The only resistance to Satan and the doubts and questions he dogs us with is to flee – flee to Jesus; flee to that place where we find protection and help; flee to the crucified. Flee to Christ for His purging, protection, and empowering.
With these thoughts I knew I needed a vacation. I booked a plane ticket for a short get-away trip to Hawaii, where I envisioned sitting on a beach, watching waves and sunsets, and visiting with good friends I knew were at the University of the Nations (YWAM).
The day of my trip, I prayed the words of Charles Ringma: “Lord, I come to You acknowledging my weakness and vulnerability. I pray not only for your protection, but more particularly for your strengthening and transformation. Amen.”
Running deep in my thoughts was the theme: Learning to live well.
It had been a week of too many losses (my cousin at age 57 from brain cancer; an acquaintance in his 70s, and a favorite 95-year-old man at our church from a stroke). I remembered the Scripture, “Oh! Teach us to live well! Teach us to live wisely and well!”(Psalm 90:12); and earlier in the same Psalm we’re reminded: “We live for 70 years or so (with luck we might make it to 80), and what do we have to show for it?”
On my way to the airport, I’d stopped by the doctor’s office for results of recent xrays – only to learn that I needed to make some tough decisions that could have long-reaching effects on my quality of life. And this too was feeding my thoughts.
“Lord, how long do we have? How do you want us to spend our remaining days for your Kingdom glory? What’s important to you – the one who has numbered all of our days?”
Arriving in Hawaii and settling into my hotel room, I again asked God for a specific word before going to speak to a group of authors seeking marketing tips for their new books. Although I sometimes wonder in my heart, my head knowledge tells me that God is simply waiting for us to ask – and He will meet us at our point of need. But this time, the directness of His answer in my devotional book blew me away:
“I come, I come. You need Me. Live much out here. My sunshine, My glorious air, My presence, My teaching. Would they not make holiday anywhere for you. Sunshine helps to make glad the heart of man. It is the laughter of Nature. Live much outside. My medicines are sun and air, trust and faith. Trust is the spirit sun, your being enwrapped by the Divine Spirit. Mind, soul, and body need helping. Welcome my treatment for you. Draw near to me. Nature is often My nurse of tired souls and weary bodies. Let her have her way with you.” (A. J. Russell in God Calling, August 17)
It is in these times when we know we have heard from God that we can say with David the Psalmist: “He has never let you down, never looked the other way when you were being kicked around. He has never wandered off to do his own thing; he has been right there, listening” (Psalm 22:24 The Message).
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