Friday, February 10, 2006

The End of the Story


Behold, all those who are angered at you will be shamed and dishonored; those who contend with you will be as nothing and will perish. Isaiah 41:11

Scripture is full of examples when God reveals to us the end of the stories. Once He has declared it, we can rest in its reality. Just as surely as He has written down a victorious ending for his children, He has also recorded the defeat of those who oppose us ~ especially the enemy of our soul.

Satan loves to mock us when the circumstances of our life overwhelm us. A friend of mine shared with me a list of arrows Satan uses to wound and injure us. Allow me to share the arrows and their definitions:

Doubt ~ Makes you question God's Word and His goodnessDiscouragement ~ Makes you look at your problems rather than at GodDiversion ~ Makes the wrong things seem attractive so that you will want them more than the right things
Defeat ~ Makes you feel like a failure so that you don't even tryDelay ~ Makes you put off doing something so that it never gets done


I must admit that doubt, discouragement, and defeat are the arrows he has been attacking me with recently. But God has given me some darts and a shield of my own to use against his tactics. I can now remind him of his own demise.

When it comes to people, this verse shows me the outcome of their attacks. If they walk in emptiness and blindness they may unknowingly be on the attack against me. Even Jesus had many such individuals in His life when He walked on this earth. So did many of the people we read about in Scripture. God will faithfully carry out the "end of the story" for their words and actions. While I joy to show Satan his end, the scenario changes when it comes to people.

I am called upon to pray for them and bless them. To ask that God's goodness and favor be upon their lives. Why? Because God desires to work in them just like He works in me. He is poised and desirous to bring about change in their life. When that happens their words and actions will change.

Father, You have written the end of the story in very dramatic fashion! Continue to be the Author and Finisher of my faith. Amen.

Friendship At Its Best


You are My witnesses, declares the LORD, and My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He. Before me there was no God formed, and there will be none after Me. Isaiah 43:10

Friendships are built on mutual interest in each other. We come across new acquaintances all the time. Some remain merely acquaintances. Conversations remain shallow and deep heart sharing never takes place. Some acquaintances become friendships. You recognize each other in passing, smile, and have brief conversations. Then there are the intimate friendships. You have shared with them parts of your story that few people have heard.

I love making new, deep friendships. I can tell when a friendship moves to that level because I am filled with a desire to really get to know the person. I want to hear their story so I can begin to see how their life was shaped. I want to hear of their blessings as well as their wounds. When I am allowed to see where they have been hurt and what hardships they have been through, and when they see the same revelations about me, there is a closeness and bonding that is experienced. I never feel we know everything about each other. There is the continual desire to just keep knowing them better and to be known better by them.

God is no different. He chooses us so that we can begin to know Him, believe Him, and understand who He really is. The day I opened Scripture and said, "God, show me Your heart," was the day God became a deep Friend rather than a mere acquaintance. He knows me thoroughly and wants me to know Him as well. I want to be passionate about Him. I want to feel each talk we have is like opening a treasure chest of His heart.

Father, may I hunger and thirst after You. Share the secrets of Your heart with me. The best human relationships I have are mere shadows of what I can have with You. Amen.