Monday, August 24, 2020
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable. Isaiah 40:28.
A Reminder That Bears Repeating
I am tired, weary, and overwhelmed. This year has been emotionally exhausting. We have been on edge for months now and it is taking a toll on a lot of us. Worry, stress, and the physical reaction we have to living in crisis mode is taxing! It is not about not having faith. It is just a normal human reaction to tense up when things go crazy. It can be hard to breathe and even cause anxiety. This not a judgement on anyone. This is the real deal about how many of us are feeling and have been feeling for months.
The verse above is a powerful reminder of a God that is capable for everything and in every way. Do you not know? Have you not heard? Or maybe it could read like this:
Remember - you know this already. Don’t react like you have never heard that your God is faithful, capable, and never grows weary. He is in control when the world is not. He is good when life is not. He can carry us and sustain through all things because He is God and He never grows weary or tired. He can hold it all for us because we can’t. For that I am eternally grateful because my arms and my heart are aching from the weight.
It is funny how fast we forget when we are faced with adversity and trials. We have heard it before, some of us our whole lives, yet in an instant we can panic and our faith goes to nothing. We hear the pastor preach it, the Sunday school and Bible Study leaders teach it, and we even speak it on a regular basis, to others, our children and ourselves. But when the time comes to really believe it; sometimes it is just downright hard.
Part of the problem is that we often react to life rather than respond. Our emotions seem to take over and our reasoning ability goes out the window, especially when it is one thing after another (i.e. 2020). It is human instinct to react, and often irrationally, when things go crazy, when the unexpected happens, or the dreaded expected thing really does happen after all. In that moment it is so hard to remember that the Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth has everything under control. Everything feels so out of control but that is not the truth. Our perception is nowhere near His reality.
The Power of Release
Cleaning out closets, cabinets, and drawers and throwing stuff away is such an empowering and freeing feeling. I have had those moments in regard to my faith in God too. Releasing a burden into the hands of the one meant to carry it is a relief! There is so much power in just handing it over to God who does not become weary or tired, especially when we are so very tired by the “stuff” we carry. Not only can He carry it for us, but He works it out for our good. He loves us and has our best interest in mind and He is exponentially better at problem solving than we are.
It is hard for us to trust Him sometimes. It is so hard to release all my “stuff” into His hands. It is easy to throw my hands up in the air and cry and fall apart. He understands that too and He waits patiently for me to stop and release it to Him. Yes, the Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth loves us and wishes to take our burdens from us. He is waiting with inscrutable understanding, and with an action plan to make all things work together for good. He is the almighty King of Kings and Lord of Lords, who has invited us to hand our troubles and burdens over to Him. He created us, and in doing so, He did not make us capable to handle everything in life on our own. He created us to need Him. He longs for us to seek Him. He is the only one capable to handle our burdens and He, even being the creator of the universe, tells us to let Him have it.
Stop trying to carry it all on your own. Lay it in the hands of a God who truly is the only one who has control over anything.
And we know that God causes all things to
work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according
to His purpose. Romans 8:28
