Come and receive, all that you need, for I am here
Walk in My strength, rest in My grace, for I am here
Abiding life and joy and peace, are only found in Me
For I am Truth and Love and Hope that never dies
I am here, seek Me and you will find
© Cyndi Aarrestad, June 20, 2017
This morning I listened to a devotional about Job - how it demonstrates to us that even in the middle of our times of deepest struggle, sorrow, or suffering, we can be certain God is there with us. There was a hidden purpose in it all. And, just like Job was able to bring his hardest questions and pain before God, God wants us to come to Him with all of ours. He wants us to seek Him, cry out to Him, trust Him and hold to His word and the never-failing faithfulness He has always shown us. Suffering in its countless forms, is common to us all. But God’s word is sure, and His promises are certain. He assures us that He will never leave or forsake us. (Deut. 31:6, Joshua 1:5, Hebrews 13:5-6) He longs for us to come to Him; to call on His name; to seek to know Him more; to bring our every concern, every fear, every struggle, every need to Him. He WANTS so much to meet with us and to grow the relationship between us. He wants to be our burden-bearer. He wants to carry us through those hard times. We NEED Him and His presence more than ever, and it’s so amazing to think that He WANTS to be close to us. (Draw nigh to God, He will draw nigh to you…..James 4:8; Jeremiah 29:12,1
The song above came to me earlier this summer while I was seeking God in my prayer room. It was a song of assurance that He was waiting there for me to come, spend time with Him, and let Him pour into my life exactly what I needed for that day. This morning, it was on my heart, and as I sung it over and over at the piano, I was so blessed by God’s invitation to Come and to Receive. As I went back to what I had been doing, which was making some home-canned tomato soup, I was overwhelmed with the precious presence of the Lord, and saw His beautiful lesson right before my eyes as I ground the cooked tomato vegetable mixture through the (old-fashioned!) food mill. Just like the produce had to be washed, cut, cooked and then pressed out through the small holes, allowing only the flavourful juice to be extracted, resulting in a rich, creamy soup; we too have to be “pressed”, “squeezed”, and “tested by fire” to remove the unwanted, sinful parts of our nature, to produce the precious fruit of righteousness in our lives and to be changed more into the likeness of Jesus. I processed my filled jars in a “hot water bath”, and it’s through the “process” of struggle and trial that we are most keenly aware of our need for God, where the greatest changes can take place, and where the end result is made possible.
So, my goal is to keep focused on God’s goodness, seek Him throughout my days, wait on Him, praise Him, draw strength, courage and joy from His everlasting well, and expect to “taste and see” His blessings come through the times of being “processed”!
And, to believe that what His word says is always true….including this:
Romans 8:18 NIV I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.
As I travel along on this journey, I want – no, I NEED, to come to Him, rest in His love, and receive all He has available to me. His grace is sufficient for what I need for each day. I want to believe that and live that. And, I want to be an encourager of all of us who travel this road together. God is waiting to meet us. He has so much to offer us. But we must come……
https://soundcloud.com/cyndiaar/come-and-receive