Just Passin’ Through

Isaiah 43: 2

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched.

There are two messages (at least) in this passage. First, when you are going through rough times, make sure you go through. Don’t pitch a tent and stay there. I have seen people who become so enamored with having problems that they camp out in them. They never seem to move out of the valley of the shadow of death. Instead, they apply for a permanent address. Don’t fall in love with your problems or with the attention you receive from having trouble. Go through. Keep moving.

Secondly, God will be with you so that the troubles do not overcome you. We are overcomers in Christ Jesus, so we are not meant to live under the torment of problems. Jesus will bring you right on through so that not even the stench of the fire will be on your clothing. Put your eyes on Him instead of on the trouble. Don’t let the problem dictate your life when Jesus is your Lord. Stay focused on His victory rather than your problem. Why raise the problem over the glory of the Lord? Why put it on the highest pinnacle? Make those problems bow their knee to Jesus and claim Jesus’ victory as superior to any and all problems.

Life will deal out problems every now and again, but you are not meant to be the slave of them. You were not destined to serve the problem nor grovel under its power. Those problems are to get under your feet. You are in Jesus, and He has already overcome the world and all of its torment. Be, therefore, no longer a victim but rather a victor in Jesus.

The Day of Trouble

Psalm 20: 1

May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble!

I have noticed two distinct ways people deal with their day of trouble. First there are those people who immediately get prayerful. Even if their prayer life has not been what they intend for it to be, when the pressure comes on, they find the time to dive into the Word of God and time to pray.

The other group of people behaves like turtles. When danger appears, they immediately tuck their heads into their shells and hide. And they do not come out of that shell until the danger has passed. I want you to know that it is hard for the Lord to answer you in your day of trouble if you have not first called Him.

God is a compassionate God, and he waits to have compassion on you. What happens is that the devil forms some kind of attack, and you go into hiding. From there you can easily be deceived and isolated. You don’t reach out to your Christian friends, your pastor or even God. It is very easy then for you to be blown around from one idea to the next. You need the Word of God to secure you. You need good solid Bible teaching. And you need fellowship with mature Christians. Without these it is often the case that these people find themselves depressed and cut off. Before long they are following some wrong doctrine. And when they realize that they are not really listening to God and obeying him, they isolate themselves further. They become concerned that a discerning person will be able to see that they are in disobedience.

God is an understanding God. He will show you love and affection even when you are off track or defeated. Also, He has appointed people in the body of Christ to support you and pray for you. He has appointed teachers who can point you in the right direction. Don’t let yourself become so overwhelmed that you start closing off the avenues through which God can minister to you. Do not become a turtle. You are going to get nowhere as a turtle. Let God help you. Let Him answer you. Pray to Him asking for His help and then let Him help you. And don’t be afraid if He uses another person to help you. Fear is meant to stop you. Don’t let it.

Trouble Trap

Proverb 21: 23         God’s Word

Whoever guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble.

What do we need to say about this verse? Most of us, when we think back on occasions where we have gotten ourselves in trouble, will acknowledge that it usually was from something we said. We are more likely to offend someone by what we say than any other way.

I think the secret to guarding one’s mouth is in getting some help. Psalm 141: 3 is just such an entreaty, “Set a guard, Lord, over my mouth; Keep watch over the door of my lips.” In my case, it takes the power of the Almighty to keep my mouth out of trouble and even then, it can still be a challenge, but this is a worthy subject for prayer. If we don’t actively set that guard over our mouths and tongues, we are sure to stumble into trouble.

Safe Passage

Psalm 138: 7

Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me; You will reach out with Your hand . . . and Your right hand will save me.

This reminds me of the Twenty-third Psalm. Even as we find ourselves surrounded by trouble, we can rest in confidence knowing the Father’s hand is nearby. As I ponder this verse, I also find myself thinking of Isaiah 30: 21, “Your ears will hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” whenever you turn to the right or to the left.” One of the ways the Lord saves us is by speaking to us and warning us from paths of danger. During the bombing of the train in England and the 9/11 bombings in the US, multiple reports emerged from people saying they just had a feeling to get off a stop earlier than normal or not to go to work that day. Our Father guides in the way to go, steering us from trouble.

Sometimes, though, it is hard to get out of the path of danger, as has been the case for the last twelve months. Still, your Father is there with you to guide and protect you. He may give you instructions or ideas that keep you safe. It is imperative that we continue to grow in our ability to hear His voice because one thing is sure, there will always be trouble. Jesus said so. In these days it seems the trouble is increasing exponentially so we need Him close, more now than ever before.

He has not abandoned His people. Even as we look back over the last twelve months and the horrible suffering and loss, we can know that our Father was with us. He is with us now and that confidence in His attendance helps guide us deeper into His presence. As we continue to passionately seek Him, we will get better and better at hearing His voice and recognizing His touch.

We certainly need Him walking alongside us day by day and, fortunately, He has promised to do just that. You have His word that He will save you in the midst trouble. It is a promise upon which you can rely. Never tempt the Lord your God by putting yourself in harm’s way. Do not fail to listen to His wisdom for you. It might mean walking home by a different route or any number of seemingly small details, but His hand is there to guide and save you. Bless His name for His good promises and mighty hand.

Shield of Faith

Psalm 3: 3 – 4

But You, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the One who lifts my head. I was crying to the Lord with my voice, and He answered me from His holy mountain. Selah.

In verses one and two David decries the number and aggressiveness of his enemies. This psalm was written when David’s son was chasing him. How forlorn David must have been. His own son had turned against him in a grab for power. Though David spent the first two verses lamenting his dire situation, by verse three his spirit arose to declare the goodness and faithfulness of God.

He recognized Yahweh as a shield which surrounded him, guarding him from the menace of his many enemies. Though he must have gone around for some time with his head hanging low, God embraced him and held his head high. There is no shame because our God is our Father. He causes us to hold up our head when others would be bowed low.

The Passion translation of verse 4 is beautiful, “I have cried out to you, Yahweh, from your holy presence. You send me a Father’s help. Pause in his presence.” This is a good place to pause and consider. David had real trouble, real enemies. His problems eclipse most of ours. At least most of us don’t have people pursuing us to kill us. Despite his troubles, and in the very depth of them, he recognized the voice and hand of a loving Father. My point is that if David can receive the love of God in the midst of his dangerous circumstances, then we can too.

David triumphed over his enemies time and time again because he recognized that God was his hero. He trusted in God as his shield and that brought him the victory. Though he may have spent a little time mourning his situation, he never remained in that pitiful state. He would always put his mouth to work declaring God’s goodness. In the end, it was his belief in God’s faithfulness that delivered him. It will work for us too.

Gospel Boots

Romans 8:37           (NIV)

In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

In 2002, I went through a terrible time. It was months’ and months’ worth of crazy challenges. Just one of the situations I had to deal with was three car accidents in as many weeks. Then there were the big national banks whose checks to the Law Firm bounced. It went on and on like this, one thing after another. Then my pastor reminded me of Isaiah 54: 17 which reads, “No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper.”

That was the beginning of my breakthrough. I needed to be reminded that Jesus had made a way for me to overcome this turmoil. I began to recall the Word to my mind and mouth. It was if a ray of light broke through the darkness and all I had to do was follow it. Then I was able to open wide the crack through which that light shown and my life resurrected out of the chaos.

Now don’t get me wrong. I am not saying that I saved me but in remembering what Jesus had already done for me I was able to stand against the storms that were battering my life. I didn’t have to stand there and get battered by the storms, I had the rock and as soon as I began standing on the rock again, those storms had nothing for me and they went away. It is just as amazing and exciting looking back on it as it was then. I took quite a beating until I realized that my Father and my Jesus were well able to protect me and to defeat every weapon the enemy sent against me. I don’t know, but it seems like the devil just realized he couldn’t get at me any longer so, as he did Jesus, he left me for a more opportune time (Luke 4: 13). I am not saying I am bullet proof, I just have a clearer understanding of Jesus’ victory in my life and that I don’t have to tolerate the devil’s shenanigans. Now it is a matter of applying what I have learned.

It is a difficult paradigm to grasp in its fullness. There is a balance which must be struck between understanding that Jesus has already defeated the devil and knowing what we must do in order to live in that victory. It almost seems like it should be one or the other. If Jesus beat the devil, why do we have to fight at all? Here is an illustration that may help.

If you sue someone and win your case the Judge will enter a judgment in your favor. That judgment represents the victory. However, until the order is executed, it makes no practical impact. You have a judgment in your favor the minute the judge rules but the effect of it is not immediate. It will be of little or no value if not executed. This is the way it is with Jesus’ victory. You already have a judgment against the devil. You have an order entered in your favor against every one of his tricks, attacks or fiery missiles. However, if you do not enforce, or ask the authorities to enforce, your rights under the order then there is little practical effect.

We have the victory. Jesus already won it for us but we must hold that order up in the devil’s face and refuse him access to our lives. We have the choice whether to enforce the judgment or not. If we do not, the devil will run all over us. This is why knowing the truth is so important. Once you know that he does not have any legal authority over you, then you can push back and resist him. When you resist, he will flee as he did with Jesus and as he did even with me. You have to know your authority though. When you do, you are the overcomer Jesus gave you the right to be.

There is no demon or devil in hell that can overcome the blood of Jesus and you knowing that is the power of Christ in you. Overcoming the schemes of the devil is a partnership between you and Jesus. So, put on your armor. Shine up your gospel boots and stand against the schemes of the devil. Put him to flight because the one who is in you, already won. Yahoo!

Page Two

Lamentations 3: 22 – 25

The Lord’s lovingkindesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I have hope in Him.” The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the person who seeks Him.

I didn’t want to leave you with the woe of Israel. Some of you remember Paul Harvey and his radio broadcasts. He used to say, “Page Two” as he moved on with his story telling. There is often a page two in life. As you see in these verses, Jeremiah knows, and tells, “the rest of the story.” He knows from where salvation comes. And let us not only think of salvation as the divider between heaven and hell. God wishes to save us from every unfavorable situation. In these verses, God’s saving grace is exposed and proclaimed.

There is trouble in life. Jesus told us that. Read David’s psalms and it becomes clear. Of course, there is an entire book of lamentations. However, at the end of the day, at the end of the book, behind every worry there is the faithfulness of God. He is always there to scoop us up and carry us away from the turmoil and tribulation. He is our shield and our fortress. We really can hide in Him while the world spins away.

In the Old Testament, specifically the Psalms, we read about our Father as the stronghold, the fortress, our refuge. These are all places into which a person can retreat and find security. In the New Testament, Jesus calls this being “in Him.” In Christ and in the Father, is fullness of compassion and hope. We have a promise here in Lamentations that God shows His goodness to those who wait for Him, to those who seek Him. So, the way I hear this is that God has little choice. I have power in this situation. If I seek Him, if I wait for Him, He will pour out His good upon me. I mean, the formula is already there, just plug in the variable over which you have control and it has to produce its equivalent counter-part which is the goodness of God.

Our father waits on high to pour His goodness out upon us. He longs to show us His tender mercies and benevolence. He is so overflowing with lovingkindness that it is without end or limitation. Each day He begins with goodness to give to us. So, though there is trouble in the world, there is goodness, salvation and kindness is our Father. We do not have to reside in the trouble, we can choose to move into God’s loving nature.

Let Him pour Himself out to you. He is without end. Everything you need or want in this hour is in Him. Seek His face, even right now in this moment. Let Him hear your voice and let Him be a loving Father.