This week is all about ‘pivotal circumstances’ as we heard Doug share on Sunday and Andy in our small groups. One of Laura Story’s new songs is also a profound commentary on this whole idea of how God uses life’s circumstances to mold and shape our lives for the good.
The chorus goes like this:
'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops?
What if Your healing comes through tears?
What if a thousand sleepless nights,
Are what it takes to know You're near?
What if trials of this life,
Are Your mercies in disguise?
Laura Story is a very gifted song writer with a beautiful voice. How about taking 5 minutes from your busy day right now to just sit back and listen and let God speak to you through these very biblical thoughts put to song. Here’s a video with some moving images to go along with it so you will be doubly blessed by ‘Blessings’.
What a thoughtful and true song. If we could just remember these words when our wounds are raw, our hearts ache so bad with disapointment,we are paralyzed with guilt and regret, we don't understand what God is doing or why and nothing makes any sense! Our Father is such a gentleman, forcing Himself on no one - yet wildly longing for us to call out to Him with unreserved trust and faith no matter how we feel or no matter what we can't understand. We see only in part - God has the whole sceme of things on His mind and so because He can see the outcome He knows we need to go through it. Like when we teach our kids to ride a bike. When they get on we know they will fall many times and get hurt but we know what the outcome will be - our child will eventually soar on that bike!
ReplyDeleteI know that He really still wants to hear from me though - even when it hurts. I can tell Him how I honestly feel, I can even share that I am angry with Him or that I just don't understand. I can run to Him instead of running away from Him or blaming Him, for He is the true lover of my soul. He's interested in my character more than my current circumstances. He wants us to go through the trials together so that our relationship with Him deepens and our faith in Him becomes stronger.
What if people started to talk to God about thier trials and have it out with Him instead of avoiding pain, stuffing it, covering it, denying it - could we live it instead? Could we feel what needs to be felt, leave it with the obedience of Christ and let Him fill our hearts desire as we get to know Him more.
Here is a sound teaching I learned from Charles Stanly over 17 years ago when I first believed. Faith, Facts, Feelings. We must live life and base our choices on these and in this order. Our feelings always come last because we are emotional people and our feelings change every 5 minutes sometimes.
I had forgotten about this principle for several years but God is faithful and He has graciously reminded me.
I'm wondering what other people think about some of these things?
"If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world." C.S. Lewis
Thanks Rachael. Yes, what do other people think about some of these things? Good question, because 'these things' are really the deeper questions of the soul.
ReplyDeleteI have come to the conviction over the years that we can only come to know God to the degree that we are willing to know ourselves. I always based my conviction on 1Jn... If we walk in the light ... we have fellowship with God...
Just recently I discovered that John Calvin actually spelled out that same teaching.
I think that God's goal sometimes is to use our circumstances to strip us bear, forcing us to see ourselves more clearly, so that we might then see Him more clearly.