Magnificent Prayer #316
Magnificent Prayer #316
Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: on the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him.
Job 23:8–9 KJV
The Lord Jesus is looking about everywhere for that Christian who will remain faithful and loving even when He has withdrawn Himself. If the Lord finds such a faithful soul, when He does return, He rewards the faithfulness of His child. He pours out upon that faithful one abundant goodness and tender caresses of love.
Here, then, is something you must understand.
You will have times of spiritual dryness. It is part of the Lord’s way.
MADAME GUYON
Pray About It: We have all experienced the lonely feeling that for some reason God has withdrawn from our lives. This season of dryness, as Madame Guyon calls it, can last for days, weeks, months, or even years. For Moses, the trip to the desert was forty years.
When God seems far away, remember to trust in His promise to never leave or forsake us. It’s our feelings that have judged Him missing—and feelings can never override the Word of God.
Be patient and lean hard on God’s Word. And don’t feel like the dryness is a result of something you’ve done. It’s not. His presence is there and you will again know that He’s there. In due time.
The God of Israel, the Saviour, is sometimes a God that hideth Himself, but never a God that absenteth Himself, sometimes in the dark, but never at a distance.
MATTHEW HENRY
From the book
