There have been times when I have actually looked up into the skies and wondered “is there a God up there looking down at me and doing nothing?” I have called out, “Lord, just give me a little breakthrough. I am not asking for much, just this tiny bit. Like the crumbs that fall off the table.” The silence can be very frustrating.
But it is especially in those moments that I have pulled my Bible close to me. Today, I am particularly drawn to this verse in the book of Isaiah.
“Lift up your eyes on high And see who has created these stars, The One who leads forth their host by number, He calls them all by name; Because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power, Not one of them is missing.” (Isaiah 40:26)
That is a good moment to step out and stare at the clouds and the sun, the trees, the shrubs and flowers, and the flowers, and humans and animals milling about. I try to put a value on each thing I see, and quickly give up – they are priceless. Then I remember Jesus describing Himself as “Mighty to save” and I know He is not a God who lies. So I ask myself again – do you doubt that He will change your situation? Is He able to save you from your present circumstances? O, I know that what I am staring at right now needs urgent attention. It is what the “arm of flesh” calls “a do-or-die” situation. That situation where you want God to burst open the skies and say, “here my child this is your answer!”
As I stare at the works of His hands and consider what He has done in my life in the past, He calms my fears and sheds His peace in my heart. I am looking at the text message on my phone that indicates I have but a few hours to remedy the situation. And yet my heart is not troubled. I am not agitated. Not the least. My attention is drawn to:
“He will not fail nor be discouraged, Till He has established justice in the earth” (Isaiah 42:4).
And I hear His voice asking me again, “Is anything too difficult for Me?
I recall what has been written in Scripture to encourage me. Noah had been in the ark for several days. He must have started getting worried that God had forgotten about him. But God remembered him, and the flood subsided. Sarah was well advanced in age and must have resigned herself to the fact that she would be forever childless. But God remembered her and gave her Isaac in His time. Leah must have thought she was the most unloved woman on earth. She was married to a man who did not love her but had eyes only for her sister, Rachel. But God remembered her, and it was through Leah that God gave us Jesus. So I ask myself again – is anything too difficult for Him?
So when you see me singing and praising God even amid mounting challenges, it is because I know the God I serve. I hold fast to His promises. I hear the Psalmist say,
“The Mighty One, God the LORD, Has spoken and called the earth From the rising of the sun to its going down” (Psalm 50:1)
“Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, The LORD mighty in battle” (Psalm 24:8).
I know the might of Jesus by the battles which He has fought, the victories which He has won over sin and death and hell, that is why I rejoice to see Him leading captivity captive in the majesty of His strength. That is why amid my circumstances I sing His praises! For He is the Lord of Lords, and the King of kings, He is mighty to save, and He shall save me from my situation. I don’t know how, or when but I know He would. Because He will never let the waters overflow or the fire scorch me. Amen!