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Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe. Philippians 2:14-15
Saturday Night Live introduced us to a person named Debbie Downer. Debbie had a knack for making any situation dark. While the rest of the crowd was celebrating Debbie would douse the positive feelings with statements that drained the joy from everyone within earshot. In her world nothing was right.
While Debbie is a fictional character, we all know people like her who seem to be able to find something negative to say about anyone and anything. They point out the faults of everything from dress and hairstyles to political opinion. We are surrounded by a culture that seems obsessed by finding the negative in things.
Negative reactions are like one drop of black ink in a gallon of clear water. They can turn an otherwise joyful or good day bad. One negative comment, whether intentional or not, can destroy an entire day, or even a relationship.
Negative reactions imply, intentionally or otherwise, that God isn’t ‘doing His job’. If we truly believe that God is sovereign, and that He loves us then our attitude should show all those around us that He is a good God who can be trusted in the worst of circumstances.
King David states, in Psalm 139 that God has ordained or planned every one of our days from the time of conception until the time of our death. He is involved in every second of our existence. Our Father doesn’t ‘make bad things happen’ randomly to annoy us. He doesn’t bring ornery and mean people into our lives because He is vindictive and enjoys seeing us suffer.
We can say we love Jesus and our desire is to show the world His love but how does that play out when we are cut off in traffic? How do we show Jesus’ love when the server at the restraint gives us lousy service and doesn’t seem to care? How is ‘Grace’ shown when a co-worker accuses us or leaves us a bunch of work because they ‘weren’t doing their job.’?
Paul tells us that as Christ-followers we can make a huge statement by how we react to adversity. Adversity is inevitable. Finances, health issues, natural disasters, politics can seem to stack up against us. People are mean, selfish and demanding. All sorts of things can keep us in ‘Debbie Downer’ mode.
Paul’s words encourage us as Christ-followers to shine as lights of positive thinking in a world of ‘Debbie Downers’. As Christ-followers we don’t deny the fact that adversity exists. We don’t downplay the pain of physical, natural or relational disaster. But we do maintain a thought process that tells the world that in spite of the bad things happening around us we are encouraged because we know there are better days ahead because of Jesus’ love for us.
A proper view of God’s love defeats negative thinking every time. Negative thinking says, “While I believe in God, He’s proven to me that He is either unable to help in time of need or my needs are too small to be important to Him.”
Positive thinking doesn’t say: “Because I believe in God everything will be good and happy, Positive thinking says: “My faith in God will enable me to weather every storm that attacks me because I know that He is love and He will care for me regardless of what happens.
PRAYER: Dear Heavenly Father, I come to you today realizing that all too often I find myself either in ‘Debbie Downer’ mode or surrounded by others who are. I ask that you would empower me by Your Holy Spirit to live about the negative influences in my life. Help me to be a light shining in the darkness. A light that shows the positive aspects of Christ’s love living through me. Amen.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake. Psalm 23:2-3
There are times in our lives when we can become completely overwhelmed by all that is around us. We can be pulled by finances, family issues, relational struggles, health concerns and many other things. In fact, these things of life are just the tip of the iceberg.
While it isn’t mentioned in mental health circles as an official ‘diagnosis’, each of us can be affected by the ‘Messiah Complex’. The Messiah Complex can be described as that thought process that says we are to become the savior of our world. In other words, all that goes on around us is our responsibility to correct, redeem and improve.
The messiah complex is rarely intentional. Usually it sneaks up on us. We take on one more responsibility. Our hearts open up to one more problem. Our compassion is directed towards one more individual’s crisis. Soon, without our knowing it, our minds are filled with concerns that really don’t involve us or that we have no control over. The result is frustration, fatigue and perhaps anger. We become so overwhelmed by all we ‘should do’ that we don’t do anything well.
That’s when Jesus says “Come. Rest in my arms. Take time apart to relax.” In fact, the Psalmist implies that our Good Shepherd demands us to rest in His Rest. The Rest that Jesus promises us is complete rest. It comforts the soul, nourishes the spirit and feeds the physical parts of our being.
When we become distracted and overwhelmed by the cares of this world it gives the enemy opportunity to pull us away from the important things that build our relationship with Jesus. When our relationship with Jesus is weakened our relationships with others will falter as well.
Take some time to evaluate your priorities. The world should not rest on your shoulders. Prayerfully consider what things need to be given over to the power of Christ’s righteousness. When we learn to rest in the Rest that only Christ can give. Take another look at Psalm 23:2-3.
“He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.
Who is the dominant one in our lives? Who is the one who gives rest, strength, comfort and peace? It’s Jesus! We are the receivers. He is the giver of all that we need.
PRAYER: Dear Jesus. I’m tired. I thank You for the fact that you know everything that is on my mind right now. All the stress. All the frustration. All the things that are making me angry. I confess to You that I am taking far more responsibility for things than I can handle. I ask that with the help of Your Holy Spirit you would empower me to rest in your arms. I hand over to you all the things that are troubling me today. In Your powerful name I pray, Amen.
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1
We are free because of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Those who are Christ-followers hold this truth as the foundation of our faith and the motivation for all that we say and do. Our faith is based solely on Jesus Christ.
The entire book of Galatians can be summed up in one word. Freedom. Grace gives us the freedom we need to face the sometimes seemingly insurmountable obstacles in our way on this journey we call life.
Along with those obstacles come intentional or unintentional attempts by the enemy to rip the freedom we have in Jesus from our hands. He is a cunning enemy. He uses circumstances, people and even religion to try to enslave us. When it works we can find ourselves in more bondage than we were in before we came to Jesus.
Paul gives us a two word battle plan to protect our freedom. He tells the Galatian Church, and us, to STAND FIRM! That’s it. Stand. And while you are standing, stand firm. Immovable. Resolute. Unwavering.
Normally we think of defending our freedom in terms of warfare. It’s either fight or flight. We fight like a cornered animal if need be and run like a scared rabbit if necessary. As Christ followers all we need to do is stand. Jesus fought the battle on the cross and in the grave. He won! It’s over. Signed, sealed and delivered. Done. Period.
Standing isn’t normally considered a position of warfare. But standing in the face of adversity takes courage, strength and trust. A story is told of a neighborhood bully known to pick on dogs in the area. The ‘bully’ was a big old tomcat. In his wisdom he’d learned that dogs could only go as far as their chain or fence would allow them to come. He would walk just outside the perimeter of the chain or fence and stand. The dogs would come running until they reached the ‘end of their rope’ and come to a sudden, painful stop. The tomcat simply stood because he knew he was in no danger.
As Christ-followers we can stand in the face of adversity because we know we are free. We stand outside the perimeter of the enemy. He can’t hurt us any longer. We can trust our Savior to see us through and protect us.
Ask the Father to help you stand firm in the battle before you. Develop the faith-muscle you need to be unwavering using the PAS method.
P – Pray. The single most formidable weapon we have as Christ-followers is to pray. God is there and wants to hear your heart.
A– Accountability. Surround yourselves with people who are truly interested in encouraging your gifts, building you up and guiding you according to God’s word. Religion enslaves you. Relationship with Jesus frees you.
S – Scripture. God’s word is His letter to you. In it he holds the keys to how you can stand firm in Him. Read it daily. Study it with your accountability group. Take it with you into battle as you would a shield and weapon. It is not outdated. It is relevant for today.
PRAYER: Holy Father, I thank you for the freedom I have in Jesus Christ. I pray that you would remove the guilt and shame of past mistakes. I invite your Holy Spirit to enter into my life and guide, protect and strengthen me to stand in the midst of the obstacles that are before me. Empower me to stand firm in You. Amen.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. 1 Chronicles 16:34
In Old Testament times the Ark of the Covenant symbolized the very presence of God. For years the Ark had sat virtually ignored in a field outside Jerusalem. David made two attempts to bring the Ark home. The first attempt led to disaster, but in 1 Chronicles 16 the Ark is finally brought to the City of David, its rightful place. The entire city joined in the celebration with music and dancing. God was back on His throne and the people were ecstatic!
David wrote a praise that Asaph, the temple worship leader, led the people in. The song was full of praise and worship to God for His faithfulness throughout the years. God had done exactly as He said He would do in spite of Israel’s inability to follow God.
There is a story behind the scenes each of us needs to be aware of as we travel through life. When the Ark was gone it was as though God’s blessing was absent. The people still went about their daily duties. Worship still happened on a limited basis, but there was something missing, the true presence of God.
Because of Jesus we can experience the presence of God at anytime and anyplace, any time of the day. Unlike the days of King David, we don’t need to rely on an ‘ark’ or a church building to worship God. He is always with us, always loving us, always ready to hold us in His everlasting arms of love.
Sometimes we can feel the way David did when the Ark was gone, as though the presence of God were missing in our lives. It’s easy to let things get in the way of our worship of God and the sense of His presence in our lives. It’s as though we have left Him in the field just as Israel left the Ark in the field. We know He is there. We think of Him occasionally through the day, but have no real meaningful communication with Him.
Many things can cause us to ‘leave God in the field’. For some it’s due to a hectic schedule. We have jobs to get to, friends to visit, school to attend and children to raise. The busier we get the more likely we are to neglect the most important thing: our relationship with God.
We leave God in the field when we become disappointed. Our disappointment may be with people when they let us down. This is especially true when people who claim to be ‘christian’ act nothing like Christ. We get burned by their religious bigotry and hypocrisy
Our disappointment may be with God Himself. We pray and get no answers. We read and don’t understand. Religious ritual becomes a meaningless waste of time and energy we would rather use on the golf course or with friends.
God doesn’t move away from us. We move away from Him in subtle, almost undetectable ways. The beauty of the situation is that we can bring God out of the field. He is always there waiting. His love never fails us. His compassion and mercy are there for us. He doesn’t hold grudges.
As Christ-followers it is imperative that we take God out of the field and bring Him into a prominent place in our lives so that we can feel His presence in a real and marvelous way. Make time on a daily basis to have some honest communication with God. Read His word. Talk to Him as you would a loving father or best friend. He’s in the field waiting for you now. He doesn’t care about ‘why you left Him in the field.’ He just wants to be a vital part of your life.
PRAYER: Father God. I’ve known You were in my life somewhere, but I have missed your presence. I realize today that I’ve let all sorts of things get in the way of our relationship. I don’t pray the way I used to. My Bible has dust on it. I miss you. I’m coming to the field. I ask that you will come back with me. I want to restore the passion I once had to follow you. I can’t do it alone. Empower me with your presence to get over the hurt I feel because of disappointment with You and others. Cleanse me from the emptiness of religion and fill me with relationship with you. In Jesus name, Amen.
These are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father said as he told his sons good-bye. He blessed each one with an appropriate message. Genesis 49:28 (NLT)
Ever notice how many times people ask you, “So, how are you today?” You know they don’t really want to know. The words slip meaninglessly from their lips and once in a while you think it would be fun to tell them how you REALLY are and make them stand and listen to the whole story! Then maybe they’d think twice about asking flippant questions they have no desire to hear the answer to.
We all say things from time to time that are just empty words. Words that we intend to be kind and thoughtful, in reality become empty clichés. If we aren’t careful they even creep into our prayer life. How often have you said ‘grace’ before a meal, thanking God for the food without really giving it a second thought? For most of us we eat way too much food, much of it that isn’t even good for us, while many in the world, perhaps even in our own communities, are going without food for the third day in a row because they just don’t have the money.
One of my most annoying habits in my own prayer life is using the phrase, “And Lord bless my friend _______ today.” One day I thought about what I’d just said. I imagined God listening in and thinking, “Um, okay. I can do that. How should I bless him? I have plenty of options. What do you want me to do for him?” That thought began a pattern of change in my prayer life. A pattern, I’m sad to say, continues to be a struggle. Now, when I pray I try to be specific, or if nothing else ask God for wisdom in how to pray.
The great patriarch, Jacob, was nearing the end of his life. As he addressed his sons he blessed them, but the Bible says he “Blessed each one with an APPROPRIATE message.” As a loving father who had walked many miles through life, who’d seen struggles and pain and knew each of his sons well enough to know that they needed in life, he blessed them with just the thing they needed for the path ahead.
Jacob’s words are an example of our Heavenly Father’s desire for each of us. He knows just what we will need to make it in this journey we call life. God’s blessings for us are not ‘One Size Fits All’. They are tailored for our specific needs, and customized to help us according to our mindset, our emotional make-up, our past.
Spend time with your Heavenly Father. Learn from Him through prayer, regular Bible reading and healthy Christian fellowship. His desire is to bless each of us richly and those blessings come more frequently when we walk close to Him.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father. I thank You for the fact that you know my every need on an individual basis. I thank you that your desire is to bless me according to my own unique, one-of-a-kind emotional and intellectual make-up. No one knows me better than You! I ask that you would empower me to walk closer to you so that I can experience your blessings in my life to the fullest. I also ask that you would help me to learn to bless others in the same way that you have blessed me. Amen.
