Hello, sweet souls!
This has been an interesting time of new resolutions, or perhaps just a wonderful time of resolute faithfulness in the church body.
All around me and in me, more and more hearts are seeking to redefine who we are and determine to follow Christ, in context of the Gospel. This is AMAZING, and we should be encouraged!
How the Lord has been gracious to help us see a bit more clearly the fervor under which our faith must be established! Christ the Lord has mercifully guided and lovingly opened the eyes of us who - for a time - shut ourselves into complacency and ritualism, daily motions and routines.
Praise be to God, for in Christ, we have all we need, not the least of which is the continual outpouring of the Holy Spirit. But by this Spirit, our faith has been tried, tested, purified. God, in His wisdom, continues to call us out of stagnant religiosity into brilliant work for His glory!
2020 marks nothing less than a Refiner's fire to bring us as a church back - jerk us awake - to the reality of what is truly important and what is truly at stake. It's a merciful call from God when we go through trials of various kinds. A call to repentance, to returning, and resolving to continually flee to Him as our sole salvation, sole refuge, and soul rest.
15 For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel,
“In returning and rest you shall be saved;
in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”
But you were unwilling, 16 and you said,
“No! We will flee upon horses”;
therefore you shall flee away;
and, “We will ride upon swift steeds”;
therefore your pursuers shall be swift.
17 A thousand shall flee at the threat of one;
at the threat of five you shall flee,
till you are left
like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain,
like a signal on a hill.
18 Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you,
and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.
For the Lord is a God of justice;
blessed are all those who wait for him.
Studying Isaiah has been an eye-opener as it stands timeless with what is happening today. The remarkable similarities between the outcry of said prophet and the status of our world are no question: we are most certainly living in perilous and indicative times. These are times of labor, as the Scripture puts it, which have steadily grown more intense and more frequent as we prepare for the triumphal entry of our King Jesus! Oh LORD, come quickly! The coming of our Lord Christ is pending!
To what - to whom - are we fleeing?
Who will hide us in the day of judgment and the fury of God's wrath? Can we depend on our health? Our wealth? Our intellect? Our religiosity? Our strength? What about our power? Our connections? Our status? In the day of Christ's return, will we truly find solace and peace in any of these?
My page today does not reflect as much of an artistic process as it does a personal, spiritual process. I didn't use anything more than an alpha stamp set to illustrate the attitude of Isaiah. For this time, it suffices to say that there is something a bit more urgent than modeling a watercolor technique or honing a blending style - the eternity of all who have not yet fled to the immovable, steadfast, gracious positioning of our Lord Jesus.
Personal insert:
It moves me to tears watching my father succumb to colon cancer. As we look on the slow decay, we are reminded of the inevitability of the separation of body and soul. It's coming, though slowly, and one day he too will bear the curse of death on mankind. But the heart-wrenching pain in my heart is that of his soul which has not yet hurried to the safety and security of His Savior. The One who bled and died for him is patiently waiting, beckoning, "Come." My father's life, marked by self-reliance, self-idolatry, self-motivated ambition, self-sustenance, is not yet covered by the "I AM" who is all-sufficient in life and godliness, under whose banner we all must flee for our very lives.
But this slow and gruesome cancerous process has also awakened me to a far bigger plan and purpose of being a child of God, saved by grace.
Matters of true importance - above elections, above pandemics, above sexual orientation controversy, above social status and degrees, follows and shares - are the eternal welfare of each person that continues in darkness though the Light has come. My neighbors, my friends, colleagues, family...
Nobody wants to talk of judgment - least of all, me! - but this is what happens when Christ comes to cleanse the world of all evil for the final time, and replace it with a people and kingdom of eternal glory.
Nobody wants to speak of MORE pain - least of all, me! - but it is sure to happen as God continues to purify a people for Himself, the perfect Groom.
Nobody wants to speak of hell, fire and brimstone - least of all, me! - but isn't it the place of finality for those we love who haven't yet seen, heard, or experienced Christ in us?
Continue sisters (and brothers), to look outside the home and Christian "bubble" to those on the outside of the family of Christ. Continue to avoid blending personal pursuits with your walk in Christ, that your witness may have its full efficacy! Continue to resolve to know "Christ crucified" and only Him, for it is in Him that we live and have our being. Continue to resolve to love God and love people, for He died not only for our sins, but that of the entire world! Continue to speak the Good News of Great Joy to all people though it may seem unpopular, uninvited, unfamiliar, or unfriendly. We don't know the soul God is drawing to Himself; far be it from us to withhold His light!
At all costs, flee to Christ.
At all costs, show others the way to, the need to, the urgency to, and the blessing to fleeing to this ultimate, overall Rock of Salvation.
"Rock of ages cleft for me let me hide myself in Thee
Let the water and the blood from Thy wounded side which fload
Thee of sin the double cure save from raft and make me pure
Let me hide myself in Thee!"
(Rock of Ages, Augustus Montague Toplady)
Much love and hope,
Deeds
