Wednesday, February 25, 2009

He Cares...

Have you ever had a situation that you saw to be so big and so impossible that you thought there was no hope? Have you ever had something weigh so heavily on your mind that you couldn’t think about anything but your issue? Have you ever been weary, troubled and you go to church and there the preacher is preaching about a similar situation or you turn on the television, answer the phone, or look out the window and there someone is going through the same exact thing you are going through? Let me take it a step further, have you ever prayed for guidance and just opened the bible to any page and landed upon a scripture that applied to your situation? I have.

Before I received Jesus as my personal savior, I thought these things to just be coincidence. I understood that God hears all and sees all but I didn’t think that He was concerned about me. I knew that God was all powerful and that there was nothing too hard for Him but I thought that God had more important things to be concerned with beside me and my little problems. I realized that it wasn’t until circumstances proved I needed God that I called upon Him. And even then my pride wouldn’t allow me to call on Him when I needed Him the most. I feared that He wouldn’t want to hear what I had to say considering I hadn’t bothered to talk to Him until I needed something. But on the contrary, God was right there with open arms waiting for me the whole time. God was right there watching me search high and low for answers and He never imposed Himself on me. Yet, I’m sure it saddened His heart to watch me turn every which way but to Him. I thank God that He is not like man and wasn’t vengeful. He waited for me as long as it took and then accepted me just as I was. (Imagine if we had the same patience with others.) Jesus wants us to understand that there is no one else who can make everything alright. I realized that it was the will of God for me to try doing things “my way” so that I could understand that He is The Way.

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6 NIV)

I am coming to understand that God not only wants me to trust Him with the “big” situations in life but the smaller things too. There is nothing “too small” for God. We often limit the power and purpose of God by delegating to God what we need Him to do (the big things) and electing to handle the lesser things ourselves. We have to learn to seek God in everything no matter how small it may seem.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. (Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV)

Many times I find myself trying to figure out which way to go, what to do or what to say but I’m learning more and more everyday that that’s not my job. My job is to trust Him blindly. My job is not to make sense of the situation but to give up all of my own rationale and understanding because faith doesn’t always make sense. I can beg and plead to God, throw temper tantrums, give Him back every scripture in the bible, and pray to the top of my lungs but none of that moves God. Faith moves God. That’s why the Word tells us to walk by faith and not by sight. When we pray, Jesus told us to ask and BELIEVE. If we could see what God was doing and know the outcome we wouldn’t have to trust Him. The scripture says that God will make our paths straight. That means that as long as we seek him, and trust Him we can’t go wrong. Isn’t that good news?

I never conceived in my mind that God would pursue me. I used to think of God as some Great Superior Being that was so far away and preoccupied. But all thanks be to God that I now know God has not forgotten me. He is concerned about me. Not only is God concerned about me but He knows all about me and my problems and they matter to Him.

Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows. (Matthew 10:29-31)

He is concerned about all of us. With God, there is no such thing as coincidence or happenstance. Those signs that I thought were coincidences were actually confirmations and convictions. God used certain series of events to get my attention so that He could save, heal, deliver and set me free. God allowed me to go through certain things so that my life could be a testimony to others to make me an effective wittness.

Dear Lord,
I thank you for your love, your grace, your mercy and kindness. I thank you for waiting for us . I thank you for all those you sent to wittness to us and all the things you used to get our attention. We repent for anything we said, done, thought or felt that was displeasing to you and ask us to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Secondly, we repent for being so preoccupied with the cares of this world and limiting your power in our lives. We acknowledge you as Lord of Lords and King of Kings and simply come to thank you for all that you are, all that your're doing and all that you're going to do in Jesus' name. Amen