Where Were You?

Who is this that questions my wisdom
 with such ignorant words?
 Brace yourself like a man,
    because I have some questions for you,
    and you must answer them.

 “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?
    Tell me, if you know so much.
 Who determined its dimensions
    and stretched out the surveying line?
 What supports its foundations,
    and who laid its cornerstone

-Job 38:2-6 (NLT)

In today's reading, is God chastening Job for questioning Him? I don't think so. Instead, I believe God is giving Job a stark reminder. It's a reminder you and I must heed as well.

When things don't go as we expect in our lives, or when we want to go one way, and God wants us to go another, we shake our fist at God and tell Him that we know better than He how to run our lives. We feel we know best. We feel that we know, better than God, what we need. When, in reality, we don't know anything. 

In chapters 38-42 of Job, we see God asking Job some pretty serious questions. I want us to focus on just a couple in verses 4-5. "'Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much. Who determined its dimensions and stretched out the surveying line? What supports its foundations and who laid its cornerstone?" God is asking Job who designed, measure and built the earth. Certainly not Job. Certainly not you or I. Since God laid the foundation for the everything, and since He laid out the intricate little systems that work together for Him, can't we trust Him with the small details of our lives? What part of your life are you rejecting the control of God in? Think About It.

Peace By Jesus

³²Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me.

 ³³These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

-John 16:32-33 (KJV)

As Jesus was nearing the end of His earthly ministry, He was giving His disciples some last minute teachings. What we see in these two verses of Scripture is some warnings, and some comfort. Let's dig in.

Verse 32 says,"Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone because the Father is with me." Jesus is telling he disciples that the time is now here that they will desert Him. He says they shall be scattered. Scattered in two ways. They will be scattered from one another. They would not be together, they will not be with Jesus. In fear of persecution, or in fear in general, they will run away. I read this in Matthew Henry's Commentary, "Troublous times are times of scattering to Christian societies; in the cloudy and dark day the flock of Christ is dispersed."  Secondly, they will be scattered from Jesus. When Jesus was arrested and brought to trial, the disciples were not there to be witnesses for Him. My initial thought is: They spent 3 years with Jesus, learning about the things of the Kingdom, yet when the going got tough, the disciples got going. I just could not understand how they could do that. Then it hit me. When our faith gets tested, or if we get persecuted for our faith, don't we do the same exact thing? Many times, we will leave Jesus at the threat of personal problems. 

Look at what Jesus says in verse 33; "These things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." Jesus is teaching them that they will find peace in no other place than in Jesus. They were about to be scattered because of tribulation and trials. Jesus is teaching them that in they world, they will have trouble. It's the same today. When we try to live like or in the world, all it does is bring on trouble of its own. But, in Jesus we have peace. When the storms of life are raging, we have peace in Jesus. Jesus said in John 14:27, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." He is leaving peace. Have you received that p

eace today? Or are the storms of life keeping you from finding that peace. Jesus is that source of peace. Why? Because he has overcome the world. Jesus has overcome the trials and difficulties the world offers. 

We read in First John 5:4-5; "For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. ⁵Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?" Since Jesus has overcome the world and the problems found there in, then those who have believed in Jesus, have accepted Him as Lord and Savior, have overcome the world as well. We, as Christians, have overcome the tribulations of the world through our faith in Him. Are you living like overcomers? Or, do you allow the troubles, the trials and the tribulations of life to take away the peace that is offered by Jesus? Think About It.

Help For Troubled Times

⁴My heart is sore pained within me: and the terrors of death are fallen upon me.

 ⁵Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me.

 ⁶And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest.

¹⁶As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me.
 ¹⁷Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.
²²Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.
-Psalm 55:4-6, 16-17, 22 (KJV)

Have you ever faced something, a problem, trial or temptation, that seemed so monumental that you were fearful? Sure you have, we all have. David was going through such a time. I encourage you to read all of Psalm 55, for this post, I'm going to look at just a few verses.

David is going through some kind of situation. Look at his words in verses 4-5, "My heart is sore pained within me: and the terrors of death are fallen upon me. Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me." Have you ever been to this point. I'm sure you have. David was fearful, whatever was going on was getting the best of him. Has your heart ever been pained within you? David was so fearful, that he wished he could just get away. Look at verse 6, "And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! For then would I fly away, and be at rest." Wouldn't it be great to be able to just fly away from our problems and situations? In the midst of turmoil, David wishes for wings like a dove so he could fly away. But then, something happens. Something jogs his memory.

Look at verses 16-17, "As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud:  and he shall hear my voice." After coming to his senses about his situation, David remembers that he can call upon God, and God shall save him. You know what? You can call out to God in the midst of your trial and your situation, and God will still be there! David says that he will cry out, and God shall hear his voice. God still hears the voice of those calling out to Him. Do you know what the problem is, though? Often times, you or I cry out to God for help, only to pick up our problem again, and go on our way. Then we sit and say that God doesn't help us any more. That's wrong! Look at what David says in verse 22, "Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee; he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved." When you cry out to God for help and rescue, cast that problem, that trial, that situation on Him. Look what God will do for you, He will sustain you. To sustain means to support, to keep from falling, to maintain. God will support you, He will keep you from falling, He will maintain you in your time of need. Will you allow Him to do that?

Friends, what are you going through today? What situation, difficulty, trial or temptation are you facing this day? Don't go at it alone. Cry out to God for help, then cast your situation, your difficulty, your trial, your temptation onto Him. God is there, are you looking for Him? Think About It.
*source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/sustain

God Can Rescue You

4For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; 5And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly; 6And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; 7And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: 8(For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;) 9The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished: -2 Peter 2:4-9 (KJV)

Do you sometimes feel like you are the only Christian around? Do you feel totally surrounded by people who don't care about God and live life their way? If so, you're not alone. In 2 Peter 2, Peter is warning his readers about false teachers who will be around them. He is warning them about their false teachings, how they are really only looking for themselves. I want to focus our reading on verses 4-9 because Peter provides for us examples of those who are God's own who were surrounded by those who don't know (or care about) God, and how God provided for them.

He starts out with Noah. We all know the story of Noah and the ark. Verse 5 says, "And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;" The world was corrupt during the time of Noah. I am certain that as Noah was building the ark, he took ridicule and scorning. Yet, among the heathens that he lived with, God saved Noah and his family.

Look at verse 6-8, "And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; 7And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: 8(For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)" Sodom and Gomorrah were cities filled with evil and wickedness. Lot was found righteous. God rescued Him.

Verse  says, "The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:" God knows how to rescue you as well. God knows His own. If God would come down and destroy your town, would you be rescued and delivered, or would you be punished? Next time you feel crushed by evil surrounding you, take heart. God was with Noah when He rescued him and his family. God was with Lot when he rescued him before destroying the city. God will rescue you as well. Think About It.