"I pray with great faith for you, because I’m fully convinced that the One who began this glorious work in you will faithfully continue the process of maturing you and will put his finishing touches to it until the unveiling of our Lord Jesus Christ!" Philippians 1:6 (The Passion Translation) I've had an old worship song stuck in my head all day, "He who began a good work in you, will be faithful to complete it. Will be faithful to complete it. He who started a work will be faithful to complete it in you." Have you been there lately? Looking at your circumstances and they don't quite match up with what you know God has promised you, or what you know to be true? I have too. Although this is true, that I may have not seen every promise God has planted in my heart come to pass, it's what I do in the waiting and trusting that makes a difference. I can tell you, I know what it is to wait for a promise to come to pass for about 31 years, before seeing it happen. That was long, and were there times I complained during that time? Yes! And God would remind me of his faithfulness. Ultimately, before I saw it come to pass God brought me to the point of surrender and total trust. I let go and trusted that He knew what He was doing and He was able to complete it, without me trying to help out in the process. There are still promises I wait for, and it feels different this time. Isn't it funny how even though we learn how to trust and let go there are still areas that God is working on to trust Him more? He is completely trustworthy and He is just so in love with us! His desire is for our good, always. One day, back in maybe 2011, I was in a quiet place and my heart was just yearning to be face to face with the Lord, just be with Him. I was also thinking about how I'd missed so many times that I could have spent knowing Him and listening, and I was a little frustrated with myself. In fact, I was beginning to think I'd missed a lot. As these thoughts swirled around a while suddenly the Lord spoke to my heart. He said, "Don't you think that I'm able to complete you?" Wow, what a question!! I knew the answer was yes, and I suddenly realized that I'd been questioning His ability to complete me, and the whole process of my journey with Him, all of it. He knows just what we need for each step, and He is the workman that changes our hearts, and He even draws us to Him to know Him. Suddenly, I began to realize that all our "efforts" to grow are really us "trying" to do what He does. My job is to rest in Him, which isn't always easy either, and TRUST that He's working things out in my heart. He's drawing me closer to himself and He's all about completing everything He began. He will never give up, and He is consistent and faithful. It's a good time to let go, and believe for whatever He's put on your heart. He'll bring it to completion at just the right time. "Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you." Jeremiah 32:17 (NIV) Misty L. Chladek |
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