Job 38: 1 – 4

Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said, “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Now gird up your loins like a man, and I will ask you, and instruct Me? Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding.”

1 Kings 19: 11 – 13

So He said, “Go forth and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord was passing by! And a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind and earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of a gentle blowing. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. And behold, a voice came to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

If we have read the Bible a few times already, we are familiar with the layout of the various texts, the chronological order of the characters and stories. We look forward to the familiar stories while eagerly search for passages that we have not paid attention to in the past. If we are hungry souls, we seek out time to be in the Word. We are like little birds with our mouths open wide so our Heavenly Father would feed us with His precious Word. God, in His loving kindness, never disappoints us. He satisfies us to our hearts’ content.

And then there are instances, where if we are familiar with the passage, we know what is coming around the corner. We know the sequence of the timeline. We know the instances where God is going to speak to a man/woman. We anticipate with abated breath the words God is going to speak. However familiar they are, we are eager to read them again. We picture ourselves in the instance when God is speaking to a certain man.

Ride along with me for an imaginary journey where God spoke and we witnessed it through the Scriptures! Imagine watching God say the Word and the world and everything was created. Imagine watching God fashion man with His own hands. Imagine hearing God command Noah to build the ark. Imagine hearing God call Abraham out of Chaldea and the promise of heirs as numerous as the stars in the sky. Imagine viewing the wrestling match between Jacob and the ‘angel’ of God. Imagine being near the burning bush when God spoke to Moses. Imagine being a witness when Gideon demands a sign from God. Imagine the terror the prophets of God experienced whenever God spoke to them. Imagine seeing what John the Baptist saw after he baptized Jesus. Imagine being fearful perceiving along with the disciples Jesus walking on the water.

Job had a very special encounter with the Lord. Here he was pitying himself for all the evil that has befallen him and a few of his friends joined his pity party to console him. None could console him nor give a valid reason for the evil that visited Job. Finally, when God spoke, God challenged Job to answer His questions with good reasons. Job had no valid answers to give to God as to why God shouldn’t allow such dread to come to him. If he trusted in God Almighty, he should have trusted in His will completely without a question. Job was left speechless and surrendered to God once again.

Now imagine standing next to Elijah as he is eagerly anticipating to meet God. When God commanded him to go up on the mountain, Elijah might have thought He would hear an audible booming sound from heaven. He sought the Lord in a mountain-wrecking, rock-breaking wind but the Lord wasn’t there. Imagine the terror Elijah must have experienced as he witnessed the powerful wind. Then he experienced a powerful earthquake, followed by a fire. God wasn’t there in them either. Confused at all these, he probably hid in a cave. God then speaks to Elijah through a gentle blowing of the wind – a breeze. Elijah, unable to behold the awesomeness of God, covered his face with a mantle. The anticipation, the anxiety, and the nervousness that Elijah must have gone through knowing that God is going to speak to him and not knowing how He is going to speak to Him.

What are we going to do when we are in such a situation? We are trusting God to speak to us but we aren’t aware of how He is going to speak to us. We may not hear Him speak like He did with people in the Old Testament. Yet, our Lord speaks. He speaks to us through His Word which we hold in our hands every day. He speaks to us through the Holy Spirit, who indwells us. Are we in anticipation each day that our Lord is going to speak to us through His word? Are we ready to receive the Word when He speaks? Are we willing to surrender to His will when we know for sure that He spoke?

Dear Saint of God, imagine now being raptured with the other saints when Jesus appears in mid-Heaven to be with Him for all eternity. Imagine ruling with our King Jesus for a thousand years. Imagine witnessing the annihilation of all evil from all creation. Imagine observing the new heavens and the new earth finally revealed. Imagine the eternity we will spend with our Savior Redeemer, our only true love, King of kings, Lord of Lords, the Lamb of God, the Bridegroom, the Lion of Judah. The anticipation of finally entering into the eternal Kingdom to be with our Lord is exciting beyond words. May we live in anticipation of what awaits us beyond this earthly frame!