His Intent

 

 

"Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him" Job 13:15 KJV

 

Two weeks on bedrest after I had surgery to close a small pressure sore had passed slowly, and I expected good news from my surgeon.

 

On arrival in the clinic, a nurse looked at, measured and took a picture of the incision. “Well there are six sutures, but it looks like it doesn’t want to stick together.” My heart sank for a few minutes. Then, while talking to God, I knew I’d make it through whatever the doctor deemed necessary.

 

When he came in and looked at the incision, he agreed with the nurse. His solution: add four sutures. Before he spoke again I said, “Doc, do you think it would help if I stay in bed longer?” He said, “It would probably help.”

 

So back on bed rest for two more weeks, I read my devotion from “Joni and Friends.” It began:

 

"His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realm." Ephesians 3:10

 

The powers and principalities, all the heavenly hosts and the dark rulers of the universe, millions of unseen beings are intensely interested to see just how "able" God is to sustain the weak and the weary.

 

Ephesians 3:10 tells us that God teaches the unseen world all about Himself, and He does it using you and me as His audio-visual aids. We are used of the Lord to show the universe how great, awesome, and wonderful God and His grace are.*

 

There’s more but you can see the power of God that changed my outlook yesterday. Reading this note from Joni opened my eyes again to God’s unchanging faithfulness.

 

Are you where God can use you to teach the unseen (and seen) world about His love, power, and grace?

 

In Christian Love,

Berta

 

*Taken from More Precious Than Silver. Copyright © 1998 by Joni Eareckson Tada. www.joniandfriends.org

 

Have You Ever Been Compared?

After returning home from rehab at Shepherd Spinal Center in Atlanta, GA, in June 1991, Earl’s dad gave me a movie titled “Joni.” He told me she had broken her neck and severed her spinal cord in a diving accident when 17. A quadriplegic, she had shattered myths about living with a disability and excelled in Christian ministry.

As soon as we got away I said, “Earl, I don’t care about Joni. I’m not her!” Earl placed the video on a shelf in his office. He’d mention it to me occasionally. Each time, my thoughts went to Joni’s success. How could I compare to her? He told me many times, “Berta, you’re no more Joni Eareckson Tada than I am Billy Graham.”

Fast forward to June 1994, Earl and I attended a conference for evangelism where both Billy Graham and Joni would be speaking. When we registered for the conference, I didn’t sign up for Joni’s workshops.

As we waited for Dr. Graham to speak in the auditorium the first evening, someone touched my shoulder. Surprised, I looked over to see Joni. I smiled and we focused on Dr. Graham. As he closed, I turned to talk to Joni—she had left. Disappointed, I asked myself, “What’s the big deal? You didn’t want to meet her anyway.”



www.joniandfriends.org/

 

                                           ~     ~     ~

Well, I did attend Joni’s workshops, and she invited Earl to take a picture of the two of us. Throughout the week, as I wheeled through the displays, several people asked, “Are you Joni?” With joy in my heart I responded, “No, but she’s here.”

One table held a Bible near enough for me to open. It was a spiral-bound, NIV, hardcover with large print, which made the text easy to read. The Bibles’ spiral binding allowed it to lie flat on the table and made it easy to handle. It contained the New Testament and Psalms, and Joni had written an introduction to each book. How perfect for me!

I tried to purchase the Bible but learned it was for display only.

The last afternoon, I went outside to warm up in the sun. A shadow fell across my face and I sat up. “Excuse me, mam. I’d like to give you this Bible.” Yes. God is good. I received that special gift with delight from a friend I did not want.

“Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it” (1 Corinthians 12:27 NIV).

In Christian Love,
Berta

Check out my new site http://afaithfulfather.com to follow Earl and I on our journey.

What Are Your Spiritual Gifts?

Our music minister and his wife (Dale and Esther Julian) performed the special music one Sunday morning. Their strength and ability carried me into a time of beautiful worship of our Lord and Savior. After the service, I told Esther how their music ministered to me and she told me she gets nervous. I said, “It was awesome. I couldn’t do it.” Esther replied, “Well I couldn’t do what you do.”

That conversation made me think about God’s gifts and callings in the lives of all His children. Remembering Esther’s nervousness brought this cliché to my mind: “out of my comfort zone.” We all struggle with doing things God’s way. We often look at situations with human eyes and minds and consider what might seem to be the easier way.

Both Dale and Esther attended college to prepare for their ministry. They didn’t just learn how to sing and play musical instruments but how to polish the gift and call God had placed in their spirits. Nursing school didn’t call me to be a nurse. God had given me the gift and call and school was my opportunity to become what God had planned for my life. When I began writing, Earl gave me a computer. It was a tool that I used to hone my skills in that gift and call from God.

 
What is(are) your gift(s) and calling(s)? How are you preparing to fulfill yours?

“Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed…There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines” (1 Cor 12:1, 4-11 NIV). 

In Christian Love,

Berta

For your personal spiritual gift inventory go to http://www.umc.org/site/c.lwL4KnN1LtH/b.8051415/