employer told me I was missing too much work taking care of my dying spouse, and just like that I was unemployed after 28 years. (Wendell passed away January 2nd of this year)

Mo reached out to me one day and asked if I would like to start a Bible study with her on the life of Elijah. Materials were not available until January, so I chose the study "Jesus Over Everything" and we got started. She would make the drive out to my house in the country every week and we would spend a couple of hours together.

It was such a blessing to have her in my home during such a heartbreaking time, but it was more important that we were growing our faith and learning how to put "Jesus over everything."

It took 6 weeks to finish that study and now we move on to the study she chose "Faith and Fire...Elijah"

Just this morning I was reading about Elijah and the prophets of Baal. You can read it for yourself in 1 Kings 18:19-39.

He was one man against 450 of Baal's prophets and yet is faith was so mighty, strong and sure!

He prayed, believing that God would send fire from heaven to burn up the offering. His faith was so strong he ordered the bull, the wood, the stones, to be soaked with water prior to his prayer. He prayed believing that God would deliver. And wow, did God deliver! Not only did the fire from heaven devour the wood and bull, but it devoured the stones and every bit of water that had collected in a trench around the alter!

Friends we need the faith of Elijah! We need to pray, knowing that God will deliver us. We need to pray knowing that Jesus is coming soon (the signs are all around us) We need to pray knowing that He is a God of justice and He will handle all of these problems that surround us.

The one thing that caught my attention, was the fact the Elijah did not just show up with that kind of faith. He had spent a lifetime listening to God and obeying God. He had seen God work so many times. He had spent years building his faith. Each struggle he had gone through, every trial, every miracle had given him "...faith, all that courage, all that boldness and confidence in prayer...all that fire!...it didn't just happen."

My desk calendar was perfect for my morning experience yesterday. "God made my life complete when I placed all the pieces before Him. When I got my act together, He gave me a fresh start...God rewrote the text of my life when I opened the book of my heart to His eyes." Psalm 18:20, 24.

I would encourage you to open the book of your heart. Let your heavenly Father do His good work in your life and just trust Him.

So, what else can we do? We keep looking to Jesus! We keep up our prayer life; perhaps even make it stronger. We begin each morning in prayer. We study our Bible more. And we hold on to Faith!

Hold on dear friends. And remember: Keep looking up! Jesus is coming soon.