I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go." Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. Jn.21.18,19aAll the years I was attending meetings with Christians I had a deep seated fear that one day a "foot washing" would break out and I would have to excuse myself. Oh, it was not that I couldn't wash another's feet but to think of someone washing mine was more than I could ever bear. I was relieved as my fear was never realized. No one ever called for a foot washing. Then lo and behold, that which I feared has come upon me three times in the last month.
First allow me to share some background. It seems with my current infirmity which is called Congestive Heart Failure I began to suffer a terrible case of edema two months ago
Edema: The swelling of soft tissues as a result of excess water accumulation. An abnormal accumulation of fluid in the cells, tissue spaces, or cavities of the body.
Edema is often more prominent in the lower legs and feet as a result of pooling of fluid.
It seems that which the church could never do three of my sisters could. I speak of two sisters in the Lord and my youngest natural sibling. Upon hearing of my plight, Ellie sent me an expensive herbal oil made specifically for the Edema inflammation in my heart, feet and lower legs. Her directions were to rub this oil on my calves, and feet, specifically the soles of my feet. Well my legs were so swollen as was my whole body that I could not even think about bending over to reach my feet much less the soles. Heck, it would take me at least ten long minutes to even get a pair of shoes on. I don't exaggerate when I tell you that I would almost faint from the effort.
For a week or two the pricey little bottle of oil (I saw the invoice), which was bought at a real sacrifice by the Schulz family, lay unused on my dining room table. Then my little sister, Sherry came for a visit as she knew I was dying. That weekend Sherry and I had a number of friends and family come over to see me. Wouldn't you know it; when the group of well wishers grew to the greatest number, some one asked about the tiny bottle of oil on the table. As only the Spirit can do, after my explanation of the oil, it seemed things progressed until I was sitting in a chair with pants legs lifted and my socks being removed. There were some gasps and even some tears as my condition was laid bare before them. And then, with the keeping of the always ready Irish humor, some one asked if I had thought about hiring myself out as a "foot model" lol.
Seriously now, I was so sick and in such straights that I was way beyond my prideful state, as my little sister with tears rolling, tenderly worked the oil into my scaly, purple and red feet. Needless to say I was moved by Sherry's tenderness displayed in both her hands and her heart. Amazingly, the next morning I actually realized some relief as the natural color in my legs and feet had returned and the swelling subsided quite a bit.
Unfortunately a few days later the congestion caused by the edema would get so bad in my lungs at night that I could only sleep for a half hour before suffering suffocation. The pattern was sleep for a half hour and then cough and clear out my lungs for a half hour. I finally went to the hospital for a four day stay where my condition was stabilized.
This brings us to yesterday. I worked around the house getting things ready for Joian to arrive in the evening. Also note, I am now on oxygen 24/7 and I pretty much kept my O2 on for most of the day but I removed it to do a little work outside and run some errands. That's a big no no as I am learning. That with the fact I missed my nap caused my legs and feet to swell again and turn the familiar fiery purple and red color. I was disheartened by this sad recurrence, until Joian decided she wanted to anoint my feet with a washing of prayer mixed with Ellie's oil, which she discovered still on the table. It was hard but I submitted. This morning the swelling had gone down and Joian decided another go with the oil and prayer would make a good backdrop for our coffee time.
I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go." Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. Jn.21.18,19a
After the prayer and oil, Joian picked up an old book by Lettie Cowman and read. She cried as she read. I cried later.
Truly, God will wrestle with us until we find ourselves in His perfect image. Some of us have been called to this Divine wrestling match in this lifetime. If you are one, whom God is wrestling away all that hinders and is now dressing and leading you where you once didn't want to go, I pray you will be encouraged as we share our devotional reading from this morning.
Jack
Wrestling With God
“And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day” (Gen. 32:24).
God is wrestling with Jacob more than Jacob is wrestling with God. It was the Son of man, the Angel of the Covenant. It was God in human form pressing down and pressing out the old Jacob life; and ere the morning broke, God had prevailed and Jacob fell with his thigh dislocated. But as he fell, he fell into the arms of God, and there he clung and wrestled, too, until the blessing came; and the new life was born and he arose from the earthly to the heavenly, the human to the divine, the natural to the supernatural. And as he went forth that morning he was a weak and broken man, but God was there instead; and the heavenly voice proclaimed, “Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel; for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.”
Beloved, this must ever be a typical scene in every transformed life. There comes a crisis-hour to each of us, if God has called us to the highest and best, when all resources fail; when we face either ruin or something higher than we ever dreamed; when we must have infinite help from God and yet, ere we can have it, we must let something go; we must surrender completely; we must cease from our own wisdom. strength, and righteousness, and become crucified with Christ and alive in Him. God knows how to lead us up to this crisis, and He knows how to lead us through.
Is He leading you thus? Is this the meaning of your deep trial, or your difficult surroundings, or that impossible situation. or that trying place through which you cannot go without Him, and yet you have not enough of Him to give you the victory?
Oh, turn to Jacob’s God! Cast yourself helplessly at His feet. Die to your strength and wisdom in His loving arms and rise, like Jacob, into His strength and all-sufficiency. There is no way out of your hard and narrow place but at the top. You must get deliverance by rising higher and coming into a new experience with God. Oh, may it bring you into all that is meant by the revelation of the Mighty One of Jacob!
“At Thy feet I fall,
Yield Thee Up My ALL,
To suffer LIVE, OR DIE
For my Lord crucified.”
(From Lettie Cowman - Streams in the Desert)
(a previous SONSHINE blog on "God wrestling")
http://jack-sonshine.blogspot.com/2009/03/economics-of-son-godwrestling.html
.
