We are entering a season where those who have experienced injustice
are about to receive supernatural restoration. Throughout history the justice
of God has brought restoration to his people who have suffered injustice at the
hands of the enemy. This is not a time
for despair and sorrow. This is a time
to begin living in expectancy. Something
wonderful is about to take place.
The Lord is speaking a word of hope in the middle of
injustice:
I am about to right this wrong. The injustice done to you cannot stand in the
presence of my justice. The enemy came
to steal, rob and destroy, but watch what I am about to do. My court has issued
an official order against this work of injustice in your life. Give me your sorrow. Give me your
despair. These are illegal orders issued
from the courts of darkness. I have destined this season to be a time when my
goodness and purpose will be revealed. My mercy and justice is coming. This
injustice you are experiencing is about to become a place of celebration and
restoration.
In early December I slipped on some ice and ruptured a
tendon in my knee. It was one of most painful things I have ever experienced. This
injury was not on my radar or included in my life-plan. Within days I was in
surgery to repair the torn tendon. My
entire life was rearranged in one moment of time.
Immediately following the accident, I was isolated to a
chair or couch with a brace on my leg to keep it uncomfortably extended during
the initial healing process. During this
time of recuperation I read. I wrote. I ate food lovingly provided by friends.
I did all of these same things each day with no break in my routine. My life
became a series of repeats.
One morning I was standing in our bathroom with the support
of my crutches. I had just finished
washing my hands. As I was drying my
hands, I felt the overwhelming presence of despair enter the room. I had never before felt the presence of
despair in my life.
The best way I could describe what I was feeling was that I
was being slowly pulled by the current of a powerful river towards the edge of a
huge waterfall. It was a power that
seemed impossible to resist. What I was going through felt similar to being in
the hospital in preparation for my knee surgery and going under anesthesia. As
someone goes under anesthesia reality begins to slip away and you are taken to
another place.
In the moment just before despair came with its dark vision,
the reality of my injury had hit me with full force. I had been told I would be
in this brace for several months followed by a season of rehabilitation not
able to do all the things I love to do.
As I stood there looking into the bathroom mirror, the sorrow
of my situation was setting me up to embrace hopelessness. As I drifted towards the edge of despair, I
even heard my surgeon’s words, “You should be back to normal in 6-8 months.” I
became overwhelmed with sorrow. My sorrow began to anesthetize me to accept what
appeared to be inevitable, taking me to a place I had never been before. The
closer I got to the waterfall the deeper I went into the numbing effects of my
sorrow.
Over the years, I have ministered to people who have drifted
towards this edge of despair and sometimes gone over its falls. Some never returned. Some came back after years of counseling. I
was scared.
Out loud, with the hand towel still hanging from my hands, I
said, “I have no despair. I have hope in
God.” In that moment the image disappeared and the despair was gone. This was no magic, memorized formula. This
was a cry from the depth my heart in a desperate moment of great need. I left the bathroom and told my wife, Jan,
what had just happened. I felt shaken
and emotional.
In the next few minutes we took communion and prayed. Jan walked me through some directed prayer
about despair and we made sure any residue of this lying visitor was no longer
present.
A week earlier, the day after my knee injury, the Lord said two
words to me that would guide me during this season of recovery. He said this would be a season where I would
experience his goodness and purpose. The vision of despair came to try and rob from
me of the goodness and purpose God had planned.
What happened to me was an injustice. God did not cause me to slip on the ice. Hell
used this situation to attempt to steal, rob and destroy through an act of
injustice. God had other plans. His intent was to bless, affirm and build my
life in the midst of my suffering.
The despair I felt had to be challenged or the injustice I
experienced would try to define my life.
My future freedom depended upon me confronting despair and the hypnotic
influence of ungodly sorrow. My only hope
was found in calling on the God of justice.
Hope is a person, not a theory. He has authority over the power and imagery
of despair. He has given that same
authority to us. Despair cannot stand in his presence, nor can despair continue
to pull us towards its place of eventual death, if we call upon God in our time
of need. Lies have no power in the light of his presence.
As I began
to experience a new sense of personal freedom, the Lord said this coming season
would be a time of an unusual outpouring of justice for his people. Scriptures about
his justice began to flood my mind.
“Righteousness and justice are the
foundations of your throne.” Psalm 89:14
“For the Lord loves justice, and he will
never abandon the godly.” Psalm 37: 28a
“The Lord gives righteousness
and justice to
all who are treated unfairly.” Psalm 103:6
“For I, the Lord, love justice. I hate
robbery and wrongdoing. I will faithfully reward my people for their suffering
and make an everlasting covenant with them.” Isaiah 61:8
“My mercy and justice are coming soon. My
salvation is on the way.” Isaiah 51:5
If you have
experienced an injustice, God wants you to hear his heart. If you have suffered a financial injustice,
listen. If you have suffered injustice
in your marriage, listen. If you have
suffered an injustice concerning the destiny of one of your children, listen. If you suffered an injustice at the hands of
another believer, listen. Listen to the
heart of the God of justice. His mercy and justice is coming. His salvation is on the way.
