Nougat 16

Hello dear

Last night I heard details of God’s amazing healing of a friend; subsequent to his wife’s faith and faithfulness. Prior to that he was in the peak of health and so failed to recognize what was happening to him. His wife however, obeyed the Holy Spirit’s urging and the rest is Miracle – from doctors and surgeons being available at the right time to his eventual release – ALL by God’s power and for God’s glory.

For some of us, our faith story looks and sounds more like Job’s – losing everything (especially during these covidated times) and determining to trust God despite. We may recall the details of our own season as clearly as Job’s (I can recall a few), or we may have misremembered for the preservation of our souls. In either case, or even if you are now going through, today’s Holy Nougat is for you.

“In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;” Ephesians‬ ‭6:16‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Using Job’s saga, we see that each of us has the chance to demonstrate (outwork) our faith in times of great trials. And chapter 1 says God’s confidence in Job’s Faith was so great that God permitted a series of skirmishes that could have cost many a warrior their lives. Armed with a sense of his boundaries, the Accuser of Saints, who is the enemy of our souls set off a volley of fiery darts, including:

Theft

Economic fallout/Poverty

Murder of his sons and daughters

Disease

Disaster

Dissing from closest friends and

Discouragement from his Despairing wife

Depression

As a devoted man of God and pillar of his community; it could not have been easy in the least.

But Job at his worst did NOT lose faith in God!

What is your Faith story? Can you identify the fiery darts that came at you? How did you use your Faith to shield you from the force of the attacks? I recall digging deeper in the Word, asking folks to pray with and for me, and frequently searching my soul for the wrongs I had committed to warrant what I considered as divine ‘punishment’. But here I am and here you are, several skirmishes later, on our way to becoming more seasoned warriors!

And since the Roman shields worked best in group settings (except for individual tasks which wouldn’t require shields, Roman soldiers attacked in formation that saw to the protection of all); it may be in our best interests to strengthen our faith together. Just like iron sharpens iron. So if your Faith is faltering, find a friend and pray for reinforcements. When mine falters, I too will do the same.

Hang in there; God’s confidence in our Faith is not misplaced.

In Christ’s love and grace . . .