In the shade
For over all the glory there will be a canopy, a shelter to give shade from the heat by day and a refuge and hiding place from the storm and the rain” (Isaiah 4:6).
When we first started thinking about a name for this ministry four years ago, we were captivated by the idea of walking so close to God that we find ourselves in His shade or shadow. Just like the reprieve we find in the shade of a tree, we find rest in the shade God offers us! This was the heart that gave this ministry the name, enlasombra; we desire to dwell in the shelter of the Almighty!
It is in God’s shade where we find peace, protection, purpose, freedom, rest, and see a clearer picture of who we are in the light of His loving Truth and Grace. It is in this “secret” place where we have personally experienced many answers to our seeking but also peace when our prayers have not been answered according to our time table or even according to our desires. In the doubting and waiting seasons we all experience, we can be fully assured that in His shadow we find rest that every outcome is under the umbrella of His sovereignty.
“All whom God uses greatly are first hidden in the secret of His presence, away from the pride of man. It is there our vision clears. It is there the silt drops from the current of our life and our faith begins to grasp His arm.
Abraham waited for the birth of Isaac. Moses didn’t lead the Exodus until he was eighty. Elijah waited beside the brook. Noah waited 120 years for rain. Paul was hidden away for three years in Arabia.
God is working while His people are waiting, waiting, waiting.
That’s what’s happening. For the present time, nothing. For the future, everything” (Charles Swindoll).
Don’t you love this encouragement from Charles Swindoll? What a beautiful thought that as we wait and wait and wait in the secret place of His presence, our faith begins to grasp the arm of God!
The Good News is this: Even as we wait under the canopy of His glory, the waiting speaks forth purpose.
“He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty” (Psalm 91:1).