Some Days - October 2021
Psalm 91
“Those who live in the shelter of the Most High - will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. THIS I declare about the LORD: ‘He ALONE is my refuge, my place of safety; He is my God, and I trust HIM’.”
Some days there isn’t one great big story to tell… There isn’t one of those fiery trial stories that ends with an astonishing God-miracle, surrounded by fanfare and praise.
Some days the story is simple. Grateful praise for strength to place one foot in front of another…
HOPE for another moment.
Fierce faith for another step forward.
And some days there is just praise - for breath alone.
And Grace… glorious grace.
But some days -
Some days it’s time to sit still before this glorious God and reach down deep to pull out every scrap of evidence we’ve amassed as to why life shouldn’t be the way it is. To present before the Judge the case for circumstances to be different.
To lay before our God a clear-cut case for change…
And we bow low,
Lay low -
Even as we feel crushed low...
But it is from this bowing, this posture of submissive honor - that our faith takes root and grows. To bow low in honor is to release to Him the reins… release the scraps of evidence for a different way. Not my way, but Yours…
Can we say it? “Your way, God.”
Because it is here - in this place - we find, we’ve circled back to one of the key foundational truths of our faith.
“He is God. I am not….”
To let go of His sovereignty is to let go of HOPE.
To hang onto our sovereignty is to take His place. To be our own… god.
(And in the end, that will never work out well -)
But there are some days when we are gifted beautiful glimpses of clarity… gifted the simple, quiet, and unwavering awareness of how good our God really is. And we can do little more than to pause and bow low.
In gratefulness -
Adoration
Worship
Bow so low, in WORSHIP, that the cares of this world begin to slip from our shoulders - as the weight of His glory rests upon our hearts. Not because of anything we’ve done… but because of His grace.
Grace, for every single failure… pierced to the tree. The Cross.
Grace, for every accomplishment - before we realize it is always Him in us. His grace perfecting our weakness.
Sometimes we just bow low to remember - our Savior. Our God.
And so…
When it seems that hidden in the very wind that blows past our heart’s door is a force threatening to steal every scrap of peace we’ve squirreled away for such a time as this...
We bow low.
To remember there is a God.
A REDEEMER -
The Healer of broken hearts
Broken homes
Broken lives
Broken dreams…
A REDEEMER. Saviour God
We rest not in what we see, but in Who He is. A good and gracious God. We rest not in what our present circumstances look like, but in a God whose life and death settled the ending equation for every situation. We rest knowing He paid the ultimate price that we might live.
Habakkuk 3
“I trembled inside when I heart this;
My lips quivered with fear.
My legs gave way beneath me,
And I shook in terror.
I will wait quietly for the coming day…
“The fig tree does not blossom.
There is no fruit on the vines.
The yield of the olive tree fails.
The fields produce no food
The flock is cut off from the fold.
there are no cattle in the stalls…
YET, I will CHOOSE to rejoice in the God of my salvation!
The Sovereign Lord is my STRENGTH!”
Some days it is time to remind ourselves about our faith. To coach our mind to be renewed in TRUTH. To remember - our faith is not in ourselves. Our faith is not in this present world. Our faith is not limited by our circumstances alone. Our faith is not a useless bandaid to mend brokenness and despair.
Our faith is a living stone… a firm foundation. A ROCK on which to rest our cares.
And some days, as we bow low… we pause and remember. This world is not our home. We are just passing through.