Renee Andrews's Blog - Posts Tagged "praise"

Mondays with Jesus 2017: Devotions to Begin Each Week of the Year

“I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Revelation 21:2-4

A dear friend is traveling this week and sent a photo she took from the window seat of the plane. She titled it, “The view above the clouds.” I was amazed at the beauty, at the way the white clouds looked golden beneath the sun, the way the sky positioned between the sun and clouds mirrored Caribbean blue water and at the way my heart felt peace, simply by admiring the perfection of God’s beauty.

I don’t fly as often as I used to, but I always thought that picturesque view probably resembled the scene in Heaven. I imagined those streets of gold, transparent as glass, pearly white gates, city walls covered in precious jewels. That was surely the best way to describe the beauty of Heaven.

But then I realized…I was so very wrong. The true beauty of Heaven won’t have anything to do with pearly gates, golden streets or jeweled walls, and for me to equate it to such things—things—devalues the magnitude of beauty God has planned for us at His Home. Because the true beauty of Heaven isn’t described in the verses that center Revelation 21. It’s described in those verses above:

There will be no more tears, no more death, no more mourning, no more pain. And the ultimate true beauty of Heaven is that God will dwell among His people. He will dwell among us! Praise God! I can’t imagine anything more beautiful than that!

This Week: Get up early enough to see the sun rise, at least once. Plan your evening to see the sun set, at least once. Imagine that the night never comes, and neither do tears, of suffering or pain. Thank God that, in your future, you will encounter a day where the sun never sets!

“Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Ephesians 5:1-2

I had to wait for the tears to stop before I could write this devotion. Sometimes, you read or hear a story that touches your heart so completely that you are moved to tears. That has happened to me this morning.

As an organ donor, I’m genuinely drawn to stories of organ donation, but even more when the story involves a child’s life. Today, I read the story of a family in Alabama whose baby boy had heart failure shortly after birth. He was the youngest patient in the United States to use a Berlin heart, a device that helps pump blood while the infant awaits a heart transplant. His mother said they never prayed for a heart, because they knew praying for a heart was praying for something tragic to happen to another baby.

Four months later, in Louisiana, another family did have something tragic happen, when their six-month-old little boy began running a mysterious fever, and doctors found him to have bleeding on the brain. His parents prayed for a miracle, but during the surgery to stop the bleeding, doctors determined major malformations that couldn’t be repaired. Before the doctors took their son off life support, the couple was asked if they wanted to donate his organs.

Not only did they agree, but they pushed the transplant team to find a place for his heart. The team wasn’t sure they could find a baby close enough to receive their son’s heart, but then they found the baby in Birmingham and rushed the organ for surgery.

My heart hurts for that family. I can’t imagine losing a child in any manner. But my heart also swells with admiration in the Christ-like action, their determination to help others even in the midst of their suffering. Their decision saved another child’s life, blessed another family…and reminded many people, like myself, of what it truly means to live like Christ.

This Week: Search online for stories of organ donations touching lives and remind yourself of how, in a world filled with pain and suffering, there are those who push through the pain and find that some of the most amazing gifts can be given—and received—in the midst of a storm.

Renee Andrews

“Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.” Jeremiah 32:17

I’ve been praying. No, that isn’t all that unusual. I do my best to pray daily, and I strive to pray more than the initial prayer time J.R. and I share each morning to begin our day and the mealtime blessings. But lately, I’ve had something on my heart that is simply causing me to follow 1 Thessalonians 5:17’s directive to pray continually.

Have you ever found yourself like that? So wrapped up in something, absorbed in it, consumed by it, or—as in my case now—distraught over it, that you simply can’t stop praying? That’s where I am.

If you follow me on social media or have read my devotions in the past, you know I’m a kidney donor. I can’t say enough about the joy of giving a chance at a normal life to someone, and in my case, the young man who was a stranger on the day we met and I decided to donate my kidney to him…but is now part of my family. He’s like a son. And when he hurts, I hurt.

So when he called to tearfully tell me that he was in the hospital and that the kidney wasn’t working correctly, I hurt. And I prayed. It’s been five years since our transplant, and the kidney has done fine. Matt has been living a normal life with no dialysis. He has been able to take trips with his family. He has had two sons. At the time that I write this, Ryan is close to turning three and Brooks will have his first birthday the same month as his big brother.

I’ve been praying. Praying that my kidney won’t fail. Praying that Matt will continue to live a normal life. Praying that I can be a very real part of his life, because a part of me lives in him. But, in the midst of all of this praying, I found myself saying…

“God, if You can, heal Matt.”

If You can? How dare I question my Lord? The God that created the universe can do anything He pleases (Psalm 115:3 and 135:6). Didn’t I pay attention to those powerful verses in Job 38, when Job dared to question God?

I’ve been praying. Usually, prayer makes me stronger, but at other times, like now, my prayers show me just how weak I am…without my Lord. Yes, He can heal Matt. He can move mountains. He can create. He can destroy. He is the Almighty. And He is my Lord.

And I trust Him.

I’ve been praying. Praying continually. Praying that Matt will be okay and praying that I will be okay too, that I will keep my faith strong and trust God’s plan. Most of all, I’ve been praying…for God’s will to be done. If the medical team can’t cause my kidney to work as it should, and if Matt ends up on dialysis again, it isn’t because God didn’t answer my prayers. It isn’t because He can’t do anything He pleases. It is because that was not my Lord’s will. And I will trust His will. Always. Forever.

Forgive me, Lord.


This Week: Are you praying continually over a piercing struggle? Are you or someone you love going through a difficult time physically? Emotionally? Spiritually? Do you have a loved one at death’s door? Does your heart ache, and you feel certain no one understands? Trust this: God does. And believe this, whether your request is answered with a yes or a no, trust in Him, that He knows your heartaches and, whether the outcome is your utmost desire—or your biggest heartache—God’s will be done.

Renee Andrews