vacation for a week. My boss said, “You're still learning, but you're doing a good job. Have a good vacation! See you when you get back”. He said he would give me the same work again when I return.
However, when i returned instead of “loads” for the day sitting on the driver’s seat there was a note that said, “your employment has been terminated” and that it “just isn’t working for you”. ??? What!?!? Are you confused? Don't worry. So am I. Then 2 days later I started to have a vise grip, throbbing, type of headache and feeling tired like I did 10 years ago when i had an immune deficiency. In just hours I went from having a job and strength to unemployed and feeling week and unhealthy!! (It was 2 weeks later I discovered I had a very bad sinus infection and it was affecting my overall health now). It’s easy to feel like God has abandoned us sometimes or that he doesn’t seem to care, that He has somehow forgotten us, or we are not important enough for him to see. David is expressing, here, his own experience of feeling abandoned by God. Here is the most intense suffering God’s servant can know—not just that enemies surround him (Ps. 22:7, 12–13) and that his body is in dreadful pain (Ps. 22:14–16), but that he feels that God does not hear him and does not care about his suffering. Then, in the midst of great anguish, David recalls how God has been his God from the moment he was born (vs 10). He recalls the acts, availability, and presence of God to those who praise him and proclaim his name. He recalls in vs 24, “For he has not ignored or belittled the suffering of the needy. He has not turned his back on them, but has listened to their cries for help.” Remember, this week and moving forward, that “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1), and that there is no such thing as, (as the title of Garth Brooks song reads), “unanswered prayer”. Rather, God always answers prayer! His answers are: 1. Yes 2. No, and 3. Wait! We want answers now! But God’s timing is perfect. He knows the wise and unwise decisions we make; the good, the bad, and the ugly, of our lives and choices. He knows our past, our present, and our future. He knows all the obstacles, and heartaches, and joyous occasions in between our birth and our last hour on this earth. God’s Word declares, “But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31) My advice? If you are in a hurry, then Hurry up and wait! Specifically, ON the LORD! “Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!” (Psalm 27:14) PRAYER: Father, we proclaim your name as the only name under heaven by which people can be saved. We thank you your love which surpasses all understanding. Help us to trust You and to wait on you patiently. Forgive us when we fail. Lift us up on wings ‘like’ eagles to experience your encouragement and give us strength for today and the days ahead of us. In Jesus name. Amen! Until next time: “Keep your heads up, your heart’s holy, and your hands lifted high!” Pastor Mark Evans The Journey Place
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AuthorMark Evans is the Teaching Pastor of the former Radio Broadcast, "Embracing the Truth" ArchivesCategories |