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Strengthening our Faith, When God seems Distant

Our Highest Joy (Mustering Our Faith)

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Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand (Isaiah 41:10 NASB)

It doesn’t take a pandemic and a nation marred in disunity to render us faint at heart. Life can be discouraging even without that stuff.

 And when we get a full dose and need to pause to catch our breath, life keeps on coming at us. To remain courageous, we must muster our faith.

Muster – to assemble troops as for a battle, to gather, to summon, to rouse

On a regular basis, we have repeated opportunities to gather and summon our faith. Like workouts in the gym, rousing our trust, when things aren’t smooth, builds muscle memory and strengthens our faith.

How do we muster our faith when we feel weak and God seems distant? Following are a few musts.

We Must Remember God’s Sovereignty

God is always in control. His purposes can’t be thwarted. He’s able to work all things together for His greater purposes.[1] Even the very hard situations we face are no surprise to God. In His omnipotence, the sinful choices by men, the state of this fallen world and the schemes of the enemy can not change what God is doing.

Joseph told his brothers, “And as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.”[2]  

God used Jonah’s disobedience to illicit praise from the folks on the ship to Tarashish.[3]

The evil intent of the Jewish leaders to kill Jesus led to the salvation of all men.

God has entrusted us with each circumstance we’re in and desires us to trust Him and not our own understanding of our situations.[4]

We Must Orient Our Lives from God’s Greater Story

Paul tells believers that since we have been raised up with Christ, we’re to set our minds on things above, not on things of the earth.[5]

We need to see our lives from an eternal perspective, knowing God is at work for our greater good. He’s working all things for the purpose of conforming us into the image of Christ, not for us to experience a smooth ride.[6] It’s vital for us to understand this. If not, we can view God as a distant dictator, out to destroy our hopes and dreams.

We need to live now with the end in mind. Being more like Christ is what this life is about, not temporal happiness. For we died and our life is now hidden in Christ.[7]

We Must Realize Being with God is Our Highest Joy

The Bible has an overarching theme, woven into the fabric from Genesis to Revelation. Us being with God. We were created for fellowship with Him.

David, wrote that even in the shadow of death, he would not be afraid because He knew God was with him.[8] He also wrote that in God’s presence, joy is full.[9]

 After crying out to God concerning the unfairness of life, Asaph concluded that God’s nearness was his good, not his lot in life.[10]

From a Roman prison Paul repeatedly instructed us to be full of joy in the Lord. Not just when we feel like it, but at all times.[11]

We Must Remember God’s Love for us Never Fails

No matter how often we fall short in actions and faith, God’s love for us never fails, it’s everlasting.[12] His lovingkindness never ceases. His mercies are new every morning.[13]

 As believers, we are His children, a fact established before the world began.[14] Nothing can separate us from His great love.[15] His love for us can be described as deeper and wider and longer than an ocean and higher than the heavens. It surpasses our ability to comprehend.[16]

Prayer

Lord, we come to You now. You know the place we’re in. You’re not surprised by any of it. You’re with us and have allowed it for our greater good. Help us not to doubt Your ways. May we draw near to You and walk in utter dependence upon You. We were never to face these things alone. We depend upon Your strength in our weakness. Amen.

“And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”[17] The Apostle Paul

[1] Ephesians 1:9-12

[2] Genesis 50:20 (NASB)

[3] Jonah 1:14-16

[4] Proverbs 3:5-6

[5] Colossians 3:1-2

[6] Romans 8:28-29

[7] Colossians 3:3

[8] Psalm 23:4

[9] Psalm 16:11b

[10] Psalm 73, 73:28

[11] Philippians 3:1, 4:4

[12] Jeremiah 31:3

[13] Lamentations 3:22-23

[14] Ephesians 1:4-5

[15] Romans 8:35

[16] Ephesians 3:14-19

[17] 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

Previous posts in the series – Our Highest Joy:

Unmasking the Lie

Dealing with sadness and disappointment

Eternal Thanksgiving

Fueled by the Joy of Jesus

God with Us

Fixing Our Hope

Remaining Cheerful

Not My Will

.Joy in the Journey is about the gladness of God’s nearness in the midst of life’s adventures.

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 Novels by the Author:

Beyond Time

Hope Remains

Art by Glenn Coker, Exchanged Life

Death Row – A Good Friday Story

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A man squatted in a dingy prison cell, his features hidden by the deep shadows of his dark imprisonment. Only a thin plane of morning sunlight penetrated the darkness, revealing countless dust particles floating around rows of disheartened men. The man was seated, away from the light, staring motionless into the darkness.

On a hill outside the prison stood the place of execution, where condemned men were put to death. Today would be this man’s turn.

 In a way, death was a welcome ending to his pain. But more strongly the condemned man felt the fear of death’s mysteries. His soul, it seems, had died long ago, but the fear of physical death consumed him.

As he waited in the cruel anticipation of a violent death, his mind raced across the span of his life. What would have made a difference? What could have changed his inclinations towards evil? The answers to these questions could only be tossed out into his universe of despair. Like always, he knew no answers would come. There was no hope.

Slowly and ever more increasingly, the  man became aware of the sounds of a great number of voices and footsteps. There were shouts and roars, but none of the words could be recognized. The noise increased and erupted past him like a huge ocean wave. An enormous mass of shouting people had passed just outside his cell and were proceeding toward execution hill. 

The time was near. He couldn’t remember so great a crowd ever gathered to witness a death before.

Just then the outside door of the prison was slammed open hard against the wall. Keys jiggled and the main security door was unlocked. Prison guards streamed towards his cell. The hopeless man trembled and recoiled in fear. Death was pouncing upon him.

The guards unlocked his cell and converged upon him like as many wild tigers. They seized him, and drug him out into the morning sun outside the prison. When they had cleared the outside door, he was slammed face down hard on the ground, sand and dirt exploding into his eyes, nose and mouth. 

The impact dazed him. In a semi conscious state, he waited for the first sting of the lashing whip.

After awhile, he slowly opened his eyes, spitting dirt from his mouth. He tilted his head slowly, expecting his flesh to be ripped open with a whip at any moment. But he was alone. Turning his head, he could see the guards joining the crowds flowing toward execution hill. He was left unattended on the ground.

Slowly at first, but with increasing urgency, the freed man got up and made his way into a stable filled with livestock, across the block from the prison. Looking around as he fled, he expected his fantasy to end at any moment. 

Within the safety of the dwelling, he flung himself upon the straw and sobbed.

After awhile, the sounds from execution hill softened and the man’s curiosity moved him out of his safe zone. He left the building and circled around the back of the mountain of murder, called the “place of the skull”.

He came up upon the crowd and mixed himself safely among the masses. With much effort, he fought his way through until he could see what the commotion was all about.

Three men hung dying on crosses, pain etched across their faces. Two of the men he knew from his time in prison, but he didn’t recognize the man in the middle. This man seemed much weaker and closer to death than the others.

As he stood watching, he noticed the blood gushing down the wood of the middle tree.  He followed the trail of blood up to the man’s face. Though he was among a mass of people, the man on the middle cross was looking directly at him.  His  eyes were not desperate and frantic, but peaceful and loving.

After a few moments the freed man turned and walked away. As he fought his way back through the crowd, he overheard someone asking about the man on the middle cross, “Why are they killing him? What has he done wrong?”

“He’s done nothing wrong,” the answer came. “He’s dying in place of a man set free.”

Luke 23:19-20  (MSG)  At that, the crowd went wild: “Kill him! Give us Barabbas!” (Barabbas had been thrown in prison for starting a riot in the city and for murder.) Pilate still wanted to let Jesus go, and so spoke out again.

2 Corinthians 5:21 (NASB) He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.