.... Not today.... Not me... Please don't ask me to that today...
Have you ever felt so down and burdened with the worries of life? have you ever felt so sad and angry and tired that you just want to shout to God and ask WHY? WHY ME? am I the only one? money problems, marriage problems, a loved one is ill.....countless issues..... am I the only one???? ... and you sit there, wondering, hoping, asking God for answers, and one day, finally, one day, God says.... 'son, daughter, just praise'.
You look up and laugh bitterly as you ask- ' God, did you just ask me to just praise you? have you heard a word of what I said?'
God nods and smiles sadly at you before saying again...' son, daughter, just praise'.
At this point, you are hysterical. You shout and ask God to please listen to you.You cannot pay next month's rent. Your wife is making life a living hell. You child is ill... your car- what car?
Yet, God smiles sadly again and says... ' son, daughter- Just praise'.
Then you sit down and begin to weep. Surely God does not understand you. How can you praise God when things are so difficult..?
Beloved, let me introduce you to Fanny J Crosby- a woman of PRAISE. ...
Frances Jane "Fanny" Crosby (1820-1915) known by her pen name Fanny J. Crosby, was born at South East, Putnam County, New York, March 24,1820. When six weeks old she lost her sight, through the negligence of the attending physician, but in spite of this severe affliction has always been noted for her cheerful and happy disposition. When asked how she became blind, Fanny Crosby replied :''When I was six weeks old a slight cold caused inflammation of the eyes. Our usual doctor was away from home, so a stranger was called in. He recommended the use of hot poultices, which practically destroyed my sight.
When this sad calamity became known, the unfortunate man thought it best to leave the neighbourhood, and we never heard of him again."
"But," she added, "I have not, for a moment, in more than eighty-five years, felt a spark of resentment against him; for I have always believed that the good Lord, in
His infinite mercy, by this means consecrated me to the work that I am still permitted to do. When I remember how I have been blessed, how can I repine?" What a marvelous illustration we have here of the way in which God can enable us to rise above our trials, and can "make all things work together for good to those who love Him."
In 1858, Fanny married a fellow teacher at the New York Institution of the Blind, the blind musician and composer Alexander Van Alstyne. Their only child, a daughter named Frances, died as an infant. Fanny and Van had been married 44 years when he died in 1902.
In her life time, Fanny Crosby wrote over 8,000 Hymns; to name only a few, what immortal glory belongs to the author of "Pass me not, O gentle Saviour," "Rescue the perishing," "I am Thine, O Lord," "Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine," "Jesus, keep me near the cross," "'Tis the blessed hour of prayer," "Safe in the arms of Jesus," "Some day the silver cord will break," "Thou, my everlasting portion," "Saviour, more than life to me," "All the way my Saviour leads me," "Hide Thou me," "Jesus is tenderly calling thee home''.... and many others.
One time a preacher sympathetically remarked, "I think it is a great pity that the Master did not give you sight when He showered so many other gifts upon you."
She replied quickly, "Do you know that if at birth I had been able to make one petition, it would have been that I should be born blind?" "Why?" asked the surprised clergyman. "Because when I get to heaven, the first face that shall ever gladden my sight will be that of my Savior!" And so she did, when she passed on in 1915, at the age of 95.
source: www.wholesomewords.org/biography/bcrosby7.html
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peoples, here is a woman who lost her sight at the age of 6, lost her daughter and married a blind man, yet she worked for God constantly,many of her works, full of praise.
I know too well how difficult sometimes it is to praise in the midst of difficulty.. I remember a while back, I received some bad news. After deliberating and pondering over the reason why, my then fiancee ( now husband) asked me to praise God instead of wondering. And so, I started, heavy hearted, tear laden, I began to praise God. I slowly started with a slow song, then I began to dance... meeen!!! i danced and danced.. lolll.. soon, I was sweating, from praising my father in heaven.....The bad news I heard then, has been the key to my growth in life today- watch this space, ill share this story one day....
What am I trying to say to us? Sometimes, you cant even find the words or the strength to praise... just try... try praising God in your heart... or try doing good to someone, in praise of God... or even; a whisper of 'father you are great' can be enough for God, and I can assure you that when you praise God in the most difficult times... He will lift you up and make you great, Just as he did for Aunt Fanny... one of the greatest song writers that ever lived...
I pray that God will strenghten you in the most trying time of your life... Keep praising... just keep praising....
stay blessed,
bimbylads.....a growing worshipper
12 comments:
I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
for You are who You are
no matter where I am
and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm
Thanks for this post. This past weekend was pure "HELL" for me. There were loads of tears, etc, folks said praise God in the midst of this, I tried. I played all kinds of praise music, and was eventually able to sleep to the tunes of Hillsong.
This post drives home the point that I am too blessed to be stressed or depressed.
Thanks again! I will be back to testify of the miracles I know are round the corner. as I continue to praise God in the midst of all my issues.
BTW, the song "Pass me not O gentle saviour" is one of my favourites.
I am almost in tears remembering the song, "Saviour, more than life to me." I believe that you are truly an annointed vessel of The Most High. You and your husband are blessed to have each other. How often do you meet a man that encourages you to praise the God you serve?!
yesterday, I got carried away by the burdens of life and I cried into my husbands arms. once again, he opened the bible to Exodus and reminded me of when the Isrealites faced the red sea. There was no way forward or backward,but God delivered them.
sometimes it is hard to practice what you preach. Instead of praising as I wrote out to you all, I cried and let doubt overwhelm me. May God forgive me. I am rising up today and praising God even in the midst of difficulty.. which is small for God. I am prasing him becasue I have assurance that my name is written in the Book of life. I am praising him for Jesus.. it is well.
Thank you all for reading..
I think i feel you on that one Bimbs. I have experienced two blows at once in les than 2 weeks.
You know that feeling when you expect something so much and you have applied everything ..word o, faith o oil, even communion blood and bread.... name it! and you still keep getting a NO..
Someone said he has heard so many NO(s)in his life that he is now used to it. Am thinking "can i get to the level where No will begin to open my eyes to revelation instead of making me depressed"!!!
....Well, I guess it is about praising Him regardless. I am going to use these and subsequent experiences to strengten my spiritual muscles . It is not easy. I am thinking of who to blame or what went wrong..Why did it have to be NO..., but I can hear the HS say "praise God instead, It could have been worse".
I am thinking maybe i did not pray enough or maybe i was careless, hence the NO... but i can still hear " out of the ridiculous challenges comes the miraculous. I guess i can only continue to praise sincerely (even though hard), I am determined to pump dat praise in. Yes thats all i am going to do - Even now that i am stll questioning WHY!. I won't argue with God like Job, I will just praise Him in expectation of what only Him can do . Is He not the Kabiyesi. He owns the earth and all that is in it. Heheehehehe. I can't believe am letting it out here . Well i guess this will bless me and maybe smone out there.
Whatever, and whatever oooooo He is still in control - Dat i know like i know my name.
Whenever things get so bad ,in the middle of every storm ,just at the nick of time Gos always reaches out and holds ur hand...No matter how unwell it may seen..its a lying vanity.Once u get closer ud see the moutain disappear.It is well!
for some weird reason, just came here today even though i've meant to ages ago (dont even know if i am phrasing my sentences well, had a reallllllyyyyy long day of meetings and stuff!! He is my Strength!)
Worship is what I was made to do. actually what we were all made to do, to fellowship and worship him. i love my 'worship' time.. but i also love the fact that i can worship Him anywhere, on the road, in my heart, in my room, in church, anywhere!!!!!!!! cos He is EVERYWHERE! i just love Him, i can go on and on and on
and i am so glad for you that you have a husband that believes TRULY in Him...many women dont know how key this is to a happy home.
mwah.
Your post today reminds of the Word that says "..in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." - 1 Thess 5:18
It's so easy to get "wrapped-up" with daily struggles such as work, kids, money, husband, wife etc that we lose sight of what's really important - Doing the will of God.
Doing His will is simply to acknowledge Him and give Him Praise. It's much harder to do than it sounds. This is where prayers help. When I find myself stressed out and in despair, I kneel and say "Please Lord teach me how to praise You in the midst of the storm. Teach me how to be grateful and content with all I have"
So Bimby, keep up the good work. Peope will be inspired. Am already!
Bimbylads all i can say right now is GOD BLESS YOU. You have given me major hope today and i hope the spirit will lead you to this page more frequently than you wish. You are a blessed daughter of God never forget that.
I will use you as a point of contact in getting my praise on anytime i am down.
Thank you LORD
I thank God for your life Bimby.
Just showing some love today and also to encourage all to keep that PRAISE up!!!
thank you girl, thank you.
Loving the blog! Had the crappiest day sunday and was almost about to get negative when I realised just how many reasons I have to be Happy! Wrote a whole blog entry about it. Keep up the good work!
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