What a verse! So few words, yet so much wisdom and power! And, O, how short I fall in fulfilling Paul's command, but by the grace of God, might we all live out these 10 words. It can sometimes take so little, just some inconvenience or unmet expectation or disappointment, and we suddenly lose our joy, respond with irritation, become preoccupied with anxiety, be overcome by discouragement, or fall back into a bad habit we thought we had renounced. In nearly every instance where this happens to me, I can trace it back to a period of rushing about with my busy schedule and failing to really spend time alone with the Lord, allowing Him to transform and renew my mind. It's incredible how quickly we can lose our perspective when our focus is upon ourselves and our activities rather than the Lord and His agenda for our day.
I could spend months meditating upon this verse (and I plan to--since I need to so badly!), but just a quick thought or two. How do we remain "patient in affliction" when we often stumble at even minor annoyances or struggles? We have to be "joyful in hope" and "faithful in prayer!" If my hope is in my accomplishments, my children's successes, my appearance, my pleasures, my good works...if it is in anything that begins with "my" then I am in trouble because none of those things will ever provide lasting joy. Our hope, our joy is in Christ and His faithfulness, His sufficiency, His goodness, His grace, His love, His infinite provision for any and everything that we'll ever face. When I recognize that I am a great sinner but the Lord Jesus is an infinitely greater Savior then my hope is in the right place--and it is a place of abundant joy!
And faithful in prayer--well, how much time do we spend worrying or plotting rather than praying? The power comes from prayer--not from trying harder or working longer. Not from sleepless nights or frenzied days. No, power comes from faithful prayer. Many years ago on a cold winter morning, a group of college students decided they wanted to hear the great Charles Spurgeon preach at his church, The London Tabernacle. As they entered the church, an older man approached them and asked if they wanted to see the heating plant. Though this did not interest them in the least, they did not want to offend the man and so followed him down the stairs to the basement of the church. Their guide opened the door and inside the students saw 700 people on their knees praying for the service that would be occurring on the floor above them. The older man quietly shut the door and whispered, "This is our heating plant." That guide introduced himself and told them, "This is the secret of the ministry of the Tabernacle." The man's name was Charles Hayden Spurgeon. No one in that service knew of those praying in the basement below them, but what power resulted from that faithful prayer! No one else may ever know of our faithful prayer, but God knows and responds, and we will deeply feel the supernatural difference.
I have several friends that I see living out the truth of this verse. They are facing hard, at times heart breaking, challenges in their lives, yet I see them joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer. What a powerful witness they are to a world so often devoid of hope, joy, and patience! In their own quiet way, they are loudly, yet without words, proclaiming the truth of the Gospel. How I thank the Lord for their testimony--though if you asked them, they probably have no inking of their impact upon me and, I'm sure, many others. Their courage and faith in the midst of affliction encourages and inspires others as they face their own battles.
I couldn't help but think of one of the most desperate times in World War II. Hitler's mighty war machine had stormed across France, leaving destruction and defeat and despair in it's wake. Thousands of British and French troops were dug in along the coast of northern France in a last ditch effort to hold off the German forces. But now, trapped on the beaches of Dunkirk and facing imminent obliteration by the Nazis, the trapped British soldiers broadcast a brief 3 word message across the channel: "But if not."
This was not some kind of code. Rather, they were broadcasting a Biblical reference to Daniel 3:16-18. I bet you remember the story: King Nebuchadnezzar had ordered everyone in his kingdom to bow down to the golden statue or be thrown into the fiery furnace. Everyone bowed down, except 3 young Jewish exiles: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. In one of the most stirring passages in Scripture, they tell the most powerful man in the world at the time (as they faced imminent incineration) that "our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up." Dan. 3:17-18
Now that is faith! That is joyful hope in the invisible God even in the midst of the very visible choking smoke and flames. If God delivered them, they would trust Him, obey Him and worship Him. "But if not" their response would be the same--trust, obedience, and worship of the One True God. Their hope was founded not upon the changing circumstances but upon the Changeless Sovereign Lord.
Likewise, those British soldiers sent a message of courage to their beleaguered nation that even if they were not rescued from the hands of the Nazi enemy, they would continue to trust God and remain loyal and courageous to the bitter end. They would never bow down to the Nazis. (and if you are not familiar with the story of the miraculous deliverance of the Allied troops from Dunkirk--well, it's worth looking up!! Incredible! Their seemingly impossible evacuation and salvation from certain annihilation literally saved the nation of Great Britain from defeat by the Nazis )
"But if not"--even if my child never recovers or my loved one dies. Even if I lose my job and my home. Even if that addiction is not overcome or that relationship is not reconciled. Even if the worst happens, God is still faithful and worthy of my trust, my obedience, and my worship. No matter what "but if not" you are facing, choose today to be "joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer" and watch what the Almighty will do. And know that you are wordlessly testifying to a watching world of the greatness and power of your God. To Him be the glory.
No comments:
Post a Comment