Warriors Arise: December 30, 2022
Numbers 6:22-26 (NKJV)
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them:
24 “The Lord bless you and keep you;
25 The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
26 The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.” ’
What does it mean for the Lord to make His face shine upon you and me? When would you say you have seen someone's face shine upon another? When a father takes healthy pride in what his children have achieved, his face shines upon his children. The father is practically bursting at the seams. When a mother has encouraged her child to conquer a fear, her face shines upon the child. People may say, "You are beaming!" Are they in pride for acknowledging what their children have accomplished? They could, if it goes that far. But just for a father or mother to delight, celebrate and share the great news of their child's accomplishment is not arrogant. Pride gets a bad wrap, but we should be "proud" of the accomplishments others have achieved.
I like people to know I am proud of them and what they have accomplished. Nobody achieves any success without putting forth effort. Their success should inspire us to excel and go after what we want to achieve. As we end 2022 and head into 2023, I would like to encourage you to take a look. Take a look at what you have accomplished in 2022. We have a family vision board. Each one in the family has a couple of goals they are wanting to achieve in the new year. Not every one of those was a goal accomplished in 2022. Some, we will have to see if they are long-term goals and remain for 2023 or if they no longer matter, because something else came up. For instance, my son wanted to be accepted and act with Sights and Sounds. He gave his best audition, and got a standing ovation by his peers who were auditioning as well. He was the only one who received the standing ovation. The sound tech told him, in hushed tones, how much he really liked how Josiah sang his audition song. But a month later he received a letter that "after prayerful consideration, they would not be extending him a position in their acting conservatory." Josiah was devastated for a short period of time, but he didn't give up; he got up. He started looking at other places, being selective about where he wanted to go in order to do what he wanted to do. His heart was set on acting in movies. If it was a song and dance movie, all the better. He found New York Film Academy. He sent in his audition monologues and songs then waited. He received a letter of acceptance with a scholarship. He was ecstatic! My face shone upon Josiah. He had taken the difficult blow from the first rejection letter. It was difficult to try again, but he didn't give up. I am more proud that he tried again. It was difficult, but he picked himself up and put himself out there.
We all face rejection. It can be very crippling, isolating, and poison an entire situation. It can cause us to be blind to the vision God has placed within us. We have to be able to pick ourselves up and keep our eyes on what goal or vision God has given us. Josiah doesn't get to check off of the vision board that he was accepted at the Sights and Sounds Conservatory, but he does get to check off that he is at New York Film Academy. Actually, I think he had to have the "no" at the conservatory to get him on the right path to what he wants to do. The conservatory is theater. Josiah has always known he wants to be in movies. Sometimes we do not like the no and we have to be able to seek God, "Since it isn't that then what do I do now? Where do I go? How do I get there?"
God delights when we do not give up. Sometimes the no is to keep us on track. Honestly, Josiah was taking the easy route. I was the one that found out about the Sights and Sounds Conservartory. When that didn't work out, he had to start looking. He decided he didn't want another year in the "waiting tank." He had to put the effort in to find where he wanted to go, to get him where he wanted to be. Should I be proud of him? Yes, absolutely. I am proud of him for not allowing the rejection to paralyze him. I am proud of him for checking out different acting schools. I am proud of him for applying himself to the application and auditioning process. I am proud of him for having a straight A semester!!! Woohoo! I have never seen him so excited about school and what he is doing. He is making the most out of this opportunity. I am proud of him for that as well.
Do you see God make his face to shine upon you? God loves you immensely. He watches you, not to see if you are naughty or nice. He watches you to guide and direct you to achieve the dreams He put inside of you. He watches you to find one who is fully committed to Him. When we are fully committed to Him, then we will be engaged and diligently pursuing the dreams He has placed inside of us. This makes God's face shine upon you. He desires to look upon you and be delighted in you. Yes, He sees your pain and disappointment, but He wants you to believe He can heal the pain and overturn the disappointment and make in a divine appointment. He wants us to believe in what He has put inside of us. When we align our lives and what we do to bring glory to Him by fulfilling the dreams He has placed within us, He can't contain the delight He has in us. His face shines for you and me.
I think it is really cool, that it says, "The Lord make His face shine upon you." He isn't going to miss celebrating something you have accomplished. He "makes" His face shine upon you. I can hear an angel say, "Lord, You are beaming!"
Then the Lord responds, "Did you see what she just did? I am so proud of her! Just look as what my child has accomplished. I put that dream inside of them and they overcame so many obstacles to succeed. I am so proud of them!"
Father, this really stretches my mind. You notice the little successes in my life and rejoice over me like in Zephaniah 3:17. You watch me, because You want to be the first to cheer me on, when I get back up from a hard fall. You wait with anticipation for me to align myself and live with intention to accomplish the dreams You have placed within me. You beam with delight over me. Yes, I made mistakes, sinned and wallowed a bit when things got tough. But You waited; You cheered; You put Your faith in me. You make Your face shine upon me not, because I was perfect; but because I didn't give up. You celebrate me, because I continue to overcome and press toward the dreams You placed within me. I will make You proud, so Your face beams with delight and shines upon me in Jesus' name amen.
A Warrior in the Lord’s Army,
Veridee Joy Hand
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