It is over six months that I started this journey on my blog. And this past month I hit a bend in the road. It seemed like I was going nowhere - like the journey had somehow stopped abruptly.
My husband, the most solid dependable person in my life, had been hit by a strange malady (for want of a better word). The doctors had no answers. I did the only thing that I know to do best, or so I thought - I prayed without ceasing. God showed us His power and grace by healing him and I rejoiced, but after a few days it came back. This is when I found myself at that bend. I pleaded with God, questioned Him, wept, bargained, made promises...Nothing happened and the bend seemed a dead end.
The road got hard and bumpy. It seemed like the joy had left our home.
This is when I began to take a hard look at my faith. How do I respond when God does not answer my prayers the way I want them? Why is it so much easier to say He is good when things are going my way?
When I realised that I was running out of steam trying to move ahead and getting nowhere, I went back to the only place that gives me comfort - God's Word. Instead of questioning I decided to listen. I took a careful look at people who had hit those bends in their lives. The biggest example was Job. Could a life have got worse? Job did not know if he was going to live or die - he actually wanted to die. But he stayed faithful to God and trusted Him regardless of the outcome. In chapter 23:10 he says: "But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold."
This is a test and I want to come forth as gold too. I once heard a preacher say that when we get to the bend in the road, we must lean inward to keep our equilibrium. So this where I am now - the malady has not gone, but I am bracing myself, leaning inward and clinging to My Lord - one of these days the road will get smooth again. This is not the end...
Where can we go
to find the strength
To valiantly
keep on trying?
Where can we find
the hand that will dry
The tears that the heart
is crying?
There's but one place to go
and that is to God,
And dropping
all pretense and pride,
We can pour out our problems
without restraint
And gain strength
with Him at our side.
And together we stand
at life's crossroads
And view what we think
is the end,
But God
has a much bigger vision,
And He tells us
it's only a bend.
For the road goes on
and is smoother,
And the pause
in the song is a rest,
And the part that's unsung
and unfinished
Is the sweetest
and richest and best.
So rest and relax
and grow stronger ...
Let go and let God
share your load.
Your work is not finished
or ended ...
You've just come
to a bend in the road.
--Helen Steiner Rice
My husband, the most solid dependable person in my life, had been hit by a strange malady (for want of a better word). The doctors had no answers. I did the only thing that I know to do best, or so I thought - I prayed without ceasing. God showed us His power and grace by healing him and I rejoiced, but after a few days it came back. This is when I found myself at that bend. I pleaded with God, questioned Him, wept, bargained, made promises...Nothing happened and the bend seemed a dead end.
The road got hard and bumpy. It seemed like the joy had left our home.
This is when I began to take a hard look at my faith. How do I respond when God does not answer my prayers the way I want them? Why is it so much easier to say He is good when things are going my way?
When I realised that I was running out of steam trying to move ahead and getting nowhere, I went back to the only place that gives me comfort - God's Word. Instead of questioning I decided to listen. I took a careful look at people who had hit those bends in their lives. The biggest example was Job. Could a life have got worse? Job did not know if he was going to live or die - he actually wanted to die. But he stayed faithful to God and trusted Him regardless of the outcome. In chapter 23:10 he says: "But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold."
This is a test and I want to come forth as gold too. I once heard a preacher say that when we get to the bend in the road, we must lean inward to keep our equilibrium. So this where I am now - the malady has not gone, but I am bracing myself, leaning inward and clinging to My Lord - one of these days the road will get smooth again. This is not the end...
A Bend in the Road
When we feel
we have nothing left to give
And we are sure
that the song has ended,
When our day seems over
and the shadows fall
And the darkness of night
has descended.
we have nothing left to give
And we are sure
that the song has ended,
When our day seems over
and the shadows fall
And the darkness of night
has descended.
Where can we go
to find the strength
To valiantly
keep on trying?
Where can we find
the hand that will dry
The tears that the heart
is crying?
There's but one place to go
and that is to God,
And dropping
all pretense and pride,
We can pour out our problems
without restraint
And gain strength
with Him at our side.
And together we stand
at life's crossroads
And view what we think
is the end,
But God
has a much bigger vision,
And He tells us
it's only a bend.
For the road goes on
and is smoother,
And the pause
in the song is a rest,
And the part that's unsung
and unfinished
Is the sweetest
and richest and best.
So rest and relax
and grow stronger ...
Let go and let God
share your load.
Your work is not finished
or ended ...
You've just come
to a bend in the road.
--Helen Steiner Rice
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