You enter a room you have never been in before. You see a chair. You pull out the chair and sit. You had full confidence that chair would do what it was designed to do, hold you. Considering you had never been there before and never sat in that chair before, you trusted without any experience with that chair or space. The chance the chair will break is slim but possible.
If you are like me, I struggle at times to put that confidence in God. It pains me to admit. The probability God will let me down is zero. Yet, I question, I want to safeguard my attempts and struggle to sit and be still. This reality makes me feel foolish.
Jeremiah 17:7, “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him.”
We will be blessed when we can trust God like we trust the chair. We just know it will be okay. We are safe and He will hold us.
Psalms 147:11, “The Lord delights in those who fear Him, who put their hope in His unfailing love.”
Fear for Christians is usually a negative word. Fear in this instance is respect. It comes from the root of the word. If you fear something you respect its ability to harm you, for instance a fire. Did you fear one or both of your parents when you were young? There is a healthy level of fear. One that keeps us safe from harm. But also, is giving honor to someone in control.
God is to be feared. He deserves our honor. We respect Him as our King, Our Lord and Master. The Lord delights in your placing Him in this esteemed place in your heart. Looking to Him for guidance. Unlike the fire, God has unfailing love. We cannot trust fire to keep us safe. God we can trust because He loves with no end. His unfailing love will keep us close, safe and will never let you down. Fear equals respect and God equals love.
It is storming outside, and your child is frightened. What do you say to calm their nerves at that moment? I know I would say, it’s okay mommy is here. Those words soothe those little hearts with big fears. Essentially, those words symbolize-I got you!
Isaiah 41:10, “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my right hand.”
Can you picture it? Climbing up in your Abba Father’s lap and hearing these words. Adulting is no fun. It is nice to be able to have someone bigger than you say-I got you! When the storms of life hit. Let God soothe your little heart with big fears. He will never be too busy. He will never push you away. He has you!
1 Peter 5:10, “And the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.”
This was written for the woman who feels like she has been in this place of suffering for far too long and may remain here forever. Girl, I get it! I have been in that very place. It is hard to be encouraged by anything. This verse was written for you.
God is a God of grace. You may wonder why He does not stop your suffering right now. I do not have that answer. What I do know is your pain is not in vain. You will not remain in this place if you put your trust in Jesus. I also know there is a reason. God is very purposeful in everything He does. He does not inflict the pain but will allow it for a while to create in us a refined version of who we were created to be.
This verse gives hope that it will not be forever. In a moment, God will say, that is enough. I love this part; He will restore you Himself. The God of the universe who loves you like no other, will snatch you from that pit and hold you close, restoring your soul. He will make the broken places fuse but leave the cracks. This is not because He lacks completion but instead knows your beauty will shine through your scars. Remember His do too.
“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” Proverbs 13:12.
Have you been there? Have you ever wanted something so bad that every day without it felt like forever? I can remember when I was trying for a baby. I had bad baby fever. I knew it would take time. I knew it would come in God’s time. I also knew that for some they cannot get pregnant on their own so that thought loomed in the back of my mind as well. Each month, I would look for signs, get myself so skyed up and when my body did not produce results I sank in despair. I surprised myself how upset I could get after a brief encounter of hope.
I have shared this experience with promises of God. I did have faith. I put my whole being into the hope God’s promise gave. If anything popped up that made me think it would not happen then defeat overwhelmed me. It was exhausting. In time I learned that when God promises, He says it as it will happen today. To God time is irrelevant.
Abraham was so caught up in this cycle that after being told he would be a father at the ripe age of 86, he fell for a scheme his wife conjured up. God does not need our help. God will never forget His promise. It will happen. If tempted to make it happen on your own you might experience a mess like Abraham.
I learned to tuck these promises in my heart. I believe it will happen, but I let God be the one who works on it not me. I stay out of His way. I will live my life. I will wait for Him to bring the promise. Things are sweeter that way. I am no longer running myself ragged in the cycle of chasing defeat. I trust God.
The Bible is outdated. It is so hard to understand. I have heard all the excuses for not reading the Bible. And yes, they are excuses. Anything worth doing is hard to do. Some believe only the Old Testament. Others only the New Testament. But God’s Book is a story that is incomplete without both parts.
Why read this old book? Why put in the effort to understand its language?
Romans 15:4, “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.”
The Scriptures are stories of hope and encouragement. These reflections of truth are our guide for this life. It is chalk full of the dos and don’ts to help us live the abundant life. If you want to know Jesus, read His word. He is the Word incarnate. To reject any part of His Word is to reject Him.
Life happens. Crisis happens. Not it, but when it does happen, remember who you belong to. After the bottom falls out, it is time to reassess and get a battle plan together. A friend of mine had a great mantra for times just like this, “Jesus is still on the throne.” It was perfect for those defeating times. Remember, no matter what, Jesus is still King, and we belong to Him.
We have an enemy, one set out to destroy us. It can feel like you will never get ahead when you have someone constantly after you. If you relate to what I am saying then you, my dear, are doing something right. The enemy is hot on the tail of those who serve Jesus. The pew dwellers do not excite our enemy. He knows they will still be in the pew the next time he looks. It’s those Christians who are on fire for God that make the enemy shiver.
“Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” 1 Peter 5:8. He lies waiting for movement just like a predator in the wild. One of my favorite verses is, “Do not rejoice over me, O my enemy; for when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, Jesus will be my light.” Micah 7:8. This verse ignites a fire in my belly. It’s an anthem for those times of perceived defeat. As Christians we are never defeated! This verse is one to put in your toolbox for times such as these. No matter what this life throws at me-I SHALL RISE!!!
“Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure.” Psalm 16:9
There is great benefit to sharing our praise. Praise is the recognition of good that God provides. God is good, but why? What has God done for you lately? If you do not immediately go into a list, you are not trying. I can say that with confidence because I know and understand the character of God and His involvement in all things little and big of the believer.
God is always working. I pray about everything! The reason is, I know my God cares about everything. The best illustration for how God feels about us is the relationship from parent to child. I care about all things with my kids. I care if they hurt. I care if they are sad. I care if they worry. I want to hear when they are happy. What I really love is when they tell me they have experienced my love and protection of them.
My heart bursts when my child says thank you for all the things big and small that I have done my best to provide, from love to band aids. God feels the same. We please God when we recognize His involvement. His heart bursts when we give Him praise. It also benefits the one giving praise.
A heart of gratitude is a happy heart. In addition, it puts us at ease when we understand we can trust God with both the big and small things in our lives. We can relax. Our body can rest secure because God is always on duty. So sing those praises and rest in God knowing He is working and will not stop until the promises are fulfilled.
What is hope and why is it important? What is the difference in hope and faith?“Faith is confidence or trust in something, or someone not based on proof (believing in things unseen). Hope is an optimistic attitude based on expectations or desire. Biblically speaking, Faith says whatever you are hoping for is here now. Hope says there is a chance of it happening sometime in the future.” www. therebelchristian.com Can you have hope without faith? Personally, I cannot separate the two. However, working as a Hospice Chaplain I was surprised to find terminally ill individuals who had hope and not faith connected to a religion. Their hope came from an optimistic attitude.
When my son, Jacob died, I had faith the Scriptures were the truth and that Jacob was in heaven. Eventually, I had hope that I could survive the loss. Hope in my case was based on faith that God would come through for me. Hope lifts the spirits, keeps your eyes on the prize and can carry you through your next obstacle. In my situation, hope felt like the dark clouds parting and the sun sneaking in. One day I would be better, and that enabled me to pick myself up off the floor. Paul and Silas when imprisoned were grounded in faith. Nothing could separate them from the love of God, Romans 12:14. Hope allowed them to sing, while in chains. They sang like the caged bird with freedom on its lips.
Hope is the life preserver that can keep you above the water. Faith is the anchor that keeps you from being afloat. Can you see how they go hand and hand? Can you have hope without faith. Yes, but what is the hope grounded in?
Is your faith tied to Jesus, the one who brings real hope to so many? Always have an answer for the hope you have. Mine is Jesus.
A counselor knows what he/she is doing so they will not judge you or ridicule your thought process.
You can be honest without concern for hurting others.
Talk therapy is part of the process. Counselors can offer other coping skills of which you might not have thought.
You may benefit from a few sessions or on-going for a while.
What you have learned can help with future problems.
Counselors can provide perspective our friends and family might not see.
Counseling is not for everyone. But it can be extremely helpful for most. Counseling gets a bad rap. The common misconception is “why do I want to tell a stranger my problems?” The truth is, a qualified stranger is a great choice for your problems.
