Every Good Gift
“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony....” Revelation 12:11
Whelp. He seems to be at it again. That darn enemy, just when it felt like things were coming together in such a great way, he starts poking the bear of life and seeing what mayhem he can bring up. And let me tell you, he can create a rather impressive amount of mayhem. But somehow, in this moment I’m not overcome by the impending tsunami. I’m alert, I’m aware, but instead of turning and running the other way, I feel like Dory and I will “just keep swimming, just keep swimming…”
While our kids’ youth pastors were out of town, I had the privilege of hosting youth group this week. We didn’t have anyone to play an instrument to lead worship, and let’s just say my voice won’t necessarily usher people into the presence of the Lord… So, we opted to worship via testimony.
I explained to them that verse in Revelation--that we overcome the enemy by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. Our testimony can be when we got saved--that surely is our first and best testimony. But we will have many many testimonies over the course of our lives. Because EVERY good gift and EVERY perfect gift is from above, and comes down FROM THE FATHER of lights (James 1:17). EVERY gift. It’s easy to attribute so much in life to “well, that was lucky” or “good thing that worked out” “we were so fortunate.” But guys, there ain’t nothing in this world that comes together nicely by itself! Everything in our life is falling apart! I mean, nobody panic, it’s not all going to happen at once--but you know this to be true.
No matter how many times I clean the house, it WILL get dusty again. No matter how well we take care of our car, it will inevitably get old and break down. No matter how many weeds I pull--more will take their place. No matter how early I leave to get to my appointment, red lights can still throw my plans for a loop. And that’s with me thinking about it! What if I didn’t brush my teeth or wash my hair or vacuum the floor or put food back in the fridge? I really can’t imagine those things going well on their own.
Life is sometimes death in disguise--am I right? The slow deterioration of something that started as such a beautiful wonderful picture. But God wasn’t about to let everything He created FOR US just be ruined. So He inserts glimpses of His life, intersections of His ways, the fulfillment of His plans into this temporary broken world, and we get to walk in His footsteps, avoiding so many of the land mines this world has to offer.
Every gift is from Him. Every good thing is from Him. What the enemy means for harm, HE will turn into great good (Genesis 50:20). When you find yourself in a dark place with no way out, He will give you treasures from those dark places (Isaiah 45:3). When you are lost in the Valley of the Shadow of Death, He will set up a feast for you (Psalm 23:5). When you have lived far too long in the Valley of Achor (Trouble), He will turn it into a door of hope and you will walk through it to the other side (Hosay 2:15).
He is the author of everything that is good and right and noble and hopeful and wonderful and perfect and fulfilling and desirable… He wrote these days for us, holds our inheritance in His hands, that we could walk into the GOOD works He has planned for us. When they were yet unlived, He was writing days that would be filled with gifts from the Father of lights.
What did He do in your heart today? What seemingly insignificant in the grand scheme of things but so huge in your day situation did He resolve? What miracle gift did He plop into your life? What prayer that you weren’t even sure you were actually praying because it sounded an awful lot more like complaining outloud did He answer?
One of my testimonies IS that I got to lead a group of delightful squirrely hilarious teenagers through a time of sharing testimonies. I got to direct and instruct them. I experienced the Lord prompting me with verses and thoughts for so many of them. I got to watch the Holy Spirit go about and stir in their minds the things the Lord had done for them. I got to be filled to overflowing by filling others. Oh how my heart has hungered for this kind of moment--a gift from Him. A “suddenly” thing that I had no idea would be there three weeks ago. Thank You, Lord, for this gift that felt so far away, that felt like it was fading into my background. For the clear and vivid experience of Your whispers and works in our midst.
Claim His good gifts. Speak His wonderful ways. Look for and expect that He is listening and watching and hovering over every question, every worry, every hope, every prayer, every thought, every moment. He will give you this day your daily bread. He will pour out His mercies that are new every morning. He will be attentive to your cry. He will be near to your broken heart. He will heal your downcast spirit. He will remember you and not abandon you. When you think He’s forgotten or wouldn’t know or couldn’t do anything, He has been working far longer than you’ve even been praying, and He will be there.
He is the same yesterday, today, tomorrow. The God who has delivered, is delivering, and will yet deliver us. He is the God who creates perpetual testimonies. Who never leaves us where we are. Who can change what is unchangeable, Who can heal was is irreparable, Who goes before us to make a way, Who goes behind us and restores the desolations of many generations, Who Was and Is and Is to Come.
We overcome the enemy and all the death he tries to deal us, because the Lord overcame him with His life. What has the Lord done even today that you forgot to remember was Him? What are the things that have been added to you that seemed like things just working out or life taking a turn for the better? Remember Him. We overcome the enemy’s work in our lives, when we remember that the Lord is the giver of all those gifts. He is the author of our days. He IS our hope.
“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts.” (Revelation 21:6)
