Worry ..... Streams in the Desert

Worry 

Streams in the Desert

Do not begin to be anxious (Philippians 4:6, PBV).

Not a few Christians live in a state of unbroken anxiety, and others fret and fume terribly. To be perfectly at peace amid the hurly-burly of daily life is a secret worth knowing. What is the use of worrying? It never made anybody strong; never helped anybody to do God's will; never made a way of escape for anyone out of perplexity. Worry spoils lives which would otherwise be useful and beautiful. Restlessness, anxiety, and care are absolutely forbidden by our Lord, who said: "Take no thought," that is, no anxious thought, "saying what shall we eat, or what shall we drink, or wherewithal shall we be clothed?" He does not mean that we are not to take forethought and that our life is to be without plan or method; but that we are not to worry about these things.

People know you live in the realm of anxious care by the lines on your face, the tones of your voice, the minor key in your life, and the lack of joy in your spirit. Scale the heights of a life abandoned to God, then you will look down on the clouds beneath your feet.  
--Rev. Darlow Sargeant

It is always weakness to be fretting and worrying, questioning and mistrusting. Can we gain anything by it? Do we not unfit ourselves for action, and unhinge our minds for wise decision? We are sinking by our struggles when we might float by faith.

Oh, for grace to be quiet! Oh, to be still and know that Jehovah is God! The Holy One of Israel must defend and deliver His own. We may be sure that every word of His will stand, though the mountains should depart. He deserves to be confided in. Come, my soul, return unto thy rest, and lean thy head upon the bosom of the Lord Jesus.
--Selected

Peace thy inmost soul shall fill
Lying still!

A Worldly Heart ..... Dr. Charles Stanley

A Worldly Heart

Dr. Charles Stanley2 Peter 2:9-18

God warns us against misguided desires, because sinful passions can lead to emptiness, suffering, disappointment, pain, and even death. Wise believers let the Father direct their yearnings--and then make changes if necessary.

Impure desires have been part of the "flesh" nature since the fall of man, and they can be hard to see in ourselves. Instead of obvious things like theft, drugs, or immorality, they often involve more subtle attitudes and behaviors, like hoping for a rival's downfall, despising authority (2 Peter 2:10), obsessing about wealth (1 Tim. 6:9), or even speaking arrogant and vain words. Since worldly passions can cause great damage (2 Peter 2:18), believers are to deny them (Titus 2:11-12). But we can't overcome these desires on our own. Submitting to God's Spirit is the only way to live righteously.

The Lord knows what we really desire--and more importantly, what we need--even when cloudy judgment leads us astray. And He understands honest mistakes. When a believer misinterprets the Spirit's guidance or receives bad advice from a friend, God looks at the heart. He may allow the consequences of a poor choice to play out, but He won't shame His children for an honest mistake. He can turn a bad situation into something good (Rom. 8:28).

God can save us from worldly desires, but we must be willing to commit ourselves to Him and trust that His response is the best thing for us. When we put our lives entirely in the Father's hands, we can claim the wonderful promises He has for us and then rest in His grace.

Indicators of Hidden Bitterness..... LYSA TERKEURST

Indicators of Hidden Bitterness
LYSA TERKEURST

“Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” Psalm 139:24 (NLT)

I remember several years ago when a friend of mine really hurt my feelings, and I got all bent out of shape. And, honey, everyone in my house knew Mama wasn’t happy. I tried everything to usher gentleness back into my tone and my temper.

I quoted verses.

I rebuked Satan.

I bossed my feelings around with Truth.

I even tried to take a nap.

But none of these activities soothed me.

What really sent me over the edge, though, was a smell that started to fill my home that not even three strongly scented candles could mask.

Unfortunately, as the mysterious, awful smell continued to waft through my home, I couldn’t for the life of me figure out what it was or where it was coming from.

Finally, I realized one of my daughters had placed a kitchen trash can in the corner of my bedroom so she could toss scraps of paper as she worked on a school project. Before she brought the trash can into my bedroom, some food had obviously been thrown away that had surpassed gross and moved into the final stages of rot.

I didn’t have the heart to find out what the rot was; I just knew the trash can had to go. Immediately.

The smell was an outside indication of an internal situation. And the trash can wasn’t the only thing that stunk that night. So did my attitude.

My reaction was also an outside indication of an internal situation.

The reason I couldn’t be soothed by quoting Scripture, bossing my feelings, rebuking Satan or even taking a nap is because God wanted me to be aware of my stink — something inside of me that stunk — a place starting to rot.

I’d been hurt by a friend and didn't want to confront the issue or forgive the person who had hurt me. I’d stuffed bitterness in my heart and tried to pretend it wasn’t there. But the rot was there, and the stink from deep within my heart kept spilling out.

God didn’t want me to temporarily mask the situation by feeling better in the moment. He wanted me to address the root of my rot — to see it, admit it, expose it and let Him clean it up. Immediately.

In our key verse, we’re reminded of King David’s plea to the Lord, “Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life” (Psalm 139:24). We must have this same attitude when it comes to our own lives.

How we react is a crucial gauge of what’s really going on inside us. A little rot can spread fast and furiously if not dealt with swiftly and seriously. And unhealed hurt often becomes unleashed hurt spewed out on others.

That’s why it’s so crucial to pay attention to our reactions and look for indicators of hidden bitterness as we ask the Lord to point out harmful attitudes in our hearts today.

Here are some telltale signs of this particular root of rot:

• I throw out statements like, “You always … You never … Why can’t we ever?”
• I start gathering ammunition from past situations to build my case.
• I use words and a tone outside my normal character.
• I snap and explode on other people whose offenses don’t warrant that kind of reaction.
• I justify my reaction by pointing out how hard my life is right now.
• I make passive-aggressive statements to prove a point.
• I demand an apology, all the while knowing I should be giving one.
• I feel skepticism that most people can’t be trusted and cynicism about the world in general.

Please know … when people or issues or situations bump into our happy, it’s not wrong to feel annoyed. But if that annoyance leads to a reaction out of proportion to the issue at hand, we can bank on the fact that there’s unaddressed pain at the root of our eruption. As my counselor Jim Cress says, “If our reaction is hysterical, it is historical.”

These indicators are not fun to admit, but we can’t address what we don’t acknowledge. And here’s the beauty of the situation: The quicker we see a root of rot, the quicker we can invite God in to help us address our pain, heal our heart and get rid of the stink. We can make sure not one bit of the hurt done to us is multiplied back out by us.

Dear Lord, bring to light anything in my heart that needs healing and attention. And help me to address these areas with Your grace and Truth. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY:
Ephesians 4:31-32: “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” (ESV)

The Failure of History..... by John UpChurch

The Failure of History
by John UpChurch

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. (Romans 5:6)

To their credit, my two little girls sat patiently as the Cherokee peace chief explained his slit ears, metal breastplate, and high-heeled shoes. On the table in front of him sat a rifle, swan feathers, a clay mug, and other shards of the past. This is exactly what I love to do on a Saturday morning.

You see, I love the way history feels because I’m something of a nostalgia junky. The narratives that draw together people, locations, and wars latch onto me. The connections that run through mountains, rivers, and small towns dig under my skin. The history of grace absorbs me.

I have to be careful, though. Otherwise, I’d spend too much time living back there and not paying attention to grace here and now.

There’s something in history that we often overlook. Sure, learning about the past supposedly keeps people from repeating mistakes (though I’ve yet to see that be the case). And we need to see where we’ve come from, to understand the ebbs and cycles in the story of civilization. But it’s more than that.

History—much more than just a learning tool—is the story of human failure. If that sounds morbid, it is. The big picture of our history is how humans have failed to love, failed to live up to God’s standards. There are tiny currents that push back against the raging waters of failure (and those are some great stories to focus on), but the overall direction has been clear.

What we learn, if we care to glance back, is that humanity has no chance—that is, no chance apart from grace. Our history lays bare the need for a raw, relentless love. We’ve stumbled and scrambled, fought and exiled. And yet no amount of human effort has ever satisfied the searching, the wanderlust. We’ve pushed on, pressed on, killed on. And never reached our goal.

But always there is God. The history we have points to the sparks He created in the darkness, the fires He kindled in the tragedies. Always there is God, appearing where you least expect. Always there is God, breaking through.

I love history because God’s there in the midst of our failures. He never lets go; He never disappears.

Intersecting Faith & Life: One reason I always challenge others to keep a journal or a blog is because it gives us all a place to record our own histories. It’s a place where we can see the pursuing love of God as He picks us up from our failures and loves us anyway. It’s a place to learn from past mistakes. Take a moment today to capture your own story and keep at it. You’ll always be amazed at the grace that shimmers through.

Further Reading
Romans 5

Growing Strong in Your Faith..... By Mark Altrogge

Growing Strong in Your Faith
By Mark Altrogge

In Romans 4, Paul tells us Abraham “grew strong in his faith” and urges us to walk in Abraham’s footsteps. To believe like he believed. How do we do this?

Look to God’s promise, not your circumstances.

In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations (Romans 4:18).

Abraham’s situation looked bleak. God promised him multitudes of descendants, but the only problem was he was well past child producing. “He considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old).” He also considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. Not only was Abraham almost 100 years old, but Sarah his wife was very old, and she had never been able to have children her whole life. How are they going to have children? If Abraham had based his hope on his circumstances he would have given up. But in hope he believed against hope—God’s promise gave him hope in his hopeless situation. He put his hope in God’s promise, not his circumstances.

We may feel hopelessly unrighteous. We may feel like God could never forgive us for the sins we have committed, that he would never accept us. But we must not look at ourselves, just like Abraham didn’t look at himself, but like Abraham, we must believe God’s promise of grace. He counts me righteous in Christ!

Our teenager may seem hopelessly lost. Our finances may be out of control. We may lack direction for our lives. Our marriage might be frustrating or our church might be a mess. Look to Jesus Christ! Don’t look to yourself. Look to the promise of the gospel—everyone who believes in him shall be saved. Look to his promises to draw near to those who draw near to him. Promises to hear and answer our prayers.

Give glory to God

No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. (Romans 4:20-21)

Abraham strengthened his faith. Here’s how: “He grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God.” Begin to give glory to God—start thanking and praising him for his every promise. Thank him for saving you and declaring you righteous in him. He has promised to be with us when we pass through the waters and walk through fire. He has promised to never leave us nor forsake us. He has promised that nothing will be able to separate us from his love. He has promised to give us everything we truly need to glorify him. He has promised that we can do all things he requires through Christ who loves us. Praise him for these things!

We can look to our circumstances—it may not LOOK like God is being faithful. It may not FEEL like God is with us in these waters. It may FEEL like he has abandoned or forsaken us. We may not SENSE his love. But WE MUST NOT WAVER CONCERNING THE PROMISE OF GOD! Rather, we grow strong in our faith as we GIVE GLORY TO GOD, as we are fully convinced that God is able to do what he had promised.

In Ps 43 the Psalmist says “Why are you cast down O my soul? Hope in God for I shall yet praise him.” Keep thanking God, keep praising him in faith in the midst of your hard times. Say, “Jesus thank you that you are with me. Thank you have promised that your steadfast love never ceases. Praise you that your mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness.”

Growing stronger in our faith is not complicated. Look to God’s promise and glorify him. So, what are you going to believe today—God’s word or your circumstances? God’s promises or your feelings? God’s bedrock pledge of faithfulness or your wavering emotions? Walk in the footsteps of Abraham and strengthen your faith.

A Prayer for Sovereign Mercy..... By Alistair Begg

A Prayer for Sovereign Mercy
By Alistair Begg

 “You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you.” – Psalms 86:5

Here is sovereign mercy -- "I will send down the showers in their season." Is it not sovereign, divine mercy? For who can say, "I will send down showers" except God? There is only one voice that can speak to the clouds and bid them send the rain. "Who sends down the rain upon the earth? Who scatters the showers upon the green herb? Do not I, the Lord?" So grace is the gift of God and is not to be created by man.

It is also needed grace. What would the ground do without showers? You may break the clods, you may sow your seeds, but what can you do without the rain? Just as absolutely needful is the divine blessing; you work in vain until God then bestows the shower and sends salvation down.

Then, it is plenteous grace. "I will send down the showers." It does not say, "I will send down drops," but "showers." So it is with grace. If God gives a blessing, He usually gives it in such a measure that there is not room enough to receive it. Plenteous grace! We need plenteous grace to keep us humble, to make us prayerful, to make us holy; plenteous grace to make us zealous, to preserve us through this life, and at last to land us in heaven. We cannot do without saturating showers of grace.

Again, it is seasonable grace. "I will cause the shower to come down in their season." What is your season this morning? Is it the season of drought? Then that is the season for showers. Is it a season of great heaviness and black clouds? Then that is the season for showers. "As your days, so shall your strength be."

Lord, we praise you for your grace. By you we are raise out of the muck and mire to find a new home in your Kingdom. There will come moments in our lives when all we can do is call on you. We thirst for your mercy Lord, please hear our prayer. Amen.