A Shaken Foundation

A few days ago I was awakened at about four-thirty in the morning because my house was shaking. (I wasn't really surprised, or even alarmed -- God has granted me a great peace in the face of earthquakes, which was an immense gift considering that we feel tremors once or twice a month here.) As I lay in my bed sensing my house rattling, creaking and trembling, God showed me how that earthquake was similar to the temptations of Satan.

A couple months ago, I felt that my relationship with God had gotten really distant, because of that, I was feeling tired, discouraged and really sad. In retrospect, I know that I was having a "faith earthquake" -- Satan started by chipping away at my prayer life and my time in God's Word with tiny distractions that grew and grew. Then he whispered to me that God would be angry with me, so I felt embarrassed and scared to go to God and the distance between us grew. And then Satan prompted me to doubt -- a life of following God is difficult, even Jesus says that, so wouldn't my life be easier if I went back to the way it was before God? Satan shook my faith to the foundation, mostly without me realizing it.

But God always makes a way out of evil's grasp. He blessed me with the most surprising reminders of His truth, and then sent me to Singapore and Cambodia to be filled and encouraged by the love of his family and heavily shielded from the evil one, for a time, by the faith of my brothers and sisters, as we served our Father together. I was able to return to Japan repentant, forgiven and comforted, in my Father's arms.

Satan may have shaken my faith, but my faith is built on the foundation of God's love and grace -- that truth will not crumble. I wanted to share this with you so that we can praise God together for the amazing ways he works in our lives. Also, please join me in praying that our eyes with be open to the ways that Satan is trying to weaken our foundations, and that God will strengthen us so that the devil cannot shake our faith.