2018–From Weary to Wonder
On Christmas day…
I felt a heaviness, a sadness, more than just in myself. More like the weariness of the neighborhood, the city, perhaps the entire nation. Believers and non-believers alike.
I whispered, “Lord, if You don’t move soon, I don’t know how much longer we can hold out.” So much catastrophe, violence, fighting….
No response from above.
Yes, God’s grace is sufficient. Yes, His unfathomable love ever-present. But something in me needed to have this tearful conversation with Him. As is my norm, I said, “Let’s go on a walk. But I’m tired of thinking so I’m only going to think up storylines. If You want to interrupt, I’m listening.” (Believe me, I’d prayed a lot.)
I got maybe a block from the house and the Spirit surrounded me. Ever so tenderly, He spoke. “Do not grow weary in doing good.” Grasping this golden nugget from Galatians 6, I repeated it out loud several times until it sufficiently saturated my soul. A fresh seed of courage.
Thanks to my phone’s Bible app, I pulled up Galatians 6:7-9 (a favorite passage), and read while I walked. “Do not be deceived. God is not mocked….for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.”
God cannot lie. He cannot be fooled. What He says, stands. He offers us more than bread to live on, fresh revelations and impartations for each season of life. Every word He whispers (or shouts) during a dark and weary moment is meant to be ingested right then. It’s timed for that specific moment. He offers supernatural soul-food to weary warriors. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been on my knees in prayer for most of 2017. Worn out is an understatement.
The Word Made Edible
Part of me simply wanted to throw in the towel. In a split second, the Spirit flashed through mind with the account of Jesus also being tempted. “But (Jesus) answered (Satan) and said, ‘It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.'” Matthew 4:4.
The term “word” here is not the written word (logos), but the spoken word (rhéma) of the God through His Spirit. And the living, breathing Holy Spirit only says what the Lord commands—truth that lines up with and never contradicts the logos.
I ate the rhéma. A refreshed hope and joy replaced the heaviness. There’s no logical explanation for the effectiveness of a supernatural encounter with the Living God. He simply is who He Is. And He is the “I AM” answer to all my needs.
Are you hungry? Weary? Lonely? Tempted? Desperate?
He desires to be your all-inclusive “I AM” answer. He will meet you where you are. Right now.
In humility and with thanksgiving, ask the Lord for your own personal word, and you will receive. You will be filled.
Do not grow weary of doing good. Push through the weariness. Good stuff is in store for those who trust the Lord. Those who are surrendered to the Lord Jesus serve the God of wonders, a solid Rock of hope and a Keeper of our destiny.
Happy New Year from the Embattled Spirit
“O Lord my God, you have performed many wonders for us.
Your plans for us are too numerous to list.
You have no equal.
If I tried to recite all your wonderful deeds,
I would never come to the end of them.” Psalm 40:5
“He will not brush aside the bruised and broken. He will be gentle with the weak and feeble until His victory releases justice.” Matthew 12:20
“Are you weary, carrying a heavy burden? Then come to me. I will refresh your life, for I am your oasis. Simply join your life with mine. Learn my ways and you’ll discover that I’m gentle, humble, easy to please. You will find refreshment and rest in me. For all that I require of you will be pleasant and easy to bear.” Matthew 11:28-30
