O LORD, you have
searched me and known me!
You know when I
sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar.
You search out
my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways.
You hem me in,
behind and before, and lay your hand upon me.
Such
knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it. Psalm
139:1-6
Lord, there are so many
escalating issues in the world and I’m tempted toward two ways of thinking by
them.
The
world has always been troubled; this is nothing more than a repetition of sad
conditions. I will patiently wait for the cycle to reset itself.
Or
There is no hope so why not just
hide from it all, curl up in my cave and watch a
good movie?
good movie?
You have influenced me
enough my God, to known that neither response is appropriate. I am to take a stand, I am to speak out, I am
to serve the needy and my family. I am to prepare for ever increasing chaos
beyond what we have ever known. All these things You have instructed.
But Lord, where is my
hope? Sometimes I’m just tempted to say, “Let it all be finished. Come Lord
Jesus and end this mess!”
You on the other hand,
have a plan that doesn’t include following my plan. Instead You tell me to be
steadfast and courageous. And you give me an interesting gift to help me not
freeze in my tracks from frustration and fear: The gift of comfort.
I don’t know what
comfort looks like, I can’t touch it. I don’t know if my comfort somehow helps
others and I can’t experience their comfort, nor can I give others my comfort.
It is Yours to give, Yours to remove; mine to accept or reject…just as with all
Your gifts.
There are only a few
ways I can receive comfort. Some things that I perceive as comfort items indirectly inspire comfort. Some of those things,
special kinds of food for example, are superficial and temporary. Other comfort
items inspire me more deeply and have much longer, even eternal, effects on me.
One of the greatest of these is, Your Word—food of another sort. With this food
to strengthen me, I’m able to see through the turmoil. It is true comfort food
that You have laid out on the table You have prepared before me. Just a few
bites of the incredible feast You offer includes:
Jeremiah
33:3
Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things
that you have not known.
Psalm_20:1 May the LORD answer you in the day of
trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob protect you!
Psalm 23: ALL of it.
Matthew_11:28 Come to me, all who
labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
John_14:6 Jesus said to him, "I
am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except
through me.
Revelatio
22:7
"And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one
who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book."
Revelatio
22:20 He who testifies to these things says, "Surely I am coming soon." Amen. Come, Lord
Jesus!
…My cup runs over, Lord.
I can’t take It all in. Your instruction of love can be so overwhelming that it
would be easy to ignore, looking for less convicting ways to go about my life.
Yet I’m equally tempted
to rest in my comfortable bed and do nothing but munch on Your comfort food.
Why not? Let the rest of the world struggle with its problems. What a life that
would be.
And You give me grace
when I veer toward either extreme; the true and main course being to share the
feast, breaking bread with my immediate community and beyond. There is too much
manna for me, You want me to invite others to join in, even if they don’t
appear to be hungry; even if they claim it is not the kind of food they are
accustomed to.
And there lies the
hope. It’s not my hope, it’s not the world’s hope, it is Your hope with which
You offer comfort to all of us.
Comforter, I am so very
thankful for Your hope and comfort. Help me to appreciate both the times of rest
You provide and the time for action that You require of me.
In Your hope, comfort and strength I pray,
Mark C.
Happy Thanksgiving to all
