Purity 297 12/22/2020
Good morning!
Today’s photo was taken by a friend in Glen Falls, New York who caught this
magnificent shot of the sun shining through the trees over this snow-covered
landscape.
I share it as an
encouragement to my friends to assure you that as much as the ground before you
may seem cold and full of obstacles in your path, the Lord still sees you and
is there to let you know that He will never leave you or forsake you and that
His light shines through to you, even in the darkest night.
It is my prayer that
you find that baseline of peace and joy that the Lord makes available to you
even when the circumstances of life threaten to drive you into confusion and
bitterness.
Even in a storm, we
can find shelter. Even in hostile environments, we can find peace.
And if your road is
clear, rejoice my friends and give your hope to someone else who desperately
needs it this Christmas.
(There is More at
the restricted blog). Follow me on Twitter, MeWe, or Parler for easy
access. Blog M T 4 Christ dot org – This
is where the Facebook post ends.)
This morning’s
meditation verse was:
Psalm 119:71 (NLT2)
71 My suffering was good for me, for
it taught me to pay attention to your decrees.
This morning’s verse reminds us that our suffering has a purpose: to
draw us closer to God.
For myself, a lot of the suffering in life was a consequence of trying
to live independently of God with no consideration towards Him as Lord,
Creator, or Author of Truth. I dismissed
God and only cared about the things of this world and how I could obtain the
things I wanted with as little work or effort as possible.
Although I followed the ways of the world, because I didn’t recognize
God’s authority, I certainly didn’t respect man’s authority either, viewing
authority to be the result of nepotism, corruption, or a lust for power and
wealth. So, I even tried to break the
rules of the man-made institutions of control, both those of governmental and
private institutions. I believed in
equality and pushed for change because I saw the systems in place as corrupt
and “the game” was rigged.
I eventually realized that nothing I would do would change it, so I sold
out and took corporation money, giving them my obedience for the money and benefits
and the things they provided. The money
and benefits are good but even within the confines of a corporation that has a
code of conduct to ensure uprightness and equal treatment, I am not surprised
to see individuals treated differently and co-workers insult and gossip about
one another behind each other’s back or see individual bend the rules or manipulate
the systems in place to appear to have better performance.
I’m not surprised when these things happen. With a man-made system, this
is the way the game is played and when you voluntarily join it you become
subject to not only the system in place but the individuals who are manipulating
it.
There can be quite a bit of suffering in a system that seems above
board. I have seen co-workers in tears contemplating another day of work. I
knew co-workers that were on anti-anxiety and anti-depression medication in
direct response to the work environment they are in. I, myself, was a raging alcoholic and drug
addict, and the stresses of work certainly didn’t lead me out of it. But I did my best to survive and I still
do.
However, after I had suffered enough both from work and from the tragedies
of life, I began searching for meaning. It took a while but eventually God let
me know that He is real, and He is the meaning to life.
So my suffering brought me to know God and His will for my life. My
suffering was good for me because it taught me that there was One bigger than
all of man’s systems and corruption that defined meaning in a seemingly
meaningless world.
Life still has its ups and downs, at work and in general, but when ever
the going gets tough, I remind myself that I have been accepted by the Creator
of the Universe. I am accepted, significant, and loved because He called my
name.
God the Father, Christ the Son, and The Holy Spirit is the Truth on which
I stand. No matter what comes my way,
they are higher than it all and I will follow where God leads me all the days
of my life.
Today we continue chapter 7 of
Anderson & Baumchen’s Finding Hope Again, where the authors complete their discussion
on overcoming helplessness by examining Faithfulness and Encouragement.
As always, I share this information for educational purposes and
encourage all to purchase Anderson’s books for your own private study and to
support his work:
Overcoming
Helplessness
The story of Elijah reminds us of a parable passed around
the Internet:
One
night a man was asleep in his cabin when he was suddenly awakened by the
appearance of the Savior. His room was filled with light. The Lord said,
"I have work for you to do." He showed the man a large rock, and told
him to push against that rock with all his might. This the man did, and for
many days he toiled from sunup to sundown, with his shoulder set squarely
against the cold, massive surface of the rock, pushing with all his might. Each
night the man returned to his cabin sore and worn out, wondering if his whole
day had been spent in vain.
Seeing that the man was showing signs of discouragement,
Satan decided to enter the picture. He placed thoughts in the man's mind, such
as, "Why kill yourself over this project? You're never going to move that
rock." Or "Boy! You've been at it a long time and you haven't even
scratched the surface," etc., etc. The man began to get the impression
that the task was impossible and that he was an unworthy servant because he
wasn't able to move the massive stone.
These thoughts discouraged and disheartened him and he
started to ease up on his efforts. "Why kill myself?" he thought.
"I'll just put in my time, expending a minimum amount of effort and that
will be good enough." And that he did, or at least planned on doing, until
one day he decided to take his troubles to the Lord.
"Lord," he said, "I have labored hard and
long in Your service, putting forth all my strength to do that which You have
asked me. Yet, after all this time, I have not even nudged that rock half a
millimeter. What is wrong? Am I failing You?"
"My son," the Lord answered, "when long ago I
asked you to serve Me and you accepted, I told you to push against the rock
with all your strength. That you have done. But never once did I mention that I
expected you to move it, at least not by yourself! Your task was to push!
"Now you come to Me all discouraged, thinking that you
have failed and ready to quit. But is that really so? Look at yourself. Your
arms are strong and muscled; your back sinewed and brown. Your hands are
calloused and your legs have become massive and hard. Through opposition you
have grown much and your ability now far surpasses that which you used to have.
"Yet, you haven't succeeded in moving the rock; and you
come to Me now with a heavy heart and your strength spent. I, my son, will move
the rock. Your calling was to be obedient and to push, and to exercise your
faith and trust in My wisdom. And this you have done."
If we can do all things through Christ
who strengthens us, what are those "all things"? In other
words, what is God's will for our lives? Paul clearly tells us, "This is
the will of God, your sanctification" (1 Thes. 4:3).
This means that we are to conform to the image of God, and this we can do only
by His grace. We don't have any power to change ourselves; that also must come
from Him. Allowing ourselves to be influenced by the world, the flesh and the
devil will interrupt the sanctifying process.
We will also curb the process when
trying to change the world becomes our primary focus. On the other hand, if our
goal is to become the person God created us to be, no other person nor anything
on planet Earth can prevent that from happening. Not even Satan can stop us.
For example, how should we respond when
the government turns a deaf ear to the Church, or when other people show
contempt for the Lord? Is it our job to take on the government, or try to
change those who are blasphemous? Those who try will only become angry
controllers or very depressed. We are called by God to submit to governing
authorities and pray for them (see Romans 13:1-6; 1 Tim. 2:1, 2).
We are also to accept one another as Christ has accepted us (see Romans 15:7). That
does not mean we approve of sin or allow others to determine who we are. All
Christians must learn how to establish scriptural boundaries to protect
themselves from further abuse.
Encouragement
vs. Discouragement
Word got around heaven that the devil was holding a fire
sale. Some of his best weapons were going on the auction block. A couple of
curious angels thought they would check out some of the items to see what the
devil was up to. There, displayed on pedestals, were many of his devilish
tricks.
Of course the primary tools of his
trade, temptation, accusation and deception, were not for sale. They sat
prominently on display for all to see. They were the parents of all the other
tools. On display were petty gossip, jealousy, arrogance, gluttony, lust and
many other well-known tricks of the devil that have caused defeat to many of
God's children. Satan's pitchmen (those little devils) were anxious to sell
these tools and to disperse them more widely in God's kingdom for others to
use.
One of the angels noticed that one
pedestal was empty, and asked the little devils why. "Oh, the weapon that
goes there is discouragement," they said. "It is not for sale because
it is always in constant use and is our most effective weapon. Most of God's
children already own it anyway!"
Finding Hope Again: Overcoming Depression.
------------------------------more
tomorrow--------------------------
God bless
you all!
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