The One Who Provides

I am thankful the Lord has shown me more and more of who He is over the last months. I am thankful that He is teaching me that He is Jehovah-Jireh. He is teaching me that in all things I can trust Him to provide my every need. He made provision for my salvation and if He is capable of that great provision than He is able to see to all my other needs...physical, emotional, spiritual. He knows what I need more than I even know. He knows what I need when I'm all alone. He knows how to provide for me in every situation. I do not need to fear what the future holds....it reminds me of the verse in I John..

"There is no fear in love but perfect love casts out fear..."

I John 4:18

...I have experienced the greatest love possible through my Savior. This perfect Love casts out fear. This Love can take away all my fears of what the future holds. Fear of being lonely. Fear of failure. Fear of not being cared for. Fear of being single forever and ever.. :) Fear.

Fear can be so debilitating. I don't want fear to keep me from being productive for the Lord and His work. I don't want to look back over the years and have regrets, knowing that I allowed unfounded fears to paralyze me.

And so I rest in knowing that I serve a God who cares about the big things (like my salvation!) and the little things (like flowers for my birthday). I can put aside my fear of the unknown, knowing He holds it all in His hands! He cares for me. He loves me. He is Jehovah-Jireh, the One who will provide.

Is it really an "Accident"??

Yesterday, as I was hurriedly leaving work, my car personally got to know the concrete support pillar in the parking garage. I heard the crunch, felt the jolt of the car, and was instantly horrified that I could be that stupid! How could I back right into the very large pillar!? How did I not see it? And, why are there accidents like this that just seem to be inconvenient, frustrating, and, to say the least, costly?

As I was driving to the auto shop with my stearing wheel very off centered, I began to think about accidents and was gently reminded of the devotional I had read just that morning by Elisabeth Elliot:

All Things Serve Thee

During my husband Addison's terminal illness, everything in our lives was changing. The cancer had spread with a speed which startled the doctors. I found during those hard days and nights strength in the ringing words of the liturgy, proclaimed aloud as the congregation knelt: "Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ will come again." I could hold onto those immutable facts.

The psalmist found the same strength in the Lord's infrangible decrees: "This day, as ever,Thy decrees stand fast: for all things serve Thee" (Ps 119:91 NEB). The Lord is not subject to vicissitudes, exigencies, and contingencies." Accidents" are, in fact, subject to the Lord of the universe, the blessed Controller of all things."

Thy promise endures for all time, stable as the earth which Thou
hast fixed" (Ps 119:90 NEB).

He "fixes," that is, He sets in place, the whole earth. Surely He can fix
and establish my heart. Every "happening" serves Him. **

**by Elisabeth Elliot**

Though I am certainly not facing anything comparable to the terminal illness that she was facing, I can rest in knowing that my God is a Sovereign God and does not allow anything to cross my path without His knowledge and without a purpose. I know that my God allows certain circumstances to come into my life to prune, mold and change me, that my character might become more and more like that of my Savior's.

"In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith...though it be tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and
glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love."
I Peter 1: 6-8a

I am comforted and reassured to know that the circumstances I face that appear to be less than ideal to my eyes really do serve a purpose. The purpose is that I might seek out the Lord, the ultimate Provider and Protector, to be the fulfillment of my every need and desire. The purpose is that I might be drawn into a deeper love and greater intimacy with my dear Savior.

God's Sovereignty

As I've been thinking about what it means to trust the Lord, I've also been thinking on the sovereignty of God. I recently came across the following definition of God's sovereignty:

It means God is always in control; it does not mean that He dictates; it means that in spite of everything that happens He is STILL in control and His will still prevails.

One of my favorite books, Fine China is For Single Women Too by Lydia Brownback, carries the theme of God's sovereignty throughout it's pages. This book reinforces the idea that trusting the Lord in all His sovereignty provides safety. It reminds me that we are to look beyond today and view our lives in light of eternity. It reminds me that in spite of my own shortcomings that the Lord's will prevails.

Brownback discusses finding contentment and joy living exactly where God places us at any given time. She discusses Joshua dispersing the land to the various tribes and how there wasn't equal division of the land; the Levites didn't even get any land to call their own. She quotes Dean Ulrich in regards to this passage:

God will sovereignly direct your steps and put you in the place of service that He wants--however great or small. He'll take care of the opportunities for advancement, and He'll see to it that the things about which we worry so much will turn out well. For now, though, He's more interested in the fact that you faithfully follow Him in the place where He has you. In the future, He'll continue to draw and redraw the boundary lines the way that He wants, but He wants you to be faithful in the boundary lines that He has drawn now.
We tend to eye up our neighbor's "property"--whether it be tangible possessions or skills, talents, achievements, friends, or looks. The next time you are tempted to eye up your neighbor's property, think of these land surveys. They were "distributed by lot in Shiloh before the Lord at the doorway of the tent of meeting" (Josh. 19:51). Remember that God has drawn your boundary lines. Given your eternal hope--the fact that your hope in Christ transcends this life--you can say that your boundaries are pleasant.

So, whether you are living within the boundaries of motherhood, marriage, singleness--whatever the boundaries, God has drawn around each one of us the lines in which we are to live. And it is while living within these boundaries, while trusting God's sovereignty, that we are to faithfully follow Him. In this is true contentment.

Simply Trusting

Forgive me for such a lengthy post but the topic of trusting has been weighing heavily on my heart. In our daily conversations we often speak of trusting the Lord. Whether it is reminding someone to trust the Lord during a difficult time or reminding ourselves to trust the Lord with the day to day details, it seems that this is a common phrase we use. But, what does it really mean to trust the Lord? I've been doing some reading on trusting and here are some common themes that are thread through scripture when it speaks of trust.

• First of all, in whom do we put our trust? Our trust is to be placed into those whose character has been established to be worthy of trust. We know that the Lord and His character have been tried and proven over time. We know that those who have gone before us have experienced the faithfulness of our God. He sent His one and only Son to die on the cross for our sins. His love is beyond measure and has been exemplified throughout time. Our God and Savior is worthy of our trust.

"And those who know Your name
will put their trust in You;
For you, Lord have not
forsaken those who seek You."
Psalm 9:10

"Our fathers trusted in You;
They trusted in You and You delievered them.
They cried to You, and were delivered;
They trusted in You, and were not ashamed."
Psalm 22:4-5

• Those who put their trust in the Lord are not ashamed. To be ashamed is to be disappointed in; to be ashamed is to be confused; to be ashamed is to have a feeling of fear that prevents us from doing something, from accomplishing that which the Lord has clearly set before us. When we do not trust the Lord, we are allowing our fears to choose our paths instead of trusting the Lord who "makes my way perfect" (Psalm 18:32).

"To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
O my God, I trust in You;
Let me not be ashamed."
Psalm 25:2

"Do not fret...trust in the Lord
and do good...delight yourself also
in the Lord...commit your way
to the Lord, trust also in Him."
Psalm 37:1,3,4,5

"In God I have put my trust;
I will not be afraid.
What can man do to me?"
Psalm 56: 11

• There is vulnerability associated with trusting someone, and that is no different with the Lord. To be vulnerable is to be "unprotected against attack; susceptible to criticism; capable of being wounded or hurt." None of those things sound particularly inviting to me and yet to truly trust someone and reap the blessings associated with that trust, we must be open to allowing ourselves to be vulnerable. To be vulnerable, we must set aside our pride and humble ourselves so that the ones we trust see us for who we really are, faults and all. It is when we are vulnerable that we open ourselves up to wise instruction by those we trust. With the Lord, I think our vulnerability allows Him to search our hearts and weed out the unlovely things in our lives, that we might be made more holy.

"I have also trusted in the Lord;
I shall not slip.
Examine me, O Lord, and prove me;
Try my mind and my heart."
Psalm 26: 1-2

"Trust in Him at all times, you people;
Pour out your heart before Him."
Psalm 62:8

"Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me, and know my anxieties;
And see if there is any wicked way in me,
And lead me in the way everlasting."
Psalm 139:23-24

• There is great blessing associated with trusting the Lord. We find shelter and refuge, safety and protection. We find guidance for our steps and preparation for our paths. We find great rejoicing, fulfillment and satisfaction, and mercies from the Lord that will endure forever. These are just a few of the blessings we partake in as children of God when we choose to trust our Lord. And, that is exactly what trust requires...it is something we choose. It is a daily, hourly, moment by moment decision we must make and as we trust in the Lord, we fall under His protection and receive many blessings in the process.

"Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!
There is no want to those who fear Him."
Psalm 34:8-9

"For my soul trusts in You;
And in the shadow of Your wings
I will make my refuge..."
Psalm 57:1

"For our heart shall rejoice in Him,
Because we have trusted in His holy name."
Psalm 33:21

"As for God, His way is perfect;
The word of the Lord is proven;
He is a shield to all who trust in Him."
Psalm 18:30

"Therefore the children of men put their trust
under the shadow of Your wings.
They are abundantly satisfied
with the fullness of Your house."
Psalm 36:7-8

Why trust? We trust because it declares the works and glory of the Lord. We trust in the Lord because this is true happiness.

"But it is good for me to draw near to God;
I have put my trust in the Lord God,
That I may declare all Your works."
Psalm 73:28

"...And whoever trusts in the Lord,
happy is he."
Proverbs 16:20b

To trust is to relinquish control to another. To trust is to not be ashamed. To trust is to be humble. To trust is to fear the Lord. To trust is to realize that the Lord always knows best. To trust is to find blessing and joy.

"For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
The Lord will give grace and glory;
No good thing will He withhold
from those who walk uprightly.

O Lord of hosts,
Blessed is the man who trusts in You."
Psalm 84:11-12