Rescue Archives - Seeking God with Jaime Wiebel

Living in the Shelter of the Almighty

Jaime Wiebel — Wed, 25 Jul 2018 10:00:09 +0000

Living In the Shelter of the Almighty

There have been times in my life when all I needed was a place to seek shelter. Refuge from life and the storms that were on the brink or in my midst. In those times, I wished I had known what it meant to seek the shelter from Almighty God.

It was something that I had to learn as life’s storms became overwhelming.

I grew up in the midwest. I know what a storm looks and feels like. Before the storm, all seems calm. There is no movement or breeze in the air. You can feel the tension building up in the atmosphere. All of nature becomes quiet. The birds stop chirping and the trees stand firm and still in their place.

Then, all of a sudden, it all comes crashing down. The wind and the rain break loose. The tension that has been building up finally let’s go. All you can do is sit with anticipation waiting out the results of it all.

Waiting to see what you have to pick up and put back together in the aftermath of the storm.

Fighting the Storms Alone

Some of the storms in my life have been self-inflicted. Meaning they are the direct result of bad decisions. In those times, I didn’t seek refuge from God for fear, guilt, and shame seemed too great to face Him.

Those were the times I tried to ride out the storm by myself and always failed miserably. Having no one to help pick up the pieces or put them back together made those times the hardest.

I was always left broken and more damaged than the last time. Feeling helpless and hopeless that I not only couldn’t fix things but had messed them up even more.

It became a revolving door of self-loathing and desperation to find the next best thing to make it go away or feel better.

It wasn’t until I surrendered, not just admitted I was a sinner and asked Christ to come into my life, but really surrendered my life to Christ, that I found refuge in Him.

Finding Refuge in the Lord

What finally broke the tension and the distance that I had created between myself and God was the loss of our twin babies. It was the straw that broke the camel’s back you could say.

I realized all the fighting and the running that I had been doing were driving me into the pit that I didn’t want to be in.

I believe that God has a way to get the attention of His children. For each of us, it is different. That is what makes our stories on the path to redemption so unique and beautiful.

I am grateful to God for knowing what I needed and for knowing how to get me there. I was a mess without Him. Quite honestly, I am a mess with Him, just a mess that has hope.

Life is never easy and is full of situations that cause us fear and anxiety. Life is full of times that cause us heartbreak. The awesome thing is we don’t have to stay there. We can find refuge in the wings of the Almighty.

Had I Known

Had I known I didn't have to fight through life alone, earlier in my life, my days would have been ruled by #peace and #hope. #Seekrefuge #underthewingsoftheAlmighty
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If I would have sought refuge in Christ, instead of trying to run from Him, I could have been spared from the regret of grieving my Father.

Seeking refuge with God in times of danger, even if they are the result of our own decisions, mistakes, or recklessness, offers us something that nothing else can.

I love the verses from Psalm 91. The author of this psalm is not known, which makes it all the more wonderful because we can fit into this psalm so seamlessly.

What is known, however, is that the author felt fear from the storm that pursued them. We can all so easily relate to that.

What I want to encourage us with today is overcoming that fear with the truth that sets us free from those fears when we meditate on God’s Word.

Psalm 91

Psalm 91 has such beautiful assurances. Assurances we can hold onto while we are braving life’s storms. Here are seven verses that I would love for you to meditate on with me.

Psalm 91:1-2 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most-High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”

Psalm 91:4 He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings, you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

Psalm 91:9 – 11 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most-High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.

Psalm 91:14 “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

Under the Wings of the Almighty

I love the imagery of the wings. Being tucked in close to God as we ride out the storm together. As a parent tucking in their child close protecting them from devastation. God never promised us a life free from the storms but He offers us protection through them.

I had a friend email me that she had been praying for God to take her out of the situation that she was in. It seemed to be piling up bigger than she could take. I reminded her that the beautiful part is not just in the rescue but seeing God’s provision through it all.

Reliance on God is these times allows His strength to shine through our weakness. God doesn’t always just want to instantly rescue us and free us from the storm. He wants us to learn how to hold onto Him and stay under His wings during the storm.

When we have called on His name and put our trust in Him, these verses tell us, He will rescue us. He will send His angels to guard us. How amazing is that!

I will rescue Him, says the Lord. These are sweet words to my ears. I don't know about you, but I want to know that I always have a #rescue, a #refuge, and a #shelter from life's storms. #underthewingsoftheAlmighty
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Hope and Sitting Among Friends Blog Party #5

Jaime Wiebel — Wed, 30 Dec 2015 08:30:00 +0000

Hope. Seems as if we are searching for this thing. Hope.

We are personally ill or have a friend who is battling an illness. We hope for treatment. We hope for a cure. We hope for recovery. We hope for rest.

We have been searching for just the right job. We hope it fits the life of our family. We hope it will bring us satisfaction. We hope our co-workers are nice or at least tolerable.

We are seeking peace in our relationships. We hope they will understand. We hope they will meet us in the middle. We hope for some resolution. We hope the kids will be okay.

Hope. Daily. Seeking. Hope. In Something. In Someone.

This is one reason that I love the Christmas story. Whether you are a believer or not you could not have gone through the Christmas Season and not gazed upon the manger scene.

No matter where you were at, you could not have avoided it. Nearly every street on every block has the manger scene.

Maybe you hoped it had nothing to do with you. Maybe you hoped it had something to do with you. Maybe you hoped it had everything to do with you.

What I love about seeing baby Jesus in the manger is it reminds me of the hope that came.

Jesus Christ came as hope. Hope for the past. Hope for our present. Hope for our future.

Merriam-Webster defines hope as, to cherish a desire with anticipation or to desire with expectation of obtainment.

One of my favorite verses is Hebrews 11:1. Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

It is one of my favorite verses because I feel like it defines me. I have a confident faith in what I hope for, the reality of Jesus Christ. Who came in the flesh to dwell among us, died, was resurrected, and now is seated at the right hand of God interceding on my behalf on a daily basis.

You might ask, how do you know that? How can you say that with confidence? Did you see Christ in the flesh and how can you believe these stories?

My answer is hope. My hope came for me. My hope is someday returning for me. My hope is in Jesus Christ. Hebrews reminds us we can have the assurance of this hope.

For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it. Romans 8:24-25

Many people may argue that Jesus Christ is not or was not real. Many argue His existence. After all, with my own two eyes, I have not seen Him. I will not argue that point today. Romans, however, tells us hope is not seeing because who hopes for something they have seen. (I do not hope for my neighbor to get better when I have already seen she is well.)

Hope is the anticipation, the eager perseverance of waiting for what we confidently know to be true.

How can I know and have confidence in this hope?

I have witnessed the hand of God in my life. I have witnessed the rescue of my heart. I have felt the peace that comes only from God and we are called to be of witness to that hope.

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.

1 Peter 3:15

Quick story. My five-year-old little guy was outside with me. A recycling truck came by my house and as the giant metal arms of the truck were picking up the recycling bin, my guy got scared, ran away from me right past the truck. As he did, the arms came up and the bin on it hit him square in the face. He flew back to the stone surround of the flowerbed with a near miss to the back of his head. There is really no reason why he came out of that accident with a few loose teeth and a scratch on the chin. Everything about that should have gone severely bad.

I saw every second of it. It plays over and over in my mind. Every time, it brings me to tears. Why? My guy was saved.

My God is good. In God, I have hope. Some days, in some situations, it is all I have. It is what makes me persevere when times are tough and I have nothing else to grab or hold onto.

Hope. Hope for my past. Hope in the present. Hope for my future.

What do you do with this hope? Do you grab a hold of this hope for yourself? Do you continue seeking hope in something or someone else? The choice is yours to make.

If you would like to know further how you find hope in Jesus Christ, send an email to youresewtrendy@gmail.com

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