AUGUEST THEME – “Seeing Revival from God’s Perspective”
Join us in prayer and celebration as Belmont Baptist Church celebrates our Year of Jubilee, marking fifty years of God’s amazing faithfulness and looking forward with grateful hearts to all He has yet to do.
BEATS FROM YOUR PASTOR’S HEART’S
WHEN I CANNOT CLIMB TO THE ROCK — HIDE ME IN THE ROCK
“And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock: And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by.” — Exodus 33:21–22
WHEN YOU DO NOT HAVE THE STRENGTH TO GET THERE
Yesterday David prayed, “When my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” But there are days when you feel so tired, wounded, confused, or overwhelmed that you do not even feel strong enough to climb. That is when you discover something precious about the grace of God: the God who leads you to the Rock is also the God who hides you in the Rock. Moses had asked God for something enormous: “I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.” God did not rebuke him for wanting more. Instead, God said, “There is a place by me.” What a beautiful answer. Before God showed Moses His glory, He showed Moses his place. There is still a place by God for the overwhelmed, the weary, the frightened, and the brokenhearted. You may not understand what God is doing, but you can still get close enough to be covered by His hand.
THERE IS A PLACE BY HIM
God told Moses, “Behold, there is a place by me.” Sometimes we become so consumed with asking God to change our circumstances that we overlook the greater gift—His presence in our circumstances. We want an answer. God offers Himself. We want the storm stopped. God says, “Come closer.” We want the burden removed. God says, “There is a place by Me.” There are things God may not explain to you today. There are prayers He may not answer the way you expected. There are circumstances you may not be able to change. But there is never a circumstance that can keep you from the place beside Him. Peace does not always come because God changes where you are. Sometimes peace comes because you discover where He is. And He is closer than you thought.
GOD SOMETIMES HIDES YOU BEFORE HE SHOWS YOU
God said, “I will put thee in a clift of the rock.” Notice who did the putting. Moses did not have to find the hiding place himself. God put him there. There are seasons when God allows your world to become smaller. Doors close. Plans change. People disappoint you. Strength disappears. What once seemed certain suddenly becomes uncertain. You may feel as though life has pushed you into a narrow place. But what if the narrow place is not punishment? What if God is hiding you? The cleft of the rock was not where Moses would remain forever. It was where God placed him while His glory was passing by. Some of the places we desperately want to escape may actually be the places where God is preparing us to see Him more clearly. Do not despise the hiding place.
HIS HAND IS OVER YOU EVEN WHEN YOU CANNOT SEE HIM
God told Moses, “I will cover thee with my hand while I pass by.” Think about that. For a moment, Moses could not see what God was doing because God’s own hand was covering him. Could it be that some of the darkness you are experiencing is not because God has abandoned you—but because His hand is over you? You cannot see tomorrow. You cannot see how the problem will end. You cannot see how the prayer will be answered. You cannot see what God is arranging beyond your sight. But faith does not require you to see everything God is doing. Faith rests beneath the hand of the One who does. When you cannot trace His hand, trust His heart. And when you cannot see His face, remember that His hand may still be covering you.
YOU MAY UNDERSTAND IT BETTER AFTER GOD HAS PASSED BY
Moses wanted to see God’s glory immediately, but God told him there were things he could only see after He had passed by. That is often how God works in our lives. Looking forward, we see confusion. Looking backward, we see providence. Looking forward, we ask, “God, where are You?” Looking backward, we whisper, “God, You were there the whole time.” There are chapters of your life that will never make sense while you are standing in the middle of them. But one day you may look back and recognize fingerprints of grace everywhere. The door that closed protected you. The delay redirected you. The disappointment humbled you. The burden drove you deeper. The valley taught you to pray. And the season you thought would destroy you became the place where you discovered that God was enough.
Imagine a little child awakened during a violent thunderstorm. Lightning flashes, thunder shakes the windows, and fear sends the child running down the hallway toward his father’s room. The father does not explain atmospheric pressure, electrical charges, or weather patterns. The child does not need an explanation of the storm. He needs his father. The father pulls him close, covers him with his arms, and says, “You’re safe. I’m right here.” The storm may still be raging outside, but something has changed inside the child. He is no longer facing the storm alone. There are moments when God will not explain the thunder. He will simply pull you closer. And sometimes His presence is the answer you needed more than the explanation you wanted.
WHEN YOU CANNOT SEE WHAT GOD IS DOING
Perhaps today you are still overwhelmed. You prayed. You preached truth to your own soul. You asked God to lead you to the Rock. Yet the circumstances have not changed. Then hear His invitation: “There is a place by me.” You do not have to understand everything today. You do not have to solve everything tonight. You do not have to know how God will work everything out. Just stay near Him. The Rock beneath you is stronger than the storm around you. The hand covering you is stronger than the enemy attacking you. And the God beside you already knows what is waiting on the other side. You may feel hidden. You may feel surrounded. You may even feel forgotten. But hidden by God is not forgotten by God. Stay in the cleft. His hand is still over you. His presence is still with you. And His glory may be passing nearer than you realize.
WARFARE PRAYER
Father, when I cannot understand what You are doing, keep me close to You. When my heart is overwhelmed and I do not have the strength to climb, put me in the cleft of the Rock. Hide me beneath Your hand. Silence the lies of the enemy that tell me You have forgotten me. Forgive me for demanding explanations when You are offering me Your presence. Teach me to trust You in the darkness, wait for You in the silence, and rest beneath Your hand when I cannot see Your face. I surrender the unanswered questions, the uncertain future, and the burdens I cannot carry. You are my Rock, my refuge, my hiding place, and my God. Until I can see what You are doing, I will trust Who You are. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
DAILY CHALLENGE
Find ten quiet minutes today and do not ask God for anything. Put away the phone, silence the distractions, open your Bible to Exodus 33:21–22, and simply sit in His presence. Slowly repeat these words: “There is a place by me.” Then tell your heart: I do not have to understand everything. I do not have to fix everything. I do not have to see everything. I only need to stay close to Him.
TODAY, STOP TRYING TO ESCAPE THE PLACE WHERE GOD MAY BE HIDING YOU—AND START LOOKING FOR HIS GLORY IN IT.
THURSDAY’S PRAYER NEEDS
Mike Bryan
Anna Belle Taylor – Irregular Heartbeat – Jackson’s Special Friend
Britany Smith
Darlene Kelley – Our Cousin _ Recovering from Cancer
Darlene Thaxton
Deanne Boynton
Ginny Ford
Kim McClain’s Mother
Nancy Brown
Rob Davis – cancer