I have a dear friend who posted this insight on her blog: http://leaannsgarden.blogspot.com/
Ever feel like that? Ever think life would be wonderful if only...
- If only I hadn't lost my job...
- If only my child had not died...
- If only my husband had not had an affair...
- If only that medical test could be changed...
We see change as the enemy and fight it with all we have. But what if we could see it the way God does?
I found this interesting Scripture (courtesy of Lies Women Believe, by Nancy Leigh DeMoss) that I'd never noticed before:
Jeremiah 48:11 says,
"Moab has been at rest from youth, like wine left on its dregs, not poured from one jar to another she has not gone into exile. So she tastes as she did, and her aroma is unchanged."
The country of Moab had lived in security and comfort for so long that sin was taking over. They had not faced the fire of suffering and were proving themselves unfit for God's service. He is reminding us that too much ease makes us soft, weak, and fruitless.
The wine-making process of Jeremiah's day required that new wine be poured continually from one vessel to another, week after week, as the dregs settled to the bottom. After undergoing this purifying process long enough, nothing remained in the jar but pure, sweet wine. Without this constant turmoil in the jar, the wine would be sour and full of dross--unfit for drinking.
Ever feel that your life is continually poured from one jar to another? Family changes, divorces, moves, job losses, health concerns, wayward children, cankerous in-laws....The world seems to continually pour us from one jar to another until there is nothing left of us.
That's the whole point.
Jeremiah 48:11 says,
"Moab has been at rest from youth, like wine left on its dregs, not poured from one jar to another she has not gone into exile. So she tastes as she did, and her aroma is unchanged."
The country of Moab had lived in security and comfort for so long that sin was taking over. They had not faced the fire of suffering and were proving themselves unfit for God's service. He is reminding us that too much ease makes us soft, weak, and fruitless.
The wine-making process of Jeremiah's day required that new wine be poured continually from one vessel to another, week after week, as the dregs settled to the bottom. After undergoing this purifying process long enough, nothing remained in the jar but pure, sweet wine. Without this constant turmoil in the jar, the wine would be sour and full of dross--unfit for drinking.
Ever feel that your life is continually poured from one jar to another? Family changes, divorces, moves, job losses, health concerns, wayward children, cankerous in-laws....The world seems to continually pour us from one jar to another until there is nothing left of us.
That's the whole point.
God accepts us as we are, but he loves us too much to let us stay that way. He brings tailor-made suffering into our lives to clear the dregs of selfishness, fleshly desire, and sin strongholds.
Notice how disgusted God is that the people of Moab had not grown up. There was no spiritual fruit, no real success, no eternal benefit coming from this place at all. They stayed the way they were: fat and complacent, stuck in one self-centered spot, sucking up all the blessings God provided without a thought for Him.
Take another look at your situation. God promises that "joy comes in the morning" for those who seek him. Your suffering is only for a season. As you are poured from one jar to another, God is removing the impurities from your life so that the final product is pure and sweet, fit for His use.
Take another look at your situation. God promises that "joy comes in the morning" for those who seek him. Your suffering is only for a season. As you are poured from one jar to another, God is removing the impurities from your life so that the final product is pure and sweet, fit for His use.
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