My Journey 7/9/2010

God's insight to me:

Todays devotional was very moving for me. I am always praying for peace, in my family lives, my friends lives and even in my life. As I read Chuck Swindoll's devotional I thought, "Now here is a great servant to the Lord and look what he is experiencing". A word that stood out was "anger" in what he was experiencing. I remember reading the scripture verse, Ecclesiastes 7:9, Do not be hasty in your spirit to be angry; for anger rests in the bosom of fools. I read this just prior to reading Mr. Swindoll's devotional. Then I thought is the Bible calling a great preacher like Chuck Swindoll a fool? Then as I read further in his devotional he states how he tried everything he could, reading God's Word and also spending time in prayer but nothing helped. I thought to myself, if a man of God like Chuck Swindoll can go through times without peace in his life, what about those that maybe are not walking closely with the Lord as him, or maybe doesn't know the Lord at all? Wow! Well, the answer for me I understand is what Charles Spurgeon wrote, "The lesson of wisdom is, be not dismayed by soul-trouble." I also loved this quote of Spurgeon's, "Be content to be nothing, for that is what you are." As for me I love how it is written in God's Word, 1Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace which was toward me has not been without fruit, but I labored more abundantly than all of them; yet not I, but the grace of God with me.

The Rivers of Grief

The rivers of grief can run so deep,
it’s waters are so icy cold.
We wait and wait for relief,
and for some comfort to behold.

Hour by hour, day by day,
when will our sorrows end?
Grief’s currents are so very strong,
not giving way for family or friends.

Then within all my struggles,
God’s voice became so crystal clear.
He said, “Do not be discouraged child of Mine,
but look for a lesson to be learned here.

See grief will come and grief will go,
it’s all just a matter of time.
Look for the wisdom that lies within,
remember it’s not in your time but Mine.”

E. P. Shagott
7/10/2010

From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott

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July 9

Deep Grief
by Charles R. Swindoll

1 Corinthians 10:11-13

The past couple of weeks have been some of the toughest of my life. My emotions have spanned the spectrum: shock, sorrow, horror, intense anger, disillusionment, disappointment, and utter bewilderment. I have prayed—without much benefit. I have read the Scriptures from the Psalms and Proverbs to the words of Jesus and various sections of the letters from Paul, Peter, James—without much peace.

I feel like Job, who admitted, "If I speak, my pain is not lessened, And if I hold back, what has left me? . . . He has exhausted me. . . . My spirit is broken" (Job 16:6-7; 17:1).

It occurred to me around 4:20 this morning that perhaps the late, great Spurgeon might have understood my grief better than any other when he wrote over a century ago in his Lectures to My Students, in a chapter entitled "The Minister's Fainting Fits":

Who can bear the weight of souls without sometimes sinking to the dust? . . . To see the hopeful turn aside, the godly grow cold, professors [and pastors] abusing their privileges, and sinners waxing more bold in sin---are not these sights enough to crush us to the earth? . . .

The lesson of wisdom is, be not dismayed by soul-trouble. Count it no strange thing, but a part of ordinary ministerial experience. . . . Live by the day, by the hour. . . . Be not surprised when men fail you; it is a failing world. . . . Be content to be nothing, for that is what you are.

No longer should we be saying that "perilous times will come." They have arrived, fellow pilgrim; they are now. And we must face them head-on, doing whatever is necessary to stand firm.

As Carl Henry wrote so eloquently in Twilight of a Great Civilization:

We may even now live in the half generation before all hell breaks loose, and if its fury is contained we will be remembered, if we are remembered at all, as those who used their hands and hearts and minds and very bodies to plug the dikes against impending doom.

The secret of standing in treacherous times is being willing to "take heed"
lest we also fall.