Finding Pure Treasure

Wisdom and knowledge will be the stability of your times; And the strength of salvation; The fear of the Lord is His treasure. Is.33:6

O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. 

Psalm 34:8

As I took a walk on my Christmas holiday, my feet crunched upon the little round droplets of ice encrusted  snow. The little circles of ice droplets made a lovely pattern in my sister's yard. I thought about God's words to Job about the treasury of snow (Job 38:22) and the mystery of every different single snowflake. It looked so pretty I snapped a picture with my camera. Just one nanosecond of time that pictured a certain amount of molecules ordered together by a loving God who holds the entire creation together by His awesome power.

For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. [Col 1:17 KJV]

God is the author of all the mysteries in the universe, both great and small. Whether it is staring into the Milky Way Galaxy from a ranch in Arizona (as I did in 2006) or staring at the crystals of snow on the ground in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania in 2016, I am reminded that my God is a God of wonders, a God of limitless treasures. And He Himself is the treasure that I will never grow tired of, or bored with, or become dissatisfied with.

He, and He alone, is the treasure.

Some things happened yesterday that helped to rouse me from the slumber I fall into so easily. Not only slumber but also spiritual doldrums  hit me hard at this time of year. How is it that my heart can wander away from God so easily? How is it so easy to want to find something that will replace what only God can give me?

Food and all the pleasures of eating cannot give me that satisfaction.

Friends and family members, no matter how near and dear they are, cannot give me that satisfaction.

Novels with great plots and great characterization cannot give me that satisfaction.

Being the girl with the most fabric and sewing projects cannot give me that satisfaction.

The Steelers winning against the Kansas City Chiefs tonight cannot give me that satisfaction.

Even the satisfaction of seeing my name in print cannot give me that satisfaction.

Still, the liar whispers to me that I will not find satisfaction in God.

But, all that enemy can do is to lie, and cheat us and steal from us all the abundant life that Jesus wants us to have.

Last night, I read a book called Taste: My Life Without Food by a pastor named Gordon Meier. I found it at  Goodwill, of all places . He suffers from a rare disorder that makes it impossible to eat food, and can only be fed by parenteral nutrition. A man who loved food in all its differing delicacies can no longer partake of one bite of it, but he praises God anyhow that he is learning how to really taste and see that God is good. I highly recommend it if anyone may struggle with looking to food to meet their inward satisfaction.

I took a long walk today and tasted that God was good as I just sang along a melody of praise to Him in my heart, telling myself I need nothing more than Him to be my happiness. If ever I think I might grow bored with God, that thought can be immediately dismissed for His depths are unlimited. He has no boundaries and He is not a man with feet of clay like all of us. He is the Perfect Man, the God Man. And the best news of all is that this wonderful God never gets tired of me coming to Him to fill up that needy cup that I have once again.

O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! 

For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor?

Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? 

For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen. [Rom 11: 33-36 KJV]

There is nothing I can do to stop this wonderful God from loving me. (Romans 8: 28-39) Even my sin will not separate me from His love. 

He is the treasure my heart is seeking for, both now and forever. I pray today you may also find Him as your most precious treasure.

On Christmas Night

So
that
I
come
to my
father's
house
in peace;
then the
LORD
shall be
my God.
Genesis 28:21

The above verse is not too "Christmas-y" but it describes my quiet Christmas day of peace. Somehow, it has taken me a long time to realize the best Christmases are not when I get everything I want, but to be a blessing to others.

Now that the kids are long gone, we did not want my Mom and Dad to sit alone in their house while we sat alone in ours, so we surprised them with a visit and a meal. Just sitting and sharing together about the Lord and being able to serve them a delicious meal made my day. Especially after when I am tempted to think of the things I don't have, it is far better to think of all the blessings I do have.

I have a warm caring husband who treated my parents with gentleness and a servant's heart. I have two beautiful grandsons and another little one on the way. I have a roof over my head and clothes to wear. I have caring sons and daughter in laws. Yes, I am blessed.

Even if I never got another present in this life, I have the gift of His eternal Presence. The great I Am, the Creator of the universe, has seen fit somehow to include me as a part of His very own family. He tells me I have not just some, but every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places with Him. (Ephesians 1:3) I have His unfailing love and a fresh start every day. No matter how bad the mistakes I made yesterday, I can start over with a conscience that has been purged from guilt. (Hebrews 9:14) Not because I did anything to clean that conscience, but that Another saw fit to take in His body my every mistake: my bad thoughts, words and deeds and pay the penalty in full for them.

Tell me, is that gift not worth more than a thousand Mercedes-Benz's? Isn't having a secure destiny and His constant love worth more than having all the money of a Donald Trump or Warren Buffet?

Holidays can be difficult because we want them to be perfect. But how can they when we all are imperfect people? This holiday, how about giving ourselves the gift of peace? It comes when we thank God for all our many undeserved presents underneath the Eternal tree of Calvary, and His enduring Presence in our lives for time and eternity. Now that is the gift that really keeps on giving.

I wish you His peace this Christmas night.