Faith to Move Mountains...

Isaiah 12:2

"Surely God is my salvation;

   I will trust and not be afraid.

The Lord, the Lord, is my strength and

   my song;

  he has become my salvation."

Each morning I rise to the sound of bird song, to a wet nose waiting at my bedside for attention.

Each morning I rise and give thanks for another day of breathing, of living.

Each day I move about doing routine chores that comfort...the sound of the kettle whistling its readiness, the clip clip of nails on the floor following me as I do the things that bring peace, create a heart of contentment and a simmering sense of joy in the doing.

It is not always so dear hearts...I would not have you think my days are as those in Pleasantville...always happy, unendingly positive and joyous...with no substance, no character twists, no reality.

Our joy so often times is proceeded by grief, by sorrow...the genuine smile, the real laugh from the pit of my stomach that bubbles up and out until I can hardly draw a breath...they come with clearer detail for the pain endured, they are the sweeter for the sorrow that lingers in the corners of the mind, taken up root in the recesses of the heart.

I steady myself in those moments...breathe in, hold with eyes closed, and breathe out...taking in peace, comfort and love from a Father I have had the joy of knowing since I was a young child and before...who sat beside me as cruelty and moments of pain were my occasional childhood lot in life...who held me close in the aftermaths, never alone....

I knew that presence, accepted that presence as a small, tiny human...never questioning, always thankful...thought of as my imaginary friend to parents and brothers...

When asked at church meetings, the days of holy rollers and the influx of the Holy Spirit, tent meetings and evangelists by the score, asked why I did not do as my friends and go up front to receive those blessings, invite those ideals and ideas in....I so clearly remember as though it were yesterday, turning to see what my mother was pointing out and asking the question of, and turning to her and asking 'why?' She misunderstood my young brain, my response, as I knew this dude they called God, I called him friend...knew him...and was confused as to how I would need to do the same as those who were meeting him for the first time.

That sense of God, of Jesus and the Holy Spirit has never left...I have counted them friend for so long, have seen the miracles, the moments of death approaching in the form of a man, the eyes reflecting a red rage beyond human capacity. Oh it is a tall tale to some, disbelief reigns free when hearing these words...and that is ok...I would not recommend meeting God and His angels in just that way.

But...however...for those who have seen the grim reaper resplendent in human form, hands raised to maim, to kill, to rape, to murder...oh they are awful words to take in, but oh my friends, they happen, EVERY DAY in this country, this province. Every...day....

I have been witness to miracles in the midst of crying out to God to save me...to keep me here on this planet..not done, not done yet...the absolute terror of crying out to God in those moments you see your life flash before your eyes, well dear friends, it places you on a plane of intense sensory input...kicks the extra senses naysayers will say do not exist.

When you know, you know...when you have felt it, seen it, bear the scars as witness to it...God is there...a bright light deflecting through windshield and distracting the driver from his plan to beat head against the window, at just the right moment.

I could share story after story after story...and include with permission the stories of other women and the sheer terror of the moment pushing them to pray, to seek help in heavenly form.

This, dear lost ones, this is not your lot in life...punish yourself no longer...the lies, the deceit that tell you its all your fault, they are just that...lies to keep you down, to promote that belief system that speaks uselessness over you.

Your place in this world is meant for peace, for love, for kindness and compassion...the very things missing from the environment you are now in. You are worthy of all that he demands of you, but does not give in return. Yes...worthy of that and so much more love, grace, mercy.

May God guide your steps...out and away...

May God bless you with courage of a thousand soldiers...

Go with God today and each day forward, may you see your worth through the eyes of the creator, who fashioned you in beauty, in grace.

May He bless you with faith equal to moving a mighty mountain, wrapping His arms of love and comfort round you as you walk it out, talk it out, and speak your truth with grace, with kindness.