Trust Him
Let me share a story from the “Reading Between the Lines Department.” In Heaven, the angels gather with excited expectation. The news spreads with lightning quickness: the word is the Master is going to show mankind again! As the angels scan the landscape, they smile a knowing smile. In hushed yet excited voices they ask, "When will God's people ever learn?" A tall, muscular angel remembers the countless times that God has shown His people that He brings the victory. A cherub chuckles to himself as he recalls how Noah nearly fainted when God gave him blueprints to build a giant ark. Noah was told that a flood was coming, and in faith Noah obeyed God and built the boat while the world laughed. Who was laughing when God led the great migration of animals to the ark? After Noah, what a great story it was with Abraham. God told Abraham to leave his homeland and travel to an unknown land. God did not even tell Abraham where he was going. The instructions were: “Go to a land I will show you after you start the journey.” If that was not wild enough, God promised Abraham that he would have a child with his wife Sarah. Don’t forget that after over 50 years of marriage, Sarah had not been able to have children. She was called “the barren one.” When God reiterated his promise that Sarah would bear Abraham a son within the next year, she scoffed and laughed. One angel laughs to himself and says, “Sarah was not laughing later that year when she was having birth contractions at 90 years of age!”
If you want to check out the basis for these great stories from between the lines, check out the Book of Genesis. Perhaps you would like to imagine more heavenly drama from the Book of Exodus? In Exodus, God led the descendants of Abraham, the Israelites, out of slavery. Exodus records that God provided miracle after miracle in defeating the Egyptians. As a result of God’s punishment on the Egyptians, the King of Egypt let the Israelites go. They were free. Well, free for a brief moment. It seems that as the Israelites were marching out of Egypt toward freedom in the Promised Land, the King of Egypt had a change of mind. He sent his armies after the Israelites with the purpose of slaughtering them. It is here that I wonder if God’s angels were ready to slaughter the Israelites themselves. Rather than trust in God (who had already shown He was powerful and faithful), the Israelites were cursing God. I’m sure God’s angels were furious at the Israelites' lack of trust and faith in God. I can picture God holding His faithful Angel Legion at bay and saying, “Watch this.” God silenced the sniveling, unbelieving Israelite nation when He sent a powerful wind. This wind blew a path through the Red Sea. God separated the waters and provided escape for the Israelites. Not only did God save the Israelites, He destroyed the Egyptian army when He brought the sea back together and drowned them!
In the Book of Judges, God’s angels see another breathtaking illustration of God’s amazing love and power. The Israelites were to fight an army that was huge and beyond number. When God called Gideon to raise an army, 32,000 men showed up. When God said, let anyone who is afraid go home, 22,000 fled. It was God's next comment that got the attention of Gideon and the host of Heaven - “still too many.” God devised a test that only left 300 men to fight the battle. "Now the odds are fair! With these 300 I'll rout the enemy!" The angels applauded and saluted as God showed His omnipotence. The angelic host echoed the sentiment - surely God's people will now trust in Him!
Dear friends, you and I know that we still face overwhelming forces and odds today. Being a servant of God has been, and will always be, an uphill battle. I believe that the angels still whisper the age-old challenge: “Trust Him!” God's kingdom will be built and advanced today by saints who rely on Him. There is much to be done here in Indianapolis. The field is white unto harvest with souls. There are multitudes who are searching, hurting, and wanting some purpose in life. Before we say that the task is too large, let us pause and listen as the heavens remind us, “Trust Him!” Keep looking up!