– By Joe Fornear
Our struggles can appear so high, wide, and long – sometimes insurmountable to us. Yet appearances are a poor monitor of the multidimensional realities of God.
When the Lord set up the temple worship system in Exodus, He illustrated His proximity to us with the placement of a simple food in the innermost chamber of the temple.
“And you shall set the showbread on the table before Me always” – Exodus 25:30.
This showbread was to be ever-present, always fresh, always warm, and eaten daily by the priests. Literally translated “bread of the presence (or face),” the Lord offers His very presence, even His face, as food for our spirits. Jesus echoed this concept by offering Himself as the Bread of Life for our spiritual hunger (John 6:35).
In the desert experiences of life we may allow ourselves to be starved from Him. Our greatest temptation may be to basically give up on God. As I look back to my battle with Stage IV metastatic melanoma, three things tripped me up:
- Disappointment with God – I had not asked for what seemed like a senseless detour, and I wanted my life back. Yet He brought me to a place of surrender — not to the cancer — but to embrace His plan to fight together with Him, not against Him.
- Expectations on God – If God was with me, shouldn’t the cancer immediately go away? No, He showed me there were higher purposes even in the fight, accomplishing eternal goals with His presence in and through me.
- Numbness about God – At times in my pain and confusion I stopped hoping. Sure I was worn out, but my spiritual numbness was also a form of self-protection. Fortunately, He grabbed me by the hand and walked me through the fog of the war.
Our lives might be totally different than what we envisioned. Still, He’s not left us– He’s promised to never leave or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). So let’s turn back to Him and ask Him to rekindle the sense of His presence.
Lord, we hurt deeply, and only You can soothe that pain – help us open back up to the reality of Your sweet Presence.
