I Was Just Thinking About - - -
Anyone actively engaged in the ebb and flow of life realize there will be many challenges and difficult decisions that will have to be confronted. In like manner, there will also be many difficulties and situations that appear to be impossible, with no discernible resolve. At the outset, it needs to be understood that no one person is an actual island unto himself/herself. To one degree or another, we all have common experiences, difficulties, challenges and temptations. For some, the direction one should go is difficult to discern. The sense is that one has entered a dead-end road where there is no way out and no place to turn around. For the semi-religious person who claims to have faith, disillusionment will be a normal impulse and reaction.
From a secular suggestion, Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930), a Scottish writer and creator of Sherlock Holmes, proffered the following thought about mysteries and their resolve: “Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be truth.” More importantly, from the spiritual perspective, there are absolutes that the directionless, disillusioned, disenfranchised and those who feel trapped, alone amid their trials and difficulties. Where can one turn and what should one do when feeling so overwhelmed and helpless? When one is exercising a personal faith, albeit from a place of desperation, how can that faith be expanded to grab hold of that which seems impossible? When feeling tempted to surrender to one’s circumstances, where can one turn? Is there a place of deliverance or refuge for the one whose faith is not as strong as it should be? When tempted to give up, is there any hope?
There are two passages of Scripture in particular that should always be embraced and incorporated into one’s life. First is I Corinthians 10:12-13, “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” The phrase to underscore in one’s mind is – “God Is Faithful.” He knows your weaknesses, limitations and abilities. Another phrase to underscore is – “He will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”
Second is II Corinthians 12:7-9. The Apostle Paul had a physical malady that was limiting his mobility. He came before the Lord with the measure of faith he had. He shares the following answer and resolve, not what he was asking for, but he records the following for our benefit and growth in the Lord. “So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me: My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” Note the intensity and urgency of his prayer request, “Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this…” His decision was to accept and embrace the Word of the Lord for him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
Let the words of a Hymn written in 1904 resonate in your heart and soul today: “Be not dismayed whate’er betide,/ God will take care of you;/Beneath His wings of love abide,/God will take care of you. (Refrain): God will take care of you,/Through every day, over all the way; He will take care of you,/God will take care of you.” Believe and embrace the truths: (1) God IS Faithful; (2) He Will Provide a way of escape for you; (3) His Grace IS Sufficient for you too; (4) His Power IS made perfect in weakness. Be of good cheer! Be disillusioned no longer! Find your direction for life in Jesus Christ. Consider these things with me!
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