Following God off a cliff . . .

Have you ever felt like you have followed God closely, and then you find yourself in a situation that you can hardly believe? I have. I seem to live in such situations. I'm not talking about a little discomfort, I am talking about full-on devastation. How could God allow something like this to happen to me? If you haven't said it, I have. Does God really allow those who follow Him to be hurt? The simple answer is: yes. I know that isn't pleasant to hear, but it's true. Listen to the words of the apostle Peter, "Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you." The opposite side of that coin is this: Fiery trials that come upon you to test you, are perfectly normal. Why? Because, if you are not careful, especially as a Christ-follower, you can sit in the same place for decades; never growing, never learning or getting any closer to God. Sometimes, God allows us to be sifted; beaten, broken, and winnowed so that the chaff of our existence can be blown away.

That is why a devastating test is not to be counted as a strange thing. Dear one, if I haven't answered the question can it happen, well enough: it can and will happen. It happens, not to leave us broken, but so that we can be made whole. Let me tell you, loved one, this is not easy stuff, but I want to share with you something from Roy Underhill. He writes in his one of his book about making half-blind dovetails, which will be Greek to you, unless you have an understanding of fine furniture or of the cabinet makers trade. After he explains in detail how to make them, he describes the process as crossing a mountain and then peering in to the valley of cabinet makers. So the point of it all is this, a hack that can cobble together a bookshelf, cannot make half-blind dovetails, but a skilled cabinet maker can. You see, these things are only produced by those who have a great degree of skill with the tools of their trade. Decidedly difficult, hard to accomplish, but anyone who sees them instantly recognizes the mark of craftsmanship. Listen to me, loved ones, we have way too many saints cobbling together orange crate book shelves, and we are in desperate want of those who can build a case and fit it with a half-blind dovetailed drawer.

I hope that you get, that I am saying that we are lacking Christians who are mature in their faith, skilled in the Word and able to pass what they have learned on to others. It is only through those most difficult situations, that literally drive you to your knees, that you learn to completely rely on God. Those trials that hit you will all the subtlety of a bomb going off, that make you cry from you heart and send you looking for answers, drive you to God's word to look for them. It is not in any way an absence of God's faithfulness; it is the pinnacle of His faithfulness. Charles Stanley said in a sermon once, "I've never seen God do anything with a comfortable Christian." He's right! God, who loves you perfectly, will allow pain into your life, because He loves you, and He doesn't have any intention of leaving you the way that you started off. He wants you to move on to maturity. Listen, dear souls, it is absolutely necessary that you grow to maturity, and if you haven't recognized that, then it is time that you start. More coming, dear ones.