I can smell the rain in the air.
These tired bones tell me that a storm is coming.
When you have been walking around in the desert you welcome the storm.
With the storm comes rain.
With the rain comes quenched thirst.
“I will break up your fallow ground.”
He speaks to me and knows that I am prone to panic; prone to wander; prone to doubt.
He sees me crying over my marriage and reminds me that love keeps no record of wrongs (yes, even that wrong).
He has promised to take care of me even in this.
He sees my mama heart breaking and fretting over how these four children are going to be provided for. Where will we live? Will paying work ever come?
“I will provide all of your needs…”
And He will.
He will.
It is far easier to keep your life to yourself, clutching it to your chest as if it were a hand of cards, than it is to be transparent with it.
It is hard to admit when we are in the desert (or a storm…or in a storm in the middle of desert).
But this…this is where God’s glory really shines.
This is where freedom comes.
God has not asked us to hold this life to our chest.
He has called us to lay all of our cards on the table and then when we’re done, to hold them very high up in the air.
When we become transparent, we also become vulnerable.
Vulnerability is not the enemy.
Vulnerability is good.
When we allow ourselves to become vulnerable, it kicks our pride out the window and makes room for Jesus to do His work in and through us.
There are events that take place in our lives that our minds cannot reconcile, leaving countless frayed ends within our heart that cannot make amends with our heads.
Yet still Jesus enters in, turning logic upside down and giving us beauty for our ashes.
In a world where entropy is woven throughout the very fabric of His creation, we are reminded again and again in the forms of poverty, war, famine, death and disease that this is not Eden.
Sin and death are among us…and yet this creation that His Word tells us is moaning and groaning for His return also has the echoes of an everlasting love that knows no boundaries that even the gates of Hell cannot hold back.
If we are quiet enough, we will hear the whispers of the Almighty reverberating all throughout creation saying, “My love is bigger than the sins of this world.”
When we truly grasp this (which I am desperately trying to do myself) there is nothing under the earth, over the earth, or in the earth that we need to fear.
We have nothing to hide anymore.
So maybe your past is full of stories that do not honor God. Maybe, like me, you are in a place where nothing is certain and you are staring at a life that seems to be shattering right before your eyes.
Maybe you are lying in a broken heap in the middle of your own personal desert where the Living Water of Christ has not yet reached you. May these words be like a beacon of light that point you in the direction of His love for you.
Let’s lay our tired, broken vessels at His feet.
He is there with us in the desert.
He is there with us during the storm.
We are not alone.
His peace is coming, ladies.
Rest in that.
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What a beautiful post. Thank you for the reminder: Yet still Jesus enters in, turning logic upside down and giving us beauty for our ashes.
Wow. This is beautiful. Your vulnerability will touch many people through this, I’m sure. Thank you.
beautiful words. i feel like i am in a desert, and i am seeking the promised land. i needed to be reminded of His love for me this morning.
His rain is coming, mama. Wait for it…
He is visible through you. You are so right. Transparency shatters pride and sets the stage for Him to bring Himself Glory through you!!
That’s the highest compliment one could get. Thank you.
“Let’s lay our tired, broken vessels at His feet.” Yes. That is the perfect Sunday word. And I pray to take it to heart. Thank you, Mandie!
Thank * you* for allowing me to write and to be used!
I needed this. Right now, today.. at 3:30pm in a little house in england. God used you to reach into my crumbling day and pull me out to walk holding his hand again.
Thank you for making me cry, thank you for listening to God, thank you for allowing God to use you so much, thank you God for the holy spirit in Mandie flowing freely and beautifully into other lives.
This will be a post that i return to over and over again in the coming weeks that are gonna be tough to trust God in and difficult to stay strong in.
I hope you really know how wonderful you are, May God bless you in a special ‘you and him’ way today. (The best thing i can wish on anyone)
x
And I needed to hear this. Thank you. Thank you for taking the time to comment. I pray that you will continue to draw near to Him in all seasons, especially during the ones where you can’t feel Him.
I am thankful that the Lord used me to encourage you. I pray that you will be blessed immensely in the form of joy and peace.
My goodness — exactly where I’m at today.
Just mentioned to some people this afternoon how I’m so weary of the fighting and just want to give up, but I know I can’t. THANK YOU for your transparency and your encouragement!!!
You are very welcome!
Mandie,
Thank you for your words. Thank you for allowing yourself to be transparent. Thanks for laying your cards on the table.
I love being reminded that what we see as broken beyond repair, God can raise from the ashes and turn in beauty 🙂 Thank you!
i absolutely agree…just beautiful. “He has called us to lay all of our cards on the table and then when we’re done, to hold them very high up in the air.” this is wonderful. hold up and defeat our pride, tear down our walls and above all THANKS and PRAISE.
praying for you as I write this…for answers to prayers and that He would fill your heart with hope and light to stare down that darkness and see it overcome…be blessed for you blessed many today:)
When we have nothing to fear, we have nothing to hide. Wow, Mandie, that is powerful, heart-freeing truth! Thank you!
holley, thank you for allowing me to share my words here 🙂
a beautiful telling of just how much God loves us and that even in those darkest times, He is there.
Transparency and “Vulnerability is a good thing.” We ladies have been lied too, for far too long. Kick that nasty.filthy.lyiing.devil to the curb once and for all. My prayer, dear Lord is for all women to take control of thier thoughts, and purge all negative thoughts- for they are not from YOU. I praise you Heavenly Father for helping me to be more transparent & vulnerable.
Bless the author of this post, Mandie, and all who read and comment; and, those who read and do not comment- Bless them too. Amen.
Beautiful words! Tough situation but how wonderful He is to allow your words to be soft & sweet for Him. Your writing is a blessing!
Thank you Mandie,
I am in that place right now where nothing is certain and I am staring at a life that seems to be shattering right before my eyes. I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer earlier this year. My husband of 33 years is an alcoholic making terrible decisions. We have separated, but I’m not sure what to do next. Thanks for your words about God
being there & promising to take care of me. I know that, but I let the anxiety take it away from me sometimes. I especially love:
Let’s lay our tired, broken vessels at His feet.
He is there with us in the desert.
He is there with us during the storm.
We are not alone.
Bonnie, i kept waking up in the night with you heavy on my spirit.
i pray that you will find rest and peace and love in the Lord. i pray that you will feel very near to Him and that you will find favor. i am covering you in prayer, my dear sister in the Lord. may the Lord cover and carry you.
Lovely thoughts! You put words to what so many women are going through! God bless you!
Thank you for this post. A beautiful sunset and reading this post last night brought me to my knees and helped me let God redirect my day. Thank you for the reminder of where our strength needs to lay.