In the Good and the Bad

August 21, 2023Leave a comment

“In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also hath set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him.” Ecclesiastes 7:14

Let’s talk about bad days because we all have them. Bad days are like clouds that block out the sun. When they move in, they overshadow the beauty around them. If they hang around long enough, the dreariness accompanying them can settle in your surroundings, obscuring your view, and warping your perspective.

People tend to shift their perspectives based on experience. Experience can be subjective due to knowledge and/or feelings. In all, it is easy for one to think or feel a certain way regardless of what the actual fact says.

Here’s what is true for the Christian, if the Bible says something, then that’s a fact. With that as our springboard, let’s unpack Ecclesiastes 7:14 to gain a better understanding of whatever kind of day, the season of life, or challenges you may be facing.

“In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider.” Know this, we will have both good days and bad days. Yet, we are always surprised when our good days are interrupted by the bad. Part of that comes with the shock and awe of the adverse moment. And it’s not as if we are totally divorcing ourselves from all the feelings we feel when facing difficulties, but we are also to realize that this is a part of life. Peter writes, “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you” (1 Peter 4:12). Some days, hard stuff will happen, if for no other reason than we are living. We are alive. In that, our experiences in the ups and downs of life may vary from day to day.

Ecclesiastes tells how to handle those variances: in the good days, when everything is fine and prosperous, going your way – rejoice. Be “joyful!” Be thankful for those moments. Live with an appreciative heart in gratitude for them.

And in the bad, when things don’t look so rosy – those days you want to hide from the world, he says to “consider.” There are fewer things in life that will slow you down and give you a long pause to reflect, like adversity. It provides a place to mull over some things and to deeply think about this life and the many facets it brings.

The word consider is used in a specific way in this verse that I will deal with in more depth when we get to the next section. But to know for a fact that both experiences of good days and bad days are just a part of our human living, can be almost liberating. In that, it allows us to prepare our hearts and our responses in how we want to act for either/or during those times, even if we sometimes do it imperfectly.

“God also hath set the one over against the other.” God is sovereign over any and all days. One of the things we like to say is that a situation may have taken us by surprise, but it sure didn’t take God by surprise. And that’s so true! I can write a book on the verses of Him ordering the days, and times, and seasons – oh wait, they already did that. It’s called the Bible, and in it, we see from the first page to the last, God’s sovereign hand moving. In the middle, there are a lot of lives, with a lot of stories – some good, and some not so good. But our God, who Ecclesiastes 7:14 assures us regarding these differences of days, “hath set the one over against the other.”

Our God, who is the Creator of the world, is the Creator of our days. And even when the days don’t look right or feel right to us, we have this promise: “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).

Did you see what I saw in that verse? Even if it doesn’t appear good to us, God is able to make something good out of that experience. It doesn’t say that everything that happens to us is good, but whatever happens, God can use it for good.

“To the end that man should find nothing after him.” You never know what’s ahead, so strive to thrive in all seasons and days you experience. Life is a gift, and while we may not like some of the things and days we face, and we may wish they were all full of joy and celebrating, we can remain in hope in our God who has never failed.

The children of Israel experienced many days of a time of prolonged captivity under the rule of their enemy when they thought it would never get better. Because of what they were experiencing, some struggled with the picture of their future God provided through the prophet Jeremiah when he said, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end” (Jeremiah 29:11).

My friends, when the days are good, we claim to see the hand of the Lord moving in all kinds of ways in our lives. But when approached by the bad, we fail to realize He’s still there, and no matter what we are facing, good or bad, our reliance, dependence, and hope are securely anchored in God alone and in what He can do and has done for us – not in ourselves, our present circumstances, or experiences.

And while we may struggle to see the end, our trust is to always be in the God who knows the end.

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Daily

August 18, 2023Leave a comment

“Give us this day our daily bread.” Matthew 6:11

The soul must recognize, and the heart acknowledge, there is not a day that goes by when we don’t need the holy provisions that come from on high. The hope, joy, and peace of heaven – every good, and every perfect gift from above – all of it we need daily to feed this spiritual life (James 1:17).

You, O God, are the one true source of all. To look anywhere else to nourish our souls for these times would be a futile pursuit. It is in You that we find the freedom we so long for. It is before You, we lay our cares, our thoughts, our burdens at Your holy feet.

Whatever we place there may feel like a lot to us, but it is never too much for You. So, daily You invite us to come, ask, seek, knock, and believe in faith (Matthew 7:7-8).

Today, and every day, we know that we need You. You, who were the manna in the wilderness, are the daily, living bread we need for this life right now (John 6:47-51). As a man starved in appetite, let us look to You for our heavenly sustenance (Matthew 5:6). You are the hope we lean upon, daily.

Friend, go to Him, daily.

“Take it to the Cross!”

August 15, 2023August 13, 2023Leave a comment

Every worry and every fear, take it and leave it at the foot of that blood-stained banner that was raised for our freedom.

Every doubt and every hurt, take it to Him who is stretched wide upon those old rugged beams to experience fully the troubles we face.

Every sorrow and every tear, take it to Him whose nail-pierced hands flow with a life poured out for you and me. He that endured the pain of the piercing knows of the rejection, the betrayal, and the indecency of evil we all face in this life. He knows this and more for in His bearing, He held the crushing weight of all sin upon those beaten and slumped shoulders even as His heart cried out to the Father the agony of separation.

There is nothing we feel that He hasn’t already felt.

There is no experience so unique to us that He has not already carried the weight of.

There is no trouble we face that He hasn’t looked in the eye and gained the victory of it on that cross.

On that cross, He became authority and victor over all. His kingship may have been inscribed in writing by man: “And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS,” (John 19:19), but God declared Him Ruler over all through His atoning sacrifice of the blood on that cross (Revelation 1:5; Romans 3:25; Matthew 28:18).

Whatever you are facing, take it to the cross and trust Him who was hung there so that you may rise to a life of victory today!

Why take it to the cross?

It’s the place where the King would suffer for our healing: “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.” – Isaiah 53:5

It’s the place where reconciliation takes place and hostility is put to death: “He did this so that he might reconcile both to God in one body through the cross by which he put the hostility to death.” – Ephesians 2:16, CSB

It’s the place where we find the truest form of peace: “And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.” – Colossians 1:20

It’s the place where our sins were blotted out: “Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross.” – Colossians 2:14

It’s the place where we are given the opportunity to lay down the dead and pick up a life of righteousness: “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.” – 1 Peter 2:24

And, it is the place where we experience true love: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” – John 3:16

Take it to the cross today!

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Better Than

August 14, 2023August 10, 2023Leave a comment

You are the Rock
that we lean upon.
Better than the
glory of the rising sun.

You are the great
I AM THAT I AM.
Better than Moses,
the prophets, and Abraham.

You are my praise,
my comfort, my shield.
Better than any source
this world reveals.

You are the hope
in my soul, do I trust.
Better than man or plan,
designed or discussed.

It is You to which
none can compare,
for You are better than
anyone, anywhere.

A lot of things
we can appreciate
but You, O God,
are better in every way.

“Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and for evermore. From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the Lord‘s name is to be praised. The Lord is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens.” Psalm 113:2-4

“Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee, O Lord; thou art great, and thy name is great in might. Who would not fear thee, O King of nations? for to thee doth it appertain: forasmuch as among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, there is none like unto thee.” Jeremiah 10:6-7

“I am the Lord, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me: That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the Lord, and there is none else. I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things.” Isaiah 45:5-7

The world calls out for our trust. Man pleads for us to put confidence in him. Even our own five senses beckon us to lean upon what we can feel, see, and touch.

But God is supremely better than them all. He is the Utmost beyond our utmost, and none can top, come near, or replace the joy and treasure found in the greatness of our God who is just better than.

Jesus is With You in the Storm

August 11, 2023Leave a comment

You are not in this alone in this. We carry this promise with us: “I am with you always, even unto the end of the world,” (Matthew 28:20). Believe that the same Jesus who stood on the boat and “rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm,” (Mark 4:39) is the same Jesus that is with you now.

The Great Acts of the LORD

August 10, 2023August 9, 2023Leave a comment

“But your eyes have seen all the great acts of the Lord which he did.” Deuteronomy 11:7

How would life look for us, or how much more would our faith be fed if we were intentional about remembering “the great acts of the LORD?” We don’t need to see the seas part, the ground opened to swallow, or mighty plagues – but surely, there are moments in our lives when we know that it was nothing but God. There are miracles, blessings, the moving of His holy hand, and His Holy Spirit that could be nothing short of His intervention for us.

As Moses recaps God’s commandments in Deuteronomy for the wilderness wanderers, he also wants them to remember personally what their eyes have seen, the things they have experienced during this time with God.

Days gone by supply us with a life full of the stories of His deliverance, His patience, and His constant and consistent work in our lives. Sometimes too numerous to tell, but when we think back, our eyes of faith behold them and we see that it is nothing we have done, nor can we take the credit. We see a God who has done more to love us, so this is where our trust should lie. This is where we should look in hope also for the days coming ahead.

If you look back into your bygone moments, what can you see? Can you see His hand showing up unexpectedly in a moment of grace? Can you see where His mercy touched what was once believed to be untouchable? Can you see where His promises came alive more vividly when you thought it was all over?

There are big things and there are small things – events and seasons that grow our appreciation all the more for the wonderful God we serve.

It takes nothing more than for us to simply appreciate that our eyes have awakened to a new day, and our lungs are breathing what He provides, to see God’s wonderful acts at work in our lives even right now.

His presence and concern for us are marked by the care He invests in us. Every prayer is heard. Every prayer responded. The feelings of His love wrapped around us – yes, He is there.

Even in times of tears and upset, His comforting presence saturates the atmosphere with His reassuring peace.

Throughout your life your eyes have seen many things and many things have been your experiences. Some may have been wonderful and good. Some may not have been. But if you pick through all you have witnessed, your testimony would call to mind: “I have seen the great acts of the Lord in my life.” In that, God’s faithfulness and neverending love for you shines through, holding you in faith through the days when it’s hard to see anything positive.

Take a walk down memory lane today and see those moments where He has faithfully made a way. Pray for God to show you Him in that walking and may your faith be increased as you take in the great acts of the Lord, for wherever He is, it is always great.

“I will remember the works of the Lord: surely I will remember thy wonders of old.” Psalm 77:11

Giving God My All

August 9, 2023August 9, 2023Leave a comment

Giving God my all. What exactly does that mean?

What are you holding? What do you possess? What is important to you? Where does your love rest?

There are many parts of us. And while many parts make us us, there is only one God, and He is to be over all. Not just over all in the sense of His complete Sovereignty – but over your all, personally.

So, I ask you again, what is near and dear to you? What do you treasure and hold in high regard? There are no areas to be withheld from Him. Wherever He wills, He can touch. But how do we respond when He touches it?

As I ponder those questions, I am reminded of the time when adverse circumstances struck Job’s life in many different ways, all at the same time (Job 1-2). Job’s response may seem mind-boggling to some for we are told in the midst of it all, he “worshipped, And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:20-21).

Job may not have understood everything, and he may have felt sorrow and experienced grief, but even in this, he surrendered everything he held dear in his choice to worship. He held on to his integrity and “In all this did not Job sin with his lips” (Job 2:10).

How does our heart respond when that which is dear to us has faced times of crisis? Do we really surrender all to Him, trust, and move forward even if our steps seem heavier than before? Or do we shut down as we try to hold on to the very last thread of that beloved thing?

To “love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength” (Mark 12:30) means there is to be no part of me, or what I am, or what I have that comes before God. Everything else must be willingly surrendered so that my love for Him shines first.

“Embracing the Promises of God!”

August 7, 2023August 7, 2023Leave a comment

Are you just saying, “AMEN!” to the preacher and the message, or are you really getting into an agreement with the words coming forth from the mouthpiece of God? Do you think the songs that are sung, which carry His good word and lift your soul, do you think they are just to make you feel good for a moment, or are they truths binding themselves on your heart because you can see with eyes of faith what God really wants to do in your life? Do you think the words written in that Holy Bible are just a collection of tales to temporarily inspire you or are they moments in the lives of others God is using to show you that He can do the same thing for you?

It’s one thing to hear messages, read the Word, and listen to the songs about the promises of God, and it’s another thing to grab hold of them for yourself and believe with a fervent grip that they are for you, too. Embracing God’s promises is saying, “I may not have it now, but my faith is tied to what God already spoke over my life. With my physical eyes, it may not currently be before me, but with my spiritual eyes, I am persuaded that God will do what He said He would do, and I embrace that truth! I choose to hold on to what God said over all else!”

Embracing is active participation in claiming the promises of God for your life. God gave mankind a will and He won’t force you to believe His promises, but oh how sweet it is if you do. He puts it out there, and many times He gives evidence that it will happen (and sometimes He doesn’t), but it is up to each individual heart to not only accept it but to hold on to what He spoke for dear life. That’s why Hebrews declares, “Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)” (Hebrews 10:23; emphasis mine). The word “us” in that verse tells us that it is our responsibility to lay hold of everything concerning our faith God speaks, including His promises. If you believe that God is faithful, then believe He will faithfully follow through with all He spoke concerning you!

God will do His part without fail. When the unwelcome interruptions of life come, our job is to keep on embracing that truth when facing whatever is before us. Today, get a hold of the promises of God for your life and refuse to let them go.

“These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.” Hebrews 11:13

“Today, I Want to Be Me!”

August 5, 2023August 2, 2023Leave a comment

“I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well,” Psalm 139:14

Oh, the creative power that took place for you to be here today. From the moment of conception, and from the time cells began to divide within themselves, you were and are a product of beautiful design. Uniquely, you are made just the way God intended. And, since we know that He doesn’t make any mistakes, whatever we view as shortcomings in our lives may be there for a much higher purpose. Our so-called defaults are part of the plan that God has laid out in your life.

What would happen if every Christian really armed themselves with this beautiful truth? How would that personally make us feel? How would it affect the way we live, the way we walk and talk? More importantly, how would it affect the way we move in our Christian walk? How much more would we be apt to express our faith knowing the value He places in each and every one of us?

I believe if Christians really got a hold of this truth they would turn the world upside down. They would step out with a newfound faith knowing that they are something really special before God; knowing that their worth is not in how the world sees them; rather, how God sees them. What does He think about me?

Let me tell you what He thinks about you. Jesus said in Luke 12:6-7, “Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.” “Ye are of more value!” Humanity is the apex of all His creation. He made sure everything that was created was put in the proper place and in the proper order for us. We are the only part of creation where God claimed Himself, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion . . .” (Gen. 1:26). Not only created but we were created in “His image.” Not only in “His image,” but we are also created to have “dominion;” authority over all the earth including the thoughts that come to make us feel less than anything He said of us!

Today, I want to be me. I want to walk like I walk. Express me like only I can. I want to relish in the wonderful thought that when no one else is taking notice of me, He is. Because He designed me this way and I know the care that went into this design, I can rest and enjoy myself. I can love me some me. Even when it seems no one else does, I can love me, because He loves me.

If He says I’m good just like this then all I have to do is learn to work in what He gave me and just be me. “Marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.” Does your soul know that you are a marvelous work of God? Can you believe that today so that you can just enjoy being yourself? You are so incredibly special. Let no one rob you of the precious way that God sees you.

“Know ye that the Lord He is God: it is He that hath made us and not we ourselves. . .” (Ps. 100:3). I’m so glad I didn’t do this myself. That would be impossible because there is so much that goes into this that we will never figure it out. Then again, I don’t have to because He already did. He stepped back and looked at creation and said, “It was very good,” (Gen.1:31).

I am good! From the time that He has “covered me in my mother’s womb,” (Ps. 139:13), I am just the way He wants me to be. So, today, I can be me! Now, that’s something to 🙂 about!

Powerless Flames!

August 4, 2023August 2, 2023Leave a comment

“And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king’s counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them.” Daniel 3:27

A lion without teeth and claws is no real threat and flames devoid of the power to burn and devour can do no real harm.

In Daniel 3, there is the very familiar story of the three Hebrew boys facing the fiery furnace. Although familiar, the story begs us to look further into it because the fire should have killed them. The fire should have burned every part of their being to ash with flames so high. The fire should have disintegrated everything about these men and there shouldn’t have been even anything left over to collect, but it was not given the power or the ability to do so.

What a miracle!

I must wonder, what did it look like for these men as they were standing in the flames and looking out without feeling the heat, just the safety of God covering them through it all?

Amazing!

Fire eats up and ravages things every day but when God is in the midst, it has no power!

The enemy was left astonished . . .

No parts of the fire or the furnace experience had any effect on them whatsoever . . .

The only effect it may have had on them was to increase their faith all the more!

Somebody needed to be reminded of this today. I don’t know what flames are trying to ignite against you today, but if He chooses, God can put it out or use it for His glory. Either way, one can never go wrong by trusting in Him.

He will cause the enemy to be astonished before you, amazed that you are still standing. Just like the three Hebrews boys, He will not only cause you to stand in the midst of the powerless flames, but He will allow you to walk around in it giving testimony to the power of the true God you serve.

Flames may be fierce, but God is fiercer! The enemy will try to burn you up, but God can use those flames to promote you (vs. 30) if you will just worship Him, believe, and trust that He has you in the midst of it all, because when you are on God’s side:

“THE FIRE HAS NO POWER!”

Word For Life Says…

God's Word for Your Life Today!

Tag: Authorized King James Version

In the Good and the Bad

Daily

“Take it to the Cross!”

Take it to the cross today!

Better Than

Jesus is With You in the Storm

The Great Acts of the LORD

Giving God My All

“Embracing the Promises of God!”

“Today, I Want to Be Me!”

Powerless Flames!

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Take it to the cross today!

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