“And they said to
one another, ‘Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked
with us on the road and while He opened up the scriptures to us?’”
Luke 24:32
Sometimes life can be confusing. It’s like the
road map is turned upside down, the GPS isn’t working, and all the
road signs that are supposed to tell you where to go, are in another
language! They say that life is a beautiful journey. They say that
it’s not about arriving at your destination, it’s all about the
joy of getting there. But when you’ve been on the road for eighteen
hours, you’ve run out of snacks, and you can’t find a place to
take a bathroom break, it isn’t quite so fun anymore!
Do you
ever wish that you could just hurry up and get there? Dash to the
next mile marker in your life, and graduate High School? Fall in
love, get married? Get that new job you’ve been hoping for?
Wouldn’t it be easier if you could have a head-on,
insta-collision with destiny, like…tomorrow? Just imagine how
blissful it would be to wake in the morning and find yourself
smack-dab in the middle of God’s perfect plan for your life! Maybe
you’d be a successful business woman, serving as a missionary in a
foreign country, or finally recording the album that you’ve been
dreaming about your whole life!
Whatever it is that you’ve
been waiting for, I’m sure you can relate. Maybe you’re longing
for a new door of opportunity to open. Are you desperate to hear a
fresh word of direction from God, about your life and your purpose?
Maybe you’re wanting some clarity about confusing or hurtful things
that are happening.
Wherever you’re at on this journey of
life, I know that we’ve all reached the point where we’ve pulled
off to the side of the road, shut off our engines, slammed our heads
on the steering wheel and cried out, “God, where are you? I’m
totally lost! I need direction! I need to hear your voice. What in
the world are you doing? Are we just going around in circles? Just
give me SOMETHING to work with here!”
How strange a season
it is when we lift our voices to Heaven, and hear nothing in return.
The Bible says, “Then you will call upon me and come and
pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when
you seek me with all of your heart. I will be found by you declares
the Lord, and I will restore you…” Jeremiah 29:12-14
On those days when
I’m seeking (and I’m pretty darn sure that I’m seeking with all
of my heart!) and I don’t get any clues, encouragement, cute little
love letters from God, or radical “burning bush” experiences, I
can begin to wonder what’s wrong. In moments like that, when God
feels so distant and far away, it’s easy to panic. I know the truth
that He will never leave me or forsake me, and He hears every prayer.
He is perfectly faithful…so what in the world is going on?!
The
Lord is always speaking to us. His favorite thing to do is reveal who
He is, how much He loves us, and the amazing plans that He has for
our lives! He loves to reveal the reality of what’s happening in
Heaven, which is His perspective, and make that manifest in our
lives. The job of the Holy Spirit is to guide us into all truth, and
take the things that belong to the Father, which belong to Jesus, and
declare them to us! (John 16:13-14) So if God is always speaking, why
can’t we hear Him?
The Book of Esther is one of my favorite
examples of a time when God appeared to be silent. Esther’s story
is so unique. The Bible is full of story after story of God revealing
Himself to His people in dramatic, ground-shakingly epic ways! The
Red Sea opened, manna came down from Heaven, lions' mouths were shut,
miracles were performed, miraculous wars were won, and God’s hand
and voice were so clearly seen! To many characters in the Word, God
revealed a new part of His nature and character. To Hagar, He was El
Roi, “the God who Sees.” To Abraham, He was El Shaddi, “the All
Sufficient One.” To David, He was El Sali, “the God of my
Strength.” To the woman who had been bleeding her whole life, Jesus
revealed Himself as “Healer.” To the woman who had been caught in
the act of adultery, Jesus reveled Himself as “Redeemer.” To
Paul, Jesus revealed Himself as “Strength made perfect in my
weakness.”
But in Esther’s story, God’s name is never
mentioned. He doesn’t reveal a new part of His character by
splitting open the heavens and performing a miracle. God’s name is
nowhere to be found. Not even once, through the whole book! God never
speaks through a prophet, “Thus saith the Lord!” or confirms his
promises by wetting some fleece like he did for Gideon. As the Author
of Esther’s story, God never signs His name in a big fat Sharpie
marker. The flashing neon light of God’s presence and direction is
nowhere to be seen. But when I read the book of Esther, my heart
burns within me. I don’t see the Author’s name, but I know He has
been there. Signs of the Author’s style, voice, and faithfulness
are seen so clearly. His presence, His voice, and His direction
within this book are so clear, if only you know what you’re looking
for. I recognize the work of His providential hand, maneuvering every
person, event, and word, according to His perfect plan. But do you
think Esther was aware of this? Was she getting a play-by-play of
God’s plan, or do you think she looked at the upside down road map
in front of her, and asked God, “What in the world are You doing?!”
The Lord is
revealing His name, nature, and character every single day. It may
not be in an obvious, burning bush or sea-splitting way, but He is
speaking, moving, and directing. Every line and scribble in my life
that appears to be so messy, out of place, or just plain puzzling, is
there for a purpose. The Author is weaving together a most beautiful
story. I just don’t see it yet. As much as I don’t like to admit
it, sometimes I’m like the guys who were walking down the trail of
life in Luke 24. In their story, Jesus had just risen from the dead.
The miracle of all miracles had taken place! These guys had every
reason to be excited, whooping and hollering for joy, because God was
working in their life in such an amazing way! But they were so
confused. They were afraid, and perplexed, and totally blinded to
the most beautiful thing that was happening right before their eyes.
“Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day
to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem. And
they talked together of all these things which had happened. So it
was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself drew near
and went with them. But their eyes were restrained, so that they did
not know Him.
And He said to them, ‘What kind of conversation
is this that you are having with one another as you walk and are
sad?’
Then the one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to
Him, ‘Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem and have you not known
the things which happened there in these days?”
They
continued to explain to Jesus everything that had happened, the
report of the resurrection, and how some friends from their group
went the tomb and didn’t see Jesus there. As these men walked on
the road with Jesus, “He expounded to them in all the scriptures
the things concerning Himself.” Beginning with Moses and all the
prophets, Jesus revealed Himself in a way that these men had never
heard before. It was so different from what they were used to, they
didn’t even know that Jesus was talking to them!
Finally, when
they got to their house and broke bread together, something that they
were used to doing in the past, “their eyes were opened and they
knew Him, and He vanished from their sight.”
Suddenly,
everything made sense. When the Spirit of wisdom and revelation hit
them, they could see clearly. They had the “a-ha!” moment they
had been aching for, and everything was clear and sunny and bright
again! Jesus was alive! And He had been WALKING with them that whole
time!
“And they said to one another, ‘Did not our heart
burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He
opened up the Scriptures to us?’”
I love that verse. Even
though they couldn’t see Jesus in the way they were used to
seeing Him, and God wasn’t doing things the way He used to
do, their hearts still burned within them. They knew Him by the
Spirit, and they recognized that He had the Words of life. Something
inside of them was drawn to what Jesus was saying. They didn’t know
why, but a magnetic force pulled them in and tugged on their hearts.
God was doing a brand new thing in their lives, and even before their
minds or human understanding could comprehend it, their spirits knew.
Their hearts burned with passion and fresh fire as He spoke.
Sister, you are
never traveling down the road of life all on your own. Just like the
men in this story, Jesus is right there with you, guiding you,
speaking to you, and opening up the Scriptures to you, whether you
can recognize Him or not! Maybe you don’t feel God holding your
hand like He used to, as you would joyfully blaze forward on this
trail, and you’re wondering why you can’t feel the warmth of His
presence. Perhaps in the past, Jesus lifted you up on His shoulders
every time a freaky snake would jump out to attack; but now you’re
standing there, shaking in fear, because you’ve got a sword in your
hand, and you need to kill the snake. Maybe He used to always
sing the same song over your heart, a lullaby of sorts, and suddenly
He changed the dial on the radio so you don’t recognize the tune!
Any of these shifts and changes can cause us to freak out. But we
must remember and hold fast to the truth: the Lord is doing a new
thing. Just because I can’t recognize it, or make sense of it yet,
doesn’t mean He’s not with me and guiding every step of this
process.
What if Esther compared her story to the stories
of what God had done in the past? What if she didn’t step forward
in boldness to save her people, because she didn’t have a burning
bush experience? Sometimes we can get so used to Heaven's manna from
the past, that we don’t step into what God is doing in our lives
right now. The manna stopped so that God’s people would
press forward and take the Promise Land!
If you’re feeling
a little bit clueless, still not sure how to read your map or what to
do next, I want you to take a deep breath. You’re not lost. Your
tank might be out of gas, you may not be able to read the road signs,
and your connection to Heaven might seem a little shaky, but I
promise you this: God is with you. He will never leave you or forsake
you! You know that you are chosen by God to be His royal Princess
Daughter; He delights in you, He adores you, and He has amazing plans
for you. Let that be enough.
If everything in your world seems
out of whack and off kilter, remember that God is still penning your
story. He’s in mid-stroke. You can’t see everything that He’s
doing behind the scenes. Let that be okay.
Trust the Author.