Well hello there, if you subscribe to my blog. I know it's only a few of you. Clearly I'm way overdue for a post, since the last one was in September of 2009. It's been about a year and 3 months. In any case, I have some thoughts to share with you that I hope bless you like they did me. Perhaps it's not the most powerful of revelations, but it has been a necessary one as I learn to rejoice in how the Lord is providing for me and loving me infinitely well (even when I can't see it).
So, Hebrews 12:1,2 says "Therefore, since we are surrouned by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
This verse is something that I shared with one of our youth kids yesterday evening and it's been on my mind since then. I realized this morning as I was pondering those verses that, well, no matter what, life goes on.
We are never so down and out that God isn't ready to fight for us and to help us get up from whatever we fell down doing... For me, it's been the sadness and nostalgia of moving, of finishing school, of starting the search for a new job. Life is moving on, and to me, it's scary. For others, it might be unhappiness with self, with others, or with the Lord due to our lack of understanding of his mysterious ways. But we are always put in situations to push on towards the goal, to keep running the race even when our feet "get tired". Though, there's a verse that speaks to that too, in Isaiah 40:28-31. Somewhere is that cluster of verses it says (and I might be paraphrasing), "even youths will grow tired and weary, but those who wait upon the Lord will renew their strength, and will rise up on wings like eagles". It's beautiful isn't it? So my encouragement to both myself and you today is, get up! Dust off your feet! And keep running the race with perseverance in front of the cloud of witnesses, and rejoice in how the Lord has provided for you and will continue to do so forever.
"Notice how the flowers grow. They do not toil or spin. But I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of them. If God so clothes the grass in the field that grows today and is thrown in the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, you of little faith?"
Luke 12:27-28
Lord let it be as you have said. Let us run the race with perseverance that we might dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Amen.
