Not every season in a believer's life feels exhilarating.
At first our faith life is filled with the thrill of discovering the awesome power and goodness of God.
Prayer seems to be swiftly answered, God's presence is deeply sensed and life feels like it's worth living!
Invariably, the enemy, satan, brings some trial our way. The same faith we once exercised with quick success now seems ineffective.
Testing has begun! What do we believe? How fervently do we believe it?
When our lives are suddenly tossed into conflict, it really doesn't matter who started it. The testing of our faith HURTS! Yet it is in those fires that our faith is either confirmed or abandoned.
"When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the LORD will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them." Â Isaiah 41:17
Rest comes from maintaining our faith in Him and His words. When the anguish of our trials dominate and our faith in His words is feeble, then we find ourselves in a wilderness of our making. Life is arid, devoid of the promised water of the Holy Spirit.
To whom He said, “This is the rest with which you may cause the weary to rest. And this is the refreshing. Yet they would not hear." Isaiah 28:12
When the heat of our circumstance becomes unbearable, the offer of a cool drink from anywhere is so welcome! Any encouragement is refreshing.
God sends it through His word, which we must hear and believe.
Whenever I think of sin, I think of the big, bad, ugly ones, like taking a life or adultery. There is, however a sin more consistently grievous to God than either of those two.
Every Christian, who loves Jesus, will find themselves guilty of this often.
It is the sin of not believing the words of God.
Indulging doubt and dismissing His promises as improbable and unlikely to manifest, is sin.
I AM GUILTY! And way too often. I'm training myself to recognize quickly if I'm living life in faith or in fear.
Am I guilty of not believing Him simply because His promises seem too good to be true? Yes, often. And I repent. Often.
God promises times of refreshing when we repent of any, and all sin—and turn to Him.
“Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord," Acts 3:19
So instead of dismissing the verse above as being only for other sinners, apply it to yourself for all the times you've dismissed His promises as impossible.
And then be refreshed with spiritual refreshment which comes only from God—drink that is energizing, life sustaining and vital!
What does that refreshment feel like?
It's difficult to describe because it manifests differently each time depending on my need.
Most often it is a pervading, supernatural peace, as satisfying as a long, cool drink on a hot summer day. At other times, it's a burst of energy to handle another day in the fire of the trial, like the cooling sensation of water in a parched throat.
"Times of refreshment" when we repent will be worth receiving from Him. And the trial will pass, leaving only a memory of the fire, and deep gratitude for the refreshing in the thick of it!
Our lives as believers and artists are built on those supernatural moments, which once experienced, can never be taken away from our narrative of faith.
They are meant to be creatively shared to slake a thirsty world!
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