The
world encourages us to fight and to never give up in surrender. This philosophy
caused my friend to fight cancer for three years in six different organs, only
to lose the use of all of her joints, which were destroyed by the medication,
and to eventually die from a seventh tumor.
Yet,
my husband's cousin's wife chose to trust God through cancer; and she lived
three strong years, serving God through every minute of them until the very
end. I am not advocating one choice or the other. We each need to consult the
Lord for our self.
Trusting
God with our whole heart; ignoring humanistic counsel and philosophy, as well
as our own desires; and consulting Him with all of our decisions - great and
small, allows Him to direct our choices in life (Proverbs 3:5-6).
The
devil attempts to stop us from abiding in God's rest by filling our mind with
his lies and humanistic thinking. Resting in God's faithfulness is one of the
most effective weapons we possess when facing spiritual warfare; this is how Jesus
faced death triumphantly (Mark 14:36).
Our
Lord continually surrendered to God's will, even when living His final days on
earth. Yielding to the will of God empowers us to trust Him with our trials in
life, as well as in death. If we live each moment guided by His Spirit, we
clearly hear His voice (Galatians 5:15-25).
Worry
only complicates our problems by adding the debilitating result of stress to
our circumstances. God's Word highly recommends that we turn our anxiety into
faith (Philippians 4:6-7; Matthew 6:31-32). God sees our troubles and cares
about them all.
Resting
in God's will is like swinging in a hammock all day long, sipping lemonade,
feeling the breeze caress our hair, and enjoying the warmth of the Son's rays
as they infiltrate every cell of our body with His peace and joy.
Prayer:
Father
God, teach us to consult You with every decision we have to make all through
the day. We want to trust You with our life and death, rather than in
humanistic advice from the world's philosophy, and from supposed wise men and
women. You know what is best for us.
We
want to rest in Your love, peace, wisdom, timing and will for our life and
death, rather than in decisions made for us by well-meaning people. We focus on
You and disregard our circumstances, knowing full well that Your ways and
timing are perfect. You are our refuge, strength, and ever-present help in
every moment of trouble (Psalm 46:1-3).
Thought
for the Day:
Jesus
slept in the boat during the fierce storm, because He rested in our Father's
will for His life; God calls us to lift up our face without shame, to stand firm
and unafraid whenever we face trouble or death, and we will fear no evil
because God is with us and comforts us.
- Matthew 8:24-26; Job 11:15; Psalms 23:4
