Rooted in Knowing

What do you do when your faith has been stretched to it's perceived outer limits?

How do you wrap your mind around a dead end when you have been walking down a path of obedience?

Are there Christians with superhero-like faith that never doubt and never feel crushed by the way things appear?

What does a Christian do when they are exhausted by the unexpected turns in the road and they think that just one more will push them over the proverbial edge?

What do you do when all of your questions directed to God go unanswered?

My good friend, Oswald Chambers, has this to say: "Unless we can look the darkest, blackest fact full in the face without damaging God's character, we do not yet know Him."

Psalm 73:25, 26 & 28 "Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides you, I desire nothing on earth. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. But as for me, the nearness of God is my good.

Hosea 6:6 "I don't want your sacrifices, I want your love. I don't want your offerings, I want you to know Me."

It all comes back to trust which is rooted in knowing. And this "knowing" is a lifelong pursuit. When we feel that we have no strength left with which to pursue, to desire, to know Him...well, He becomes that, too. In our weakness, He is strong.

Today, I need Him to be strong.

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Back to the Future

Do you remember the pull-back cars that you played with as a kid?


You would pull the car backwards on the floor and then let go to see how far it would go.


The further back you would pull it, the farther it would go.


God does this to us sometimes. It feels as though He is pulling us backwards and, frankly, most of the human race prefers the forward motion of life. I know I do.


But it is this "pulling backward" that sometimes propels us forward into what He has for us.


The important thing to remember when in the midst of this process is that His hand is on you.


And that matters so much more than where you are headed.


Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord; plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."

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Faith, Abandonment and Other Easy Things

"I may not understand what Jesus Christ says, but it is dangerous to say that therefore He was mistaken in what He said. It is never right to think that my obedience to a word of God will bring dishonor to Jesus. The only thing that will bring dishonor is not obeying Him. To put my view of His honor in place of what He is plainly impelling me to do is never right, although it may arise from a real desire to prevent Him being put to open shame." -Oswald Chambers

I have been thinking about these words from Oswald Chambers that I read in my devotion yesterday. When the leading of God conflicts with our understanding of God we are left questioning how well we really know God. You may ask yourself, "How can this possibly be the voice of God? This doesn't make sense and either God is going to look foolish or I am." I love the above passage from My Utmost For His Highest because it puts in proper perspective this debate in which we sometimes find ourselves. We must never put our view in place of His direction in our lives. This is easy to give voice to but excruciating at times to do. What makes it even harder is when you are concerned that your obedience will tarnish His reputation in the eyes of people you lead, maybe even your own children. And that is where faith must kick in.

Chambers goes on to say that "Faith is not intelligent understanding, faith is deliberate commitment to a Person where I see no way." Absolute, unquestioning obedience requires total abandonment of self which is so much more than lip service to a particular creed. It doesn't just ask for involvement, it requires an absorption of who you are into Who He is.
So, no matter how out of place or uncomfortable His leading in your life may be, your only response should be complete trust and unwavering confidence that He can handle the resulting consequences of your obedience. I don't know about you but I wrestle with this. And sometimes, it is just not pretty. But when it is all said and done, I can't help but come back to the simple truth of an old hymn "I once was lost but now am found; was blind but now I see." He changed me from who I was to who I am. And using the language of a changed life, He can speak for Himself.

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Am I The Only One?

It can be so hard to trust.

I like to think that I am always smiling on the swing, but I am not.

Sometimes I am kicking and screaming.

Children trust so easily.

Why is it that the trust seems to "grow out of you" and you have to work to get back to that place of childlike faith?

Am I the only one?

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Kool-Aid Faith

Remember the commercials with the giant pitcher of Kool-aid that would come crashing through the walls, freaking out several generations of children? The kids in the commercial would become aware of their burning thirst that only Kool-Aid would quench and then they would call out "Hey Kool-Aid!!!!". And then the huge, red pitcher would come bursting onto the scene. I think every kid must have wondered if a giant pitcher stayed poised behind every wall just waiting to be called.
For some odd reason I was thinking about that when I was having my quiet time with God yesterday. Most of my life I have had that Kool-Aid faith where, after becoming aware of my "thirst", I would call out to God and then TOTALLY EXPECT Him to come running through the wall of obstacles in my life and bring whatever it is I need. Isaiah 30: 18, 19 says, "Therefore the Lord longs to be gracious to you, and He waits on high to have compassion on you. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears it, He will answer you."
And yet at times I find myself fighting negative expectations as I sit, leaning against the wall of the latest obstacle, too discouraged to even cry out to Him. And I am ashamed. He "waits on high to have compassion on me." He "longs to be gracious to me". It is incomprehensible that God waits and longs for me. And you. And I want to never forget that. Ever.

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