When Paul was speaking of the manner in which God used him and others like him he made the following statement:
[2Co 4:7 KJV] 7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
The phrase “earthen vessels” is literally “cracked pots.” In other words, it speaks of living a life by which you ultimately crack under the strain. We could transliterate in saying we have this treasure in lives who have cracked under the pressure and strain of the situations they find themselves in.
This was reiterated in Acts when Paul made the following observation:
[Act 14:22 KJV] 22 Confirming the souls of the disciples, [and] exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.
The term “tribulation” in this verse means “manifold (different) kinds of pressure….”
We spend our lives instinctively avoiding pressure. This is in reality, the “beast” nature of the flesh. If you observe them, animals instinctively preserve their energies and avoid pressure or expenditure of effort by their very nature. This is the flesh nature that God says in His word is an enemy of His kingdom.
Are you under pressure? Allow it to bring you to the brokenness by which God will use you. In the last (almost) three years, I have endured pressure beyond imagining. Kitty’s sudden and unexpected death (my spouse), the resulting diminishment of the ministry by mere virtue of grappling with the personal issues in such a way that the ministry suffered. Thank God for the staff who kept things afloat (without whom there would be no Father’s Heart Ministry at all by this time).
Yet, pressure has its place. Wheat is ground to flour that makes bread by PRESSURE. Wine is produced by a winepress, which involves pressure and crushing. This is the means by which God makes us suitable to be instruments of propagating His message of the Gospel and his anointing – (oil likewise produced in an olive PRESS!).
Pressure is sometimes unendurable, and it seems God allows this to pursue HIS agenda as a higher priority than OUR comfort. This is why the call of God is a call to take up your cross, whose logical conclusion is BRUTAL DEATH, after which resurrection becomes a possibility.
It’s time to stop kidding yourself. Suffering, while not authored by God, is used by God for His greater glory, and since our lives are not our own, we signed up for the whole trip when we gave our lives to Christ.
The season of time since Kitty’s death has been the most brutal and painful of my life. In the midst of it God arranged things to keep me TENDER and vulnerable to the very absence and loss represented by what happened without any reasonable expectation of relief or shift into the next thing that He might have in mind.
Walking with God is a challenge, I must say, but that’s what I’m faced with, and I will continue to be faithful as much as I can regardless of the brutal, painful process that seems absolutely to have no end in sight. Even so Lord Jesus. Prayers appreciated.
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Eric says:
Brother RW you are GLORIOUSLY bolting out by the SWIFTNESS and STRENGTH of a horse. The LORD Jesus rebukes the dreadful Winds and waves in your life and FHM – PEACE BE STILL. Yours is now on the GREAT CALMNESS through and through. You are totally and completely released from excited troubles in Jesus’ matchless Name. Amen!
Willy Kazadi says:
Hello prophet Russ and FHM !
I’d like to express my sincere condolences to prophet Russ Walden and all Walden family. May God heal the wounds and the pains you experienced during that difficult times !
You are so precious in God’s Sight and mine too.
Thanks for this sharing.
I appreciate you all.
Many Blessings !
Waltraud Haag says:
I break down when I hear this.
So I now also recognize that the LORD is at work (also in this strong young man he has given to me to love him) and his goals are with us! Of Russ Walden’s words about the earthen vessels and one’s own need – and of Joseph Prince’s MERCY ANSWER. Yes, to JESUS. Greg Violi also gets CONTENT – for me. because I have now arrived here too. It’s about the new self. Yes, Jesus, yes thank you for Grace and truth. !
God’s grace transforms us – by Joseph Prince
Because you are precious and valuable in my eyes and because I love you…
Isaiah 43:4 NLB
Would you agree with me that more Christians today are more knowledgeable about the Ten Commandments than they are about the new covenant of God’s unmerited favor? If you walked down Times Square in New York and asked random people, most of them would probably have heard about the Ten Commandments, but nothing about the new covenant of grace that came through Jesus. In fact, the world equates Christianity with the Ten Commandments. Isn’t it sad that the world associates us with the law, which has been repealed, and not with the undeserved favor that Jesus gives us through his death?
It’s no wonder we’re losing an entire generation of young people to the world! The law has no appeal and even the Bible calls it obsolete (Hebrews 8:13). If we continue to shove the Ten Commandments down our young people’s throats, we need not be surprised that they are repelled by these legalistic forms of Christianity. More importantly, remember that the power of sin is the law. The law has no power to stop sin. The law will not root them in their precious identity in Christ, which will give them the strength to resist premarital sex, protect them from drug abuse, or the loss of their sexual identity. Only God’s own sacrifice on the cross can give them their new identity, which they are as a new creation in Christ Jesus!
Young people, when you receive a revelation about Jesus and realize how valuable you are in His eyes, your lives will be supernaturally transformed. You will no longer be tormented by suicidal thoughts. You will no longer endanger yourself to “fit in” or to get the attention you crave.
Young women, your self-esteem will improve dramatically as you learn to value yourself in the same way that Jesus values you. Through Jesus’ acceptance and His overflowing love for you, you will not live under the illusion that you have to give up your body to receive acceptance and love from any man. You will love yourself the way Jesus loves you!
Young men, you will develop supernatural self-control to keep your raging hormones in check. This will not happen through your willpower, but through the power of Jesus flowing through you. You will learn how to escape from youthful desires. You’ll know that being “cool” means respecting the opposite sex and not putting yourself or your girlfriend at risk of sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies.
Young people, if you know that Jesus has a great plan for each of you, the desire to be in a gang and destructive activities such as drinking, drug abuse and sexual promiscuity will be replaced by the undeserved favor and love that Jesus has for you has, disappear. Supernaturally, your longing for worldly things will disappear by being replaced with a longing for Jesus! This is the power of God’s grace (unmerited favor) and His unconditional acceptance of us through the cross. What the Law could not do, God did by sending His only Son, Jesus Christ!—Tr.
Olevia Bethune says:
Lord have mercy!!! Ministry diminishing? Your ministry is such a BLESSING!!! In New Orleans they celebrate homegoings because there is no greater love, high,…. it desire than to be absent in the body and present with the Lord. Kitty did her work and impressed by God alone upon your heart. God bless you!!
Kimberly Stephens says:
What you have express I could have never articulated so clearly, my prayers are with you, you have been such a strong, strong influence in my walk with God over many years, you & Kitty. I have and Iam experiencing the same journey in you just really put the puzzle together for me.
Walking with Christ is very, very hard yet I too Will stay faithful to the end there is no where else to go He’s all I know!
Immanuel is with us
Sarah says:
This post shares your heart and a deep love for your wife, Kitty so beautifully. I am very sorry for your ongoing loss. Thank you for sharing this touching tribute to your love and honesty in seeking to find meaning in God’s redemptive purposes. May God continue to comfort and give you hope as you wait and serve Him in your ministry. Thank you for being willing to share and to you and your team for being a beacon of hope to others by shining Gods light and goodness and purposes in our lives. Tonight, I came here to look for comfort in my own deep life losses. This post reminds me of a missionary message that touched me deeply before I left my home country and came to teach overseas. I was looking for hope to keep persevering, even in the questions and waiting. Thank you to you and your team for continuing with your ministry faithfully.. Your messages uplift my weary heart and remind me to keep seeking and trusting God to make all things work together for good.