2018-08-09
Romans 10:17 NKJV
Every day fear and faith will arise inside you, and you get to decide which one will prevail. Somebody wrote, “Two natures beat within my breast; the one is foul, the other blessed. The one I love, the other I hate; the one I feed will dominate.” Fear and faith will always be present in your life, and the one you feed will come out on top. You can’t expect fear to simply disappear. If you focus on your fears, entertain them, and give in to them, they’ll increase. The way to overcome them is to starve them. Don’t give them your time or energy. Don’t feed them with gossip, negative news reports, or frightening movies. Focus on your faith, and each day feed it through God’s Word (See Romans 10:17). The more energy and time you devote to your faith, the stronger it will become. Anytime you feel afraid of something but do it anyway, you reprogram your attitude. In other words, when you feel afraid, it means “go” instead of “stop”; it means “fight harder” instead of “give up.” The most important step you can take to overcome fear is trusting God to do the thing you think you can’t do. No matter how strong a hold fear may have on you, it can be overcome. That’s because fear is in your mind, and your mind can be renewed by the Word of God. Here’s the key: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:2 NKJV).
Soul food: 1 Chr 6:1-7:19; Luke 12:1-12; Ps 119:9-16; Prov 20:19-21
2018-08-08
Matthew 6:34 NLT
Yesterday and tomorrow both clamor for our attention. Yesterday wants us to second-guess our decisions and worry if we did the right thing. That’s wasted energy. As President Harry Truman said, “If you’ve done the best you can – if you’ve done what you have to do – there’s no use worrying about it because nothing can change it.” And tomorrow can also cause you to miss opportunities. Let’s face it, most people arrive at a different destination in life than what they expected – some better, some worse, but all different. So focusing on the destination isn’t necessarily a good idea. Besides, tomorrow may come, or it may not. There are no guarantees. Jesus said, “Don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” Jesus was talking to people who were worried about having the basic necessities in life, like food and clothes. And He said to them, “Don’t worry about these things…your heavenly Father already knows all your needs” (v. 31-32 NKJV). The only place you really have any power – is in the present. Do what you can in the here and now despite your fear, and you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing you’re doing everything within your power to reach your potential. If you project too far into the future, you’ll suffer from the “what ifs?” and your fears will run wild. American author Mark Twain quipped, “I’ve been through some horrible things in my life – a few of which actually happened!” Give your past and your future to God and live your life one day at a time, trusting Him. That’s how you overcome fear.
Soul food: 1 Chr 4:24-5:26; Luke 11:45-54; Ps 119:1-8; Prov 20:15-18
2018-08-07
Galatians 6:9 NKJV
Don’t allow what you can’t do to interfere with what you can do. Boxing manager Cus D’Amato said, “The hero and the coward both feel the same fear, but the hero uses his fear and projects it onto his opponent, while the coward runs. It’s the same fear; it’s what you do with it that matters.” Most negative emotions can be converted into something positive to help us get further in life. Are you afraid of poverty? Convert it into a work ethic. Are you afraid of greediness? Convert it into generosity. Are you afraid of rejection? Convert it into the ability to connect with people. Are you afraid of insignificance? Convert it to the service of others. As economist Roger Babson remarked, “If things go wrong, don’t go with them.” Instead, seek a new way to do it. You can turn your life around by taking the thing that once created fear, and using that energy to do something worthwhile. There are many things in life you can’t control, and there’s no good reason to worry about those things. Writer Harold Stephens said, “There’s a great difference between worry and concern. A worried person sees a problem; a concerned person solves a problem.” How can you become a problem-solver? By focusing on the things you can control. And the first one is your attitude. Remember, what happens to you isn’t nearly as important as what happens in you. The second is your calendar. You may not be able to control today’s circumstances, but you can do your best to plan the time you have. Most of us fear the future because we don’t prepare for it.
Soul food: 1 Chr 3:1-4:23; Luke 11:29-44; Ps 78:65-72; Prov 20:11-14
2018-08-06
Lamentations 3:22-23 KJV
Cardinal J. H. Newman said, “Fear not that thy life shall come to an end, but that it shall never have a beginning.” If you let fear take over your life, you’ll never fully live. The truth is that many of our fears are totally unfounded. Haven’t you found that to be so? Studies show that 95 percent of what we fear is baseless, and the rest are things we must learn to live with. Perhaps the best approach is to adopt the attitude of the poet Gertrude Stein, who said, “Considering how dangerous everything is, nothing is really frightening.” Humanly speaking, there are no guarantees in life. We look to many things to protect us: insurance policies, burglar alarms, travelers’ checks, aspirin, umbrellas, GPS systems, and airbags. But the truth is that life is dangerous, damaging to your health, and will eventually kill you. So you might as well live to the fullest. Shakespeare said, “He is not worthy of the honeycomb who shuns the hive because the bees have stings.” Don’t let fear keep you from taking small steps in your development. You never know where they may lead. There are two things that are ever-present with us in life: fear and faith. And every day you live, you choose one or the other. Jeremiah chose faith. He wrote: “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion…therefore I hope in Him! The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him” (vv. 22-25 NKJV).
Soul food: 1 Chr 1-2; Luke 11:14-28; Ps 78:56-64; Prov 20:7-10
2018-08-05
Psalm 139:14 NKJV
The story’s told of a man who had a morbid fear of thunder, so he went to see a psychiatrist. “You have a condition called brontophobia,” the doctor said. “It’s silly to be afraid of thunder at your age. Just think of it as a drum roll in the symphony of life.” “What if that doesn’t work?” the man asked. The psychiatrist replied, “Then do what I do. When you hear thunder, stuff cotton wool in your ears, crawl under the bed, and sing ‘Mary Had a Little Lamb’ at the top of your lungs until the thunder stops.” Seriously, most fears are based on feelings, not facts. Try to look beyond your fears and uncover the expectations that lie beneath them. For example, if you were raised in poverty you may be afraid to be generous. If you were abandoned you may be afraid to trust anyone, or you may cling to people and try to control them. If you were abused you may fear emotional and physical intimacy. If you were constantly criticized you may be afraid that God won’t forgive you. If you don’t feel beautiful or intelligent, or you’re not from a high-class family, you may be afraid to mix with people or talk to them in case they look down on you. American humorist James Thurber wrote, “All men should strive to learn before they die, what they are running from, and to, and why.” David not only pinpointed the source of his fears, but the source of his self-worth and security: “I…praise You, for I am…wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works.” When you know you have God’s approval, your fears begin to die.
Soul food: John 1:1-14; Matt 4:12-16; Matt 5:14-16; Acts 9:1-19
2018-08-04
Acts 3:4 NKJV
The Bible says: “A certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who entered the temple; who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked for alms. And fixing his eyes on him…Peter said, ‘Look at us.’ So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. Then Peter said, ‘Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.’ And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them – walking, leaping, and praising God” (vv. 2-8 NKJV). This miracle begins with the words: “And fixing his eyes on him…Peter said, ‘Look at us.'” And it continues with the words: “He took him by the right hand and lifted him up.” In certain Zulu areas of South Africa, people greet each other with a phrase that means “I see you.” Could this be God’s strategy for human hurt? First, kind eyes meet desperate ones. Next, strong hands help weak ones. Then, the miracle of God. We do our small part, He does the big part, and life at the Beautiful gate begins to be just that – “beautiful.” To serve others you must first see them, and to lift them you must first love them because you know Jesus does.
Soul food: 1 John 3:11-5:21; Luke 11:1-13; Ps 78:40-55; Prov 20:4-6
