Category Archives: Trusting God

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May 16, 2014

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Challenges & Difficulty, Trusting God

Is God Taking a Coffee Break?

What’s going on here? Is God out to lunch? Nobody’s tending the store. The wicked get by with everything; they have it made, piling up riches. I’ve been stupid to play by the rules; what has it gotten me? A long run of bad luck, that’s what – a slap in the face every time I walk out the door. [Psalm 73:11-14 MSG]

Does it sometimes seem as if God’s blessings are for everyone else? The good life seems to happen to other people and not to us. We ask God, “Where is my reward? Why me? What did I do to deserve this trouble? Why do the wicked get rewarded when you dump trouble on me?” The rich get richer while the poor get poorer and good things happen to bad people while bad things happen to the good ones. Where is the justice?

If  life sometimes seems unfair, that’s because it is! This is one of those puzzles that never seems to have an acceptable explanation. Like the Psalmist, we need to take God’s hand, trust in Him and realize that He is truly all we really need. The good fortune of the wicked is only temporary, our reward is eternal.

When I was beleaguered and bitter, totally consumed by envy, I was totally ignorant, a dumb ox in your very presence. I’m still in your presence, but you’ve taken my hand. You wisely and tenderly lead me, and then you bless me. You’re all I want in heaven! You’re all I want on earth! When my skin sags and my bones get brittle, God is rock-firm and faithful. Look! Those who left you are falling apart! Deserters, they’ll never be heard from again. But I’m in the very presence of God – oh, how refreshing it is! I’ve made Lord God my home. God, I’m telling the world what you do! [Psalm 73:21-28 (MSG)]

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May 12, 2014

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God's Plan, Trusting God

Our Tomorrows Belong to Him

Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. [Matthew 6:10b (NLT)]

O Lord, help us remember it’s your will we’re talking about and not ours. Help us recognize, accept and embrace your plan for our lives. Keep us from trying to rewrite it our own way. You hold our destinies in your hands. Our lives are yours; thank you, God.

But I am trusting you, O Lord, saying, “You are my God!” My future is in your hands. [Psalm 31:14-15a (NLT)]

 

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May 10, 2014

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Fear & Doubt, Fruit of the Spirit, Nature, Trusting God

Nothing to Fear

This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. [Joshua 1:9 (NLT)] 

As I started out for a walk the other evening, my neighbor stopped me. A bear had just been sighted at the end of our street, checking out the garbage cans and fishing in the canal. I did what any sensible person would and went back inside! God may tell us we have nothing to fear if we trust him, but he doesn’t tell us to be reckless or foolhardy.

If there are still things which we as sensible Christians should fear, what is it that we don’t need to fear? We never have to fear not being up to a task if it is task given to us by God. With God’s power, we never have to fear not being good enough, rich enough, smart enough, pretty enough, or worthy enough. We never have to fear being rejected or unloved. We are His and He loves us unconditionally. We never have to fear being abandoned or facing the unknown because we are never alone; He is always with us. We never have to fear being too weak because the Holy Spirit will give us the strength to withstand whatever Satan throws at us.

I don’t walk in dangerous neighborhoods or flash wads of money around in a crowd and I certainly don’t walk with bears. I do, however, walk with God and, because I walk with Him, I have nothing to fear.

For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. [2 Timothy 1:7 (NLT)]

 

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May 7, 2014

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Challenges & Difficulty, Fear & Doubt, Prayer, Trusting God

Trusting Him

For the Kingdom of God is not just a lot of talk; it is living by God’s power. [1 Corinthians 4:20 (NLT)]

Last week, I had a meltdown in the grocery store. I stood in an aisle and quietly cried. The tears had absolutely nothing to do with the frustration of not finding what I wanted in a strange store; they had everything to do with not trusting God. I’d made the mistake many of us Christians do of “talking the talk” but not “walking the walk.” I speak and write a great deal about trusting God but I’m nowhere near as good about giving up control and truly putting myself and those I care for into his loving hands!

Let me back up a bit. In the space of a few days, my husband went from the onset of symptoms to tests and diagnosis to a finding that surgery is necessary. Scheduled later today, the surgery is microscopic and the prognosis is excellent. Nevertheless, this puts a “monkey wrench” into our plans for the next month or so. As we left the doctor’s office last Thursday, we started planning and rescheduling and reorganizing our lives. We said all the right things about having faith and trusting God and even thanked Him for good medical care. But, I mistook acting calm and trusting for being calm and trusting. As I got busy rewriting our calendars and making new arrangements, I forgot the most important thing: prayer! Oh, I’d said my usual prayers and even added my husband to my prayer list but I hadn’t really talked with God about my fears and all of the “what ifs” that were racing around in the back of my mind. That’s what the tears were about in the middle of the store. I finally had to admit that while I could take charge of changing appointments on our calendar, I couldn’t take charge of my husband’s health and the future. I had to truly turn it all over to God and trust him fully with our tomorrows.

O Lord, thank you for the challenges of life and the lessons they bring. Forgive us when we act like we’re the ones in charge. We hand you all our worries and fears, trusting that you will enable us to handle whatever the future brings.

Perhaps what our Father would have us learn is that worry is not for Him to take away, but for us to give up. [From “Vital Signs” by Kathy Herman]

But I am trusting you, O Lord, saying, “You are my God!” My future is in your hands. [Psalm 31:14-15a (NLT)]

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April 12, 2014

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Bible Stories, Today: Make it Count, Trusting God

Here Today, Gone Tomorrow

Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will cause food to fall like rain from the sky for all of you. Every day the people must go out and gather what they need for that day. I want to see if the people will do what I teach them. … So the people of Israel did this; some people gathered much, and some gathered little. Then they measured it. The person who gathered more did not have too much, nor did the person who gathered less have too little. Each person gathered just as much as he needed. Moses said to them, “Don’t keep any of it to eat the next day.” But some of the people did not listen to Moses and kept part of it to eat the next morning. It became full of worms and began to stink, so Moses was angry with those people. [Exodus 16:4, 17-20 (NCV)]

Why did God insist that the Israelites couldn’t save any extra manna? Why couldn’t they stockpile some in case the manna didn’t appear the following day? Perhaps it was it because God wanted to teach them to depend only upon Him for each day’s sustenance and to trust that He would provide. God wanted them to understand that, if they consumed his provisions as he commanded, exactly the right amount would be provided when it was needed again.

God blesses us each day, not just with food but also with money, opportunities, talents and time. Do we ever hoard those blessings because we don’t trust God to continue his provision? Be careful; if we don’t use the gifts he gives us today we, like the Israelites, might find those blessings spoiled or gone tomorrow.

Father, help us trust in your daily provision for all of the blessings in our lives.

Give us the food we need for each day. [Matthew 6:11 (NCV)]

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March 30, 2014

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Challenges & Difficulty, Fear & Doubt, Trusting God, Wisdom & Guidance

He Bails Us Out

When people’s steps follow the Lord, God is pleased with their way. If they stumble, they will not fall, because the Lord holds their hand. [Psalm 37:23-24 (NCV)]

A few seconds into my ascent of a steep Mayan pyramid, I realized I was going to be in trouble. Foolishly (and out of pride), I barged ahead. I knew the scramble up the steep rocks wouldn’t be the hard part for me; it would be the trip back down. I’m fearful of heights and the descent necessitated facing outward and seeing the steepness and height! I easily made it to the peak. The magnificent view took my breath away, not because of its beauty, but because of my fear of the return trip. As I neared the edge to make my descent, I felt the panic begin. I had gotten myself into this predicament but how was I ever going to get out of it? “One step at a time,” was His answer. God held my hand as I slowly sidestepped down the huge blocks of stone. Whenever I paused to look up to see how far I’d come or down to see how far I had to go, I would panic again. The pyramid seemed to get bigger and steeper with every step; I felt like I wasn’t getting any closer to the bottom. “Just keep going, you’ll get there eventually,” were the reassuring words I heard. So, I prayed, trusted God and took it one step at a time. I was okay, not happy, but okay. In fact, in spite of my fear, I found myself encouraging other hesitant climbers.

In our lives, we often charge ahead, knowing full well that we’re likely to end up in trouble. Over and over again, Lord, you have to bail us out of difficult situations. Thank you for being there; forgive us our foolishness when we should know better! Give us sense enough to recognize the difference between expanding our horizons and being fool-hardy or downright stupid! Thank you for holding our hands and guiding us back to safety, one step at a time. When we feel we’re not progressing, thank you, Lord, for making your presence known and urging us on. As you reassure us, thank you, Lord, for enabling us to encourage others we meet along the way.

See, God has come to save me. I will trust in him and not be afraid. [Psalm 12:2 (NLT)]