As I leaned over and dug my forehead into the edge of my sink taking a break from the daunting task of simply doing dishes, I listened to my music playing off pandora.  The first line of the current song brought me to tears, as I was suffering from the debilitating symptom, weakness and fatigue.  And the Lord spoke to me. 

1. I hear the Savior say,
   “Thy strength indeed is small;
   Child of weakness, watch and pray,
   Find in Me thine all in all.”

Simple daily tasks have become very difficult this week as I prepare for my doctor's appointment Wednesday.  I have had to stop all medications in hopes of getting an accurate diagnosis at the rheumatologist.  The fatigue, weakness and pain are top notch this week, and I need the Lord to sustain me.  This song brought me to my knees in tears, knowing that my Savior has been through worse than this, and I can lean on Him for hope and peace through this suffering.  
        
            Jesus paid it all,
          All to Him I owe;
          Sin had left a crimson stain,
          He washed it white as snow.


As I listen to the words, I think about Jesus before the cross when He asked the disciples to "watch and pray".  He says, "Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."  Boy was I feeling the weakness of flesh.  As I think about the  last couple of weeks, I have been so strong, putting my full trust in the Lord's will for my life, knowing that this suffering will bring Him glory.  Now here I am feeling the weight of the weakness of flesh, and I hear my Savior say, "Sarah, find in Me thine all in all."  He paid it all and has washed me white as snow.  


            And when before the throne
           I stand in Him complete,
           I'll lay my trophies down,
           All down at Jesus' feet


I wrote on my Facebook page shortly after this moment: 
     "You know what's frustrating? When you have all these dreams and ambitions, but your body  fights against them. Thinking about what heaven will be like with no sickness or disease. I can't
wait for that!


Dreams and ambitions, I sit and think about what that is.  In the moment, I'm thinking art, volleyball, and all the things I love to do... in this world.  I've been crying for 2 weeks off and on, because I'm quitting volleyball due to my sickness.  Monday night is my last game.  I love volleyball and it's so hard to give up.  But if you think hard on it, what does all of this mean anyway?  What do we gain in this world in our dreams and achievements?  
This is what Jesus says:
      Mark 8:36
      "For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the   gospel's will save it. "For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his 
soul? "For what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

I lay it all at Jesus' feet, all my dreams and ambitions, achievements and accomplishments.  Not my will Father, but yours be done in my life.

Do you believe in angels?  Well, Hebrews of the Bible tells us that they are very much real and very much present.  However, Hebrews also tell us that Jesus has been given authority over all things, even angels.  And Jesus' name is far greater than all the names of the angels (Hebrews 1:4).  In the first chapter of Hebrews, God the Father declares His Son to be God.  He says to the Son, "Lord, in the beginning you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hand" (1:10).  So we see that Jesus was with God in the beginning.  See also Genesis 1:26, "Then God said, "Let us make man in our image."  The plural refers to the trinity.  Therefore Jesus was with God in the beginning.  When God the Father presented His honored Son to the world, God said, "Let all the angels of God worship him" (1:6).  God describes the angels as messengers swift as the wind, and servants made of flaming fire. (1:7).  So we see that the angels are messengers and servants of God.  Specifically, Hebrews 1:14 says, "Angels are only servants.  They are spirits sent from God to care for those who will receive salvation."  The purpose of angels is to bring the message of Jesus Christ to the children of God and to serve them.  Sounds to me like you have a guardian angel. 

However, let us not be confused in that, we are to worship God alone.  We do not worship angels (Revelation 22:8-10); we have been made lower than the angels... but only for a little while.  Jesus is alone worthy to be praised.  In this world, we can ask the Father through the Lord Jesus Christ to send His angels to guard us on this earth.  The future world will not be controlled by angels, as man (God's children brought into salvation through Christ) will be made higher than the angels (2:5).  This has not yet happened (2:9).  At this point in the plan of God, we see that God made Jesus lower than the angels for a little while (2:9), but when He was raised to life, Jesus was given authority over all things, seated at the right hand of the Father.  And this is the plan of salvation for God's children.

So we should pray to God through our Lord Jesus Christ.   Hebrews 4:15-17 says, "For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need."  Our high priest is Jesus Christ and we can now approach God BOLDLY because of Christ, in order to receive mercy and help in need. 

So, do you need a guardian angel today?  Ask God through Jesus Christ, to have the angels guard you in the spiritual world.  Our God goes before us and behind us, protecting us (Psalm 139:4,5).   All you have to do is ask.

If you are wondering about Jesus and how to know God, then read my previous post.