Hope in God Alone

If we look at the responsibilities of our life as a huge chunk, we will feel overwhelmed and discouraged. We may want to go back to bed and stay there until Christ returns, we may get drunk and drown our sorrows and fears, or we may vegetate in front of the TV and eat unhealthy snacks.

We end up worsening our issues because they are still there after our unsuccessful attempt to self-medicate. Life is still happening all around us. Time still marches on.

When we fully surrender our life to Christ, His Spirit moves into our spirit. The entire Trinity abides in us and empowers us to make a difference in our life and in our world.

God plants seeds for a miracle in every trial. Trouble is actually an adventure when we view it with our spiritual eyes. God makes everything, even the most horrendous issues, turn out for our good (Romans 8:28).

We just need a positive attitude and faith in His faithfulness to see God's blessings in our circumstances. A sense of humor helps as well. We can laugh in the face of Satan's calamities and even chuckle over our own failings or social blunders.

Keeping fit, eating fresh and organic foods, simplifying our life, daily reading God's Word, fellowshipping with other Saints, serving our family members and our church family and community, and walking in God's Spirit restores our body to symmetry, our soul to confidence and hope, and our spirit to strength and rejuvenation.

Think of something in your life that you can thank God for and focus on it - flowers in the garden, a rainbow in the sky, pets, children, a safe home, clothes to wear, food to eat, air to breathe, ears to hear, eyes to see, and other things that we usually take for granted.

This new focus and attitude reduces our stress, lowers physical and psychiatric drains on us and improves our optimism about life. We surround our self with spiritually minded people, activities and atmosphere. We listen to praise music and participate in praising God with every breath we breathe.

Prayer:

Father God, You are our provision, and we hope in You alone (Lamentations 3:24). We know that You will raise us from the dead and take us home with You for eternity (Acts 24:15). You justify us and give us Your peace and grace (Romans 5:1-3). When we hope in You we are never disappointed, because You show us Your plan for our life (Romans 5:5).

By the help of Your Holy Spirit, we rejoice in Your hope and are filled with Your joy and peace as we maintain our belief in You (Romans 12:12, 15:13). Even when we see nothing in our life to hope in, we eagerly and perseveringly wait in hope to see the salvation of our God (Romans 8:24-25). We look forward to our blessed hope - the glorious appearing of Your Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ (Titus 2:13-14).

Thought for the Day:

Christ in us gives us the hope of sharing in His glory; and as He and God our Father, who love us and console us with everlasting hope and grace, always comfort our hearts and establish us in their peace, they guide us in our good words and works.

- Colossians 1:27-28; 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17;
1 Peter 1:13-14; Hebrews 6:19-20, 7:19

Pure and Undefiled Religion

Too often we "play" church and treat it like a cruise ship rather than a battleship. We like to socialize with our friends and make new friends who will treat us nicely and care about us.

Yet, we waste our time on the flesh and the world, which makes us too busy to serve in church ministries, to care for the sick and infirmed in our church family, or to reach out into our community to make a friend and lead them to Christ.

When the offering plate comes around, we give God a tip from the change in our pocket rather than to give a tithe of our income, and we feel no remorse when we fail to give in the benevolence offering to help the needy in our church family and community.

We will not even bring canned goods to donate to the food bank in our area, or to join service organizations in our community who help to serve those less fortunate than we are.

We ignore those who are aliens in our community, who move here to find work to support their family; not knowing that if we did care for the needy, God could bless us in all the works which we find for our hands to do (Deuteronomy 14:29).

Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is to take care of orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep our self from being polluted by the world (James 1:27).

We can help the poor by meeting their need for food, shelter and clothing (1 Timothy 6:8); aid the widows by meeting their medical bills and doing chores that overwhelm them; and we can visit the imprisoned (Job 31:16; Matthew 25:36).

We can give Christmas presents to children at local group homes, take some of them to our home for monthly visits or out on a picnic, or we can take them to the pizza parlor for supper once a month (Job 31:17).

The possibilities for ministry in our church family and out in our community are endless, and ignoring these needs is unconscionable and despicable in the sight of the Lord (Matthew 7:24).

Prayer:

Father God, help us to learn to do good, to seek justice, to defend the orphan and to plead the case for our widows (Isaiah 1:17). Teach us to reprove the ruthless who take bribes or look for a reward for their service (Isaiah 1:23). Remind us that when we clothe the naked, care for the sick and visit the imprisoned, we do it as our ministry to You (Matthew 25:36). 

We do not want to live as hearers of Your Word only, but we want to put feet to our faith and to earn our righteous rewards by keeping Your law and serving our church family and community (James 1:22; Romans 2:13). Let us prove our faith in You by our works for You (James 2:14).

Thought for the Day:

The Lord protects strangers, supports single mom's and their children, and cares for the needs of widows; but He resists the wicked and thwarts those who "play" church rather than minister to the needy in their community. Let us join Him in His Kingdom work. - Psalm 146:9

Victory and Sufficiency

When we view our life from the perspective of our responsibilities, world disasters, terrorist unrest, failing economy and relational issues with family, community and at work, our heart fails us for fear (Luke 21:26).

We prefer to stay in bed in the morning, hiding under the warmth and security of our covers. We want to roll over and continue to sleep like Rip van Winkle and wake up to a whole new world.

Our familiar companions throughout our day are fear, insecurity, doubt and trepidation. Our broken life and world tend to overwhelm us with hopelessness and doubt.

We have no guarantee that our greatest fear or the unexpected catastrophe will not catch us off guard and put us flat on our back or in the hole financially, emotionally or mentally.

Some of us rely on addictions to get us through the day. We adopt bad habits that relieve pressure on the surface, but actually compound our problems in the long run, because we end up reaping the negative aspects, which we sow.

We are too proud and stubborn and rebellious to turn to God and follow His will for our day. We think that we are safer when we remain in control, but this is merely a false illusion to which we cling.

Once we come to God for salvation and allow Him to hide us in the cleft of His Rock, Jesus Christ, the scales fall off our eyes. We clearly see the road to destruction which we formerly followed.

We are filled with His peace and joy overflowing from our spirit and soul as we trust God with our life (Isaiah 43:2). We sing His praises night and day.

As we increase our love and devotion to God, we grow spiritually and the false illusions of this world slip into proper perspective. We realize that as we hide our self through Christ in God, nothing which occurs can touch our life unless it is His will (Colossians 3:1-4).

We walk in unity with His Spirit and grow in our faith in His faithfulness. He gives us the strength, wisdom, provision and mercy we need to face each moment of the day in victory and sufficiency.

Prayer:

Father God, remind us that we must uproot sin in our life without compromise or sympathy. These little foxes spoil the vine (Solomon 2:15) and prevent us from bearing fruit for You through our life. We cannot perfect our self (Galatians 3:1-3), but we can submit to Your Holy Spirit's sanctifying work (Romans 8; Philippians 2:12-13).

Stir a hunger and passion in us to do only Your will with our life, and to dedicate our heart to Your Word and love. Remind us that you are not only in charge of our life, but of the entire world in which we live (Ezekiel 38:4). You have the ages and times in Your capable hands and we can have faith in Your faithfulness.

Thought for the Day:

God instructed Israel to complete destroy the nations currently inhabiting the land, which He gave them, because He knew their sin would infect Israel and pull their hearts away from Him and His truth; in the same way we rid our life of the sins which so easily hold us back. 

- Deuteronomy 7:22, 11:16; Hebrews 12:1