DAY 1: GOD IS STILL GOD – IN SEASONS OF SECLUSION

By Benescke Janse van Rensburg

Noah was trapped in a boat with his family for a year. Jonah was locked up in a whale's stomach for three days. Moses tended sheep in the wilderness for 40 years. Paul was imprisoned for a long time. And the disciples waited in the upper room for ten days after Jesus' ascension in heaven.

For each of these people, the time of seclusion must have been challenging, but it was also unknowingly a season of protection and preparation because God knew the future.

2020 was a strange year for all of us – a year of seclusion and confinement. Why? I do not know. All I know is that I can already see the fruit of this in my own life - more quality family time, a greater dependency on God and even a deeper hunger to know His heart.

Surely Noah, Jonah, Moses, Paul, and the disciples must have had many questions during their own season of seclusion. Maybe your heart is also filled with questions today? Why did a loved one die from Covid-19? Why did you have to close down your business? Why did you lose your job? Or why did your marriage end?

If we don’t remind ourselves that God is still God in these times, we can easily lose hope. God however still remains in control as He knows the future. In Isaiah 46:10 we read: “I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, 'My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.'” He also reminds us in Isaiah 41:13 to trust Him: “For I am the LORD your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.”

After the time of seclusion, Noah stepped out of the ark as the father of the first family in a totally different world. Jonah approached Nineve with boldness after the whale and experienced one of the greatest revivals in a previously wicked city. For 40 years Moses got to know the desert like the palm of his hand while tending sheep so that he later on could lead the Israelites through that desert to the Promised Land. Paul wrote a large part of the New Testament in prison and the disciples experienced in the upper room how their fear and uncertainty disappeared the moment they received the Holy Spirit.

A time of seclusion is a time of protection and preparation. Let us thank God for walking with us - protecting and preparing us. God bless.

Father God, thank You that you are still God. Forgive me for every time I allowed fear and unbelief to steal my joy. Guide me daily and strengthen my faith. I ask this in the Name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

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