Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Quotable

I was studying for tonights devotional at church and found a very good quote on the subject of knowing and following God's will. We will be looking at Psalm 25 and I was particularly thinking through vv.4-5. "Shew me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I waite all the day."


The Quote is by Sammuel Annesley. "Do what you know to be your present duty, and God will acquaint you with your future duty as it comes to be present."

Have You Learned to Trust God? Part2

In my last post we were considering the topic of trusting God. Most believers would say that they are, but often our actions sell us short. It seems to be easier said than done. We must learn to completely put our trust in our gret God or we will struggle in our christain walk.
We ended last time with the latter part of v.5. The Psalmist exhorted us not to "lean on your own understanding." The word "lean" has the idea to "prop up" or "support one's self." We are finite beings who cannot see all or know all, therefore, we must trust in our God who does see and know all things. He knows what is best for us and He knows how to take care of us.
The beginning of v.6 goes on to tell us that, "In all thy ways acknowledge Him." First of all, understand that the word "ways" has the idea of "a course of life" meaning in all that we do we must acknowledge Him. What does this mean? To acknowledge God is to know Him, to depend on Him, and to be aware of His will and desire for us and submit to it. Acknowledge that God has every right to direct and guide us for He created us and provided salvation for us. Too many people (including believers) mess up their lives by trying to live independently of God.
Now notice in the latter part of v.6 what happens when we acknowledge God's sovereignty and right over our lives. The Psalmist writes, "and He shall direct thy paths." The word "direct" has the idea "to be straight" or "to make right." God will straighten our path. He will level the path. In other words, He will remove the obstacles that hinder the direction we ought to be going. If we will learn to completely trust & submit to God, He will bring us to His appointed goal for our lives. God has a plan for each of us. Left to ourselves we fail to see it, but God is waiting to direct us in the way He wants us to go!! Life only has real meaning when lived in dependence upon God and His will!! Otherwise, we look like the dog (or in our case the cat) who constantly chases his tail but fails to catch it. We tire out and never achieve anything worth while. Remember this great verse; "The steps of a good man (or woman) are ordered (established) by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way." Psalm 37:23
Trusting in the Lord is vital for our Christian life. All to often circumstances arise and we do not know what to do, where to go, or how to fix the problem. But always remember God Does!! He is waiting to "to direct our paths" if we would only turn to Him in complete dependence.
What problems are you facing today? Lost your Job? Diagnosed with Cancer or some other health problem? Have you received unexpected bills that are depleting your bank account? Have you lost a loved one? Do you feel like your life is going nowhere? Or are you simply confused on what God wants for your life? Turn to Him in prayer and dependence. Confess any known sin. admit you don't know what to do and that you need His help. If you are sincere and one of His children, then He will help you!!
Psalm 146:3-5 "Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help. His breath goeth forth, he returnet to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish. Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God:"
Isaiah 26:3-4 "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord JEHOVAH is everlasting strength:"
God Bless and keep your focus on our wonderful, loving God!!

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Have You Learned To Trust God?

(Proverbs 3:5-8) Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.(KJV)

Are you having a hard time trusting in the Lord? When difficulties and problems come your way, are you tying to fix them yourself? Or just fretting over them? Anxiety and self-reliance will only fail us and cause us much grief. Friends, if you know Christ as your Savior, then we have all that we need to live a joyful and confident life, even through the trials of life! The essence of religious faith is trusting in our wonderful God. He knows us. He knows what is best for us. He cares about us deeply. Listen to Gods Word: (1 Peter 5:7) Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.(KJV)

Provebs 3:5 tells us to trust in the Lord. Trust has the idea of security and confidence. We are secure in Christ. We are righteous in Christ and therefore in a right standing with God. Trusting God is also being confident to boldly meet life's problems and temptations without fear or anxiety. There must be an absolute dependence on God because He has proven Himself trustworthy!

Think about Israel for a second. They could fully trust in God because He has proven Himself faithful to them even though they failed to be faithful to Him. Just think about God's deliverance, protection, and leading in the following examples: The Exodus out of Egypt, the wilderness journey, and the conquest of Canaan where forces were far superior to themselves. I could give many more examples, but don't miss the point that God never failed them. Therefore they were exhorted by the Psalmist to, (Psalms 37:3-5) Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.(KJV) Israel had no reason not to trust in their wonderful God and neither do we! God provides salvation, He sanctifies us, provides for our needs, and even promised to never leave or forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5) Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.(KJV) God is trustworthy, therefore, all beliefs, decisions, and the problems of life need to be submitted and entrusted to Him.

Notice the second part of v.5; and lean not unto thine own understanding. We need to trust the Lord because we are not capable of taking care of our selves contrary to popular secular belief. He is Sovereign. He sees and knows all things. He is all powerful. We are simply created beings in need of help from the Creator. Don't trust in your own resources, strength, or intelligence because we will simply mess things up. I think most of our experiences will bear this out. The biblical author makes clear we are not to trust in our own understanding. He means our own insight or our own way of thinking. Without the working of the Holy Spirit our understanding is distorted because of the fall of man in the Garden of Eden (when man received a sin nature). Left to ourselves we have no hope, but praise be to God He intervened and provided salvation and guidance to those who will trust in christ as their savior. We need a close, vibrant relationship with our God if we are to live for the glory of Christ.

I'm out of time, but will continue this article soon. God Bless and think about these things!!