harvester chronicles corner

​June 2022
The summer heat has descended upon our area along with high humidity. As I took a walk, I reminded myself that just a few months ago I would have been walking briskly to stay warm, dressed in a winter coat, hat and gloves. Any complaint about the beach-like weather literally melted away and I thanked God that I wasn’t cold!
Our circumstances so often dictate our reactions to life’s experiences! I have recently had a few stressors make me question God’s presence and promises to help me. How like the Israelites in the desert after escaping slavery I am! God has done so much for me through the years, and yet it is so easy to forget His blessings when my situation seems difficult. I spent several hours searching my Bible for verses talking about God’s peace and help.
Psalm 118: 5-8, 13-14 “I called on the LORD in distress; the LORD answered me and set me in a broad place. The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? The LORD is for me among those who help me; therefore I shall see my desire on those who hate me. It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man… You pushed me violently, that I might fall, but the LORD helped me. The LORD is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation.”
The stressful and difficult situations haven’t disappeared, but He is still with me IN MY DISTRESS. I have experienced peace and calm at times, and songs of peace comfort me, but I have to constantly remind myself that ‘the LORD is on my side…What can man do to me?’
To be honest, ‘man’ seems to be able to do a lot to disrupt our peace and cause us to fear, but that is not how God wants us to live. My struggle is not over, and neither was David’s when he wrote many of the Psalms. I remember latching on to Psalm 42 when I was in residency: ‘Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me…’ David had many instances of trouble and difficulty, and the Psalms records how often he questioned where God was during his times of need. This encourages me that my faltering trust is pretty human. And God understands. I’m not saying that I’m choosing to not trust Him (that is disbelief and sin)…just that my humanness is showing. So, like David, I feel no peace in my circumstances, but I will ‘hope in God, for I shall again praise Him.’
Are you feeling stress or despair in any part of your life? Spend some time with God and His Word. Remember that Jesus promised us a Comforter, who intercedes for us when we can’t find the words to even ask for help. Hope in God. Don’t give in to the Enemy. Hope in God. I will yet praise Him.