A familiar song came on LifeSongs as I was out running
recently. “No Matter What” by Kerrie Roberts struck a chord as I heard these
words:
Before a heartache can ever touch my life,
It has to go through Your hands…
No matter what I’m gonna love You
No matter what I’m gonna need You
I know You can find a way to keep me
from the pain
But if not, I still trust You
No matter what, no matter what.
I began reflecting on what that looks like as our loving
heavenly Father processes what He will allow to touch our lives and what He shields
us from. As a parent, I have a limited understanding of what will help my kids
in the long run, even if difficult for a season, and what might crush their
spirits.
In the book Trusting
God, author Sharon Jaynes tells the story of a woman who asked a silversmith if
it was true that he had to sit in front of the fire the whole time the silver
was being refined. “Oh yes!” he replied. “I cannot take my eyes off the silver.
If it is left in the furnace even a moment too long, it will be destroyed.” The
woman suddenly understood the beauty and comfort of Malachi 3:3: “He will sit
as a refiner and purifier of silver.”
Jaynes goes on to note “there are times when it seems as if
we will be swallowed whole by the fires of hell itself. The pain seems too hard
to bear. The fear is paralyzing. The doubt is overwhelming, and the questions
flood our hearts and minds... Our trials are not random persecutions. Heaven is
not in a panic. Where we are and what we are going through is no surprise to
God. We may be knocked down and kicked around by life, but if we have a
personal relationship with Jesus Christ, we will not be destroyed.”
I’m not looking for any future opportunities to be tested on
my comprehension of this amazing promise. I have enough to look back on and see
how it’s worked in the past, even when I questioned His presence in, His
purpose of, and His rescue through the difficult parts of the journey. However,
even though I’m not looking for them, I know the opportunities will arise …
that’s just the way of life outside of heaven.
In the meantime, I’m stockpiling ‘life-preserving’ truth to
cling to in the midst of the inevitable storms and sharing them with fellow
travelers who may have hit a pothole or mack truck in their current journey.
We’ve got to be ready … no matter what.
NOTE: if you're not familiar with the song and can handle a hokey you-tube video presentation of it, check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OA3MSqufJP4.
