Silas
Beloved of All
The weight you are carrying this morning is not a small one. That tightness in your chest as your daughter walks into that room, the rehearsed prayers, the ache of wanting this one thing to go her way, it reveals something. It shows me, and it shows you, exactly where your hope for her peace is anchored. The Father invites us into something far deeper than a simple passing score. He offers us His rest. There is a rest that is promised to the people of God, a settling of the soul that does not rise and fall with the questions on a board exam. The word of the gospel is preached to us, but it must be mixed with faith in our hearts to bring profit. Right now, the profit He desires is not just a license on the wall, but a quiet confidence in His care that surpasses all understanding.
This moment is a kind of wilderness for both of you. Every wilderness experience in Scripture was a place of learning. Before they could face the giants in the land, the children of Israel had to learn that God could meet their needs. They learned His providential care. This test is one of those bitter waters that God can make sweet. It is an opportunity for both of you to learn that His grace is truly sufficient when her own ability runs dry. The psalmist reminds us that at our best state, at the peak of our memory and mental clarity, we are altogether vanity, an emptiness. Even if she were at her sharpest without this disability, it would still be a vain show apart from His Spirit. His strength is perfected in the weakness. So this struggle with tests, this very disability, becomes a stage for His power to be displayed, whether He chooses to display it through a miraculous recall of information or through a supernatural peace in the face of disappointment.
We are not to tempt the Lord by deliberately placing ourselves in spiritual jeopardy to test the scriptures, yet God often sovereignly places us in legitimate trials to test our faith and reveal His Son in us. This is your daughter’s Fair Havens, a point where contrary winds are blowing. Perhaps she feels she is making very little progress against the storm. But remember Paul on that ship. The winds were contrary, the journey was long, and the crew was filled with fear. Yet Paul stood up with the unshakable confidence, "I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told unto me." God’s promise to Paul wasn’t a promise of a smooth voyage; it was a promise that he would stand before Caesar. God’s promised purpose for your daughter is not a life free from testing anxiety; it is that she would bear witness to His faithfulness in every circumstance. It is quite often necessary to pay close attention to what Jesus has said, not to the howling of the storm. His final word to her is not determined by a passing grade, but by the blood of the New Covenant.
Consider Joseph’s brothers when they were put to the test. The true test wasn’t about the grain in their sacks; it was whether they would abandon Benjamin. Judah passed the supreme test by offering himself as a substitute: "Let me take his guilt. Let me take his place." In that moment, he became a beautiful type of Christ. This is the heart of the matter. The ultimate test of life has been passed already by our true Substitute. Because Jesus took the penalty for her guilt, she is no longer standing before a Judge, but she is being examined by a loving Father who searches the reins of the heart. Pray not just that the state board passes her, but that this trial would prolong her state of spiritual understanding and knowledge of Him. Pray that she would look well to the state of her own soul and know that the Lamb of God is her clothing, her covering, and her prize. He will bring her through, in the way that He sees fit, to the place He has purposed for her. Rest there.
This moment is a kind of wilderness for both of you. Every wilderness experience in Scripture was a place of learning. Before they could face the giants in the land, the children of Israel had to learn that God could meet their needs. They learned His providential care. This test is one of those bitter waters that God can make sweet. It is an opportunity for both of you to learn that His grace is truly sufficient when her own ability runs dry. The psalmist reminds us that at our best state, at the peak of our memory and mental clarity, we are altogether vanity, an emptiness. Even if she were at her sharpest without this disability, it would still be a vain show apart from His Spirit. His strength is perfected in the weakness. So this struggle with tests, this very disability, becomes a stage for His power to be displayed, whether He chooses to display it through a miraculous recall of information or through a supernatural peace in the face of disappointment.
We are not to tempt the Lord by deliberately placing ourselves in spiritual jeopardy to test the scriptures, yet God often sovereignly places us in legitimate trials to test our faith and reveal His Son in us. This is your daughter’s Fair Havens, a point where contrary winds are blowing. Perhaps she feels she is making very little progress against the storm. But remember Paul on that ship. The winds were contrary, the journey was long, and the crew was filled with fear. Yet Paul stood up with the unshakable confidence, "I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told unto me." God’s promise to Paul wasn’t a promise of a smooth voyage; it was a promise that he would stand before Caesar. God’s promised purpose for your daughter is not a life free from testing anxiety; it is that she would bear witness to His faithfulness in every circumstance. It is quite often necessary to pay close attention to what Jesus has said, not to the howling of the storm. His final word to her is not determined by a passing grade, but by the blood of the New Covenant.
Consider Joseph’s brothers when they were put to the test. The true test wasn’t about the grain in their sacks; it was whether they would abandon Benjamin. Judah passed the supreme test by offering himself as a substitute: "Let me take his guilt. Let me take his place." In that moment, he became a beautiful type of Christ. This is the heart of the matter. The ultimate test of life has been passed already by our true Substitute. Because Jesus took the penalty for her guilt, she is no longer standing before a Judge, but she is being examined by a loving Father who searches the reins of the heart. Pray not just that the state board passes her, but that this trial would prolong her state of spiritual understanding and knowledge of Him. Pray that she would look well to the state of her own soul and know that the Lamb of God is her clothing, her covering, and her prize. He will bring her through, in the way that He sees fit, to the place He has purposed for her. Rest there.
