Lazarus’ Prayer

God’s love for you is certain

His love cannot be measured by time

Your prayers will be answered

His blessings will be made visible

In a package well-disguised

In God’s perfect time

by Susan Wachtel

January 28, 2012

Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha.  It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.  Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, “Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.”

When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.  So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was.  Then after this He said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.”  John 11:1-7

Enough?

 

Reeling from the sting of rejection
I cry out to the Lord
He answered me
Is My love not enough for you?

In whose eyes do you see yourself
Is it in the eyes of sinful man
Who will falter and fail
Or is it in the steadfast love of the Lord

You are accepted in the Beloved
Redeemed by the precious blood of the Lamb
I will NEVER leave, nor forsake you
My love will never fail you

Is My love enough for you?

A Love Story Never Told

Theirs was a love story never to be told
A tale of deliverance
An outrageous work of God

Even some of God’s saints
Might turn away if the truth were known
Reviling their sinful past

Most would never believe it
Some would say it couldn’t be done
They could never imagine what God would do

Redeeming two very broken souls
Taking bits and pieces and knitting them together into one flesh
Accomplishing what man said is impossible

Some do not believe in miracles today
Certain they are a thing of the past
But these two could tell a different story

Proclaiming the wonders of God’s redemption
Testifying of His marvelous grace
Their lives bearing witness to God’s outrageous love

Susan Bunts Wachtel
July 21, 2009

Sunshine and Shadows

In the quite of the day I rise,
Only to face those who come against me,
Armed with lies and deceit.

The darkness of my trials threatens to overtake me,
Then I look up and feel a ray of sun upon my face,
Bathing in the warmth…I’m reminded of Your love and faithfulness to me.

As the enemy whispers messages of defeat and destruction,
I hold fast to the One who enables me,
To be steadfast and immovable through the power of the Holy Spirit within.

Dedicated to you…

by Susan Bunts
October 2, 2007

This morning God laid upon my heart someone facing a heavy burden and trial. As I walked into work…I closed my eyes and felt the warmth of the sun upon my face...reminding me of God's love which chases the darkness and shadows away. When darkness threatens overtake him…it is my prayer that God will remind this precious man of His love and care for him. May he be confident in his Saviors ability to bring him through each trial and tribulation he faces.

5/16/07 At the End of the Day…Random Reflections

Tonight…was another wonderful night at Bible study. Dave Dunn is going through the book of Revelation. We’ve been going through the letters to the seven churches…one a week. Dave just jam packs the study. First he paints a historical word picture of what that culture would have been like. He’s so effective…there are times I swear I could step from the pages into the city. It makes understanding the passage so much richer and fuller.

Tonight we studied about the church at Philadelphia…the one church that God commended…and held no charge against. We learned that Philadelphia had been known by two other names…Neocaesarea and Flavia after Roman Caesars. So when Jesus says to he who overcomes that Jesus “will write on him the name of God, and the name of the city of God and I will also write on him My new name” that meant something to them.

Bear with me…not sure if I can explain my thinking on this. But to me…it spoke of love and marriage and a deep abiding love…so much so that you want to be identified with and connected to the one you love…and have it known to all. And Jesus says that He will write it…a personal touch. Our Savior will write that name upon us.

You see…for as long as I remember I’ve wanted to be married. When I get married…and want to take and bear my husband’s last time. To be known as one. What a wonderful thing to do…bestow upon your bride your last name…and what a wonderful loving thing that bears witness to.

In the New Testament…the church is referred to as the “bride of Christ”. So having that new name bestowed upon us by our Savior Christ Jesus…seems such a rich extravagant love. He cares for us…and makes it known by giving us His name.

Well what’s in a name? A whole heck of a lot…especially when you read the Bible. The name of the people often described their character. So much so that when they had an encounter with God and He changed them…he gave them new name to reflect that change.

When we receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior…we take the name Christian. What we do is reflection on Him….for good or bad. When I grasp that…I realize that if I act unbecomingly…it reflects on Jesus. It makes me want to be cautions and bring glory to my Lord…not reproach. Bring glory to the One I love.