Senseless? It has been very sobering to deal with myself in the midst of difficult circumstances. On one hand, I am encouraged and the Lord has been very faithful. He has brought several revelations regarding Himself, our ministry, and our life situation. On the other hand, I have been confused because He often has us going in directions and doing things that make little sense to us. By now I thought I would be willing to move beyond desiring to see Him do something that makes sense, that I would be willing to surrender sight for deeper levels of faith. In spite of all I feel, I press on knowing that, "our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. We do not look at the things that are seen, but at the things that are not seen. For the things that are seen are temporary, but the things that are not seen are eternal."(2 Cor. 4:17&18) He is our only hope, and though we do not see or understand, we still believe Him and trust Him. This past Sunday the Lord gave us some much-needed encouragement through His Word. He urged us to keep walking this path He has us on in spite of our fears and questions. We are at the exact place that He wants us this moment. "Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "Therefore I hope in Him!" The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. It is good that one should hope and wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. It is good for a man to bear the yoke in his youth. Let him sit alone and keep silent, because God has laid it on him; let him put his mouth in the dust — There may yet be hope. Let him give his cheek to the one who strikes him, and be full of reproach. For the Lord will not cast off forever. Though He causes grief, yet He will show compassion according to the multitude of His mercies. For He does not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men." (Lamentations 3:22-33) As Becky read this passage to us, she made it as far as, "For the Lord will not cast off forever," when her emotions overwhelmed her. I managed to pick up where she left off and finish reading the passage in spite of my own emotions, "Though He causes grief, yet He will show compassion according to the multitude of His mercies. For He does not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men." When the reading was finished, all we could do was sit and look at each other. I had the overwhelming sense that He knows! He knows what we are going through. There is a purpose and a plan. He knows what He is doing. Be encouraged that when things look darkest, when things seem hopeless and senseless, when things seem overwhelming: God has a plan. He did not bring you here to leave you here. Even though He ultimately is the one causing your grief, He is not doing it simply to torture you. He has a plan and a deeper agenda than you can possibly imagine. He is not doing this to grieve you, but He has your ultimate best in mind. It may not feel that way in the moment, but remember the words of our Lord through the prophet Jeremiah: " ‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you,’ says the Lord, ‘thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you…’ " (Jeremiah 29:11-14a) We are not after His results or blessings. We are after Him. He alone is worthy. Praise God that He has our best in mind and is working all things together for good. May we be completely satisfied with Him alone. Jesus truly is enough. If this article speaks to you, you may also want to check out the poem, His Sovereignty on our web site! |
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