….is perfect.
It absolutely amazes me when the Lord reminds us that He knows and is a part of every aspect of our lives.
Our taking-it-easy Saturday was slow and uneventful until we left the hotel for some fresh air at South Mountain, Arizona and a romantic dinner at the Melting Pot. The cloud-less Arizona skies made the way for the bright afternoon sun…and an almost instant migraine.
I was able to push through while viewing the gorgeous landscapes and views of South Mountain and was even comforted by low-lighting at dinner. But the ride back to the hotel was when the migraine decided to descend and make me nauseated.
All this resulted in being in bed by 8 o’clock which in turn resulted in being wide awake come midnight. And what else do you do when you can’t sleep late at night? Well, of course, get caught up on Facebook!
This certainly was my demise…but also the Lord’s preparing for “bringing to light” what He was about to teach me.
As I read and re-read comments and articles, I could feel the nastiness of my flesh nature creep up. The jealous seeds that had taken root on other occasions were being watered and were attempting to sprout their ugly heads.
Only because I knew I was tired and not thinking my sharpest, did I choose not to write what was on my not “spirit-filled” mind. I, instead, chose to turn it into a positive, shut off the phone, and attempt to sleep.
Those fleshly thoughts stuck with me through the night and made their appearance in my conversation the next morning.
Thankfully this was all while we were on our way to San Tan Valley, Arizona where some friends from college had been led to plant a church. As we prepared for the morning worship service, I acknowledged my filthy heart before the Lord and in just a few moments, He acknowledged it right back to me.
You see, that morning, Pastor Grant Zevenbergen had been led to speak on Psalm 37:1-7.
1- Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.
2- For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.
3- Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.
4- Delight thyself also in the LORD: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
5- Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.
6- And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.
7- Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
As Pastor Grant focused on five key words from the passage, my heart was immediately rebuked and humbled.
First, I truly had been fretting and envying. It was brought to light that when I get jealous, I show my lack of faith. I show that I lack faith that the Lord is going to bless, in His time, for following His will and work in my life.
The thoughts that had crept into my mind the night before was what reward had I for doing “right”? It seemed that going against the grain and causing heartache drew much more attention, whether good or bad.
I had felt almost like that little kid in the classroom that would disobey and act out, simply to get the teacher to focus on them.
But that is where I truly needed to put my trust, in the loving, righteous Father. To have so much confidence in Him, that I would carelessly obey and follow Him. And, in human sense, why would we not follow One who has infinite knowledge and unwavering love for us?
Furthermore, I also need to delight in my Lord. I readily admit I have not been treating my relationship with God as a delicate, priceless treasure.
Then in perfect sense, the result of trusting and delighting, would be committing my ways to Him. Becoming absolutely consumed and wrapped up with my Lord by carelessly obeying Him and treasuring my relationship with Him would allow me then to rest and wait for His ways.
And that is exactly what my heart’s burden has been of late—a desire to just rest and wait.
The Bible tells us to rest under the shadow of the Almighty. As we drove to the top of South Mountain on Saturday, we could see almost the whole city of Phoenix. Pastor Grant reminded us that even though the tall buildings of Phoenix cast their large shadow, it makes no difference on a hot day unless we are close enough to be under their shadow.
I cannot find the ultimate rest in my Almighty I have been searching for unless I am walking close enough to Him to be under His shadow. But that rest will only come after not fretting, but trusting, delighting, and committing to my Lord.
