Circumstances

 

    Recently, my “circumstances”  had me down and out. The God who loves and sees me made sure I was at a specific place in my Experiencing God study by Henry Blackaby. He had already purposed the lesson I was to learn.

    Blackaby says  “A whole lot of wrong things can happen if you try to look at God from the middle of your circumstances.”  In the eye of the storm, we can’t understand what is happening and often can’t find the answers no matter how hard we pray. We can’t move forward in God’s will until we hear God speak. If he is silent, we must continue in the last thing we knew to do. Always prayer & Bible Study. Here is my take on Blackaby’s 7 steps when circumstances are confusing.

·       Decide right now,  before the crisis,  what you believe. Has he ever failed you? Has He always been faithful in every situation? His Word assures us that his love for us is unfailing, that He is for us, and He will never leave or forsake us.

·       Don’t try to figure it out. In a storm, you don’t look up into a whirling wind and measure windspeed and direction. (Meteorologists may but even they run for cover at some point).

·       Pray,  not just for the change in the circumstance, but ask God to give you his eyes to see a purpose in this time.

·       Wait,  the hardest one. Listen for the Spirit to speak to you  in prayer, from His Word and in the voices of His people

·       Follow God’s guidance as you temporarily adjust to the circumstances. Watch to see what he is doing not only in your life but the life of your friends & family. Sometimes the trial is not about you.

·       Do what God says to do. Whatever he tells you, do it and do it immediately.

·       Eventually you will understand His purpose as He works in and through you.

 

My friend, Amy Young,  wrote on her website  “we need to be anchored in Someone outside of our circumstances.”   As for me,  my circumstances lasted three full weeks, a couple of them resolved positively,  a few are still ongoing but less intense. I do not have the answers for why, how, or what the purpose was. I have made some adjustments to my thinking,  hid a few specific scriptures in my heart and planned for the next time Satan attacks in this area. I saw how they affected some loved ones and believe there’s a positive outcome in their lives as a result. That’s what growing in the Lord is all about. Mostly,  I am reassured that I am firmly anchored in Someone, not only outside the circumstances but above them.