The Secret

"I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or want." (Phil.4:12)

This verse implies crazy whirling circumstances and conditions of all kinds:
In any and every situation - in the death or serious injury of a loved one; in the heartache of a struggling marriage or divorce; in failure at work or school; in the midst of dark depression or spiritual oppression; in ill health or cancer or debilitating migraines and bodily pain; in loneliness and loss of friendship; in the midst of being misjudged and the topic of gossip; in a rape or sexual assault; in lack of purpose or aimlessness; in times of waiting and not knowing - I have learned the secret.

The secret is God Himself. In any and every situation the one constant is God. I have God right here where I am residing at this very moment. Nothing can remove Him from me; nothing can separate Him from me. Other losses I may suffer, but this loss I shall never be asked to endure. I am His and He is mine.

"My flesh and my heart may fail,
But God is the strength of my heart
And my portion forever." (Ps.73:26)

My portion. My cup. My inheritance. My all.

So - I can lose everything - my family, my friends, my home and things, my job and career, my safety, my comfort and ease, my money, my sustenance, my health, my pleasures in this life, my purity, my dreams - and I would not have lost the most important thing in all of my life, for I still have my precious God and Savior.

Now one thing that is true for all of us in our spiritual sojourn is that we know these truths, but then God takes that head knowledge and makes it real, real, real. And He makes Himself the very thing that matters most. How? He presses these truths out in the wine press and pressures of life and He shows us over and over again the utter necessity of trusting Him 'even here' and 'even here' and 'even here.' Hasn't that been true for you? It surely has been true for me.

I am not the same woman I was even 10 years ago. God has been at work and it has been a good work even though my life has had its painful, tortuous times. Over and over He has said, I am your all-in-all. You could lose this - whatever - and you would still have Me, and my soul has been comforted with that precious reassurance. Not until we have suffered in various ways and seen Him prove Himself to us personally can we say with confidence that yes, He is all I need, though I lose all else. This, then, is the secret of being content in all circumstances.

That secret is not learned in a moment. That secret cannot be taught in a book or a class. It is borne out of a faith pressed into service in the high heat of trials beyond our own capability to endure. We are taught to run to our Savior, to our Jesus. And right there is where that truth becomes our own. Yes, I have my God. I will never lose Him.

We cannot just take in the facts from our eyes and think this is the only truth - this is 'real' truth. For the Bible says, "We live by faith not by sight..." (II Cor.5:7) There is an unseen truth. The data from our eyes may say this is chaos happening in my life, uncontrolled chaos, working against my comfort and peace and joy. But as believers in the God of the universe, we look beyond what is seen with our eyes and we look to the unseen. Our faith grabs hold of the assurances in scripture that God is in control and holds on tight. Always. Nothing can remotely touch our lives without, not only His divine permission, but also His good and sovereign purpose. And in believing, we cling to His beloved hand.

"Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, 'It is well, it is well, with my soul.'"
"I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord..." (Phil.3:8)
"I say to myself, 'The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for Him.'" (Lam.3:24)
"You are my portion, O Lord..." (Ps.119:57)
"God has said, 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.'" (Heb.13:5)