“HIDDEN RICHES OF SECRET PLACES!”

 Isaiah 45:1-3                                     (KJV)

“1 Thus saith the LORD to HIS anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before HIM; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before HIM the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut; 2 I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron: 3 And I will give thee the TREASURES OF DARKNESS, and “HIDDEN RICHES OF SECRET PLACES”, THAT THOU MAYEST KNOW THAT I, THE LORD, WHICH CALL THEE BY THY NAME, AM THE GOD OF ISRAEL.”

Trying to perform a job without the proper equipment can be a monumental task.  Sometimes making sure that you do everything required in the order which common sense would mandate can be the precise opposite of WALKING BY FAITH!  When the Children of Israel were on the banks of the Red Sea for days, seemingly entrapped my mountains and water, the LOGICAL thing to do was precisely what ALMIGHTY GOD had them NOT to do!  For GOD to GET GLORY, they were used as “bait” to draw the Egyptians into the Red Sea, and THEN GOD was Glorified when HE consumed the Egyptians at the bottom of the sea!  

At times, “HIDDEN RICHES OF SECRET PLACES” are discovered in the quiet crucible of our personal, private sufferings, when we stumble upon what proves to be a BLESSING that we are unable to describe anyway except to admit that GOD had to be in control!  In Isaiah 45:1, GOD set up everything for Cyrus to demonstrate “...that there is none besides ME; I am the LORD, AND THERE IS NO OTHER”.  HE got GLORY, not Cyrus, not Isaiah, not ANYONE else!  The “HIDDEN RICHES OF SECRET PLACES” were used to Glorify GOD, and for NO OTHER reason!  

Isaiah 42:8 states “I am the LORD; that is MY name; MY glory I give to NO OTHER, nor MY praise to carved idols”.  When someone attempts to share the Glory of GOD, or worse, tries to STEAL the Glory of GOD, the outcome will probably not be what they were expecting!  We cannot duplicate the “HIDDEN RICHES OF SECRET PLACES”.  Even the air that we breathe is a gift from GOD (Isaiah 42:5).  Finding these “HIDDEN RICHES OF SECRET PLACES” only validates that we are being used as a small part of HIS PLAN to draw Glory to the ONLY ONE deserving of praise!  

Remembering that we ALL are here on earth for a limited time, we have to look at things we accomplish here from the perspective of temporary people doing POTENTIALLY EVERLASTING deeds.  The “HIDDEN RICHES OF SECRET PLACES” that GOD has for me might be different than those HE has for you, but identifying that they ALL come from HIM is the thing we must not miss!  Whatever HIS PLAN is for me, I pray that others will SEE that my “HIDDEN RICHES OF SECRET PLACES” are BLESSINGS from ALMIGHTY GOD, not because I deserve them, but because I desire to fulfill HIS PLAN!!!