IN THE SOLITUDE

 

All Scripture is taken from the New King James Version of the Bible.

We live in such a busy and noisy society. We are about to enter the busiest time of year with Christmas around the corner.  Everywhere we go, all we hear is noise, and its going to get noisier. It is often hard to find a quiet place which is free of any distractions. Our whole society thrives on noise. It’s as if we are afraid to be quiet, even for a while. In Psalm 46:10 it says, “Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” I have now found the perfect time and place to spend time with my Abba Father. I cannot physically get myself up in the morning, but have to wait for the PSW (Personal Support Worker) to come and get me up and ready for the day around 7:30-7:45. Yet I wake up somewhere around 4:30 most mornings. I use that time to spend with my Abba Father before the call bells start ringing with residents needing help, or the PSWs talking to each other in the hallway. I consider the early morning hours as my secret place where my Abba Father is waiting to have fellowship with me. Jesus said, “But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut the door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.” (Mathew 6:6).

John the Baptist was ordained to be a prophet, the forerunner for Jesus. An angel predicted John’s birth and ministry.

“But the angel said to him (John’s father), ‘Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will call his name John…For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb…He will also go before Him (Jesus) in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.’” (Luke 1:13,15,17).

A description of John the Baptist’s ministry is given as far back as Isaiah, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord; Make straight in the desert A highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted And every high mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight And the rough places smooth.” (Isaiah 40:3) and is repeated by Luke. “The voice of one crying in the wilderness; Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, And every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked place shall be made straight, And the rough ways smooth. And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.” (Luke 3:4-6).    

The angel told Zachariah that John’s ministry would be to turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord. “He was to prepare and make ready a people for the Lord.”

Even though John was ordained to be a prophet from before he was born, he had to spend time in the wilderness so he would know the Lord’s voice for himself. “While Annas and Caiaphas were high priests, the word of the Lord came to John in the wilderness.” (Luke 3:2). Matthew also gives an account of John’s time in the wilderness. “In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea. Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.” (Matthew 3:1,4).

Scripture does not tell us how long John the Baptist was in the wilderness. But it must have been a while as we are told what he wore and what he ate. John knew the message he was to preach just before Jesus was in the public eye. “In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” (Matthew 3:1). John also baptized many people in the Jordan river as a baptism of repentance. This was to prepare the people for the coming of Jesus Christ.

The Lord always wants to get us alone with Him so we hear His voice clearly. “But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.” (John 10:2-3). In the solitude, we can draw close to the Lord and feel His presence. It is so awesome to feel the Lord’s presence. When you are really there in His presence, you do not want it to end, I know I do not. I long for the stillness, for it is in the stillness that we know He is God. I’m not only speaking of a physical stillness, but also of a stillness of our mind and heart. In order to hear what the Lord wants to say, we must be “Casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5). The Lord cannot speak to us when our minds are racing and our hearts are anxious. The Psalmist said, “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalms 46:10). It is in that same stillness and quiet that the Lord can speak to us. I find those times in His stillness and presence so precious. I never want to leave the Lord’s presence.  

When I was living alone in my apartment and people would come to visit, some would say, “It is so quiet in here.” I would respond, “Yes, that is the way I like it. I can concentrate on what I am doing. I can also feel the stillness of the Lord.”

Jesus Himself knew the importance of spending time in His Father’s presence. After Jesus had been baptized by John, He was led by the Spirit into the wilderness. “Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry.” (Luke 4:1). Jesus had to experience the temptations of the devil so He could identify with man in his temptations. There is an interesting fact here. Jesus faced all His temptations in the solitude of the wilderness where He was completely alone. Very often, the Lord has to get us alone to test us, especially if He is preparing us for ministry, or for a higher degree of ministry. It was after His time in the wilderness that Jesus began His public ministry. “Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.” (Luke 4:14).     

Jesus’ time in the wilderness was not the only time He spent in solitude. He often spent all night in prayer with His Father. “Now it came to pass in those days that He (Jesus) went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.” (Luke 6:14). There were other times when Jesus would rise early to pray. “Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.” (Mark 1:35). If Jesus, the Son of God, found it necessary to spend time in the presence of His Father, how much more necessary is it for us to seek out a solitary place to spend time with our Heavenly Father.

As we head into this Christmas season and all the busyness it brings, let us not forget what we are celebrating. The reason that Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year is because God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, so we could have a relationship with our Father.

                                        

UNIQUELY GIFTED

 

All Scripture is taken from the New King James Version of the Bible

              When God created us, He created each one of us very unique and different from anyone else.  There is no one else exactly like you or I. Even twins are different from each other. “For in fact the body is not one member but many. If the foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body,’ is it therefore not of the body? If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.” (2 Corinthians 12:14-18). We did not choose or place ourselves in the Body of Christ. God knew where He wanted each one of us to be, and what role He wanted us to achieve.    

          Therefore, each of us in the Body of Christ has been given gifts and talents which are to be used to exhort and encourage each other.  Paul speaks of these different gifts throughout his writings.

 ^“Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.” (Romans 12:6-8).

Even if we may have the same ability in terms of talents as another person, the Lord does not expect us to accomplish the same results, as each of us is living with different circumstances. We are the ones who put unrealistic expectations upon ourselves by comparing ourselves with those who we could – in no way – ever measure up to. Paul speaks to this issue in his Epistle to the Corinthian church. “For we dare not class ourselves or compare ourselves with those who commend themselves. But they, measuring themselves by themselves, are not wise.” (2 Corinthians 10:12).   

          Each of us have been given different abilities, gifts and talents. God, being wise, has chosen who should have what gift, and He has done so according to our natural abilities – the ones He placed within us when He created us. Yet, so often, instead of accepting and using the gift or gifts we have been given to fulfill the Lord’s purpose in our lives, we become distracted by wishing we could be someone else, or do something else. Or we wonder why we were only given one gift when those around us were given more, to do more with.  We say, “I wish I could” instead of saying, “I’m going to do what I can.”   

In the “My Utmost for His Highest Devotional” for January 26, Oswald Chambers makes this statement, “Consecration is the act of continually separating myself from everything except that which God has appointed us to do.”  That statement really struck me, firstly, because it just happened to be on my birthday. It also caused me to think of how God has a specific plan and purpose for our lives, or we would not be alive today.     

How true this is in my own life, as due to complications before and during birth, I could have died. There have also been several times throughout my life when I have come very close to passing away, such as the times my body developed sepsis and went into septic shock. But no matter how serious my condition became, I always came back, even though sometimes it took months before I was back to where I was before I went septic. One of my favorite verses says, “For I know the thoughts I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11).

          The second thought I had as I read Oswald Chambers’ statement was how we are responsible to live out the life which the Lord has entrusted to us, which includes being faithful to fulfill the calling the Lord has placed upon our lives.  We need to focus on the specific calling and gifts which the Lord has placed in our lives, and push everything else aside.  I know that in this day and age, when we are bombarded by so many things that keep us going in so many different directions, how hard it is to focus on just one or two areas. But I believe this is exactly what Oswald Chambers is saying.  I have often thanked the Lord for my limitations of living in a wheelchair, as it has enabled me to focus on and develop my gift of writing. Today, I live in Long Term Care, which provides activities for the residents to be involved in. If I were to let myself, I could be sidetracked from my calling, by participating in all the different activities which other residents are participating in. But, most of the time, I stay in my room and work on my writing.    

          We all need to learn to walk in our specific callings as Paul tells the Ephesians.  “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10).  The Lord has prepared us with gifts and talents when He created us.  It is our responsibility to use them to their fullest potential.  Paul also encouraged Timothy to “stir up the gift which is in you.” (2 Timothy 1:6).

        Are you using the gifts and talents God gave you? Do you know what they are? Take the time to ask God to find out what special gifts He has placed in your life and then take the first small step to using what God has given you.

PRESSING ON

     The Lord knew the days of our lives which He had planned for us, not only before we were ever thought of by our parents, but even before the foundations of the earth.  The psalmist mentions that the Lord knew us and all the days of our lives before we were born. “My frame was not hidden from You. When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book, they were all written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.” (Psalms 139:15-16). Paul also makes mention of the Lord’s foreknowledge of us. “…just as He (the Father) chose us in Him before the foundations of the earth, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.” (Ephesians 1:4).

By knowing the days He had ordained for us, the Lord also knew His purposes He had in mind for us to fulfill. “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10). We all want to know that we are living and walking in the will of God, day by day. But some Christians would wonder how they can be sure they are doing and fulfilling God’s will and purposes for their lives.

 If we truly believe that the Lord has ordained the days of our lives, and the purpose for us to fulfill during those days, then how would we think or believe that the Lord would allow us to miss His will or let us go astray. In Galatians 5:25, Paul says, “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” Just keep walking and doing what is before you to do, and as you take one step at a time, you will walk right into the will of God, as you have been doing all along. Continue to be led by the Spirit and when it is time to build on what you have been doing all along, or to turn the corner and go in a whole new direction, the Spirit will lead you.  The Lord has given each one of us talents – things which we have been, and are naturally good at. He has done so according to our ability. Jesus told a parable of the talents where a land owner, before he travels to a far country, calls his servants to him, and gives each servant talents. “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.” (Matthew 25:14-15). The Master did not give them any instructions as to what the servants were to do with their talents. After receiving the talents from their Master, each servant had to decide what he was going to do with his talent(s). The servants were being forced to step out of their comfort zone and go into uncharted territory. The first two servants took the risk and stepped out to put their Master’s money to good use. By doing so, both servants doubled their Master’s money, even though they were given different amounts according to their ability. But the third servant did not step out into uncharted territory. He was not willing to take a risk and try doing something new, something he had never done before, as the first two servants had done. Matthew 25:18 tells us what the third servant did with the portion of money he was given. “But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money.”

Throughout Scripture, the Lord is always challenging His people to leave the comfort zone they have been in, just as the mother eagle stirs her nest when it is time for the eaglets to leave the nest and learn to fly. Yet the mother eagle is there, ready to scoop down and catch them on her wing before they fall to the ground.     

The Lord called Gideon to step out of his comfort zone and save Israel from the Midianites. “The Angel of the Lord appeared to him (Gideon), and said to him, ‘The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor! Then the Lord turned to him and said, Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have not I sent you?” (Judges 6:12, 14). The Lord found Gideon threshing wheat in the winepress, hiding from the Midianites, the very people to whom the Lord wanted to send him.   But Gideon had doubts and gives the Lord excuses. “So he (Gideon) said to Him, ‘O my Lord, how can I save Israel? Indeed my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.’ And the Lord said to him, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat the Midianites as one man. Then he (Gideon) said to Him, “If now I have found favor in Your sight, then show me a sign that it is You who talk to me.” (Judges 6:16-17). The Lord granted Gideon’s request and reassured Gideon that it was His leading. The Lord was not angry with Gideon for asking for a sign, not once, but twice. Then end result was that the Lord saved Israel from the Midianites by Gideon with only three hundred men.    

Have you ever taken a risk and started a new thing? Or have you sensed the Lord leading you to start a new thing, yet you were hesitant to step out in case it wasn’t really the Lord you heard, but yourself. I remember when I experienced this. I was already living in Long Term Care. One night in bed, I had the impression that I should create a Newsletter of my own as a channel to circulate my devotionals. I thought it was the Lord, but wasn’t 100% sure. The next day, I called my life-long friend and told her what came to me the night before. Irene not only encouraged me to go ahead and start my, “Sufficient Grace Newsletter,” but has helped me along the way. From the very first Edition I sent out the response has been overwhelmingly positive. My former church has even posted each devotional on their Facebook page, or has put the link to my blog up. I never expected a response like that, especially as I now live in a different city.

 Take the Lord at His Word. Paul is a person who took the Lord at His Word and kept pressing forward, looking ahead to all that the Lord had for him. “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead. I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14). Paul was always willing to go and press on ahead into uncharted territory. Every time he went into a different city to plant a new church, or to preach the gospel at the leading of the Lord, he was entering uncharted territory. Paul was willing to go and press on, even when it meant persecution or being put in prison. At the end of his life, Paul was confident that he had fulfilled the Lord’s purposes in his life that he was able to say, “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2 Timothy 4:6-7).  I pray that when the time comes for the Lord to take me home, I will be able to make a similar statement by God’s sufficient grace.

 The Lord does not want us to waste time looking back, when He has so much more for us to accomplish in Him and for His glory in the future. Let us all be willing to follow Him along the path He has marked out for each one of our lives. Sore like an eagle into the heights of His presence and allow the Father to bring us into uncharted territory with Him where He will overwhelm us with treasures untold. As we press into Him, He will draw us so close that we will be able to hear His every whisper and feel His every heartbeat. I don’t know about you, but that is how close I want to be with my Abba Father.

 

 

                                        By Cindy Mead