Here is the revelation that is shaping my life today – in all circumstances the redemptive purposes of God are waiting to be released.
Luke 7:13 TPT
[13] When the Lord saw the grieving mother, his heart broke for her. With great tenderness he said to her, “Please don’t cry.”
Observation
God’s heart is broken with ours. Far from being the author behind disease, death, mayhem, God’s heart breaks when our lives are impacted by the brokenness of the world. Here we see Jesus meeting a mother who is grieving over the death of her son. Jesus raises and restores her son. The coming of Jesus shows us that the will of God is not being done on earth, Jesus came to restore God’s will. He came to destroy the works of God’s enemy. And he comes to show us that God is not distant but is moved to tears with us, He is with us and compassionate towards us.
Later Jesus tells the crowd this – ‘The blessing of heaven comes upon those who never lose their faith in me no matter what happens.'” (7:23) Heaven has come in Jesus, it does not mean that we will never face circumstances of the broken world, we all know that, but the redemptive work of God, the manifestation of Heaven, is available in all circumstances. It may not change the circumstance itself, but it will bring good out of the circumstances. God does not bring circumstances that rob life, but He will work the good of redemption in all circumstances. A principle of seeing this redemption flow is that we walk in all circumstances in faith that God is with me, compassionate towards me, loves me, and desires my best. I may not be able to change the circumstance that my business is ruined but I can see God’s redemptive work happen in me and through me as I walk by faith through that circumstance.
The challenge for us is that in our grief, in our “whys”, in our disappointment, the enemy of God seduces us into loneliness and isolation. We don’t believe God understands, we may even be deceived into blaming God for what is happening, and so we become victims of the circumstances. We walk alone and then the enemy of God released fear, fear always comes in isolation. We miss the blessing of the presence of God to walk with us, and the redemptive plan of God within the circumstance. We are robbed by the circumstances and then robbed in the circumstances. In my pain, in my grief, I can choose isolation and fear, or I can walk by faith in God’s compassion, love, presence and redemptive purposes. It is the fiercest battle I have ever encountered, but the choice is always ours! Please hear the promise of Jesus – “The blessing of heaven comes upon those who never lose their faith in me no matter what happens.'”
Application
In the heartbreak of life, I will choose to walk by faith in Jesus. I will not allow my pain, my grief, to lead me into the arms of the enemy, I will not be double robbed. I will never allow my understanding of God to be deceived into ascribing to God authorship of the brokenness of this world and the circumstances it releases upon my life. I will know that His heart breaks with mine, and His compassion and love are with me.
Response
Thank you that you bring good, redemptive good, into every circumstance of life. Thank you that you give me the responsibility to posture myself in faith to see this released. You give me great freedom, but with this comes great responsibility. Thank you that you are always postured with compassion towards me. I am such a blessed person, I am never alone.
Meditation
When life serves up difficulties where do you turn? Do you turn to God to encounter His presence and compassion or away from God into isolation and fear?
JOURNEY DEEPER
