 "This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them. Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him." (Psalm 34:6-8 NIV)
Have you ever found yourself in the midst of troubles? An isolated incidence of trouble is one thing, but multiplied troubles are an entirely different thing. It reminds me of the Star Trek episode, The Trouble With Tribbles; it began with one cute little Tribble, and ended up with the whole Starship Enterprise overrun with Tribbles! Sometimes it seems our life is the Starship Enterprise and we have more troubles/Tribbles than we bargained for. In these places where troubles mount to outrageous heights, we are left with a choice: We can become buried under our troubles and try to dig our way out on our own, or we can call out for help. When we opt to figure things out on our own, we almost always end up in more trouble than when we started. I can honestly say that every time I attempted to get out of my troubles in my own strength it never worked. But every time I yielded, every time I called out to the Lord, He heard me and 'saved me out of all my troubles.' Just last year I suddenly found myself without a place to live, without a source of income, in a new city, with few connections, and it all happened within a matter of a few hours. Those are troubles. But, I had learned to pray, I had learned to trust in the fires of affliction I had walked through before. So I called out to the Lord, and within 48 hours I had a home, I had a place to practice, and I had a big dose of hope. I had tasted and seen that the Lord is good. If a chef sets a plate of tasty food in front of you, but you never dig in, you just let it sit there and you don't partake of it, you won't know if it is good or not, right? So it is with the Lord. He came, He lived, He died for you, and He rose again to set you free, and yet so often we treat Him like He is the parsley on the plate rather than the main dish. We don't partake of Him. In John 6:36 Jesus says of Himself, "I am the bread of life: he that comes to me will never hunger; and he who believes on me will never thirst." In Psalm 23 David writes, "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows." Psalm 46:1 says this; "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." When we taste/partake of Him, when we ingest Him into our lives, when He becomes our food we learn that He is good, very good. We learn that He is our refuge, the place where we can find shelter in the midst of our troubles. We learn that He is our strength and that nothing is too hard for Him. We learn that He is our help, and we are not on our own, nor left alone. So, have you tasted and seen that the Lord is good? Or are you trying to make your own food, and He is simply a garnish you add onto your plate? Or are you stubbornly refusing to eat what is right in front of you, what has been prepared for you? Have you looked in the mirror of your heart lately?--you look a little thin and undernourished dear one. I encourage you to pick up the fork of faith and dig in...you will not be disappointed!!! Taste and See I have tasted dirt, remains of earth My life was an endless sea of pain Trouble came rushing into my world choking me, changing my name I have tasted ash, remains of death Loss so profound and deep Poison vast and unrelenting into my veins began to seep I have tasted gravel, remains of rock Stubborn places I couldn't chew Breaking apart my pretty teeth on pieces of Pride's residue I have tasted brass, remains of metal Judgement weighing me down Not seeing the journey set forth I threw others onto the ground I have tasted life, remains of Christ A Phoenix raised out of the fire I have tasted I have seen that He is good No other food I now desire... Written by Anne Marie Hawke June 2020 To subscribe to my blog or to find out more about my writing, please visit my website at hawkewriter.com
2 Comments
 "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him." (1 John 4:7-9 NKJV)
How are we to live? We are to 'live through Him.' God's love was shown in Christ. He came, lived, and died so that we might not live unto ourselves anymore, so that we could be new, whole, redeemed, and alive. "For in Him we live and move and have our being." (Acts 17:28) "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." (2 Corinthians 5:17) The love of God transforms; old to new, darkness to light, death to life. The love of God transforms the heart. Once you have truly been apprehended by the love of God, His love and life begin to flow into you and out of you to others. You see, God came after me in the person of Christ. His love overtook me. He pursued me into the depths of my darkness and shed His light on me. And I was undone. His love made me new. His love, in one instant, made all my wrongs right. In Him I won the relationship lottery and I finally understood why the numbers had never lined up for me before. I have made mistakes, some of them massive. I have lied. I have cheated. I have hurt those I love. I have moments in time that I wish I could undo...but His love for me pushes past all of that and says, "I choose you, I love you, I want you my beautiful, precious child." And now that love, His love, pours out to others. Minute by minute, day by day, it keeps growing, I keep growing as I spend time with Him, as I come to know Him. How do you get to know someone? You spend time with them, but more than that you communicate with them, you listen to them, you ask questions, you dig beyond the surface, beyond the veneer they portray outwardly, to get to really know their heart. God knows you inside and out, He knows your every insecurity, your every worry, your every thought, every piece of your heart, even those pieces you think you have hidden away from everyone. God loves you, so much so that He died for you in the person of Christ, that you might no longer live for yourself, but so you could 'live through Him.' God has spoken in the person of Christ, He has spoken through His word, He speaks through circumstance, and joy, and trial and tribulation. And in every place what He is speaking, what He is manifesting is His overwhelming love for you. Can you hear Him? The love of God, living through Him is the answer, and it simply doesn't matter what the question is. Poor relationship? Answer: The love of God. "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God..." (1 John 4:7) Death/Loss? Answer: The love of God. "The oil of joy of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness..." (Isaiah 61:3) Confusion? Answer: The love of God. "For God is not the author of confusion but of peace..." (1 Corinthians 14:33) Worry/Fear? Answer: The love of God. "Fear not, for I am with you; do not look around you in terror and be dismayed..." (Isaiah 41:10) Racism? Answer: The love of God. "[In this new creation all distinctions vanish.] There is no room for and there can be neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, [nor difference between nations whether alien] barbarians or Scythians [who are the most savage of all], nor slave or free man; but Christ is all and in all (everything and everywhere, to all men, without distinction of person." (Colossians 3:11) Lying? Answer: The love of God. "Do not lie to one another, for you have stripped off the old (unregenerate) self with its evil practices,.." (Colossians 3:9) Hatred? Answer: The love of God. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3:16) God's love. Every question. Every time. We need the love of God. We need Jesus. LOVE IS... Love is not selfish It thinks of others first Love is not proud It waits to be heard Love is not unkind In thought, word, or deed Love is not shallow It wades into the deep Love is not low Stooping down only to lift Love is not silent Each word a precious gift Love is not restrained It will not be bound Love is not subdued Is never lost once found Love is not still It pursues what it seeks Love is not dull It is strong, never weak Love is not fragile It stays and it fights Love is not darkness But the giver of light Love is not trivial A most rare, vast treasure Love is not quantifiable It will not be measured Love is extravagant beauty It is humble and giving Love is pure bliss It makes life worth living... Written by Anne Marie Hawke June 2020 To subscribe to my blog or to find out more about my writing, please visit my website at hawkewriter.com |
qUIET IN CHAOSQuiet in Chaos is a blog about nothing, everything, and all things inbetween…it’s a space, an ellipsis, a deep pause. Life can be chaotic, and often needs more moments of quiet…So join me as I share and give through the written word, the place I find my Quiet in Chaos… Archives
February 2022
Categories |
RSS Feed