As many of you know, I’ve been blessed to be able to travel to Australia a couple of times now. It’s something that I have known that I would do for many years. I had to continually press toward that goal year after year after year, literally, before it came to pass. And, although it was a joyful experience for it to come to pass, it did not come without sorrow. Although I never could fathom just how things would come to pass while in the very troubled marriage I was in, never did I imagine the dream coming to pass as a divorced woman. I totally believed God for healing in all aspects of my life and marriage. With that said; my husband divorced me, which, ironically, allowed for my travel to the wonderful country of Australia.
While I was there, I visited a beautiful beach called Norah Head. I was amazed at the rocks that are on the beach there. Where the Pacific tide comes and goes on this beach, over time, it has worn away parts of the rock that has left nearly perfectly straight lines. I noticed this the first time I was there, but then really took notice last winter when I was there. I said to my friend, Joey, “These lines nearly look man made, but they’re not.” They have been made by the continual flow of the tide over many, many years. I know this may sound simplistic, but, Holy Spirit was speaking to me about His Creation. I really tried to wrap my brain around what He was speaking to me, but, I knew that this was deeper than the actual crevices in the rocks on this beach.
As I was focusing on the rocks, the lines in the rocks, and opening my heart to receive what Holy Spirit was saying to me, I could see, in my head, friends and acquaintances from my “home Starbucks” thousands of miles away. For years, there had been quite a number of people at that store who had become friends and quite frankly like family in some aspects. Some of us were daily customers; some weekly; and some just occasional customers. But, because we saw each other on a regular basis, we would reach out to one another, sharing life’s ups and downs. For many years this group of people grew in number. But then, nearly as quickly as it grew … one by one … we each have gone our separate ways.
Just as the tide of the Pacific continues to flow over the rocks on that beach, wearing away parts of the rock, creating lines, or crevices, so the Holy Spirit flows over and through our lives, individually and as units, taking away the parts that He doesn’t want in or around us …creating crevices or voids that only He can fill. He flows over and through us, washing away parts and pieces, using departure, betrayal, deception, divorce, death, distraction, etc … just to name a few ways of creating these voids.
He put our “Starbucks group” together as a “unit” for a time; teaching, molding, and fashioning us the way He saw fit for each of us, for a time. But then, in His perfect timing, carried away what was not needed, piece by piece, one by one … putting each of us in different places, for different purposes, with different “units” of people, continuing to carry on the same process.
The big question is this: Are we allowing Him to work in us and through us through this process? Are we relying on Him to show us what we need to change in our lives? Or, are we just allowing these things to happen without sufficiently learning what God’s purpose is for all of it? We can either learn from what He’s showing us, or we can ignore it, “sweeping it under the rug,’ so to speak. I assure you, sweeping it under the rug is not the way to go. When we do that we are ignoring the issues that God wants us to deal with. Just because we ignore something doesn’t mean that issue will go away. I assure you, it will still be there for us to deal with whenever we decide to deal with it. I say, “Why not deal with the issue when God brings it to our conscience instead of dragging it out for weeks, months, years, or decades?” When we do that, we’re only making it more difficult on ourselves.
God has a purpose for everything that takes place in our lives. These “lines” or “voids” that are created are there for a reason; to strengthen and teach us through and in Him by allowing Him to fill those voids that are left behind. People won’t and cannot fill those voids. Oh, one can try, but in the end, we will see that we truly need God. We are nothing without Him. I do my best to remember to tell Him on a daily basis that I am nothing without Him. I don’t want to live my life without acknowledging that He is working in and through me at all times. In all honesty, anything that we do without Him is done in vain. Now, that doesn’t mean that He won’t take our messes and work it out for His good, because He will and does according to Romans 8:28. “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to his purpose.” Hallelujah!! He is a loving Father who not only genuinely cares for us, but genuinely loves us. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
So, again I ask: “Are we allowing God to work in and through us as these “lines” or “voids” are created in our lives? God takes things out of our lives that we do not need, whether it’s people, things, habits, etc. Are we allowing Him to then fill that void with Himself? Or, are we trying to fill it with something or someone else? My hope is that as these things take place in our lives that we will allow Holy Spirit to do what He does best … simply help us. After Jesus was resurrected from death to life, He said that it was to our advantage that He go back to Heaven. Physically speaking He could only be in one place at a time … like us. But, He told us that when He left, He would send Holy Spirit to be our Helper. Holy Spirit is our Helper!! How awesome is that? There is nothing he cannot fix or heal …nothing. It’s a matter of whether or not we allow Him to do so. I hope that you will allow Holy Spirit to work in your life as He sees fit. He truly knows what is best for each and every one of us. Trust in Him!
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