Things I Take For Granted

During camp there were sore throats going around and two kids had even lost their voice for a few days. I remember walking with a young girl to the girl's cabin and she could barely talk and I felt so sorry for her. Little did I know that I'd later be one of them...And can you believe that of all days it had to be the day of our family reunion? Talk about torture!

I had to whisper to everyone at the reunion. It was really annoying. I never thought before how much I valued my voice until I lost it for the day. It was so hard! I am sure my sisters enjoyed it as long as it lasted though :-)

During the day I got to the point that I didn't say anything because I couldn't say anything. I went back to the guest room at Grandma's and pulled out my Bible. During that time I talked to God and it dawned on me---even though I could talk to no one else, I could still talk to God. He could still understand me. Wow.

I wrote the following in my journal:

This experience makes me think of two things. First, I take things for granted WAY too easily. How I thank God for my voice! Second, how I love God. No one in my life is better than He. Even when my voice is gone and I can't talk to anyone else---God can still hear me. How awesome He is.

Thoughts of who God is has been consuming me lately. There is no one like Him. And there will never be anyone like Him.

Psalm 77:13

...who is so great a God as our God?

God is all I will ever need. He is all you'll ever need. He fills me and completes me. He is my joy and purpose. He is always with me, loves me like no one ever could, promises to never leave me, and He gives me hope. I have hope because I am His child. There's no situation too complicated or deep that I can't have hope. God is more than enough for me.

A song that has been really speaking to me lately is "By Your Side" by Tenth Avenue North.

The lyrics read:

Why are you striving these days?

Why are you trying to earn grace?

Why are you crying?

Let me lift up your face,

Just don't turn away.

Why are you looking for love?

Why are you still searching?

As if I'm not enough?

To where will you go child,

Tell me where will you run?

To where will you run?

I'll be by your side wherever you fall

In the dead of night whenever you call

Please don't fight these hands that are holding you

My hands are holding you

Look at these hands and my side

They swallowed the grave on that night

When I drank the world's sin

So I could carry you in

And give you life.

And I, I love you

And I want you to know

That I, I'll love you

I'll never let you go

That song gets to me ever time. God is everything to me. He's always by my side and He'll never leave me. Why should I look elsewhere? It doesn't matter where I am; God is always there. If I wake up in the middle of the night and everyone else is asleep, He's still there to listen to me. If I am lonely, He's next beside me. Even if I am in the shower, it doesn't matter. God is with me and He promised to never leave me.

God really does love me. The death of His Son proved that. Selfless love. Genuine love. No one could ever do what God has done or be what God is.

I can't imagine my life without God in it. He is my purpose. Without the Lord my life would be such a mess. I'd be looking for love and affection in all the wrong places, trying to cram all I could in the depths of my heart to try to fill it up. Only God can fill me and satisfy me completely.

Back to the subject of taking things for granted (like my voice), you know, it can be easy to take God for granted as well. I have been thinking lately about my salvation. I was saved at a young age and have grown up in a Christian home, so God has spared me from a lot of heartache and pain including some things that other believers may have had to go through before they were saved. I never really experienced my life without God in it. He has been in it as long as I can remember, so because of that it can be easy to take my salvation for granted.

But when I think of what my life could have been, or what my life would be without God in it, I am humbled and more grateful than words could ever say. I could never imagine what my life would be without the Lord. It's a very scary thought. I honestly don't want to think about it. Hopeless, full of fear and desperate would be to name a few. I will honestly tell you that if I wasn't saved I would not want to live.

God is my everything. He is has saved me, given me hope, given me joy, given me purpose! I was created for His glory!! I have a reason that I am here on the earth. I do not fear death. I would die for the Lord if I had to. If you threaten me with a gun you only threaten me with Heaven. I will be forever with Him one day when I leave this earth at His choosing.

God is so good. He loves us and He is merciful. If anyone is reading this who does not know God as their Lord and Saviour, I only pray that they will. I wish everyone was saved and knew the Lord. If only they knew what they were missing. Without the Lord you have nothing. There's nothing like being God's child.

This life on earth is just a vapor and is as bad as it's going to get for the Christian. There's always hope for the believer. Anyone can have this hope if they'll just trust in Jesus. I just can't wait to go to Heaven and see my Saviour's face one day!!

I guess I got a little carried away in what I was getting to. I feel like my thoughts are a little jumbled, so forgive me if they are, but I feel like I really needed to share this. I guess my main message would be is this: if you are a believer, don't take God for granted. It has been said that you get as much out of God as you put into Him. James 4:8 says: "Draw nigh to God and He will draw nigh to you..." It has also been said that many people are willing to die for Christ but few are willing to live for Him...

Don't wait to be saved if you are an unbeliever and don't wait to live for God if you are a believer. Like the song said, don't fight God's hands. There's nothing else worth living for. God is everything we'll ever need and He desires a relationship with you. Don't put it off. And don't take it for granted. We've been given a gift that money could never buy.

God is all we could ever ask for.