Gwendolyn Harmon's Blog: Learning Ladyhood, page 10

Steps of Revival: Hear

In the last part of our study through Psalm 85, we saw the need for revival, and how it often stems from neglect of our relationship with God. We may desire revival, as the psalmist did, crying out to God,

“Wilt Thou not revive us again, that Thy people may rejoice in Thee?” (Psalm 85:6)

And yet, while we may recognize the need for revival, we often think it is something far off, beyond our reach unless God decides to do some large-scale miracle. But revival is personal, and happens heart by heart...

The Need for Revival

“Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause Thine anger toward us to cease. Wilt Thou be angry with us for ever? Wilt Thou draw out Thine anger to all generations? Wilt Thou not revive us again: that Thy people may rejoice in Thee? Shew us Thy mercy, O Lord, and grant us Thy salvation.”

Psalm 85:4-7

Despite the salvation God has already given to us, the forgiveness He has already extended, the pardon He has already granted, this side of heaven, we are still sinners—sinners saved by grace—but sinn...

The Foundation of Revival

Psalm 85: 1-3

When I sat down to write this week’s post, I flipped my Bible open and the Holy Spirit drew my attention to Psalm 85. This psalm is often called the “revival psalm,” and it gives us an honest but encouraging glimpse into how revival works. So, dear reader, let’s take a walk through this psalm together.

 

“Lord, Thou hast been favourable unto Thy land: Thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob. Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of Thy people, Thou hast covered all their sin. Selah.

T...

Everlasting Love

Teaching, like motherhood, often requires the answering of silly questions with serious truths. One of my students asked me at dismissal the other day, “Would you still love us if I had a broken arm?”

I suspect that she asked the question partly to be silly, but also partly because she knew what the answer would be and wanted to hear it just one more time before going home for the day.

I told her that of course I would still love her, that my love, like God’s love, doesn’t depend on arms. I told...

Long Patience

Last fall, I was at a garden store looking to see if there might be one last vegetable I could plant in my garden before winter when something caught my eye. It was a packet of Snowdrop bulbs.

I had been looking for Snowdrops for years. Ever since I first saw them as a teen, they have been my favorite flowers, and a precious reminder of God’s goodness to me, specifically.

But despite the fact that they grow prolifically in many of our neighbors’ yards and even flourish in the traffic circle near...

Things Old and New

In Matthew 13, Jesus is speaking to His disciples, describing what the kingdom of heaven is like. After giving several parables, He asks them, “Have ye understood these things?” and they answer, “yea, Lord.” (v. 51)

His response to them was yet another parable:

“Then said He unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old.” (v.52)

 

As I read these verses recently,...

Small Victories

“For who hath despised the day of small things?”

Zechariah 4:10

The book of Zechariah is God’s message for His people during a time of discouragement. I’m sure Zerubbabel’s group of exiles returning to the promised land began their trip in joyful anticipation. They likely set out with a feeling that God was about to do something big for Israel at last. But once they got there, the daily struggle to survive in the crumbled ruins of Jerusalem and the seemingly overwhelming task of rebuilding the tem...

Worth it After All

This week, we had one of those Pacific Northwest weather events we call “snow.” We call it snow, because that’s easier than saying “tiny ice pellets being blown around like a blizzard, layered with freezing rain and a couple snowflakes, resulting in a solid sheet of ice.” In my area, we hardly ever get real, honest snow, but we do get ice, and that amounts to the same thing: a snow day.

I think it must be a particular sign of adulthood that a snow day on a Saturday seems like just as much of a tr...

Unprofitable Servants

“So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, we are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.” Luke 17:10

If you are unfamiliar with this verse, it might startle you. Our society is all about celebrating ourselves, but Jesus said we ought to obey God, not to make ourselves look good, not to gain approval or gratitude, but because it is right.

A servant in Jesus’ day would not expect to come in from the fields and be served a meal...

Who am I?

It is a question with which the world seems obsessed. It tells us, “Be who you are” “Be your authentic self,” or “You do you.” This begs the question, “Who am I?” How do I be the “best version of myself” if I don’t even know who I truly am?

The current rise in identity dysphoria is alarming, yet not surprising. The pressure to “discover your true self” leads to a never-ending quest to finally find ones’ self. “Who am I really?” is a question that focuses us inward, makes us question the very bas...