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Faith

Repentance and Rest

Last night, as I was huddled in the corner of the basement, with babies in my arms sheltering into the midnight hours from the tornadoes raging outside, I was struck with an answer to a question I did not ask.

He whispered, “Draw near, it is not enough”

As we wiped fearful tears from sweet cheeks, worshiped, prayed, and read scripture together I felt the weight of holiness in this sacred moment. He was once again drawing us together in need, in need of Him.

After thinking a lot about what my spirit heard in the night, I realized though I had not voiced any question, He knew my heart and was answering what I hadn’t been able to ask.

We are already here, we live an everyday of working, schooling, and farming from home together. We have learned through the years how to make this quarantining thing work. Isn’t that enough?

We have lost half of our monthly income and are waiting on you to show us the way of provision, isn’t that enough?

People are suffering from fear and sickness and their lives are turned upside down, losing jobs, money security, identity. Isn’t that enough?

“No”, He said, “It is not enough”… “Draw near”

I believe we are in a holy moment of choice. This virus, the shelter in place ordinances, the lack of social gatherings, the world wide Selah is simply a positioning. An opportunity to seek the face of God and let all else go.

We have idols, and our creator has competition. In this moment He is mercifully removing those things from our lives so that we can connect to Him on a whole new level. This is not about asking Him to fix anything, but rather us drawing near and abiding with Him.

It is seeing the holy moment we face and choosing Him above all else.

The prophet Isaiah said in chapter 30 verse 15,

“In repentance and rest you will be saved, in quietness and trust is your strength”

It is only in this posture of repentance that we can truly draw near to the Holy one of Israel.

Unfortunately, the truth of our hearts is that we long for relief more than we long for Him. We want salvation, but we don’t want the Savior.

Isaiah continues in verses 16 and 17 with

“But you were not willing, and you said no for we will flee on horses, Therefore you shall flee…One thousand will flee and the threat of one man; you will flee at the threat of five, until you are left as a flag on a mountain top and as a signal on a hill.”

Oh, dear readers, let us not be a people who fight repentance and rest. Let us not ask when enough is enough and allow the threat of loss and calamity to cause us to flee from the one who made us and loves us. He will allow everything that is not rooted, grounded and growing into Him to fall away. In order that what remains, remains as a signal on a hill, a beacon of hope to this dying world, that simply says He IS ENOUGH.

Let us be a people who take these holy moments and choose to press into His presence. Let us receive this time as both His mercy and invitation to truly repent of not just what is sinful but of what is not His best. May we let the dross fall away and connect to his heart like never before. May we emerge from this time strengthened and full of trust because we have sat at his feet and said “Yes” to Him and Him alone.

1 Comment

  1. Betty Myers

    Love your writing, Carrie. Thanks so much. He is enough, and when He is enough I have everything else, too.

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