#163 "Hush"
September 2, 2008
"But the Lord is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him." (Habakkuk 2: 20)
Yesterday I hugged the young mother of a baby who died in his sleep without any explanation. Today, Gustav is wreaking havoc on my southern friends. (I'm praying for you precious "Tuesday's" ladies in Texarcana. May the Lord keep y'all safe in His care.) Better prepared, but devastating nonetheless, New Orleans is suffering once again. Only three years since Katrina. Now this.
A President blamed for not doing enough last time, fights today to do all that he can. Two candidates for his job make promises that they will probably never keep. Today we are uncertain who will be the next leader of the free world, and as gas prices rise and banks fail, our future as a nation seems just as uncertain.
Children in African villages stand in food lines today hoping for a bowl of nutritious soup to keep them strong until they stand in line again tomorrow. Their hungry parents, thankful for the food for their children, are starving themselves. Precious moms are kneeling at the graves of their children in Nicaragua. Children who died from the very thing that their bodies need to sustain life...water. Dirty, contaminated, disease-ridden water.
War in the Middle East. Smells like Cold War with Russia. A madman is ruling Iran and threatening to wipe Israel off of the map. China put on her best show for the world during the Olympics but the persecution of Christians never stopped. I don't mean to be Donna Downer on a Tuesday morning, but you get the picture right?
Closer to home, I am also tender to the "vicissitudes of life" that have hit your own personal world this week. Illness, divorce, financial mess, unfulfilled dreams, devastating losses and debilitating situations. Hearts weighed down with the anxieties of life. That's what Jesus called them in Luke 21: 34.
I have no answers. But I know the One who does. And my heart's desire today is that no matter what your particular pain, no matter what in the world is causing you anxiety and fear....there is One who knows, cares and has every answer that you will ever need. My heart's desire is that I can point you to look full in His wonderful face and rest.
In Habakkuk, Chapter 2, God Himself assures us that He "is in His holy temple". He is right where He always is. He hasn't left. He hasn't gone on vacation. He isn't taking a break. He is in complete control. I know it may not seem that way at times, but "fix your eyes on what is unseen, not on what is seen." (2 Corinthians 4: 18)
In the midst of it all, we can rage and scoff. We can cry and wring our hands. We can worry and be anxious or we can do what God tells us to do. Assuring us that He is where He says He is, He instructs us on our part. "..let all the earth (that's us) be silent before Him". The Hebrew word used here for "silent" means to "hush". Hush and stand in humble silence, expecting God's intervention. "Be still and know that I am God." (Psalm 46: 10)
Sounds too simple? I'm sorry, but it's not complicated. God's Word to you today is "Hush. Be silent before Him. Be still. Have faith." If you think you have to do something, then go to His Word. Don't call your mama. Don't go see your best friend for advice. Don't watch the talk shows. Read His Word. Pray His Word. Have faith in His Word. Let the Sovereign Lord of All make sense out of all the senseless situations that surround you.
Being fully aware and not ignorant of all that is happening on planet Earth, I choose to plant my feet on the firm place my God has given me to stand. He has set my feet on a rock. (Psalm 40: 2) And I'm not moving! If you're looking for me, morning, noon or night, that's where you'll find me standing, with my feet planted on the same place. Won't you join me? There's plenty of room on my Rock. "On Christ the Solid Rock I stand, all other ground is shifting sand."
Max Lucado put it this way: There are days when "Hope is Hindenberged by crisis. You never leave the hospital bed or wheelchair. You wake up in the same prison cell, the cemetery dirt is still fresh, the pink slip still folded in your pocket, the other side of the bed still empty. [There are] divorce days, final-exam days, surgery days, tax days, sending your first-born-off-to-college days. [Might I had: hurricane days, war days, unfulfilled dream days, hunger days, death days] God made this day. He knows the details of each wrenching moment. He isn't on holiday. He still holds the conductor's baton, sits in the cockpit, and occupies the universe's only throne."
My Savior occupies the universe's only throne! I absolutely love that! I don't know about you, but that's good enough for me!
Love,
Donna
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