A Simple
Message
May 2003
by Suzanne Rife
I believed I was a “good” person living
a good life. I was strong and resourceful – what did I need God for?
I was doing just fine on my own.
In 2000, my family moved to Kansas.
This move took me 1,000 miles from my family, my friends and my support
system. God was about to push my limits and my belief that I was
all I needed – I didn’t need Him.
Over the course of the next couple of months
a minister and his wife would approach me. They befriended us when
no one else would. They pushed me to consider my salvation.
I held fast to my stubborn beliefs still convinced I didn’t need Him yet
their questions remained lodged in my heart. I was beginning to have
doubts.
A few months later, God allowed my family
to face some calamities. My marriage was on its last legs and my
husband lost his job. Finding myself with absolutely NO support system
and my life dissolving around me, He in His divine wisdom and patience
was finally able to open my eyes to the truth. I did need Him!
What a wondrous sense of peace and joy washed over me the day I was able
to admit my sins and ask Him to live in my heart as my Lord and Savior.
He has since worked to heal my marriage and
to bring my family to Plano, Texas where Christian friends surround me
and my family is enjoying a restored life full of promise.
I still have bad days some times but the
difference now is that I can hand it all over to Him instead of trying
to carry that burden myself. I would ultimately make a mess of things
trying to handle it all. He is such a loving father and always has
our best interests at heart even if we don’t understand any of it.
I am always able to look back and see His plan at work in my life.
A few nights ago I was awakened by a voice
saying, “I am all you need.” I was stunned to hear it and sat upright
alone in my room. I reached for my bible trying to find His message
for me. I found the following verse:
Isaiah 50:4 – The sovereign Lord has given
me an instructed tongue to know the word that sustains the weary.
He awakens me by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being taught.
I guess He wants to make sure I still understand
His message for me. He is all I need. What a simple message.
Suzanne Rife
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