Stevemidkiff's Blog

Samuel Rutherford wrote

“When we know where we’re headed we shouldn’t worry about our limp”

Keep moving forward step by step

We go up by faith daily and see the place Christ is preparing for us.

Look through all our Father’s

rooms in heaven.

In our Father’s house are many dwelling places.”

When we purchase a place we shop first, we’re looking before we buy

But Christ has purchased for us already a mansion in His ivory

Palaces

But He asks us to come and see,

by faith,

See the mansions prepared

See the person who made them

See the work He’s done

See the costs He’s paid

for our new place

We go and see as often as we want

A. B. SIMPSON notes

“Faith doesn’t concern itself

with our limitations”

Faith doesn’t worry over obstacles

Faith let’s Jesus live through our handicaps

Faith let’s Jesus use our pain

Faith sees Jesus in the places He

has us in

It’s not about what we are in ourselves

It’s about who we are in Jesus

“God reveals what a great God

He is for us.”

He asks us to open our eyes to see Him in everything…

The more we get from God,

the bigger beggars we are

And the greater our Father is

in all He provides

We’re to see His hand of provision

He’s opened His hand with gifts

Our Lord puts us in a position

where we have to take everything from His resources

God is disappointed

when we fail to do so.

George Herbert claimed that

he saw God through his pen

How should I praise You, Lord!

how should our rhymes

Gladly engrave Your love in steel,

If what our soul does feel sometimes,

Yes if our soul might ever feel!

We’re aimed to feel the love of God

He wrote to engrave it in the steel

of human language for others

to see and feel.

His Poetry was entirely for God,

Isn’t our everything entirely for God?

He wrote:

As a poet He wanted to be

God’s echo.

God’s secretary.

To me,

Herbert’s noted my poems are the

“Secretarie of Your praise.”

O Sacred Providence,

who from end to end

Strongly and sweetly moves us!

shall we write,

And not write of You,

You through whom

our fingers bend

To hold our quill?

shall we not do You right?

Of all the creatures

both in sea and on land

But only to us

You’ve made known Your ways,

You put the pen into our hand,

You made us Secretaries

of Your praise.

God bends our fingers

around His quill.

Cause us to do You right

Make us faithful secretaries

of Your praise —

Let us faithfully render —

Let us beautifully render —

the riches of Your truth and beauty

Writing Leads to Seeing

In the poetic effort to speak

the riches of God’s greatness

Give deeper sight

into Your greatness.

Writing poetry isn’t merely

the expression of our experience

with God

We didn’t have it before the writing.

The writing is part of

our experience of God.

In writing we get the actualities

we get, the essence of things.

As one has written

My God, a verse is not a crown,

No point of honor, or happy suit,

No hawk, or banquet, or renown,

Nor a good sword, nor yet a lute:

It cannot vault, or dance, or play;

It never was in France or Spain;

Nor can it entertain the day

With a great stable or demain:

It is no office, art, or news;

Nor the Exchange, or busy Hall;

But it is that which while I use

I am with You, and Your my all.

Love bade me welcome:

yet my soul drew back,

The Guilt of dust and sin.

But quick-ey’d Love,

observed me grow slack

From my first entrance in,

You Drew nearer to me,

You sweetly questioned

If I lack’d any thing.

A guest, I answer’d,

I’m unworthy to be here:

Love said, you shall be he.

But I’m unkind,

But I’m ungrateful

I can’t look on You.

Your Love takes our hand,

and smiling You reply,

Who made the eyes but I?

Truth Lord, but we are marred:

this is our shame

Go to another who deserves You.

But, Love says, I bore the blame?

So we will serve.

You must sit down, says Love,

and taste My meat:

So we sit and eat.

Love’s yoke is easy

Love’s burden is light.

The King of kings serves us

He reclines us at His table,

and He comes and serve us

Luke 12:37

Love says:

sit down,

and taste my meat:

So we sit and eat.

So amazing that Jesus

would feast with us

So amazing that Jesus loves us

So amazing that He would

wrap a towel around Himself

and bow down to us

and wash our feet

before He goes to die for us

So amazing that His call of love

still comes to our ears

to bring us to feast with Him

He washes our feet

He makes us whole

What wondrous love is this,

O my soul, O my soul!

What wondrous love is this,

O my soul!

What wondrous love is this

that caused the Lord of bliss

To bear the dreadful curse

for my soul, for my soul,

To bear the dreadful curse

for my soul.

To God and to the Lamb,

I will sing, I will sing;

To God and to the Lamb I will sing.

To God and to the Lamb

Who is the great I Am;

While millions join the theme,

I will sing, I will sing;

While millions join the theme,

I will sing.

You friends of Zion’s king,

join His praise, join His praise;

You friends of Zion’s king,

join His praise;

You friends of Zion’s king,

with hearts and voices sing,

and strike each tuneful string

in His praise, in His praise!

and strike each tuneful string

in His praise!

Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, the prophets….

Through acts of faith,

they toppled kingdoms,

made justice work,

took the promises for themselves.

They were protected from lions,

They were protected in the fires,

They were protected when swords were thrusts at them,

They turned disadvantage to advantage,

They won battles,

They routed alien armies.

Women received their loved ones back from the dead.

There were those who,

under torture,

They refused to give in and go free,

They preferred something better:

They sought resurrection.

Others braved abuse and whips,

Others endured chains

Others survived dungeons.

We have stories of those

who were stoned,

Stories of some sawed in two,

We have stories of those who were murdered in cold blood;

We have stories of vagrants wandering the earth in animal skins,

We have stories of those who were homeless, friendless, powerless—

The world didn’t deserve them!—

They were making their way as best they could on the cruel edges of the world.

Heb. 11:32-38

“And there came a lion.”

1 Sam. 17:34

It is a source of inspiration and strength to come in touch with David, trusting God.

Through faith in God David conquered a lion and a bear,

and afterwards God used David to overthrow a giant problem, Goliath.

When that lion came to ravage the flock,

David viewed it as a wonderful opportunity

He could have failed by fear and missed God’s opportunity for him

But He was by faith made bold

“”And there came a lion.”

The lion was a special blessing

from God;

The lion was God’s opportunity

in disguise.

Every difficulty we have, is God’s opportunity.

Every temptation that comes is God’s opportunity.

When our “lion” comes,

We’re to recognize it as God’s opportunity

Faith doesn’t recoil at the terror of the roaring exterior.

God’s tabernacle was covered with badgers’ skins and goats’ hair;

How can a rough hairy exterior

have God’s glory disguised?

The Shekinah of God is hidden under all kinds of covering.

God please open our eyes to see You under every grizzly challenge

Lord God let us have

an eye of faith on Your power

in every temptation,

in every trials,

in every dangers,

in every misfortunes

in every weakness

Adapted

God You Alone Can Save

Give us eyes to see

O Lord, we’re insufficient

You are all-sufficient

We feel inadequate

You are completely adequate

We have to have Your intervention

Not just here and there

But constantly

Intervene for us

please help

You can pierce the scales

of the monstrous ones

You can get under the thick

impenetrable skin of Leviathan

Penetrate everything that

appears impenetrable

You can make us feel

all that You desire us to feel

You can speak to a grave

You can call out to the dead

to come to life

You can speak to rocks

You can bring praise

from hard hearts

You can lecture the mountains

and they skip like Rams

the little hills like Lambs

You can move them

You move us where You want

You can move anyone with arguments

You can make the blind see

You, Lord, can pierce

our hearts the sinner

Penetrate our hearts Lord

You can direct an arrow between

the cracks of our armor

Direct us with truth

Cut deep into our bone and marrow

You are the God of all armies

We come through David against Goliath

We come to wrestle,

not with flesh and blood

You wrestle through us

with the raging rulers

and cosmic powers

You wrestle through us

with spiritual forces

of the evil of this world

Lord defeat the wicked one

Lord, take away the armor

from the strong man

Lord give us the captives

out of Satans grasp

Lord, choose our words

Lord, skill us in the use

of Your weapons

Lord, pierce below

our resistant surface

Lord, cut to the heart

Lord, take all opposition down

We will pray until You hear us

We will pray until our loved ones

live in Your sight!

Lord, save them, or they will perish

Our hearts are crushed

if our loved ones

are endlessly lost

Lord, have compassion,

Lord, save us out of the burning

Put your powerful voice forth

and the work will be done

Slay our sin and save our soul

The hardest part of forgiving another person is acting like the offense never occurred.

David Jeremiah notes that

“forgiving someone means—

restoring a relationships to the status they enjoyed before the offense took place.

It’s one thing to say,

“I forgive you,”

but it’s another to act like all the effects of an offense are completely erased.”

So:

Love is known by its actions

more than its words.

Jesus faced this dilemma

when He healed a paralytic man.

He told the man that his sins were forgiven

(and by extension, he was healed),

He was criticized.

He was accused of blaspheming

But why?

He had the authority to forgive sins—something only God can do.

So, Jesus proved He had the authority to say,

“I forgive you,”

by doing something harder.

He healed the man’s paralysis.

After all, as Jesus explained,

actions speak louder than words

(Mark 2:8-11).

We cannot go through life without being hurt by others,

so we should learn to forgive.

But maybe the crux of it

We’re in a paralysis in ourselves!

We’re not savoring our forgiveness

We can’t practice forgiveness

by demonstrating

acts of lovingkindness.

As we’ve no appropriated our forgiveness from Jesus

We’re not embracing Jesus

Constant Lovingkindness

That’s new every morning

That’s new every moment

That’s new every minute

G. Campbell Morgan wrote:

“Forgiveness is to be

set loose from sins.”

Forgiveness is embracing those who have hurt us

by saying and

by feeling

that the wrongs done

are now irrelevant!!!

In all our Bible quoting,
In all our planning,
all our counseling,
In all our reasonableness,
In all our force,
In all our pleadings,
In all our laws,
In all our graces,

We discover something
that only Jesus can do it in us
that only Jesus can do it through us

And He humbles us into waiting for Him to do it.

Adapted from Zack Eswine
Sensing Jesus:
Life and Ministry as a Human Being

When we take God seriously

The simple truth is
that a mere kernel of faith,
a miniature poppy seed of trust,

This measure of confidence in God

Let’s us tell any mountain:

Move!’ and it will move.

There’s nothing we can’t face

We can tackle everything

It is possible!
We can reckon on God’s power

Our Lord will keep us
Our Lord will deliver us
Our Lord will give us the victory

His promises are our stand

His assurances are our treasure

We cast all our care on Him daily
He faithfully carries our burden
We enjoy deep peace in Him

Jesus purifies our thoughts
Jesus fills our imaginations
Christ’s words impact our thoughts with deep meaning

We can see God’s will in everything We receive it:
our sighing is lifted to singing.

In a remix of H. C. G. Moule:

“It is possible:
as we take complete refuge
in Divine power
to become strong
through and through;

It is possible:
where previously in our greatest weakness,
to find that things that upset us

The stuff that blocked our resolves to be patient,

The stuff that obstructed our desire to be pure,

The stuff that hampered our longing to be humble,

Are all transformed into opportunities—

through Christ who loves us

through God’s Spirit who works in us our agreement with His will

As our Father blesses us with a sense of His presence

As He motivates us with Jesus resurrection power—

We get new life from our surrounding death

Our attraction to Christ
is an experience of His life

His life makes sin powerless over us.

These things are divine possibilities
This is His Spirits work,
We experience His healing
We feel His empowering touch
We bow lower and lower at His feet
We learn of Him
We thirst and long for more of Christ

Jesus is the only one who satisfies each day, each hour, each moment,

In Christ, through the power of the His Spirit—we walk with God.”

McLaren notes:

We have as much of God as we desire.
Christ puts the key of the treasure-chamber into our hand,
Jesus bids us take all that we want.

If we are admitted into the gold bullion vault of a bank and we’re told to help ourselves

If we come out with one cent,
whose fault is it that we are poor?

Whose fault is it that we generally have such scanty portions of the free riches of God?

God fills our cup to overflowing

Bring a bigger mug each moment
He fills every vessel.

Bring more vessels.

Three years ago on 2/18/2018

They opened Jill’s left leg up in a surgical procedure

Two days later they removed
Her leg severing it above the knee.
The bacterial infection had demolished her leg and would have taken her life if the leg was not removed

Eight months later in October of 2018 they made some revisions to
her amputation taking six more inches off.

Now Jill needs surgery on her right leg. The knee needs replacing and the tibia is broken which is the bone just below the knee.

Her surgery to replace the right knee and repair the tibia canceled about 4 weeks ago

Jill had been anesthetized and was in the surgery room when they canceled it due to visible infection

The surgery was rescheduled for two weeks later. Unfortunately that again was canceled because of infection.

The surgery is now rescheduled
for 2/24/21

Jill is on a new antibiotic and we
hope this will neutralize the internal opposition of these opportunistic germs.

It’s an extreme challenge for Jill in every transfer and movement

“I hear, and my body trembles;
my lips quiver at the sound; rottenness enters into my bones;
my legs tremble beneath me.

Yet I will quietly wait for the day of trouble to come upon people who invade us.

Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
and the fields yield no food,

the flock be cut off from the fold
and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord;

I will take joy in the God of my salvation.

Habakkuk 3:16–18

Lord Jesus we’re held under the umbrella of Your protection

Let us know;

let us press on to KNOW You Lord;

Your movings around us

In the morning dawn

As You engulf us with Your showers,

You water the earth

Hos. 6:4

O God of our Lord Jesus Christ,

O Father of glory,

Would You give to us

the spirit of wisdom and revelation

in the KNOWLEDGE of HIM

Eph. 1:16

Give Your word for “knowledge”

not just facts

Our prayer is we want You deeper.

We want intimacy with You God.

We want a deeper understanding

To live enveloped in Your umbrella

Prompt us with

KNOWLEDGE of HIM

“the fullness of knowledge.”

to understand

to stand under

to experience You God.

to be drawn into God Yourself

not just the facts about You.

Give us deep understanding

of You God in our life

Display over us Your work of grace

We bow down to You,

We surrender to You.

We want to be inundated,

We want to be drenched,

We want to be flooded

and filled with You God.

We long to walk with you

step by step

You’re allowing shocking experience You’re challenges expose our humiliating weaknesses

These experiences cause us to draw on Your strength

Please lead us to

Walk with You to know You intimately as our ALL in all

Flood us with Your Spirit,

God, give us a spirit of wisdom

Give us a spirit of revelation

reveal Jesus to us

reveal Christ with us and for us

so that we might grow in each

interaction of Him,

Make Your voice through Your Word audibly real, clear and vivid in our showering challenges

The earth shook,

the heavens also dropped at the presence of God:

even Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
You, O God, did send a plentiful rain, whereby You did confirm Your inheritance, when it was weary.

Psa. 68:8-9