My, how time flies. I was reminded of that again recently during a conversation with a fellow pastor. Years seem to slip right past us without notice.
This post is somewhat personal in that many of you are perhaps not aware of what I am about to tell you. In July my wife Kathy was diagnosed with cancer. It was a shock to hear that but not unsuspected. She had been experiencing some things that hinted at the possibility. Still, to have suspicions confirmed was sobering.
We have been very careful in the way we have discussed this with anyone. We have spoken to a few close friends and colleagues and have received much sound counsel. Our ecclesia fellowship has been wonderfully supportive as usual and abounding in true love and affection for us. We cherish them.
I am blessed to say that Kathy is showing signs of the Lord’s healing hand upon her body. In this we are rejoicing. He has indeed done a good work in Kathy.
I thought of all this (and believe me this is just the tip of the iceberg) this morning and marvel at how Yahweh has sustained us through this season. Kathy and I have both been sustained by the prayers of the saints, His hand of healing, and the clarity of His call upon our lives. Struggles produce needed clarity when your heart and mind are anchored in Jesus.
I spoke with Dr. J. Otis Ledbetter last night about his new book, In The Secret Place. It is a wonderfully inspiring testimony about the power, sustaining grace, and resolve that believers experience when they spend time with Yahweh in the secret place. Perhaps the meaning of the phrase “secret place” is unknown to some of you. Here is Otis’s definition:
The secret place is not a new place and not a secret in the sense of being hidden to believers. Rather, it is a place where believers are invited into God’s presence to a deeper fellowship than is available in the typical, hurried devotional life.
What is this secret place? It is simply prayer. But is it so much more than prayer. It is intimacy between you and the Father. It is that place where you can go and shut out the noise of your life and the world, what Otis calls “life-liter,” and hear the calming voice of the One who loves you most. Prayer was and is always meant to be the vehicle for clear communion and communication with Yahweh.
People often say that God’s timing is perfect and to that I once again say yes and amen! Many of you know that I am a pastor, author, radio host, and speaker at conferences throughout the year. This pressing schedule keeps me very busy writing and reflecting. There is a strong pull to minimize things where the visual fruit might not be apparent. What Yahweh has reminded me of during this season is that the invisible things done with Him such as prayer, are most responsible for His sustaining grace and the victories I see every day. Without intimate communion with Him through prayer, I as well as everyone else, will resort to our own strengths, resolve, or thoughts. This is a sure recipe for heartbreak and failure.
Another important truth has emerged concerning prayer and its importance. Within the context of prayer Yahweh shares His plans for you. In that secret place of intimacy with the Father, He lays out the battle strategies you will need to persevere, to keep going when things seem to be beyond difficult and border-line impossible.
Is anything too hard for the LORD?
Genesis 18:14a
God develops His plans for you even before you were born again. Ephesians 2:10 reminds us of this.
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
Our prayer life directly impacts our life in powerful ways. Lack of a prayer life leaves us vulnerable to the enemy’s schemes. Devotion to Him demonstrated by a consistent prayer life in that secret place not only encourages us but also empowers us to stand firm in whatever we might face.
Lest you are thinking at this point that I’m speaking of a prayer life only available to super saints, let me offer another clarifying statement from Otis’s book.
I believe from God’s Word that he has provided such a secret place for each of His children to dwell with Him, a place He uniquely designed for each one in order to communicate His will to them. It isn’t something only for the spiritual haves, to the exclusion of the have-nots (a demeaning distinction I don’t believe in). God has a secret place waiting for you and every believer – and the choice whether to meet with Him there is entirely your own.
You already know this but I will state it again. No one knows you better than Yahweh. No one knows your needs better than Him. No one knows your heart’s desires and what the pursuit of some things over others will lead to better than Yahweh.
Your secret place is unique to you. There is no other secret place like your secret place. In other words, your prayer life of intimate communion and loving embrace by the Father is not like anyone else’s. You are unique and special in His sight and He desires to spend time with you and you alone. He desires to hear your thoughts, hear your struggles, and rejoice with you in your triumphs. God desires to offer you His insights, wisdom, and equipping for all that he knows you will face. The secret place that Yahweh has built is a place where from the depths of your spirit you have the right and blessing to meet with Him. Keep going, don’t grow weary or quit. He is waiting on you.
Friends, Kathy and I are thankful for the knowledge that every path God leads us to He has designed and purposefully created for our blessing. Not every path we walk, but those paths that He leads us to. When we spend time in our secret place with Him alone, we learn which paths are not of His creating or choosing, and avoid those because we have the spiritual insight and His Holy Spirit to faithfully guide us.
Kathy and I appreciate each of you. We are grateful for your prayers for her and for the ministry God has entrusted to us. We are humbled and submitted to what God has shown us and we are moving straight ahead in the path He has brought us to. This season of our lives has blossomed into a most fruitful and blessed time for us and for the brothers and sisters at Calvary Chapel of Lima.
Pastor Mike
