Thursday, June 26, 2014
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In his senior year, our son got a dog; a little shih tzu named Missy. Now our son went off to college and the dog stayed with us. So in the midst of our wall-to-wall schedules, we got to take care of Missy, too. Now, she was a fun dog, I have to admit that. She was smart, responsive, and she also needed food and water, and walking, etc. Now, I know a dog is man's best friend. In this case, Aunt Vicky, my wife's sister, was this dog's best friend. She was so faithful in caring for Missy's needs; especially when my wife and I were traveling or gone early or late.
Now, this dog greeted any of us who came in with enthusiasm. But it was usually on a scale of excitement that was roughly proportionate to the percentage of care she received from that person. Now, I got the dog equivalent of "Hi!" My wife got "Great to see you!" And Vicky, "Whoa! Jumping up and down dog, laughing, hugging (or the dog's equivalent)." This dog was not a dummy. She knew that it was time to eat, time to walk, time to play, anytime Vicky walked in. And she knew she couldn't get her own dog food! That's one thing the dog had figured out, "It's easy to be excited about the person who makes sure you're always cared for."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Close Because You Can't."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Psalm 37, verse 3. David says, "Trust in the Lord and do good. Dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture." Now, this is written by a former shepherd, and he's giving shepherd imagery here; describing a life of living by faith as the sheep is totally dependant on the shepherd. Verses 4-5, "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." This talks about enjoying the Lord and His taking care of you. Then it says, "Commit your way to the Lord. Trust in Him and He will do this."
David's talking about turning over what this day holds to the Lord. When he talks about "commit your way to the Lord", for me that means my date book, my to do list for today, my contacts, the places I'm going today, the people I'll be around. And the bottom line of this lifestyle is Psalm 37:25, "I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread." This is a man who's excited about his Lord. You know why? The same reason Missy is excited about Aunt Vicky. David knows who his primary care giver is.
Which leads us to something that just hit me the other day. Those who must live by faith are the ones who live closest to the heart of God. Did you notice I said, "must live by faith"? Because we seldom choose to do that. We always try to live by what we can see. Faith is kind of our last option. So we depend on things like paychecks, family, doctors, plans, retirement funds, savings, etc.
But into the life of every child of God comes challenges that leave us no one to lean on but Jesus. Maybe you're there right now; no option but to live by faith; totally dependent on what God is going to do each new day. It's got to be God or it isn't going to be. Do you know that's the most secure place you can live? Missy couldn't get her own food and water, and if she ever did I would let everybody know. No, she was totally dependent on someone else. She felt close to the person who did for her what she couldn't do for herself; who was always there to meet her needs. She was excited about her primary care giver.
Maybe the Lord has you facing a situation where the most realistic evaluation is, "I can't." Well, good! You're at the point where a person touches the love and power of God as nowhere else. The people who know God the best are those who have to depend on Him the most. Our need drives us deep into the heart and resources of a living God; the most secure, most excited place you can be. In essence, you get close to God because there's something you can't handle without Him.
So don't be afraid of a situation that creates total dependency on the Lord Jesus. Welcome! You'll never know Jesus is all you need until Jesus is all you've got.