Comfort

When the Lord is the author of a course of action, there are sometimes incongruities. If you all to fear, then logical sounding arguments can be made against a plan that the Lord has designed.

He has never let you down. He won't now. Be at peace.

Here is encouragement for you; the labor is complete. Just that. Your labor has been completed. Willingly undergo this strengthening time. This season of uncertainty can serve as a strengthening program as you cling ever tighter to the Lord and embrace disciplines of the flesh that have eluded you for so long. You will emerge from this “tight place” ready to inhabit the land the Lord has promised to you.

Scripture: "Comfort, comfort my people,says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed..." (Isaiah 40:1-2a).

It Will Not Happen a Second Time

Loving others is a risk. It is like lowering your shield and putting away your sword in order to extend the right hand of fellowship. You have been betrayed in the past, and so you fear the possibility of hurt through rejection, particularly a humiliating rejection such as that you experienced before. Believe in the Lord's promise when He says this kind of sorrow will not happen a second time.

Blessings will overtake you; make preparation! It would not seem necessary to prepare for blessings, but it is prudent to do so. It is possible to be overwhelmed by blessing as well as by stress. Be overwhelmed by God's presence and His love, and all will be well apart from any material or physical preparation you make.

The Lord asks you to trust Him and to remember that He is in your circumstances. Go with the flow of His perfect will. God is with you. He acts on your behalf to protect you. It is safe to trust Him. All of His promises are good.

Scripture: "Moses answered the people, 'Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again'" (Exodus 14:13).

"And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God" Deuteronomy 28:2, KJV.

On This Mountain

You have learned that your Lord is the God of the valley. Through all the years of travail He has been at your side. But now He is saying, "I am the Lord of the mountain as well. You've trusted me in the valley. Now walk with me for awhile on this mountain."

Scripture: "In that day they will say, 'Surely this is our God; we trusted in him and he saved us. This is the LORD, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.' The hand of the LORD will rest on this mountain..." Isaiah 25:9-10

Never Again

Across the stresses that you carry,
Over the disorder in your life;
The strong support beneath foundations that seem ready to crumble,
The Lord comes.
He is the Lord;
He is with you.

He flows with healing wind through the voices from your past,
The voices that caused you harm,
The voices that accused you and labeled you “inadequate.”

He is the voice for those who have no voice.
He was your defender when you could not defend yourself.

He has given you a voice.
He has lent you His authority.
Use this gift for His glory,

Speak with His voice for those who cannot speak for themselves.

He is the Lord, He is God; Holy is His Name.

Never again will you be downtrodden.
Never again will your tender heart be mishandled.
Never again will ignorance or lust wage an attack upon your unprotected places,
Because there are no unprotected places.

You are no longer vulnerable to this sort of harm.

If evil were to come against you, the sortie would end with the enemy slinking away, defeated.

No weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. (See Isaiah 54:17)

Speak with His voice for those who are tender—speak! The Lord is with you.

Scripture: The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing (Zephaniah 3:17).

In Just a Little While

The Lord is with you. He is intimately present with you, His desire is for you, and He delights in you.

You are not yet able to see Him perfectly, but you can take delight in His company in the here and now. Fulfillment of the longing in your heart will come soon, but until then He is with you through the Holy Spirit's presence in your heart. When you feel discouragement and anger over the circumstances of your life, understand that your longing is not for human love, but that you are frustrated with desire to see His face.

He longs for you uniquely, and He loves you uniquely. The part of Him that belongs to you belongs to no one else, you know Him in a way that no one else does, and He knows you completely. You touch a place in His heart that no one else can satisfy.

You will be completely satisfied in Him, and He in you. He is the Lover like no other; He completes you. You complete Him. Without you, He is whole, but He is not satisfied. Without Him you can be neither whole nor satisfied. Let Him prepare you for Himself. Let Him prepare you to be the perfect bride.

You don’t understand how this can be so, but do understand the fact that it IS so. Not seeing Him, you love Him. This is faith.

In just a little while, you will be at home with the Lord. Today the Holy Spirit lives within you. You are thus able to satisfy your desire for unity with Christ by feeding upon His Word. Your aching heart will find solace as you experience the peace of a weaned child with its mother (see Psalm 131:2).

Scripture:
"In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me" (John 16:16).

"But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you" (John 16:7).

"...the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you" (John 14:26).

"I will not leave you orphaned. I'm coming back. In just a little while the world will no longer see me, but you're going to see me because I am alive and you're about to come alive. At that moment you will know absolutely that I'm in my Father, and you're in me, and I'm in you" (John 14:18-20, The Message).

Everything is Going to be All Right

Scripture says, "Judge not," but you do pass judgment upon circumstances and people, categorizing them neatly as being either good or evil. If there is a period at the end of each sentence of facts as you state them, there is no room for God to work in memories and perceptions to bring about the changes He has promised. All of God's promises will be fulfilled; all are in the process of coming into being. If something is going to be true, it behooves you to see it as being true now; otherwise you will not perceive the truth when it does arrive. You will have rehearsed the dark side of your experience so thoroughly that you will be unable to see light; you will change truth to fit your world view. Even when there is no longer a threat, you will continue to feel threatened. When all cause for grief has passed, you will continue to grieve.

There is no true liberty apart from the Lord, and you can participate in the freedom that is in Him right at this moment. You are not waiting for your salvation to arrive—He is here, now. Will you not look into His face?

Scripture: "In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed" (1 Peter 1:6-7).

Crime and Punishment vs. Beauty from Ashes

In the face of hardship, you may feel that you are being punished. This is a common error of reasoning and it occurs because the Lord uses all things for the good of those He loves. The error occurs as you see blessings begin to flow from grief or pain; flawed human logic deduces that the sorrow was inflicted in order to bring the blessing. Because He is able to use even painful events to work His will and to remind you in whom your faith rests, you assume that you are being reprimanded for some wrong. This is not so. He knows your heart. He knows you. The Lord’s ability to bring beauty from ashes does not reflect upon your weakness, but upon His strength.

Scripture: "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpse" (Romans 8:28).

"and provide for those who grieve in Zion--to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting for the display of the Lord's splendor" (Isaiah 61:3).

Time Versus Eternity

Ultimately, none of the enemy’s plans succeed, but in the short term we do not yet perceive everything as being under the Lord's control. When a marionette is being pulled into a standing position, there is a moment when a still photograph would show it being neither up nor down. One might conclude that it is falling. Inhabiting time is like looking at a photograph rather than watching a movie. Because you inhabit a specific point on the temporary line of time, you risk drawing inaccurate conclusions when you look at the way things are.

God will help you but first know this. He is with you where you are. He is able to bring about His will despite you, if necessary. All of His promises are good. He has not abandoned you. Do not be afraid.

Scripture: "In that day the mountains will drip new wine, and the hills will flow with milk; all the ravines of Judah will run with water. A fountain will flow out of the LORD's house and will water the valley of acacias" (Joel 3:18).

"Then you will know that I, the LORD your God, dwell in Zion, my holy hill. Jerusalem will be holy; never again will foreigners invade her." Isaiah 48:7.

Now and Later

The freedom that is yours in Christ is engineered by the Holy Spirit, and is manifested through your circumstances here and now. God's blessings are long lasting--they are good now (in the physical world) and they are good later (for all eternity).

Don't be afraid to take God's promises literally, and do not make excuse for Him when the time seems long. All of His promises are good. Watch for their fulfillment and it will become apparent to you that what can be perceived in the corporeal world is a reflection of eternal fact. See God's promises as buds that are blossoming into the reality of your life, the reality that can be perceived with your five senses; understand that your present experience in Christ is supported by an eternity of spiritual truth. It is true that “eye hath not seen” (1 Corinthians 2:9, KJV), but it is also true that “For now we see through a glass, darkly” (1 Corinthians 12:13, KJV). Even the reflections of eternal facts are beautiful, and one can eat and drink of them and be nourished in the physical world. Partake.

Scripture: "Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires" (2 Peter 1:4 KJV).

God is Just

Anger toward a beloved enemy is too dangerous for you to carry; you will inflict and receive harm if you do not cast this care upon the Lord. When Jesus was mocked and scorned, He made no reply but "...entrusted himself to him who judges justly" (1 Peter 2:23).

If you give vent to your pain, you will then endure additional hurt akin to participating in the surgical removal of your own heart without benefit of anesthesia. Roll your burden onto the Lord. That which Christ accepts from you as a burden also becomes a case in the court of God's perfect justice.

Love is the more excellent way to cope with the searing pain of having been rejected. When Jesus was wronged He made no reply, but stretched out His arms in love. He took upon Himself the full burden of the sins of those who had rejected Him.

He will bear this burden for you. The success of your ministry, hope for your future, and the state of your heart do not depend upon on whether or not other human beings obey God. The fulfillment of God's promises arrive through the power of the Holy Spirit; "No one can deliver out of my hand" (Deuteronomy 32:39).

Scripture: Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for in you my soul takes refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed. I cry out to God Most High, to God, who fulfills his purpose for me. Psalm 57:1-2

Difficult Times

If you are progressing through difficult times, don’t stop
to stare at the barren scenery; it is important to keep
moving forward, to continue to affirm your faith in God,
and to continue to do the task He places closest
to you.  Keep doing the next thing.  There is no rest in
the Valley of the Shadow of Death but that which is
found in the Lord."

Find your rest in Him.  There are days of peace ahead. 

Are You Ready to Obey?

Dear One, you treat direct words from the throne of God as options, not as commands. It is not in your best interests now for God to tell you what to do, because you still are not in a mood to obey. He will not instruct you until your heart is obedient, because He does not want to lead you to disobedience. How are you choosing to escape your emotional deficit? The Lord is the lover who has beckoned and has been ignored. You have hurt His heart.

No penance is necessary; Jesus has paid the price. Only turn your face toward Him. He is your Lord and Your Savior. He is to be the overwhelming love song of your life. You do not need to fear laying down the burdens that you carry so diligently for your loved ones; let them go. I am not saying that you are to abdicate your responsibilities; you know that. But let go the weight of responsibility for their obedience or lack of it. And do not make your loved ones feel that if they need your support in prayer that they must then pay homage to you.

Those who believe that they bear the responsibility to work salvation themselves have no need of God. Remember Saul’s sin. Samuel had promised him deliverance and instructed him to wait, but Saul took matters into his own hands (1 Samuel 13). In a stunning lack of faith in God to save, Saul placed himself on an equal footing with a priest of God.

The Lord has heard your cries. He knows where you are and has made provision for you. You do not have to work freedom on your own behalf. Do not be afraid,
no door has closed. “I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut,” (Revelation 3:8).

Scripture: “Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life; you stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes, with your right hand you save me. The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me; your love, O Lord, endures forever—do not abandon the works of your hands” (Psalm 138:7).

Give God Time

You are not wrong to enumerate your troubles as you pray, and you are not inaccurate in your analysis; but you have left the Lord out of the equation. You have learned that you must not walk forward in blind faith if it can be avoided, not because your faith will not be rewarded, but because blind faith sometimes plucks a fruit before it is ripened. Allow God time to work in your mind, heart and circumstances, and you will see the fruit of promise ripen. You have gathered green fruit, Dear One, but by God's promise the fruit will ripen and you will be blessed. The harvest cannot always be timed perfectly but God's promises will without fail develop into fruit that you can eat and by which you can be nourished. You will find the future sweet. You are at the threshold of that time of sweetness now; there will be a season of fulfillment.

Look Ahead

The Lord knows the path you’ve traveled. He knows of your pain, of your remorse, and your sorrows; those that have been self-inflicted and those that pierced your heart as wounds inflicted by others. His love and His compassion are yours and you belong to Him. Do not be afraid of the path before you; blessing lies ahead. Learn to wait upon the Lord. Learn to trust in Him even though you cannot see the prize. He will provide for you. Only do not flirt with evil; it has no part of you, and you do not belong to it.

God knows your heart. Read the message to the church in Philadelphia in Revelation 3:7-13. God will vindicate you, but first you must step out of His way. You impede the Holy Spirit’s work when you attempt to be judge and jury of your fellow human beings; this is not your job. You will make yourself a menace to others, and this is not God’s will. He desires that you be well-loved and well-respected. There comes a time when those you seek to correct have a better hope of making a turn-around without you dogging their steps. Withdraw and allow God time to work in the memories and in the thought processes of those you seek to change; God can remake memories. He is with you. Allow Him to guide your footsteps in a different direction. Blessings are ahead, and if you will give God time and space to work, blessings are behind as well. God is above time and space. He can literally remake the past. But in order for Him to do this regenerative work, you must step aside.

Scripture: Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14