I stood at the edge of a chasm yesterday. A leap of faith was necessary. Required. I knew what it looked like. It looked like...if I jumped, I would plummet to my doom. And to Your doom also, Lord. The whole situation seemed doomed.
I'm sorry that I found myself on this dangerous spiritual ledge, Lord. Yes, I knew what it looked like.
I also know what it felt like: death. The whole thing seemed so far-from-God and out-of-His-alignment that there was a feeling of spiritual-deadness and personal shame. I was despairing as if negative (and non-God-honoring) outcomes were expected.
Yes, I knew what it looked and felt and seemed like.
But...do we know, do we believe, will we trust God to know what faith looks like today? Faith defies what things "look" like and faith certainly defies our feelings.
Do we know what faith looks like?
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. ~Hebrews 11:1
The (embarrassing) faith-problem was that I had almost no confidence. I had lost it in myself, and then in despair over my shortcomings, I had neglected to hope for and have confidence in God.
The situation was our school district commissioning/blessing/baccalaureate service for graduates, of which our son was one. The organization of the ceremony had lacked in organization and leadership, and I owned much of that guilt, whether or not it was mine to bear.
But someone had stepped in and stepped up, and it was a church and leader of watered-down Biblical doctrine. The idea of gathering in a church and under leadership that counterfeits the Bible had been making me spiritually and emotionally sick as the event approached.
I stood on the cusp of an uncomfortable cliff. Jump? And attend the service?
Or abstain, on the basis of principle and (Biblical) purity? (And refrain from reflecting God's light.)
Our family stood at the edge of a chasm. A chasm we would have (much) rather backed right away from.
We knew what it looked like (a ugly situation). We knew what it felt like (heaviness and compromise).
But we also knew what faith looks like and feels like.
This was not our ceremony. By the nature and tradition of it: it was God's.
In the days leading up to it (as I struggled), the Lord reminded me through Scripture a number of times that He was in control for the sake of His glory.
But I acted for My name’s sake, that it should not be profaned before the Gentiles among whom they were, in whose sight I had made Myself known to them... ~Ezekiel 20:9
God would do this. God would go before us. And God would maintain the honor of His holy name for His name's sake...because God is holy, and He is sovereign.
As I prayed the morning of the ceremony, I felt a boldness and an excitement rise up in my spirit and I journaled it:
Go before us, Lord.
Shut the lion's mouth today, Father.
Protect Your Name for YOUR name's sake, Lord.
I know You will.
And then I read the Bible and God used His Word to be my words. Psalm 108 spoke:
(1) My heart is confident in you, O God; no wonder I can sing your praises with all my heart!
(2) Wake up, lyre and harp! I will wake the dawn with my song.
(3) I will thank you, Lord, among all the people. I will sing your praises among the nations.
(4) For your unfailing love is higher than the heavens. Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
(5) Be exalted, O God, above the highest heavens. May your glory shine over all the earth.
(6) Now rescue your beloved people. Answer and save us by your power. (7) God has promised this by his holiness: “I will divide up Shechem with joy. I will measure out the valley of Succoth. (8) Gilead is mine, and Manasseh, too. Ephraim, my helmet, will produce my warriors, and Judah, my scepter, will produce my kings.
(9) But Moab, my washbasin, will become my servant, and I will wipe my feet on Edom and shout in triumph over Philistia.”
... (12) Oh, please help us against our enemies, for all human help is useless.
(13) With God’s help we will do mighty things, for he will trample down our foes. ~Psalm 108:1-9, 12-13
~~~
I felt a spiritual bridge over my chasm: it was God. It was His Word, and I have faith in Him and His Word.
We will stand today. We will be present today. We will jump across the chasm because God has already gone before us.
Psalm 108 gives us the confidence. Do I not trust God?
Daniel did. Daniel had faith and entered the den of lions. And God shut the mouths of the lions. He shut their mouths.
When he came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?”
(21) Daniel answered, “May the king live forever! (22) My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty.” ~Daniel 6:20-22
~~~
The church service was....lovely and powerful. And Scripturally sound, and God's presence was palpable.
The students that spoke were authentic and led by Christ. My husband and son both shared sermons and God was exalted.
Be exalted, O God, above the highest heavens. ~Psalm 108:5
Everything that the Lord had spoken to my heart earlier that morning came true. We could be confident.
My heart is confident in you, O God; no wonder I can sing your praises with all my heart! ~Psalm 108:1
He rescued us.
Now rescue your beloved people. Answer and save us by your power. ~Psalm 108:6
My human efforts had been useless, but with God’s help we will do mighty things, for he will trample down our foes. ~Psalm 108:12-13
Oh, please help us against our enemies, for all human help is useless.
(13) With God’s help we will do mighty things, for he will trample down our foes. ~Psalm 108:1-9, 12-13
God did trample down our foes. The pastor of false doctrine? She spoke almost nothing and left immediately after.
My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. ~Daniel 6:22
~~~
Forgive me, Lord, for not having more faith in You when I faced a chasm and stood on the edge. But THANK YOU, LORD, for reminding (and demonstrating) that faith is all that we need when there is an unknown or intimidating chasm before us.
Will we share God's truth and hope when things are difficult? Or will we cower in fear and doubt? Daniel stood at the edge of his chasm and Daniel believed and had faith in God's promises to him.
Daniel knew this, and we can trust God in our difficult/heavy/ugly situations too.
With God’s help we will do mighty things, for he will trample down our foes. ~Psalm 108:1-9, 12-13
sarah
https://sarahsundy04.blogspot.com
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