Tuesday, August 28, 2012

God Is Good In ALL Circumstances

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. -- 1 Thessalonians 5:18

The other day a friend’s relative was admitted to the hospital with a really scary disease. Fortunately, tests showed that the disease hadn’t spread to the brain and he would likely survive and be fine. This was glorious news and we all thanked God.

One person said something that I’ve heard many times before in such circumstances: God is good. Yes, He is. All the time. In all circumstances. Including the times when we don’t get the news we want.

I understood what she meant. It’s important to give God praise and glory when something when we receive good news or something wonderful happens. But we must never lose sight of the very real fact that God is always good, no matter the circumstances.

So why does God allow bad things to happen to us? Pastor Rob answered this question last Sunday. He didn’t provide any new information. It’s just that we’d really rather not hear the truth sometimes.

God gave us all free will. He didn’t want a bunch of human puppets. God wanted people to love Him for who He is and because we choose to love and honor Him. Surely we all can understand that. True love doesn’t happen because we are ordered to love. True love comes when we choose to love.

Sometimes we use that free will to make bad choices. And sometimes others use their free will to make bad choices that impact negatively on our lives. That’s the part we don’t want to hear. We want God to stop the bad things from happening to us but He can’t do that without taking away free will.

God also uses pain to get our attention. When we’re cruising along in life with no troubles and no worries, we aren’t as apt to draw close to God as we are when our world is crumbling down around our feet.

Pastor Rob gave the example of Jonah. God called him to a task and he just said no. Until he had the opportunity to spend a little time in the belly of a fish. Jonah still didn’t want to do God’s will, but he did it anyway. And God cared for him despite his attitude. The same kind of attitude we’ve got sometimes when God doesn’t let us have our own way.

God also uses our pain to teach us to depend on Him. I wonder if anyone truly knows God until everything and everyone you ever thought you needed is gone and God is all you have. Then you understand. You get it. You learn to cling to Him in a desperate way that refuses to let go.

And lastly, Pastor Rob pointed out, God allows bad things to happen to us so that we will use that pain to minister to others. Pain prepares us to serve others in a way nothing else can.

God blesses us in numerous ways throughout our lives. He blesses us in the good. And He blesses us in the bad. God is good -- all the time.

Sunday, February 19, 2012

Who Influences Your Faith?

Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.

-- Psalm 1:1-2 (NKJV)

Who is your counsel? Who are your friends? What movies and television shows do you watch? What books do you read? Where do you hang out?

We like to pretend that it doesn’t matter. We know Jesus in our hearts. We don’t really need to edit what we see or hear. We certainly don’t need to avoid certain people because some of their actions aren’t, gulp, godly.

Yet the Bible tells us that we are not to walk in the counsel of the ungodly. We are being influenced by the people around us and by the media we consume. Don’t try to fool yourself. It’s the reason advertisers pay big bucks for ads during prime times, such as the Super Bowl.

That’s also where Satan attacks you. He knows all your buttons, according to Mark Hall, lead singer of Casting Crowns and author of Your Own Jesus. He noted that we say we believe in God but we are standing there right in the midst of the world. We look no different. So if we aren’t different, why should anyone else believe?

Good point. As Christians, we’re supposed to stand out. We’re supposed to be different. We’re supposed to light the way for a dark and lost world. We’re supposed to represent Jesus on this earth.

It’s not that we mean to blend in. It’s a slow fade (Hall’s words) away from Jesus. We make one small compromise, assuring ourselves that it won’t matter. Then we make another one and another one. It’s a slippery slope downward from there.

“We are who our friends are,” Hall writes. “What we put into our heads and hearts today will influence our choices tomorrow.”

So who is your counsel? Who do you listen to most? Are they godly people who live by His Word? Or are they worldly people who lack His foundation? What do you listen to on the radio station? Songs of praise to Him or songs of cheating hearts and love on the sly?

Our choices define our lives and our faith. We can walk with godly people and make wise choices based on His Word. Or we can allow Satan a foothold in our lives. Free will. Your choice.