Hey, you—you bearers of good news and couriers of salvation,
You, whose beautiful feet are fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace,
You, who have heeded the call to go and to make disciples of all nations,
You, who have left houses and family and fields for the unfamiliar on account of Jesus’ name,
You, who are tired and are bravely waiting for answers, who are wrestling through tears, and whose hearts are simply yearning for home.
Can I just remind you of the message delivered to God’s people amid their own adversity and longing? It is the same message that you and I have been sent to herald in this broken and desperate world. It is the same message that keeps compelling us to take up the cross of living daily in this overseas life and still choose to follow him. It is the same message that proclaims liberty to those bound with fear, leniency to those burdened with sin, and life to those bridled with affliction.
It is the very same message my own soul needs to candidly hear.
Your God reigns!
Yes! He reigns over the anxious days when doubts arise and fears torment, for his Word tells us that we will not only be helped, but that we are held (Is. 41:10).
He reigns over the loneliness we often mask and the troubles we inevitably face, for his Word encourages us to be strong and take courage because we are never alone (Deut. 31:6).
He reigns over the challenges of wavering support and the vulnerabilities of budget shortfalls, for his Word declares that he will meet all our needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus (Phil. 4:19).
Yes! He reigns over the frustrations of red tape in government agencies and the closed doors that can leave us perplexed, for his Word calls to our attention “This is what the Lord says—he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters . . . I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland” (Is. 43:16, 19b NIV).
Yes! He reigns over the disparities of the cultures we serve in and the obstacles of language we encounter, for his Spirit is given without limit (Jn. 3:34) and leads us on level ground (Ps. 143:10).
He reigns over our apprehensions of going out into the field and over our angst in coming home (Ps. 121:8).
He reigns over our continual transformation into His likeness as we increasingly behold
His glory in the good news of the gospel (2 Cor. 3:18).
He reigns over the weary sower and the timing of the harvest (Gal. 6:9).
He reigns over the beginning of the work and faithfully sees it through to completion (Phil. 1:6).
He reigns over every difficulty, every circumstance, and every impossibility that we have ever had, are currently experiencing, and will ever confront (Luke 18:27).
Your God reigns!
So, bearers of good news, I urge you to not give up—let the message that “Your God reigns” sink in and refresh you anew.
I urge you—I urge us—to let this message permeate our homes, pervade our hurts, and penetrate our hearts.
Because the world needs to know it. They need to know him, lest they perish. Sweet sister, what you are doing and all that you have sacrificed for the sake of the gospel of Jesus Christ matters.
For Scripture says, everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Rom. 10:13).
But I reiterate Paul’s question:
‘How can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!”’ (Rom. 10:14–15 NLT).
So go, bearers of good news! Go on with your beautiful feet, announcing peace and proclaiming salvation to a world that needs to hear these three life-giving, chain-breaking, battle-winning words:
Your God reigns!
If you feel compelled to share, what situation(s) are you experiencing in the field that you need to speak this message over? As you inform your situation that “Your God reigns”, does it bring you peace that passes all understanding?
