Author Archives: Stephen Hufman

Unknown's avatar

About Stephen Hufman

A physician in Family Medicine for the last 35 years, now concentrating on writing and photography. My intention is to encourage and strengthen people in the Lord. In all things I hope to be pleasing to Jesus who has given me so much. The photography is all taken by me. I use a Canon 5D mark 3, and Canon G10.

A Day of Rejoicing

Posted on by
6
SH_200610-1745-Edit

Standing before the throne.

When I awaken in the morning, it takes a while for my mind to awaken and get going. It is the same on a spiritual level. What I mean is God’s promises and love are still there, but it takes awhile to wake up to them and orient my spirit around my Lord.

My spiritual wake-up goes something like this:
My Lord God, You love me and will never leave me nor forsake me. (Hebrews 13:5, Romans 8:38-39)
Your love for me stretches out beyond my understanding and overcomes my every shortcoming. (Ephesians 3:18)
In that love You have redeemed me to be Your child (John 1:12)
I will not worry about my past nor carry it about like a ball and chain. When You redeemed me, You redeem my past too. You have given me a wonderful heritage in Jesus. (Psalm 61:5, Psalm 103:4)
I will not worry about today or tomorrow for You hold them in Your hand and will give me strength for all that lies ahead. (Psalm 139)
I rest in Your love for my family. I know You dearly love them. (Matthew 19:13-14)

One glorious day I will stand before God’s throne in the light of His love, praising Jesus for all He has done for me. What a day of rejoicing that will be!

Whoever is wise, let him heed these things
and consider the great love of the Lord. Psalm 107:43

How little we see—How little we love

Posted on by
2
SH_190528-9011-Edit

How great is God’s love for us.

Praise the Lord!
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever.
Who can list the glorious miracles of the Lord?
Who can ever praise him enough? Psalm 106:1-2 NLT

“Who can list the miracles of the LORD,” implies we are only seeing a small portion of what the LORD is doing. These miraculous happenings arise from God’s goodness and enduring love. His mighty love holds me even when I cannot see it. A simile for comparing our knowledge to what God is actually doing would be like looking out upon the trees and flowering fields, and all you think is that the lawn needs mowing. But the truth is if we saw life with clear eyes the wonder would blow us away and cause us to kneel in praise to God. That is why the Psalmist says—who can ever praise Him enough?

Fortunately, God’s goodness and love are poured out regardless of our level of understanding. But the ability to enjoy His gift depends on our hearts readiness to receive.

This is easiest to see with God’s love.

My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. John 15:12 NIV

It is here we fall way short of loving in the measure we have been loved. Jesus calls it—little love.

Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Look at this woman kneeling here. When I entered your home, you didn’t offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You didn’t greet me with a kiss, but from the time I first came in, she has not stopped kissing my feet. You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume.
I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.” Luke 7:44-47 NLT

This “little love” not only chokes our love of God, but makes us apathetic to the pain of those around us. An example is racism. Most people feel they aren’t racist. But our feelings are not the measure here… it is have we loved our neighbor as God has loved us. Our “little love” has resulted in a trail of tears down through the generations, from the cruel days of slavery to the killing of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbury.

If we truly saw the enormity of God’s love in Jesus, and the pain our indifference to others has caused, it would drive us to fall at the feet of Jesus pleading for forgiveness and stir afresh the desire to show His love to our neighbor. Lord, cure us of our “little love”… O who can ever love Him enough?

All Creation Jumps for Joy

Posted on by
2
SH_140921-2065-gigapixel-scale-2_00x-Edit

Jumping Salmon

Have you ever felt little desire to pray and ask God for help. It happens to me when I am being tempted. I know if I pray then God will expect me to fight the good fight, even though I know I’ll eventually succumb. I think of it as “no desire to desire God.” At these times I occupy my mind with useless thoughts trying to cause a diversion (TV, a video game). Instead of this helping, I am left defenseless against temptation. Addictions are like this—the desire is for the habit and there is no desire for much else. At that moment, the thought of praying seems to tighten the screws of shame.

I know part of prayer is to get rid our desires for the things of this world and be wholly devoted to to Jesus. Easy to say, but frankly beyond my reach.

Jesus ran into a man with this problem:

Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him. “There is still one thing you haven’t done,” he told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
At this the man’s face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. Mark 10:21-22 NLT

Whoa, could I do what Jesus asked that man to do? Being honest, I must admit I cannot…I need help. More than just a little lift, I need a complete transformation. “Yeah, right. How is that going to happen?” I say this as I begin to turn away. Stop! The story isn’t finished, for the Lord knows my weakness and mercifully follows this man’s story with these words.

Those who heard this said, “Then who in the world can be saved?”
He replied, “What is impossible for people is possible with God.” Mark 10:26-27 NLT

For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. Philippians 2:13 NLT

God wants to bring forth in us an overwhelming all encompassing desire for Him, and He offers the power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish this. All we can do is ask for the desire to desire Him above all.

So rejoice along with the psalmist:

Whom have I in heaven but you?
I desire you more than anything on earth.
My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak,
but God remains the strength of my heart;
he is mine forever. Psalm 73:25-26

O Lord, Abide with Me

Posted on by
1
SH_130504-3373-Edit

Wilting beauty

Change and decay in all around I see—
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.
Lyrics from “Abide with Me” by Henry Francis Lyte

As the years accumulate, and my body struggles to do what once I took for granted, I take comfort and courage in these lyrics from the hymn “Abide with Me.”

Life without Jesus would be difficult to face, for it would be about what I’ve lost, but praise God—Jesus has risen and conquered decay. Life is not about getting old, but about being redeemed and abiding in my Lord!

Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. John 15:4

Let all that I am praise the Lord;
with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.
Let all that I am praise the Lord;
may I never forget the good things he does for me.
He forgives all my sins
and heals all my diseases.
He redeems me from death
and crowns me with love and tender mercies.
He fills my life with good things.
My youth is renewed like the eagle’s! Psalm 103:1-5

The Crown of Life

Posted on by
1
SH_200501-1579-Edit

Wildflower – Tall Silvercrown

This psalm speaks how it is when I feel close to God.

Let all that I am praise the Lord;
with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.
Let all that I am praise the Lord;
may I never forget the good things he does for me.
He forgives all my sins
and heals all my diseases.
He redeems me from death
and crowns me with love and tender mercies.
He fills my life with good things.
My youth is renewed like the eagle’s! Psalm 103:1-5

It’s an over the top feeling, and I would like to feel the Lord’s presence all the time, but things happen and I slide back into the mundane and the crown slips off. One day I will bow in His presence and praise will be effortless and constant, but for now I need to remind myself and meditate on how good life is with my Lord.

I hope the scripture and photo help lift you into His presence this day to receive the crown of God’s love and mercy.

The Law of Unless

Posted on by
2
SHg3_170610-8403

Water flows to the law of gravity, and it is beautiful

Unless the Lord builds the house,
its builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
the watchmen stand guard in vain. Psalm 127:1

Unless the Lord controls our every thought, we degrade into what we hate.
Unless the Lord builds our life, we step back from being God’s temple.
Unless the Lord is our undivided desire, we become inflamed with lust.
Unless we humbly walk with God, our pride leads us to walk away.
Unless we forgive as we are forgiven, we become what we cannot forgive.
Unless we offer up thanksgiving for all God has done, we miss out on all He wants to do.
Unless we honor God, we lose our understanding of what is honorable.
Unless God gives us wisdom, we cannot discern what is foolish.
Unless we glorify God, we will become inglorious.
Unless we gaze upon the beauty of the Lord, our vision will fill with the sordid.
Unless we run to God our refuge, our fears will overtake us.
God wants to mold us into the image of the Son. All else is vain.

A Prayer For the Pandemic

Posted on by
1
ench.t&c-bleach

Standing on a rock in the Enchantments

From the ends of the earth I call to you,
I call as my heart grows faint;
lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
For you have been my refuge,
a strong tower against the foe. Psalm 61:2-3

Take heart my friends, for Jesus, the Rock of Ages, is a sure foundation for these troubled times. We can take refuge in Him.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. John 16:33

Love Poured Out

Posted on by
1

 

SH_140605-9928-Edit

Water pouring out from Colchuck Lake.

Because of God’s love, I have life.
Because of His love, I am forgiven.
Because of His love, I can forgive others and be free to love.
Because of His love, I can lay my past at the alter and leave it there.
Because of His love, when I am lost, He comes to find me.
Because of His love, I know I will never be forgotten.
Because of His love, I know He has ordered all my days.
Because of His love, I know He will give me strength for all I face.
Because of His love, I have a future filled with goodness.
Because of His love, I can pray blessings upon my family, and know Jesus loves them more than me.
Because of His love, I can pray for those I have hurt and know Jesus loves them and will bring about goodness.
Because His love is poured out upon me, I will joyfully worship Him.

Because Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You. Psalm 63:3

Finding Rest

Posted on by
3
SH_190708-8938-Edit

Be still

Do not call conspiracy
everything that these people call conspiracy;
do not fear what they fear,
and do not dread it.
The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy,
he is the one you are to fear,
he is the one you are to dread,
and he will be a sanctuary;  Isaiah 8:12-14

Be at rest once more, O my soul,
for the Lord has been good to you.  Psalm 116:7

Take a moment to be still before God and remember all that He has done and find rest.

Days I Did Not Ask For

Posted on by
3
cross-3354-Edit

He is risen

So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. (Luke 11:9-10)

You said to ask and you shall receive.
But You gave me days I did not ask for.

Days with heartache, days of pain,
Days I can’t walk ‘cause I’m lame.
Days overwhelmed with my tears.
Days when I run chased by my fears.

Days of toil with no relief.
Days of suffering cavernous grief.
Please tell me why?…Don’t let me doubt.
Is it something I did, or left out?

Days that go in the wrong direction.
Suffering betrayal and rejection.
“My Father, if it is possible, take this cup from me.
Yet not as I will, but as You will.” (Matthew 26:29)

In the breeze, oh so slight,
Your prayer of anguish that fateful night.
You asked for my days, and did atone,
Cut off from God in death…alone.

Startled, I realize You walked this path.
You stepped in to take sin’s wrath.
Giving up life to the Father’s glory,
You came down to alter my story.

I now have hope on my darkest day,
You hold me close through the fray.
To guide me where I cannot see,
I must depend on You, and not on me.

Thank You for days I did not ask for.