Hunkering down

No one promises the Christian life will be easy, but most of us are still surprised when it is not. Believers lose their houses, have financial crises, get sick, and experience a variety of traumas, just like the rest of humanity. 

We sometimes may think our Father in heaven should take better care of us than he does. Ok, maybe you don't, but I admit to getting exasperated with my own "faith is the victory" expectations when the skies don't clear and torrents of stress and strain stream over me.

I remember when "blab and grab" gospels started circulating a few decades ago. The idea was that all you had to do was ask God for something and he was obligated to do it, like a trained street monkey. A lot of Christians were seduced into thinking "faith = magic," so saying "The NAME" would give us automatic access into heaven's treasure storehouses. Bingo, we asked for it, and here it is, a pink Cadillac. (Or rescue from overdrafts, sickness, and discouragement.)

Trouble was, that version of Christianity didn't work. We still got sick and went through rough times. Some people lost their shirts when God didn't show up to rescue them from bad decisions.

Muddling through life, we grow up enough to depend on a God who accompanies us through rather than around most challenges. Everyone has "something" they'd like God's to change. In our family, our daughter's still sick, a source of unending and ongoing grief to my husband and me. No matter how long we pray, God gives her enough strength for the day, but no healing. Oh well.

I've come to the place of simply praying, "Please look on YOUR daughter with favor today." If he will not heal, who can? We take what we are given, even if it's stamina.

Scripture promises good things to those who serve God, but sometimes we hunker down in the midst of a storm to enjoy Presence rather than provision. Most days, that seems like enough.

Read more:

*He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”

Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness nor the plague that destroys at midday. Psalm 91:1-6 NIV

*But the godly will flourish like palm trees and grow strong like the cedars of Lebanon. For they are transplanted to the LORD's own house. They flourish in the courts of our God.
 

Even in old age they will still produce fruit; they will remain vital and green. They will declare, "The LORD is just! He is my rock! There is no evil in him!"Psalm 92:12-15 NLT

*Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thess. 5:16 NIV