As the rain and snow

“For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling,  if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked.  For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.  He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

“So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord,  for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.  So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him.” 2 Corinthians 5:1-9

“For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.  And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.” Romans 8:22-27

Paul understood the emotional and physical grumble and crank of life. Constant opposition, pelting criticism, the strain on the body of fatigue, endless travel, punishment. Indeed, he knew the groaning of body and soul. But he also knew, and pressed on because of, the abiding presence and intercession and hope of the Holy Spirit. He walked by faith, content in every circumstance because of what he believed. The guarantee of an eternal blessed inheritance was ample to fortify his daily resolve, giving strength, perspective, and perseverance for immediate challenges. (2 Corinthians 11:23-29; Ephesians 1:1-14; Philippians 4:11; Hebrews 11:1)

Everyone who follows and serves Christ bears daily burdens of responsibility and trouble. We necessarily suffer, but have hope to carry and sustain us. What defines our days? What do our attitudes and expressions indicate about state of soul? Are we known to frown, complain, and sigh? To repeatedly recite difficulties, pulling others into a downward depressing vortex of negativity? Or do we tether our very real groaning to heavenly hope, yearning and persevering because of the glory that awaits? What does the Spirit’s intercession and guarantee for us do to secure and uplift our faith? (Matthew 11:28-30; Ephesians 1:13-14; 2 Timothy 3:12)

The ministry of the Holy Spirit is sure and abiding. His seal on our hearts is a pledge of everlasting joy. What difference is He making in present circumstances?

O Lord, may any groan be heavenward, my hope and praise in and for You and Your glory.

“There are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord;  and there are varieties of activities, but the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good…

“The body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,’ that would not make it any less a part… If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing?.. God arranged the members in the body as he chose… There are many parts, yet one body.

“The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you,’ nor the head to the feet, ‘I have no need of you.’ On the contrary, the parts that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor… God has so composed the body… that there be no division.., but that the members may have the same care for one another.” 1 Corinthians 12:4-7,14-15,17-18,20-25

Paul’s words to this floundering church were aimed at turning them from distracting, corrupting influences and unifying their varied ideas and efforts in a united cause. If they knew Jesus as Lord, they were an integral part of the Body for common good. It was not theirs to belittle their own contribution nor demean another’s. Each was vital to the healthy functioning of the church body and they were responsible for exercising their God-arranged, Spirit-apportioned gifts with mutual care, in His power.

Much is publicized and promoted today about finding our sweet spot and doing what we love. Indeed, in both secular and church life we’ve been endowed by God with certain gifts for service and activity that benefit all. That is the key: are we driven by the common good, or only our own pursuits or success? When we act in a selfish vacuum, our efforts do nothing to upbuild the church and open the door to arrogant superiority or self-deprecation, and fickle provincialism. Lacking a broader vision and consumed with ego and performance, we both push forward and retreat at emotional whim and fancy with no concern for kingdom purpose.

But God has created us for Himself and each other. He intends we exercise our gifts by His Spirit, in love, for the ministry and proclamation of Christ in His Body and world. He appoints and anoints, placing us in time and place to know Him and make Him known. Are we indispensable to His Body? Yes! Is our role honorable in His eyes? Yes! (Esther 4:14; Isaiah 43:7; Acts 17:24-28; 1 Corinthians 13:1-2)

How well do I know, accept, and utilize my God-given gifts for the church? How well do I accept and encourage others’ gifts? Do I perform out of duty, or in a spirit of love? Do my attitudes and interactions indicate dignity and honor, or disparaging and haughtiness? What can I practically change in order to manifest the Spirit with effectiveness and grace, and so build unity that glorifies God? (1 Corinthians 13:4-5; Ephesians 4:11-13; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13)

Lord, mold me into a flourishing Body member who serves, upbuilds, and unifies Your church with Christ-like love and honor.

“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us—that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.” 1 John 1:1-4

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men… And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:1-4,14

John the apostle had a keen eternal perspective and an intimate friendship with Jesus. He had known and walked and served with Him. His gospel begins before the beginning of time, and his grasp of Christ’s eternal nature, likely the outflow of his bent to quiet contemplation and observation, is profound. In words, he brings this infinite Savior to life as present flesh and blood whom we can hear, see, and touch. All who would read his accounts he introduced to the wondrous God-man, full and fluent with grace and truth.

When we are in Christ, we carry within the seeds of eternal life to sow in the here and now. Our touch of the infinite and filling with the forever Spirit make us agents of eternity through our moments, days, and interactions. Are we aware of the difference we can make? Are we ready to give reason for our unshakable hope and joy? (Psalm 16:11; Nehemiah 8:10b; 1 Peter 3:15)

The deeper and richer our relationship with Christ, the greater measure of Him we will know by intimate experience to pass along to others. To whom can we manifest His wonder and beauties by extending love, kindness, forgiveness, grace? In what dark places are we shining His light of truth? How can and will we interject consideration of eternal life into immediate stresses and pressing conundrums?

“Eternal God, whose power upholds
Both flower and flaming star,
To whom there is no here nor there,
No time, no near nor far,
No alien race, no foreign shore,
No child unsought, unknown:
O send us forth, Thy prophets true,
To make all lands Thine own!

O God of righteousness and grace,
Seen in the Christ, Thy Son,
Whose life and death reveal Thy face,
By whom Thy will was done:
Inspire Thy heralds of good news
To live Thy life divine,
Till Christ has formed in all mankind
And every land is Thine!” ~Henry Tweedy (1929)

Lord, may my God-touched hands hold You fast, move at the impulse of Your love, and ever offer the hope of eternal life.

“I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
    but now my eye sees you.” Job 42:5

“So the woman left her water jar and went away into town and said to the people, ‘Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?’ They went out of the town and were coming to him.

“Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, ‘He told me all that I ever did.’  So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days. And many more believed because of his word. They said to the woman, ‘It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.'” John 4:28-30,39-42

“If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved…  For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!’” Romans 10:9-10,13-15

Scripture as a whole promotes personal responsibility and invites people not only to proclaim testimony of the Lord, but to listen, look, learn, and respond. When we have known the Savior we cannot help but tell, and experiences relayed beg engagement by the observer and reader. Come and hear! Come and see! When we are exposed to Him we will be changed. Interacting with truth ourselves always, always has effect. (John 1:38-39)

Information today is peddled in droves and drones. Wherever we turn the eye or ear we can take in what someone else has curated for our necessary enlightenment, instruction, or pleasure. There is no scarcity of expertise or opinion to be had and espoused. Our challenge is to discern what we take in, then respond accordingly. Merely accepting what another has presented skirts our responsibility to investigate and interact with God personally. The Lord is most clearly revealed when we seek Him ourselves.

What effort do we make to listen to and understand who Jesus is, to meet with Him and divine His word alone? Are we more apt to taste a snippet or devotional soundbite from someone else, or dig in and study for ourselves? How willingly do we receive and respond to what we learn? Can we honestly say we know Jesus Christ for ourselves? (Matthew 16:13-16)

If so, what are we doing to tell about Him so others see, and know, and believe for themselves? How eagerly and readily do we invite those among whom we work and live to meet Him? What about our lifestyle, perspectives, manner of handling hardship and interruptions, would make them want to?

Lord, help me know, love, and trust You for myself, and be faithful to speak boldly and winsomely so others will too.

“‘All things are lawful for me,’ but not all things are helpful. ‘All things are lawful for me,’ but I will not be dominated by anything. ‘Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food’—and God will destroy both one and the other. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.  And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power.  Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never!  Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, ‘The two will become one flesh.’ But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him.  Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.  Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,  for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” 1 Corinthians 6:12-20

There is no separation of self in Christ. He who made and saves our souls has also made our bodies in His image, that in the flesh we might also be saved, sanctified, and bring Him glory. His Spirit dwells within the sacred, pulsing temple. Maybe because of our sin inheritance, maybe because of the difference between tangible flesh and intangible mind, we can mentally separate ourselves into compartments. We deem part more worldly and part more worship-worthy. We assign the flesh to be ruled by nerve impulses, the spirit by conscience. But God created, desires, and is worthy of all of us. In and by His Spirit we can yield to His triumphant rule over the whole self.

“I appeal to you therefore, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:1-2

The offering of our body works in tandem with the surrender of mind and will. One can neither serve nor worship Christ without the other. Outstretched arms indicate an outstretched heart, open and desiring to be fully His and to do His full will. Whenever we resist welcoming Him in, or yielding up our inclinations and impulses to His sway, simply behold Christ upon the cross. His perfect body became a temple broken on our behalf so we might be whole forever. Can we spread wide our arms and open our hands in offering? Will we identify completely with death of self? (John 4:24)

What contemptible practices or selfish indulgences keep our bodies unprepared as Christ’s abode? What need we offer up for removal or cleansing? How can we practically, reverently glorify God with our bodies?

Good Father, stimulate in me love for You with all my heart, mind, soul, and strength, that I daily prepare and present my body as a living, holy sacrifice for Your filling, using, and glory.

“As God lives,.. as long as my breath is in me,
    and the spirit of God is in my nostrils,
my lips will not speak falsehood,
    and my tongue will not utter deceit.
Far be it from me to say that you are right;
    till I die I will not put away my integrity from me.
I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go;
    my heart does not reproach me for any of my days.” Job 27:2-6

“My son, if you receive my words
    and treasure up my commandments with you,
making your ear attentive to wisdom
    and inclining your heart to understanding;
if you call out for insight
    and raise your voice for understanding,
if you seek it like silver
    and search for it as for hidden treasures,
then you will understand the fear of the Lord
    and find the knowledge of God.
For the Lord gives wisdom;
    from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;
he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
    he is a shield to those who walk in integrity…
Then you will understand righteousness and justice
    and equity, every good path;
for wisdom will come into your heart,
    and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
discretion will watch over you,
    understanding will guard you,
delivering you from the way of evil,
    from men of perverted speech,
who forsake the paths of uprightness
    to walk in the ways of darkness,
who rejoice in doing evil
    and delight in the perverseness of evil,
men whose paths are crooked,
    and who are devious in their ways.

So you will be delivered from the forbidden woman,
    from the adulteress with her smooth words…

So you will walk in the way of the good
    and keep to the paths of the righteous.” Proverbs 2:1-7,9-16,20

While his days are peppered with pain and captious pith from mistaken friends, Job maintains a holy resolve. His every practice may not perfectly align, but his passion is all for God and bound up in His constancy and supremacy. He meets and combats every onslaught with more and more tenacious faith and testimony of God’s sovereign goodness.

It is up to us to set determination. The distractions in our days are many. Along the way of duty and doing we face detours, judgments, and difficulties that pull at focus and effort and will. The enemy never ceases attempting to disrupt and destroy. Fixing and filling our mind with Christ, fueling ourselves with His word, helped by His righteousness pulsing through our veins, we set the course for intent and behavior. This initial resoluteness and constant aligning keeps motion dynamic and God-ward. (John 10:10)

Where am I lacking discipline and direction? Are there indulgences of flesh or thought that foment dissension, dark thinking, resentment, or shame? How stabile is my self-control in habits of speech or temper? Where need I reset commitment, and how will I regularly fortify it?

As God lives, what fuels my passions and sets the course for my days? What’s my long view for character, conduct, and purpose? How deliberately do I make decisions and direct energies to affect not only today but the future, both private life and wider relationships? Do I think through these things, and move ahead carefully without caprice? Holding fast to God’s wisdom shields against sin. (Psalm 17:3; 39:1; 119:11)

Lord, incline my heart and will toward You and so secure holy resolve all my days.

“Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
    Let your glory be over all the earth!..

My heart is steadfast, O God,
    my heart is steadfast!
I will sing and make melody!
    Awake, my glory!
Awake, O harp and lyre!
    I will awake the dawn!
I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples;
    I will sing praises to you among the nations.
For your steadfast love is great to the heavens,
    your faithfulness to the clouds.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!” Psalm 57:5,7-11

Birdsong fills the cool air with happy staccato, chirps and trills punctuated by an occasional caw, morning praises all. The sun still lies hidden but casts its fire upward, igniting scattered clouds, shouting glory at the dawn. Awake! Awake all creation to exalt the Creator! Awake, sing, shine!

The start of each day is a fresh palette for rejoicing. Only God knows what the hours will hold, what we know is that He is faithful and loves steadfastly. Lift the mind to thoughts above where Christ is seated and calm and troubles cannot molest! Raise heart to the heavens where the sovereign Savior dwells! Tune the voice for higher praise! (Colossians 3:1-2)

Oh, how easy as earth dwellers to hum the dirge and sigh away our moments. To brood on undersides and wallow in shadows of resentment, regret, self-pity, despair. Has the drone become complaint, the heart’s hope banal, the life lens discontent? Awake, my soul! Look up and hope! Your God reigns in goodness and power! He resides in the heavens and rules the nations!

From what need I awake and sing?

“Awake, my soul, and with the sun
Thy dai­ly stage of du­ty run;
Shake off dull sloth, and joy­ful rise,
To pay thy morn­ing sac­ri­fice.

Thy pre­cious time mis­spent, re­deem,
Each pre­sent day thy last es­teem,
Improve thy ta­lent with due care;
For the great day thy­self pre­pare.

By in­flu­ence of the Light di­vine
Let thy own light to oth­ers shine.
Reflect all Heav­en’s pro­pi­tious ways
In ar­dent love, and cheer­ful praise.

In con­ver­sa­tion be sin­cere;
Keep con­sci­ence as the noon­tide clear;
Think how all see­ing God thy ways
And all thy sec­ret thoughts sur­veys.

Wake, lift up thy­self, my heart,
And with the an­gels bear thy part,
Who all night long un­wea­ried sing
High praise to the eter­nal King.

Heav’n is, dear Lord, wher­e’er Thou art,
O nev­er then from me de­part;
For to my soul ’tis hell to be
But for one mo­ment void of Thee.

Lord, I my vows to Thee re­new;
Disperse my sins as morn­ing dew.
Guard my first springs of thought and will,
And with Thy­self my spir­it fill.

Direct, con­trol, sug­gest, this day,
All I de­sign, or do, or say,
That all my pow­ers, with all their might,
In Thy sole glo­ry may unite.

I would not wake nor rise again
And Heav’n it­self I would dis­dain,
Wert Thou not there to be en­joyed,
And I in hymns to be em­ployed.

Praise God, from whom all bless­ings flow;
Praise Him, all crea­tures here be­low;
Praise Him above, ye heav’n­ly host;
Praise Fa­ther, Son, and Ho­ly Ghost.” ~Thomas Ken (1695)

Lord, may I daily greet You in Your dawn with rejoicing, thanksgiving, determination, and praise.

“As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They told him, ‘Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.’ He called out, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’

 “Jesus stopped and ordered the man be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ ‘Lord, I want to see,’ he replied.

“Jesus said to him, ‘Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.’ Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.” Luke 18:35-43 (Mark 10:46-52)

The blind man had other sharp senses. When he heard the passing crowd, he knew something was abuzz, and discovered it was Jesus. This was the miracle worker he’d heard about. This was the compassionate teacher, the one who did not shy away from invalids and sinners. Bartemaeus was desperate for mercy. With all his resolve, from his seat at the roadside, he cried out. He cried out to Jesus, son of David, the identity he understood. He cried out to Jesus, whose stories of undeserved mercy were now famous. This Jesus was his only hope.

Dulled by sin, we are graciously given the sense that something is wrong. Without Christ, we are beggars all, spiritually blind and helpless at true life’s roadside. Unable to know Him on our own, we know what we want, and that we desperately need. When we sense His approach and bringing us near, we can cry expectantly for mercy, which opens the way for more specific asking. Only His presence, His word, His healing touch, deliver us from our hopeless state, and free us to follow and worship and serve.

In any infirmity of circumstance or soul, have I given in to complacency in weakness, or depression due to the seemingly impossible? Have I resigned myself to hopeless begging from everything and anyone that cannot heal? Perhaps I exhaust myself exerting mustered-up efforts at making it, or depend on my self-crafted way out or betterment?

Would I instead listen for Jesus, and try to perceive His attention? Would I look beyond the palpable and present to Him who is good and does all things well? Recognizing my own helplessness and need for mercy is key to true and full healing. How willing am I to communicate my impotence and need for what He alone can do and give? (Psalm 119:68)

“Long my imprisoned spirit lay
Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;
Thine eye diffused a quick’ning ray,
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free;
I rose, went forth and followed Thee.” ~Charles Wesley (1738)

From what has God specifically delivered or healed me, and how am I praising Him for the mercy applied?

“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,
that saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
was blind, but now I see.” ~John Newton (1779)

Lord, meet my every desperation with Your sufficiency and power, to your praise.

“As it is written,

‘What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
    nor the heart of man imagined,
what God has prepared for those who love him’—

“these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.  For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.  Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.  And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.” “The Lord [will] come [and] bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God.” 1 Corinthians 2:9-13; 4:5

“Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7

“Hear in heaven your dwelling place and forgive and act and render to each whose heart you know, according to all his ways (for you, you only, know the hearts of all the children of mankind).” “The Lord searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought.” “Your Father who sees in secret.“ 1 Kings 8:39; 1 Chronicles 28:9; Matthew 6:4,6

God fashioned the heart and mind of man to be contained, wholly under personal control, privately held and unable to be known except by His Spirit. We might think we know others well, but no one can read another’s mind or completely understand the ways of the heart. A blessedness in knowing the omniscient God is being known by Him, and loved. All now hidden will one day be revealed for His scrutiny and reward.

So what do we do with our hidden person? When was the last time we took a breath from busyness and contemplated how we have ordered (or disordered) our inner life? How satisfied are we with the places our thoughts meander, and how we process external stimuli? Are there pet sins we fool ourselves into thinking we’ve kept hidden? Do we ignore the warnings and commands the Lord issues, saying we’ll get right or clean up later? How regularly do we invite the Lord to search our heart and identify what needs cleansing and correcting? How will we tend to the unseen to keep pure and ready for God’s just eye? (Psalm 51:1-4; 139:23-24)

And how often do we marvel at the infinite and infinitely great God? When have we sought His holy infusion of our affections, outlook, and wonder? What will we set aside, turn off, or put down to imagine and seek what God has prepared for us in love? (Psalm 63:6-7)

Lord, I welcome Your refining Spirit to deal with anything hidden that dishonors You, to your righteous specifications, and Your inspiring Spirit to lift my adoration and hope, for Your honor and glory.

“Job answered and said:

“‘Today also my complaint is bitter;
    my hand is heavy on account of my groaning.
Oh, that I knew where I might find him,
    that I might come even to his seat!
I would lay my case before him…
I would know what he would answer me…
he would pay attention to me…

“’Behold, I go forward, but he is not there,
    and backward, but I do not perceive him;
on the left hand when he is working, I do not behold him;
    he turns to the right hand, but I do not see him.
But he knows the way that I take;
    when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.
My foot has held fast to his steps;
    I have kept his way and have not turned aside.
I have not departed from the commandment of his lips;
    I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my portion of food.
But he is unchangeable, and who can turn him back?
    What he desires, that he does.
For he will complete what he appoints for me,
    and many such things are in his mind.
Therefore I am terrified at his presence;
    when I consider, I am in dread of him.
God has made my heart faint;
    the Almighty has terrified me;
yet I am not silenced because of the darkness,
    nor because thick darkness covers my face.'” Job 23:1-6,8-17

“I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” Philippians 1:6

Job’s emotional and physical turmoil, his agonies and loneliness, were held steady by absolute confidence in his Lord. Bitter complaint and groaning met the One who heard and answered. He knew God knew and was redeeming his hardship, that one day his testing would be completed. In darkness and silence and pain and dread, his unchanging Sovereign was working and would fulfill His plans.

There are unavoidable todays that grate and hurt and cause confusion. The heavy hand of sorrow, the fainting heart, loom and choke. There are seasons of a silent heaven, no answers or relief, of wondering whether God sees or cares. We say we trust His working, yet see no end in sight and lose heart. When we get weary, longing for resolution, our souls might cry for the Lord to finish His appointment for us. Indeed, we can trust that always, in His perfect way and time, He will. (Deuteronomy 28:23; Psalm 13:1-2; Habakkuk 1:2; Revelation 6:10)

Is this our hope? Can we take joy in the dawning day, no matter how frigid or silent? Is God our champion, and His sovereign and good arrangement of all things a fortress against life’s storm? We see now in a mirror dimly, but one day we shall see God’s completed redemption. Do we find substantial balm in this truth? Would we ask God for patience in expectation? Our confidence that this life is one large appointment preparing us for heaven can keep us steady no matter our circumstances. (1 Corinthians 13:9-12)

Lord, keep me faithful in my doing and testing, trusting Your ways, means, and glorious ends.