Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Don't Lose Heart

2 Corinthians 4:16-17
"Do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory."

"My Jesus is Everything"
His office is manifold, and His promise is sure.
His life is matchless, and His goodness is limitless.
His mercy is enough, and His grace is sufficient.
His reign is righteous. His yoke is easy and His burden is light.
He is indestructible. He is indescribable.
He is incomprehensible. He is inescapable.
He is invincible. He is irresistible. He is irrefutable.
I can't get Him out of my mind...
And I can't get Him out of my heart.
I can't outlive Him... And I can't live without Him.
The Pharisees couldn't stand Him, but found they couldn't stop Him.
Satan tried to tempt Him but found he couldn't trip Him.
Pilot examined Him on trial but found he couldn't fault Him.
The Romans crucified Him but found they couldn't take His life.
Death couldn't handle Him, and the grave couldn't hold Him.
~Anne Graham Lotz

Is your God in a box? Do you pick Him up off the shelf when you need Him? Do you doubt His ability to take care of EVERYTHING? Do you trust in your own abilities until the very last moment when you have nothing else to do but to call on Him?

Too many times, I find people around me stressing out. My own husband can drive me crazy with his inability to trust that God will handle it all. Call me a Pollyanna. Call me eternally optimistic. Call me completely naive. But I KNOW my God Can. I KNOW my God WILL. I KNOW my God is BIGGER than all of it - no matter what "it" is.

Friday night, I was faced with the task of finding cheap flights to Chicago for our son's high school graduation. With the higher cost of gas, my husband and I were not sure if we would have enough money to make it to Chicago without running out of gas. After searching all night, comparing costs and length of time to travel, I finally came to the realization that if I was going along, we had to drive. It would be a ten hour drive - nearly eleven. But I had driven on longer excursions. We had to trust that God would squeeze out the extra gas mileage. We had to know that HE would make a way. We had to REST in our knowledge that GOD. PERIOD. We couldn't rest in our HOPE. We couldn't rest in our WISH. We had to rest in our KNOWLEDGE that GOD.

Saturday morning, we filled the tank, put air in the tires, checked the oil and the coolant, checked the bank account, (just in case,) and grabbed hands and prayed over our van. I prayed that God would do whatever He needed to do to get us to realize a higher gas mileage, and that we would rest in the fact that He is in control. With that, we boarded the van and set out westward for Chicago.

It took us $53 to fill up the first time. Somewhere in Ohio, we added $30. Just to be on the safe side, we added $10 at the Indiana/Illinois border. Then there were tolls: $8.3o on the Ohio turnpike; $4.15 in Indiana. A dollar here; 80 cents there for toll booths through Chicago. We safely arrived at our hotel room with a whopping $6 left. But by the grace of God, we MADE it.

Do you stress out? Do you have trouble remembering that God is in control? Do you ever, like Peter, wait until you start sinking under the water to call out to God?

It is very human for us to do so, however, God calls us to something greater. He calls us to truly understand Him. Trust Him. Rely On Him. And KNOW Him and all of which He is capable.

We are to not lose heart. We are to acknowledge that our inward man is being renewed daily. We are to realize that our affliction is but for a moment, and working for a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. Our God is not a God-in-the-box, or for our convenience. He is GOD. Let us recognize the glory and praise due Him.