Wanting Nothing But His Presence

Becoming a Woman of Contentment, Part 5

Five steps long and two steps wide, she had counted them over and over for months. Solitary confinement weighed heavy on her stooped shoulders as she cried out to the Lord, telling Him she could not spend one more day alone in her cell. As she finished her prayer, she looked down to see a little friend wandering about the confined space. Though there were others who came and went, this little one would come and spend the day with her. At any sign of danger, it would run to its hole in the wall and hide, but it would always return to Corrie ten Boom.

I watched her tell this story to an interviewer, recorded decades ago. The ten Booms, if you are unfamiliar with the story, were imprisoned by the Gestapo for their role in hiding Jews from the Nazis. Corrie and her sister, Betsy, were inevitably betrayed and sent to concentration camps, enduring what she called the “depths of hell” until Betsy was released to heaven and Corrie was released to share their story with the world. Their father did not survive past their first imprisonment as they awaited trial, which is where Corrie’s tale of her little ant companion prepared her for what was to come. Her eyes lit up with joy as she told of how the ant would run into its hiding place, and how God impressed on her heart that He was Corrie’s refuge, too. She could run to Him in any trouble. He was always with her.

You can read her family’s story in “The Hiding Place” and I would also recommend searching her name on You Tube to see her recorded retellings. I cannot forget the joy, peace, and love her face expressed as she recalled the Lord’s presence with her in the most unimaginable circumstances. She viewed those memories as fondly as a dinner with friends and family around the dining room table because she knew the presence of her Savior was right beside her. Corrie’s life is such a beautiful example of contentment.

As I close out this series on contentment, I want to focus on James 4:14.

Whereas, ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.

In context, James is calling into question the believers who were planning their lives without God in the picture. They would get to the spiritual at their convenience, but there was life to seize now! They could make money now and serve the Lord later. In fact, what they gained might even benefit the Lord, so surely, He would understand!

Jesus spoke on the same subject in Luke 12:13-21. A brother asked Jesus to make his older sibling divide the inheritance with him. In Jewish custom, the older brother was due half of his father’s inheritance. All other siblings would then divide what was left. Jesus directly reprimanded the man for counting his life by possessions.

Luke 12:15 And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.

Jesus then told the story of the man who lived his life to gain more. He decided to build greater barns to store it all, but then God required his life that very night. Not one thing he had gained mattered for eternity. In contrast, Corrie and her family gave up everything in this life for what was most important. In doing so, they saved countless Jews while also leaving a testimony of God’s presence in the most difficult trials.

This last week I found myself sitting in a waiting room wrapped in a pink smock with a wide variety of other women. Some were gray-haired, some twenty years my junior. Some tucked their designer clothes and jewelry in the locker provided, and some just stowed a simple t-shirt. Everyone there contemplated the possibility of a diagnosis that could turn their normal upside down. What would the test reveal?  

It was a sobering reality check that reminded me that we all get off the planet one way or another, and there is little control in how or when it happens.

There will be a day when I will stand before my Creator and answer for the life He so graciously provided me, for what I did with what I was given, and for how I treated the people He placed me with.

Because I am blessed to have His Word in my language, I am also responsible for what I do with its instructions and its truth.

What I recognized that day is that if the Bible does not speak for the most difficult things of life, it has no bearing on life at all. Before I knew the verdict, I understood that either way, my Savior would walk me through, and He could use my situation to bless others on the same journey. I could choose contentment because of Him. Circumstances would never provide any level of consistent contentment. I had little control of any of my circumstances, but I could control how I chose to walk through them.

Like Corrie, looking for God’s presence, care, and light in the darkest of places, I can watch for every opportunity to praise Him, to obey Him, and share His light in a dark world. And like the ant, in every situation out of my control, I can run to Him for refuge. I can praise Him amid overwhelming trials. I can sing while the tears roll down my face. In fact, I can choose to praise Him until my dying breath.

As I considered the refuge and presence of God, Psalm 46 came to mind. While I thought on it, a sermon came on the radio by Pastor David Jeremiah, giving the history of this Psalm. It was written after the invasion of Sennacherib and the Assyrian army during the reign of King Hezekiah, a godly king of Judah. The pastor noted that in troubled times, God always gives a “word and a song.” The message was one delivered by Isaiah in 2 Kings 19:6-7.  Continue reading to learn how God met His people in their helplessness. The song of Psalm 46 was written to commemorate the victory God gave.

He is a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we can be still and know that He is God. Though God did not immediately release Corrie and her family from their circumstances, her testimony is that God showed Himself present throughout their ordeal. Corrie was miraculously able to keep her Bible when the person before and behind her were bodily searched, and then the fleas in their bunks kept the guards away so they could continue Bible studies in their dormitory. God was a refuge in the darkest times, but Corrie and her sister also shared His light in that darkness so that many others could know His presence too. And is that not how He still works today?

I am so thankful for those who followed me through these lessons all the way to the end. I pray it was a blessing now or will be a help sometime in the future. I am so thankful to the Lord for leading me through this study to challenge my growth in contentment.  There is amazing freedom in submitting to His plans, in humbling myself, in cleansing my hands and purifying my heart, and in being still to know that He is God.  

Though I have not arrived at a perfect level of contentment (Ha! Not until heaven!) I have arrived at the decision to choose contentment when life gives the opportunity. I pray that the Lord’s presence in every circumstance leads you to the same choice again and again.

Love and blessings, friends!