But as the years have gone on, while I have been trying to trust God, the situation hasn't really changed to the degree that I have hoped. With as much boldness I could muster, mixed with some anxiety and frustration, I began REALLY talking to God about it.
WHAT is going on? WHY haven't we seen the shift in this area I had hoped for?
I sensed the most unexpected response from the Lord, in the midst of schooling someone (wink) about Philippians 4:4-8.
We have all read this passage. I have gone over it many times myself in the past, especially when those overpowering waves of anxiety have tried to pull me under their relentless current.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness[d] be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Oh I was on a roll, breaking this passage down into 4 easy steps for my friend to digest:
"First, you REJOICE, whatever the situation is. Then, you pray or talk to God honestly about it. Tell him exactly what you need or want. Finally, you thank him, for who He is, what He will do. And then you leave it with Him and wait, as you trust Him. His peace guards your heart and mind."
As I was explaining this, I felt that all familiar nudge. It hit me.
"You have never done this with your own situation."
I thought back for a moment, my mind racing through all the years of prayer over this issue. I had listened to God. I had pleaded in the night. I had fervently prayed. And yet it was true. At the onset of this injury, I had not done what I was explaining to someone else they needed to do.
So I did it. I simply agreed with God.
"I rejoice in this situation."
I may have entered into this longer, I can't remember. But something happened. A shift occurred inside.
When we rejoice over a seemingly impossible situation, we are declaring something BIG.
We are saying, "We are no longer UNDER the unbearable weight of this moment, but in Christ, we are OVER it."
We are agreeing that whatever we are facing, even though it could crush us in our own strength, is nothing compared to God's incredible power. We also aren't resisting the situation, but rather surrendering to God in it. We place Him in our hearts where He already resides in Heaven: On the throne.
I realized there was something God was after in me. He loves all the prayer, and how we reach for Him in a tough time. That's great. But he was also wanting a response of trust, faith from my heart of hearts.
"Daddy, you got this. I trust you. I rejoice."
 |
| "The Pillar of Cloud" Moses leading the Israelites |
It was the same response He was after from the Israelites when they came upon the Red Sea. And its the same response He is after in you and me.
A shift was made, a table was turned that day. Clarity of God's purposes began to arise. Anxiety was extinguished as I was able to settle safely again into the Almighty.
