Worry Is A Roaring Lion

"Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?" Matthew 6:25-26 Because we live in a fallen world and have seen the miseries common to man, therefore we worry. But worry by nature takes God out of the picture. Worry assures us that this or that might happen to us, so we worry. First of all, worry does absolutely no good and second, it is sin because God has told us NOT to worry. vs 31-32 "Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek." There is a difference, a great difference, between the believer and the people of the world. We're talking about two entirely different kingdoms. In the world, you'd better worry because this or that or the other might happen, and if it does, you're on your own. But for those who have been brought into the Kingdom of God, it's an entirely different matter. Here, you are NOT on your own. Nothing comes into or goes out of your life except what is allowed by your Father in heaven. If he allows trial in your life, then he has a purpose for it, and it will be the greatest setting for him to reveal more of himself to you, a setting in which needed growth will take place in you, and a setting that will build your faith as you experience his presence in your life and are taught about the failure that worry is, and as your confidence in HIM becomes established in you. vs 32: "For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things." You are never alone. In every place and in every story your God is present. Whether you "feel" him or not he is there. He knows your needs better than you even know them yourself. If you journal and commit to memory all the stories wherein God made himself obvious in your life, you'll begin to realize all he has had to prepare in advance in order to see you through, and that alone will open your eyes to his trustworthiness. Consider those stories, how he worked them out with his fingerprints all over them. Furthermore, he has promised that if you seek FIRST his Kingdom and his righteousness, if you seek HIS plan for your life, then your sustenance is guaranteed. vs 33: "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." Pray with me: Father, I confess the sin of worry. I realize it is an insult to you, the suggestion to my mind that I will be left alone to fend for myself because you will not be sufficient to bring me through. I know that worry is part of our fallen human nature; it's a big one, Lord. I ask you Father, to become so real to me that worry will vanish. It's not that you will spare us from all harm, but it is that you will actively walk us through whatever happens in our lives. Convince me Father, that I can safely trust you no matter what. In my heart of hearts I know that, but "Satan comes as a roaring lion" and his roar can terrify me. I don't have it within myself to stand strong and not fear, so I'm asking for your grace, your enablement to put all my trust and all my confidence in you knowing that you will never leave me nor forsake me. Father, grow me up in the faith, for your Word says that without faith one cannot please God. It's that faith you're after, and I surrender myself and my situation to you asking that you make that faith a rock in me, a foundation that can never be moved.

Why Can't I Overcome?

"But the children of Israel committed a trespass regarding the accursed things, for Achan the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed things; so the anger of the Lord burned against the children of Israel." Joshua 7:1 Israel had had a great victory when they went against Jericho, so they thought they could easily take the city of Ai. But they were miserably defeated. Joshua was shocked. He went face down before the Lord, devastated by the defeat. The Lord told Joshua to get up from the ground and listen to him! The Lord had told the Israelites plainly to NOT take any of the accursed things from the spoils of war, but at least one of the soldiers was overcome with greed when he saw the beauty and wealth before him, and he secretly took some of it and hid it. That act of rebellion, the presence of the accursed thing in the camp of Israel, cost Israel defeat, and the Lord clearly told Joshua that until that issue was settled God would not be with them. vs 12: "Neither will I be with you anymore, unless you destroy the accursed from among you." This is a great lesson to remember before one goes into spiritual battle against the enemy. Don't even think to do so if you have among your possessions anything "accursed." This is a very serious issue and can mean the difference between victory and defeat. What are some of the "accursed" things? Anything occult, anything "New Age," anything connected to Satan's kingdom. One of the most telling stories on this subject is found in the New Testament: "And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds. Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver. So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed." Acts 19:18-20 Throughout the Bible we should take special notice of what God stresses and repeats often, and one of those things is on the subject of the occult. Any involvement in the occult is one of the most grievous sins one can commit. Why is that so? We see throughout the Bible that there are plainly two sources of supernatural power. We know about God, but there also is another source, and that is Satan. The whole area of the occult is where Satan operates through supernatural means to destroy men. When a person ventures into the area of the occult, God labels that "spiritual adultery." We know what adultery is, but there is also spiritual adultery. Our whole attention and love and faithfulness are to be unto our God alone, and that is stressed throughout his Word. When one attempts to gain information or guidance or knowledge from any occult source, he is committing spiritual adultery. Satan is the enemy of God and man. Delving into his kingdom is such a grievous sin that the judgment on it goes down the third and fourth generation of anyone committing this kind of sin. The first king of Israel, king Saul, was facing a battle that he was unsure he could win, so he went to a medium in the town of Endor, and sought to know from one of the prophets who had died, whether or not he should proceed. He knew this was sin but he was desperate. He changed his appearance and tried to keep his identity secret, but when the medium tried to make contact with the dead, she was shocked and she turned to Saul and told him who he was, and that he was going to die. For his great sin Saul lost his life. And - his children died also. In Deuteronomy chapter 18, verses 10 to 12 God has recorded the many occult evils we are to stay far away from. He mentions visiting mediums, peering into astrology (horoscopes), necromancy, which is any attempt to communicate with the dead, channeling, magic, witchcraft, and more, read the passage for yourself. He ends that passage by saying that anyone practicing any of these things is an abomination to the Lord. Not that the practices are an abomination, but the PERSON who touches any of those things - is an abomination to him. The sin is so great before God that the judgments on it will not only affect the person thus sinning, but they will fall on his children as well, down to the third and fourth generation. To turn to God's enemy for knowledge or guidance, or information is a great slap in the face to the God of heaven. "For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love me and keep my commandments." Exodus 20:5-6 Brothers and sisters, if you have not been able to succeed in overcoming the enemy in your life, search your heart and search your house and rid yourself of anything "accursed." Confess the great sin of spiritual adultery and repent from all involvement with the occult. Do as they did in Acts quoted above and destroy them all, get rid of them regardless of the monetary value of them. Do NOT give them to someone else, they must be destroyed. The effects of the sin and the judgment on your life may or may not be lifted, but the Lord promises that there will be mercy in it, if you love him and keep his commands.

The Most Important Thing Is To Follow The Plan

"Then Jesus said to his disciples, 'If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." Matthew 16:25-26 "Will find it…" Many look at this passage with a groan. Taking up one's cross doesn't sound encouraging, does it? You imagine the Lord leading you through paths you don't want to go on. You entertain thoughts of having to give up everything you love. Even to the best of believers, this whole passage may elicit a reluctant compliance, accepted with a heavy heart. The Lord is not going to change his Word to make it sound any different, there IS a cross to bear. Take the story of the rich young ruler who came to Jesus asking what he must do. Jesus told this man to go and sell all he had and give it to the poor, then come follow him. "But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions." Matthew 19:22 The most fearful part of that story is that Jesus didn't argue with him, he didn't try to explain about what following him is all about, he ...let him go. We have free will and God will never deny us the right to choose. In fact, he insists on it. If a person is not willing to forsake all and follow him, then the Lord will let that person go, without an argument. The person won't lose his salvation - salvation is a free gift. But he will forfeit God's will and plan for his life and will stand in regret later when he sees "what could have been." What many do not understand is that Jesus is showing the way to the ultimate success that can be had by following him. We tend to stumble at the words, "take up your cross." Who wouldn't? But we don't finish the Scripture. Hidden in this command are the words, "whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." Here, he isn't speaking of losing one's life in martyrdom. Some will be martyred, we know that, but that's not what he means here. What he means is that when a person totally humbles himself before God and surrenders his life to him, that "loss" leads to ..."will find it." What does that mean? God has created us uniquely distinct from each other. Each soul is a work of God, right down to the person's DNA. They say there are no two snowflakes alike, and likewise, there are no two human beings alike, our DNA makes each one unique. God has fashioned each one's personality, each one's gifts and talents, each one's types of interest, each one's individual potential, with a life-plan specifically drawn up for that individual. When a person surrenders all this to the Lord, the Lord begins a work of developing all that makes up the person, bringing every facet of his life to success. Happiness is discovering what his unique plan is, and following him to the fulfillment of it, accepting whatever might be the cost - because the powers of hell will try to discourage him to the point where he gives it up. But the one who follows Christ no matter what ...will find a life they never would have had otherwise, and not only here – the reward is eternal. Why then does the Lord precede all this with such scary words? Cross. "Will lose it." "Deny oneself." Because in order for someone to reach his potential, his total success, only God can lead the way. Otherwise, man is left to himself ...and especially under the influence of Satan the great enemy ...man will mess it up every time. There is no way a human being has the necessary "smarts" to walk through that minefield and reach that success on his own, Satan will see to that. But when a person is totally submitted to the Lord, then it will not be Satan taking over, it will the Creator, the Lord Jesus Christ taking over, and under his lead each one will be brought to his highest potential according to the way God has made him. By surrendering his life, he "finds it!"