6/10/14

“GOD MEANT IT UNTO GOOD” (Gen. 50:20).

“God meant it unto good”—O blest assurance,
Falling like sunshine all across life’s way,
Touching with Heaven’s gold earth’s darkest storm clouds,
Bringing fresh peace and comfort day by day.

’Twas not by chance the hands of faithless brethren
Sold Joseph captive to a foreign land;
Nor was it chance which, after years of suffering,
Brought him before the monarch’s throne to stand.

One Eye all-seeing saw the need of thousands,
And planned to meet it through that one lone soul;
And through the weary days of prison bondage
Was working towards the great and glorious goal.

As yet the end was hidden from the captive,
The iron entered even to his soul;
His eye could scan the present path of sorrow,
Not yet his gaze might rest upon the whole.

Faith failed not through those long, dark days of waiting,
His trust in God was recompensed at last,
The moment came when God led forth his servant
To succour many, all his sufferings past.

“It was not you but God, that sent me hither,”
Witnessed triumphant faith in after days;
“God meant it unto good,” no “second causes”
Mingled their discord with his song of praise.

“God means it unto good” for thee, beloved,
The God of Joseph is the same today;
His love permits afflictions strange and bitter,
His hand is guiding through the unknown way.

Thy Lord, who sees the end from the beginning,
Hath purposes for thee of love untold.
Then place thy hand in His and follow fearless,
Till thou the riches of His grace behold.

There, when thou standest in the Home of Glory,
And all life’s path ties open to thy gaze,
Thine eyes shall see the hand which now thou trustest,
And magnify His love through endless days.
—Freda Hanbury Allen

     This devotion seems to be the cry of my heart these days. As I read this, I was reminded and promised of what is to come and the Glory my eyes will one day behold. With every sentence, the Lord whispered a new sweet promise to my heart. Each word a drop of fresh water to a weary soul. 

     The first promise I was reminded of was that God IS working. As the author so wonderfully put it, "All things "work’—they are working; not all things have worked, or shall work; but it is a present operation." I do not have to sit around and wait and hope that God will show up. He has shown up. He IS here and He IS at work regardless of what my faltering heart tells me.

     Second, our life has set sail on a Divine course once we decide to hope and trust in Jesus. That Divine course always sails towards glory and God is the one who provides the winds. No steering of our own can change it's direction and God has already mapped out every twist, turn, detour, and ultimately, our destination. My prayer upon realizing this second truth is that God would teach me how to follow. I pray that He would help me take my efforts off of trying to steer and map, and that i would simply sail. Lord, help me to be obedient because no amount of my own beating against this ship will cause me to change its course.

Lastly, His love permits. 

But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?” Romans 9:20

     We simply aren't looking at the same picture as our molder, therefore, we should stop deceiving ourselves into thinking we are. The Lord sees from beginning to end. Therefore, if the Lord permits, perhaps, just perhaps, it is because he has walked the same road, is looking at the road, and knows the road that we are to walk. 

     His love permits. This means that everything, joyful, sorrowful, and everything in between has been filtered through love. To be honest, I can't fully understand this but what I do know is that the afflictions we experience are not merely inconveniences, they are holy sorrows and divinely constructed in love. 

Lord, help us to grasp your hand and fearlessly follow, trusting that when we open our eyes we will behold a place that we have never seen before... A place that we have only heard about in Your Word. A place that although our bodies have never been, our soul knows we are home. Lord, I pray that we would be content with obedience on the journey and that we would sing all the way home, a song so sweet that others would learn the words and sing with us. Thank you for these promises that I know you will and are working for our good.