"...As for me, I [will] seek God, and to
God I [will] commit my cause- Who does
great
things, and unsearchable, marvelous things without
number. He gives rain on
the
earth, and sends waters on the fields. He sets on high those who are lowly, and
those
who mourn are
lifted to safety. He frustrates the devices of the crafty, so
that their hands cannot carry out their plans. He catches the wise in their own
craftiness,
and the counsel
of the cunning comes quickly upon them.
They meet with
darkness
in the daytime, and grope
at noontime as in the night. But
He saves the
needy
from the sword, from the mouth
of the mighty, and from their hand. So
the poor
have hope, and injustice shuts her
mouth. Behold, happy is the man who
God corrects:
Therefore do not despise the chastening of the Almighty. For He bruises, but He
binds
up;
He wounds, but His hands make whole. He shall deliver you in six troubles, yes,
in
seven no evil
shall touch you. In famine He
shall redeem you from death, and in
war
from the power of the
sword. You shall be hidden from the
scourge of the tongue,
and you shall not be afraid of destruction
when it comes. You shall laugh at
destruction and famine, and you shall not be afraid of the beasts of the earth.
For you shall have a covenant with the stones
of the field, and the beasts of the field
Shall be at peace with you. You shall know that your [home] is in peace;
You shall visit
your
dwelling and find nothing amiss.
You shall also know that your descendants shall
be
many, and your offspring like
the grass of the earth. You shall come
to the grave
at full age, as a sheaf of grain ripens in
its season. Behold, this we
have searched
out;
It is true. Hear it, and
know for yourself" (Job 5:8-27).
I searched
for the heart of the Lord
tonight, and this I found: He is my marvelous
Master. I prayed, "Lord, show me
Yourself in words I find so hard to amplify", and He
led me to ole Job. Though I may
be far from relating to the pain
and suffering Job
experienced,
I can be one with fellow
feeling. To avoid voicing the many
troubles of
times past.
I have this to hope ...that my God is faithful. He was faithful then,
and
He is faithful now, and He has promised to be faithful tomorrow, for He
is, "Jesus
Christ,
the same yesterday, today, and forever" (Hebrews 13:6). So you
may say there
is
much pain in the world, much suffering, many sorrows,
and even death, and you are
right,
so there is.
But, allow me to reveal a mystery, a mystery which holds true
in
any circumstance. God has
developed a divine order of victorious goodness, regard-
less
of whatever calamity,
good never, ever fails to prevail. Though the reigning
goodness
may be disguised, it is present, and it dominates the evil every
time. For
because
of my human weakness, I often question what good could possibly come
out of
this
or that, and He reminds roe to
remember. He tells me to,
"Remember His marvelous
works
which He has done. His wonders.." (I Chronicles 16:12a). Even David nurtured
himself
upon remembrance, he
said, "I remember the days of old; I meditate on all
Your
works; I muse on the work of Your hands, I spread out my hands to You;
My soul
longs
for You like a thirsty land" (Psalms 143:5&6). So even amidst the pain and
sorrows
this life brings,
I have the glorious faith to stretch forth my hands and
heart
unto my marvelous
Master in Heaven and cry, "My God, bring my weary soul unto
remembrance, remind my soul that Thou art God, and You are an awesome force of
ultimate
power, and
Your hand will not fail me* I And so He does. And so I find great
peace,
in fact an inexpressible, perfect peace, of which I
sweetly adore. For, "You
will
keep him in
perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he
trusts in
You"
(Isaiah 2613). And
though I am in the midst of God's correction, I bear
it
with
a sincere joy.
Yes, I am a prisoner, and surrounding roe are four relentless
walls,
but "happy is
the man whom God corrects"! Thus I, "Remember my affliction
and
roaming, the wormwood
and the gall.
My soul still remembers and sinks within
me. This I recall to my mind, therefore I
have hope. Through the Lord's mercies
we
are not consumed,
because His compassions fail not.
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, says my soul,
therefore I hope
in Him!
The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks
Him. ...Why
should a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his
sins?" (Lam. 3:19-25, 39).
I shall not
complain, I shall rejoice in
what is to come and until it comes, I
will
continue to place
the goodness of my Master in remembrance,
always. For the
devil
and his demons
will do their worst to fill your
mind with taunting lies, but
rebuke their lies, and "be strong in the
grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the
things
that
you have heard
from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who
will
be able to
teach others also.
You therefore must endure hardship as a
good
soldier
of Jesus Christ" (II Timothy 2:1-3). And above all, always "being confident
of
this very thing,
that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until
the
day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6). Therefore I will be strong in the Lord,
and
in the power of His might, and I will strongly trust in His
magnificence. For
indeed He is my Master, though far more. He
is my marvelous Master.
Onto His
glory, forever and ever and ever,
Jeffrey Brackett Quante IV
January 7, 2001