That Which Held You Down Will Carry You Up... continued
From Why Is This Happening To Me by Rev. Wayne Monbleau
This reminds me of a meditation I once came across that I’d like to share with you. It’s a brief tract called “This Thing Is from Me.” The title comes from the Old Testament, from a verse in First Kings 12. The basic truth this tract expresses is this: If we accept our circumstances, rather than reject or deny them, God is able to bring out precious truths that will immeasurably bless our lives.
This Thing Is from Me by Laura A. Barter Snow
My child, I have a message for you today; let me whisper it in your ear, that it may gild with glory any storm clouds which may arise, and smooth the rough places upon which you may have to tread. It is short, only five words, but let them sink into your innermost soul; use them as a pillow upon which to rest your weary head: “This thing is from Me.”
Have you ever thought of it, that all that concerns you concerns Me too? “For whoever touches you touches the apple of Mine eye.” (Zechariah 2:8). And “You are very precious in My sight” (Isaiah 43:4).
I would have you learn when temptations assail you and the enemy comes in like a flood that “This things is from Me,” that your weakness needs My might, and your safety lies in letting Me fight for you.
Are you in difficult circumstances, surrounded by people who do not understand you? Who never consult your taste? Who put you in the background? “This things is from Me.” I am the God of circumstances. You did not come to this place by accident; it is the very place God meant fr you. Have you not asked to be made humble? See then, I have placed you in the very school where this lesson is taught. Your surroundings and companions are only working out My will.
Are you in money difficulties? Is it hard to make both ends meet? “This thing is from Me,” for I am your provider and would have you draw from and depend upon Me. “My God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19). I would have you prove My promises.
Are you passing through a night of sorrow? This thing is from Me.” Am the the “Man of Sorrows and acquainted with grief.” I have let earthly comforters fail you. Turn to Me so that you may receive everlasting consolation.
Has some friend disappointed you? One to whom you opned your heart? “This thing is from Me.” I have allowed this disappointment to come that you may learn that I am your best friend. I want to be the One you confide in.
Has someone repeated things about you that are note true? “This thing is from Me.” Leave them to Me and draw closer to Me. “The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord; He is their stronghold in time of trouble” (Psalm 37:39).
Have your plans been upset? “This thing is from Me.” You made your plans and then asked Me to bless them; but I would have you let Me plan for you. “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (Jeremiah 29:11).
Have you longed to do some great work for Me and instead have been laid aside on a bed of pain and weakness? “This thing is ifrom Me.” I want to teach you some of My deepest lessons. “They also serve who only stand and wait.” Some of my greatest workers are those shut out from active service that they may learn to wield the weapon of all prayer.
Are you suddenly called upon to occupy a difficult and responsible position? “This thing is from Me.: Trust Me. “Those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31).
This day I place in your heands this pot of holy oil; make use of it freely, My child. Let every circumstance that would crush you, every word that pains you, every revelation of your own weakness be anointed with it. The sting will go as you learn to see Me in all things.
“ will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them” (Isaiah 42:16).
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In this beautiful pamphlet, written, by Laura A. Barter Snow, we once again see that the things that held you down become, in God’s hands, the very things that lift you up and up and up. When you accept His presence and purpose in your circumstances and allow Him to weave them together for your good, then everything changes. Outwardly speaking, nothing may be different. But inwardly, oh, what a difference when we lay aside bitterness and instead embrace the the higher truth that our situation is nothing less than an opportunity for God to minister to us and show us” great and mighty things, which you do not know” (Jer. 33:3).
Let me give you a little background about the Bible verse that inspired “This Thing Is from Me.” Solomon, that great, wise king of Israel, had just died. His hot-headed sons, Rehoboam, ascended the throne in his place. The people of Israel, wanting to establish a good dialogue and relationship with the new king, sent a delegation to Rehoboam saying, “Your father made our yoke hard; now there fore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke which he put on us, and we will serve you” (1 Kings 12:4). Rehoboam consulted with his counselors. He first listened to the elders, who said, “If you will speak kindly to the people, they will be your servants for all your life.” But Rehoboam forsook the counsel of the elders and went instead to his young friends who advocated taking a tough stand with the people of Israel. They recommended telling the people, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions” (v. 14). And so, because Rehoboam disregarded the wise counsel of the elders and spoke harshly to the people, the kingdom became divided. Then tribes defected from Rehoboam to become the norther kingdom of Israel under Jeroboam, while only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin remained loyal to Rehoboam.
Things took an even bleaker turn when Rehoboam decided to go to war against Jeroboam:
“But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying, “Speak to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin and to the rest of the people, saying, “Thus says the Lord, “You must not go up and fight against your relatives the sons of Israel; return every man to his house, for this thing has come from Me.”’” (vv. 23-24)
Fortunately, the people listened to the word of the Lord and returned to their homes instead of killing their fellow countrymen.
| Inwardly, oh, what a difference when we lay aside bitterness and instead embrace the the higher truth that our situation is nothing less than an opportunity for God to minister to us and show us” great and mighty things, which you do not know” (Jer. 33:3). |
When God said, “This things has come from Me,” did He really mean it was His will that the kingdom be divided? Was it His will that Solomon’s son take such an insensitive and egotistical approach to his subjects? This thing was from God? I think it would have been hard for some people to believe it would be God’s will for the kingdom to be divided. And it gets even worse because after this, Jeroboam constructed false idols for the people of Israel to worship. He Was afraid that if they kept on going up to Jerusalem to worship, they would return to Rehoboam. So to sum up, Rehoboam’s harsh stance split the kingdom in two and led the people straight into idolatry. And yet God says, “This thing has come from Me.”
On a certain level this statement just cannot make any sense because the thing that supposedly came from God violated a number of His own commandments in the process. But I don’t think God made Rehoboam act the way he did. I don’t think it was God’s perfect will that the kingdom be divided and that the people be led into idol worship. I believe the meaning of God’s word was this: What has happened has happened. We can’t change the past. But if you will be willing to accept this circumstance as being from Me, then we can change the future.”
Perhaps you’re looking at your own life and painfully viewing some circumstance that has come upon you. Maybe your marriage is going down the tubes fast, and you so desperately want to have a Christian marriage. Yet the more you try, the worse it gets. Could it be that this thing is from the Lord? Maybe you’re in some financial difficulty. You might have launched out into some venture, trusting God, and it has fallen flat. Could it be that this thing is from the Lord? Maybe you are in some physically limiting situation. Could it be that this thing is from the Lord? If you will humbly receive the truth that “this thing is from Me,” I believe you will soon realize that God wants the very things that held you down to carry you up and up and up.
I’m not saying this as some kind of green light for you to sow a path of destruction and then glibly say, “This thing is from the Lord.” This truth is nt an excuse for us to go and do our own thing. We need to remember another important principle in our lives: We reap what we sow.
However if you do find yourself in some disabling situation, I believe there is real power in this word. Instead of developing a bitter, hard-hearted attitude against God, your spouse, a business partner, your handicap or anything else, if you will “keep your eyes on the light” and accept this thing as being from the Lord, you will then be able to see God within you, working these circumstances together for your own personal good. Instead of being overcome with anger, you can be overcome with God’s healing touch on your heart. You can say, “God is in this thing. It’s me He wants to work on me - not the other person.” Then you will see the shackles falling off and the circumstances that held you down will begin to lift you up - up into God’s redeeming love and up into a positive, affirming attitude toward life. You’ll be free of the illusion of your limitations, and you’ll fly upward into the realm of God’s power working all things together for good for you. This, indeed, is a truth that sets you free.
Dumbo could have kept looking at his ears and said, “Ah, no. It’s always been a problem and it’s always going to be a problem.” If he had done that, he never would have been able to fly above his circumstances. If he had let the opinions and words of others define who he was or what he could do, he would have remained stuck forever, lamenting his disability. Do you see what I’m getting at?
| If you will humbly receive the truth that “this thing is from Me,” I believe you will soon realize that God wants the very things that held you down to carry you up and up and up. |
You may be looking at your own problem and thinking, “It’s always been a problem and it’s always going to be a problem. Nothing’s ever going to change. I’m never going to be able to do what God wants me to do.” If that’s your belief, then most likely that will be your reality, But do you know what? If you’ll stare your problem straight in the eye and say, “The thing that held me down is going to carry me up. My God is bigger than my circumstance,” then everything will change because you will have changed the way you look at the situation. I encourage you to let even your most difficult circumstance, no matter how far down it has dragged you, be used by our gracious Lord to lift you up. Through your difficulties, He can anoint and empower you as a wounded healer.
You may even have left God and walked straight into some sin, knowing exactly what you were doing. Perhaps you were eagerly anticipating some pleasure, only to realize afterward just how much you really blew it. Even if this is the case, I encourage you to say, “This thing is from the Lord.” It doesn’t mean God made you sin. It just means there’s something greater than your sin in your circumstances that God wants to produce in you for your healing and for His glory.
No matter where you’ve been or what you’ve done, and no matter what has happened to you, there is a higher level of understanding and a higher spiritual law at work. When you are willing to humbly place the totality of your life in the hands of God, accepting whatever circumstances you’re in as being a gift from Him, then you’ll begin to rise up on eagles’ wings. Instead of being bitter, negative, scapegoating and defeated, let God show you that in His hands your situation uniquely qualifies you for a special mercy and minstry He will give you. You will be able to se your wounds becoming avenues of God’s divine healing, blessing and restoration in others’ lives as well as your own. No matter how long you’ve been down, I encourage you to rise up now in the compassion of our own Wounded Healer, Jesus Christ, and watch as the very things that held you down carry you up and up and up.
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