There’s More

Posted on by Gary Fultz

This, after reading Cindy’s post realchristianwomen.blog/2023/01/06/fridays-verse-1-6-23/
   

I had clicked on Cindy’s post and notice she used a picture I had taken from a boat by the Apostle Islands in lake Superior. When I read the bible verse she had posted I got excited. Not only did the verse fit the picture really well, but there was so much more to what she was posting. More than Cindy could know and more than the reader could know. Take a look and read the verse.

“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,
    for I have put my trust in you.
Show me the way I should go,
    for to you I entrust my life.” Psalm 143:8 NIV

Here is what no one else knew. The rock in the picture is one of the outermost apostle Islands. The area is dangerous for big ships in the dark or any weather with low visibility. I also took a picture of what is on top of the rock.

In matters of God and faith, there’s more. Only because God is so much beyond our wildest imaginations is there more when we completely trust him. Those who have walked in that kind of faith have stories of God’s leading, guidance and provision. Someday they may find out how much more there was to their stories. God leads us into so much more when we follow him.

I remember telling someone who had fallen on some very desperate times “don’t worry, trust me when I tell you that God is working behind the scenes” They did not know several of us had already raised the money to take care of the issue. I could say with 100% certainty that God was taking care of them because I was in on the solution. Jesus said a lot of things to his disciples with 100% certainty. God’s promises come from 100% certainty for those who will know him, follow him and live by faith.

Now you know why I got excited. I knew about the lighthouse. In matters of life, faith and God, there is so much more. I’m 100% sure.

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man. The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9

Check out Cindy’s blog here

Gary

37 thoughts on “There’s More”

  1. Gary, isn’t it wonderful how God can speak to us through the beauty of nature and things like a lighthouse? Yes, He’s got our backs, He’s in control, and in letting Him guide us, we don’t have to be anxious about the future.
    Wishing you a blessed 2023.

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    1. So true Ann. He is eternally creative. One would think that knowing the nature of God, it would be an easy step to totally trust him. God doing all the heavy lifting (dying and rising again for starters) because of his great love for us and mankind still tends to say “No thanks, I got this”

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    1. Thank You Mandy. My grandmother used to say “you don’t know the half of it” And, I suspect it’s true on many levels. I can sense God’s humorous pleasure when we pray “Lord, teach us your ways” and God maybe saying “if you only knew the half of it.

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    1. Thank you Leslie. It reminds me of my father, when I was young, tore a dollar bill in half and gave half to my brother and I. Spend wisely he said. All those “one another’s” in scripture are a clue as to how God operates with us.

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  4. I think of those famous words, “And now for the rest of the story….” Thanks for sharing the rest of the photo! This is just one more example where God has encouraged me to not give up. Blessings, Gary!

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    1. It just reminded me as well how much I need to be aware of what God is doing around me and be a participant rather than a bystander in his workings and sharing jesus as a light, the only light to a lost world.

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  6. Knowing about the light house is like having an ace in the hole in cards. Yet God is much more than this! It’s wonderful to see how the Body of Christ works together–on blogs and in churches–to meet needs and bring glory to God.

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  7. You are so right…there is always so much more that we do not know. God does surprise us in wondrous ways as we journey through life. I love this photo! The more we seek God’s will for our lives, the more we learn and grow and become.

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  8. So true Linda. The word tapestry comes to mind. If every little detail of the history of the world, from the moment of creation to the end, could be visualized at once down to each molecule, we would only begin to understand the tapestry of eternity. That would only touch the fringe of the immensity of our unmeasurable God (who loves us enough to become every part of each individuals tapestry).

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    1. “There’s more…”
      Your post and your comment here about the tapestry of eternity drew my thoughts to a video I have only started watching. A Christian scientist is explaining some mathematical concepts as relates to the mind of God. Here’s a link to the video. The part I was thinking of starts at about minute 19, but all of what I’ve watched, so far, is fascinating.

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      1. Thanks Kathy, I’m going to take a look at the video tonight. Right now the fish are biting and it’s a delightful day to sit and reflect a little on the lake. I often think of God’s tapestry beyond what we can see from our perch here with limited capacity in understanding.

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  9. Thank you for this beautiful reminder to be a light and city on the hill for others. It can be as simple as buying groceries, quietly sitting with someone, and so many other acts of kindness. Our own little lighthouse is filled with the Light of the World. A truly renewable resource.

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    1. You get it Mary Jo. It can be quite simple. For me it’s connected to my state of awareness of those opportunities (seeing) and also my sensitivity to God’s tap on the shoulder or whisper in my ear (“hey bud, you’re up). I can be kind of dense and in my own little world (my wife would agree).

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  10. I’ve experienced so many “there’s more” moments in the past couple of years. So many times I think it’s the end, when God is saying, not quite…there is most definitely more. Whenever I see a lighthouse, I immediately think of the way God guides us. This is a wonderful post, Gary.

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    1. Thank You Stephanie. My thoughts exactly. I also included the header picture of footprints beside what looks like the shores of a continent (to me) as if God is saying “so, who will go for me? Whom shall I send?”

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  12. Wow! I love how the Holy Spirit wove this picture (and its greater story) together with this scripture. It was a divine “wait but there’s more” moment. Your description of the lighthouse at the Apostle Islands combined with your words, “In matters of God and faith, there’s more” brought to mind the verses in Isaiah 55 that say, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth so are My ways higher than Your ways and My thoughts higher than your thoughts.” I am curious, how did the islands get their name?

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    1. I had been looking for a way to communicate how much we do not see of God’s workings in the smallest details and Cindy’s post provided just that as a springboard for those thoughts.
      As far as the islands, the history has many articles written…Basically:
      In the late 1660s, Jesuit priests Claude Allouez and Jacques Marquette established a mission at La Pointe du Saint Espirit on the largest of the islands, Madeline Island, and it is now considered one of Wisconsin’s oldest settlements. This marked the European influence on the islands, particularly that of the French. Although there are 22 islands, and only 12 apostles, the famous priest, traveler, and historian Pierre François Xavier de Charlevoix allegedly renamed the islands “Apostle Islands” after the twelve largest of the archipelago. Some believe he may have simply wished to honor the followers of Jesus by naming a gorgeous place after them. Of course, that the most famous of the islands has been dubbed “Devils Island” would probably not have gone down well with the holy men.
      The lighthouse is on Devils Island, also known for the beautiful ice caves in the winter. It’s worth looking up.

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  13. I can imagine us all, seated together in heaven, marveling at one another’s stories of God working behind the scenes in our lives. What ecstatic delight we’re sure to enjoy in the revelation of history’s complete tapestry!

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    1. I know it will much better than my imagination which is pretty good Nancy. The sad part for me here and now is those who will refuse to have a story that intersects with the cross. I wrote lyrics to a song for a funeral of an uncle who came to Christ on his death bed (quite a story for another time). It was a last minute celebration. My Uncle loved “soul music” So it was “soul”…”There’s a place where the streets are all gold
      “There’s a place where we will never get old
      Oh ya, there’s a place where all our stories are told
      I’m gonna be there….yes I will….”

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      1. Agreed–my heart also aches for loved ones who have yet to say yes to Jesus. / You’ll have to make a video of yourself performing this song, Gary. Then post it here! I’m liking the lyrics!

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