Change, Transition and Testing

Today, I am personally in a time of transition, once again.  This time it was again an unexpected transition, so as I sat down to pray, I was thinking about my unknown future.  I thought it would be good to look up 'unknown' in scripture and see what the Lord had to say, and I came across these familiar verses in Isaiah 48:3-7, 10, 12-13, 16-17 NIV:

[3] "I foretold the former things long ago, my mouth announced them and I made them known; then suddenly I acted, and they came to pass.
[4] For I knew how stubborn you were; your neck muscles were iron, your forehead was bronze.
[5] Therefore I told you these things long ago; before they happened I announced them to you so that you could not say, 'My images brought them about; my wooden image and metal god ordained them.'

[6] You have heard these things; look at them all. Will you not admit them? “From now on I will tell you of new things, of hidden things unknown to you.
[7] They are created now, and not long ago; you have not heard of them before today. So you cannot say, 'Yes, I knew of them.'

[10] See, I have refined you, though not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.

[12] “Listen to me, Jacob, Israel, whom I have called: I am he; I am the first and I am the last.
[13] My own hand laid the foundations of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I summon them, they all stand up together.

[16] “Come near me and listen to this: “From the first announcement I have not spoken in secret; at the time it happens, I am there.” And now the Sovereign Lord has sent me, endowed with his Spirit."
[17] "This is what the Lord says---your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go."

I definitely feel like I am in the stage of God announcing new things to me, of hidden things previously unknown to me.  In the past it seemed like the Lord would give me a six month notice to major life changes, but since this summer the time of notification was very close to the change.  I was complaining about that to the Lord this summer and His response was that I had learned how to trust Him and follow His guidance when I knew about things in advance, but that He wanted me able to follow Him without knowing the plan in advance, trusting totally in His character, rather than in His revealed plans. So now I am learning to trust Him in midst of change, with no visibility to where I will end up, nor how long it will take to get there.

I like these verses because, although the motivation ascribed to the Lord is different, the process He takes them through is similar to my present experience.  My favorite verse is verse sixteen, where the Lord says, "at the time it happens, I am there."  What a great promise to hold onto in the midst of transition and change.  Even though the plan is not known, He is present!  That should be enough for me, and so far it is.  I am resting in my knowledge of His goodness and faithfulness.  I am confident in His plan for my life, and know that He has led me to this place, and that He is leading forward in the way I should go (verse 17). I am counting on His presence to be evident in my life, bringing His peace that passes understanding (Phil 4:7).

Secondly, verse ten speaks of being tested and refined. I believe that the Lord regularly allows our testing, for it helps us to know how we are doing and what areas we need to grow in our relationship with Him.  I think of this as a carpenter building a house, testing His work as he goes making sure it is solid, square and level.  He desires that we grown into His image, and our testing allows us to see areas where we still need to grow.  For example, if our first response is fear, then we need to know His love in a deeper way, for perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18).  If we see God as punishing us, then we need to know the Father's heart in a deeper way for He didn't send Jesus to judge but to save (John 3:16-17).  Our response to these challenges and tests will tell us much about our relationship and heart knowledge of the Lord, what we really believe versus what we say we believe.

Lord, I pray for all of us who are going through times of transition, and times of testing, that we might rest in You, and grow in our faith and knowledge of You through our experience of Your peace, provision and guidance. Amen!