God is at Work
Work: exertion or effort directed to produce or accomplish something
In physics, a force is said to do work if, when acting on a body, there is a displacement of the point of application in the direction of the force. Think of that carefully. If we apply this to the spiritual realm, something is accomplished when God, the force, acts upon our spirit, our mind, will or emotion, or our body, and something is displaced or changed in the direction of God’s point of application.
I have been privileged to witness the work of God in the past few days. I got a call asking that the dates of a prayer group I lead needed to be changed to accommodate one of the moms in the group. Just before the meeting I received a text that the person we agreed to accommodate would not be attending that evening. “Well,” I thought, “that’s interesting.” A few minutes before I left I received a call from another mom who told me that she would be bringing a friend with her to our prayer time. This mom, she explained, is a mother of 9 who homeschools her children and was facing surgery the next day for cancer which had reoccurred. God had worked changing our schedule to allow us to pray for this mom and encourage her to trust in His faithfulness.
This same week I had interviewed a potential renter for my mother’s home. There were concerns about the credit report and my husband and I sat with the couple to hear their story. After a difficult but productive discussion, we agreed that this couple would be acceptable and we offered the lease agreement. They were ecstatic declaring that this was a “God thing.” Indeed it was, but not with the outcome we expected. The day arrived to sign the agreement and receive payment and the wife came alone. She asked if she could walk through the house and as she did, her body language gave us pause. She slowly came to the front door and tearfully stated that they would not be able to sign the lease. She explained that because of personal problems she did not have peace about the move. My husband had to leave for an appointment and I invited her to sit and talk. This young lady’s parents are both deceased and the grandmother she treasures suffers from dementia. She felt alone and unsure. God allowed me to share encouragement and counsel that I had received from His Word as well as through 49 years of marriage. I was unfazed by the outcome of the loss of a renter because I was so excited to see God’s hand at work.
In each situation His work resulted in changes of perspective allowing those He brought into my life to hear His Word, prayer and encouragement. My plans were displaced as God applied His force in the direction of His purpose. God works. We have the privilege of joining Him. It is an exciting adventure! What work is God doing in you or in the people around you? May we yield to Him in the direction of His force to achieve His eternal purpose.
Deuteronomy 32:4 (NIV) He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.
Psalm 66:5 (NIV) Come and see what God has done, how awesome his works in man’s behalf!
Isaiah 64:4 (NLT) For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him!
Romans 8:28 (NIV) And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Ephesians 2:10 (NIV) For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
For God is working in you, _______, giving you, _______, the desire and the power to do what pleases Him. Philippians 2:13 (NLT)
O Sovereign LORD, you have begun to show to your servant Your greatness and Your strong hand. For what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do the deeds and mighty works You do?” Deuteronomy 3:24
What a great message. Yes, sometimes things don’t work out the way we hope they will work out. But God always has His plan to work things out.