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Finding The Stability of Our Times

Jun17

Are you feeling weary as we move into our fourth month of a life unlike anything we’ve experienced before? I sure am! The COVID-19 crisis still isn’t behind us. Some businesses have been able to open, others are delaying because of continued risk, and we hear every week of more businesses that will not be reopening over again.

On top of this, our nation is dealing with increased racial tension. Amid this is a push to defund police, and we hear of “autonomous zones” in major cities, where a section of the city is under the control of domestic terrorist groups. We can’t help but wonder what lies ahead? Life feels like a unending ride on a roller coaster, with highs and lows that never seem to end.

During times like this, we need to be alert to what is going on around us. But we also need to find something – or Someone – unshakable that we can depend on. We need something fixed and constant that we can depend upon. We need an immovable faith in the One the prophet Isaiah described as“… the stability of your times, a wealth of salvation, wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is his treasure.” (Isaiah 33:6)

This verse was written in a time of impending distress and judgment. Assyria was advancing from the north, conquering kingdom after kingdom, including the northern kingdom of Israel. Now, the armies were drawing near to Jerusalem, and the people of Judah (the southern kingdom) didn’t know where to turn. Isaiah was warning the people against making an alliance with Egypt and reminding them that the Lord was the key to their salvation. He was the only One Who would provide the stability they yearned for.

Are you feeling the need for stability in this tumultuous time? The “stability of (our) times” will only be found in the One Who is our source of salvation and wisdom and knowledge. This a time for putting our trust fully in the Lord, and allowing Him to direct our paths. Nothing we are facing is a surprise to Him!

“My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.” Isaiah 32:18 ESV

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV

‭‭“Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.” Psalm 55:22 NASB

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Ten Essential Truths About The Goodness of God

Aug9

Yesterday, I did a short “Thankful Thursday” post for God-Living Girls with Chronic Illness on Strengthening Ourselves in the Lord. It was based on 1 Samuel 30, where David and his men return to their home-base in Ziklag, only to find the city had been attacked by Amalekite raiders, burned to the ground, and all the inhabitants of the city, including the wives and children of David and his men, taken captive.

As if this wasn’t enough for David to deal with, the passage also tells us that his own men had turned against him and were talking of stoning him. To say David felt overwhelmed is an understatement. Yes, the passage says David (and those with him) “wept until they had no strength to weep.” But then David did something else. The final words of 1 Samuel 30:6 say, “But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.” After doing this, David had the courage and wisdom to turn this dire situation around.

This has been a difficult week, as I’ve dealt with the disappointment of no obvious improvement in knee pain well past the five days it usually takes to tell if a cortisone injection will be effective. But after reading this passage, I had to admit my bad days aren’t even worthy to compare with what David experienced in this chapter.

I also knew God had a clear message for me from this Old Testament historical narrative. I needed to spend some time strengthening and encouraging myself in the Lord. That was the “next step” God was calling me to take, before I was ready to face the uncertainties of the future and begin moving forward.

And the Lord went a step further and showed me a specific area where the enemy had been using difficult circumstances of the last nine months to chip away at my trust in one of the major truths of the Christian life, the goodness of God. Without a firm foundation built on the goodness of our God, difficult circumstances can result in a type of emotional paralysis that keeps us from moving forward.

I’ve spent some time yesterday afternoon and this morning studying what God’s word has to say about the goodness of our God. God is with us whether we have awareness of His presence or not. He is always loving, whether our circumstances are a clear reflection of that love or not. And God is good, in every situation, even when our emotions are making it hard for us to believe this.

The truths that God is with us and will never leave or forsake us, that He loves us with a steadfast and unfailing love, and that no matter what is going on in our lives God is still good are three foundational truths about the nature of God that we need to accept by faith to make it through the tough seasons of life.

Ten Essentials Truths About the Goodness of God

  1. The goodness of our God is with us always, whether we have awareness of it in our emotions or not.
  2. God both is good and does good, goodness marks His nature and His works. “You are good and do good…”(Psalm 119:68a)
  3. God’s goodness follows me daily through this life, and because He gave His Son for my sins – His ultimate act of goodness – I will spend eternity with Him. “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” (Psalm 23:6)
  4. By faith I receive God’s goodness in the midst of daily trials. “I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living!” (Psalm 27:13)
  5. God’s goodness is tangible – we can “taste and see” it. “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!” (Psalm 34:8 ESV)
  6. Because of His goodness, He is a stronghold we can flee to in the day of trouble. “The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him.” (Nahum 1:7)
  7. Giving thanks to the Lord should be our response to His goodness. “Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!” (Psalm 107:1)
  8. God’s goodness is for all. “The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made.” (Psalm 145:9)
  9. God especially promises to show goodness to all who wait on Him. “The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.”(Lamentations 3:25-26)
  10. While goodness is a fruit of the Spirit and a character attribute we are to extend toward others, no one is fully and truly good but God! “No one is good except God alone.” (Mark 10:18; Luke 18:19)

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The Sacrifice That Pleases God

Jul18

“Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High, and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me…

The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!” Psalms‬ ‭50:14-15, 23‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Are you in a “day of trouble”? That would be a good way to describe the season I’m currently walking through, with a pending knee replacement surgery that I’ve been purposefully avoiding for several years because of the complexity of my knee problems.

In addition to having final stage osteoarthritis and meniscus tears in my left knee, I also have Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) in the joint. This was caused by the extensive damage to the joint and surrounding nerves from the automobile accident we had over forty years ago, so bad that the doctors told my husband they weren’t sure I’d ever be able to walk on that knee. The most common cause of CRPS is actually Knee Replacement Surgery. So while this surgery could relieve the pain and inflammation in my joint and restore the range of motion in that joint that the original damage took away, there’s also the possibility that another surgery would make the pain worse.

This troubling situation has resulted in lots of time spent crying out to God in prayer for wisdom concerning what I’m to do. My desire is to walk through this situation in a way that brings glory to God, so when I read the above verses this morning they really spoke to my heart.

Are you currently in “the day of trouble”? If so, join me in following the instructions given in the above verses.

  • OFFER TO GOD A SACRIFICE OF THANKSGIVING. The Lord no longer calls us to offer animal sacrifices for sin that were a part of the Old Covenant, since Jesus “appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” (Hebrews‬ ‭9:26‬) But there still is one type of sacrifice that pleases God. My Bible gives an alternative translation of this phrase: “Make thanksgiving your sacrifice to God.” That could include acknowledging your sin and receiving cleansing from it (1 John 1:8). It could be songs of worship to our good God. It could be simply giving Him thanks for the good things He’s doing in your life in the midst of this difficult season.
  • PERFORM YOUR VOWS TO THE MOST HIGH. Have you made any vows to God? A vow is a binding promise, made to men or to God. Vows made to God especially need to be kept. “If you make a vow to the Lord your God, you shall not delay fulfilling it…” (Deuteronomy 23:21a).
  • CALL UPON ME IN THE DAY OF TROUBLE. We call upon the Lord in the day of trouble by coming to Him in honesty, sharing our fears and concerns with Him, and then asking Him to intervene. We run to Him as our refuge and strength, our very present help in our times of trouble (Psalm 46:1).
  • TO THE ONE WHO ORDERS HIS WAY RIGHTLY I WILL SHOW THE SALVATION OF GOD. This is a promise we can stand on during “the day of trouble.” To order our way rightly is to make sure it lines up with the will of God, as revealed in His Word. For me, this means praying for wisdom concerning how I am to walk through the current trial, spending time in prayer and in the Word of God to put myself in a place where I can hear His voice, and then being a doer of the Word and not a hearer only (James 1:5-8, 22-25; 3:17-18).

On this Thankful Thursday, I encourage you to spend time sharing the troubles you are currently walking through with the Lord and possibly with a trusted friend. But also remember these clear instructions from Psalm 50 about how we are to walk through the “day of trouble.” What will you offer up to God today as a Sacrifice of Thanksgiving?

Gratefulness and Peace Always

May30

In last week’s Thankful Thursday post we looked at how the joy of the Lord and thankfulness are related (https://wordpress.com/post/hopeandlight.blog/4208).

This week we’ll be studying a verse from Colossians that links gratitude and peace.

“And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.” Colossians‬ ‭3:15‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Or as the same verse says in the Amplified Bible:

“Let the peace of Christ [the inner calm of one who walks daily with Him] be the controlling factor in your hearts [deciding and settling questions thatul arise]. To this peace indeed you were called as members in one body [of believers]. And be thankful [to God always].”

‭I especially like the Amplified version of this verse, because it defines “the peace of Christ” as an inner calm that comes to those who daily walk with the Lord. This is the kind of peace God has made available for us as followers of Jesus Christ, and this walk is the key to being thankful to God at all times.

God-Living Girls with Chronic Illness, a group I work with, it currently doing a study written by Jodie Barrett and Donna Fender of Faithfully Following Ministries and entitled Verse By Verse, Growing Closer to God. One of this week’s lessons was on the importance of having an on-fire relationship with God.

A relationship with the Lord that is not vibrant and alive does not provide the peace or thankfulness we desire. Just walking through the motions of picking up our Bible once a day, reading a few verses, and then putting it down and not applying what we read to our daily lives is of little benefit. But an on-fire walk with our Savior, where we abide with Him and stay attached to the Vine for nourishment and strength to do what He asks of us is the type of relationship that brings peace and gratitude.

The peace of Christ is not only the peace we experience when there is no conflict. It includes a sense of wholeness and well-being, completeness and totality, even in the midst of overwhelming trials. Ultimately, the peace of Christ in its essence is the very presence of Christ. It’s the peace that accepts the truth no circumstance is too big that it is beyond God’s control.

And with this inner peace that is born in relationship with God and grows as we walk close to Him through whatever circumstances that touch our lives, comes an attitude of gratitude. I saw this in my own life last November, when in the midst of a situation I had dreaded for years, the loss of our medically fragile son David, God gave supernatural peace.

That peace produced a gratefulness for the Lord in my heart, even in the midst of the deep sorrow and grieving in releasing our son to God’s plan. While the peace was a gift of God’s grace as I spent time in His presence daily, the gratitude began with a choice to be thankful in the midst of the pain. But with that choice, gratitude became a natural fruit of the inner peace.

Do you want to experience both peace and an attitude of gratitude that isn’t shaken regardless of the circumstances that touch your life? If so, the key is to make sure nothing blocks your view of God. Sin does that in our lives, so if the Holy Spirit convicts you of a sin that needs to be confessed and dealt with, don’t ignore it.

As Paul David Tripp said, “Our sin is what separates us from God, but it’s our self righteousness that keeps us from running to Him for the grace He willingly gives to all who come.” Humble yourself and confess any sin God shows you, receive His forgiveness and grace. And you will be set free to walk in God’s peace and with a grateful heart.