A Love That's Weathered

February 17, 2023

I'm so grateful for a history with you, Jesus. I'm so glad I took a risk and trusted You - the first time, and every time - and You showed up in glory, better than I could have planned or imagined. And I'm so grateful for the knowledge that this time, and the next time, You'll come through, just like last time.

We cannot rely on someone else's history with the Lord. Trust cannot be transferred. It must be built. In 1 Samuel 17, David, a man after God's own fiery, passionate heart, was clothed in Saul's armor before he faced the Philistine. Saul covered David with a helmet of bronze and a coat of mail, and strapped a sword over his armor. But David could not go into battle with that covering. It was Saul's covering, not David's, and David had not tested it so he could not trust it. So, David stripped it off and instead took his trusty staff, his sling, and his stones. And he sunk one stone into the Philistine's forehead. He slayed the giant with no sword in his hand.

Others may have a prescription, a remedy, or an explanation for what we are facing. I’m grateful for that love. But when all the thoughts are just too many, I surrender everything at the feet of Jesus again. And there, He can work with me again. This stripping of my self-sufficiency has been the longest road, but He is teaching me.

Lord, take me back to the beginning. Take me back to the simplicity of loving You. Obsess my mind and captivate my heart again. Keep me in that place where nothing else matters. I'll keep my eyes fixed on You and set my mind on things above, and I know that You'll come through. It's what You do.