There are times when we feel like refugees in a strange land. Alienated and alone, we sulk in our situation, letting everyone know how unhappy we are. So the very last thing we want to do is ask God to bless the uncomfortable place we’re at. But that’s just what the Lord is asking us to do…to speak Shalom – peace and prosperity into the situation. For if it succeeds and thrives we can only but benefit.
Month: October 2012
Luke 8:50 ” Fear not, just believe…”
We lie in bed at night with the “what ifs” reeling around in our heads. They are always the worst case scenarios for whatever is worrying us at the time. God hard-wired us humans to recognize danger, it’s called fight or flight, and it keeps us safe. But when we allow fear and anxiety to rule over our lives we suffer. These emotions aren’t new, in the Old Testament the Lord commanded the children of Israel many times… “Do not be afraid.” And in the New Testament, Jesus repeatedly said… “Fear not.” to the crowds. So what are we to do? Fear and anxiety can be channeled for the positive in our lives. They can challenge us to be wise, prudent, and a good steward of our resources. They can cause us to look at our current situations and make changes for the better. …and Jesus said, “Fear not.”
Matthew 15: 27 “Yes, Lord,”she said, “but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
Jesus had been trying to politely ignore the Canaanite woman. He was telling her things she already knew …that He had come to the Jews, not the Gentiles. But she had seen Him heal others and she was determined that He heal her daughter. Undaunted by His rebuke, she replied…My faith in You and what I’ve seen you do is such that I am certain that all my daughter needs is just a crumb of Your healing power, not a loaf, not even a slice, just a crumb! Jesus saw and then reacted to her faith statement by telling her that because of her great faith and resolve her daughter was healed. Whether it’s a crumb or a mustard seed of faith, you too can move mountains, for nothing is impossible.
John 4: 29 ” Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?”
The Samaritan woman had no reason to believe this Jewish man sitting by the well would be kind and respectful to her. She was even more confused when He asked for a drink of water since Jews neither associated nor even touched dishes used by Samaritans. But when He told her all the details of her sordid past, she knew He was no ordinary man. So as she ran back to town to tell the others, why did they believe her unbelievable story? Why would they trust the word of someone who’s background they all knew. This seemingly chance encounter with the Messiah had not only changed her for eternity, but the people saw this change in her and they believed because of it.
Ephesians 3:17-19 “…and I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have the power together with all saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge- that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”
I don’t believe we can even start to comprehend the love of God…it transcends all understanding. But if Jesus is dwelling in our hearts, that love is already established in us through Him. And what is well rooted will flourish and grow. So while we may never be able to fully grasp the depth of His love for us, we will be made complete in it.
Acts 19: 11-12 ” God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.”
Today I found the handmade aprons I had been bequeathed from my Grandmother. Both my Grandmothers were resourceful, strong farm women who grew Victory gardens and families in the Illinois dirt during the Great Depression. They learned to make do with what they had and never lost faith during the dark times. As I look at these aprons and ponder this verse, I do agree that Paul was truly anointed of God, but the faith of the woman wearing that apron he had just touched was even more incredible. As she ran home, this woman had unwavering faith that when she laid the apron on the sick family member they would be totally healed. As I contemplate the aprons, I am thankful for the unfaltering faith of my Grandmothers… forever tied to me by these apron strings.
Ezekiel 8: 12 ” He said to me,’son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the darkness, each at the shrine of his own idol? ‘ They say, ‘The Lord does not see us; the Lord has forsaken the land.’ “
Why do we humans think that just because we can’t see in the dark, God can’t either? In this blackness of spiritual blindness we arrogantly think that not only can’t God see us, but that He can’t perceive that we’re doing. These shrines of ours are many…addictions of all kinds top the list. You’ve probably heard someone say-“What I do in the privacy of my own home is my business.” Or that “I’m not hurting anyone by what I’m doing.” But indirectly others are being hurt with the idol we worship in the dark. Children are deprived of their parents by the shrine of drugs and alcohol. Wifes lose their husbands to the idol of pornography. They are the innocent victims of our pride that thinks God can’t judge through such darkness.
Proverbs 17: 28 ” Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue.”
Just think, if we would only keep our mouths shut, we’d be perceived by others as intelligent and clever. We would appear as if we had great understanding and insight if we merely restrained our lips. But unfortunely what happens most times is that we open our mouth and take all shred of doubt away!
Joel 2:25 ” I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten.”
For many of us our past has been full of blight and plagues of locust devouring everything in sight. We have sown, but harvested little; we have planted only to see it eaten up and laid waste. Lost has been time, money, emotional security, and relationships. The Lord can’t turn back time, but He can bless our future by recompensing fully the past. In Haggai 2:9 it states that…”The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house,’ says the Lord Almighty,’And in this place I will grant peace.’declares the Lord Almighty.” And so I speak this into our life today…you may be looking back at the shambles of your past, but the Lord is putting down a new foundation in your future and it is built on peace without fear. And in this process the Lord will give back what has been taken from you.
James 3:8 “…but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.”
Many years ago I worked at a large health facility as a Dept. Head in a unit set apart from the rest of the building. I knew the rest of the staff well, but didn’t have a lot of daily contact, except for one lady I saw everyday. She was in Medical Records and would bring the paperwork. After settling down at my Nurses Station she would sigh loudly and then start a verbal assault of my fellow staffers at the other end of the building. By the time she was done I was certain there must be blood on the floor around her from all the back stabbing that had occurred. As she walked away I thought to myself, if she was talking so badly about them, what was she saying about me and my staff? So I decided to try a little “experiment”…the next day when she started her tirade I quickly interjected a positive remark about the person in question. This so took her back that she sputtered and tired again about someone else.But once more I made a positive remark about them. Deflated that I wouldn’t join in, she left. And so my little experiment continued daily, and soon our chats were cheerful and positive, void of gossip and back biting. I may not have tamed the tongue, but I did manage to put a teeny tiny bridle on it!
Safetypinlove 