Matthew 14:28-33 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
DO NOT SURRENDER YOUR FAITH TO THE TYRANNY OF FEAR!!
Peter had the gumption to want to get out of the boat & go meet Jesus on the water, but as soon as the waves started kicking up a bit, he lost focus on what he should have, and looked at the problem around him. Beginning to doubt he was at least smart enough to ask God for deliverance.
Readin this passage, a thought just came to me.
There is no telling what God would have like to do for Peter in this moment. Could it have been that God caused the waves to bolster only because He wanted to raise Peter higher? What kind of view did He want to allow Peter to see??
Problems should not diminish our walk with God, it should draw us closer to Him. Instead of continuing to walk toward Jesus, Peter started looking at the scary situation and didn't continue to keep focus on the One who was already walking on the problem from the beginning.
DO NOT SURRENDER YOUR FAITH TO THE TYRANNY OF FEAR!!!
It just may be that God desires to raise you higher in His kingdom. Problems should be the cause for elevated faith, not eliminating it.
Keep hold on your shield of Faith. It's a life-saver.
Monday, May 26, 2014
Sunday, May 25, 2014
A Lesson From My Washer
Psalm 37:1, 7-8 Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.
Rest in the Lord. Hope in Him. Be wise. Be vigilant. For the adversary waits at the door.
It's good to be smart. A smart person knows what to say, but a wise person knows whether or not to say it. When we are tempted in our emotions by evil-doers, instead of "casting our vote" and allowing our emotions to boil over, we must needs instead choose to "Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him". God always is the Master Fixer & Avenger.
I've been so guilty of this myself....(Sometime even unconsciously) allowing emotions to erupt within me because of the actions of someone else. Sometimes the thoughts in my head just take a trip all on their own and stroll right out my mouth. I have learned that it is ok to have my opinions, to stand my ground on some issues, but never to allow Satan to keep me festered up.
Fret not. Rest in God. Cease from Anger.
These are the things I must remember. These are the things I must choose.
Problems. They come. And they will continue to come. They are like the agitator in a washing machine. They twist things, they move things. They can spin us around, knock us about. There is always a spin cycle in life & there is always a rinse cycle too. When we allow God into the mix...when we Rest in our Saviour and Resist the Tempter...our spirit comes out more clean, brighter, and better than before.
Thankfully in life we do have choice of which cycle we allow our spirit to most remain. The outcome of the problem(s) just depends on whether or not we choose the Resting & the Rinsing more than the Spinning & the Agitation.
Rest in the Lord. Hope in Him. Be wise. Be vigilant. For the adversary waits at the door.
It's good to be smart. A smart person knows what to say, but a wise person knows whether or not to say it. When we are tempted in our emotions by evil-doers, instead of "casting our vote" and allowing our emotions to boil over, we must needs instead choose to "Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him". God always is the Master Fixer & Avenger.
I've been so guilty of this myself....(Sometime even unconsciously) allowing emotions to erupt within me because of the actions of someone else. Sometimes the thoughts in my head just take a trip all on their own and stroll right out my mouth. I have learned that it is ok to have my opinions, to stand my ground on some issues, but never to allow Satan to keep me festered up.
Fret not. Rest in God. Cease from Anger.
These are the things I must remember. These are the things I must choose.
Problems. They come. And they will continue to come. They are like the agitator in a washing machine. They twist things, they move things. They can spin us around, knock us about. There is always a spin cycle in life & there is always a rinse cycle too. When we allow God into the mix...when we Rest in our Saviour and Resist the Tempter...our spirit comes out more clean, brighter, and better than before.
Thankfully in life we do have choice of which cycle we allow our spirit to most remain. The outcome of the problem(s) just depends on whether or not we choose the Resting & the Rinsing more than the Spinning & the Agitation.
Sunday, May 4, 2014
Rejecting the Defeatist Attitude
Psalm 98:1-2 O Sing unto the Lord a new song, for he hath done marvelous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory. The Lord hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.
For the past week I've been thinking about the "defeatist mindset".
All to often, because of the problems and situations in life, we live in a feeling of defeat. When problems are at their greatest, we find our self trying to ward of, fight off, reject the attitude of "it will always be this way, why bother to think it could be any different?".
When we have this mindset we are looking at what is around us and not on things above. We are so concentrated on the problems that we fail to take in the full knowledge of Christ and His power in our lives. It is imperative that we "switch our thinking".
God is a VICTORIOUS Savior. He is not, and never was, defeated. If He lives within us, as we say He does, then if we reach for that strength that only He gives, we will not be overcome in battle.
So back to the thought I've been thinking on this week....
My thought on the "defeatist mindset" started after talking with an acquaintance concerning a current issue in her life. The truth is, things in her life are not good right now. Her current "life" is rather heart-breaking and disappointing. It is not good.
And, If we chose to only view what's going on in her life, thru a natural, fleshly looking-glass, it would be very easy to become hateful, resentful, angry, bitter, etc. Instead, I tried my best to encourage her to look up. Looking up is what puts within us the fruit of the Spirit, not the fruit of the flesh.
Looking up doesn't quickly obliterate the current distresses from our lives, but it does give us the faith we need to overcome them and the attitude we need to get through them. Thinking on Jesus and the power in that name will put a smile on your face and peace in your heart. No matter the trial. Try it! I have found it to be true.
Truly God IS an ever-present help in time of trouble. He is the I AM, not the I WAS or I WILL BE. He will make known His salvation. It is our job to trust Him. He's an On-Time God. And, right there (openly) in the face of the heathens in your life, He will give you a new song to sing!
Because of Jesus we can sing in our troubles. We can sing through our troubles. Because of Jesus we do not have to live in defeat. Because of Jesus it is possible that we can live an overcoming life!!!
For the past week I've been thinking about the "defeatist mindset".
All to often, because of the problems and situations in life, we live in a feeling of defeat. When problems are at their greatest, we find our self trying to ward of, fight off, reject the attitude of "it will always be this way, why bother to think it could be any different?".
When we have this mindset we are looking at what is around us and not on things above. We are so concentrated on the problems that we fail to take in the full knowledge of Christ and His power in our lives. It is imperative that we "switch our thinking".
God is a VICTORIOUS Savior. He is not, and never was, defeated. If He lives within us, as we say He does, then if we reach for that strength that only He gives, we will not be overcome in battle.
So back to the thought I've been thinking on this week....
My thought on the "defeatist mindset" started after talking with an acquaintance concerning a current issue in her life. The truth is, things in her life are not good right now. Her current "life" is rather heart-breaking and disappointing. It is not good.
And, If we chose to only view what's going on in her life, thru a natural, fleshly looking-glass, it would be very easy to become hateful, resentful, angry, bitter, etc. Instead, I tried my best to encourage her to look up. Looking up is what puts within us the fruit of the Spirit, not the fruit of the flesh.
Looking up doesn't quickly obliterate the current distresses from our lives, but it does give us the faith we need to overcome them and the attitude we need to get through them. Thinking on Jesus and the power in that name will put a smile on your face and peace in your heart. No matter the trial. Try it! I have found it to be true.
Truly God IS an ever-present help in time of trouble. He is the I AM, not the I WAS or I WILL BE. He will make known His salvation. It is our job to trust Him. He's an On-Time God. And, right there (openly) in the face of the heathens in your life, He will give you a new song to sing!
Because of Jesus we can sing in our troubles. We can sing through our troubles. Because of Jesus we do not have to live in defeat. Because of Jesus it is possible that we can live an overcoming life!!!
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