God Is God

God is God, and I am not

I can only see a part

Of the picture He's painting

God is God and I am man,

So I'll never understand it all

For only God is God.

These are some of the most impactful and memorable lyrics of my whole life. They come from a song called "God is God" by one of my favorite artists, Steven Curtis Chapman. 

When I was a freshman in high school, my grandma was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor called a gliboblastoma. It was terminal, and there was nothing the doctors could do to save her. It was so painful to watch her regress into a little girl, trying to remember and relearn how to do basic, everyday tasks. My mom was her main caretaker, and wow, did it take a toll on her. My whole family was visibly hurt by my mom's absence.

The doctors performed a brain surgery to remove the growth, but there was no way to reach the root of it & take it out entirely. So, with the roots still intact, my grandma was her normal self for a few weeks. But the tumor would not relent, and soon she was back to the little girl trying to remember and relearn. My grandma Isabel passed away that year. It was one of the hardest years of my life.

We would take her to hospitals that were quite a distance away - I think Redwood City?  I remember so vividly - one late night we were driving back home from the hospital. My grandma was spending the night in the hospital so it was just me & my mom in the car. The song "God is God" started playing. My mom began to sing and as she did, tears started streaming down her face. She didn't have to explain anything to me. See, the song is simply about a person going through something incredibly tough. And although they can't see all the answers or understand why God does what He does, the person is still giving God the permission to intervene and the honor that says, "Win or lose, we praise Him."

This song will forever spark immense emotion in me. My mom was a picture of Christ to me that night. No matter what happened to Jesus -  "Not my will Father, but Your will be done..."

We cannot understand the ways of God. We cannot always know WHY. But we must have the faith to say that God is God, whether I can see the big picture or not. 

An Epiphany

"... When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him." - Isaiah 59:19

The Hebrew word for “flood” here is nahar. It means a stream or river. I assumed it would mean a gigantic, overflowing pool of water that is unstoppable & inconquerable. But no. The BEST the enemy can do – his idea of a flood – is a little ol stream. 

Look at these pictures. 

Now tell me, what is a little stream in comparison to the One who made entire OCEANS!

The Hebrew word for “lift up a standard” here is nuwc (“noos”). It means to escape, depart, disappear, put to flight. God will dissipate the floods of the enemy, and allow you to escape without knick or scratch under His covering.

When the enemy is threatening attack, remember this verse and realize the infinite ability of your God, versus the pathetic streams of the devil. And just as all rivers must run into the ocean, so will the enemy HAVE TO return to the Ocean and succumb to It's ebb and flow. 

Lord, raise Your standard! Amen

A Drink from the River

Well, as God keeps moving, speaking & shaking things up, I think we sometimes figure, "Well I got my fill for today... I should be good for a month." Nope. What I've learned as this whole move of God continues is that even when WE think we've gotten our fresh drink of water for the day, God is still not done. While we worship, what we're doing is getting a cup & dipping it in the river to get a drink. But even when that cup is empty and you've taken your drink, is the river dried up? No, its still running and twisting and turning beyond your control. God is not done just because YOU are done. He is still working and flowing. It is now up to us to go to the River each day and get a new drink of living water.

"What I love most about rivers is, you can't step in the same river twice."

                                                                                                         - Pocahantas