The Other Side

Everything We Need, https://youtu.be/C8fTEyGe0M8?si=yMplHZb_bcJuIDg0

“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life
through our knowledge of him who called us
by his own glory and goodness.”
~2 Peter 1:3~

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,
for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.
And let steadfastness have its full effect,
that you may be perfect and complete,
lacking in nothing.”
~James 1:2-4~

 “I just live,” said Winkle serenely.
“Living is dirty work, but I like it.”
~The Rosemary Tree, p. 208, by Elizabeth Goudge~

We can be confident that God works out the details of our lives, even when we are encountering upheaval, ill health, or a season of drought. He truly gives us everything we need in that moment if we would but fix our eyes on Him instead of obsessing over our hardship. In 2 Kings 8, we revisit a woman whose son had been restored to life by Elisha. Having been instructed to escape the hardships of famine, this woman returned to her land, given the time frame Elisha had advised; however, her home and land had been taken over, so she appealed to the king, who had just inquired after the “great things Elisha” had done.

“Just as Gehazi was telling the king how Elisha had restored the dead to life, the woman whose son Elisha had brought back to life came to appeal to the king for her house and land. Gehazi said, ‘This is the woman, my lord and king, and this is her son whom Elisha restored to life.’ …Then [the king] assigned an official to her case and said to him, ‘Give back everything that belonged to her, including all the income from her land from the day she left the country until now.’”

 No sooner had she appeared before the king that not only was her land and home restored to her, but also the wages from her land were back paid. The other side of the famine held great blessing. The point is that He has a plan for you. He has a place for you. He is working out His purposes in your life. Behind the scenes, just beyond the veil of what is seen, He is working out the details and causing them to come together at the right time, in the right place. It is what happens in the meantime while we are still getting to the other side that He works out in us and forms in us great treasure, wisdom, and maturity.

 The tensions, the heartaches, the famines—all these disruptions—are what actually cause us to be formed and molded more into Christ’s image. We are his image bearers, and if we allow Christ’s image to be formed in us as we walk through the trials, we will find a pearl of great price. This, too, is how pearls are formed. An irritant—the trial, hardship, loss, grievance—disrupts our flow, our sphere, our lifestyle. The pearl, however, has a secret weapon:  layer by layer, it produces this beautiful substance we know as mother-of-pearl. The larger the pearl, the greater the value. The greater the value, the longer the maturation process. Our weapon is the Holy Spirit, who has truly given us “everything we need for life and godliness.”

 For the Shunamite woman who lost her son, her faith found her running after Elisha until she saw her son restored to her. Later, her faith found her appearing before the king, who returned to her home and land, plus compensation from the seven years of famine and loss. The seven long years of living as a foreigner may have been difficult. She was probably homesick, and she most likely had to reign in her worry over what she had left behind or the finances she was unable to collect on. It was most likely filled with inconveniences and difficulties, but I like to think she was allowing the “dirt” of her situation—the irritants—form within her a pearl of great value.

 In like manner, I pray that however great the irritants, messy situations, and trials in your life right now, that you believe “His divine power has given you everything you need” in this moment, in the middle of the mess, in the middle of the famine, to work something of “great value” that you may be “perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”

 “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten…
You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,
and you will praise the name of the Lord your God, who has worked wonders for you.”
~Joel 2:25-26~

 “God has raised them up in their places of influence,
but that’s not the hardest time to give him praise.
Gates are formed in irritation; they’re formed in loss.
If I don’t know how to handle disappointment—
if I can’t navigate these times of disappointment,
then I can’t really be fully trusted with fulfilled promises and gain
like I was designed for.
If I can’t navigate my heart in loss,
then I can’t be trusted with the measure of increase I was designed for.
 If I can’t navigate my heart in the midst of criticism,
I can’t be trusted with praise.
 If I can’t navigate my heart in the midst of betrayal,
I can’t be trusted with the level of loyal friends that God designed for me.”
~Bill Johnson, “Overcoming Grief, Loss, and Disappointment~