Give Thanks

Dear Heavenly Father, I thank You for bearing the pain of watching Your only Beloved Son, Whom You so dearly love, go through the passion and die the death on the Cross. Now that I am a parent, I can only catch a glimpse of how painful it was for You. And You did that for me! 

I can better appreciate Psalm 8:

1 O Lord, our Lord, how excellent (majestic and glorious) is Your name in all the earth! You have set Your glory on [or above] the heavens.

2 Out of the mouths of babes and unweaned infants You have established strength because of Your foes, that You might silence the enemy and the avenger.

3 When I view and consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained and established,

4 What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of [earthborn] man that You care for him?

5 Yet You have made him but a little lower than God [or heavenly beings], and You have crowned him with glory and honor.

6 You made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet:

7 All sheep and oxen, yes, and the beasts of the field,

8 The birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

9 O Lord, our Lord, how excellent (majestic and glorious) is Your name in all the earth!

When my little one was having her rotten tooth extracted, she was screaming and writhing in pain. How I wished it was me in her place.  Yet, it was necessary for her to go through that for her own good. I just couldn't bear to watch. I walked away.

But You sent Your only Beloved Son to suffer that much pain for my good. There was nothing wrong with Him. You sent Him to take all that pain to remove my rottenness. [2 Corinthians 5:21]. This is so that I can be made whole without having to suffer that pain.

Is it more painful to go through the Cross or to watch the ordeal? It was excruciatingly painful to die on the Cross and I thank Your Son, My Lord Jesus, for having willingly laid down His life for me. And I am grateful to You Father for having borne the pain of Your heart being shredded in billion pieces from watching all that come to pass.

I believe You love Your only Son so much to spare Him from watching You suffer. Yet, the only way to redeem me from the clutches of the evil one was for You, God, to take my place of punishment.  It was either You or Your only Beloved Son. You chose to take the more painful part.

Now that all that has come to pass, the blessed Holy Spirit is in my midst bearing the untold griefs of my stubbornness. Yet He patiently coax and persuade. Like a loving parent who sees the folly of an ignorant child insisting on his foolish ways, He lovingly advise and guide. Whenever I make a mess, He is always there to clear it up. Whenever I take a wrong turn, He is right there to lead me back to the right one. He is Your love for me in motion.

The blessed Holy Spirit is here today to indwell me only because You sent Your only Beloved Son to die on the Cross.  Christ crucified did not just show and prove Your great love for me, He unleashed the power of Your love in me!

The more I trust You, the more of Your graciousness I experience. All of Your graciousness is laid before me for my taking.  The more I let go, the more I receive.  The more I hold on, the more I am deceived.

Psalm 23

1 The Lord is my Shepherd [to feed, guide, and shield me], I shall not lack.
2 He makes me lie down in [fresh, tender] green pastures; He leads me beside the still and restful waters.
3 He refreshes and restores my life (my self); He leads me in the paths of righteousness [uprightness and right standing with Him—not for my earning it, but] for His name’s sake.
4 Yes, though I walk through the [deep, sunless] valley of the shadow of death, I will fear or dread no evil, for You are with me; Your rod [to protect] and Your staff [to guide], they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with [a]oil; my [brimming] cup runs over.
6 Surely or only goodness, mercy, and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life, and through the length of my days the house of the Lord [and His presence] shall be my dwelling place.

Thank You Heavenly Father for giving me Your only Beloved Son to die on the Cross as Jesus the Man as Your Messiah, Your Anointed One. And He has already undone all the works of the devil in my live as well as the lives of each and every member of my household. [1 John 3:8].