by Ricky Doc Sauceda
I just spent time in quiet repose for reflection and prayer. I was overcome by conviction by the Holy Spirit and He shared something with me. He asked me to share it with you. First, what caused this were two events that touched me to immediately pray...for a girl who attempted suicide and a pastor's wife who is seriously injured after falling off of a horse. I was then told to go and say my morning devotions, so off to my room I went.
Suicide, injury and death can cause us to focus on our humanness: flesh, bone, blood and vulnerabilities. The cause of suicide or the attempt of it is misery and hopelessness. Sudden injuries or deaths can task us in the very same way. These are events that go to the core of your true self...to your foundation.
In the Old Testament there is The Book of Job. This book is quoted here-and-there and Job is recalled as a man who suffered greatly. We always think of him in times of trouble. Greater than his troubles was his firm foundation, core, of his love for God, trust in God, reliance on God and awareness not to give up. He knew God personally and completely and was rewarded for that knowledge and faith.
When we suffer, we may be tempted to say things like,"God doesn't care. God doesn't understand. God is cruel." We can get really critical towards God in troubled times. I too had experienced these feelings at one point in my life or another. I have shared that I now place my trust in God in all times - good and bad.
So, what is the answer? Let me share what the Holy Spirit gave to me this morning:
Job 10:1-7
1 “I loathe my very life;
therefore I will give free rein to my complaint
and speak out in the bitterness of my soul.
2 I say to God: Do not declare me guilty,
but tell me what charges you have against me.
3 Does it please you to oppress me,
to spurn the work of your hands,
while you smile on the plans of the wicked?
4 Do you have eyes of flesh?
Do you see as a mortal sees?
5 Are your days like those of a mortal
or your years like those of a strong man,
6 that you must search out my faults
and probe after my sin--
7 though you know that I am not guilty
and that no one can rescue me from your hand?
Job previews the coming of the Messiah - God born as man into the world. As Jesus Christ, He was humble, patient, loving, and amazing - with the body of a human. All that Job sought answers for were lived out in the life of The Lamb of God. Jesus Christ endured great troubles to do one thing - save us. He is our Savior.
Hebrews 4:14-16
Jesus the Great High Priest
14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
We have a God who has lived as a man and knows exactly what we experience in our lives. More than that, He is ever-watchful over us. Although we may not get the answers we seek at all times, we are loved and treasured by Him.
John 14:11
BELIEVE
Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves.