TREASURES
OF DARKNESS
BREAD
3 I
will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, so
that you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, who summons you by
name. Isaiah 45:3 (NIV)
3 Praise
be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth
into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and
into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade--kept in heaven for
you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until
the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In
this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to
suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that your faith--of greater worth
than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire--may be proved genuine
and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though
you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now,
you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for
you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls. 1 Peter 1:3-9 (NIV)
2 Consider
it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because
you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance
must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking
anything. James 1:2-4 (NIV)
1 “There
is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined. 2 Iron
is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore. 3 Man
puts an end to the darkness; he searches the farthest recesses for ore in the
blackest darkness. 4 Far from where people dwell he cuts a shaft, in places
forgotten by the foot of man; far from men he dangles and sways. 5 The
earth, from which food comes, is transformed below as by fire; 6 sapphires come from its rocks, and its dust contains nuggets
of gold. 7 No bird of prey knows that hidden path, no falcon’s eye has
seen it. 8 Proud beasts do not set foot on it, and no lion prowls
there. Man’s hand assaults the flinty
rock and lays bare the roots of the mountains. 10 He
tunnels through the rock; his eyes see all its treasures.” Job 28:1-10 (NIV)
7 He
was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a
lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did
not open his mouth. 8 By
oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his
descendants? For he was cut off from the
land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. 9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the
rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his
mouth. 10 Yet
it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the
LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his
days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. 11 After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light
[of life] and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify
many, and he will bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,
and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life
unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of
many, and made intercession for the transgressors. Isaiah 53:7-12 (NIV)
1 The
Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to
preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to
proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, 2 to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor and the day of
vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion--to bestow on them
a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a
planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor. Isaiah 61:1-3 (NIV)
33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have
peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the
world.” John 16:33 (NIV)
BUTTER
“We pray for
blessings, we pray for peace Comfort for
family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our
suffering
All the while You hear each spoken need Yet love us way too much to give us lesser
things
'Cause what if Your blessings come through
raindrops What if Your healing comes
through tears? What if a thousand
sleepless nights Are what it takes to
know You're near? What if trials of this
life Are Your mercies in disguise?” Laura Story
“The Lord taught me how to sigh in pain, how to weep in gladness, and
how to trust during days of hope deferred.
It was not an easy road to walk. It still isn’t easy, and it isn’t safe. Rather, it is a confounding country full of myths and
mirages. Here, faith resembles denial, settledness looks like surrender, and
hope is the scariest creature of all. If you are with me here in this land, you
know all about discouragement. But look up, friend. The
path before us is paved with secret riches. To embrace it is to
embrace the terrifying tension of God’s inaugurated but unfinished Kingdom: the already and the not yet, the treasure in the
field, costing us everything but giving us even more. It is the place where I thank God for my
son, who is enough, and in the next breath, I beg God for more. The road ahead is dangerous but not barren. There is sustenance here, because Christ Himself is here, and He goes
before us. He walked this path already,
this Man of Sorrows, and endured all that we must endure and more. But He did it all for the joy set before
Him. In the land of
unanswered prayer, we
follow His lead. He does not
hover above us on the winds of false expectations. Rather, He stands next to us with His own humble
scars, beckoning us forward.”
Jason Hague
“For the child of the King, it is
such blessing to walk with God “in the cool of the day” free from worry,
anxiety and fear. He Who loves us with
an everlasting love, Who rejoices over us with singing, Who covers us with His
feathers and under Whose wings we find refuge is our security in this fallen
and very, very difficult world – the land of dragons. He doesn’t remove our trials, He bestows
grace sufficient to meet our needs and by the difficulty, through His power,
our faith is strengthened and a harvest of righteousness and peace is produced
in our lives. He is always faithful in
this task. Don’t flee from Him when
troubles come our way (even by our own doings) rather run to Him. He’s calling you.” BHY
“When God doesn’t prevent suffering, He gives us perspective on
suffering. Sometimes you just have to get a ‘God’s-eye’ view to
see that the master potter is scooping up all the rubble and ruin from your low
place to mold and create good in your life. His love reaches down into the dirt
– what you may think is utter defeat or hopeless – and lifts you to see that He
can turn what you may view as worthless into something worthwhile. God can take
what we think is worthless and turn it into something worthwhile. Often,
when we’re down, all we can see is the valley, the wasteland – we feel like our
lives are a mess. But our loving God does not see us and our low places that
way. The stuff you think may be just too messy, too ugly, too far gone is the
stuff God is infusing with purpose. The sorrow that hurts you?
God fashions it into faith that sustains you.
The sin you’re ashamed of? God
uses it to create beautiful humility. The failures you regret? God turns them
into wisdom. The grief that shattered
your heart? God crafts that into unshakeable faith. The missed opportunities? God uses those to
make you reflect His grace. The loss you
never expected? God molds that into strength you can’t explain. God can make your low place a stepping stone
to climb higher with Him. He can take even the worst things in your life – the
injustice, defeat, abandonment or failure – to create the best for you, His
beloved child.” Jennifer Rothschild
“As a general
principle, if we would exercise our memories more wisely, we might, in our very
darkest distress, strike a match that would instantaneously kindle the lamp of
comfort. There is no need for God to create a new thing upon the earth in order
to restore believers’ joy; if they would prayerfully rake the ashes of the
past, they would find light for the present; and if they would turn to the book
of truth and the throne of grace, their candle would soon shine as before. Let us then remember the loving-kindness of
the Lord and rehearse His deeds of grace. Let us open the volume of recollection,
which is so richly illuminated with memories of His mercy, and we will soon be
happy. Thus memory may be, as Coleridge calls it, ‘the bosom-spring of joy,’
and when the Divine Comforter bends it to His service, it is then the greatest
earthly comfort we can know.”
C.
H. Spurgeon
“To the child of
God, there is no such thing as an accident.
He travels an appointed way…..Accidents may indeed appear to befall him
and misfortune stalk his way; but these evils will be so in appearance only and
will seem evils only because we cannot read the secret script of God’s hidden
providence.” A.W.
Tozer
“The secret formula of the
saints: When I am in the cellar of affliction, I look for the Lord's choicest
wines.” Samuel Rutherford
“Joys are always on their way
to us. They are always traveling to us
through the darkness of the night. There is never a night when they are not
coming.” Amy Carmichael
“The presence of God in the darkness of our trials
is a small foretaste of the presence of God that we will know in the eternal
light of his glory. It is in the absence of God’s gifts that I learn the
Giver himself is the greatest gift of all.” Betsy Childs Howard
HEART SAVOR
- ·
There
is abundant purpose in the pain of a believer in Christ – do not kick against
His best for your life. We are the
ultimate losers when we do.
- ·
Some
of the greatest treasures are found in darkness – treasures that are unearthly
in their nature.
- ·
Just
like a Momma is closest to her feverish child though she may have many others,
so too God is closest to His child who is walking through the fire. Think Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.
