Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share in the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation. 1 Peter 4:12-13.

While you have the light, believe in the light. John 12:36.

For we walk by faith, not by sight…2 Corinthians 5:7.

He has not ignored or belittled the suffering of the needy. He has not turned His back on them, but has listened to their cries for help. Psalm 22:24.

And continuing our 351 Old Testament prophecies fulfilled in Jesus Christ, we come to number 7: A priest after the order of Melchizedek. Genesis 14:18: And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; now he was a priest of God Most High. And, Hebrews 6:20: Where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. Reading just a little further…Without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, he remains a priest perpetually. Hebrews 7:3.

Last night we watched an episode of the series David on Prime. David felt so deeply and was able to weep unashamedly at the cruelty of death and dying. A man after God’s own heart! Have we lost the ability to weep unashamedly at all that is wrong in our fallen world? What does it mean to walk by faith and not by sight? I realized in praying this morning that we each of us are called to walk by faith because what is of sight is all around us continually pressing in. Do we see all that is wrong in our fallen world as sharing in the sufferings of Christ? As I am getting older I feel stretched so thin. Worry for family consumes me at times and even the quiet I try with God feels wrong when my own spirit feels so prickly. What about our extended family, the children of God? While you have the light…believe in the light. We have the light of God’s love abiding deep within us and we need to weep unashamedly with Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit, who is the only light in a world suffering in darkness and despair. Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you. But to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ – keep on rejoicing – so that also at the revelation of His glory – you may rejoice with exultation! As we love God now we have a window into that revelation of His glory and we can rejoice and abide in Him who abides with us. He is our strength and our comfort because we need both as we live in this world. We are in good company as we walk by faith. Jesus the Son walked by faith in the Father while He walked with us. The Holy spirit walks by faith in the Father and the Son as He works within us. The Father who could have ended all of us – walks by the faith of knowing His Will is Good and He is faithful to the covenant He made with Abraham. Jesus the Christ, the anointed One, came to show us the Father and give us His Spirit to be the light we walk by with Him. The light of God’s love given for us is the glorious truth we trust and live by with Him!