HOPE

This is not something I wrote. It's something I read on a young child's caringbridge site. But it fits my circumstance lately.

There may come a time when little makes sense, and evil and chaos seem to be winning the day. These might be times when we feel hopelessness and confusion, when we do not see even a flicker of light. And the lesson of Jesus’ scars is to hold on, to be patient and to trust God, even when we cannot see any reason to do so. He will help us. There is a loving God who can sustain us, enable us to endure, and mold us into someone better than we were before. The cross prepares us for difficult times. The resurrection proves that God is greater than evil, and it gives confidence and HOPE during the dark times. Because the risen Christ’s wounds show us that our hope is not in vain.
Rebecca Manley Pippert
His Miracles

The Lord's Presence

11 Then He said, Go out and stand on the mountain in the Lord's presence. At that moment, the Lord passed by. A great and mighty wind was tearing at the mountains and was shattering cliffs before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was a voice, a soft whisper. 13 When Elijah heard [it] , he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.
1 Kings 19:11-13 (HCSB)

There's been a situation in my life for the past six months that I don't understand. It's not even my situation. It belongs to someone else! A young girl is having to deal with things that NO ONE should experience. I honestly thought some of her family situations were reserved for the talk shows like Jerry Springer or Maury. I thought they were fake. But I now know they are real. And it saddens me to no end.

God showed me something this morning, though, that amazes me. He is indeed true to His word, and even when I don't understand the situation, I can hold to this promise! I have been praying diligently for the past several months that God would show His power in this young girl's life, that He would change her situation, that He would "take care of the bad guys!" I could not understand why God was not honoring my prayer. I kept receiving assurance from God that He was indeed there and that my response should be praise, even in the midst of the horrible. I was having a hard time praising, and I knew this young girl had to be struggling even more.

Yesterday, another terrible thing happened. I cried out to God, "Where are you? Why aren't you showing yourself? Why won't you show your power? I keep telling her you are more powerful than all evil, but why aren't you proving it to her and to me?"

Last night, God reminded me of the scripture from 1 Kings about Elijah standing in the presence of God. In that instance, God did not show himself in the fire. He did not show himself in the mighty wind. He did not show himself in the earthquake. All of those things were of God, but God showed himself to Elijah in a whisper. It took me all night, but this morning I finally realized that God has been showing His power this entire time. He has been answering my cries. I was just expecting it in a huge and miraculous way. I was puttig parameters on the ways God could show His power in this situation. I was trying to make God an image of myself instead of the other way around. I wanted God to do what I wanted Him to do. But God doesn't work that way. And He is continually reminding me of that. You see, God has been there all along. This young girl has had several opportunities to give up, to take a break from the world, to end it all. In fact, most people in her situation would have done so. However, God has given her the strength to persevere. God has been there, walking beside her, giving her some glimpse of hope, no matter how small. Without God in her life, there is no telling where she would be right now.

Now, I still don't understand why God is choosing to work this way. It seems to me it would be better for everyone if He would just sweep in and save the day. But, I suppose we might miss the lessons He's teaching all of us if He did that. We would miss out on Him drawing us closer to himself. We might overlook God. We might give someone else the glory, a glory that belongs to God alone. The prophet Isaiah wrote:

8 For My thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not My ways. [This is] the Lord's declaration. 9 For as heaven is higher than earth, so My ways are higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:8-9 (HCSB)

I've spent a great deal of my morning praising God for His faithfulness, for His goodness, for His lovingkindness. I praise the Lord that He taught me this lesson, in spite of myself! Here are the words to the chorus of a song God gave me recently.

You are God, You are Lord
You are Holy, Everlasting Father
Mighty God, Prince of Peace
Jehovah Jireh, My Provider
The Comforter, who comes to me, in my ever-present need
The tiny babe in Bethlehem
Forgiving Savior in Jerusalem
So I fall down on my knees
Before the glorious, almighty
Hope of the world.

To God be the Glory!!!!