“When the morning stars sang together And all the sons of God shouted for joy …
Job 38:7
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Perspective is something I have had to learn about the last many years of my life. In the workaday world, busyness can take over and often I have the illusion that I can control my life. The Corona Virus has taken all of us by surprise and has shaken up our expectations of life. Finances are at stake for many of us, illness, disappointment, confusion.
But, I have learned that my God is stable, secure, and loving and He is always in control—even when we do not understand or feel secure.
Some years ago, our family was sharing delectable hamburgers and sizzling steaks outside on the mountain deck of close friends. They had borrowed a high-powered telescope from a relative to give all of our children an opportunity to celebrate the night sky on a clear summer's night. Having never had this experience, I had no idea how deeply beguiled my own soul would become from viewing the intricate artistry of God amongst the constellations, cast out infinitely amongst the heavens above.
After every child had taken his turn at the amazing telescope and gasped and danced in delight, my children all said, "Mom, you have to see this--this is your star! It is bright blue!" Blue is my favorite color.
As I peered into the scope, it took my eyes a few seconds to adjust to the picture inside the scope, and then, suddenly, I was confronted by an astonishingly bright blue dancing star, seeming to sparkle and turning in beauty and celebration of life. I was mesmerized, as I had heard all of my life of "twinkling" stars, but had never seen something so clearly beautiful with my own eyes. The telescope had revealed to me what had always been there but which I had never been able to perceive with my own limited powers.
I was deeply changed that night, unexpectedly. Confronted once again with the transcendence, the "bigness" of God, the divine beauty and power beyond my understanding, a realization dawned on me: I can only see circumstances and the steps of my journey from a very limited perspective. Yet, God, my heavenly Father, who is vastly more infinite and wise than my small mind can comprehend, is above all moments and all days. He holds the stars in the heavens, He keeps the world spinning, He is our transcendent, almighty, everlasting, loving God. And when we learn to open the eyes of our hearts to see Him as King over all, we find peace, rest and we can be quiet as we reflect on His ways.
Sometimes, though, my first response has been, “How can you do this to me, God? Don’t you see we might go under financially? or This is such a difficult time. Where are you?”
Often, as a "toddler" I can shake my fist and say, "God, don't you care that I am going under? Or that you are making my life or marriage or children's lives more difficult than I can imagine?"
Yet, God is not threatened by my tantrums or my fears or my questioning Him, as He has lived through the fist-shaking and heartrending prayers of so many generations of children before me. And because He is a good Father, He does not give in to our demands, knowing His will is far better for us and that He truly is able to work all things together for the good, for those of us who are called to His purposes and who are willing to wait upon Him to work His ways through us.
Usually, serving God requires endless waiting on His timing and His ways. And yet, if we could remember the lesson of the star which later learned was named Capella, there are things going on that are truer than the present issues and circumstances that we perceive. God is suiting our soul, building our character, stretching our spiritual and mental and emotional muscles to become holy, to truly be able to reflect Christ back through us to a world so desperately in need of light. If we obediently trust Him and wait for Him and rest in the knowledge that He is good, even though we live in a fallen place, we will live to see His goodness and His blessing abundantly in His time. He redeems all, He restores all, He is the resurrection power.
Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world." If we are living for satisfaction and glory in this world, we will not find ultimate satisfaction. I wish I had not fought against God so many times in the years of my family's journey. God allowed so much, but He was also there to walk with me through all the harsh realities of life and in the midst of it, He forged faith and depth and character in the lives of my children that they would otherwise not have had.
When we pray, "God, make my children holy," we must understand it means their road and ours will be challenging and stretching, as all of our faith muscles will have to be stretched in order for us to become strong. I see that in spite of the ways my mother-heart would have over-protected my children, God was having His way and building my children into strong adults. His ways trumped my ways because He heard my prayer to make them strong.
I love this quote by David Adam, from the Edge of Glory:
"He forever goes before us to prepare a place for us. He is on the road we tread. Wherever life is leading us, He has gone before. Perhaps we have no clue about what lies ahead; we know who is ahead of us, so the future is not quite unknown."
In this time of anxiety and the unknown, rest in the fact that God is still God, and you are still not. He holds eternity, and He will be with us no matter what. I pray you rest in His grace, today.
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