Deliverance Within Inevitable Trouble
W are always in fellowship with each other, a wonderful communion that cannot be broken. Not even storms can stop the flow of love and prayers with each other.
When our eyes stay on the Lord, right in the middle of the storm, we are safe in the center, in the eye, as He watches us always and knows our heart's cry. As the storm passes over us, He covers us with His Wings. We do find safety in the secret place of the Most High.
Psalm 27:5 For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.
Psalm 91:1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
Psalm 61:4 I will abide in Your tabernacle forever; I will trust in the shelter of Your wings. Selah
This was sent by Jim Spivey in his blog this morning and it's so timely...or at least for me as a reminder.
An average view of the 'good' Christian life is that it means deliverance from trouble. That is dead wrong. It is actually deliverance within inevitable trouble, which is very different. 'He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High, there (and only there) shall no evil befall thee - no plague can come nigh the place where you are at one with God.' If you are a child of God, there certainly will be troubles aplenty to meet and deal with, but Jesus says do not be surprised or overly concerned when they come. God does not give us the 'overcoming of life'; He gives us 'life as we overcome.' The terrible strain is the source of the strength. If there is no strain, there is no strength. Are you asking God to give you life, liberty, and joy? He cannot, unless you will accept the full strain. Immediately when you face the strain without 'getting stuck in' complaint, you will get the strength, and it will be infused with humility. Overcome your own timidity and take the bold next step, and God will give you to eat of the tree of life, and you will get nourishment. If you spend yourself out physically, you become exhausted; but spend yourself spiritually, and you get more strength. And God never gives strength for tomorrow, or for the next hour, but only for the strain of the moment. The temptation is to face difficulties from a 'common-sense' standpoint. The good saint is hilarious when he is crushed with difficulties because the thing is so ludicrously impossible for anyone but God." -- Oswald Chambers, in My Utmost for His Highest"
In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." -- John 16:33
"Life is not the wick or the candle; it is the burning."
The world is burning - it seems insanely so. We will all get burned - it is unavoidable and there is no escape. The most important question becomes: Will you see the burning as a terrible inconvenience and a problem to be solved - with ample reason to hate or hide or hold it as someone else's fault - or will you see it as a chance to learn and grow and love more. We are actually formed and shaped in this fire. What form will you take after being crushed, a better, stronger, tougher version of the you that existed before it happened, through your own vengeful recovery efforts, or a more pliant and useful vessel in God's hands, through His compassionate, loving, reforming efforts? ____ Jim Spivey
http://static.flickr.com/1360/983049758_cbe71b14e4.jpg
Titled 'Light in the Storm'
Amazing how it all becomes so clear.
Video & Song
'I Will Lift My Eyes' Bebo Norman
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAHfi4jgc3g&feature=related
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