What Trips A Christian Up?

In Mark 4:14-20, Jesus likened the good news of salvation to seeds planted by a farmer.

"The farmer plants seed by taking God's word to others.
The seed that fell on the footpath represents those who hear the message, only to have Satan come at once and take it away.

The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy.
But since they don't have deep roots, they don't last long. They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God's word.

The seed that fell among the thorns represents others who hear God's word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced.

And the seed that fell on good soil represents those who hear and accept God's word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted!"

I wanted to write about the things that can keep us from God so we can be aware of them when they happen:

1. Problems/Troubles.

2. Persecution.

3. Worries.

4. Lure of money.

5. Desires for other things.

Everyone in the world is tempted by these things. When we are going through hard times, we wonder what God is up to and why we have to suffer. Why does he let these things happen to us? 

When we are worried about paying the rent or buying food, we can be tempted to get mad at God for allowing such a thing to happen to us. 

When we see other people with good jobs, nice cars and beautiful homes we wonder why we can't have those things. What have we done to deserve poverty?

We are all tempted to love other things more than God. We may love something innocent, like playing baseball. But if we give most of our attention to baseball or shopping or work, then we are worshiping it. We have made it our idol. If something fills our thoughts all day or as soon as we are off work, then it could possibly be an idol we put above God.

I must admit my own failures. I have failed the most in going through troubles. I have been angry and rebellious towards God many, many times. I didn't see why anyone, especially my daughters or me should have to suffer so much. But God never gave up on me. He moved on my heart to study this problem in the Bible and other Christian writers. I finally realized I was not understanding God or suffering. 

Desires for other things has sometimes tripped me up. I think I have desired for too much in this life instead of being completely content with my life. I am coming to terms with these desires through Jesus' strength and wisdom.

What all these sins represent is not trusting God. We don't trust he has enough comfort for us. We don't trust he will help us when we need money. We don't trust that we will be happy with a simple life. We think he is a spoil-sport. But he is far from that. What we don't see is that he will comfort us in every trouble and help us in all our ways. They may not be the ways we think we want, but when we look back over the years of our lives we will see that if we had seen as He sees, we would have chosen the same path he chose for us.

Lord, I'm Having Trouble...

Lord, I'm having trouble feeling close to you lately. Of course, there has been all the commotion with people visiting the last week. Also, I know I can't rely on my feelings.

I want to think of you and smile instead of being worried I'm not praying well or doing something wrong. I pray I'll feel relaxed and happy in our relationship.

I'm so looking forward to seeing you face to face one day and holding your hand.

Life is difficult, but life was difficult for you too. You were wanting your task to be over so you could go back home. I feel the same.

I look at the world and see the terrible evil of ISIS, racism, human trafficking, drug lords and all the rest and think of you seeing it in detail every day.

Life looks so overwhelmingly sad to me. Yet you have told me that life is beautiful. I pray I will look on life that way.

There is beauty in a baby's smile and a parent's love. There is beauty in kindness, giving, sharing and loving. There is beauty in a sunset, a mountain or an ocean. There is beauty everywhere. The Bible says the earth is filled with your glory and I see that.

Turn my face towards your face. Let me always see beauty in the life you have given me and the life you have given the world.

What, Me Worry?

There is a lot of talk today on how evil and frightening the world is becoming. Wars of all kinds, terrorism and natural disasters fill the headlines. It is natural to be concerned, but I was reading Psalm 36 this morning and God's words tell us what to do when we feel this way.

Do not fret because of those who are evil

or be envious of those who do wrong;

for like the grass they will soon wither,

like green plants they will soon die away.

Trust in the Lord and do good;

dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

Take delight in the Lord,

and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the Lord;

trust in him and he will do this:

He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,

your vindication like the noonday sun.

Be still before the Lord

and wait patiently for him;

do not fret when people succeed in their ways,

when they carry out their wicked schemes.

Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;

do not fret—it leads only to evil.

For those who are evil will be destroyed,

but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land.

Psalm 36

Instead of looking at what evil there is in the world, let us look up to God for strength, help and hope.

One Day at A Time.

A Day at A Time. 

(abridged)

by Arch Alexander

"...as your days, so shall your strength be."  Duteronomy 33:25

This is a great and glorious promise. And just a couple of verses further on, "The eternal God is your refuge and underneath are the everlasting arms."  verse 27

Notice how the promise runs. Not as your life is, not as your years are, not even as your weeks are, but as your days, so shall your strength be. For each day as it comes. God's promise is that strength will be given you, but just for a day at a time. Leave tomorrow with God, my brother, until it comes. That is what the word of God lays upon you as a duty. Live this day at your best and bravest, trusting that God's help will not fail you. And for the duties and trials of tomorrow, however hard and heavy, believe that strength for that day also will be given you.

You cannot have failed to observe what an important place this way of life had in the teaching of Jesus Christ. He was always trying to get men to trust the coming days to God, and to live fully, worthily and nobly today. He was dead against the practice of adding to the burdens of today fears and forebodings of tomorrow. It is in love to us, in his desire to save us unnecessary pain, that he bids us remember that, "...do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34

The habit of living ahead, as so many of us do, prevents us from getting the full taste and flavor of the happiness and blessing that is ours today. Leave all your tomorrows with God - it is what he wants you to do - and humbly and gratefully take from his hand his gift of today and the strength that comes with it. 

Psalm 37:5-8 - Our attitude.

Psalm 37 - What it means to me.

"Commit your way to the Lord;

trust in him and he will do this:

He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,

your vindication like the noonday sun.

Be still before the Lord

and wait patiently for him

Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;

do not fret—it leads only to evil."  Psalm 37: 5-8

Commit, trust, be still, wait patiently, refrain from anger, do not fret... This should be our attitude when we bring something to God. Perhaps something in life is bothering us a great deal. Someone may be harassing or harming us. Maybe it seems like the world around us is full of evil. 

But God does not want us to be filled with negative thoughts. We can look up towards God and leave things with him. We can give our thoughts and feelings to him and ask for help to think in the right way. 

Psalm37 - Don't Sweat It.

Psalm 37 - What it means to me.

"Do not fret because of those who are evil

or be envious of those who do wrong;

for like the grass they will soon wither,

like green plants they will soon die away."  Verses 1,2

We see evil rulers all over our world who do evil deeds continually. They usually have billions of dollars while their people are in deep poverty. God tells us not to fret because of these people. Their life is like a house plant in my home - it soon withers away! This life is all they have and also they will be punished for the harm they caused others. They will not burn in hell forever and ever, as some people say. But they will receive the same punishment that they gave to others.

"The day of the LORD is near for all nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your own head." Obadiah 1:15

After fretting, God tells us not to envy those who do wrong. Why would we do this? I think we would envy the money, power and freedom these people seem to have. We look at a billionaire and think, "Oh, how I wish I could have a mansion and a yacht. It would be wonderful to never worry about money again." I don't think we know how fortunate we are not to be rich. For Jesus said, "How hard it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." Luke 18:24

"Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."  Hebrews s13:5

Psalm 27:1 Fear - What to do About It.

Psalm 27:1 - What it means to me.

The Lord is my light and my salvation—

whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life—

of whom shall I be afraid?

This is verse one, and one of my favorite verses in the Bible. I wish I could say I am not afraid, but unfortunately, I am terrified of life and what may happen next. When your family has years of troubles and then the terrible sadness of losing a young person, my grandson, you get to thinking, "I'm afraid of the future. What will happen? Can I cope with more sorrow?"

But then I read a verse like this and know I should not be afraid. Jesus constantly told people not to fear. He knows our hearts are fearful so I suppose that is why there are so many verses in different parts of the Bible telling us not to fear.

Jesus said it best when he taught, "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34

This verse comes into my mind almost every day because worrying is my biggest problem and actually is the opposite of faith. I fear future pain and don't trust God to see me through it. That is what I am tempted to think. But God did a miraculous job of seeing me through my grandson's death. Of course it was painful, and of course I think of Craig a lot, but God has put a halo of light and love around his death. I believe God doesn't take anyone young unless he has a very good reason. I believe I will see my grandson again. I believe God knows what he is doing for me and my whole family. 

Because of all this, it is foolish for me to fear the future. By the grace of God I will continue to live one day at a time and as soon as I fear, I will give this fear to Him. He has broad shoulders and can carry my troubles.

We All Belong to God.

 "The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him." Psalm 24:1


I read this verse yesterday morning after praying for my daughter who was having some trouble. I believe the Lord was telling me my daughter belonged to Him. Her life was in his hands and I was not to worry.

I take seriously this verse: "Do not be worried about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
 Philippians 4:6

My mind runs to worry as a river runs to the sea. I'm disciplining my mind to take every single worry to God and Scripture doesn't lie; He gives me the peace that passes my understanding. I just want to thank and praise him for that today.

Jesus' Talks About Worry.

"For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? "Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?

Photo by Diego Delso

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Petirrojo_europeo_(Erithacus_rubecula),_Tierpark_Hellabrunn,_M%C3%BAnich,_Alemania,_2012-06-17,_DD_02.JPG

"And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? "And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. 

Photo by Jebulon

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Field_flowers_Dordogne.jpg

"Do not worry then, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear for clothing?These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs.' "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Worry

I paraphrased Matthew 6:25-34

Do not be worried about your life as to food, drink and clothing. Life is more than that!
Look at the birds of the air. God feeds them. You are worth much more than the birds.

Worry cannot add a single hour to your life.
Are you worried about clothes? Look at the beautiful flowers. God clothes them, he will clothe you also.

Have faith!

God knows you need all these things, so don't worry about tomorrow. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Don't Worry, Be Happy.

Sermon on the Mount Cont...

After talking about not loving money Jesus said, "Therefore I tell you not to worry about your life, whether you have enough food, drink or clothing. Isn't life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don't plant, harvest or store food in barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren't you far more valuable to him then they are?"

"Can all your worries add a single hour to your life?"

"And why worry about clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don't work or make their clothing. Yet not even Solomon, in all his glory, was dressed as beautifully. If that is how God clothes the grass, which is here one day and gone another, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?"
Matthew 6:25-30

I used to worry about everything. I have slowly learned from God not to worry about anything. I am still learning. When a worry comes into my head, I remember these verses and stop worrying. This has made my life much more peaceful and happy. 

Do Not Fret

I found this quote in my drawer, I don't remember where I found it.


"Do not fret - it only causes harm." Psalm 37:8

Fretting means getting ourselves "out of joint" mentally or spiritually. It is one thing to say, "Do not fret," but something very different to have such a nature that you find yourself unable to fret. It's easy to say, "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him," until our own little world is turned upside down and we are forced to to live in confusion and agony like so many other people. Is it possible to "rest in the Lord" then? If this "Do not" doesn't work there, then it will not work anywhere. This "Do not" must work during our days of difficulty and uncertainty, as well as our peaceful days, or it will never work. And if it will not work in your particular case, it will not work for anyone else. Resting in the Lord is not dependent on your external circumstances at all, but on your relationship with God Himself.


Worrying always results in sin. We tend to think that a little anxiety and worry are simply and indication of how wise we really are, yet it is actually a much better indication of just how wicked we are. Fretting rises from our determination to have our own way. Our Lord never worried and was never anxious, because his purpose was never to accomplish his own plans but to fulfill God's plans.

Don't Worry

Phillipians 4:6-7

Don't worry about anything, but in everything by prayer, and asking with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.