February 24This post may simply be a rambling as I am not quite certain where my head is. Thirty-nine years ago I asked Jesus into my heart and a mustard seed faith began to grow. That first year a huge test was tossed my way when, while my parents were out of the country traveling in Europe, my grandfather, who lived right down the street, was murdered. My siblings, who were much older than me, were all married and out of the house. My journal from that time records a young faith that cried out to God.
Flash forward to now and I am facing what appears to me to be a very unfair situation. I know God well enough after all these years to know He is capable of stepping in and changing the scenarios. My faith is being tested and my heart hurts.
When I take the time to stop trying to figure things out and turn to the Lord, He gives me life lines to hold onto, even while the waves keep crashing. Like the disciples in the boat, I scream, "Calm this storm!" Give us a miracle Father! No more suffering, no more pain, no more heartache! (Then I remember where that kind of life exists.)
I have no answers! Only a faith that is based on love and sacrifice.
While we are to understand God's precepts and his commandments, I want to understand the "whys," of His ways. The purposes in His plans. Our ways of thinking are so far from His.
Job realized in his book, chapter 36:26
"Take a long, hard look. See how great he is—infinite, greater than anything you could ever imagine or figure out!
Wisdom tells us to...Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5
Today Bible Gateway reads in Jeremiah 29:11-13:
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”
After 39 years, I am still seeking and learning. When we take time, even in the darkest times, to go near to God and place ourselves in a position to hear Him, He will speak. Adrian Rogers may already be in heaven, but his teachings still speak to us. The timing of today's message...
(The real world keeps churning...I had to stop working on this blog, as I heard my daughter calling to me...her son has been very sick all week..running to his room I found her with him covered head to toe in poop while still in his PJ's and sleep sack. "Start the bath!" she hollered. A distraction definitely. Ah, but what a reminder that when we call to Him, like a concerned parent, He will come.) God knows my innermost thought to email this to me today:
February 24-Adrain Rogers-Love Worth Finding
Is Trusting God a Challenge for You?
“Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.” Psalm 37:3
This word “trust” is an interesting word. Its root is from the word that means “to lie face down on the ground.”
The idea is that a person is totally helpless. He has been cast down and has nothing to stand upon. Some would say his pins have gone out from underneath him. He has no visible means of support.
That is the place where God wants to bring us—where we have no physical means of support and all we have is God.
As a matter of fact, did you know that God will sometimes knock your feet out from beneath you so that you might learn to trust Him? At that point, faith is no longer an option or a luxury; it is a necessity. To the world your situation looks hopeless, but that is right where God wants to show Himself powerful in your life.
Is there an area in your life today for which you must trust God completely? Perhaps you need some “face time”. . .face down on the ground before the Lord. Bring that issue before Him in total surrender.
