The Lord has been faithful to me in such a fresh way this week. He has exposed me, all of my faults, expectations, and insufficiency. I feel so naked before Him. Being exposed is very uncomfortable. Knowing that someone can see all of you– skin, bones, scars, heart, shame, secrets, fantasies, thoughts, desires, fears, and dreams– is unsettling to say the least. But here, in this state of exposure, the Lord is doing a work in me from the inside out. He is revealing to me the depth of my need for Him. He is showing me my true condition, and it is not pretty. But it’s necessary. I need to put to death all confidence in my flesh, so that I can have confidence in God alone. In order to do this, however, I had to know about it first. So the Lord, in this extreme discomfort, is actually being faithful to me in a very rich and loving way. He’s showing me my sin so that I can come to Him and seek healing. There is a verse in the book of 1 Thessalonians which touches on this point: “Faithful is He who calls you, who also will do it” (1 The 5:24). When this verse says, “who also will do it,” it means that He will provide us with all that we need in Himself for that which He has called us. In this case, it is exposure that leads to deeper dependence on Him. Another verse that explains this experience is in Philippians: “Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun in you a good work will complete it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil 1:6). The Lord is faithful to see His every endeavor to it’s proper end. He is faithful to build us, His church, into a mature bride!
I appreciate the wisdom of the Lord. His way of building His church is remarkable. May He continue these works. May He reveal His wisdom to all, may He grant understanding. May He expose and kill the sin in all of us that he may full us with His all sufficient grace and beauty. Grow in grace, my friends. This is the day of the Lord, seek Him while He may be found!
Ashley's Adventures 