This morning, I faced the task of getting Bo, my dog, to the vet’s. When I woke up early, I managed to have my quiet time…a much needed time of being still and knowing that God is God…
The Lord met me so tenderly and kindly in my place of such extreme need.
I began my time with my Thin Within workbook. I am on Day Five of Week 5. Immediately, I knew that it was no coincidence that I had this lesson today. I was greeted with this question:
“Is it tempting to revert back to the old way of eating…?” God used this question to really clarify what I know and have known all along…that way leads to death! Why would I want to “go there” for temporary pleasures given the long-term negative effects? It was good, given my tantrum about hot fudge yesterday, to be reminded of this.
Then, further down the lesson, this passage was one I looked up and spent time journaling about and praying over:
Hebrews 10:19-23 says
Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
God has granted me the privilege of having confidence to enter the Most Holy Place. This is astonishing. I can draw near to God because of what Christ has done. I can do this without doubting, but having full assurance. He will cleanse me. But the part that really struck me was this:
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
God clearly is calling me…it is clear. I have been professing hope since November…that God does work wonders through the biblical principles that Thin Within has brought to the forefront. He is calling me to hang on…in spite of the trials I face, the temptations to drown myself in hot fudge…to cling to him and the hope that I have been proclaiming. Why? Because HE who PROMISED is FAITHFUL. Not because of me…not because of MY testimony, but because of HIM. He IS FAITHFUL. I am to cling, hang on…to UNSWERVINGLY hold…because of HIS faithfulness.
Wow…
Then I turned to my Living Beyond Yourself (by Beth Moore) study. It was precious how God met me there, too. It was week 7, day 2 “Cords of Human Kindness.”
This lesson is a wonderful reminder of some of the character traits of God that I often forget. I was reminded of a variety of verses that speak of the warmth and love that God has for me, such as Zephaniah 3:17: “The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.” God used this to meet me where I was this morning…I could have allowed my thoughts to run away with me and panicked about taking Bo to the vet’s, but this verse and the prayers of friends were used by God to instill the “peace that surpasses all understanding.” It was amazing.
Beth speaks about these verses in Zephaniah: “The context which leads to this precious portrait of God’s tender heart and nurturing Spirit is the calming of a child’s fears by his father (see vs. 15-16). These verses beautifully illustrate that blessed moment in which God’s throne becomes a rocking chair and He pulls His fretting, fearful child into His arms and says, ‘It’s OK, I’m right here.’”
Isn’t that just precious how God met me this morning with this lesson? I was so touched!
Beth goes on to say, “Oh, beloved, do you know God as parent? Do you allow Him to nurture you? Do you take Him your fears and your fretting and allow Him to hold you in His arms and cover you with His love?”
My answer to these questions would have to be…well…erm…no, not like I could.
Another verse that I was reminded of was Hosea11: 3-4. “It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms but they did not realize it was I who healed them.”
He led them with cords of human kindness and ties of love it says in the passage.
Beth says, “Imagine God teaching His children to walk by gently stretching a cord between Himself and them, then tying the cords securely at each end so the children will not get lost. The cords were kindness—the tenderness of God’s heart—and the ties which bound them together were His love…the nurturing of God was their healing, whether or not they recognized it as such!”
Beth points out how readily we seem to relate to God’s sovereignty and severity rather than His tender mercies. But I must allow complete truth to envelop me…. I must allow Him to re-educate me about Who He is…that He is GOOD, KIND, NURTURING, LOVING…not just RIGHTEOUS, JUST, SOVEREIGN and so on. I *am* thankful he is those things…but he is also so tender.
This morning, how precious it was that He met me with that tenderness. Thank you, Lord.
