He Restores My Soul

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One of the reasons I don't post daily is that some days aren't that pretty. I have had some days where if I posted my thoughts, people might have just cause to question my Christianity. Yet a discussion I had with a good friend recently made me realize perhaps I missed it.

I love the words of this bumper sticker I saw that said "Christians aren't perfect. Just forgiven." (I may have posted that once before). But it's so true. There is none among us that is perfect. I think humans, in general, suffer from the tendency to judge. We judge everyone, including ourselves. We won't acknowledge our judgment of others but are quick to point out when someone is judging us. I read Romans 2:1 and was thoroughly convicted of this truth. It says: "You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things."(NIV) We could all use a good dose of humility and objectivity.

But I digress.

So much has happened over recent months and at the end of it all I can say thank You Jesus. I have been confused, terribly stressed and at times depressed. But the Lord is still good and faithful. He never leaves my side no matter how angry and frustrated I get. I find great comfort in that. I love being a born-again believer in Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior because I know He has my back. Sometimes I may not perceive His work on my behalf, but He never fails me, leaves me or forsakes me. That is He will always get it right and I can trust Him, He won’t leave me alone and He won’t turn His back on me. I can honestly say I have gone through some very dark days when I couldn't say I heard from God. But I recently got this revelation of the word in Psalm 23 I know so well.

It talks about how when I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil because He is with me. In a lot of ways I have been walking through that valley. But He said His rod and staff comfort me. That rod and staff are indicative of His presence. Often times when we pass through this dark valley we don't always perceive His presence. But that rod and staff are a comfort because they remind us that He is with us. Through it all. Recently there have been days when I felt like the Lord had given up on me. He would have been justified. Yet He still burst through the darkness with His marvelous light to comfort me with His rod and His staff.

Earlier on in Psalm 23 I read "...He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul..." I can truthfully say I have been broken to the point of not knowing where to go, what to do or when to do it. I thought I could not be put back together again. Yet He restored and still restores me. He refreshed me with the still water and cause me to receive His rest and peace.

I share all of this to say, you are never alone. God is always there. He cares for you and everything that concerns you. Christians still carry the same burdens non-believers carry in this life. But Who helps us along the way is the difference. I don't claim to be perfect, holier than anyone or have it all together. As a matter of fact, most people seem to have it together more than I do from my perspective. But I have learned (and I’m continuing to learn) how to trust Him to work things out for me. The truth is no matter how in control we may seem to be or try to be we are not. Only God is in control. The question is do you struggle against Whom you can never win or give up and late Him handle it? He knows what He's doing.