Day 92 The Priceless Blessing

Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him. John 14:21

The priceless blessing is that Jesus is here with us to help us obey as we live in this crazy world. He forgives us when we mess up. He lets us start new. He blesses me so much.

Jesus walked with the disciples every day. Now through the Holy Spirit He walks with you and me.We are changed by shedding the garment of our old life for a better one. Gradually as we walk closely to God we are transformed into His likeness.

I'm writing this blog on the way home from Portland where we spent the morning at the Portland Good Friday breakfast. This annual event raises awareness for many ministries in the Portland, OR area.

The main sponsor is a nonprofit organization titled Open Arms which serves orphans in Africa.

What an amazing show of support to hear Nick Vujicic speak about his life as he encouraged us that with Christ we can do all things. He is a dynamic speaker with a message of hope even though he was born with no arms and no legs. I love that guy!

It was powerful and many lives were changed. Today was indeed a priceless blessing.

Something else I thought about today is that twenty years ago on Good Friday our son Gabe was born. We had no idea what his life would be like with short arms and crooked legs.

That Good Friday was dark and scary for my family, just like the Good Friday two thousand years ago when Jesus hung on the cross.

But three days later the light of hope lit the broken hearts of all who loved Jesus.

In much the same way, Easter Sunday 1990 was the beginning of a life full of hope. We took Gabe home from the hospital that day and our lives have been touched by the hand of God ever since.

In the darkness of that day I could not see the future. But God has illuminated every step along the way.

Joy. Joy. Joy. The darkness of Good Friday will soon be over because Sunday is coming.

God Bless Your Heart,

Gigi

 http://www.gigimurfitt.com/

 The idea for this blog post came from the April 2 devotional in the God Calling book edited by A.J. Russell

Disrupted Plans-Interrupted by God

Sometimes our life is disrupted by an event that creates confusion. The Crucifixion was such an event for the followers of Jesus.

Can you imagine what kind of disruption the disciples of Jesus felt as they watched the Messiah beaten, bleeding and hanging on a cross? This was definitely not expected. They had a very different plan. They thought they would be a part of Jesus' rule as King of Israel. Instead they watched him die a violent death. He was buried in a tomb. God interrupted their man-made plan to rule and reign with Jesus so they ran away and hid.

As Easter Sunday draws near, I'm more aware of the disruption that the Cross has had on my life. Today is Good Friday. It is the day we remember the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. It's a day when we try to imagine what it must have been like for the followers of Jesus to have their whole world turned upside down. It is a time when we remember that dark day two-thousand years ago when the future was so uncertain for those who loved Jesus. When the Savior of the world died.

I had my own dark Friday nineteen years ago on April 13th. It was Good Friday. I spent the morning walking with my husband Steve tracking my labor pains as my body prepared to give birth to our second baby. It was a chilly spring day here in Washington state. For several hours I experienced incredible pain but I was excited to see this baby I had carried and loved for nine months.

I'm sure my pain was nothing compared to what Jesus experienced as flesh was ripped from his bones during his scourging. How could I ever compare my own pain to the searing agony when nails were driven into His hands and feet as bones crunched with each blow of the hammer. My pain was nothing like the ache in His body as they lifted the cross in the air. I can't even imagine the pain of his broken heart as he took on all the sins of the world. There is no comparison. Yet Jesus understands my pain.

On that Good Friday in 1990 I experienced some very dark hours as my entire life was disrupted. My best laid plans were about to take a major detour. God had a different idea for where my life was headed.

Our precious son Gabe was born in the early evening. We had no idea about his severe congenital birth defects. Our world tilted when we saw his short arms and crooked legs. Everything about our future changed and we were bombarded with medical terms we had never heard of. We were afraid. We wanted to run and hide.

For the disciples whose lives were disrupted that Good Friday long ago, Easter Sunday came. Light shined on their future. Jesus was alive! It was Resurrection Sunday.

Two days after Gabe was born we found out that his birth defects were not life threatening. His heart and lungs were healthy. We still had concerns about his blood platelet but we knew he was going to be okay. We took him home Easter Sunday morning.

Gabe turns nineteen on Monday, April 13, 2009. The past nineteen years have been a wonderful walk with Jesus through the trials of parenting a child with a disability. Although our lives were disrupted, we are better for the interruption.

Easter Sunday always shines a new light in my heart. I'm so very thankful for what Jesus did on the Cross. And His Resurrection gives us hope for eternity! He is Risen INDEED!

Happy Easter.

My question to you: What does Good Friday and Easter Sunday mean to you?

The idea for this message came to me recently after reading a great story written by Margaret Manning on the Ravi Zacharias International Ministries "A Slice of Infinity" newsletter. You can sign up for this email at http://www.rzim.org/slice/slice.php I want to give her credit for the idea that came to me after reading her article.

Copyright(c)2008
Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM)
Reprinted with permission
A Slice of Infinity is a ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries
Ravi Zacharias International Ministries may withdraw or modify this grant of permission at any time http://www.rzim.org/