The threat of rain . . .

 

Last night’s closing meeting and banquet of our local quilt guild was a blessing. Not all are Christians but the sense of human family was strong and lovely. Quilters are a generous people, thoughtful and kind to others. While the world has its pull on each of us, the desire to care for others is strong and many make quilts for “widows and orphans” and others who are in need.

Scripture speaks of our responsibility to love and care for others, but also of the difficulties and challenges we face. This often is my experience after a blessing like last night and should trials come. I need to remember a few things. One of them is this verse that was also in the first worship song I sang today:

I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me. (2 Timothy 1:12)

I’m struck by my weakness and inability to always do what I know I should, even what I want to do, yet God makes a divine promise to take care of me and of all His people. I might have concerns for them, especially for the prodigals and those who stray, yet Jesus said, “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.” (John 10:28)

In this He covers all times, circumstances, contingencies, events and possibilities. What if they are babes and their faith is weak? ‘They shall never perish!’ What if they are young and their passions are strong? ‘They shall never perish!’ What if they are old and their vision grows dim? ‘They shall never perish!’ What if they are tempted? ‘They shall never perish!’ ‘What if all hell breaks loose against them? ‘They shall never perish!’ What if they fall? ‘They shall never perish!’ What if they sin? ‘They shall never perish!’ What if they sin again? ‘They shall never perish!’ This promise takes in all His people. Not one will ever perish, no, not even one!

No, I must not let all threats put me into anxiety. He says we are secure, all of us and that no one can take us out of His care. We are preserved in the heart of our Savior’s eternal love and we are preserved in the hand of his omnipotent grace. What a blessed place to be! In that vein, one older devotional book publishes this poem:

“It isn’t raining rain for me, it’s raining daffodils;
In every dimpling drop I see wild flowers upon the hills.
A cloud of gray engulfs the day, and overwhelms the town;
It isn’t raining rain for me: it’s raining roses down.”

Even when life seems to be one huge storm with testings raining on me that seem beyond my power to endure, like disappointments, defeats, bereavements, suffering, and afflictions, they are not what I think. God is raining blessings.

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (James 1:2–4)

That pounding of rain is at work to bring “spiritual flowers of such fragrance and beauty as never before grew in that stormless, unchastised life of ours.” I see the rain, but I also need to see the flowers. It is not God’s purpose that I flunk any of these tests but that I see the coming beauty, such as a deeper and more tender compassion for others that will, no matter the storm, nourish in my soul.

That is, any trials that come, even after great blessings, are not afflictions but fodder to promote growth, the growth of tenderness, love, compassion, patience, and a thousand other flowers and fruits of the Holy Spirit that worldly prosperity and ease will never give to me.

PRAY: Jesus, I tend to want blessings to never end and You to remove the anxieties of life. Unlike most of the world thinks, I know I cannot control the rain. It comes, or not, at Your bidding and for Your purposes. We rejoice to see the literal storms that are putting out wildfires and washing the smoke out of our skies, but I also need to rejoice at the spiritual storms that hit — for they too have a great purpose. You are teaching me to trust You in them, but also to look forward in joy to what You will do with them. Steadfastness and patience are easier to imagine than they are to demonstrate, but You know what I need to become more like You.

PONDER: Today, think about the power of God to produce good things from ALL things, from the stuff that seems so wrong, so contrary to His goodness. He can use rain to make flowers grow and bloom, and He can use struggles and trials to make His glory known and to bring peace and joy to human hearts.

 

 

Convinced?

 

My dreams are often vivid enough that when I wake up it takes a few minutes to convince myself that they were just dreams. The veracity of a vivid experience goes a long way affecting the mind about what is true. However, the Word of God does not tell me to rely on experiences. While they can be helpful, they are not necessarily going to change my beliefs.

For example, Jesus told a story of a man who died and went to hell. He figured if someone went to his brothers from the dead, they would repent and not wind up “in this place of torment.” But the reply was, “If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.” (Luke 16:31) In other words, if a person refuses to hear what the Word of God says in the OT, even the resurrection in the NT will not convince them.

What does it take to be CONVINCED? Some people scoff at Scripture and the stories of Jesus. Others are totally convinced and have died rather than renounce their faith. How does God convince people?

First, a few NT verses show that being convinced is not the measure of truth. Paul said, “I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of Jesus of Nazareth” (Acts 26:9) yet he later met Jesus and his convictions changed.

His ministry and the results also show that being convinced or not does not change the issue in question. Something may be true or not, but neither are determined by whether it is believed or not. If someone told me my house was on fire, believing them or not does not determine the reality of what they are saying. If it is on fire, them my disbelief will not make their report untrue.

The current worldview of “what is true for you may not be true for me” does not hold water when applied to what God says is true. In Him, things are yes or no, but even then, people struggled to pin down truth. As Pilate asked Jesus, what is truth? Others had the same problem.

When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets. And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved. (Acts 28:23–24)

Truth is increasingly difficult to discern and find. In these days of pandemic reports and political issues, how can anyone be convinced of what is true and what is not? Yet faith is about being convinced. It starts with Abraham when God promised him a son and he and Sarah were past the age of having children. However:

No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. (Romans 4:20–21)

Being convinced means to be persuaded or sure of the truthfulness or validity of something. How could Abraham be certain? Was it because he knew the One who made the promise? He knew God’s power and faithfulness, His reliability? For many who are convinced of God’s truth, the basis is His track record. When He says He will do something, He does it. He keeps every promise and being like that, He convinces those who realize His trustworthiness. When Paul explained his commitment in the face of all he suffered, he said:

I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me. (2 Timothy 1:12)

The basis of being convinced is that God said it (not someone else) and God did it, just as He said.

If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. (1 John 5:9–14)

GAZE INTO HIS GLORY and be convinced! The more I read God’s Word and test it out in life, the more I am convinced that the truth is found in Him and in His Word. He meets all needs and makes sense of all messes. He also answers my prayers and keeps His promises. Convinced? Yes, totally.