"Even So Come, Lord Jesus" (Part II)

Robert, my husband, and I began dating when I was a junior in high school. Not long after his graduation, he joined the Air Force because “the draft” had become the obvious. After his basic training and attending tech school, he was assigned to work at Warner Robins Air Force Base in Georgia. Finally, he was close enough to our hometown of Knoxville, TN to drive in on weekends to visit. I longed for his visits because I loved him. Now, sometimes, he would help my mother. She was a single mom and some muscles came in handy around our house. I remember on one occasion that he even helped us paint our house.

I longed for Robert to come home because I wanted to be with him. …But wonder if I just wanted him to come in to help around our house in order to make life easier for me and my family. How do you suppose that would have made him feel? My point is, do we want Jesus to come back to get us out of our mess or do we want to be with Him because we love Him. Maybe the answer is both. I emphasized in my last newsletter that we should desire the coming of the Lord, but I do believe that there are some very important things that we need to consider.

First, notice when we start longing for the return of our Lord is usually at those times when life is more difficult than usual. I certainly understand that. We need to consider that “a wishing for Jesus to return” may be a wish for a quick fix to my situation. Could it be that God has a different means for your getting the relief you need?

Mother has told me when I was a little girl that I didn’t want to talk. (Now, imagine that.) If I wanted the potatoes on the table, I would point at them and grunt. What is so sad is that I remember doing that. After a while of grunting, Mother decided that my desires should no longer be met by a grunt but by verbalizing my desires. Grunting was easier for me, but there was a better way.

Absolutely, there will be a day that Jesus will come and take us to our heavenly home. We will have no struggles or difficulties, but Jesus instructed, “Occupy till I come” (Lk. 19:13). This means “to carry on His business.” We must be careful that we don’t sit down in our troubles with only a constant groan of “Jesus, come quickly”. His coming would be easier, but that is not necessarily the best way for now. Whether we realize it or not, our groaning for Jesus to come because of our difficulties places a demand on Him to make life easier by his coming. “Occupying” is not the rapture (the catching away). It is doing what He called us to do, living in faith, and standing against the enemy the devil that would dare to stand against us. Is it that we have lost the desire to fight? Then, we are discouraged. We are discouraged because we are focusing on our circumstances. As we continue to gaze upon them, a sense of hopelessness engulfs us. God said in Deuteronomy 1:21, “…fear not, neither be discouraged.” That is a command from God. This places the responsibility upon us. If He said “to fear not, neither be discouraged”, He meant it, and we can do it through Christ. Sometimes, the only way to do this is to declare out loud the Word that contradicts troubled circumstances. Discouragement grips us when we allow the enemy to fire his thoughts against us. Lift up your shield of faith that quenches those fiery darts and take your sword out of its sheath and shout out the Word. Watch what the Lord does as you “occupy till He comes.” (To be continued).