Finding Meaning and Purpose: Blog 2
How do the events and circumstances of our lives relate to God and His movement within?
Oswald Chambers in his December 18 “Test of Faithfulness” gives us some practical and valuable insights! All quotations are from this powerful devotional. Images generated using Night Cafe studio and inserted Canva Pro stock images.
Are the events of our lives random? Do you recognize the “hands” of God upon your daily life? The testimony of Scripture reminds us that God is always at work moving and shaping us into being more Christlike. Things don’t just happen randomly!
The challenge comes when we don’t understand and can’t perceive what’s going on in our lives. Yet, we can trust and depend on God to finish the work that He has begun in us! Philippians 1:6 . This is especially important when we are facing times of brokenness and disappointment. Quick explanation of Philippians 1:6:
https://www.gotquestions.org/He-who-began-a-good-work-in-you.html
God brings or allows failures, trials, and disappointment(s) into our lives to cause us to seek Him first. I use the terms “brings or allows” because as humans, we don’t fully comprehend the bigger picture nor can we completely understand an Infinite God. Even in my own life, I don’t understand what God brings about or necessarily what He allows. I’ve learned to be discerning and cautious when presuming to understand God’s Hidden Ways. Yet, we can trust even what we don’t understand because we know that God is Good! Romans chapter 8 is a good read for this topic!
Rendered image that imagines Jesus taking a moment of solitude to communion with Our Heavenly Father.
First Love
Jesus warns the church of Ephesus in Revelation 2:4 about losing their “first love.” Got questions explains this “first love”: emphasis mine
“The first love which characterized the Ephesians was the zeal and ardor with which they embraced their salvation as they realized they loved Christ because He first loved them (1 John 4:19) and that it was, in fact, His love for them that had made them “alive together with Christ.” So overwhelmed were they by the joy that came from understanding their former state—dead in trespasses and sins—and their new life in Christ, that they exhibited the fruit of that joy (Ephesians 2:1-5). Because of God’s great love for the Ephesians, they were “made alive in Christ” and that new life was exhibited in the passion of gratitude. That passion for the Savior spilled over onto one another and out to those in the culture they inhabited, corrupt as it was.”
Friends helping each other to ascend the rocky steps of a mountain trail.
Speaking Truth & Love
Our first love is the love Christ gives us for God and each other. We should be zealous for the truth, but that zeal should be tempered so that we are always “speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ” (Ephesians 4:15).
https://www.gotquestions.org/left-first-love.html
How easy and quick it is to love our personal ideas, comfort, earthly treasures, and dreams more than our Savior and our neighbors! It is truly an act of mercy when our disappointments and failures turn our eyes heavenward! Do we seek to be more like Him or to live in for material gain?
Do we speak truth with love into other lives? Or are we seeking to “win” arguments and fight culture wars? Consider how Jesus interacts with people in the Gospels. If we follow Christ, then shouldn’t our actions, attitudes, and interactions with others mirror His?
Insight 1: We must believe God is in Control and Be Loyal to Him first!
“It is only a faithful person who truly believes that God sovereignly controls his circumstances. We take our circumstances for granted, saying God is in control, but not really believing it. We act as if the things that happen were completely controlled by people. To be faithful in every circumstance means that we have only one loyalty, or object of our faith— the Lord Jesus Christ.” Chambers
Our ultimate loyalty is to Christ first. We would be wise to consider what God might be working to bring about in us! We need to view our lives through faith knowing that God has a plan and is at work! Are we placing anyone or anything ahead of Him?
Insight 2: Events test our faithfulness
“God may cause our circumstances to suddenly fall apart, which may bring the realization of our unfaithfulness to Him for not recognizing that He had ordained the situation. We never saw what He was trying to accomplish, and that exact event will never be repeated in our life. This is where the test of our faithfulness comes.” Chambers
God’s Word particularly in the Old Testament books of Ruth and Esther reveal that God works through history. The term ordain means to “set aside something for a specific use.” This means specifically that God has a plan and a way to accomplish the plan. God works behind the scenes through tragic deaths, famine, and heart-ache (Ruth) to bring about King David and later Jesus. God works through Esther to save her people. Daniel, Isaiah, and Jeremiah also teaches that God works through foreign nations, national tragedies(invasions, military defeats, etc) to accomplish His purposes. The Christmas Account in Luke chapter two reveals how God uses a Roman census to fulfill prophecy! God works through the “normal” and “ordinary” lives of individuals and nations to accomplish His plans.
I write this to encourage you: specifically stating that you don’t have to have a complete understanding of the events and what each particular event might mean. This is where faith comes into play! We choose to trust God even when we can’t understand. We demonstrate faithfulness when we trust and reach out to God! We continue to trust and seek even when things are uncertain and perplexing.
Understanding that God is in charge means that we trust Him. The walk of faith is one that involves belief and resting in His presence. Faith involves patience, courage, hope, and other virtues practiced daily!
Insight 3: The Ultimate Goal of Faithfulness
“The goal of faithfulness is not that we will do work for God, but that He will be free to do His work through us. God calls us to His service and places tremendous responsibilities on us. He expects no complaining on our part and offers no explanation on His part. God wants to use us as He used His own Son.”
The end game is for us to become like Jesus and for God to work in our lives just as His Son! God’s plan is bigger than our dreams, hopes, and shattered expectations for a comfortable life! God is showing mercy when He wakes us up from our soul slumber and selfish ways.
We would be wise to pray for God to give us dreams of His plans! Holy Spirit and God’s Word will mold and shape us into the wonderful works of art that please Him most!
Canva Pro Stock Image
Words of Grace & Hope 