I woke up this morning early, with a song on my mind—“Unworthy,” by Ira Stanphill. The chorus reads, “Unworthy, unworthy, a beggar; in bondage and alone; But He made me worthy and now by His grace, His mercy has made me His own.”
Because of His mercy, I want to tell of some of the gifts I have received from my wonderful Lord Jesus Christ.
The greatest gift truly is salvation, being reconciled to God. I was nine when I was saved, at a revival at First Baptist Church in Gautier, Mississippi, in the spring of 1954. The elementary school I attended was next door to the church, and the whole school was taken over to attend the morning services at least a couple days that week. Though I had been in church all my life, that morning the Holy Spirit drew me and I ran down to the altar, crying, to be received by my Saviour and saved forever. I remember having such joy, coming home to play hymns on the piano that expressed what I felt. One of those hymns was “I’m Not Ashamed.” The next morning I got in trouble for talking to my girlfriend in church, while I was trying to get her to go down to be saved.
He has truly been my Shepherd, keeping me safe in His care throughout my life. I realize others have this same testimony, but I love the verse “I will not die, but live and declare the works of the Lord!” I must tell of His great love, grace, and mercy in my own life, while I urge others to do the same.
I must mention a few of the wonderful things provided to us by His death on the cross and resurrection from the dead. We are “redeemed…with the precious blood of Christ.” (I Peter 1:18, 19). We has “delivered us from the power of darkness, and has translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son.” (Colossians 1:13) We have the promise “Christ in you, the hope of glory!” (Colossians 1:27). We have “an inheritance…reserved in heaven for you,” which knowledge results in “joy unspeakable and full of glory!” (I Peter 1:4, 8)
In 1971 my husband Royce and I came to realize that all the words of the Bible apply to us, including the great gift of the Holy Spirit. Through study, we realized that, though we had received the Spirit into our hearts when we were saved, we needed the experience that the disciples in the Book of Acts had received. I know many don’t believe this, but this is my testimony. We prayed and received that experience, even the gift of a prayer language that has been a comfort and confirming blessing ever since.
Thinking of Psalm 103:2, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.” Another word for gifts, maybe? Verses 3-5 tell of blessings such as being forgiven of all our sins and even healed of all our diseases! Maybe our faith is too small? I remember times we received healing, and we are praying for more physical healings now.
We had five children —more wonderful gifts — from 1967-1978. Then, in 1980, having been told the nodule in my thyroid was probably not cancerous, I awoke from the surgery t
o be told that it was cancer, and “we did find evidence of invasion of the blood vessels.” Fear tried to enter my heart, I asked God to take it away, and He did! That was probably a gift just as great as the fact I had no more problems as a result of the thyroid cancer.
After we came here, about 2001, I had some pain in my abdomen. The doctor’s tests showed a mass in my left kidney. We had come to believe in God’s provisions for His people in cases such as this. We went to a church that practiced the anointing of oil and prayer for healing and had the elders do it.
Soon I had surgery in Jackson to remove my kidney. The surgeon said that what he found was a cancer that was “necrotic,” or, as the dictionary defines it, “dead.” I praise God for another wonderful deliverance from the scourge of cancer! Psalm 105:1 and 2 say, “Make known His deeds among the people,” and “talk ye of all His wondrous works.” I believe that means even in our individual lives, not just what He did as recorded in the Bible.
On Saturday of Labor Day weekend, 2012, Royce had a stroke. My daughter, Joanie, her husband Kurt, and I immediately began praying against it, of course, as we called the ambulance and got him to the hospital.
By Monday afternoon, after tests and scans, the main neurologist got back from his holiday, only to come in Royce’s room and observe him feeding himself and getting himself to the bathroom. He turned to me and exclaimed, “But this was a huge stroke! The cerebellum only has two lobes, and one is almost gone!”
Weeks later, as Royce walked out of his office without even a cane, I asked what the usual result of a stroke like that would be.
He said, “They usually can’t walk.” A physical therapist also said it could have caused death or his being “totally incapacitated.” Praise God!
There is no way I can finish all I want to say about the wonderful gifts from my gracious Lord in this one article.
It would be hard to schedule interviews of others during this season, so I thought it would be a good time to tell some of my own story.
If God wills, for His glory, I will continue this next week.
