Trust

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Stressed or Blessed?

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“A perfect faith would lift us absolutely above fear.” – George MacDonald

The question haunted me: How could I say I was living a life of faith when I was anxious so much of the time?  I began to ask God to deliver me from worry and grow my faith in His character and His Word. As He answers my request, here is what I am learning:

• Listen first.
Before I pray, I listen to God in order to try to understand His will in the matter I am concerned about. Then I pray a prayer that, to the best of my ability, is in keeping with His will. Partnering with God this way engenders faith.

• Pray boldly.
I try to ask honestly and boldly for what I need from God and what I have discerned He wants to give me. No more wimpy prayers.

• Testify confidently.
When God answers my prayers, I share the good news with others. My faith nurtures theirs and their faith nurtures mine.

• Respond thankfully.
Whether my faith is big or small, I commit to giving God the all the credit and praise for what He does.

• Persevere patiently. 
My faith is growing, but I have far to go.  So, I remain committed to following God’s faith-building plan and am thrilled with every evidence of progress.

And, here’s the good news: I am finding that worry and faith cannot exist in my mind at the same time. If I worry, faith disappears. If I exercise faith, worry flees. I get to choose which of the two I want to live with. By God’s grace, I am learning to choose faith and my life is changing gradually from anxious to peaceful. Yours can, too. Ask Him to help you grow your faith in Him. That is a prayer He is eager to answer!

“So not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”  (Philippians 4:6-7)

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Sh-h-h, My Child

One day, I was discouraged with my behavior and my attitude. I felt I was letting God down and needed to know that He wasn’t giving up on me. As I sat in His presence, I could almost hear Him say,

“I am not angry at you, not impatient with you, not disappointed in you. I love you. I am proud of you. I am pleased with the person you are becoming. Accept that.”

The deepest motive for believing is the awareness of being loved by God - Lewis Smedes

The deepest motive for believing is the awareness of being loved by God – Lewis Smedes

“Sit with Me, talk to Me.

I will show you things you have not seen, teach you things you want to know, give you My wisdom, and help you to understand Who I am.

Now, let Me love you. I am drawing you to Myself, closer and closer. The difficulties along the way are designed to show you how far you’ve come and how far you have to go.

• I am teaching you to trust Me.
• I am teaching you to focus on Me, not on yourself.
• I am teaching you that anything you accomplish of value is really done by Me, not you.

I am inviting you to an easy yoke, to walking with Me, to rest.

Everything in your life is under control. My control. Rest in Me.”

That message was for me – but it’s for you, too. He wants you to know, really know, how much He loves you. Sit with Him. Talk to Him. Let Him tell you Himself.

The Lord your God is with you; He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing. (Zephaniah 3:17)

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Tougher Tests

“Consider it a sheer gift, friend, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way”. James 1:2-3 (The Message)

My dear friend and mentor had pancreatic cancer. She was living a very full life and one that had been unusually healthy. She had always taken such good care of her mind, body, and soul! Now this. It didn’t seem possible.

Never alone

You are never alone.

But when I talked to her, she was calm, joyful, and looking forward to whatever was to come next. She said things like, “I am never alone” and she led me into worship as never before. When I talked to her a few months ago about one of my own struggles, we compared notes. That’s when she said, “As we grow spiritually, the tests get tougher.”

Really? The tough test I was facing related to the fact that God was challenging me to spiritual growth? I was actually pleased to think that He loved me enough to invite me to go deeper with Him. Then I looked back at Marge and saw the real peace and sustained joy that she had in her trial and realized that she was up for the challenge. I would be, too. God will not give me a test that I cannot handle, but He will give me a test that will make me stronger and will increase my intimacy with Him.

If that’s what it takes to draw me closer to You, bring it on, Lord. I am grateful that You care enough to give me new opportunities to grow.

“Do not let me waste the trial You send me. It is a gold mine I must exploit.” – St. Therese 

 

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Crumbs

Looking beyond the here and now

Looking beyond the here and now

What is the biggest thing you have asked God to do for you? Sometimes our focus is on the here and now, so we ask for things that we think will satisfy us. Maybe they do, for awhile at least.

The gospel writers tell the story of the Canaanite woman who came to Jesus (Matthew 15) asking Him to cast a demon out of her daughter. Remember that? He told her that He came for the Jews, not the Gentiles and it was not right to take the bread meant for the children and give it to dogs. Her answer is bold, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Her request was immediate and desperate but, in light of the power and magnitude of Jesus, it was just a crumb. He gave it to her because of her faith.

When it comes to situations with family, demons, finances, health, and so on, I will take crumbs, too. Those are important and often heart-wrenching requests. But internally, Jesus reminds me, “Don’t be satisfied with crumbs. Pursue Me until you have full revelation of who I am. Don’t be satisfied with anything less.” I need Jesus more than I need quick answers to my desperate prayers. I need Him, not just the gifts He gives. I don’t want to be satisfied with crumbs when Jesus gives me Himself in full as the living bread!

“It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” – C. S. Lewis in The Weight of Glory