Isaiah 30:18, Nehemiah 9:17
In this culture and time, people are doers, fixers, problem solvers. When we face an issue, we research, plan and figure out what needs to be done to fix the problem. We help each other by doing tasks that require more time, skill or brainpower than our loved one, friend, or coworker has for a given situation. Sometimes we just provide a different perspective which helps others view the issue from a different lens, and enlightens a better solution than was previously obvious. We solve problems by implementing our time and our talents. Many times our love and care are shown by doing.
…Until we face something we cannot solve. I feel like we can all concur that we are at just that point. We can’t do much to change the situation the world is in today. Yes we all have our personal parts to play by following directions from the CDC, but by in large, we are helpless to make a real difference in the midst of this pandemic. We cannot stop it or change it’s effects. We hate not being in control. We don’t like the unsettled feelings we face because it has become obvious that we are mostly helpless against this virus today, and if we honestly look back over our lives we have faced other sets of circumstances that have caused these same helpless feelings and loss of control. This is helplessness brings us to the place where we are forced to look outside of ourselves for help and hope. Isaiah 30:18 tells us, “So the Lord must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the Lord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help.” Nehemiah 9:17 says, “You are a God of forgiveness, gracious, and merciful, slow to become angry and rich in unfailing love. You did not abandon your people.”
God won’t insert Himself in our hearts and minds. That’s not how He operates. He loves us too much to choose for us. He waits for us to recognize Him. He waits for us to realize how much we need Him. He waits for us to come to Him so He can show us His love and compassion, His Grace, His mercy, and His unfailing love. If we come to Him, He will not abandon us. These promises and characteristics of His are like gifts of gold to us. They comfort us, bring peace to our lives and change our focus from our selves and our fears to His gifts of grace. He doesn’t promise us He will remove the pain or the causes of fear, but He does promise to never leave us, and to love us perfectly through whatever we have to walk through.
I have loved the past few months of looking into the scriptures that describe God’s many names. The circumstances of these last few months have made these posts more meaningful and more precious than previous times I have studied through God’s names. The Bible says that God’s word is “living and active” and I sense that His word is more applicable, healing and comforting for a lot of us now than maybe other times in our lives. Circumstances change our outlook and our thoughts. I am praying that soaking in the names of God, over these next few months overrides our human thoughts, fears and reality. I am so grateful that God nudged BJ to choose this topic of study for this portion of the year. I don’t think BJ had any idea what these months would hold for all of us when he chose this, but God did. God knew what we would be facing, and how our hearts would react to these circumstances. I am so grateful for the daily reminders of who God is. I need the reminders of His perfection, His grace, His faithfulness and His unfailing love. When I focus on Him, I see the world differently than when I sit with my own thoughts. He is waiting for us to come to Him for help, hope and whatever else you are carrying this morning.