Be Still And Know That I Am God

It's so hard when pain, doubt and fear grip you.  You feel emotionally paralyzed.  Right now, it's even hard to write this.

Paul was inflicted with a physical ailment, and I think he was in prison too, when he wrote "Three times I prayed to the Lord about this and asked Him to take it away.  But His answer was, 'My grace is all you need, for My power is strongest when you are weak.'  I am most happy, then, to be proud of my weaknesses, in order to feel the protection of Christ's power over me.  I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and difficulties for Christ's sake.  For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2 Corinthians 12:8-10 GNT)

Let's look at this.  "My power is strongest when you are weak."    

I also read, "And so, consider this from generation to generation, that none who hope in Him shall fail in strength."  (1 Maccabees 2:61 NAB)

"But Judas said: 'It is easy for many to be overcome by a few; in the sight of Heaven there is no difference between deliverance by many or by few; for victory in war does not depend upon the size of the army, but on strength that comes from Heaven'." (1 Maccabees 3:18-19 NAB)

"Be still and know that I am God."  (Psalm 46:10)  My Good News Translation has it "Stop fighting and know that I am God."  Either way, being still can infer not to fight with oneself.

I am making it a practice to think on this all day.  To be still and KNOW that He is God (the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit).  

To KNOW that God is sovereign over everything. 

 To KNOW that God is, thus, sovereign over my life and my circumstances.  

To KNOW that nothing is stronger than God. 

To feel "Christ's power over me".    Jesus is with me.  He is in control.  If I give my life over to Him to take charge of it, He will.  And there is nothing He cannot do.

Victory in Jesus Christ!

"Victory, victory, victory in Jesus!  Sing His overcoming blood, sing the grace that frees us."  (Victory In Jesus by Eliza E. Hewitt)

This is how it began one day in another devotional book of mine, He Fights For You, by Max Lucado and Andrea Lucado.

The prayer for that day says, "....The battles I face are Yours.  The victory is already won. You are with me. You fight for me. You save me, and because of this, I do not have to fear. In Christ I pray, amen."

You may know already that when Jesus died on the cross, the last words He spoke were "It is finished." (John 19:30 any version)

Study of Scripture tells us that He was indicating that He had completely and successfully paid for all of our sins.  He had no sin.  It was our sins He paid the price for, because we cannot fully pay for all of our sins against God.  He is All Perfect.  Try being all perfect for the All Perfect!  Our victory over death is freely given to us as a gift from Jesus Christ who suffered inhumane torture and died for us.

We know what this means then for our Eternal Life. But what does it mean, I think, for our very lives we live now?   That Jesus has victory over our lives and anything we give to Him.  Any trouble, any problem, any challenge too great for us to handle. Whatever we give Him (I give Him everything - even what to eat for lunch), He has already won the victory over.

"The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." (Deuteronomy 31:8)

So I prayed this prayer, "May God shine His Glory upon my life!"   Repeat after me, "God will shine His Glory upon my life!"  That's what you say to anyone who discourages you.  

"God is shining His Glory upon my life."

And I'm already receiving His Blessings!  Thank you, Jesus!  Thank you, God.  I admire the woman in the movie War Room who always prayed with such conviction, as she teaches the younger woman to do. Watch the power in a prayer of conviction:

The Unforgiveable Sin

I just want to quickly share this blog I found about the unforgiveable sin, which I myself had worried about committing for anyone else who may have wondered about it.  In short, if you're worried about it, it's a good indication you haven't committed it.

https://www.biblegateway.com/blog/2012/10/what-is-the-unforgivable-sin/


Also want to share this great resource of devotional to receive by email.  I signed up for two.
https://www.biblegateway.com/newsletters/


I'm also going to look more into Lee Strobel's newsletter.  He is amazing!  A Chicago newspaper journalist who sought to disprove the existence of God by interviewing scientists - became the biggest believer ever!  His books and films give such great insight and deep thinking perceptions of Scripture I ever found.   Watch the film "The Case for the Creator" and  "The Case for Christ"!  Wow! An investigative look at why They do exist from a scientific pursuit.
Here is his website: http://leestrobel.com/

Tomorrow!  VICTORY THROUGH CHRIST!   "May God shine His glory on my life"!

Between A Rock and Hard Place

It's like being stuck between a rock and hard place: when you know you need to move forward but you want to move back. When it hurts to go forward but it hurts to go backward, you don't want to move. When you don't know what to do, you feel frozen in place.

For today,  Feb. 3, Jesus Calling by Sarah Young begins with "I AM WITH YOU AND FOR YOU (ref. Romans 8:31 GNT) "If God is for us, who can be against us?").  This is a very powerful statement!  I'm about to whiz on but I need to really stop and ponder this!

"IF GOD IS FOR US, WHO CAN BE AGAINST US?" (Romans 8:31 GNT)  What, then, is there to fear?

She goes to write, as Jesus' point of view, that feeling anxious and alone means we're focusing on the world and our circumstances and "leaving ME out of the picture".  Advising "Fix your eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen."  (ref. 2 Corinthians 4:18)

Couple this with Feb. 3, 2016 in the Anchor Devotional (Haven Today),  in which Dan McKee writes, "On my own, I get tangled up in the dangers that could easily have been avoided had I been holding tightly to His hand. I often find myself asking God to help me see.  But I need to trust that He can see just fine and will lead me through."

Poor Nigel.  Forgive the image from the news but it fully depicts what I feel I'm doing!  Forgive me, Jesus.  Make me turn around and see You!

Featured help: Haven Ministries: Hope through Shelter, Clothing & Food

Step By Step With Jesus

I am off on a rough road in my move back home with no money, a nice debt and no job, in an unfamiliar area but with help from family and with the Grace of God. What is keeping me going is His Grace.  Everything I'm reading is telling me to stay with Jesus, taking one step at a time.

Sarah Young in Jesus Calling (February 1) starts with "FOLLOW ME ONE STEP AT A TIME" and explains:

"You see huge mountains looming, and you start wondering how you're going to scale those heights...But you don't know what will happen today, much less tomorrow.  Our path may take an abrupt turn, leading you away from those mountains.  There may be an easier way up the mountains than is visible from this distance."

Haven Ministries' Anchor Devotional for Feb. 1, 2016 says "...the key to breaking the power of sin in our lives is not found in the abundance of our efforts, but in walking constantly alongside Him in the abundance of His Grace. When I walk in step with God, I find His yoke is easy and His burden is light (Matthew 11:30).  And when I wander away, He pursues me and welcomes me back to walk with Him once more."

What a great image that fills me with comfort and strength to take on today!  Thank you, Jesus, for patiently walking alongside me.   When I can, I sing the song "You're Grace Is Enough"  (featured below) to remind me Jesus' Grace is enough!