As the alarm was sounding this morning and waking me from my glorious slumber, my first thought was one of praise to my God for allowing me to rest, assured by His goodness, in peace.
These last several weeks God has drawn me so close to Himself that nearly every thought I have is a reflection on Him in some way. As I cling to Him, He guides and strengthens me. He gives me wisdom to know which way to proceed. He molds my heart and changes my attitudes towards things, thereby changing my responses, to bring about His best for me and others in each situation. All of this has been a labor of Love.. My God, toward me and I toward Him! As I lay myself on the alter, I am laying down pride in exchange for Humility and Love. Praying until the wee hours of the night, that God would make me into an instrument of His Peace, Devouring His Word like a starved animal, and Yielding myself and allowing God to remove the toxins in my heart and mind. It is labor. It requires enormous effort on my part to stay on that alter and not run away. Everything in my flesh wants to get up and run, yet the still, small voice of my Redeemer says "Do not Fear". As I lay under the knife of my skilled surgeon, I am soothed by His voice and His Spirit reminds me that all of this is a preparation for that which is to come. I asked God for this, knowing that it would be painful and knowing that I would want to flee, but knowing more than anything else, that the removal of these things would allow me to walk unto higher ground with my God. My rest last night was a gift from Him! And my praise this morning for it was the only response I could give.
Ps 4:8 . In peace I will both lie down and sleep, for You , Lord, alone make me dwell in safety and confident trust.
There are times when God calls us to labor with Him; actually, as I think on that some more, we are called to labor with God. The Apostle Paul frequently refers to us as soldiers--foot soldiers- for the Gospel. He speaks of putting on our armor and going into battle again and again. Throughout the Bible, there are accounts of God's faithful servants doing battle, and though we are the soldiers in the fight, the battles always belong to the Lord. More often than not, I find myself in a battle. For years, I tried to shrink back and not fight, hating the confrontation of it all, only to find myself hiding in the wide-open and being nearly devoured by my enemy. But God is Gracious and merciful to me. I am finally learning how to fight the battles that come my way. I fight now, on my knees, in confident trust that God is able! In humility alone am I victorious.
Ecc. 6:12 The sleep of a laboring man is sweet... My Shepherd is gracious to me always! He provides respits in the battles for me to be refreshed and restored.
Ps 127:2 ...for He gives blessings to His Beloved in sleep. That is so cool! We are being blessed even when we don't realize it, and that is part of His divine plan! My God is all to familiar with battle. He is all to familiar with the struggles of this life because He experienced them for Himself so that He could identify with us and us with Him. He knows that as the battles rage on, the soldiers can grow weary. So, He invites us to partake in His rest. "Come onto me all those who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest." There was a time when I thought that Scripture was only for the non-believer, but I do not see it that way anymore. It is the invitation that I RSVP to all the time!
One day, we will not be soldiers. The war will have been won! We will be the fully prepared Bride feasting in perfect repose with our Lord. Selah! Think on that--it will blow your mind! We will have entered in to His Rest fully and completely; satisfied, praising the King forever.
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