When Moses replied to God in the burning bush, he said, “What do you want me to say to Pharaoh? Who do you want me to say has sent me?” And God answered, “Tell him I AM sent you.”
God’s word is final and true. We must believe what he says, including what he says about us.
Often, circumstances we find ourselves in can make it appear that we are at fault. At fault in a situation in our job, at fault in our marriage, at fault in the breech between us and a parent. Whatever our situation is, we must take a close look. We must examine things as fairly and honestly as we can. Yes, we must accept the responsibility if it belongs to us, but too often we take on false blame, false responsibility, believing it is the “Christian thing to do”. After all, Christians are supposed to be loving and tolerant and strong. Right?
I once listened to a woman as she poured her heart out to me. She tearfully told me that she was tired. Physically, mentally, and spiritually. Just simply tired! I understood completely. I’ve been there. (Even got the T-shirt.) But all in the same breath, she voiced that she knew she “should be able to handle things”. I didn’t only hear, but I felt the shame come over her. The shame that comes from believing lies. The shame that nags and jeers at you when you’re so tired you don’t have anything to fight back with. The shame that tells you “you should” care when you can’t. The shame that tells you that you failed. Again. The shame that forces you to look at your unachievable measuring stick goals and not know that they are fiercely and severely unrealistic.
There’s a song that runs through my mind often. Two lines of that song are some of my favorite. Simple, but favorite, in part because they are simple, and because they are true.
“I’VE TASTED AND SEEN OF THE SWEETEST OF LOVES WHERE MY HEART BECOMES FREE AND MY SHAME IS UNDONE.”
When we really get a hold of how much our Heavenly Father really does love us then our hearts do become free and shame can no longer stand. His love undoes shame. Just for grins and giggles I looked up synonyms for “undone.” Interestingly I found these words: “prostrated, dismantled, to deprive of courage or confidence, neutered. God destroys our shame!
We must remember that just because things may look like our fault, that doesn’t make it so. My young grandson loves to do magic tricks. It might seem to me that he is pulling a coin out of his ear, it may look so real, but I know that it is a magic trick and it is not what it appears to be. A good pastor friend of mine put it this way, “Things are not always as they appear.”
There is a popular bumper sticker that reads: “God said it. I believe it. That settles it.” Kind of comical huh? However, it is true. God’s word is true and it is final. How can we argue with what He says? But when we don’t believe what his word says, we are.
Let us look to the scriptures. In Psalm 62 we see these words: “Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved.” We do not have to be moved by our circumstances. He is our defence. He is our attorney. He is representing us. And guess what? He always wins!
Psalm 20:1 says, “The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee.”
2 Samuel 22:2-4 “ And he said, The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; the God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence. I will call on the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.”
There are many scriptures that speak directly to me, but one in particular I consider a vital life line from my God to me. It is what I call my “spiritual umbilical cord.” We find it in 2 Corinthians 12:9. “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.”
I spent many, many years being strong. I learned to handle situations myself, no matter how big or small, without bothering or imposing on anyone else. It caused me to be like a water balloon. I kept being strong, pouring more and more water in, until one day…POP! I remember vividly the day my co-worker carried me out of the building, put me in his car, and took me home. Other co-workers stood by watching and one told me, “you’re going to be okay Debbie. You are a rock.” I realized right then and there that I had been a rock, all my life. And I determined that day that I didn’t want to be a rock any more. In fact, I couldn’t be, because I was done in. I had reached my end. The water balloon popped.
The Lord began to open my eyes to his “sweetest of loves”, and help me to really understand that it was not only “okay” to be weak, it was expected! Why on earth would any of us need a God, a savior, if we could handle everything ourselves? But it is when we can’t that He can! It is when we won’t that He will! It is when I stop trying to handle everything that He can come in and handle it. You see, God is a gentlemen and he won’t pull the wheel out of your hand. He waits until we realize we need Him to drive.
“May the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: may the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, and may you know what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 1:17-20)
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