There is evil in the world. This 14th anniversary of 9/11 is a testimony to this fact. Evil is the natural state of all humans. The streets of some major American cities appear no safer than the roads of Afghanistan. Evil, wicked actions are a part of life, whether we pass laws to the contrary or not. It is comforting to know that the control and power of God extends even to the actions of evil men. We know this from many places in Scripture, here are two verses that speak to this issue: As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as […]
Worry
52 posts
Stress leads to confusion. What happens next is what determines whether you know peace or experience more stress. Stress is a part of life. There is no way to avoid it. But what you can avoid is the pain and disorientation of continuing stress. In the midst of confusion you can either turn to God and his word or you can rely on your own judgement and watch the stress and confusion grow. Trust in God and his ways leads to peace. Like oil and water, trust and stress do not mix (See Matthew 6:19-34). When you attribute short, curt answers and a contentious spirit to stress, you are demonstrating that the stressful situation has overcome you. There is much […]
Young children sometimes know fear at night even if they are not sure what the darkness holds. Adults can also fear the darkness because they do know what may lay in wait. The answer for both is the wonder that is taught in Psalm 139. There is nowhere anyone can flee, physically or mentally, from the presence of God. God is there and he holds us securely in his right hand. This blessed reality makes even the darkness full of the light of our Savior. Live it before your children. Live life in the light of your Savior. He is always there! Psalm 139:7-12 Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If […]
Worry or Wait What is the opposite of worry? Simply answering not to worry is empty. People tend to worry about what is uncertain. But being certain about what will come is also not helpful. Because once we figure out what will happen then we worry about that. The opposite of worry is waiting. If you learn anything in the Bible it is that tomorrow is uncertain. No one knows what tomorrow will bring in terms of events and circumstances. But what God’s people do know is that God will be faithful to do what he has planned promised. So while I do not know the particulars about tomorrow, I can wait in eager expectation that God will be faithful […]
When God made you a new creature in Christ, He also designed you to be a creature fueled by thanksgiving. Only a Christian has the ability to express thankfulness from an eternal perspective. Gratitude for someone who does not know Christ is limited to the here and now. Anyone can be thankful for temporal things, but eternal gratitude is for those whom God has made to be his people. When you lack thanksgiving you are being contrary to the person God has made you to be. The things of this earth have become more important than the gift of eternity that has been given to you in Christ. From the visible signs of the rainbow and the communion table to […]
Whether you are a toddler, middle schooler, teenager or an adult you know what it means to be afraid. Fear is one of the consequences of the fall. Thus, the question is not if your children will fear, but what do they fear. If you don’t know what fears your children have, you won’t be able to adequately address the concerns of their hearts. This requires that you have an intimate understanding of the way your child views his world. It doesn’t matter how old your children are. They all have fears that must be understood. Psalm 62 says this: Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he […]
God calls you to trust his wisdom and not your own. Anxiety leads to confusion. Trust in God and his ways leads to peace. Like oil and water, trust and anxiety do not mix. There is much in life that can be overwhelming. But God remains in control of his world. As Philippians 4 warns, anxiety will separate you from knowing the peace of God. Our bodies don’t do well with self trust. (See Proverbs 3:7&8) Trusting God and purposely loving him in all that you do brings health to your soul and stability to your walk. Trusting your own understanding leads to a troubled spirit and to a lack of stability. If your mind is centered more on […]
Life is often like a pressure cooker. If you put tight schedules, time deadlines, interruptions, your own mistakes, and troubled relationships into a pot, put a lid on it and turn up the heat of daily life, you will have your own personalized pressure cooker. Inside this pressure cooker God seems distant. You find yourself saying things like,“I know God loves me, but that doesn’t seem to help right now.” Pressure leads to a disconnect with the problems that others face, even in your own family. Pressure wrongly places the focus on circumstances. Here are three promises from God that help put pressure into a biblical perspective: First, God is committed to discipline you to be more and more like […]
There are lessons from childhood that adults are often too proud learn. But King David was able to learn contentment from a young child at rest with his mother. When we are consumed with taking care of ourselves, we have taken on a responsibility that is too great for us. As a result the most important part of life, our relationship with God. is pushed to the side while we determine our how to cope with our problems. However, in Matthew 6 Jesus says to seek first the Kingdom of God. God will take care of the other stuff. David understood this. In Psalm 131 he contemplated a little child with his mother. Specifically, a weaned child […]
Your children were born to worry, just like you. If you allow the issues of each day to dominate your life the result will be worry. Believing you alone have to care for your needs each day leads to worry. This means you will model worry for your children. Defensively, you and I might respond like this, “oh, I am not an obsessive worrier. I don’t worry about dirty doorknobs. But I am concerned about the things that are really important, like our meals and other basic important things.” Nice try, but this can still be worry. If Jesus instructed you to ask God for your daily bread, then you can trust God to provide. By reading the verses […]