Choir Tour

So I am on tour with the Moody Women's Concert Choir, we are in the mid-atlantic states for a 2 week tour over spring break. God has been teaching me so much this last week! I can't believe how many lessons God has been teaching me. My brain is on overload not only from exhaustion after having at least one concert a day, but also from all the lessons that God keeps bringing to my attention. Because I don't have much time to really process here, I am just going to put some quotes from different things that I have come across. First, I bring before you you guessed it! Much-Afraid:

"Shepherd," she shrieked, "Shepherd! Shepherd! Help me! Where are you? Do not leave me!" Next instant she was clinging to him trembling from head to foot, sobbing over and over again, "You may do anything, Shepherd. You may ask anything- only don't let me turn back. O my Lord, don't let me leave you. Entreat me not to leave thee nor turn from following after thee." Then as she continued to cling to him she sobbed out, "If you can deceive me, my Lord, about the promise and the hind's feet and the new name or anything else, you may, indeed you may; only don't let me leave you. Don't let anything turn me back. This path looked so wrong, I could hardly believe it was the right one," and she sobbed bitterly.

He lifted her up, supported her by his arm, and with his own hand wiped the tears from her cheeks, then said in his strong cheery voice, "there is no question of your turning back Much-Afraid. No one, not even your own shrinking heart can pluck you out of my hand. Don't you remember what I told you before? 'this delay is not unto death, but for the glory of God.' You haven't forgotten already the lesson you had been learning have you?

"It is no less true now that 'what I do thou knowest not how, but thou shalt know here after.' My sheep hear my voice, and they follow me. It is perfectly safe for you to go on this way even though it looks wrong, and I now give you another promise: Thine ears shall hear a word behind thee saying,'this is the way, walk ye in it,' when ye turn to the right hand of the left."

The powerful words and promises of our dear savior. While al of life crumbles around us and we don't know where to turn because all paths look as though they lead to death, we know to stop and listen to the still small voice, that promises to never let us out of his hand. As one of the songs of our concert says: "His eye is on the sparrow, and I know he watches me."

The next thing that I want to share with you here, is a little of the story of our contact person from our last church, Ruth Moran. She shared her testimony today during the sunday school hour between services. Ruth has cancer, and a lot of it. since 1998, she has been fighting this fight, and it has left her physically disfigured in face, and unable to eat anything but a liquid diet through a feeding tube to her stomach. Yet through all this Ruth and her family are able to praise God through it all. She had her son assisting her with her slideshow during the testimony and near the end, she was talking about how they as a family deal with the pain and hurt that they face every day. too this she replied that they go back and forth with a question: what is the worst thing that can happen? starting small, they answer: she could be disfigured (that happened), she could die on the table (thankfully not), again: "what is the worst that could happen?" her son responded with confidence: "nothing." "what happens if I die?" "you go to heaven" "what happens to you if I go to heaven?" "Nothing, I'll go to heaven." The proclamation of that 14 year-old boy moved I believe the entire choir, or those who were not already, to tears.

here are a few quotes from her testimony that was printed in her pamphlet:

I honestly say that I would not take back my former life:when i find my delight in him, He literally gives me the desires of my heart, just as Psalm 37:4 promises.

I am convinced that not only does God send everything we need, but we need everything God sends.

Thanks for listening to my ramblings of the jumbled thoughts in my head. God will continue to teach and lead me, and I pray that I will one day understand, even partially, the many things that God shows me. to God be the Glory for all that He has done and will do through us, His servants.