2020-02-17
2 Chronicles 20:12 NIV
With God’s help, King Jehoshaphat overcame not just one army, but three! And his victory teaches us how we can win life’s battles. First, identify the enemy. Many of us have no clue who the real enemy is. We think it’s the person who is interested in taking our job, our spouse, or our money. But many times the enemy is our own attitude! It’s not so much what’s happening that gets us down, it’s our response to the situation. Before you can win on a personal level, you must identify the enemy. Note how Jehoshaphat reacted when he heard “a vast army” was coming against him. He was “alarmed” (vv. 2-3 NIV). It’s a fairly typical human response. We see a big problem, panic, and become fearful about what’s going to happen to us. And in truth, fear isn’t all bad unless we deal with it in the wrong way. We can use it to motivate us to conquer the problem and drive us closer to God. It’s when we get discouraged, give up, get angry, and start asking, “Why me, Lord?” that fear defeats us. If you’re in a situation that’s filling you with fear and anxiety today, remember – God doesn’t respond to need; He responds to faith. So stake your faith on His unshakeable Word and stand on His promise: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10 NKJV). Unshakeable trust in God’s Word is what brings His help.
Soul food: Rom 9:17-11:36; Matt 14:22-36; Ps 149; Prov 4:25-27
2 Chronicles 20:12 NIV
With God’s help, King Jehoshaphat overcame not just one army, but three. And his victory teaches us how we can win life’s battles too. Firstly we need to identify the enemy. It can be quite challenging to work out what or who the real enemy we’re facing is. Sometimes it’s other people coming against us, sometimes it’s spiritual attack, but many times the real enemy is actually our own attitude. It’s not so much what’s happening that gets us down, it’s our response to the situation. When Jehoshaphat heard ‘a vast army’ was coming against him, he was ‘alarmed’ (vv.2-3 NIV). It’s a fairly typical human response. We see a big problem, panic, and become fearful about what’s going to happen to us. Fear isn’t always a bad things, unless we deal with it in the wrong way. We can use it to motivate us to conquer the problem and drive us closer to God. It’s when we get discouraged, give up, get angry, and start asking, ‘Why me, God?’ that fear defeats us. If we’re facing a situation that’s filling us with fear and anxiety, we need to remember that God responds to faith. Let’s have faith in His unshakeable Word and stand on His promise: ‘So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand’ (Isaiah 41:10 NIV). He will never leave us to face our battles alone. He can help us identify our enemies, when our vision has become clouded by fear and uncertainty. And when we have unshakeable trust in God’s Word, we have the strength to deal with the battle we’re facing.
Rom 9:17-11:36; Matt 14:22-36; Ps 149; Prov 4:25-27
2020-02-15
Philippians 2:14 NLT
Ever find yourself complaining when things aren’t going the way you want them to? Or been in a tough situation and told God that this shouldn’t be happening to you? It’s easy to find ourselves in a negative frame of mind when we’re struggling with something. But the Bible repeatedly tells us to stay away from complaining. In Philippians, we’re told to ‘do everything without complaining’. To stop complaining, we need to be honest with ourselves. Once we’re willing to face the truth about our attitude and do something about it, our lives will start to improve. We need to see the root of the problem. Sometimes our complaining comes from an elevated view of ourselves, other times we complain because it’s easier to moan about our lives with our friends rather than be positive. And sometimes it’s because we’d prefer to hold on to the past rather than believe for a better future. When the Israelites left Egypt and entered the desert, on their way to the Promised Land, they began complaining to Moses. They moaned about what they would eat and drink. They even said that they would have been better off staying in slavery in Egypt (take a look at Exodus 14:12). Once we become negative about one or two things, we can find ourselves complaining about everything. And when God takes us out of our comfort zones, we can even start to think we were better off in the past because it was comfortable. Paul says, ‘Rejoice always…give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you’ (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV). God wants us to be thankful, rather than spending our lives complaining about things. So let’s make sure we’re rejoicing not complaining.
Rom 7:1-9:16; Matt 14:13-21; Ps 145:14-21; Prov 4:23-24
Philippians 2:14 NLT
In an old Peanuts comic strip, Lucy announces, “Boy, do I feel crabby today.” Her little brother Linus, always the peacemaker, responds, “Maybe I can help. Why don’t you just take my place in front of the TV and I’ll fix you a nice snack? Sometimes we all need a little pampering to make us feel better.” A few minutes later, Linus brings Lucy a sandwich, some chocolate chip cookies, and milk. “Is there anything else I can get you? Anything I haven’t thought of?” he asks. “Yes,” snaps Lucy, “There’s one thing you haven’t thought of. I don’t want to feel better!” The truth is that some people don’t want to feel better – they just want attention, and complaining is how they get it. Do you know anyone like that? The Bible repeatedly tells us to stay away from complaining. It takes gut-level honesty to ask yourself: “How much of what I say focuses on complaining about the situation instead of trying to improve it? Have I built my life around people who feel the same, people who’d probably be upset if I decided to grow and adopt a better attitude? Am I living in the past, nursing old wounds, refusing to forgive others and myself?” Time alone doesn’t heal – insight does! Jesus said knowing the truth sets us free (See John 8:32). Once you’re willing to face the truth about your attitude and do something about it, your life will start to improve. And one more thought: Paul says, “Rejoice always…give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV). This is God’s will – so do it!
Soul food: Rom 7:1-9:16; Matt 14:13-21; Ps 145:14-21; Prov 4:23-24
2020-01-20
Philippians 2:4 NKJV
When we give to others, we can sometimes be tempted to do it because we want to get something back. Perhaps we’re in need of some encouragement, so we compliment others hoping they will give us a compliment back. Perhaps we want someone to do something nice for us, so we go out of our way to do something nice for them first. Any kind of relationship with another person should be two-way. We should give, and they should give. But we need to be checking our motives. As we become more like Jesus, we’ll realise that we need to be selfless in our giving. We need to be serving others because it’s what Jesus would do, not because we want something back. Jesus said: ‘Love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great’ (Luke 6:35 NIV). He sees everything we do for others, and He sees the attitude we do it with. The Bible says, ‘Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.’ Being selfless doesn’t mean we never speak up about our needs, or take time for ourselves. It means we make sure we’re thinking of the other person, and their needs. It means we do what we can to meet their needs and support them, without expecting them to do it in return. However, we need to avoid being taken for granted. It’s clear when people are using us, or when they don’t care for our wellbeing. If the other person isn’t recognising our needs, we might need to pray about whether we should remain as close to them. God can give us wisdom in all our relationships.
Exo 30-32; Matt 8:18-27; Ps 89:1-14; Prov 2:20
