The day which I dreaded had arrived. With deep pains in my heart, I reluctantly entered into the apartment where the unfolding of my marriage had previously taken place. It was only four to five months into our marriage when my wife sat me down on the couch in the living area to confess that not only was she having an adulterous affair, but felt a love for another man. I was oblivious to the whole affair, caught blindsided to the whole event.
I was left reeling from the hurt, attempting to make sense of the whole situation. My dream for starting a family and having a successful marriage ended tragically.
I went into the apartment expecting a flood of hurtful feelings. Instead, I discovered hope and found faith rising in my spirit by the day’s end. The furniture had been removed from the apartment the day before, so cleaning was left to do before I could move out. In the midst of the cleaning and mulling over all the events which had previously played out while living in the apartment, I began to meditate and speak out loud the two scriptures the Lord had placed on my heart.
The first scripture was Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not harm you. Plans to offer you a hope and a future.” The second verse is found in Isaiah 43:18-19, “Forget the former things, do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up, do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.”
The task of cleaning the apartment which began with a sense of heaviness, ended with joys of praise and worship. I praised God for His goodness as I scrubbed, sang worship songs as I mopped the floors, and believed the Lord for the truthfulness that those two scriptures would be played out in my life from that day forward.
Over the next two years, I personally experienced the deliverance of the Lord, taking me from the lowest season of my life to restoring my finances and my personal aspirations. The Lord opened doors for me to jump start my career back into the financial field. My younger brother and I were able to live together and bond for some time, and the Lord brought a beautiful woman my way who is now my current wife. My dream of having a family was restored when Kristie and I married, and now we have two vibrant sons.
Having experienced the Lord’s deliverance and restoration, I came to know God in a new way. I had known Him as my Savior back in college, and experienced Him as Provider some years back when I was in a financial bind, now this was a fresh revelation of His character.
In the life of each and every believer, there are two levels of knowledge of the Lord Jesus. The first level involves coming to know the ways, attributes, and character of God through learning and reading. This comes from meditating on God’s Word and hearing about the Lord from sound, biblical preaching. A young Christian first learns from the Bible that God is compassionate, merciful, and comforting to those who may be hurting.
The second level of knowledge comes from personal experience. Experiencing the Lord’s healing in a troublesome situation, watching the Lord supply provision at a time in need, sensing the Lord’s strength and enablement to endure a hardship, and even knowing His comfort at times of loss. I have often wondered if too much emphasis on God as only a Savior is prevalent in modern churches. Accepting the Lord Jesus as Savior should only be the beginning of a faith walk in experiencing the different revelations of God’s character.
In the Old Testament, God the Father revealed Himself to the Israelites as Jehovah, or Yahweh, the transcendent, self-existent God. Over the span of the Israelite’s history, the Israelites came to experience Jehovah in numerous new ways. With each experience, Jehovah revealed a new name or an attribute previously unknown to the Israelites. They experienced Jehovah as Jehovah-Jireh, the Lord who provides; Jehovah-Rapha, the Lord who heals; Jehovah-Nissi, the Lord my banner; Jehovah-Mekaddishkem, the Lord who sanctifies; Jehovah-Shalom, the Lord is peace; Jehovah-Sabaoth, the Lord of Hosts; Jehovah-Rohi, the Lord is my shepherd; Jehovah-Tsidkenu, the Lord our righteousness; and Jehovah-Shammah, the Lord is there.
Unfortunately for us, experiencing the Lord in a new manner is often achieved whenever we encounter hard and trying times. In order to personally know the Lord also as Provider, we often times have to be in a difficult, uncomfortable position where there is a need for God’s provision. In order to know the Lord as Healer, we must be in a place of pain in our lives. In order to know the Lord as Shepherd, we must be in a position of uncertainty and confusion in our lives, needing His guidance.
The truth is that it is in hardships and difficulties that God meets us, and we come to know Him in a personal way, which was previously unknown. This deepens our love and trust in Him. It also gives merit to our testimonies of the goodness of God in our lives, and grows our faith in His faithfulness. I know firsthand that God is good; I just have to spend time with my family to be reminded of that truth.
May we personally come to know the goodness of God in ways previously unknown as we apply the Word of God to our life experiences.
I was left reeling from the hurt, attempting to make sense of the whole situation. My dream for starting a family and having a successful marriage ended tragically.
I went into the apartment expecting a flood of hurtful feelings. Instead, I discovered hope and found faith rising in my spirit by the day’s end. The furniture had been removed from the apartment the day before, so cleaning was left to do before I could move out. In the midst of the cleaning and mulling over all the events which had previously played out while living in the apartment, I began to meditate and speak out loud the two scriptures the Lord had placed on my heart.
The first scripture was Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not harm you. Plans to offer you a hope and a future.” The second verse is found in Isaiah 43:18-19, “Forget the former things, do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up, do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.”
The task of cleaning the apartment which began with a sense of heaviness, ended with joys of praise and worship. I praised God for His goodness as I scrubbed, sang worship songs as I mopped the floors, and believed the Lord for the truthfulness that those two scriptures would be played out in my life from that day forward.
Over the next two years, I personally experienced the deliverance of the Lord, taking me from the lowest season of my life to restoring my finances and my personal aspirations. The Lord opened doors for me to jump start my career back into the financial field. My younger brother and I were able to live together and bond for some time, and the Lord brought a beautiful woman my way who is now my current wife. My dream of having a family was restored when Kristie and I married, and now we have two vibrant sons.
Having experienced the Lord’s deliverance and restoration, I came to know God in a new way. I had known Him as my Savior back in college, and experienced Him as Provider some years back when I was in a financial bind, now this was a fresh revelation of His character.
In the life of each and every believer, there are two levels of knowledge of the Lord Jesus. The first level involves coming to know the ways, attributes, and character of God through learning and reading. This comes from meditating on God’s Word and hearing about the Lord from sound, biblical preaching. A young Christian first learns from the Bible that God is compassionate, merciful, and comforting to those who may be hurting.
The second level of knowledge comes from personal experience. Experiencing the Lord’s healing in a troublesome situation, watching the Lord supply provision at a time in need, sensing the Lord’s strength and enablement to endure a hardship, and even knowing His comfort at times of loss. I have often wondered if too much emphasis on God as only a Savior is prevalent in modern churches. Accepting the Lord Jesus as Savior should only be the beginning of a faith walk in experiencing the different revelations of God’s character.
In the Old Testament, God the Father revealed Himself to the Israelites as Jehovah, or Yahweh, the transcendent, self-existent God. Over the span of the Israelite’s history, the Israelites came to experience Jehovah in numerous new ways. With each experience, Jehovah revealed a new name or an attribute previously unknown to the Israelites. They experienced Jehovah as Jehovah-Jireh, the Lord who provides; Jehovah-Rapha, the Lord who heals; Jehovah-Nissi, the Lord my banner; Jehovah-Mekaddishkem, the Lord who sanctifies; Jehovah-Shalom, the Lord is peace; Jehovah-Sabaoth, the Lord of Hosts; Jehovah-Rohi, the Lord is my shepherd; Jehovah-Tsidkenu, the Lord our righteousness; and Jehovah-Shammah, the Lord is there.
Unfortunately for us, experiencing the Lord in a new manner is often achieved whenever we encounter hard and trying times. In order to personally know the Lord also as Provider, we often times have to be in a difficult, uncomfortable position where there is a need for God’s provision. In order to know the Lord as Healer, we must be in a place of pain in our lives. In order to know the Lord as Shepherd, we must be in a position of uncertainty and confusion in our lives, needing His guidance.
The truth is that it is in hardships and difficulties that God meets us, and we come to know Him in a personal way, which was previously unknown. This deepens our love and trust in Him. It also gives merit to our testimonies of the goodness of God in our lives, and grows our faith in His faithfulness. I know firsthand that God is good; I just have to spend time with my family to be reminded of that truth.
May we personally come to know the goodness of God in ways previously unknown as we apply the Word of God to our life experiences.
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