Graven On His Hands

It was pretty ironic that right after I had written about having joy yesterday, I was faced with a situation to practice my words. The result was that I failed miserably. Not only did I not choose joy, but I chose pride and anger. I was quickly losing ground in my fight for joy. I guess I had prepared my heart to respond the right way in certain situations, but when this one hit me in the face out of nowhere, I reacted sinfully. I am thankful it happened in one sense, because it helped me to see that I still have a long way to go in growing to be more like Christ. And like my dad said last night, our lives are an ever evolving circle. We will always be on the go, making plans, trying them out, adjusting them, taking action and starting all over. We will never reach a level of godliness where we'll plateau and live in a perfect state. That will only happen when we are taken home to be with God. That will only happen when we have no more sin hindering our progress. That CAN only happen as a result of God sending His precious Son to be a ransom for us all. God is never unaware about the joys and the trials we are facing. When I become anxious or upset about something that is going on in my life, that is me telling God that I am not trusting him to take care of me. After all that he went through and accomplished so that I might be saved, how can I even doubt that he will take care of the little things in my life? He is faithful and can be trusted. How securing to be held in the palm of his hands. The very hands that were pierced for us. The hands that have our names graven upon them!

"Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands. Isaiah 49:16. The Lord hath forsaken me, and my God hath forgotten me. How amazed the divine mind seems to be at this wicked unbelief! What can be more astounding than the unfounded doubts and fears of God's favoured people? The Lord's loving word of rebuke should make us blush; he cries, How can I have forgotten thee, when I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands? How darest thou doubt my constant remembrance, when the memorial is set upon my very flesh? O unbelief, how strange a marvel thou art! We know not which most to wonder at, the faithfulness of God or the unbelief of his people. He keeps his promise a thousand times, and yet the next trial makes us doubt him. -C.H.S."

I was so excited when I read this this morning and was overwhelmed by God's kindness to speak to me where I needed it! Here is the conclusion to Spurgeon's thoughts on this matter.

"Heaven and earth may well be astonished that rebels should obtain so great a nearness to the heart of infinite love as to be written upon the palms of his hands. I have graven thee.It does not say, Thy name. The name is there, but that is not all: I have graven thee. See the fullness of this! I have graven thy person, thine image, thy case, thy circumstances, thy sins, thy temptations, thy weaknesses, thy wants, thy works; I have graven thee, everything about thee, all that concerns thee; I have put thee altogether there. Wilt thou ever say again that thy God hath forsaken thee when he has graven thee upon his own palms?-C.H.S."