радуйтесь всегда в Господе и ещё говорю- радуйтесь.Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
Philippians 4:4
For the last several weeks, this verse has been running through my mind non-stop...literally, non-stop. When I stop hearing it in English, it begins again in Russian. And oh, how relevant it is to my life, to each of our lives, at each moment, in every circumstance, in the tears, the laughter, the pain, the joy, the weaknesses, and the strengths...we are to rejoice, always. In the russian "rejoice" or "радуйтесь" is an imperfective imperative, a repetitive, unending command. We are to always rejoice, regardless of the outer circumstances of our lives, we are to rejoice. And this command follows with the charge, "Do not be anxious about anything. (v. 6)" But, how can we possibly do this when the life that is ours seems to overwhelm and nearly suffocate? We can do this because of the object of our rejoicing...We are to rejoice in the Lord, not in the circumstances, not in the emotions, not in the people, not in the moments, but in the Lord...the One who never changes, never forsakes, the One who is always redeeming, always loving, the One who has already won the Victory, the One upon whom we will never be shaken...this is the object of our rejoicing! I want to know my God so intimately that all I can do is stand in reverent awe and rejoice.
A book I was reading this week put two common emotions in my life into perspective:
Worry implies that we don't quite trust that God is big enough, powerful enough, or loving enough to take care of what's happening in our lives. Stress says that the things we are involved in are important enough to merit our impatience, our lack of grace toward others, or our tight grip of control.
I think of David and Paul, men who were pursued, nearly killed, hated, men who fell prey to sin, and yet, men who understood the magnitude of who God is and were left praising Him. I read through Psalm 34 this week and was struck by the zealous heart of David, he was a man of One thing, a man of God...He wrote this Psalm in reflection on the time he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him away, allowing David to escape the hands of death. Rather than pleading with God for the chase to end, rather than pleading with God to bring him pleasure and comfort in his daily life, David chose to rejoice. He chose to rejoice because he knew God. And because he knew God, he knew that the only thing he could do was rejoice. This is what David writes after being nearly killed:
I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips. My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt his name together. I sought the LORD, and he answered me, he delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame...Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him...the LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crused in spirit...
Though I may be brokenhearted and crushed in spirit, I will rejoice! For, the Lord is good, the Lord delivers, the Lord is our refuge, we have nothing to fear! We cannot, and will not, be shaken if we are built on God! Let us rejoice! I pray that this summer, when the circumstances are painful, difficult, frustrating, heartbreaking, or annoying, I pray that my eyes will be fixed above and that I may be able to rejoice, for the sole reason that God is ever faithful and never changing.
A quote from my devotional:
Jesus Christ is not my securty against the storms of life, but He is my perfect security in the storms. He has never promised me an easy passage, only a safe landing.
This week I was sent a series of texts from a very wise man (my father, who also shares my name, Harry the Duck) and they go a little something like this: (I pray you are as encouraged by them as I am)
I pray that through this time of testing you will know that God's plan is perfect, God's will is sovereign, that God and God alone is the giver and sustainer of life, and that peace comes only from God and from God alone.
The Lord is my shepherd so I shall want nothing more. His goodness and mercy pursues me all the days of my life as a lion does her prey. So even when (not if) I walk through the valley of deepest despair, I shall fear nothing for He is with me.
This is the day that the Lord has made, let us be glad and rejoice in it. This is not a conditional statement. We are to rejoice in what the Lord has made whether we feel like it or not.
The flesh says with Frederick the Great, "God is on teh side of the strongest battalions," but the Spirit says, "Stand still and see your salvation (1 Cor. 2:14)" "In quietness and in trust shall be your strength." Isaiah 30:15
Just as Edom in Isaiah 34 represents the nations in general, the desert in Is. 35 represents the total world...trusting in the nations results in a desert, trusting in God results in a garden. "Joy and gladness will overtake them; sorrow and sighing will flee away." Is. 35:10
Another passage I read this week that has been a daily encouragement:
"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name, you are mine. When you pass through waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior...Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life. Do not be afraid, for I am with you..." Is. 43:1-5
Key points that have stuck with me from this passage...The Lord does not say If you pass through waters, rivers, and fire, He says when. So when we pass through waters, rivers, and fire, because we will, we can rest secure because He will be with us, the weight of this world will not sweep over us, and we will not be consumed, for we are His. This is the God we serve, the God who redeems out of His great love for us, the God who will be with us even as we walk through the valley of deepest darkness, He will walk with us and not let us be consumed...This is our God...Let us rejoice!