Sweet Redemption

…lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.

—Luke 21:28b (KJV)

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…even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.

—Romans 8:23b (KJV)

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And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.

—Revelation 14:3

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The cross is evidence that in the hands of the Redeemer, moments of apparent defeat become wonderful moments of grace and victory.

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Consider the cross of Jesus Christ. Could it be possible for something to happen that was more terrible than this? Could any injustice be greater? Could any loss be more painful? Could any suffering be worse? The only man who ever lived a life that was perfect in every way possible, who gave his life for the sake of many, and who willingly suffered from birth to death in loyalty to his calling was cruelly and publicly murdered in the most vicious of ways.

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This moment of sadness welcomed us to eternal joy of heart and life.

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The same God who planned that the worst thing would be the best thing is your Father. He rules over every moment in your life, and in powerful grace, He is able to do for you just what He did in redemptive history. He takes the disasters in your life and makes them tools of redemption. He takes your failure and employs it as a tool of grace. He uses the “death” of the fallen world to motivate you to reach out for life. The hardest things in your life become the sweetest tools of grace in His and loving hands.

So be careful how you make sense of your life. What looks like a disaster may in fact be grace. What looks like the end may be the beginning. What looks hopeless may be God’s instrument to give you real and lasting hope.

— March 31st - New Morning Mercies (Paul Tripp)

Beloved? (gentle)

When we’re tempted to despair, lose hope…when we consider all near and dear to us to be lost: let us, Together, remember Him—His way.

We are God’s children now, beloved. And, although what we will be, has not yet appeared, we know that when He appears we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is.

I’ve been pondering this quite a bit lately. I’ve been mulling over, chewing on each and every Word, as if each morsel was my very last to be had.

“What we will be has not yet appeared.” — what great comfort this is! For, what we see with these eyes and feel with this heart, here and now, is…lacking, yes? Aye. We truly live in the “already, not yet” do we not, beloved? We already hold, by faith, everything we could ever wish for, everything we could imagine. Furthermore, we have in abundance what we cannot even imagine. Even the hidden desires of our hearts are satisfied in Jesus. For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things, yes? And yet, they are not fully realized, not yet.

But, we live as those with hope, beloved! Not only because we know that when He appears we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is, but Him going before us…His sacrifice, His atoning Love, His compassion, and mercy, and grace…is the testimony, the proof that He can and will, and has redeemed all things! Yes? (gentle) Even though we may be surrounded by darkness, perceived hopelessness, sadness, sorrow, grief—heartache. He isn’t finished yet. Not quite yet. We’ll see. We’ll see Him as He is, one Day. And then…THEN we’ll be like Him. Aye. We’re not like Him now, beloved. (sigh)

But we know He can and will redeem all things. What is impossible with man is possible with God. What we thought was lost, can, and will be found one Day. Put your trust in God, O, my soul. Wherefore else can you go? Wither to will thou goest?

Stop. (gentle) Hush. Be at peace, beloved. Rest in Him.

All is well—truly.

I Love You, My Little Girl.

“Do you know that your daddy loves you?”
”Yes, I know my daddy loves me.”
”Is your daddy mean and bad to you?”
”No, you don’t like to be mean.”
”Is your daddy a horrible, bad daddy?”
”No.”
”Then listen to what daddy is going to say, I would like to tell you why I had to say ‘no’ to what you wanted to do, but I can’t. If I explained it to you, you wouldn’t understand anyway, so here’s what you need to do. You need to walk down the hallway and say to yourself, ‘‘I don’t know why daddy said no to me, but I know my daddy loves me and I’m going to trust my daddy.’ I really do love you.”
”I love you too.”

—March 26th - New Morning Mercies (Paul Tripp)

My Soul Waits for God Alone

For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from Him.
He only is my rock and salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
On God rests my salvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, my refuge is God.

– Psalm 62: 5-7 (ESV)

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For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

– 2 Corinthians 5:1–10 (ESV)

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Your rest is not to be found in figuring your life out,
but in trusting the One who has it all figured out for your good and His glory.

– January 2 - New Morning Mercies (Paul Tripp)

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Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. – Isaiah 45:22

God teaches his people every day, by sickness, by affliction, by depression of spirits, by the forsakings of God, by the loss of the Spirit for a season, by the lackings of the joys of his countenance, that he is God, and that beside him there is none else. And we must not forget that there are some special servants of God raised up to do good works, who in a peculiar manner have to learn this lesson.

– “Sovereignty And Salvation“ - The New Park Street Pulpit Vol 2 pg. 52 (C.H. Spurgeon)

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Continue steadfastly in prayer. – Colossians 4:2

It is interesting to consider how large a portion of the Bible is occupied with the subject of prayer, either in furnishing examples, enforcing precepts, or pronouncing promises. We scarcely open the Bible before we read, “People began to call upon the name of the Lord;” and just as we are about to close the volume, the “Amen” of an earnest supplication meets our ear. Instances are plentiful.

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We have multitudes of commands, and myriads of promises. What does this teach us, but the sacred importance and necessity of prayer? We may be certain that whatever God has made prominent in His Word, He intended to be conspicuous in our lives. If He has said much about prayer, it is because He knows we have much need of it. So deep are our necessities that until we are in heaven we must not cease to pray.

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Prayer is the lisping of the believing infant, the shout of the fighting believer, the requiem of the dying saint falling asleep in Jesus. It is the breath, the watchword, the comfort, the strength, the honor of a Christian. If you are a child of God, you will seek your Father’s face and live in your Father’s love. Pray that this year you may be holy, humble, zealous, and patient; have closer communion with Christ, and enter more often into the banqueting-house of His love. Pray that you may be an example and a blessing to others, and that you may live more to the glory of your Master. The motto for this year must be, “Continue…in prayer.”

– Morning and Evening: January 2 (Spurgeon)

O, beloved soul,

Myriads upon myriads of disturbances press their way into your consciousness - disappointments, fears, concerns, wants…

Some feelings, you cannot define - not successfully.

O, weary soul, call upon Christ Jesus to forbid entry. These distractions are not welcome here.

Quiet your heart. Be still, please. Hey now. There, there.

These feelings…do not lend your ear to them, beloved! Don’t let them take root. Deny them hospitality, even though you wish to pity them.

You are already occupied. His Spirit dwells within you! There’s no room for such annoyances. No, thank you.

Oh! You lack understanding? What is it to you? What could you possibly gain with such knowledge? You have already taken hold of the truth: you are God’s beloved child.

Beloved, we are God's children now. (1 John 3:2a)

Oh! You pity yourself? What is there to pity, beloved? You lack no good thing.

The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing. (Psalm 34:10 NIV)

Oh! You doubt His goodness? O, beloved. He is good.

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him! (Psalm 34:8)

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you, in the sight of the children of mankind! (Psalm 31:19)

You are good and do good; teach me your statutes. (Psalm 119:68)

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! (Psalm 107:1)

The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him. (Nahum 1:7)

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29:11)

For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you. (Psalm 86:5)

Praise the Lord! Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! (Psalm 106:1)

For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. (Psalm 100:5)

…keep reading, beloved, God’s Word. There are SO many more examples, if you would have them.

Trust in Him. Lean upon Him. May He be your rock, your refuge, your fortress. There is no other. He is God.

Finally, pray. Pour your heart out to Him, beloved. Continually. Fervently. Passionately. You pray to a living God! He hears your every word. He knows your every thought. You are safe with Him, beloved. He desperately loves you. Now, love Him! Wait upon Him, patiently, gladly. When storms come, when disappointments and hurts make your heart ache, press all the more earnestly into His pierced hands. They held Him on the cross for you. His hands are gentle, strong, and loving. Some Day, you will feel His hands placed upon your skin with words of comfort and joy. Those hands, that held Him there…they haven’t forgotten you. Remember, beloved the words of Isaiah 54:7,8:

For a brief moment I deserted you, but with great compassion I will gather you. In overflowing anger for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the LORD, your Redeemer.

Go in peace.

What Then Shall We Say?

If God went to such lengths as to control the events of the world and to sacrifice His one and only Son, would it make any sense at all for Him to abandon you between the “already” of your justification and the “not yet” of your final glorification? Would it make any sense for Him to turn His back on you now? Would it make any sense for Him to ignore you in your hour of need? Would you expend a great amount of personal effort and sacrifice to secure something of value and then not work to keep, maintain, and protect it?

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“If He freely gave us Jesus, doesn’t it make sense that He will also give us everything that we need?”

– Romans 8:31-33

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So don’t let any evil enemy whisper lies into your ear. Don’t let him tell you that you are alone, that you’re left to your own resources, or that God doesn’t hear or care. Don’t let yourself doubt God’s presence and His goodness. Don’t let yourself wonder if you’ll make it through. God unleashed His power to make you His own, and He will continue to unleash His power to keep and protect you until you are with Him forever in that place where you will need His protection no more because the final enemy will be under HIs feet.

– December 9 - New Morning Mercies (Paul Tripp)

O, beloved! We are so very quick to forget, yes? To forget His steadfast, ceaseless love. We get all caught up in the intense emotions of our circumstances, and we lose sight of His love.

Methinks this is partly because we’re blind, dim-witted sheep, eh? Aye. Indeed.

And so, we fumble about in darkness. We put far too much stock in our pathetic senses and wit. Therefore, beloved, let us ponder anew what He has already done for us, shall we? Don’t you remember?

My fuzzy mind, it faintly recalls a desperate time, indeed. A time when we had altogether gone astray. Yes. Oh my, what a fretful time it was!

O, beloved, we were lost; helpless, forlorn, miserable. But then, o, beloved (said reverently)…but then! We were found!

So, what then shall we say?

What? You think He went through all that trouble so as to now leave us here all alone? Pish posh.

Oh, and I suppose you, perhaps, think He’s forgotten? Uh-huh. Right. (said ever so skeptically) Just like you “forget” your love of self?
“Oh, where has my beloved gone?”
“Oh, beloved, you cannot be found?!”

What!? No. You’re ridiculous - you despicable creature. You really are dim-witted.

If you, as dim-witted as you most surely are, cannot seem to forget your beloved soul, how can your Shepherd King?

“How about regret?” - says he.

Oh, sure. Of course. That makes perfect sense. (said with a heavy sigh) You think He, the Omnipotent, Omniscient, all-powerful God, infinitely Sovereign, the One called Love, could have regret after doing anything? Dim-witted, you are, indeed.

O, my tender-hearted beloved (said compassionately). You have trouble understanding, because…it’s so very sweet, yes? Because it’s so very lovely, it’s hard to imagine it can be true, yes? But, oh, dear child of God, it is true. Verily so! It’s most definitively true beyond comprehension.

You can keep trying, beloved, to materialize some excuse, some reason, some explanation…to convince yourself, but it’s to no avail.

Rest, little one. Rest your heart now. There, there. You are secure. You are safe. You may not feel as such, but you are. Aye, safer than you could ever imagine.

And so, once more, what shall we say to all of these things? All of these concerns? All of these doubts?

“Good riddance!” Yes, that'll do.

Now, take heart, O my soul!

He loved you; He loves you still; He will most definitely always love you.

Have no fear, beloved.