it always gets worse before it gets better

so the lady I was working with was telling me. We ended up having quite the theological discussion today while the residents were having 'madach-schlop'. She was saying how historically, before a nation has a revival, the things that they have come to depend on are stripped away from them. She said we are beginning to go down that road. In this area we rely heavily on agriculture, cattle, etc... With the border closed to our beef, and the last few years of poor weather for the crops. It's just the beginning. She said our job now is to pray that when people have no where else to turn, they will turn to God to heal our land (and our hearts). I had never really thought about that before and I was challenged by that.

Another thought...I was reading an article on the Newsboys site based on the story in 2 Samuel 5:17-26. This is the one where God commands David to defeat the Philistine army and says that "as soon as you hear the sound of marching in tops of the balsam trees, move quickly, because that will mean the LORD has gone out in front of you to strike the Philistine army." So anyways, the article had this to say about that story:

"many times we will not fully understand the plans of God for our lives. We do not understand them because we are blind to what God is doing on our behalf in the invisible realm. Even as God's angelic armies lead the host of Israel, so He is working in your life to bring about the tremendous victory you have been waiting for. This principle is important because many times when God is secretly at work in our lives, we have the tendency to feel abandoned by Him."

How true is that, eh? I think we underestimate the power and the reality of the spiritual realm. Just because we can't see it, doesn't mean it's not there. I could go on and on about this...but I'll spare you. Enjoy the BEAUTIFUL weather we are finally getting!!