Breakthrough
1 John 4:18, 19There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. We love Him because He first loved us.
Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Psalm 27:13, 14
13 I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the LORD
In the land of the living.
14 Wait on the LORD;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD!
No matter what happens regarding my circumstances, I have experienced a major spiritual breakthrough in my life this week. And it was totally unexpected.
Besides deliberately spending time with the Lord just to be in His presence, I felt a strong urging to remove all secular influences for a time, including music, TV, and movies. I even had to tell my teenagers they could no longer listen to non-Christian music when they were with me in the car or in the house—not even “harmless oldies.”
This was really tough for me because I had a very legalistic, controlling, and religious husband who made life very difficult, and I didn’t want to become like him. My 16-year-old daughter in particular was extremely upset because she lives for music. I have only had her back with me for a couple of months, and she just can’t understand why I am being so strict all of the sudden. She was so angry that she barely spoke to me for several days. After being separated from her for over a year, that hurt me deeply. But the Lord had spoken to me through two different people that He wanted me to consecrate myself for a season to prepare me for ministry, and He took away my desire for everything but Bible teaching tapes and worship music just to confirm it. Yes, it has been tough, but the reward was incredible.
I have always had “trust” issues. Every man I have ever trusted, including my father, let me down. To my shame, I have even struggled to trust God, and there has always been a certain element of fear in my relationship with Him. Sure, He has gotten me through a lot of trials, but He sure let me go through a lot of suffering along the way! When I’m discouraged, Randy reminds me that my problems are just a “bad hair day” compared to the countless Christians who are being tortured and killed for their faith. I know he’s trying to distract me from myself, but the truth is, when I think about Christians suffering for their faith I feel that fear creeping up on me. Can I really trust God with my life?
Last week I got part of my answer from Randy. He thinks about persecuted Christians all the time, and he asked the Lord why He let Nero torture Christians by setting them on fire as living torches. He said he asked the Lord, “How could You let them suffer like that?” And he felt the Lord’s answer was, “How do you know they suffered?” When I think of Stephen being stoned to death for his faith in Acts 7, I have to admit he didn’t seem to be suffering.
The rest of my answer came just from spending time with the Lord, and praising Him constantly throughout the day. For the first time in my life, I really feel LOVED by God. Even though my circumstances haven’t changed yet, the fear is GONE. I feel complete trust and confidence in God for the first time in my life. Before, I walked by faith without the feelings. Having the feelings too is the most wonderful thing I have ever experienced. If you need to experience a greater trust in God, I hope you will “set yourself aside” for a season and get as close to Him as you can. The greatest love—the only perfect love--of your life is waiting for you.
Cathleen
Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Psalm 27:13, 14
13 I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the LORD
In the land of the living.
14 Wait on the LORD;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD!
No matter what happens regarding my circumstances, I have experienced a major spiritual breakthrough in my life this week. And it was totally unexpected.
Besides deliberately spending time with the Lord just to be in His presence, I felt a strong urging to remove all secular influences for a time, including music, TV, and movies. I even had to tell my teenagers they could no longer listen to non-Christian music when they were with me in the car or in the house—not even “harmless oldies.”
This was really tough for me because I had a very legalistic, controlling, and religious husband who made life very difficult, and I didn’t want to become like him. My 16-year-old daughter in particular was extremely upset because she lives for music. I have only had her back with me for a couple of months, and she just can’t understand why I am being so strict all of the sudden. She was so angry that she barely spoke to me for several days. After being separated from her for over a year, that hurt me deeply. But the Lord had spoken to me through two different people that He wanted me to consecrate myself for a season to prepare me for ministry, and He took away my desire for everything but Bible teaching tapes and worship music just to confirm it. Yes, it has been tough, but the reward was incredible.
I have always had “trust” issues. Every man I have ever trusted, including my father, let me down. To my shame, I have even struggled to trust God, and there has always been a certain element of fear in my relationship with Him. Sure, He has gotten me through a lot of trials, but He sure let me go through a lot of suffering along the way! When I’m discouraged, Randy reminds me that my problems are just a “bad hair day” compared to the countless Christians who are being tortured and killed for their faith. I know he’s trying to distract me from myself, but the truth is, when I think about Christians suffering for their faith I feel that fear creeping up on me. Can I really trust God with my life?
Last week I got part of my answer from Randy. He thinks about persecuted Christians all the time, and he asked the Lord why He let Nero torture Christians by setting them on fire as living torches. He said he asked the Lord, “How could You let them suffer like that?” And he felt the Lord’s answer was, “How do you know they suffered?” When I think of Stephen being stoned to death for his faith in Acts 7, I have to admit he didn’t seem to be suffering.
The rest of my answer came just from spending time with the Lord, and praising Him constantly throughout the day. For the first time in my life, I really feel LOVED by God. Even though my circumstances haven’t changed yet, the fear is GONE. I feel complete trust and confidence in God for the first time in my life. Before, I walked by faith without the feelings. Having the feelings too is the most wonderful thing I have ever experienced. If you need to experience a greater trust in God, I hope you will “set yourself aside” for a season and get as close to Him as you can. The greatest love—the only perfect love--of your life is waiting for you.
Cathleen
posted by BreadBakers at 12:03 PM
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