Trust - 1

The Lord is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes.  He is close to those who trust in him. Nahum 1:7

Recently I prayed with a lady whose life is filled with trouble.  Having dealt with breast cancer in the past couple of years, she is now having chemo for lung cancer.  She is a believer but she told me that when she was diagnosed with lung cancer she had drawn away from God but now she was coming back.  It was so good to be able to remind her that God is indeed good and that he had not sent this; that the enemy of our souls, the devil is the one who comes to rob, kill and destroy, and that Jesus came that we might have abundant life (John 10:10).  The devil's mission is to destroy our future, our hope and the purpose that God has put us on earth to fulfil. Jesus mission was to stop the enemy's destruction and to take back the ground that had been given to the devil when Adam and Eve sinned.

This verse from Nahum tells us that the Lord is good, and that he is a strong refuge when trouble comes.  We all need a strong place to run to when trouble comes; why then do we often turn away from the One who can help us?  I believe that the simple answer to this is that we believe the lies that the enemy puts into our vulnerable mind.  Lies which Christians often buy into so easily.  Lies like, 'God doesn't really love me or he wouldn't have let this happen to me', God has sent this to teach me a lesson', 'God wants me to glorify him in my suffering'.  Lies which we may not actually give voice to, but which we allow to niggle in the back of our mind.  Doubts!

Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8).  How did he demonstrate this during his time on earth?  He went about doing good, healing all who were oppressed by the devil (Acts 10:38). He came to show us what God wanted us to continue.  "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.." We can pray those words without really thinking into them, but if we stop a moment and consider them, it will change our way of doing things.  Selah.... pause and reflect.

I was going to keep writing but I feel that I need to leave you to reflect on those words this week and I will continue with part 2 in my next Daydrops.

Prayer:  Lord help me to reflect on these simple yet very important words.  Keep me mindful of your desire to bring heaven to earth, so that I become an active part in the answer to my prayer, recognizing that Jesus lives and works in and through me.  Amen