Have you ever been in a place of struggle where it seems your sanity is holding on by a thread? Paul the Apostle described it as the body having no rest because there was trouble on every side with fears and fighting within and fears and fighting without. Although the time of struggle seems long, for those who learn how to wait, the Blessings of Mephibosheth will overtake you.

From Fame to Shame

2 Samuel 4: 4

⁴And Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son that was lame of his feet. He was five years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel, and his nurse took him up, and fled: and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth.

Saul, king of Israel, and his sons including Jonathan were killed by the Philistines on Mt. Gilboa. Upon hearing the news of their deaths, Mephibosheth’s nurse rushed out with him to go into hiding. In doing so Mephibosheth fell and becomes lame.

Not only had Mephibosheth become lame in his feet he also became lame in direction. He was no longer an heir to the throne and those who reared him early in life made no preparations for anything else. Instead, he was in hiding from David who is now king

It was the custom in war for the new king to wipeout the family of the former king. This cleansing guarded against retaliation and placed those loyal to the new regime in key positions.

Now in hiding, everything good about Mephibosheth’s existence had vanished. The dainties of a royal life were not in his future. He was yesterday’s news. He was in hiding. And he was a cripple. He was a shadow of who he was supposed to be. At one time he could have puffed out his chest in pride but not today. He was living the Hebrew meaning of his name Mephibosheth “from the mouth of shame.”

To make matters worse he fled to Lodebar. Lodebar was considered a ghetto town in biblical times. Nothing good went into Lodebar and nothing good came out of Lodebar.

Lame Living in Lodebar

Like Mephibosheth, have you had words of promise spoken over your life and the rug was pulled out from under you? Does it seem like the promise of a good future has been “dropped” from your life? One disappointment hails after the other. Sometimes it doesn’t seem worth putting forth the effort.

Every day you wait for a change. Good things come but seem to be short-lived. They pale in comparison to the mire you have to trudge through day by day. Is there hope for better?

The Gift of Wait

While you wait, God works. He is not only working the answer he works on you while you wait. As you wait in the present God shapes your future. He is Creator and is always creating with you in mind. His ability to work it doesn’t hinge on your ability to understand it. You have to believe it’s working out but you don’t have to understand how it’s going to work out.

You may say this doesn’t feel like it’s working out. In fact, it feels like it’s going in the wrong direction. Tina Turner once sang “What’s love got to do with it?” And I’m saying what’s feelings got to do with it?

The three Hebrew boys didn’t feel like being human wieners in King Nebuchadnezzar’s furnace (Daniel 3). I don’t feel like I should have to endure vision problems You don’t feel like you should have been [fill in the blank]. But they did, I am and you are. The common denominator between the three Hebrew boys, you and myself is we don’t serve our feelings we serve the Almighty God. The only God who delivers and answers. So, watch how you wait.

How you wait is more important than what you’re waiting for. Don’t wait for an answer like Israel waited to enter the Promise Land. Israel’s unbelief, grumblings and complaints didn’t stop the Promise but it did stop them from receiving the Promise.

The Wait is Over

2 Samuel 9: 5-7

⁵Then King David sent word and had him brought from the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo-debar.

⁶ Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David and fell face down and lay himself down [in respect]. David said, “Mephibosheth.” And he answered, “Here is your servant!”

⁷ David said to him, “Do not be afraid, for I will certainly show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and will restore to you all the land of your grandfather Saul; and you shall always eat at my table.”

David, because of his love for Jonathan, wanted to honor his friend’s memory. So, he looked for someone left in Saul’s family to bless. The people brought him Mephibosheth.

It didn’t matter that he was broken; it didn’t matter that he came from Lo-debar; it didn’t matter what he been through or how he felt about himself. David took him in as his son, gave him Saul’s land and made him sit at his table.

A Mephibosheth Blessing

Then, what is A Mephibosheth Blessing?

A Blessing of Power over your Circumstances

It is a blessing that elevates you to the pleasantries of the palace while your mailing address is still in the ghetto. You’re living at the same address but living in a different place in God where you enjoy the fruits of God’s power right where you are.

A Blessing of Restoration

It is a blessing some feel you don’t deserve. A king’s table is reserved for proven warriors. And because those at the table hadn’t witnessed your battle they feel you have no place at the table. It is restoration of what you thought was lost and dead a long time ago but God breathed life into it again. It is a blessing where you owe no one an explanation because the King of kings speaks for you.

A Blessing of Life

It is a blessing where God spares your life and the lives of your children. For Mephibosheth King David did this in 2 Samuel chapter 21.

If you live according to the word of God, he gives this promise found in Job 22: 30.

Job 22:30

³⁰“He will even rescue the one [for whom you intercede] who is not innocent;
And he will be rescued through the cleanness of your hands.

A Mephibosheth Blessing

You can find an example of a Mephibosheth Blessing in 1 Samuel 30: 21-24. In short, two hundred men of war stayed behind and did not join the others to fight the enemy due to their “lameness”. They were too weak with exhaustion to continue. It was David, not yet king, upon a victorious return, imparted an equal share of the spoils to them as well. It was a Mephibosheth Blessing.

The Given Name

Finally, Mephibosheth was not the name given Jonathan’s son at birth. He was given the name Meribbaal, meaning a contender of Baal (1 Chronicles 8:34). Some scholars agree that Mephibosheth replaced Meribbaal  in order to conceal the theophoric name “baal“, a reference to a Canaanite deity.

Mephibosheth was spiritually restored to Meribbaal, a contender of Baal by the life he lived in Lodebar. The Adversary wanted to destroy his life but God sheltered him in Lodebar, the place where you’d least find royalty. Mephibosheth never gave into self-pity or depression. How do I know that? He made the best of his condition and surroundings by taking a wife and having a son. He was a contender and challenged his circumstances by making adjustments that allowed him to live and not just survive.

Your Restoration

One day the King of kings will summon you. For he remembers the prayers your parents prayed. He calls for you in your struggle and presents you with what you thought had been lost.

That was what David did for Mephibosheth and that’s what God will do for you. Look for it, expect it. If God can restore to Israel the years that the cankerworm has eaten (Joel 2:25) so can he do the same for you.

If King David can find royalty in Lodebar, if the Magi can find Jesus in a smelly stall, surely King Jesus can find you where you are.  Challenge your past and refuse to allow it to color your present and influence your future.

The Name God Gave You

Some may want to rewrite your story by giving you a name, a label, a judgement that suits them. I tell you simply, “don’t wear it”, “don’t own it”.  Rather, stay on course and wait for your change. I’ve learned this,

God will either change your circumstances or change you.

Either way, at the end of your struggle there are blessings that await. My prayer for you is that they are the Blessings of Mephibosheth.

A Blessing of Restoration

A Blessing of Power over your Circumstances

A Blessing of Life

 

Special Note:

While finishing up this blog my phone lit up with a message. “Tornado Warning in your area. Take cover to the basement or in a middle room away from windows.”

Grabbing my phone and water bottle I quickly scoured my linen closet for my heavy quilt to cover my head. It wasn’t there. So I grabbed a couple decorative bed pillows and went into the closet. I could hear the heavy rain as I called my children. I realized I left my bottled water and I had no flashlight. I wasn’t prepared. I couldn’t reach my family. So I left a text telling them where they could find me if the worst happened. My natural resources weren’t there with me in my Lodebar but I had everything I needed. I had God. I pray that the tornado would not touch down. It wasn’t long after I could no longer hear the rain. The storm had passed. My wait was over. This incident made me to know how quickly life can change. One moment you have everything like Mephibosheth and the next you have nothing.

The last impression this incident had on me was to be ready. Yes, be ready for natural emergencies but more importantly be ready for Jesus when He comes. Be ready for when the time of life is over for you. If you need to tell someone you love them, tell them now. If you need to ask for forgiveness or to extend forgiveness to someone, do it now. The end of life, most times comes without warning. Be ready, accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior.

Wait on You – Elevation Worship