Have you ever been at a point in your life when you’ve felt like you’ve had too much weight to carry on your shoulders? As Christians, it’s important to remember that we can cast our cares upon Jesus. God has equipped us with the tools that we need in order to overcome the barriers we face. Today’s blog entry deals with our response to challenging times/situations.
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” – John 14:27
When we’re dealing with difficult situations, one of the first human instincts that may come to mind is panic/worry. However, the scripture above lets us know that we should not allow our hearts to be troubled. In my Christian walk, I haven’t always done the best job of this. There have been times when I allowed my mood to be dominated by temporary circumstances, instead of standing on what the Word of God said. As I’ve continued to grow in the Lord, I’ve gotten a better understanding of what it means to have faith in God even when the natural circumstances may seem to indicate that there’s a problem. This isn’t to say that I ignore what’s happening, but rather that I apply God’s Word to the situation, and respond the way that He says I should (I still have a lot to learn, but my goal is to constantly progress in this area).
For example, say there’s a situation at a pool where a person is in danger of drowning, so people at the pool go and alert the lifeguard on duty. If the lifeguard on duty starts running around in circles frantically yelling “OH NO WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO”!!! That’s not going to help the situation; it would probably cause the other people to be even more worked up. However, if the lifeguard was informed of the person in danger of drowning, and yet just sat there and did nothing, but stated “O everything will be fine, I’m a lifeguard I’ve been trained to save lives.”…that would not help the situation either. The lifeguard would need to both use the training, and keep their composure as they came to the rescue of the person.
I use this analogy because it is possible to fall into one of those categories throughout our Christian walk. Sometimes people may try to ignore a certain issue that God has trained and equipped them to deal with. Or sometimes people may totally overreact to a situation that God has trained and equipped them to deal with. In last week’s blog entry I dealt with our thoughts and the way they can be influenced. The way we think, and the perspective we have on things can play a major role in our faith and the way we react in various situations.
No matter how bad a situation gets, born again believers can take comfort in the fact the God is protecting and watching out for us. When we rejoice and praise God, it can help us shift our focus from the challenges we’re facing, to the One that is much bigger than any challenge we’re facing.
“But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.” Psalm 5:11
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” – John 14:27
When we’re dealing with difficult situations, one of the first human instincts that may come to mind is panic/worry. However, the scripture above lets us know that we should not allow our hearts to be troubled. In my Christian walk, I haven’t always done the best job of this. There have been times when I allowed my mood to be dominated by temporary circumstances, instead of standing on what the Word of God said. As I’ve continued to grow in the Lord, I’ve gotten a better understanding of what it means to have faith in God even when the natural circumstances may seem to indicate that there’s a problem. This isn’t to say that I ignore what’s happening, but rather that I apply God’s Word to the situation, and respond the way that He says I should (I still have a lot to learn, but my goal is to constantly progress in this area).
For example, say there’s a situation at a pool where a person is in danger of drowning, so people at the pool go and alert the lifeguard on duty. If the lifeguard on duty starts running around in circles frantically yelling “OH NO WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO”!!! That’s not going to help the situation; it would probably cause the other people to be even more worked up. However, if the lifeguard was informed of the person in danger of drowning, and yet just sat there and did nothing, but stated “O everything will be fine, I’m a lifeguard I’ve been trained to save lives.”…that would not help the situation either. The lifeguard would need to both use the training, and keep their composure as they came to the rescue of the person.
I use this analogy because it is possible to fall into one of those categories throughout our Christian walk. Sometimes people may try to ignore a certain issue that God has trained and equipped them to deal with. Or sometimes people may totally overreact to a situation that God has trained and equipped them to deal with. In last week’s blog entry I dealt with our thoughts and the way they can be influenced. The way we think, and the perspective we have on things can play a major role in our faith and the way we react in various situations.
No matter how bad a situation gets, born again believers can take comfort in the fact the God is protecting and watching out for us. When we rejoice and praise God, it can help us shift our focus from the challenges we’re facing, to the One that is much bigger than any challenge we’re facing.
“But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.” Psalm 5:11