Are You Grasping or Aligning?
Sometimes it may feels like we are not getting anywhere. We may be working hard, being faithful and even bearing more weight than those around us. Yet, maybe few seem to notice our work, our abilities or our investment. At times like this, we start to wonder about the future – whether we will ever be seen or heard for who we really are. We may ask what we need to do to get noticed, appreciated and/or rewarded.
Strangely, we find James and John – two of Jesus’s closest followers – in a similar situation (Mark 10:35-45). They, quite possibly with the input/influence of their mother (Matthew 20:20-28), decided they wanted to take their future into their own hands. They flat out asked Jesus to secure places of prominence for them in His Coming Kingdom. This seemed like a brazen request to the other disciples, though one that may have been in their hearts, too.
Jesus’s response included an interesting idea. He said that these places of prominence...
Take Hold of Your Future
What are your plans for the future? Is there anything you want to accomplish or become? Is there anywhere you want to go or anything you want to do?
Have you given much thought to what God may have planned for you? He prophesied through Jeremiah that He knew the plans He had for the people of Israel. (Jeremiah 29:11) And, He knows His plans for you too. For, “You are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for you to do.”(Ephesians 2:10) He has things planned for your future.
The apostle Paul wrote near the end of his ministry that he was pressing on to take hold of that for which Christ had taken hold of him (Philippians 3:12) God wants us (like Paul) to lean and press into the purposes for which Christ has taken hold of our lives.
We may imagine that Christ takes hold of us to accomplish His work, but God has more than work in store for us. He is primarily after relationship and wholeness. He...
Are You Anxious?
We have been created by God. He fashioned our personhood and our personalities. He knows what makes us tick. He not only knows how we think, He knows what we think before we do. His presence is always around us and, if we know Him, we experience the Holy Spirit’s presence within us. (Psalm 139)
God knows our future, and He has prepared paths, encounters, provisions and purposes for us. (Ephesians 2:10) There is no need to worry – it adds nothing but distress to your life. (Matthew 6:25-34) There is no value is anxiety; it wars against our faith and our sense of trust in God. Unfortunately, the enemy somehow convinces many people that worry and anxiety are forms of taking responsibility – that they demonstrate trustworthiness by being worried and obsessively concerned about what might go wrong in the future.
Let’s take a moment and let God’s salvation from faithless living sink deeply into our souls, affecting our feelings...
How to Deal With the Three Ugly Stepsisters: Worry, Doubt, Fear
Sometimes people believe many of the “right” things about God and have fairly solid theology, yet their lives seem none the better for it. How can this be? Often we have rebellious rumblings under the surface of our consciousness. They can go undetected unless we take time to allow them to surface and intentionally address them.
Worry is one such rumbling that can rob our spiritual lives. It is a deceptive thought/feeling. It can make us feel like we are being responsible when we are not. Worry never helps a situation. Jesus told His disciples not to worry about their lives, clothes or food. He asked, “Who by worrying can add one hour to their life?” (Luke 12:24) Paul said not to worry or be anxious about anything, but instead to
bring our concerns to God. (Philippians 4:6) Peter exhorts us to cast all our anxiety upon the Lord who cares for us. (1 Peter 5:7)
Doubt can also creep into our relationship with...
Making It Through The Morning After
What do we do after the big day has come and gone? The big day was overwhelming – either for us or for others, or both. It took all we had, and has left us depleted and empty. The “morning after” the big day is important; it may last for a while, but it starts with a day – and how we handle it matters.
DON’T GIVE IN TO GIVING UP
We are tempted to let the feelings of emptiness rob us of who we are and who we are in God. Remember Elijah, after his biggest day of public confrontation – after his greatest victory – felt like dying. He said to God, “I have had enough, take my life …” (1 Kings 19:4) This is the feeling of “the morning after. Acknowledge it, but don’t give up.
REST AND BE REFRESHED
God sent angelic help to Elijah, and He will often do the same for us. The angel seemed to stand by him; he encouraged Elijah to rest and to eat – to take care of himself and be...
Where Are You NOW?
Are you able to live in the present? Many are not.
Some people are haunted by their past. Possibly they have been hurt by others – and are still carrying the wounds. Others have made some big mistakes, and they can’t forgive themselves so that they can move on.
We must learn to confess what we have done and receive forgiveness in our souls. We must also forgive others before God – releasing them from their “debt/s” owed us. This is not always easy work, and it may involve the help of a trusted friend or spiritual leader, but it is ALWAYS possible!
A resource you may find helpful is Total Forgiveness, by RT Kendall.
Some people, on the other hand, are haunted by their future. Either they are so attached to their dreams that they have trouble being responsible in the present, or they are paralyzed by worry and dwelling on negative possibilities. Jesus made it clear, however, that worry offers us no benefit...
Are You Prepared for What's Next?
When you consider your future, what do you think will happen?
Do you picture good things coming your way, or does the future feel somewhat bleak?
No one really knows the future. God rarely gives detailed insights into what is coming next. It seems that He wants us to rely on Him and not to become fixated on what will or won’t happen. This can feel disconcerting – and some become so concerned with knowing the future that they involve themselves in the occult, seeking dark powers for information about their future as if that will bring them security and comfort.
God’s Kingdom approach is quite different. He promises to be with us always; to never leave us or forsake us. His character is such that He can be trusted with our future, even though we don’t know what that future will hold.
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28 NIV)
Rather...
