Season’s Greetings My Chickadees;
When things happen that are out of our control, it is human to feel fear; but God does not want us to have a spirit of fear. A spirit of fear is when fear becomes a part of our everyday experience. It is overwhelming, controlling, and if we allow it, it will rob us of the joy God desires us to have. So much of our Christian walk and maintaining our peace in the midst of storms in our lives, depends upon our ability to take God at His word and trust that He is faithful to His promises, even when we can’t see the outcome. This is called walking by faith, and faith would not be faith if we could see it.
In these apparent last days, when it seems like there is more bad news than good, we can be tempted to allow what we hear and see to dictate what we think and do; but as believers, we have an Ace in the hole I’d like to call, ‘The God Factor.’ The God Factor says, because I am in you and with you, I will see you through. Just cast your cares upon me because I care for you (1Peter 5:7). As liberating as that is, we must remember this invitation from God, and take the steps to call upon the one who is All Powerful and has the final say. The God Factor says, Yes, I know the doctor’s report sounds gloomy, and your spouse says ‘I’m leaving,’ and your children appear not to listen to anything you say; but I’ve got you. Remember He told us, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, BUT God will deliver us out of all of them” (Psalm 34:19).
Our task is to follow the detailed instructions laid out in Matthew 7:7 which says, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.” It requires action on our part to ask, seek, and knock. I love the word ‘will’ in the Bible because God has to do what He says He will do; the only problem for us is, that ‘will’ may not come exactly the way we thought, or in the time we thought; but in the words of our ancestors ‘He’s always on time.’ We see things in this moment in time, but God sees into eternity and knows what’s best for us, because He’s gone ahead and checked out the situation. He wants us to believe Him when He says, “I’m working it out for your good and my glory” (Romans 8:28).
In the midst of trials, hurts, loss, disappointments, and anything else that tries to steal our joy and hijack our peace, we have to stand firm on our faith and take courage as we trust that God will do just what He said He would do. If He said, ‘even though your father and mother may forget you, I will not forget you’ (Isaiah 49:15), our task is to, along with taking courage, take Him at His word and believe what He said.
Holidays can be a tough time when you’re being slammed by trials and situations that tempt you to doubt what you don’t see. When you find yourself emotionally drained and spiritually depleted, before you give up, look up! Look to the hills from which your spiritual help comes (Psalm 121:1–2), and reach out to the army of other believers who stand ready to come to your aid simply because we are brothers and sisters in Christ.
Things going well for you? Praise God! But even if they’re not, Praise Him anyway! Praise Him in the press while being pressed. Praise Him because you can. Praise Him because you have the mind to praise Him. Praise Him for His promises, which allow us to have hope; and that hope will not fail us if we believe; and above all of this, Praise Him simply because…..He’s worthy!
I opened this blog with a question, “Is there anything too hard for God?” which was borrowed from Jeremiah 32:27, when Jeremiah stood at the precipice of what happened to Israel because of Israel’s sin, and God’s promise to restore them and make them a great and prosperous nation. Jeremiah stood firm in what God said would happen, even though he could not see it at the time and Israel was still in captivity. He risked not being believed but he chose to stand firm on the promises of God’s word because God said it. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever; and if He did it for them, He’ll do it for us too; if for no other reason than He said He would.
If this holiday season is not what you hoped, remember ‘The God Factor’ and the fact that, “There is nothing too hard for God.”
Happy New Year My Chickadees and Peace and Blessings to you and your Family,
Gail
P.S. “Good Morning My Chickadees” IS AVAILABLE!!! Check out my website:
www.Inspirationsbygail.com. These morning messages will make a wonderful Christmas gift for your friends and loved ones, and is a gift that keeps on giving throughout the year.