I have talked before about how desperation not only is a gift that leads to sobriety, but is also a gift that ends oppression. When we get desperate enough, we believe that nothing good can or will ever happen. Our desperation is then answered only by the hope of God’s goodness. The hope of His goodness is the answer to everything. Without it, we are as the drunk and the downtrodden. We are as the cowardly and the ashamed. Why does goodness matter? Because when we know how kind and how good and how generous God is towards us individually, we have faith that in crisis, we will be given the way of escape. Escape may look like many things. Our circumstances could actually change whereby we would be given new provision or standing. A new job, a new home, a new source of income, a connection with someone who has our specific answer.
The other kind of escape we might receive is a supernatural
outlook whereby God changes our perspective to match His. We will have an
assurance that evil can’t truly harm us and that all things will work together
for our good. This supernatural assurance has nothing to do with the outward
situation, but has to do with the knowing that God is always good. Our inner
situation is transformed. We learn to look for it. We say, I know He’s doing
something good! The world cannot take this faith from us. The more
desperate things look, the greater the move of God in our heart. The more desperate
the circumstances of pain and loss, the more space he has to claim as we
surrender to Him. The situation worsens, and we get more hopeful, more joyful,
more peace.
Impossible? Just ask.
Then God
said, I will make all my goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the
name of the Lord over you. Exodus
33:19
