Do You Feel Like an Octopus?

The Lord promises to be with us, even through the veil of death (Psalm 23:4). Nothing can separate us from the love of God (Romans 8:35-36). There is no insult, adversity, persecution or difficulty that we cannot rejoice in for the sake of Christ; because when we are weak, that is when He is strong in and through us (2 Corinthians 12:10). In any type of trial or trouble, Jesus gives us His peace, which surpasses all human understanding (John 14:27).

God’s peace is our solace at home, at work and in the community, even when hardships come our way. The first principle of living in victory over Satan and the world is wearing Jesus’ peace as a cloak against any stressful situation we encounter. The Lord is always with us (Psalm 118:6). His peace quells all of our fears, worries and setbacks. He causes our persecutors to stumble, so that they do not prevail in the end. They will not prosper, and they will fail and be disgraced (Jeremiah 20:11).

However, even the Christian life gets overbearing at times. We had so many expectations and ministries to fulfill that we neglect our quiet time with the Lord. We are burdened by expectations from our parents, pastor, friends, employers, children and church family. We get overly committed and start to drown in our myriad of responsibilities. Satan whispers false accusations in our ear and we believe what he says as truth. We start to resent all of these demands and the pressure they put on us to be everyone’s beck and call.

Jonah had these same feelings (Jonah 1:3). In fact, he ran from God and from the ministry God called him to accomplish. He got himself in all sorts of trouble. He even cost his fellow shipmates the loss of their income and almost their very lives. God knows how to take care of us, however, even in the difficulties we tend to create for our self. He knows how to discipline our iniquities and to help us to see His big picture. He reveals to us what our obedience means to His Kingdom and for our blessings.

This helps us to take our commitment to Him more seriously. We spend time reading God’s Word and listening to the leading of His Spirit. The Lord guides us and satisfies our needs, even when our strength fails us. During the dry, parched times of life, He causes water to spring up within us. We dwell as a well-watered garden, even in the midst of troubles and trials (Isaiah 58:11). God’s Spirit is our guide all throughout our life and even through our passage from this life into the next (Psalm 48:14).

Prayer:

Father God, Your infinite Spirit frees us from the restrictions of this world. You transcends time, space and matter (Psalm 139:8), and You fill the heavens and the earth. Your infinite power works for us, in us and through us as we wait on You (Jeremiah 23:23-24). Thankfully, You are not contained in a building, restricted in Your movements or denied Your will (Acts 17:24). You are never far from any one of us, because as Your children, we live and move and have our existence with Christ in You (Acts 17:27-28: Colossians 3:3).

Thought for the Day:
Even if our life does not unfold the way we planned it; God works it out better than our best ideals.

Strained Relationships

Read: Matthew 5:43-48

“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.” – Matthew 18:15

In today’s society, our daily endeavors and distresses affect our walk with the Lord. Our strained relationships, lack of financial assets and/or our poor physical health may cause us uncertainty, giving rise to fear and insecurity. Maybe we made a poor financial decision or our health took a turn for the worse. These issues may require that we spend inordinate amounts of time, which we do not have to spare, in order to bring resolution to them and to restore equanimity to our life.

Strained relationships also affect every other area of our life. If we have a confrontation with a friend or family member that blows up out of proportion, it may shade how we look at things - mentally, emotionally and spiritually. When there is an offense between us and another person, God requires that we lay our gift at the altar (Matthew 5:24), and go to this person in an effort to clarify the issues and to make reparation for any harm done on our part.

God knows that we humans do not communicate clearly and some of us are harder to communicate with than others. We leave out important information in what we say. We misinterpret a look or the meaning of a word, and then we adopt a negative attitude toward one another. We exchange unkind words and actions that wound one another, which we cannot take back or erase their effects. In addition, people who do not really know us, or who knew us long ago, may forget what we are really like or they may misunderstand us and make false accusations against us.

When we comprehend life from an eternal perspective, however, it is easier to adopt a humble attitude and to offer friendship in place of their anger or despiteful use of us (Matthew 5:44). We may need to make the first effort at reconciliation, reaching out to the bitter one who closed off his/her heart against us.

When we try to make amends, some people may continue to throw insults at us and make threats. They may even ignore us and refuse to resolve the issues. What concerns God, however, is that we make an effort. Then the ball is in God’s court. If they are truly His children, God will bring circumstances to bear in their life to humble them and to cause them to be more conciliatory. If they are not truly born again, they will continue in their misguided thinking and your relationship may never be restored.

Once we attempt to reconcile, however, we can then go back to the altar, regardless of how the other person responds to our efforts. We are free to enjoy each precious moment of life in worshipping our God and Creator. We can offer every breath, every action, every thought and every word as an expression of our gratitude for what He did for us on Calvary’s cross and for what He continues to do in our daily lives. We can also trust Him to provide for all of our needs and to lead us on our path of life and fill us with the joy of His presence (Acts 2:28).

When we really understand the glory we will one day see in heaven, and how soon all else will fade away when we do, we will be much less concerned about how things appear in the eyes of other people. We will conclude that God alone is our judge and that eternity will tell the truth about the matter.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, You called us to enjoy a fulfilling and personal relationship with You through Your Holy Spirit. We may not have much time left before Your return. Help us to reconcile with our fellow humans, and to enjoy the freedom to worship You with clean hands and a pure heart until You come again.

Thought for the Day:

In considering human nature, the moments during which reason and reconciliation prevail are sometimes few and far between.