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We never fully know Him, yet He is always waiting
for us to know Him more
Katherine Kehler
“But our God is
in heaven; He does whatever He pleases”
(Psalm 115:3).
Lately
I have been thinking about the awesome and holy ways of God. God is great and
He is mysterious, yet He is totally loving.
He
gives us glimpses and insights into certain aspects of His character. He has also
given us the written and living Word and His Holy Spirit to teach more about
Him.
This
year I have been overwhelmed with His greatness. He engineers events so we can
learn more.
Often
it is through painful circumstances we come face to face with Him, and when we
meet Him, we are changed. He is so awesome and mysterious and yet He desires
and delights in our company.
Recently
I was reflecting about my experiences during the past few years. I recognized
that God took a painful time of life and turned it into something wonderful and
satisfying.
When
I was in the middle of it, I could not see happiness ahead – but God knew what
was best for me. He always has the big picture.
CS Lewis said, “We are not necessarily doubting
that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will
turn out to be.”
–
but in the way that is not only best for us – but also the best for the people
involved in our world. He has a long-range plan; we see as though we are
looking through a tiny, foggy window.
.
An example. Throughout their lives on earth, my parents prayed for the salvation of one of my siblings.
But
not until they were in heaven did their son give his life to Jesus Christ and
follow Him.
Yet
other times God answers seemingly inconsequential prayers immediately - for
parking places or finding a lost item.
The
awesomeness of His nature is reflected in the majestic mountains, humming birds
and colorful butterflies.
We
feast our eyes on their beauty – and are amazed. We look at the fragile
snowflakes and know that even though they are fragile alone, they are very
amazing in their power when bonded together.
At
times, when we seem to be treated unfairly, we wonder about His power. Is it
real? Yet He never changes – our feelings do.
We
never fully know Him, yet He is always waiting for us to know Him more.
It
is good to reflect on God and His ways. Like the Apostle Paul said in
Philippians 3:10, - “I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the
fellowship of sharing in his sufferings.”
I
don’t want a shallow belief in Jesus. I want my roots to grow down deep into
Him. How about you?
Father God, when I think about how great You are, I
become tongue-tied. I am so inadequate. Perhaps, if it pleases You, take a
thought from this devotional to inspire people to want to know You more. Thank
you! Amen.
When
I was in my thirties, I believed in God — was a Christian, was a churchgoer,
but I did not know that I was created to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.
I
learned that to experience a full and meaningful life, I needed to yield the
control of my life to God (I had never done that), then I could experience His
love and power moment by moment. This is the prayer I prayed. You can too!
“Dear Father, I need You. I acknowledge that I have
been directing my own life and that, as a result, I have sinned against You. I
thank You that You have forgiven my sins through Christ’s death on the cross
for me. I now invite Christ to again take His place on the throne of my life.
Fill me with the Holy Spirit as You commanded me to be filled, and as You
promised in Your Word that You would do if I asked in faith. I now thank You
for directing my life and for filling me with the Holy Spirit.”
Does
this prayer express the desire of your heart? If so, bow in prayer and trust
God to fill you with the Holy Spirit right now.
If
you prayed this prayer we would love to hear from you. If you would like to
know God deeper, we can connect you with an email mentor and/or send you some
great links.
Katherine Kehler was born in Bassano, Alberta, Canada and lived the
first 9 years of her life in Rosemary, Alberta.
From there, her family moved to Abbotsford, BC and lived on a 64 acre
dairy farm until she graduated from high school.
Katherine and Marvin were
married in 1956 and had four children, three daughters and a son. Their
children were raised on their 10 acre chicken farm. They lived 52 years of
their married life in Aldergrove, BC.
They recently moved back to Abbotsford, BC.
When they were in their early
thirties, their lives and priorities changed dramatically when they yielded
total control of their lives to Jesus Christ and practised walking in the power
of the Holy Spirit.
In 1974, Marvin was asked to
be the National Director of Campus Crusade for Christ, Canada. He was director for 28 years, during which
Katherine started and served in several ministries:
Canadian Prayer Alert, a
national movement to mobilize people to pray for leaders of Canada.
Women Today, Canada, a
strategy to equip and mobilize women to reach out to the world.
Women in Leadership, a
strategy to help influential women examine the spiritual side of their lives
and
She served as the producer and
executive editor of Women Today Magazine, which was read in over 140 countries.
In 1995, she began a website version of the magazine. In only a few years, the website grew to five
websites, in English and French. When she transferred her ministry
responsibilities to other women, over 220,000 women from 155 countries visited
these websites every month. More than 11,000 women subscribe to her
devotionals.
When Dreams Come True: Her
first book, When Dreams Come True: Women Today Online was published in
September 2001. In October of that same
year she was included in The Celebration of Women, a book that profiled
influential Christian leaders from around the world. Articles about her have
been published in several publications such as Faith Today, Maranatha, and
Christian Leadership.
Retirement With a Purpose: In
2002, Katherine decided to target another Internet audience – men and women
over 50 years of age. In September of that year, the website Retirement With a
Purpose was launched. The purpose of this monthly ezine was to be a resource to
both men and women who are seeking for opportunities to have a significant
impact during the second half of their lives. In the 33 months she directed
this website, the audience grew to over 95,000 visitors from 195 countries each
month.
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