God WILL Rescue You

Say to those with fearful hearts,
    “Be strong, and do not fear,
for your God is coming to destroy your enemies.
    He is coming to save you.”

Isaiah 35:4 

 

You've seen the movies where the young people decide it would be a GREAT idea to go into the middle of nowhere, with scant supplies, where there is no power, and no one knows where they are, and then when the bad guy shows up to kill them, they become fearful and make some REALLY bad decisions.  I remember paying to watch such movies in a theater and eventually found myself wondering what special kind of idiots were these people.

 

But, don't we do many of the same type things?  We tell God, "no need to be concerned about me, I've got this" only to cry out for help later when OUR plans fall apart.  Then it becomes, "help me out of this mess I've made."  So, let me ask you something, and I'm talking to me as well, before we our plans into action do we discuss them with God first or just plow through without a thought?  

 

When things begin to go awry with our plans, we become afraid because we are no longer in control.  And it is usually at this point that we turn to God and cry our for help and rescue.  God, who loves us more than we can ever understand, always comes to our rescue.  Therefore, be strong and do not fear!  

 

How many times does God remind us of this throughout Scripture? Think about it.

 

We Are Rescues!

For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.

1 Corinthians 1:13-14 

 

I like rescues.  Matter of fact, I have found that rescue pets are the most loyal, loving, and grateful companions.  Rescues, I'm convinced, know where there life was going and are so happy that they were saved from that fate that they bond themselves with their rescuer.

 

Now, I am also convinced that God uses ALL of His creations to get His message to us.  We are not pets, but consider the parallels.  Our lives were headed in the wrong direction and the outcome was not going to be pleasant.  Then God rescued us!  Through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ, we were saved from that dreadful fate and we were adopted as children of the King of Kings, Creator of Everything!  Did you see that?  WE are HIS children now!

 

Shouldn't we be grateful, loving, loyal, and happy? Take just a moment to thank God for rescuing you and adopting you. 

Stand By Me!

But the Lord stood with me and gave me strength so that I might preach the Good News in its entirety for all the Gentiles to hear. And he rescued me from certain death.

2 Timothy 4:17

Ever had to stand up for what you believed?  Paul did frequently.  Paul liked to argue and debate and was quite good at it.  However, sometimes Paul had to face his challengers without the help of his friends.  This would intimidate most people.  I'll admit I get pretty nervous when I have to face someone or some issue without the support of those I trust.  But that really didn't trouble Paul.  You see, Paul had a secret weapon.  Read today's verse: But the LORD stood with me and gave me strength!

In the face of his challengers and detractors, Paul relied on God to stand with him when no one else would.  And here's the great thing about that situation, we have that same God in our corner when we rely on Him.

Rescued....Are You Grateful?

The righteous person faces many troubles,
    but the Lord comes to the rescue each time.

Psalm 34:19 

 

The photo is of our dog Woody Bear who was a rescue.  He's had a difficult life and was not sure if he could trust us for a while.  But slowly, little by little, he is understanding that he is loved.  In fact, when I have my morning coffee, I sit on the couch and rub his tummy and remind him that he is loved (hence the expression on his face).

 

Now if we shift gears for a moment, how many will volunteer that they have been through some rough times in their life?  I will.  I still struggle with some of them. And even though there are few people who have any idea what it's like in my head and heart, I know they struggle too.  You see, God created us to be social.  In fact, if you remember in Paul's Letter to the Church in Galatia, he reminds us to "Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ."  

 

Why do I bring that up?  Because even thought we face many troubles, God has a way of bringing people into our lives that can help us through our struggles.  God has a plan for each of us and sometimes that plan involves being the one reaching out to help and sometimes that plan involves being the one reaching out for help.  

 

We are in this together, whether we like it or not, so let's help each other and ask God to open our hearts, souls, ears and eyes for opportunities to help rescue someone. And also ask God to open our hearts, souls, ears and eyes so that we are not afraid or embarrassed to ask for help.  God comes to the rescue every single time, sometimes we merely have to be aware that help comes in God's way, which is probably not the way we expected.

 

Ponder that. 

Rescued!

The Lord hears his people when they call to him for help.
    He rescues them from all their troubles.

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted;
    he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.

Psalm 34:17-18

We've seen people get rescued.  We see the effort that is put into rescuing a puppy from a dogfighting ring.  We see what it takes for the Coast Guard to search for and rescue someone at sea.  We see the undertaking of Firefighters rescuing people from a fire.  And it gives us a good feeling that rescues are happening.  

 

What is one thing you never see when someone gets rescued?  You never hear the person to be rescued say "You only brought a single helicopter?" or "Why can't that pretty blonde from the Firefighter Calendar be the one to rescue me?"  Why don't we hear such things?  Because, when we need rescuing, we just want to be saved from the peril and we aren't picky about who does the rescuing!

 

Now, think about this: When we cry out to God to rescue us....don't we put conditions on Him?  "I want You to rescue me, but I want it to be done like this and here's when I want it and here's who I want to handle things on this end."  In short, we want God to rescue us the way WE want!  We want to put conditions on God, as if we're doing Him some kind of favor for allowing Him to rescue us.

 

Here's a principle:  "When God rescues us, He also teaches us!"  This means God's plan for our rescue will probably not be what WE had in mind.  It might even be a painful learning experience.  He might use people we don't like, who might *gasp* hold us accountable and have expectations that we should actually DO something to keep this situation from happening again.  

 

There's a story I heard back when carved tablets were the hottest form of communication:

 

"A man built a strong, sturdy house.  Rains came and the river flooded.  The man prayed for God to save him.  The flood waters rose, the man moved upstairs and prayed for God to save him.  The flood waters rose more, the man moved to the roof and prayed for God to save him.

 

After a while, a man in a boat came by and asked if he could be of help. The homeowner said, 'NO, I have prayed and God will save me.'  Later, a helicopter came and the rescue crew asked if they could help. The homeowner said, 'NO, I have prayed and God will save me.'

 

The flood waters rose and the man drowned.  When he stood before God's throne, he shook his fist at God and yelled, 'I prayed that You would save me!  And You DIDN'T!'  God said to the man, 'I sent a boat.  I sent a helicopter with a crew.  What MORE did you want?'"

 

God uses weird ways to rescue us in weird ways.  God uses weird people to teach us in weird ways.  When we pray for rescue, remember that God has THE plan....not us."

 

 

RESCUED!!!

Though the tide of battle runs strongly against me, for so many are fighting me, yet he will rescue me.

Psalm 55:18

 

 Ever have one of those days (weeks) where is seemed like you were the target of everyone else?  No matter how hard you work and try, it never seems to be enough or correct?  There have been days when I wanted to throw up my hands and go for coffee. 

 

Let me ask you:

1.  Has it ever seemed like you were living the life of Job in that "while one boss was telling you what you did wrong, here came another boss"?
2. Have you ever felt like your health was, in reality, against you?
3. Have you ever wondered if continuing the struggle was worth it?

I have, and it felt like I was one tired old soldier facing the entire invading Viking horde.  That's the downside.  There's an upside.  No, really there IS an upside!

 

When I reach the point where I am ready to give up and walk away, I realize that I need to stop struggling and follow God's leading.  I can beat my head against the wall until I am unconscious, but God can make a door (or simply remove the wall).  

 

One would think that after all these years on this blue marble, I would have learned that God is still in the Helping and Miracle business and that His business also has an Another Chance department.  Those who truly know me, know that I have made some seriously huge blunders in my time on Earth so far, and will likely make a few more before my time here is completed, but God has always picked me up, dusted me off, loved me, reminded me that I am His and I am to follow Him, and sent me back into the fray of life.

 

No matter what we are facing; no matter what life throws at us; no matter what...we are God's child!  Child of the King of Kings! Child of the one who SPOKE creation into being, yet remembers my name and even how many hairs I have (left).  Hang not your head in weariness or shame, raise it to God's face and let His radiant love fill you!