God has been so merciful and gracious to me during this week of waiting. I prayed that I would not waste my waiting and He has answered that prayer and encouraged my heart every step of the way. On New Year's Eve we had a family over from church to play board games and watch the Alabama game. Travis and Laurie have 9 kids and Travis went to seminary with our current pastor, past pastor, and our community group leader at Master's in CA. The Christian world can be so small! Anyway, during the course of the day, Travis asked how we were doing as I was on IV antibiotics at home at the time. He recommended a book, "The Cup and the Glory" by Greg Harris. Greg is a professor of Bible Exposition at Master's Seminary and wrote the book after he and his wife lost identical twin girls. I ordered it and took it to the hospital with me, but due to the side effects of medications, was unable to read more than a chapter at that point. I'm one of those people that has 5 or more books going at once, so I had picked it up and put it down. In God's providence, this week after I found out about needing the biopsy, I read the chapter entitled, "The Footprints" and he's drawing off of 1 Peter 2:21-25:
"For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you are healed. For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls."
He continues on page 91, "But there is another point of consideration in First Peter 2:21 we need to explore. We are follow upon 'His steps' or literally, 'in the footprints of Him.' In the plural the word means a line of footprints, such as when a hunter follows his game. 'Footprints' is a literal term, not a figurative one. A difference exists between following in someone's footprints versus following in someone's footsteps. 'To follow in someone's footsteps,' means to emulate or aspire to some aspect of that person's life. 'Are you going to follow in your father's footsteps?' Literal footprints, however, give a different emphasis. Not only are these 'footprints in general' but the footprints of Jesus.
"...'Since Christ suffered [hyper] in your place;' suffered in the realm you would not because you could not. 'Leaving you'--present tense, not past tense; whatever He left is still there, it has not been removed--a hypogrammon example or sketch for you to follow in His footprints. If His footprints remain behind, then He had to walk there first. He had to lead the way. He had to establish a trail that no one ever walked before, but now one that never needs establishing again.'"
"A pertinent questions is, 'But where do the footprints of Jesus go? If I follow them, where will they lead?' Perhaps the first inclination would be to assume they go up to heaven and into God's presence. But, this is not the immediate place they go. The last footsteps Jesus took on this earth before His death were to His cross. He was carried to the tomb and placed there. He ascended to heaven--He did not walk. The last steps of Jesus took in His pre-resurrection ministry were in walking as the sacrifice in our place, not only so that we would not have to walk there, but even more to the point because we could not. In this case, we do not walk alongside Him--He walked there alone. No one went with Him; nobody could. He was abandoned, deserted forsaken, and betrayed for you and for me."
"Another aspect of this passage is so childishly simple, we may overlook it. You do not 'follow upon' footprints by standing still. You must move forward. This entails more than merely knowledge about Jesus; it is experiential knowledge gained in the walk itself. Also, a difference remains between following the line of footprints to the end versus following merely a few steps. 'I'll go with you a little while, but if things don't work out as I planned, then you go on without me.' Such an attitude became evident for the first time in John 6:66-69 where many would no longer walk with Jesus. To Peter's credit, that answer he got right. In response to Jesus' question if they, too, wanted to leave, Peter answered his most logical reply recorded in Scripture. 'Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.' And He still does."
"You will only walk upon the footprints of Jesus; you never out-walk them. No matter where you are, or what you will go through, He will have walked an infinitely more intense road in your place. You will still find His footprints ahead of your own."
"But there are so many footprints and paths out there for people to follow. How will I know which ones are His footprints?"
"You will recognize the footprints of Jesus; they are the only ones left when all the others stop. You will recognize His footprints; they are the ones stained with blood, as He heads for our cross. You will recognize the foot-prints of Jesus; they are the ones that have your name written all over them."
And that is just ONE time the Lord encouraged my heart with the perfectly timed truth. I could tell you of so many "little" blessings this week that aren't so little when you are walking through deep waters. Once more, providentially, our ladies Bible study group is going through the book, "Trusting God" by Jerry Bridges and last night we finished up chapter 12 on "Trusting God in Adversity." On New Year's Eve, Travis also asked if I had studied 2 Corinthians in any depth. I haven't but after he asked that question and said that the whole book is Paul walking through suffering, God keeps putting verses from that book before me. Last night was no different--Sarah opened study by asking me to read 2 Corinthians 1:3-7
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ. But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer; and our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort."
So much comfort in that passage! And that's just the beginning! 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 talks about our outer man decaying and our light and momentary afflictions producing an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison and then of course you have the famous passage of 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 where Paul pleads for the thorn in the flesh to be taken away from him three times but instead of taking him out of his painful circumstances, God increased the grace to persevere. Joni says "the harder we lean into Jesus, the stronger we find Him to be." I've been leaning hard this week and O my sweet Savior is so precious and strong and faithful and compassionate and merciful and awesome and mighty!!
I was also greatly encouraged yesterday by the multitude of birthday posts on facebook, phone calls, and texts from people literally all over the world and country. My pediatrician from when I was 7 who walked through a brain tumor that kept her and her family from the mission field for years, to a dear friend that we met in Great Falls, MT, my sweet sisters that have walked the long road with us--Jenn since 2005, and Shirley and Candy since 2007 when we met at Sovereign Grace and then Hilarie since 2011 when we met at Grace Bible in Phoenix, to my precious family--Mom, Jen, Jus, Kyle, Josie and my sweet nephews that all sang me happy birthday over video chat and then my new family here from Grace Community Church of Huntsville--Jord and I are so humbled by the gracious love and care you have poured out for us over this last year--from your constant prayers to your encouraging texts and phone calls--meals, rides, and so much more. Constantly pointing us to our Savior and helping us keep moving forward when the road is hard--like Aaron and Hur who provided a stone for Moses to sit on and held his arms up when the staff of God got heavy so that Joshua and Israel would defeat the Amalekites in battle. We need ALL the parts of the body of Christ--Jord and I could not run this race alone. Due to covid, tomorrow I will be walking into the biopsy without another human by my side--but I am confident my Savior's footprints are already there and no matter what tomorrow or the news on Monday brings, I am ever safe beneath His wings...As the poem Elisabeth Elliot popularized goes,
"Do it immediately, do it with prayer;
Do it reliantly, casting all care;
Do it with reverence, tracing His hand,
Who placed it before thee with earnest command.
Stayed with omnipotence,
Safe 'neath His wing,
Leave all resultings,
Do the next thing!"
And so I will--in Christ's strength and by His grace, come what may!
In His Mighty Grip,
Rachelle
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