Gleaning Guidance Through Peril and Pain

When the darkness appears
And the night draws near,
And the day is past and gone,
At the river I stand,
Guide my feet, hold my hand:
Take my hand, precious Lord,
Lead me home.

Precious Lord, Take My Hand (1932)

By: Thomas A. Dorsey (1899 – 1993)

Listen to this version featuring Mahalia Jackson as you prepare to ponder this hymn. Please make certain to enjoy the podcast below.

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Everyone enjoy this podcast and transcript below!  It features meditative music and moments to contemplate the Scriptures and reflections shared.

Transcript may be found below, at the end of the blog.

We conclude our journey through this great gospel song which voices our desire to have God take our hand. More often than not, we need some help to make it through. God is always there waiting to give that help if we will only ask. Let’s think about this.

Slippery Rocks

Growing up in the mountains I have always loved putting my feet in the refreshingly cool, crisp waters of a stream. But you must be careful. The stones along a moving body of water can be treacherous due to moss and moisture. On many occasion I have had to contort my body in awkward positions so as not to tumble onto those slippery and very hard rocks.

As a father, I have many memories of introducing my four boys to the simple joys of this experience, but not without a degree of drama. See I know how treacherous those slippery rocks can be, but they did not. I would hold their hands tightly, the younger they were the more tightly I held, as we made our way along the stones sometimes to the middle of the stream. They would try to pull away, sometimes successfully, but I would always take hold of them hands and guide them to the best places to step in my attempt to keep them safe.

Our Heavenly Father does the same for us.

Life presents us with any number of very tempting and slippery situations. We are often unaware of the peril they present. Our Father is not He is willing to walk along the edge of the water with us, guiding our steps and holding our hands. When we yield to His care, He keeps us safe, even though there may be some twists and turns.

This is never more true than in the final passage through the transition from this life to the next. Our learning to trust Him through smaller, simpler perils will give us an increasing measure of confidence in Him as we approach that last one. This is imperative as we long to see our soul delivered even through death.

At the river I stand,
Guide my feet, hold my hand:

For you have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life. Psalm 56:13 ESV

We will all face death, but God is able to deliver us even through that peril. He will keep our feet from falling, and guide us through safely so we may walk with Him in the light of life eternal. He is a good Father and wants to keep your soul safe. Will you let Him?

RESONATE!
God’s care through the perils of this life can prepare us for the last, great one at our passing into eternity. Are you trusting Him with your perils? Maybe like a child you have pulled your hand away wanting to face it on your own. Maybe you have realized that is often not a great idea. Ask the Spirit to reveal if there are any perils you are facing today where you are not putting your hand in God’s. Confess whatever He reveals and determine to put your hand back into Your Father’s again today. 

Excruciating Circumstances

Trusting someone through perils can be challenging for a self-reliant child, and many a self-reliant adult, and the maturity that when demonstrate in those moments is not easily gleaned. Even still, those are often not the situations that test our trust the most. Whether physical, emotional, spiritual or relational, pain affects us even more than the rush of adrenaline caused by peril.

There are probably many reasons why but they can be grouped in one of two larger areas: the acute nature of pain, and the lingering effect it has on our trust in God. We will consider the simpler, former reason first, then move on to the more complex, latter one.

Let’s use an example. You are rushing around doing some tasks and you drop something. In your hurry you bend over without realizing their is now something in the path of our your head as you raise up. You hit your noggin so hard that you get an immediate headache and your vision blurs, partly because of the tears. You totally forget everything else you were doing because you are so fixated on the pain.

Pain effects us first because of the acute nature of it. Even after the fact there is a reminder of the injury. Sometimes this makes other things difficult because whenever you do not have anything else to think about, you go back to this incident.

While that is problematic to our trust in God, the lingering effects on our hearts and minds can be even more troublesome. Sometimes we wonder why God would allow that pain. We question why we are not healing faster. This line of thinking effects our trust in Him, when we probably should be asking questions that affirm our trust. Questions like, “I wonder what purpose God has for this pain in my life?” Not easy, but essential.

We can develop that kind of trust when we ask Him to lead us, and then remember His promises.

Take my hand, precious Lord,
Lead me home.

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28 ESV

Think of it this way. If we can trust God to lead us home, that is to lead us through death into His promised rest, certainly we can trust Him for everything else that leads to our passing into eternity. If you love God, you are responding to His call. You are likely to have demonstrated that by trusting in Christ and becoming His child. You can trust that God works all things together for your good, even your death.

If we grasp that perspective, it changes how we think of the pains of this life. Rather than blaming God for them, we can grow to trust that He has a purpose in them that is higher than ours. This is not an easy truth to practice, but doing so is essential to our faith, and prepares us for that final pain at the end of this life.

RESONATE!
Are you trusting God to use everything, including your pain, for your good? Ask the Spirit to reveal if there is anything you are struggling with when it comes to past pains in your life. As He reveals anything, ask Him to turn those things into opportunities to grow your trust, through every twist and turn of life, until you arrive at the final one.

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Image Attributions
At the River I Stand, Guide My Feet, Hold My Hand – https://pixabay.com/photos/man-wilderness-nature-river-1246233/
Take My Hand, Precious Lord, Lead Me Home – https://pixabay.com/photos/slap-hand-open-fingers-4379830/