Janet Newbill - A Collection of Silver Threads

A COLLECTION
OF SILVER
THREADS

by

JANET NEWBILL

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2004 JANET NEWBILL. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 06/01/2022

ISBN: 978-1-4184-0299-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4184-0300-3 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2004093150

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Table of Contents

AWESOME
GOD

I know, O Lord, that your laws are righteous, and in faithfulness you have afflicted me. Psalm 119:75 (NIV)

I know a kind, Christian man who is disabled and is confined to a wheelchair. However, he spends his days weaving the most beautiful rugs. I once commented on the intricate design and vibrant colors of one of his rugs, and he was quick to point out to me that the upper part of the rug was much more beautiful than the underside. He said this is also true in the life of a Christian. God sees the whole design of our lives, as He intends them to be, and we only see the underneath. He not only weaves joy into our lives, but sometimes sorrow. God chooses the colors, and sometimes He uses dark threads. He also uses gold and silver threads in the pattern He has for our lives.

God always answers our prayers in His way with a yes, no, or wait. How wonderful to know that He never makes a mistake in His weaving. When we do have those dark threads woven in our lives, He promises us, But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31 (NIV)

I the Lord do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. (NIV)

With all the changes that go on in our lives, it is nice to know that God is not in the business of evolving and changing. He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

As I was helping my daughter pack her car to leave for college in a faraway city, I was not ready for that change. It seemed like such a short time had passed since her first day in kindergarten. I tried hard to fight back the tears as I waved good-bye.

It was hard to walk back into her bedroom, but I wanted to see if anything of importance had been left behind. I found myself sitting in the middle of the floor looking around her room at the pictures of her life. There were baby, preteen, and high school pictures. She had gone through so many changes. I then wrote these words:

Heartstrings

Today I said good-bye

To my twenty-year-old girl,

She packed her car and left me

To give her wings a whirl.

I quickly turned my head away,

The tears I tried to hide,

I felt my heart was in the car

And the strings had come untied.

But as I slowly turned around,

I thought I saw a man,

He was riding in the front seat

With a smile and map in hand.

Oh, He knew His way and her way, too,

For He had written the plan,

See, I had given her up to God

And taken her back again.

Now, when I make the same mistake,

I drop down to my knees,

And ask the Man to keep her safe

And guard my heartstrings, please.

You shall rejoice in all the good things the Lord your God has given to you and your household. Deuteronomy 26:11 (NIV)

My father had left our home when my sister and I were only five and two. My husbands mother had left her family when he and his brother were only five and one. The odds were against us, but the Lord was for us! He blessed me with a loving, Christian mother, and He blessed my husband with a strong, Christian father, stepmother, and a sweet grandmother, who was such a prayer warrior that we still feel the effects of her prayers in our lives today.

They said it would not last! We were young and we were both from broken homes. The odds were against us, but the Lord was with us. We have been happily married for thirty-six years. Weighing in at two pounds and four ounces, and three months premature, our son was given a 15 percent chance of living. The odds were against him, but the Lord was for us. He is now a healthy, successful thirty-year-old. We were also blessed with a beautiful daughter.

Because of our love for Jesus Christ, our family has always put God first, and we have tried to model principles of Christian living by having devotions and reading the Bible together. Although pessimists say the family is an endangered species, my idea is that you can produce a solid family, in spite of the odds, if you put Jesus Christ first. I am so proud of my family that I would be willing to bet on it!

Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed, says the Lord, who has compassion on you. Isaiah 54:10 (NIV)

People sometimes form misconceptions about God because they base their view of Him on their earthly fathers. Because I was abandoned by my earthly father at the age of two, I formed my conception of God as someone who would abandon His children. I now know that God is incomparable, and that He sustains me each day with His power. God is sovereign, which means that God is in all and over all. There is much evidence of the sovereignty of God. He is the creator of the universe, the sustainer of the world, and He acts on behalf of His people. He has performed numerous miracles, and His forgiveness and mercy are unending. He uses people and events to accomplish His purposes. The authority of His inspired word gives wisdom and instruction. Wise Christians read His word and do not fall for the false doctrines of the age.

God is the all-powerful creator, and everything is rightfully His. He knows the stars by name and keeps them in place with His great power and strength. The universe is not the result of chance, but of Gods magnificent creative power. Isaiah 40:28 (NIV) says, Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and His understanding no one can fathom.

God is the caring helper. He gently leads us and gives us strength. He equips us with gifts to use for good. He relates to His children in perfect love, but also in infinite power.

God loved us even when we did not love Him. The love of God is spelt on the cross. Our forgiveness of sin was obtained only through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ, who died for our sins. When once we realize all that it costs God to forgive us and to give us eternal life, we will be held captivated and held by His love.

People were also bringing babies to Jesus to have Him touch them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. But Jesus called the children to Him and said, Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it. Luke 18:16

In December of 1971, our son was born almost three months premature. He weighed only two pounds and four ounces at birth, and lost down to one pound eleven ounces in the days to follow. After suffering hyland membrane disease because of his undeveloped lungs, he was given only a 10 percent chance of survival.