Sunday, November 12, 2017

Trust, Faithfulness and Mercy



Joshua 1:9:  "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”


         This blog is going to be a little different than my normal, because I need this message as a reminder to myself right now.  This blog is broken down into 3 areas that we should consider during all times, but especially in a personal crisis: Trusting God, God's Faithfulness, and The Mercy of God.  I, personally, am dealing with the struggle of deciding which path of treatment to take for my 2cm [20mm] size kidney stone.

Trusting God
        It's a lot easier to trust God when things are going as you might expect, right?  Then there are moments that are like life's sucker punches.  They are unexpected, cause fear and hurt, usually require a decision, and make your immediate [not eternal] future unknown.  Trusting God is a measure of your faith in His 'total' control over you and all situations you will face in this life.  John 16:33  "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."  John Piper's following quote comforts me, as I have felt guilty for being scared and doubtful in my current struggle...
       "When anxiety strikes and blurs our vision of God’s glory and the greatness of the future that he plans for us, this does not mean that we are faithless, or that we will not make it to heaven. It means our faith is being attacked.  At first blow, our belief in God’s promises may sputter and swerve. But whether we stay on track and make it to the finish line depends on whether, by grace, we set in motion a process of resistance — whether we fight back against the unbelief of anxiety.  Psalm 56:3 says, “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.”  Notice: it does not say, “I never struggle with fear.” Fear strikes, and the battle begins. So the Bible does not assume that true believers will have no anxieties. Instead, the Bible tells us how to fight when they strike."
         When we put our trust in God alone... we are secure in His presence with us, His protection over us, His completion of the work He started in us, and His knowing what is best for us ultimately.

There’s so much now I cannot see,
My eyesight’s far too dim;
But come what may, I’ll simply trust
And leave it all to Him. —Overton

God's Faithfulness

Daniel 9:4  “Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments."

      Unless we are struggling with a threat of illness or danger, we usually trust God when we go to sleep to wake us up without much or any thought.  We trust Him because He has been faithful every day.  So when we face a crisis, we need to remind ourselves of God's faithful track record thus far--100% of the time He has carried me through every struggle I have encountered.
      "Most churchgoers easily claim, “I’ve yielded my life to Christ.” To actually live out those words, however, is more difficult. We want to cling to a measure of control in case God doesn’t work events to our satisfaction. Too many Christians are content merely to dip their toes into faith because they fear life might not turn out according to their plan. But how much greater their loss will be if life doesn’t turn out according to God’s plan. He can do much more with a surrendered existence than a sheltered one." [intouch.org]
        As for myself, I love the 'On this Day' feature of Facebook.  It shows me my posts, which are my thoughts, during previous hard times and the faithfulness of God time after time.  I'm not saying God did exactly what I wanted but He provided for all my needs.  He was with me always and never forsake me, just as He promised.


The Grace and Mercy of God

Though danger lurks on every side,
In Christ our Lord we will abide;
Our God is strong, our hope is sure—
In Him alone we are secure! —Fitzhugh

Hebrews 4:15-16 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."

      Sometimes we do our best to make the right decisions, but things don't play out as we had hoped.  The grace and mercy of God can trump our plans, according to God's will, for our ultimate, eternal benefit.
      As for myself, I want to be wise yet humble in my decision making.  I know that my eternal destination is waiting for me and only God knows if He will use me here or there, sooner or later.  I pray for His will to be done, here on earth as it is in Heaven.  Amen! 



      

, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments,
Daniel 9:4



7 comments:

  1. Excellent! I too have been feeling fearful about the decision. I have asked God for wisdom and thought it through and realized that we need to pray for God’s will to be done because He always knows what is best. Yes the Lord has been so faithful and comforting in fearful times and struggles of the past. We can continue to trust Him. I have a much better peace about the matter after going through this process too. It may be a weakness to be fearful, but it doesn’t mean faithless. We are always uneasy about unknowns—even when we think it will ultimately be a fun adventure.
    Love,
    Mom

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  2. Love this one Angie! So good to see you last week. Blessings, Jana

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  3. Very good, Angie. The Heb. 4:15-16 passage was one of Caraleen's favorites.
    Remember one of the apostles (Peter?) Said, "I believe, Lord. Help my unbelief."
    I'm praying for you as you go through this crisis.
    Roger

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  4. Thank you Angie. I needed this! Donna

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  5. Oh, Angie, here you are again, ministering to me when I need to be ministering to you. How grateful I am for the spirit of grace God has given you, the one that gives us all who know you a special kind of peace. Thank you, sweet friend. Trusting God with you. love, love, love

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  6. Your blog today is exquisite.
    D.F.

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  7. You need to keep writing these blogs to us, and God knows that, so I have no doubts that this Surgery will go well.
    This is a awesome blog. Love you ..........Dad

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