are you kidding

many know that i am reading through the old testament. i love the old testament by the way. it is full of the Lord's promises,faithfulness and miracles. as i was reading this weekend i thought to my self "are you kidding", God is so big, so faithful and is capable of anything. he is a good God. for example, start in 2 kings 4... the widow is about to have her sons taken from her b/c of a debt her husband did not pay. she is told to go home and collect jars from her neighbors, not a few, a lot of jars. she is told to use the "little oil" she has to fill the jars until there are no more jars to fill. i'm picturing her with a "little oil", enough to maybe fill one jar and the Lord fills, and fills, and overflows jars of oil. the Lord provided for her so that she could pay her debt, keep her sons, and to "use the leftovers to live on"...are you kidding, the Lord not only provided oil for the debt, he provided oil above and beyond what she needed. 

next....a faithful woman "does not have a son and her husband is old". she is told that "this time next year, you will have a son to hold in your arms". she doesn't believe it, she probably can't after years of trying (guessing since her husband was "old). she objects in unbelief, still the Lord blesses her, he gives her a son despite her unbelief. the child later got sick and died. here is the cool thing, God did not neglect his promise to her, she knew where to go and ask for healing. she found the man who told her she would have a child and asked for him to heal her son. i loved picturing this: Elisha (prophet of the Lord) reached the house, went in, shut the door and prayed to the Lord. The he got up on the bed where the boy was, lay upon him, mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, hands to hands...as he stretched himself out upon him, the boys body grew warm, he laid on him once more and the boy came back to life. are you kidding, the Lord not only fulfilled his promise once, but twice. 

naaman, who has leprosy asks for the Lord to heal him. he is told what to do (wash in the jordan river) and he complains that the river is not close enough, that he would have to go out of his way to wash in that river, why can't he be healed doing what he wants to do, in the river that is more convienent to go to (unbelief, stubborn, lazy, selfish...wouldn't i go to any river to be healed, or would i?...) instead of rath, the Lord is patient with him and heals him once he obeys, and goes to clean in the jordan river. 

you know, this present time, in some ways is no different for me. i sometimes struggle with unbelief, struggle with believing God has what is best for me, a hard time following him to the jordan river to be healed. thankfully, the Lord is big enough for those times, thankfully He is patient, He does not leave me EVER....the word "alone" shouldn't be a part of our vocabulary b/c we are never "alone". thank you Lord, for your faithfulness, protection, provision and calling me over and over to trust you and to know that you, you alone are a good and faithful God. you Lord are unchangeable, you Lord sit on your throne in the best and worst of times, thank you for where you have brought me and thank you for restoring me and renewing me over the past year. 

*side note: i want anyone who so happens to come across this to know: i do not recall a lot of bible stories, i do not have the bible memorized and i daily need refreshing. i have been reading through the O.T. to be reminded of the God i worship, for myself and to tell others of His faithfulness. i am a believer, but i am a seeker as well.