Palm Sunday, 2019 "Confined or Content?

As we enter Holy Week, 2019, our thoughts go to the realities leading up to the Cross and then Christ’s death and victorious Resurrection.

Yet first, He was content in the Godhead. In loving obedience to the Father, He chose to empty himself (Philippians 2:5-11) and enter the confines of an earthly body subject to all its needs and yet never giving in to the temptations we do. The devotional I am posting today speaks to how I wrestled with finding contentment in a body less-abled than it once had been. Perhaps you can relate for different reasons to how He helped me. 

A blessed Easter to all. xo Lynn

Confined or Content? 

I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open the eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness. 

(Isaiah 42:6-7) 

Any challenges require adjustments. When vestibular dysfunction threw me into a constant state of dizziness and physical disorientation, it happened in one instant. I was blindsided, as if trapped in a dungeon. 

What had happened? Why? 

Some suggested my faith was lacking or I would have been healed by praying—or by others praying for me. I wondered if I was holding myself captive. I became exhausted believing I had to come to some definitive answers.

When all my efforts seemed a failure, I discovered a new level of dependence on the Lord. He patiently waited for me to understand that He was the only strength I had as I learned to live differently-abled. 

I questioned my God-given vocation to be of encouragement to others. Was it possible to proclaim freedom to others and be credible when I felt confined? 

Choose life, Lynn. I am asking you for deeper trust. Surrender. I define your life. Let me.

God helpd me take small steps. I experience him literally work through me in spite of how I feel. As I have died to my own endeavors, I somehow rise with him above my circumstances, despite no physical release from their impact. 

As confined as I have felt, He has remained the open door to meet all my needs. He has shown me the only captivity that ultimately matters is being held captive by his faithfulness. 

It is in his faithfulness, I know contentment. 

Are there times of struggle? Constantly. 

Do I choose to trust God and proclaim his freedom?

When hope rises to view in spite of my pain and his strength is manifested through my limitations, yes! 

Prayer

Lord, you gave your life for me. Help me continue to recognize the freedom I have in you. You set this prisoner free so I can stand content in you. Amen.