Hiding in the Lord and learning to persevere
How can we learn to take shelter in the Lord and what is the connection with perseverance? The letter to Hebrews 10:36 states that we need perseverance: “For you need perseverance, to do the will of G’d, to obtain that which is promised.” The Eternal wants us to do His will and thereby we must learn to persevere with the final result that we get what is promised: eternal life, a life in the coming world in an environment where we cannot get sick and no longer have to die. No longer have to go the way of the earth where everything will perish.
An incredible prospect what we cannot really imagine. We can have a spiritual experience during worship on Shabbat and the Feasts by singing spiritual songs, listening to music, listening to the Word of G’d, enjoying peace and quiet and other beautiful things. These are spiritual experiences that can be wonderful and that we cannot put into words. We also can experience this in our the quiet times that we spend with the Lord, a wonderful moment in which we feel that He loves us and cares for you and me and that we are on the right track.
His care, in difficult times when you have young children and are tired, teenagers that ask more from you than you can handle, stubborn toddlers that require all of your parenting skills, difficulties at work, crisis times in your marriage or tensions in the family or circle of friends and in times of threat and illness, times of mourning. It is a privilege to be able to take shelter close to your Heavenly Father and ask him for advice and solutions to the problems. It was for me in those moments with Him I was able to persevere through Him.
I would have given up in my own human weakness. But my fear and love for the Lord kept me in the straight and right path. The spiritual experiences resemble grassy meadows of peace and quiet, experiences that we need to survive in those times of crisis of our lives that every human being experiences. Being able to take shelter in the Lord – an almost mystical situation – and experiencing that He provides us with moments of security and safety in turbulent times, is a pearl for our souls.
In periods of more peace and quiet, there are times when you are deeply grateful and happy to know and to be able to serve Him. This way our confidence in the Lord grows and we grow spiritually. That is only possible because our loving G’d has laid down His Life for us by Messiah Yeshua so that we can live to the fullest of out capabilities. For our part, that only requires our time and dedication in all phases of our lives to persevere and indeed receiving what He has promised us while we take shelter in Him, our Rock.
Elze Erwteman