Seasons!
Genesis 26:1 says
And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar
Psalm 105:16 says
He called for a famine on the land of Canaan, cutting off its food supply
Interpretation is very important here; you know one could read this now and then imagine a mean God. A God that just wants to kill your vibes… I mean why call for a famine or why is there famine in the Land or why are there even seasons in the first place?
Can’t it all just be “good times”, always?
Can’t it all just be Summer?
Can’t it always be frosh and fresh?
Can’t we just always operate in Abundance?
But it has been established for us overtime at the Tribe that God Defines Good — Our (man’s) interpretation of what should be Good doesn’t define God.
That said, if you just read further on both Passages, you would see something interesting…
Then he sent someone to Egypt ahead of them — Psalm 105:17
The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt, but do as I tell you. — Genesis 26:2
From the above, we deduce that God creates a system to sustain people even in the famine season. This system can take different frameworks; knowing that He has a will and His will must be done (Jesus at Gethsemane), sending someone ahead of us (Joseph), asking us to do as He has instructed us (Isaac), allowing death to happen so a better resurrection can be obtained (Lazarus), assurance of His anointing in spite of His Wilderness experience (David), the assurance of God’s Sovereignty in spite of an erratic King’s judgement (Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego), etc.
The Creator, God of the universe can’t just be one way in His approach to our lives. God orchestrates our lives like a movie with many plot twists but He assures us that if we are well-anchored, The Wind wouldn’t wreck us when it comes. I mean He already gave us the expo that The Wind would come.
Now let’s drill down into my thought for this conversation.
the rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. but everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. — Matthew 7:25–26 (NIV)
They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete. — Luke 6:48–49 (NIV)
In our Journey with God, we get appraised to see if we have understanding of His ways — One of life’s examiners is The Wind.
A student who is being taught in a learning institution is evaluated regularly to see if he/she grasps the concept of what they are being taught. You can’t claim to have understood a subject by just swearing an affidavit, it doesn’t work that way. Your tutor would assess you to see if you truly understand what has been taught.
As we navigate through this side of life, we would have the wind come inspect what we are building or have built. It would test the “Strength of Material” of what you are building in your relationship with God, your career, your academics, your finances, your relationships, your family, your marriage, your sense of commitment etc. I mean it would evaluate your life across the board.
It is the understanding of this Truth that the wind would come that should help us prepare for it rather than being shocked when it comes.
The wind is coming — from Luke 6:48–49, we see that it came for both the person who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock and the man who built a house on the ground without a foundation.
No partiality. Same Wind, different results. It is just what the Wind does, it comes for all.
At a particular time, the Wind literally came for Our Lord Jesus while He was asleep. When He woke up, all He did was to rebuke the wind (Mark 4:37 -39).
At another season (Gethsemane), He had to pray and we see how He got strengthened to pray some more till His sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. In that scenario, He overcame The Wind by accepting the Father’s will. (Luke 22:41–44)
Disclaimer: The scope of this conversation is not to highlight the various forms in which The Wind comes but to let us know about the coming of the wind, staying alert and also to see one of the ways to handle it.
As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like — Luke 6:47
One of the ways we know to handle the wind is to DO the Word. It is in doing the word that we dig down deep and lay our Foundation on the Rock. You and I have to put into practice what we are being taught from the Word. It is by the reason of this activity that we have our senses exercised, growing in the certainty of the things we have been taught and are thereby thoroughly furnished.
All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work — 2 Timothy 3:16–17 (NLT)
Apostle Paul made us understand what the Word does when it comes;
- It teaches (imparts knowledge and instructs as to how to do things)
- It rebukes (disapproval of taken actions)
- It corrects (put right an error or fault)
- It trains us in righteousness (instructs us to live God’s way — the right living)
Comrades, as a final note, The Wind is coming and it is nothing personal. In doing the Word, we create an infrastructure that withstands it whenever it shows up. If we faint on the day the wind comes, it is because our foundation isn’t on the rock.
This week, let’s be intentional about doing the Word and let the Word direct our affairs.
Do have a blessed week!
I remain a fellow Comrade serving with you to actualize the LORD’s Agenda
Ayomide Arowele
@arowele.ao