Author: astherainandsnow

“O Lord, be gracious to us; we wait for you.
    Be our arm every morning,
    our salvation in the time of trouble.
At the tumultuous noise peoples flee..,
and your spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathers;
    as locusts leap, it is leapt upon.

“The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high;
    he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness,
and he will be the stability of your times,
    abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge;
    the fear of the Lord is Zion’s treasure.” Isaiah 33:2-3a,4-6

“And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Is the Lord’s hand shortened? Now you shall see whether my word will come true for you or not.'” Numbers 11:23

“The eternal God is your dwelling place,
    and underneath are the everlasting arms.
And he thrust out the enemy before you
    and said, ‘Destroy.’” Deuteronomy 33:27

“‘With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles.’ And the people took confidence from the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.” 2 Chronicles 32:8

“Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save,
    or his ear dull, that it cannot hear.” Isaiah 59:1

The prophet’s cry is a sincere, earnest prayer expressing legitimate need and patient dependence. He is God’s servant, on specific mission, and desires the arm of his Sovereign to take up their cause and go before him. Every morning. (Isaiah 6:1-9)

Any anthropomorphication of the infinite Spirit God seems a reduction of His power and divinity, yet the scriptures are replete with such descriptions in order to relate to finite man. The Word is God’s revelation to us, so the Word in the flesh meets us in ways we comprehend, and desperately need. The Lord intends that we interact and commune with Him to the full extent of our capable, yet limited, understanding. He is ready to supply.

Arms hold, arms uphold. Arms protect and fight and slay, arms embrace and comfort. Arms manipulate, work hard, carry, share, and pour forth bounty. Arms raise high to heaven, open wide in welcome, reach out in compassion, and stretch forward to clear the way.  Be our arm every morning!

Where do we need the Lord’s strong arm this day? Are we facing uncertainty and need His guidance and steady hand? Do we need particular wisdom for a decision, or strength to slay enemies of shame or temptation? Is there deep sorrow that longs for the balm of His embrace? What weak resolve or wavering faith cries for support and undergirding? His arm is here! Every morning His mercies are new and His arm is strong. Trust His stability and salvation! (Lamentations 3:22-23)

“What a fellowship, what a joy divine, 
leaning on the everlasting arms; 
what a blessedness, what a peace is mine, 
leaning on the everlasting arms.

O how sweet to walk in this pilgrim way, 
leaning on the everlasting arms; 
O how bright the path grows from day to day, 
leaning on the everlasting arms.

What have I to dread, what have I to fear, 
leaning on the everlasting arms? 
I have blessed peace with my Lord so near, 
leaning on the everlasting arms.

Leaning, leaning, 
safe and secure from all alarms; 
leaning, leaning, 
leaning on the everlasting arms.” E. A. Hoffman (1887)

Lord, keep me looking to and leaning on Your arm, every day, to Your praise.

“Little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.

“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure…

“No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning… By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother…

“We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers… 

“By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers… Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.” 1 John 2:28-3:3,6-10,13-14,16,18

There is great assurance in the declared reality that we are God’s children. We have been born again unto salvation by grace, by faith, into a secure, unbreakable relationship that identifies us in the world as other-worldly. We belong to Christ Jesus forever. We bear an indelible mark, a guaranteed promise of what we are becoming and will become. Life here below is a process of sanctifying childhood. (1 Corinthians 13:9-12; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; 5:1-5; Ephesians 2:8-9)

Children of the Heavenly Father. How seriously do we take God’s identification of us, and with us? Does it compel us to abide in Him so we can say no to sin and be increasingly like Him? What evidence of His nature is there in our attitudes, daily interactions, how we go about work and service and management of resources? As His, freed from sin’s penalty and power over us, are we living as such in our dark world? (Romans 6:3-7,11-14; Galatians 2:20)

Laying down our lives for our brothers can take many forms, from simply preferring another in love to whole surrender of time, dreams, and self for another’s sake. How well and sacrificially are we loving those around us? How does the sure hope of being like Christ change our outlook and motivation today? (John 13:34-35; Romans 12:10; Ephesians 4:32)

“When we all get to heaven,
what a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
we’ll sing and shout the victory!” ~E.E. Hewitt (1898)

Lord, make me- in every impulse and action- like You, to Your glory.

“When… the children of Israel were in the towns, the people gathered as one man to Jerusalem. Then arose Jeshua, with his fellow priests, and Zerubbabel with his kinsmen, and they built the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings, as is written in the Law of Moses. They set the altar in its place, for fear was on them because of the peoples of the lands, and they offered burnt offerings on it to the Lord, burnt offerings morning and evening… But the foundation of the temple of the Lord was not yet laid. So they gave money to the masons and the carpenters, and food, drink, and oil to the Sidonians and the Tyrians to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea, to Joppa, according to the grant that they had from Cyrus king of Persia.

“In the second year after their coming to the house of God at Jerusalem,.. Zerubbabel and Jeshua made a beginning, together with the rest of their kinsmen, the priests and the Levites and all who had come to Jerusalem from the captivity. They appointed the Levites, from twenty years old and upward, to supervise the work of the house of the Lord. And Jeshua with his sons and his brothers, and Kadmiel and his sons, the sons of Judah, together supervised the workmen in the house of God, along with the sons of Henadad and the Levites, their sons and brothers.

“And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests in their vestments came forward with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the Lord, according to the directions of David king of Israel. And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord,

“’For he is good,
    for his steadfast love endures forever toward Israel.’

“And all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.” Ezra 3:1-3,6b-11

Exiles returning from Babylonian captivity to Israel had been given a charge by King Cyrus: ‘Go to work, rebuild your temple.’ God stirred their spirits and inspired their contributions. Their ready handling of the task established first the altar, setting the practice of sacrifice and a tempo of joy and praise among all who would participate in the willing and able labor. The completing of the temple foundation evoked great emotion, and they faced persistent opposition and temptation to give up, yet praise and focus on God kept them to the task of rebuilding with vigor and determination. (Ezra 1:1-5; 2:69; 3:12-4:6)

Knowing the God who calls and the specific work He assigns give both structure and freedom to our work. He appoints talents and roles to contribute to His wide kingdom plan. With His providence at the fore, we can delight in doing our part, unconcerned about personal gain. All work performed in answer to God’s call, with His priorities and for His purposes, honors Him and fulfills with joy.

How do we view our work? Are we in it for selfish ends, pursuing notoriety, financial gain, or gratification? Or do we seize it as part of God’s big picture, and exercise diligence and zeal for Him? How does it bring Him glory?

Lord, correct any wrong motives, and help me daily praise and honor You in my work. (Colossians 3:23-24)

“The Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment,  and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority.

“Bold and willful, they do not tremble as they blaspheme… They promise freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved.”

“This is the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the prophets and commandment of the Lord.., knowing… that scoffers will come in the last days, following their own sinful desires. They will say, ‘Where is the promise of his coming?..’ For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed… by the word of God… But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are… being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.

“But do not overlook.., beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. The day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.

“Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God… According to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

“Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. Count the patience of our Lord as salvation… You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ..” 2 Peter 2:9-10,19; 3:1-4a,5,7-15a,17-18

“Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you… And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.” 1 John 2:24a,28

Both Peter and John address fellow believers with tenderness and love, gently but clearly stirring them to live wisely, hopefully, boldly, and righteously, looking to Christ’s return. Amidst persecution and uncertainty, these reminders kept them mentally grounded and spiritually steady. Judgment would surely come, Christ would return in perfect time, and they were to live presently with vitality and confidence in light of these promises.

And so are we. Yes, in the world we have tribulation, but the Lord has overcome and gives grace and victory to compel us forward in peace. His assurances are our hope. (John 16:33)

What are we doing to stir up one another to take hold of God’s promises, to persist in doing good? How regularly do avail ourselves of His instructive, powerful word? When and how do we participate in mutual edification? (Hebrews 10:23-25)

Lord, help me hold fast to and remind others of Your truths, and so increase hope, and bless Your name.

“I cry aloud to God,
    and he will hear me.
In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord;
    in the night my hand is stretched out without wearying;
    my soul refuses to be comforted.
When I remember God, I moan;
    when I meditate, my spirit faints. 

You hold my eyelids open;
    I am so troubled that I cannot speak.
I consider the days of old,
    the years long ago.
I said, ‘Let me remember my song in the night;
    let me meditate in my heart.’
    Then my spirit made a diligent search:
‘Will the Lord spurn forever,
    and never again be favorable?
Has his steadfast love forever ceased?
    Are his promises at an end for all time?
Has God forgotten to be gracious?
    Has he in anger shut up his compassion?’ 

Then I said, ‘I will appeal to this,
    to the years of the right hand of the Most High.’

I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
    yes, I will remember your wonders of old.
I will ponder all your work,
    and meditate on your mighty deeds.
Your way, O God, is holy.
    What god is great like our God?
You are the God who works wonders;
    you have made known your might among the peoples.
You with your arm redeemed your people… 

When the waters saw you, O God,
    when the waters saw you, they were afraid;
    indeed, the deep trembled.
The clouds poured out water;
    the skies gave forth thunder;
    your arrows flashed on every side.
The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind;
    your lightnings lighted up the world;
    the earth trembled and shook.
Your way was through the sea,
    your path through the great waters;
    yet your footprints were unseen.
You led your people like a flock.” Psalm 77:1-20

The psalmist writes from choking trouble: Sleepless, agonizing despair in wearying darkness. Crying with no answers, seeking without relief. His churning mind goes from an anguished present to considering the past, and determines to meditate on what he knows to be true about God. There he finds a song, there the balm of his Lord’s former deeds and wonders and lavish displays of might. Ah, in his sure redemption won by God’s arm he takes hope!

The mind can be an unruly master. Let it meander into negativity and self-focused woe, bitterness or secret areas of temptation, dungeons of doubt or unreasonable, paralyzing fear, and it leads to doom. It twists and manipulates and deceives and convinces us we are bereft and the Lord has abandoned us. Failing to ponder God, the mind is led astray and wasteful. (Psalm 1:1-4)

Yet a mind redeemed by grace, directed toward the mercies of God, His past and ongoing works on behalf of His kingdom and glory and our personal good, leads to a very different place. With holy determination, a downward spiral inverts to a lifting upward, and gloom is flooded with light. We can cry out knowing we are heard, and that the Lord delivers. We remember songs the Lord wrote on our hearts, and our vision is filled with His greatness. Yes, we recall the turbulence and troubles of our experience, yet we remember that the Lord faithfully carried us through. And He will again.

How are we recounting God’s wondrous deeds toward us? Whom are we telling? How have His works of the past strengthened us for harsh troubles of the present?

Lord, fix my eyes and hope on You forever.

“O God, be not far from me;
    O my God, make haste to help me!
May my accusers be put to shame and consumed;
    with scorn and disgrace may they be covered
    who seek my hurt.
But I will hope continually
    and will praise you yet more and more.
My mouth will tell of your righteous acts,
    of your deeds of salvation all the day,
    for their number is past my knowledge.
With the mighty deeds of the Lord God I will come;
    I will remind them of your righteousness, yours alone.

O God, from my youth you have taught me,
    and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds.
So even to old age and gray hairs,
    O God, do not forsake me,
until I proclaim your might to another generation,
    your power to all those to come.
Your righteousness, O God,
    reaches the high heavens.
You who have done great things,
    O God, who is like you?
You who have made me see many troubles and calamities
    will revive me again;
from the depths of the earth
    you will bring me up again.
You will increase my greatness
    and comfort me again.

I will also praise you with the harp
    for your faithfulness, O my God;
I will sing praises to you with the lyre,
    O Holy One of Israel.
My lips will shout for joy,
    when I sing praises to you;
    my soul also, which you have redeemed.
And my tongue will talk of your righteous help all the day long.” Psalm 71:12-24a

The psalmist rises out of scorn and calamity to fix his focus on higher ground. His heart is filled to overflow with praise of the God he loves and trusts. Accusers seek his hurt, yet he sings of God’s hope. The more he is hunted and haunted, the more he recounts God’s righteous and mighty deeds. No measure of evil or troubles or calamities can outnumber God’s goodnesses, so rejoice he does! Prayer is a conversation confessing need but with full knowledge of the goodness of the One he addresses. Through every cloud of threat or impossible difficulty, he chooses to speak of God’s limitless power, revival, comfort. His is an honest heart that has chosen joy in every circumstance.

It is natural in the flesh to focus only on our difficulties, the burdens that weigh down our souls or impede our desires progress. Troubles sap strength and time and so they fill our conversation and turn to sour complaint. We may not even realize we live in a sigh, and convey woe to those we are around.

But without any turn in the situation, we can choose to praise, to give thanks for our salvation and God’s constancy. We can determine to take joy in our redemption, and the promise of ultimate redemption it affords. Will we?

When accused or in need of help, when threatened or depressed, how can we direct our pondering? Would we intentionally praise God for who He is regardless of circumstance, and voice a song of gratitude? When we fill our eyes with His magnificence, and shout HIs praise, we will find our hearts lifted and our thoughts lofty, where He dwells in glory.

God mighty and near, keep me praising, pondering, and proclaiming Your greatness all the day.

“Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, ‘Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.’  So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah. The Spirit told Philip, ‘Go to that chariot and stay near it.’

“Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading. ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’ Philip asked.

“’How can I,’ he said, ‘unless someone explains it to me?’ So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

 “This is the passage of Scripture the eunuch was reading:

“’He was led like a sheep to the slaughter,
    and as a lamb before its shearer is silent,
    so he did not open his mouth.
In his humiliation he was deprived of justice.
    Who can speak of his descendants?
    For his life was taken from the earth.’

“The eunuch asked Philip, ‘Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?’  Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.

“As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, ‘Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptized?’ And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.” Acts 8:26-40

One willing servant. One instruction. One obedience. One truth. One transformed life. Jesus who reigns over the high heavens and wide earth is intricately and intimately involved exactly where we are, and calls us to be present with Him. He nudged Philip to go south at His direction. He superintended the Ethiopian’s location and what he was reading. He blessed Philip’s openness with insight, and used this willing disciple to save the unnamed eunuch. And only God knows what multiplication of faith arose from there.

We make plans for our days while the Lord unfolds His heavenly plans along our path. We set about to do our work, turn here, go there, maybe make a difference, but God often confronts us with the unexpected so He can fulfill His divine intentions. How attuned are we to recognize and embrace the privilege of taking part? Would we rise above the pressing here and now to anticipate His presence among us, to hear His instructions and follow His lead? (Proverbs 16:9)

When do I take time to understand God’s place for me today, and whom might He have me serve? Where has difficulty driven me that I didn’t expect? What new opportunities has the Lord prepared for specific ministry? What evidence have I seen that He is actively working? (Acts 8:1,4-8)

Lord, compel me with Your gospel, and teach me immediate obedience that honors Your purposes.

“The Lord said to Noah, ‘Go into the ark, you and all your household, for I have seen that you are righteous before me in this generation. Take with you seven pairs of all clean animals, the male and his mate, and a pair of the animals that are not clean, the male and his mate, and seven pairs of the birds of the heavens also, male and female, to keep their offspring alive on the face of all the earth. For in seven days I will send rain on the earth forty days and forty nights, and every living thing that I have made I will blot out from the face of the ground.’ And Noah did all that the Lord commanded him.

“Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters came upon the earth. And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him went into the ark to escape the waters of the flood. Of clean animals, and of animals that are not clean, and of birds, and of everything that creeps on the ground, two and two, male and female, went into the ark with Noah, as God had commanded Noah. And after seven days the waters of the flood came upon the earth.

“In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, all the fountains of the great deep burst forth, and the windows of the heavens were opened. And rain fell upon the earth forty days and forty nights. On the very same day Noah and his sons, Shem and Ham and Japheth, and Noah’s wife and the three wives of his sons entered the ark, they and every beast, according to its kind, and all the livestock according to their kinds, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, according to its kind, and every bird, according to its kind, every winged creature. They went into the ark with Noah, two and two of all flesh in which there was the breath of life.., male and female of all flesh, went in as God had commanded him. And the Lord shut him in.

“The flood continued forty days on the earth.” Genesis 7:1-17a

Our Lord is on splendid display in the account of Noah and the flood. We see His perfect exactness in every instruction, timing, and attention to detail. And we see woven throughout and shining His love and compassion, the power of His holiness and justice, His measured yet lavish mercy and grace. This is a God we can trust to keep His word.

As with Noah, God graciously and exactly unfolds His plans for us. He prepares and guides with full knowledge of His plans, and reveals what we presently need and can handle. He lovingly does not tell us everything, yet step by step teaches us to obey, trusting and watching for the next thing.

The world can be chaotic, our near future frenzied and uncertain, but God is in control, with a perfect handle on time and holy purpose. Do we fret about what lies ahead, and thus hesitate to follow Him with bold faith? What if instead we trusted that He measures storms, numbers our days, knows best, and suffices? Will we praise Him for His exact, personal, and substantial care? (Job 14:5)

Lord, shut me into Your purposes with full, glad obedience.

“Give the king your justice, O God,
    and your righteousness to the royal son!
May he judge your people with righteousness,
    and your poor with justice!
Let the mountains bear prosperity for the people..!
May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,
    give deliverance to the children of the needy,
    and crush the oppressor!

May they fear you while the sun endures,
    and as long as the moon, throughout all generations!
May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass,
    like showers that water the earth!
In his days may the righteous flourish,
    and peace abound, till the moon be no more!

May he have dominion from sea to sea,
    and from the River to the ends of the earth!..
May all kings fall down before him,
    all nations serve him!

For he delivers the needy when he calls,
    the poor and him who has no helper.
He has pity on the weak and the needy,
    and saves the lives of the needy.
From oppression and violence he redeems their life,
    and precious is their blood in his sight.

Long may he live…
May prayer be made for him continually,
    and blessings invoked for him all the day!
May there be abundance of grain in the land;
    on the tops of the mountains may it wave;
    may its fruit be like Lebanon;
and may people blossom in the cities
    like the grass of the field!
May his name endure forever,
    his fame continue as long as the sun!
May people be blessed in him,
    all nations call him blessed!

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
    who alone does wondrous things.
Blessed be his glorious name forever;
    may the whole earth be filled with his glory!
Amen and Amen!” Psalm 72:1-8,11-19

Solomon reveals his heart for God and his dependence on Him for his role as king in the prayer he writes. Prolific in wisdom and passion for God’s people, he deeply desires justice, righteousness, and compassion as he rules. For the people of his kingdom he pleads for abundance, protection, and fear of God. He accepts responsibility for their flourishing and peace, and trusts his Lord to make it so. Beginning with confident dependence, and boldly asking for success and prominence, he closes by blessing God’s name, a pattern he sought- of God remaining foremost and supreme- to undergird his reign. (Psalm 72:9-10)

While we are all called to invoke God’s blessing for those who lead us, the Lord also puts us in position to lead others in various places. Our kingdom venue may be large and widely-influential, or simply within our homes or a small contingent at work or a ministry we render. Do we, like Solomon, grasp the importance of prayer in every responsibility? Do we look to the Lord for His help and specific involvement in these situations? Is His honor, and the highest and best of the people we lead, our mission? (Psalm 75:6-7; 1 Timothy 2:1-2; James 4:10)

How much do we really care for those with whom we work and serve? Where God has appointed us authority, are we seeking to execute with righteousness and justice, in ways that please the Lord and exemplify His character? How committed are we to praying for those we lead, for the welfare of our communities and cities? (Psalm 122:6-7; Jeremiah 29:7)

Lord, may my life exemplify Your dominion, and my leadership Your blessedness and grace.

“In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing:

“’Thus says Cyrus: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, in Judah. Whoever is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, and rebuild the house of the Lord.'”

“The people of the land discouraged the people of Judah and made them afraid to build and bribed counselors against them to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus…

“In the reign of Ahasuerus,.. they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem… Then, when King Artaxerxes’ letter was read.., they went in haste… and by force and power made them cease. The work on the house of God… stopped until the second year of Darius.”

“Zerubbabel and Jeshua arose and began to rebuild the house of God.., and the prophets of God were with them, supporting them.

“Tattenai and Shethar-bozenai and their associates came and [said]: ‘Who gave you a decree to build… and finish this structure?..’But the eye of their God was on… the Jews, and they did not stop…”

“[Then Darius decreed]: ‘Now therefore.., keep away. Let the work on this house of God alone. Let the… Jews rebuild this house of God. Moreover,.. the cost is to be paid to these men in full and without delay from the royal revenue… Whatever is needed… let that be given to them day by day without fail… May the God who has caused his name to dwell there overthrow any[one] who shall… alter this, or destroy this house… Let it be done with all diligence…’

“The elders of the Jews built and prospered… They finished their building by decree of God and of Cyrus and Darius and Artaxerxes.” Ezra 1:1-3; 4:4-6,23-24; 5:2-3,5; 6:6-9,12,14

Could the prospect of a rebuilt temple have been any farther from possibility? Not only had it been destroyed, but the Israelites were captive in Babylon. Once they returned to Judah they were barraged with constant opposition. Yet it was in ‘what man meant for harm’ that the Lord showed up most magnificently to mean and do for good. (Genesis 50:20)

What God intends, He will always see through. What appears impassible or impossible to us is already paved and accomplished by Him. His intent is higher and broader than ours- not just completion of an act but deepening of our faith, the furthering of His work, the display of His character and glory. (Matthew 19:26)

We make or receive an assignment, and we want it done. We disdain anyone or anything getting in the way of our goals. We might push against opposition, or fall to discouragement or despair. Would we pause to ask God’s greater purpose?

Might He be teaching us not to rely on ourselves, but Him and His ways? Might He be positioning our opposition so they can observe our response, giving witness to God’s empowering and grace? How is God ordering our circumstances, challenging or unexpected, to magnify His glory?

Lord, keep me pliant and persistent with Your plans, so You are recognized.