Out of the Wreck I Rise

Dawn Snider presents "Out of the Wreck I Rise" the tenth in a series of devotionals by the 2012 Grace Harbor Colombia Mission Team.

"We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies...the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us through wordless groans..." Romans 8:37-39

I’ve been doing a lot of groaning lately. Under the weight of many responsibilities, I groan. Under the concerns for my family, I groan. Under the burden of concern for the needs of our church, I groan. In utter exhaustion, I groan. I’m sure many of you can identify with me. You have hit the wall of what you can do, change, endure. But even as I write this I find something else. It starts, perhaps, with a tear... or with my head in my hands...but it starts. It makes no sense, because I can neither control it or make it happen. Like a hand on my chest, I sense I am not alone, and in the surrender of my self-sufficiency, His Spirit bears witness with my spirit that I am a child of God "The Spirit Himself testifies with our Spirit that we are God’s children." Rom.8:16 and His Spirit is interceding for me as I groan. For no humanly explainable reason, my head is lifted up...I cannot escape a feeling of hope...even joy...as I allow God, the Father, to minister to my spirit. The pain is still there, but assurance and hope begin to wash over me. It is very much like breathing. Inhale...the truth of God’s word; His proven character and commitment to finishing the good work He has begun in me....exhale...the stress; the doubt and lies I’ve been telling myself. I cannot begin to say enough how vital having God’s words in your heart is to successfully breathing spiritually. I might tell myself, 'I’m failing; I’m unimportant; I can’t see any solution,' but God’s Word says, '...in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us ...neither death nor life; angels or demons; the present or the future or any powers ...nothing in all creation and that includes the economy, my failings, my feelings can separate us from the love of God...in Christ Jesus, our Lord.' Romans 8:37-39

I encourage you to look for the Spirit when you are groaning in your circumstances. Read something like Psalms 25, 31 or 32...inhale deep and allow God to be the lifter of your head. There is nothing He and you can’t get through together. "If God is for us, who can be against us?" Rom. 8:31.

Breathing in Him,
Dawn Snider

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