Thoughts of Grace

Spring’s a coming!

Good Morning

Here are the typical components of a
“faith under fire”; a very troubling event,
an element of injustice or unfairness
(Why me?),
a silent God who could have intervened
but didn’t and a million unanswered questions.
Have you ever been there?

And when the chief Shepherd shall appear,
ye shall receive a crown of glory
that fadeth not away. 1Peter 5:4

Sometimes the Lord offers no explanation or interpretation
of His response to our requests and cries,
except by inference.
“This is My will for you.”

The LORD is good unto them
that wait for him,
to the soul that seeketh him.
Lamentations 3:25

There are purposes that you cannot perceive or comprehend,
you may never understand—
at least not in this life—
but you must never let go of your faith.

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for,
the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrew 11:1

The laws of physics tells us
that energy in the universe is never lost.
It is simply transformed from one state to another.
So it is with human experience.
Nothing is ever lost entirely.
God uses every happening to accomplish His divine purpose.

But we all, with open face
beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord,
are changed into the same image from glory to glory,
even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
2 Corinthians 3:18

When we submit ourselves to the sovereign will of the Lord,
we can say with confidence that in all things
—yes, in all things—
God works for the good of them who love Him,
who have been called according to his purpose.

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above,
and cometh down from the Father of lights,
with whom is no variableness,
neither shadow of turning.
James 1:17

Rev. Reubin Welch, minister and author, once said
“With God,
even when nothing is happening—
something is happening.”
It is true.

I wait for the LORD,
my soul doth wait,
and in his word do I hope.
Psalm 130:5

Scripture tells us
that we lack the capacity to grasp
God’s infinite mind or
the way He intervenes in our lives.

The secret things belong unto the LORD our God:
but those things which are revealed belong unto us
and to our children for ever,
that we may do all the words of this law.
Deuteronomy 29:29

Jehovah didn’t explain to Joseph
what he was doing through years of heartache
(he was hated by his brothers,
sold as a slave,
imprisoned,
falsely accused of attempted rape,
threatened with execution).
He was expected,
like you and me,
to live out each day in something less
than complete understanding.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.
Isaiah 55:8

We can say with confidence that while God’s purposes
and plans are very different from ours,
He is infinitely just and His timing is always perfect.

And now, O Lord GOD, thou art that God,
and thy words be true,
and thou hast promised this goodness unto thy servant:
Therefore now let it please thee
to bless the house of thy servant,
that it may continue for ever before thee:
for thou, O Lord GOD, hast spoken it:
and with thy blessing
let the house of thy servant be blessed for ever.
2 Samuel 7:28-29

If human intelligence
and perception are undependable
in assessing everyday reality,
which can be seen,
touched,
heard,
tasted,
and smelled.
How much less capable are they
of evaluation the unfathomable God of the universe?

While we look not at the things which are seen,
but at the things which are not seen:
for the things which are seen are temporal;
but the things which are not seen are eternal.
2 Corinthians 4:18

Sooner or later our intellect will pose questions
we cannot possibly answer.
At that point,
we would be wise to remember
God’s ways are higher than ours.

And my soul shall be joyful in the LORD:
it shall rejoice in his salvation.
All my bones shall say,
LORD, who is like unto thee,
which deliverest the poor
from him that is too strong for him,
yea, the poor and the needy from him that spoileth him?
Psalm 35:9-10

One of the greatest destroyers of faith is timing
that doesn’t fit our preconceived notions.
We live in a fast paced world
where we have come to expect instant responses
to every desire and need.
But God doesn’t operate that way. He is never in a hurry.

And he said unto them,
It is not for you to know the times or the seasons,
which the Father hath put in his own power.
Acts 1:7

Even Jesus, who lived thirty-three years on earth,
spent only three in active ministry!
Think of how many more people
He could have healed—
and how many mare divine truths
He could have imparted—
in another decade or two.
But He, too, ministered according to God’s schedule.

To every thing there is a season,
and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
Ecclesiastes 3:1-2

James Dobson~~In the Arms of God

Trust God’s plan . . .Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie