When life is not going the way I think it should, it is easy for me to disengage from life by going into self-conservation mode. In those moments I must realize that even when my life is not working out the way I had hoped, that God is still interested in involving me in what he is doing in the lives of others. I must not conclude that my frustrated hopes and dreams mean God is done with my life. The truth is that God is choosing to write a story that is different than what I had expected.
If the story that God is writing for you is similar to what I have described, then I exhort you to be attentive to what God is opening up for you, even in the worst circumstances. If God is with you, then he is up to something good for you. Not only will he be glorified by what he is choosing to write for you, but you will be incredibly blessed by what God is up to.
Lean into what God is writing. It is not about knowing all the facts, but about trusting the Writer of the story. There are times in our lives that are excruciatingly painful and the pain will not go away. There is nothing you can do to alleviate the pain. You can’t pray it away, manipulate it away, or wish it away. A positive mental attitude will only last for a day or two, but you will soon be down in the pit of sorrow and anguish again.
It is in these moments that the reality of “life gone bad” settles deep into your soul and the current circumstances of your life begin to define who you are. It is in these moments when you need a significant heart evaluation.
Though the fog is not lifting and there is no hope that the fog will ever lift, we must be assured that God has not abandoned us, even in life’s hardest moments. God is working his plans for your life and the journey can go no other way than the way he has determined for you. He orders our steps.
God was there, in your suffering, before you ever showed up. He was working, planning, strategizing, and developing things in such a way that you will be changed forever. He does not do this because he is harsh, distant or uncaring. He is doing this precisely because he is kind, with you, and caring. When Job reflected upon these things, it caused great pause in his soul:
13 But he is unchangeable, and who can turn him back?
What he desires, that he does.
14 For he will complete what he appoints for me,
and many such things are in his mind.
15 Therefore I am terrified at his presence;
when I consider, I am in dread of him.
16 God has made my heart faint;
the Almighty has terrified me;
17 yet I am not silenced because of the darkness,
nor because thick darkness covers my face. -Job 23 (ESV)
God is in your darkness. Talk to him today, even if it is only a faint heart cry. He is finishing what he began.
These are my sermon notes from the church meeting this past Sunday.
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