Tears
I mowed the lawn and cleaned the yard this morning, and I decided to spray the leaves and dog poop with the hose to clean off the cement in one, fell swoop. It actually did a great job and as I stood there, washing the dirt away, I was amazed how water has such a forceful, cleansing effect on whatever it comes in contact with. It was kind of hypnotizing and it reminded me of a sermon Pastor Rich Thomas preached a long time ago on Simpson Street. It was so poignant, that I'll never forget it.
The ministry I was involved with at the time, was on Simpson Street in Madison, Wisconsin. We ministered to the poor in this community, giving them the one hope they could always turn to and rely on: Jesus. I loved being a part of this ministry because those folks had very little in the way of materialism, but what they longed for was God. It's always refreshing when people are hungry for the things of God and you don't have to "prove" to them, that they need Jesus. They already know it.
Bro. Thomas came to speak at one of our meetings and what he said was simple, yet very profound. He spoke of Psalms 56:8, which says, "You yourself have kept track of my misery. Put my tears into your bottle -- aren't they on your scroll already?" (Common English Bible version) He told us that God keeps track of all our sorrow and holds every tear we shed in a bottle. Every single one. That gave me so much comfort when I heard this message, that God loves me individually, so much so, that He keeps track of everything I go through. The God of the UNIVERSE keeps track of me! And not only me, but every one of us! When I think how huge this is, it blows my mind. Another scripture says, "But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows." Luke 12:7 KJV God has numbered every, single hair on my head! The point is, that He cares about all the situations we find ourselves in.
So, tears. We cry when we're happy or sad or angry or frustrated. We cry at the altar or in the pew or on our bed or in a conversation with a confidant. We cry and our tears become the water that eventually cleans us and makes us whole -- just like the hose on my cement. Every prayer we pray, develops into a monument of faith reaching heaven, while God collects all our tears and carefully protects them in a bottle.
I've never known anyone in my life, to love and cherish me as carefully and completely as Jesus does...
The ministry I was involved with at the time, was on Simpson Street in Madison, Wisconsin. We ministered to the poor in this community, giving them the one hope they could always turn to and rely on: Jesus. I loved being a part of this ministry because those folks had very little in the way of materialism, but what they longed for was God. It's always refreshing when people are hungry for the things of God and you don't have to "prove" to them, that they need Jesus. They already know it.
Bro. Thomas came to speak at one of our meetings and what he said was simple, yet very profound. He spoke of Psalms 56:8, which says, "You yourself have kept track of my misery. Put my tears into your bottle -- aren't they on your scroll already?" (Common English Bible version) He told us that God keeps track of all our sorrow and holds every tear we shed in a bottle. Every single one. That gave me so much comfort when I heard this message, that God loves me individually, so much so, that He keeps track of everything I go through. The God of the UNIVERSE keeps track of me! And not only me, but every one of us! When I think how huge this is, it blows my mind. Another scripture says, "But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows." Luke 12:7 KJV God has numbered every, single hair on my head! The point is, that He cares about all the situations we find ourselves in.
So, tears. We cry when we're happy or sad or angry or frustrated. We cry at the altar or in the pew or on our bed or in a conversation with a confidant. We cry and our tears become the water that eventually cleans us and makes us whole -- just like the hose on my cement. Every prayer we pray, develops into a monument of faith reaching heaven, while God collects all our tears and carefully protects them in a bottle.
I've never known anyone in my life, to love and cherish me as carefully and completely as Jesus does...
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