On July 21st. 2011 my grandson Jakob had his 11th Birthday. I got up that morning, made my coffee, then when back into my bedroom and sat down to pray for him, but not only for him, but for another boy named Logan who is going through cancer treatments. 4 1/2 year old Logan before cancer...what a great smile he has! Join us and pray for Logan's total healing of brain cancer. We believe God hears our prayers, so join us. Pray as often as his sweet face comes to your mind, thank you. Many of us have been praying for Logan for about three months, maybe even longer now ... I know for me, he is just always on my heart. Logan's smile is like my grandson's was at that age, adorable. Now I picked up my copy of "Our Daily Bread," which never leaves my bed-stand and began to pray with it in my hand as i do most mornings. My heart was filled with joy for my grandson turning 11 that day. My grandson Jakob is healthy happy boy, and I love him so much. He is a great joy to our family...but on this day I was also was filled with some sadness for a 4 1/2 year old boy, Logan. Logan is suffering right now taking his cancer treatments because he had brain cancer. They have removed all of the cancer, and nothing else was found in his little body, praise God for that good news. These treatments he is getting now are only to "insure" the cancer does not return, and I for one am sure it will not. Nevertheless..., it is hard on his little body and on his loving family, who have to watch all this going on in him. And so I pray for them also as often as they come to mind. I fully believe Logan is healed by God, and that he will one day give his testimony to that fact. So why then was I so blue on this morning Lord??? That was my question to God. I felt it was the pain I knew little Logan had to go through, that was really bugged me. So I prayed no more pain Lord, let him feel no more pain from these treatments. You know I FULLY believe in God's Divine Healing..., yet deep inside I also know for whatever reason not everyone who believers God for healing, gets healed this side of Heaven. Do I understand this??? NO, I do not!!! But I'll hang my hat on what I do KNOW about God, and that is simply that: "God is a Good God, and I trust in Him!" Now for the good part of all of this... So after I prayed this morning (July 21st., 2011) I opened to that day in Our Daily Bread, and read the following by author Philip Yancey. Philip Yancey just happens to be one of my all time favorite Christian writers, read just about every book he has written, and love them all. Now what I read spoke to my heart, and in turn it "stilled my heart, and my joy returned in full force." - I'm praying it may do the same for you today. Let me know if it does. ~~~~~~~~~~~~***********~~~~~~~~~~~~ Pain No More "O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?" 1 Corinthians 15:55 For a good portion of my life, I shared the perspective of those who rail against God for allowing pain. I could find no way to rationalize a world as toxic as this one. As I visited people whose pain far exceeded my own, though, I was surprised by its effects. Suffering seemed as likely to reinforce faith as to sow doubt. My anger about pain has melted mostly for one reason: I have come to know God. He has given me joy and love and happiness and goodness. It leaves me with faith in a Person, a faith so solid that no amount of suffering can erode it. Where is God when it hurts? He has been there from the beginning. He designed a pain system that, in the midst of a fallen world, bears His stamp. He transforms pain, using it to teach and strengthen us if we allow it to turn us toward Him. He has hurt and bled and cried and suffered. He has dignified for all time those who suffer, by sharing their pain. But one day He will gather the armies of heaven and will unleash them against the enemies of God. The world will see one last terrifying moment of suffering before the full victory is ushered in. Then God will create for us a new, incredible world. And pain will be no more (Rev. 19:11-22:6). "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and He that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness does He judge and make war." --Rev19:1 Then the angel said to me, "These words are trustworthy and true: 'The Lord God, who tells His prophets what the future holds, has sent His angel to tell you what will happen soon.'" --Rev 22:6 He left His Father's throne above, So free, so infinite His grace! Emptied Himself of all but LOVE, And bled for Adam's helpless race. -- Wesley Pain will either turn us against God or draw us to Him. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Now after reading that my heart was stilled. I still did not understand why Logan had to go through all of this pain, but I knew God was with him in it. The picture of Yeshua (Jesus) above is one I have in my home office and I often find myself touching it. It is the blood in this picture that allows me to say boldly: "His blood was for me to set me free from sin, is for me to keep me free from sin, and will always be IN me by His Holy Spirit, and it will lead me home one day Father, because You have showed me the WAY. Waiting and Anticipating Yeshua ruturn amen Lord God, Amen!" I know of suffering, both mental pain and bodily pain, but if it were not for those pains I would not be curled up today in my Saviour' arms, trusting in Him for all things both small and great. Gee I hate to see anyone suffer, let alone a small child like Logan. And if I hate that, then how much more our Lord and Saviour does! But it is Messiah's words to us that are so filled with hope, these words I hang on to. His words makes me know He is a Good God: "It is the thief that comes for one reason, it's to steal, to kill, and to destroy: but I have come that they (all who believe in Me) might have LIFE, and that they might have that LIFE more abundantly, until it overflows (with My goodness). --John 10:10 AGI "Depend on Me, trust in Me to get you home safely and on time! Know this, I came to give you life and to comfort you...so let me!" Amen! Email your comments to: barbara@mayimhayim.org Mayim's Endnote