The last few weeks have not been conducive to writing very much. They’ve been filled with change – change in direction for the next year or so (in terms of a degree), change in some plans for this fall, change in what I choose to study in my spare time. I’ve had many thoughts that I’ve wanted to write about, but haven’t yet found the time to do so. Even as I write now, I’m putting off studying for a few minutes. The past three weeks have been filled to the brim, and sometimes I’m discouraged that I can’t seem to find time for all the things I want to do. There are so many books to read, thoughts to think, memories to make, etc. etc. etc. It is a challenge at times to rest in the fact that God is orchestrating certain events in my life for the better. But resting is so key; I’m not going to understand everything He does, but I can find peace and joy in the fact that He is moving, and He is love.
A few things have encouraged me lately, and before I close I’d like to share them with you. The first has been Oswald Chambers’ book, My Utmost For His Highest. Each day brings new insight and thought that has helped me tremendously in the area of resting. For today, he wrote, “There are times in spiritual life when there is confusion, and it is no way out to say that there ought not to be confusion. It is not a question of right and wrong, but a question of God taking you by a way which in the meantime you do not understand, and it is only by going through confusion that you will get at what God wants. . . If there is a shadow on the face of the Father just now, hang onto it that He will ultimately give clear revealing and justify Himself in all that He permitted. . . ‘When the Son of Man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?’ Will He find the faith which banks on Him in spite of the confusion?”
That’s what I want, more than anything else, is to have that kind of faith. The faith that trusts in the goodness of God, in spite of confusing circumstances.
The second thing that has encouraged me is the Word of God itself. I’ve been reading through 1 Samuel lately, and am reminded again and again of God’s faithfulness. This morning I found some of the Psalms that David wrote during his time of running from Saul, and they are so beautiful. In them you find the cry of a man hunted, but still trusting in God. The God who watched over David still takes delight in guiding and watching over His children today. I’ve also been meditating on Psalm 42 lately. It has always been a favorite, but has recently taken on new significance as I find myself relating to more of the cries of the Psalmist. Perhaps there will be more about that later.
Finally, I’ve had a song (a hymn) running through my head lately that has encouraged me. The second and third stanzas of The Solid Rock have spoken to me lately of God’s never-ending faithfulness.
When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.
His oath, His covenant, His blood
Support me in the whelming flood;
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my hope and stay.
Hopefully, I’ll be writing more in the near future. As I work on a frequently changing schedule for this fall, I’m hoping to plot in time for more regular writing. But until the next time I write for this blog, remember to “rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.”
“And now, Lord, what wait I for? My hope is in Thee.”
