Monday, January 6, 2014

It only takes a second for your life to completely change!

Funny thing how God does this sometimes. I'll be reading a passage from the Old Testament and then one from the New and He shows me the connection between the two. It's normally something I would have never considered without His wise instruction.

Remember the story of Joseph in the Old Testament. He was sold into slavery by his jealous brothers, ended up being falsely accused of rape and tossed into prison in Egypt. For 13 years!!  I don't know about you but I'd be wondering where God was all that time. I might even be a tad bit angry at God. I might even lose my faith! But not Joseph. God had given him the ability to interpret dreams and when he interpreted Pharaoh's dream, Joseph was escorted from the dungeons of Egypt to the palace. He became a prince and the most powerful man in the realm, aside from Pharoah.  In ONE day!!   Talk about culture shock.

Then Pharaoh took his signet ring off his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand; and he clothed him in garments of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. And he had him ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried out before him, “Bow the knee!” So he set him over all the land of Egypt.   Genesis 41:42-43

Then I turned to the story in Luke where Jesus crosses the Sea of Galilee and enters the land of the Gadarens where a man who was possessed by over a thousand demons met him. When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me!”   
Jesus promptly casts all the man's demons out into a herd of pigs. The townspeople gathered around.
Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid.

The gospel of Mark describes this man as such:  he had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains,  because he had often been bound with shackles and chains. And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone
tame him. And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones.

Both stories speak of a man in prison. In the first, Joseph was tormented in a real prison, in the second, the man was tormented by a host of demons who would not give him rest day or night. 

Both men were lifted from the prison to the palace in ONE SECOND.   What really struck me about this was the following:  You may feel like you're in a prison right now. Perhaps it's a prison of pain, of ill health, of no money, of lost loved ones, of broken relationships, of loneliness, misery, hopelessness....whatever it is, God can lift you up out of in in one flash!  When the time is right, usually when all seems lost, God can show up HUGE!

I've seen this happen multiple times in my own life. In fact, I'll be bold to say that God often works in this way. Quickly and Magnificently! When you least expect it. If you've been faithful like Joseph, but even if you haven't like the demon possessed man. Yet, if you fall at God's feet in worship, don't be surprised if He doesn't shake your world!

So, don't despair in the hard times. Hang in there. Hold onto your faith and onto Hope. For God is faithful. He loves you and He has not forgotten you.

5 comments:

  1. Ahhhh ... a sweet message to my soul. Thanks for sharing this. A beautiful insight to these stories, one that I haven't yet seen. I love it though. "... lifted from the prison to the palace in one second ..." - fantastic! :)

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  2. I think a huge issue in our church culture is taking the Gospel, and changing so it is more like the American Dream, morality, and throw in a pinch of Jesus. With that mix, we assume that being a Christian equals be good and your life will be blessed. You will have money, good health, lots of friends, a loving family…whatever it is you wish for, it will be yours! And then when it doesn’t turn out that way, you automatically fall into despair, wondering what you have done wrong, and often thinking you don’t deserve it. However, this world is fallen. We are a fallen people. Crap happens. We are told it will happen. But, we are also told that this isn’t it. You don’t just have to suffer through this fallen world and then die. No matter how terrible things are here, for us Christians, we know there is more. And, even if our lives as bad as they possibly could be (which I do not believe any of us could claim this…even if we sometimes think it), we have Christ and we have His forgiveness that was bought for us. Christ suffered for us. Instead of trying to figure out the mind of God, because we never will anyway, we need to focus on what He has already revealed to is through His word. Namely, that He is merciful, and all those who come to Him in faith will be received. As you said, God hasn't forgotten any of us, for He sent Christ to die for the sins of the world!

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  3. Beautiful!! I read this in email yesterday & was very touched. I needed to hear this, too. Thank you for being faithful to share these powerful messages to us! Even though we may not comment--we ARE reading them & they are ministering to us. :-) We all need to be constantly reminded--especially using the powerful Word of God that does not return to Him void--of what a mighty, wise, intentional, great God we have. Everything He allows us to go through is already worked out in His mind of how it will benefit us for good, and at the right time (if we hold fast to Him), He will change our lives in a second! So uplifting...thank you!

    Lora

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  4. Wed Jan 8th --
    "Morning, MaryLu."
    Amen, and, Amen to all that you shared ! Thank-you for the great reminders, and another timely word in due season.
    Take care, and, God Bless, In Him, Brenda

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