All Who Are Thirsty

“Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.”

Isaiah 55:1

This is one of my favorite verses and it reminds me of one of my most favorite songs,

“All Who Are Thirsty”

This seems to be the theme of my heart these days.

The Lord is reviling Himself to me as an endless drink offering.

All who are thirsty
All who are weak
Come to the fountain
Dip your heart in the stream of life
Let the pain and the sorrow
Be washed away
In the waves of his mercy
As deep cries out to deep…

It’s a beautiful thing.

I am currently reading Katie Davis’s book titled, “Kisses from Katie” I am astonished reading these pages of this young woman’s story of how her heart was won, immediately on the streets of Uganda and her heart become knitted together with the children in a way that only Jesus can do. Truly a picture of God’s handiwork.  

I am blown away at her relentless love for Jesus and others. She is a beautiful example of what it means to be clay in the hands of the potter. What wisdom and strength she is displaying in her simple desire to follow Jesus, whatever that may look like.

This young girl is approximately 10 years younger than me

and I feel like I have so much to learn from her.

Selflessness.

Commitment.

Perseverance.

Desire.

Faith.

Love.

As I read her book I find myself in total agreement with her longing and desire in her heart to love the orphan unconditionally. Even though I do not know what that may look like for us and for me and my family, there is a part of me that gets it!

I have said time after time that I feel like my heart is undone, flipped upside down and inside out over the fatherless, lonely in spirit, needy, hurt, desolate and hungry. But Katie said it so perfectly. She said, “In the beginning, I would have described it as God turning my world upside down, but now I know that He was actually turning it right side up.”

THAT’S IT!

I sat and stared at the ground the rest of the evening when I read that. Finally a little clarity as to what was happening inside my heart.

All of a sudden I realized that my tears and weeping over the orphan is how I should already be! The desire in my heart to give of myself should already be there. What was happening to me was not some freaked out crazy spiritual experience. It is the state the Lord needs our hearts to be in daily.

Wow.

All of a sudden I didn’t feel so ‘mentally unstable’.  It was confirmation to me that this IS the Lord’s plan and He is at work through it all.

There are so many layers to what is happening in my heart. To sit here and try to put it in words is almost impossible.

Habakkuk 2:2-3 “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.” This verse always comes to my mind when I feel the Lord is speaking many things to me.  I believe He gave me this verse when I first stated to ‘journal’ all the things that were transpiring in my heart. So even though I may not have any new “news” to share with you, I still feel a calling to put my thoughts on paper.

My blog is my pad of paper, my journal.

God’s story of transforming my selfish, self-seeking, self righteous, stubborn, prideful, arrogant, boastful, hard-calloused heart and turning it into something He can use.

That is my prayer.

That my life would be used for HIS glory and HIS kingdom. That I would not find comfort in this life. That my children would not grow up thinking this American way of living is what Christianity (following Christ) is all about. That we would lay our lives down for HIS purpose and for HIS will!

The enemy wants our children.

He wants our marriages.

He wants our church.

He wants our schools.

He wants our homes…

We are in a war.

What are we going to do? Are we going to go to the front lines or are we going to take a back seat and put our heads down?

Today is the day of Salvation.

Today is the day at hand.

What are we going to do with it?

“As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15

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I know the Lord is going to speak wisdom into our lives about what it is He has for us.

I know He has a plan for us.

We just need to wait on Him.

His timing, not ours.

I know He sees every tear that falls. I know He keeps them saved. They are precious to Him and He knows about every single one. And trust me, there are a lot. J I’m not so hard on myself anymore because of my tears. I believe the Lord has created this sensitivity in me now because it is His gentle way of strengthening me for what He has for us in the future. I really do believe that. In so many ways, I feel like I’m in a miniature-boot-camp-prep-class right now. He is molding and bending this will of mine. I am forever grateful and beyond thrilled.

The other morning the Lord blessed me with this amazing sweet verse. I KNOW it was a gift just for me. It was a reminder that yes, He is working. I may not know on what, but He is working…

“He raised the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap, to make them sit with princes, with the princes of his people. He gives the barren woman a home, making her the joyous mother of children. Praise the Lord!” Psalm 113:7-9

Praise be to God!

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