Cast all your worries on Me.

            Come to me all you who are weary and I will give you rest.

                    Cast all your cares upon me for I care for you. 

As long as the sun rises and the sun sets; I am with you.

            

I created the heavens and the earth.

Though the mountains tremble and fall into the sea, do not be afraid, for the Everlasting God of all creation is watching over thee.

I see the smallest dew drop and the ocean so deep.  

I see the little sparrow sitting in it's nest and the eagle that is soaring majestically.

My eyes search far and wide for those who will put their trust in me.

I am the Alpha and Omega.

I AM the first and the last.

I am the Lion of Judah and the pure and spotless Lamb, who takes away the sin of the world.

I am the Mighty God.  I am Jesus your Savior and King. 

I am your Father in heaven and nothing in your life escapes my notice.  

Come cast all your worries on me.  

I am the Great I AM, who watches over thee.

(by Triss Curtis 11/16/2015)

Diamond in the Rough (From Coal to a Diamond)

Coal under heat and pressure becomes a diamond.  Our lives start out as coal, darkened by our sin and the sin of others.  God comes with the light and the power of His Spirit and when we allow Jesus to take over; the transformation begins.

 The Holy Spirit takes the pain, the heartaches, our failures and weakness and brings the heat of his truth into our mind and spirit.  As we listen to Christ and allow his Spirit to change our hearts and mind sets; our lives become clearer. 

The darkness flees, as Jesus shines into the areas of unforgiveness, shame, guilt and habitual sin. Just like a diamond of great value is clear and has a “fire” in it, so are we, as Christ works in our lives.  He purifies us and His “fire” shines through us to influence the lives of others.

 In this way, God takes what the enemy of our soul means for evil and instead He turns it for our good and the benefit others, as well as ultimately for His glory.

(Lord, thank you for taking the dark areas of our lives and making something beautiful out of them.  Thank you for continuing to purify our lives, so that we are shining diamonds in this dark world.  Amen)

1 Peter 1:6-7 (ESV)

"In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials,  so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

by Triss Curtis Nov. 4, 2015

Weeping may last for the night, but joy comes in the morning

Weeping may last for the night, but joy comes in the morning

“Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.” Psalm 30:5b

Last night I found myself awake at 2 am. I was restless and could not sleep, so I got up and went downstairs to read the bible and pray.  After meditating on God’s word and praying, my mind and spirit were at peace and I was able to go back upstairs and get more sleep.

When I woke up, Christy and I drove to get some coffee; she then headed to work and I started walking back home, for some exercise. It was early in the morning so the sun was lower in the sky; it seemed so quiet and peaceful; I felt grateful and I started praying and thanking God for the everyday things that I normally take for granted. I thanked him for the ability to breathe and to walk, and to be outside in the fresh air.  My mind wandered back to my early morning restlessness.My heart was full of thanksgiving for being able to go back to sleep.  

To most people that may not be a big deal, but I had a season in my life, where I was not getting enough sleep.  I tried many ways to get back to sleep, but my body was on hyper drive and as I would drift off, my body would shake me awake.  My peace of mind went away, my thoughts became jumbled and I wondered why God was allowing me to go through this trial.

 

It seemed the antithesis of his recent promise to me of blessing.  I started to wonder, what I did wrong.  Old memories of past sin and the feel of abandonment washed over me.  I felt stuck and thought I would never be released from this life sucking trial.  I prayed, others prayed for me, and still I was struggling to fall asleep.

I ended up going to a doctor and taking some medication that would knock me out and allow me to sleep, but the side effect was like living life in slow motion.  I felt dull and depressed.

 ‘Where is your God in all of this? He has abandoned you.’ This was the taunting thought from the enemy.

My emotions felt this was true, but somewhere deep inside me was a flicker of hope, which I believe was from the Holy Spirit.  Even though my faith and feelings were at war and my faith was small, my God was greater than all.  I felt like I was hanging on by a thread, but the Mighty God of Israel, was holding this weak child in His arms.

Finally, one day a breakthrough happened.  God spoke healing to my heart and the dawn light rose in my spirit.  God restored my health and restored the joy of my salvation.  He lifted me out of the pit and did not let my enemy triumph over me.

Yes I had a dark night of weeping, but joy came in the morning!

I do not have an answer for every painful trial we go through, but I do know that there is a sunrise at the end of each trial.  I know that God is with us even in the dark night, though we cannot feel him.  I praise him for restoring my hope, strengthening me and healing my heart.    

I thank God for teaching me to learn to lean on him during my trials and I thank him for reminding me that He is my deliverer.  I am thankful for Jesus, for His faithfulness in suffering for us, so that he can comfort us in our suffering.

Lord, please comfort and strengthen your people.  May we look to you and trust that you will wipe away all our tears and bring joy with the morning sun.  Amen

(Devotional Reading-Psalm 30)

By Triss Curtis  

Christ is my strength for every situation

This year my husband and I have the opportunity to coach our 5^th grade granddaughter’s volleyball team.  Curt is the head coach and I am his assistant.  It is wonderful to see these girls learning to play volleyball and how to work together as a team. 

The hard part for me is; I see them growing and increasing in their skills, and yet they are not winning games.  The mom in me, as well as the competitor in me, wants to see them win some games.  I want them to feel the success of winning, as well as being good sports when they lose.

I woke up this morning, thinking about last night’s game, and the realization came to me that Christ is as much in the losing, as the winning.  The scripture came to my mind, “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me. “

The apostle Paul said in his letter to the believers in Philippi:

“Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.  I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound.  In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.  I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:11-13

 Paul learned the secret of contentment in his time of need and lack, as well as his time of abundance; it was to depend on Christ to give him strength, in every situation.  I realized that I needed to learn this, as well as the girl’s on our volleyball team. 

It is easy to feel contentment when we succeed and are doing well in life.  It is when the struggles come that we learn whether our contentment is based on our situation, or is it based on our faith in Christ?  Do we trust that God is in all of our circumstances? Do we perceive the difficulties we face as opportunities to spiritually mature and grow in faith, or do we feel like giving up?

If you are in the midst of trials; ask the Lord to give you strength to face them, as well as to teach you contentment in Him.  Allow the Lord to build your spiritual endurance and a heart of gratitude.  If you feel that all is going well today; praise God and ask Him to give you the strength to gracefully receive and enjoy it. 

(Lord Jesus, whatever our situation, easy or tough; give us strength to accept them gracefully and teach us how to be grateful and content in you.  Amen)

Triss Curtis copyright September 2015