"Then Moses said, 'Please show me Your glory.' 'I will cause all My goodness to pass before you,' the LORD replied, 'and I will proclaim My name—the LORD—in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.' But He added, 'You cannot see My face, for no one can see Me and live.' The LORD continued, 'There is a place near Me where you are to stand upon a rock, and when My glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft of the rock and cover you with My hand until I have passed by. Then I will take My hand away, and you will see My back; but My face must not be seen.'"
~ Exodus 33:18-23
Happy Happy Monday, Beautiful People!!
I hope you enjoyed a wonderful Independence Day, for those in the States.
"Yes, Not Yet, or I Have Something Better..."
These are the answers to prayer my mother, grandmother, and I used to discuss.
Of course, sometimes I suppose it's possible the answer is simply No, and God wouldn't need to justify that to us, especially given the omnipotent all things for good thing.
But, we focused on and really believed that the only three answers to prayer are, Yes, Not Yet, or I Have Something Better. And, I definitely think there's merit there.
In our human need, from our human perspective, sometimes we desperately want X, Y, or Z... whatever that may be.
Our sweet Father sees it all, knows it all, and understands how the pieces fit, and when we're willing to surrender, He will guide us in the paths that best serve His purposes and our lives in His own timing.
That is what I believe in my heart of hearts.
And, I believe that what He brings us to is far greater than anything we could ask or imagine, even when we wish His timing was our timing.
It's our job to persist, to take courage, to walk in confidence of Him with Him, shining His light however we may.
I love the story from Exodus.
Moses prays to see the glory of God.
But, God knows that will be the end of Moses. There is more work for him to do, He's not quite ready to carry him home. And, I strongly suspect Moses didn't know what the consequences of a yes from the Father would have been.
I cannot imagine the number of prayers I've uttered that would have taken me to the wrong place or had far less than optimal outcomes if the answer had been an unqualified yes.
But, the Father does.
He knows how many of those prayers each of us have prayed, and He has protected and guarded and guided us through them all, just as he did for Moses in that moment.
Because He is so good, He says to Moses, okay, we'll get as close as we can for you. He protects him in the yes.
He puts Moses in the cleft of the rock and covers him with His hand until He passes by.
He covers him and protects him.
There is something about that that's such a balm to the soul, is there not?
We pray. We surrender. We listen. We obey.
We have faith for Yes, Not Yet, or I Have Something Better, and we wend our way through this weary world loving the Father, loving our neighbors, and embodying the uniqueness of being whomever He created each and every one of us to be.
Elohim,
Thank You, for helping us to live authentically as the most fully self-expressed version of the person you lovingly created us to be.
Thank You, for helping us to persist in the path you have set before us, ever walking in Your victory, knowing that victory has already been won.
Thank You, for helping us to anchor into confidence for those three answers to prayer, Yes, Not Yet, or I Have Something Better as a tool to continue to walk out The Way in the ways of Your Word.
Thank You, for helping us to come before you, to draw nearer to You, and to surrender, trust, and obey.
All these things we pray,
Amen
"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." ~ Philippians 4:6-7
"For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their prayer." ~ 1 Peter 3:12a
"I waited patiently for the LORD; He inclined to me and heard my cry." ~ Psalm 40:1
"Rejoice at all times. Pray without ceasing. Give thanks in every circumstance, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
May the Good Lord bless you and keep you, friends... always, in all ways. Amen.
Bonus song of praise... ♥
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