Make a Difference This Summer
Three ways you can help Superbook share the Gospel with more children
‘You have searched me, Lord,
and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.’
(Psalm 139:1-3, NIV, emphasis added)
We all have our funny little ways, don’t we?
Sometimes it’s those little habits that we don’t really talk about.
Sometimes it’s habits that others have noticed and have called us out on.
And sometimes it’s a tendency of our nature and character that we can’t seem to – or even want to – change.
I’m sure you can think of one even as we speak.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
All of these little idiosyncrasies and ‘quirks’ that we possess are entirely familiar to our God.
He is not surprised by one of them.
Other language for the word ‘familiar’ is to see and know.
Friends, we are seen and we are known by the One who created us.
My reason for pointing out this truth is to encourage someone today.
I believe that many of us have at least one situation in our lives where we are wrestling with the Lord for breakthrough. It is the nature of life for all things to not always go our way, and so we pray and we petition and we wrestle with God until we see resolution…don’t we?
Whatever your situation is, please know that God is familiar with the circumstance and the way that you are trying to handle it. He sees it and knows all about it.
Psalm 139 is all about the intimate awareness God has of His people. We cannot ever escape the presence of God. He is in all and through all and sees the end all the way from the beginning.
He is familiar with all of our ways.
Because God is familiar with our ways and our difficult circumstances, what are we to do when we don’t see answers to the prayers we are lifting up to His throne of grace?
I believe strongly that there is purpose in our difficult circumstances and that, because God sees the end from the beginning, He may even be using the issues we face to shape us into the people He created us to be all along.
Does He delight to see us struggle? No.
But God is more concerned with our holiness than our happiness!
He may not orchestrate uncomfortable circumstances, but He can certainly use them to make us more Christlike.
How does that make you feel to read that?
Angry?
Insecure?
Powerless?
Whatever you feel after reading that, sit with it for a while and allow the tension to form a prayer.
If you are angry that God has not answered your prayer in one way or another yet – tell Him!
If you feel insecure about your future because you have not yet received your answer – tell Him!
If not having your petition met with a resounding ‘yes’ or even a clear ‘no’ makes you feel powerless – tell Him!
God is big enough to handle our human emotions and the authenticity you present to Him in not sugar coating your prayers or hiding your real feelings may be the key to the breakthrough you have been seeking all along.
God sees and knows us. He is familiar with all of our ways.
So, tell him what is really going on with you.
He knows anyway.
