Streams in the Desert

So the Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning (Job 42:12).

Through his griefs Job came to his heritage. He was tried that his godliness might be confirmed. Are not my troubles intended to deepen my character and to robe me in graces I had little of before? I come to my glory through eclipses, tears, death. My ripest fruit grows against the roughest wall. Job's afflictions left him with higher conceptions of God and lowlier thoughts of himself. "Now," he cried, "mine eye seeth thee.

And if, through pain and loss, I feel God so near in His majesty that I bend low before Him and pray, "Thy will be done," I gain very much. God gave Job glimpses of the future glory. In those wearisome days and nights, he penetrated within the veil, and could say, "I know that my Redeemer liveth." Surely the latter end of Job was more blessed than the beginning.
--In the Hour of Silence

"Trouble never comes to a man unless she brings a nugget of gold in her hand."

Apparent adversity will finally turn out to be the advantage of the right if we are only willing to keep on working and to wait patiently. How steadfastly the great victor souls have kept at their work, dauntless and unafraid! There are blessings which we cannot obtain if we cannot accept and endure suffering. There are joys that can come to us only through sorrow. There are revealings of Divine truth which we can get only when earth's lights have gone out. There are harvests which can grow only after the plowshare has done its work.
--Selected

Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seamed with scars; martyrs have put on their coronation robes glittering with fire, and through their tears have the sorrowful first seen the gates of Heaven.
--Chapin

I shall know by the gleam and glitter
Of the golden chain you wear,
By your heart's calm strength in loving,
Of the fire you have had to bear.
Beat on, true heart, forever;
Shine bright, strong golden chain;
And bless the cleansing fire
And the furnace of living pain!
--Adelaide Proctor

Our Love Should Be Ridiculous..... by Stephen Sanders

Our Love Should Be Ridiculous 
by Stephen Sanders

Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Romans 12:10

Every once in a while, you meet a Christian who just flat out makes you feel good about life in general. It doesn’t happen probably as much as it should, but nonetheless, it’s always nice to see. Even though it may just be a brief encounter, you leave that conversation feeling important, hopeful and restored. Sometimes, it’s even so powerful that it inspires you to become a better person.

I recently had an encounter with a certain pastor who just flat out blew me away with the way he carried himself. This was actually my 2nd time meeting him, and I just can’t describe the attitude of this man. His love for God and love for people was simply contagious. Everyone in the room was just so peaceful and complimentary after he left. I found myself wanting to be more like that because, well, I’m not.

Showing “brotherly affection” towards others is not something that comes naturally for me. I tend to make a lot of excuses when it comes to being more outgoing and more loving. After all, it’s much safer to just ignore people I don’t know or have things in common with. That makes perfect sense, right? It’s wiser to just let someone else share God’s love with them; someone who can “minister to them more effectively than I.”

God continues to deal with me about this on a daily basis. Not only is displaying love towards one another one of the chief commands of the Christian faith, but it’s the core of who Jesus Christ was while he was on earth in the flesh. It’s easy to assume that Jesus would have gotten along easier with the “church folks,” but He actually spent all of His time with tax collectors, prostitutes and such; people who He had absolutely zero in common with.

The religious people of that day mocked Jesus for loving the way He did. Jesus’ love was ridiculous.

I’ve been studying the heck out of the book of Romans lately. It’s been great because I’ve begun to see this continuing contrast between the “church folks” and the “actual church” that Paul was ministering to in those days. The “church folks” were so proud of the list of regulations that defined who they were and set them apart from the society in which they lived. The “actual church” simply grabbed hold of the free gift of Christ and displayed it openly to that same society. The “church folks” disqualified others from becoming God’s Chosen because of what they were unwilling to do. But the “actual church” made no assumptions about who could and could not be “saved.”

The early church let the good news of the cross speak for itself... and they would scream this truth to everyone... everywhere... even if it meant dying a gruesome death. Their love was ridiculous.

In today’s culture, self-sacrificial love to the point of death sounds just as extreme as it did back then. So many of us make excuses as to why we don’t need to love like that. Christians and church doctrines manage to create unwritten laws that shield us from having to actually love like the Spirit of Christ so desperately wants us to. We take specific scriptures and turn them into shield for our own protection. Take Romans 12:1-2 for example:

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Until recently, I’d only recognized this scripture as an instruction to “beware of society and it’s influences.” And it’s true that the world does things way differently than the Holy Spirit does. But I’ve always overlooked the importance of “test and discern what is the will of God.” You see, we cannot “test the will of God” if we are so far removed from society that we are out of touch. The same “enemy society” that we are to not become influenced by is also the same exact place where God has strategically placed us to seek His will for our lives and display the gifts and talents He has placed in us.

Sound impossible? It’s really not... it just takes a ridiculous love for this lifestyle to be functional.

In actuality, it may appear to many as being very dysfunctional. But that’s okay! This Christian walk was never meant to be something that caused us to take ourselves more seriously than we ought to anyway. To tell you the truth, Jesus said that the “actual church” would “confound the wise and shame the strong.” So don’t be afraid to be excessively full of life, hopeful, positive and patient when others try to make that difficult to do. Look for excuses to just randomly meet the needs of others... especially your enemies! That’s love... that’s the sort of thing that everyone, Christians and non-Christians, long for deep down inside. That’s what the love of Christ is all about.

Intersecting Faith & Life:

I’m challenging myself (and you) to reach out in some way to someone every single day... starting today. God has radically changed our lives. He has given us something that is more valuable than anything. It’s time we share it, not from a soapbox or inside our church walls, but in the everyday hustle and bustle of where we already exist...

...and be proactive because, chances are, if you don’t then no one else will.

For further study:

Read Romans 12:1

When God Gives More Than We Can Handle..... By: Betsy St. Amant Haddox

When God Gives More Than We Can Handle
By: Betsy St. Amant Haddox

“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” - 2 Corinthians 12:9 (ESV)

It’s a common saying among Christians: “Don’t worry, God won’t give you more than you can handle.” This is well-meaning in intent, but completely inaccurate. Over and over in Scripture, we see God giving people way more than they could take emotionally, spiritually, and physically.

Do you think Paul simply “handled it” when he endured prison, floggings, beatings, stoning, shipwrecks, robbers, abuse, false accusations, hunger, sleep deprivation, dehydration, nakedness, and cold, all for the sake of the Gospel? (2 Corinthians 11:21-29) Of course not. Paul wasn’t a super-hero. It wasn’t that those awful things somehow just didn’t upset him. Rather, he learned to look to the true source of his strength—the Lord. He overcame in the strength of the Lord, rather than in his own power. The Lord sustained him in his hour of need.

2 Corinthians 12:9 (ESV) “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me."

David also struggled with depression, anxiety, and physical toil in his life. The Psalms are full of his pleadings with the Lord for relief. But he didn’t give in to despair, rather, he kept redirecting his focus and attention to the way the Lord had come through for him in the past. Psalm 52:9b (ESV) I will wait for your name, for it is good, in the presence of the godly. He knew to wait for the Lord, to trust His will and His timing, even when times were unbearably hard.

Do you think Gideon was incredibly confident and felt strong when the Lord slowly chiseled away at the number of the men in his army, leaving him with a mere 300?

Do you think Job, when he lost his livestock, wealth, friends, children, reputation, and health—all in a matter of days—shrugged and said, “oh well, I can take it?” No. He looked to the Lord and His power, and focused on God’s strength in contrast to his own weakness.

Tough times will come. Divorces happen. Financial strains come and go. Children rebel. Doctor’s reports come back with bad news. Parents age and conflicts occur between friends and people lose their jobs. The Lord promised us they would. John 16:33 (ESV) “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

He doesn’t leave us with tales of doom, however. He promised we’d have peace in Him, and in Him alone. He also gives us instructions on how be strong.

Ephesians 6:10 (ESV) Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.

1 Chronicles 16:11 (ESV) Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!

These verses, and many more like them, don’t command us to pull ourselves up by our boot-straps and figure it out. They don’t call for us to “handle it”. They don’t tell us that “big girls don’t cry” or “it could be worse”. They call for us to acknowledge our broken hearts (Psalm 62:8) and seek the Lord. Where we are weak, He is strong.

Sometimes, being strong in the Lord and seeking Him means crying out in prayer while taking a long bubble bath. It might mean listening to Bible Verses on audio while you jog. For me, when my husband initiated a divorce after ten years of marriage, it meant quoting Scripture over and over until I fell asleep in our bed alone.

We’re not equipped to handle anything on our own. We’re fragile, we’re weak, and even on our best days, we can’t sustain a “chin-up” attitude for long. The only true peace in adversity is found in Christ alone.

Will God give us more than we can handle? Absolutely. Not because He’s harsh, but because He loves us. He won’t leave us in the trial. And there will be purpose worked out through every hard moment—a purpose that is working in us for our good and His glory. (Philippians 2:13)

Romans 8:18 (ESV) For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

A Prayer to Live an Unfiltered Life..... By Betsy St. Amant Haddox

A Prayer to Live an Unfiltered Life
By Betsy St. Amant Haddox

“Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.” - 1 Peter 3:3-4

We live in a filtered world.

A world that no longer accepts reality and instead demands that women master the charade.

Thanks to Snapchat, women no longer even have to post a picture of their actual selves. With a few swipes they can suddenly become a woodland fairy with butterflies nestled in their hair, don a crown of flowers, or turn their features into an adorable puppy.

There’s obviously nothing wrong with fairies and puppies. But why do you want to look like one? “It’s fun,” you said. “It’s silly. I’m just playing around.”

That’s fine too—if that’s true. But how many of women are telling the truth in those moments? I think deep down, if we really dig beneath the surface of the lighthearted “look at my silly post, I have polka-dotted ears and a button nose” we’ll realize that we’re hiding. We duck behind one mask after another, secretly wishing we could use these filters in real life and permanently hide.

The theme of 1 Peter 3:3-4 this verse is found in the phrase “your beauty should not come from”—meaning, don’t let your identity be your outward beauty. Don’t let those efforts or those items define you and your worth, and become more important than the condition of your heart.

Trust me—this isn’t an overnight fix, ladies. It’s hard to retrain our hearts and shut up the lies of the enemy. But the effort is worth it. So let’s stop hiding. Let’s put down the mask and the excessive use of products that hide instead of enhance. Let’s stop playing the comparison game that’s a guaranteed lose-lose.

Let’s live unfiltered.

Lord, help me live an authentic life. Help me see where my true beauty and worth lie – in being a child of the Most High God. Help me have the unfading beauty of a gentle spirit. Thank you for valuing me so much that you sent Jesus to die for me. Thank you that you take what is broken and ugly in me – my sin – and wash me white as snow. Help me live to glorify you, not myself. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.