Devotions

The Old Testament is filled with accounts of the wonderful blessings that came to those who walked in God’s presence.

God’s presence was so evident in Abraham’s life that even the heathen around him recognized the difference between their lives and his: “Abimelech . . . spake unto Abraham, saying, God is with thee in all that thou doest” (Genesis 21:22). This heathen king was saying, “There’s something different about you, Abraham. God is with you wherever you go.”

God promised Joshua that no enemy could stand against him when His presence was with him: “There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Be strong and of a good courage” (Joshua 1:5–6). When God’s Spirit is present with us, we can be strong and courageous because we trust His promises.

God told Isaiah of a special promise He makes to those He loves: “Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. For I am the Lord thy God . . . and I have loved thee. . . . Fear not: for I am with thee” (Isaiah 43:1–5, my italics).

With God’s presence abiding in you, you can go through any fire, and you won’t just survive but will be kept and protected through it all.

These Old Testament accounts aren’t mere stories. They are meant to encourage us to trust God for His presence in our own lives.

“But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

If Jesus Christ is your Lord, He has commanded the light of His loving-kindness to shine in your soul.

This glory of Christ — this tender loving-kindness that shines in our hearts as we pray and search His Word — changes us, “from glory to glory,” into the likeness of Christ. And the revelation of love, compassion and caring we receive from Him must shine out of us to others.

This revelation is increased daily within us “by the Spirit of the Lord.” Indeed, it is the Holy Spirit who leads us into the glory of Christ. The Spirit shines in us and changes us through every circumstance. Finally, He shows us how to shine His caring, loving-kindness to others who are in need.

I ask you: What are your present circumstances doing to you and in you? Is there a sweetness of Christ shining out of you? Do you ask the Holy Spirit to give you eyes to see the pains and needs of others? That is the changing that Paul says takes place in us by the Spirit of God.

Only those who are at rest in the perfect will of God can trust that “all things are working together for good” in the worst of circumstances. So, dear saint, lift up your head and testify to yourself, to heaven and to your circumstances: “I am living in the perfect will of God, come what may.” 

“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:17–18).

Paul is telling us, “Get your eyes off your troubles. Don’t focus on the things that are coming upon the earth because they are all going to pass away. Your problems mean nothing in light of the eternal glory awaiting the people of God. After one moment in paradise with Him you won’t remember any of it!”

It is written of Christ, “For the joy that was set before him [He] endured the cross, despising the shame” (Hebrews 12:2). Jesus Himself said, “When you see these things coming, look up and rejoice! It all means your day of redemption is at hand” (see Luke 21:28).

According to Paul, when darkness and uncertainty are closing in, God commands a marvelous light to shine in our hearts.

Paul is speaking here of a glorious manifestation of the knowledge of the glory of Christ that comes to us in our trials:

“For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6). Paul is describing nothing less than a fresh revelation of the glory of God in the person of Christ.

When Paul received this revelation, he was in prison and penniless. Even though he subsisted on lowly prison food, he was made alive by the fresh revelation of the glory of Christ he received daily.

We Christians struggle so hard to find the will of God for our lives. And then once we believe we’ve found His will, we labor hard to see it fulfilled.

I am convinced this struggle to find God’s will — to live in it, walk in it and see its fulfillment — can become our greatest battle. And the battle intensifies whenever we find ourselves in dire circumstances.

Many Christians simply cannot accept where they are right now. Their lives are burdened down by serious problems. For some, the burden is a lingering sickness. For others it is an unsaved loved one. And now for increasing numbers, the battle is a financial crisis. Very few Christians accept that such burdens could possibly be a part of God’s perfect will for their lives.

As a preacher of the gospel, I know that all sustaining faith and hope must have a foundational truth upon which to grow. What is this foundational truth? Simply this: I must know and believe I am in God’s perfect will — right now, right where I am, in this present time and place.

Simply put, no matter the condition I find myself in — whether I’m rich or poor, sick or healthy, in prison or free — I am to believe I’m in the center of God’s perfect will for my life. I embrace that my steps have been ordered of the Lord.

I personally identify with Paul: “In whatever state I find myself, I am content” (see Philippians 4:11).

I thank God for the example of Paul. This faithful apostle knew how to abound in blessings and yet also rejoice in times of adversity. No matter his outward condition, no matter how pressing his circumstances, Paul always knew he was in the center of God’s perfect will.

There are times in life when things look very bleak but we can say to God, “I’m putting all my faith in You because while my situation looks hopeless, with You nothing is impossible” (see Luke 18:27).

In Mark 5 we read that Jesus was on His way to the home of a man named Jairus and a large crowd was following Him.

“A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding. She had suffered a great deal from many doctors, and over the years she had spent everything she had to pay them, but she had gotten no better. In fact, she had gotten worse. She had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind him through the crowd and touched his robe” (Mark 5:25-27, NLT).

The King James Version said she touched the hem of His garment. And even though her condition was getting worse, she thought to herself, “If I can just touch His robe, I will be healed” (verse 28).

Her faith was saying, “I can do this” and then, “Jesus will do the other part.” She was looking at the impossible and affirming that Jesus could do it.

I love this woman’s faith. She had no reason to have faith because nothing she had done had worked. But she finally got hold of this one last hope, this one last desire. She said to herself, “I will touch just the hem of His garment. I will grab hold of Jesus!”

She maneuvered her way through the crowd and touched the hem of His garment — and “immediately the bleeding stopped, and she could feel in her body that she had been healed of her terrible condition” (Mark 5:29).