As I write these very words, I wait in eager anticipation. You see, in a matter of days I will meet my twin daughters face to face. Our eyes will connect for the first time. They will newly be embraced in the firm and loving arms of their father who loves them more than they’ll ever know. Furthermore, it has been a long, tumultuous nine months of medical hardship and heartache for my wife, with me at her side. Speaking most honestly and candidly, it has been difficult during these seemingly endless valleys to believe these dark days would ever end; indeed, that we would even one day meet, as my heart has been longing. The struggle remains universal to us all, to bear in mind the “end result” or goal when we struggle and suffer. More on this, however, in a moment.
Through all of this great emotion, I can’t help but to see a grand parallel between my passionate excitement and that of our Heavenly Father towards us. He has prepared us a special place, much similar yet far greater than our quaint nursery however, as His is eternal in the heavens (Eph. 1:3-12, 5:25b-27; Phil. 3:20-21). In the heavenlies, His dwelling place, our Father waits anxiously for our reunion with Him - our meeting face to face with our Maker, our Savior. Paul refers to this event as our "blessed hope" (Tit. 2:13), to which we must all cling and aspire. Much more than my three trimesters of waiting, our Father has been looking forward to this happening from "before the foundation of the world" (Eph. 1:4).
I connect all of these loosely stranded thoughts as we reflect on the lyrics of this album's final track, where we are encouraged to "look full in His wonderful face." This anticipated time, the very culmination of our faith, should be continually kept at the center of our minds and at the onset of all of our actions and doings. Just as I can't wait to gaze upon the face of my daughters for the first time, so should our hearts yearn for the face and presence of Jesus Christ.
Now, I admit to you that this is a difficult order to fill, personally speaking. As I've already shared, if I've been struggling to keep my eye on the circumstantial goal of my children's birth, how much more do I grapple with the eternal!? Furthermore, when you add in any form of adversity or hardship, the struggle becomes that much greater! How are we to truly cope and deal with this?
I believe the answer, simply enough, is the very injunction that we originally started with, "look[ing] full in His wonderful face." I picture Peter, having stepped out of the boat on to the tempestuous seas and being overcome by circumstantial fear and doubt, taking his eyes away from the face of the Lord, and immediately therefore sinking into the deep. In that moment of struggle and potential defeat, he called out, "Lord, save me!" (Matt. 14:30). What was God's response to such a humble cry? "And immediately Jesus stretched forth His hand and caught him" (Matt. 14:31).
Of course, we don't need to cry to our Savior to save us once again, but we certainly must look to Him for His strength, provision and deliverance. In fact, this is what He's wanted all along - to be the One fueling all that we do. As Paul states it in Philippians 2, "it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure" (v. 13). Doing this, in turn, truly keeps our focus and gaze fixed upon His face. This all encourages and equips me to no only keep my eternal focus clearly sharpened in my view, but also enables me to weather the storms of life. Through the difficulty, I can call to Him as I feel I'm about to sink (truthfully, even before that ever happens) and I have full assurance that He can and will sustain me.
So, as I now reflect upon my current circumstances, I can and do cast my all upon Him knowing He carries me through it all. I look to His beautiful face and find His strength, mercy and grace. As for the faces of my beautiful little angels? We'll just have to wait and see...
