"Oh Lord, You are my God; I will exalt You, I will give thanks to Your name; for You have worked wonders, plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness" Isaiah 25:1. When my eyes landed upon this verse, it was as if I'd been taken to that rock which is higher (Ps. 61), and was staring out upon a land whose labyrinthine burrows were perfectly articulate and lead in every way to the most suitable ground. The views were clear up there, and one could not help but arch in every way to be nearer the Son. The hedges looked dreadfully small and the blooms seemed ever so few. Beneath the burgeoning blossoms beamed hundreds of crystalline flecks that lined the paths. Few of the pristine pieces dwarfed their companions, and it was translated at once that they were those "of whom the world was not worthy" (Heb. 11:38). Happening upon this sight caused me to stumble and fall headlong off the rock and into the hedge. The brambles and branches occluded my eyes with a rivaling intensity, and the swelling unknown seemed to instantly supersede the perspicuity of the previous illumination. Heart palpitations, a sore back and general lethargy lead me nowhere, as I sat reeling in my mind, and fumbled to hold onto that great Rock of Ages.

Unknown at the time, the gems in the maze were the lives of refracted glory that had shone from the Son. Their splendor contrasted the others, for their luster was unfaded, and at once it was known that their form was actualized by their entrusting of themselves to the master hewer of the soul. The unfurling hedge about them encased them sovereignly in the plan formed long ago. At times the light on it was dim, and the pressures great. The circumstances enclosing them tempted dismay and doubt, but the vision of those with love refined saw beyond the portal of this earth, and into the eyes of whom we have to do (Heb. 4:13). "And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do." The pressures became to them agents of transformation which faithfully transposed the natural into something transcendent, which thus reflected the object of their adoration.

The Bible implores us not to think lightly of our weaknesses, but rather to boast in them, so that the power of God might be perfected therein. The gaze of the Lord is drawn to the humble, and His strength is waiting to shine forth from the cracks in our vessel. When I fell headlong, my eyes had focused themselves on the insurmountable odds that stood between the desires of my heart, and the weakness of my frame; my sights were not on the Giver, but on the meanness of the recipient. One ought only to compare himself with His Maker, for therein he is humbled, restrained, broken, and remade into the very image of which he was created to be. We must savor these truths, and hold them long until their color imbues our character, and their essence wafts from our being, leaving eternal perfume on all that we touch and embrace.

For weeks, my thoughts have been lacking cohesion, and have hurled themselves around like the slush spatterings that line our roads. I am now in that span of time when the snow is carved as the desert, and the drifts are great shaves and swirls of powdered diamonds; His word is restoring my soul. It all began with Psalm 19. I was staying with a friend, and in very early morning I was awakened and restless. Depth of breath, and wholeness of mind were entirely lacking, and as I lay silently, my vain repetitions only furthered my faltering. I took to my bedside and groaned there, hoping that all embodied in this vessel might be rinsed and washed entirely away. As I looked on at my need, I wished for some other way, for real prayer is painful, and to enter that inner sanctum takes time. One enters with all his fears and failings, heart puffs and longings, and is soon deflated by the great folly found in his every breath. Oh, it is a despairing place, and I find such vacillations there; parallyzed in my need, and humiliated by everything that is in the general vicinity of anything I've touched--

and then humbled, tended, and embraced by a love I simply cannot understand, nor contain, less often show to others. From there, gradually the soul takes flight and cannot help but be lifted, and gently sent soaring from all that is, and was in its existence; is washed, renewed, strengthened and restored by a Spirit that one cannot see... Beyond the slightest shadow, faith reveals this Spirit as being far superior to anything seen, for the longer the soul gazes upon Him, and imbibes His word, the less the man resembles himself, and the more he takes on His Maker. I am afraid that my resemblance is not what it ought be, and I live dreadfully unaware of my heavenly posterity, but as the word steeps in my heart, it again restores my soul.

"A program of prayer without faith is powerless. The missing element that is necessary to energize prevailing prayer that binds and casts out Satan is triumphant faith. And the missing element that is necessary to energize triumphant faith is praise -- perpetual, purposeful, aggressive praise. Praise is the highest form of prayer because it combines petition with faith. Praise is the spark plug of faith. It is the one thing needed to get faith airborne, enabling it to soar above the the deadly miasma of doubt. Praise is the detergent which purifies faith and purges doubt from the heart. The secret of answered prayer is faith without doubt (Mark 11:23). And the secret of faith without doubt is praise, triumphant praise, continuous praise, praise that is a way of life. This is the solution to the problem of a living faith and successful prayer. The secret of success in overcoming Satan and qualifying for the throne is a massive program of effective prayer. The secret of effective prayer is a massive program of praise." Paul E. Billheimer

"Trust in Him at all times, O people;
Pour out your heart before Him;
God is a refuge for us."(Psalm 62:8)