Peace

You know that feeling when you have nothing to do, no where to be and all the bills are paid.  For a lot of people that is peace and don't get me wrong it's a great place to be.  In most of our lives it takes what we deem is the perfect day to get there.  Let's see what we can find in scripture about peace.

Psalm 34:14

Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it.

 

Isaiah 54:10

For the mountains shall depart And the hills be removed, But My kindness shall not depart from you, Nor shall My covenant of peace be removed," Says the Lord, who has mercy on you.

 

Isaiah 26:12

Lord, You will establish peace for us, For You have also done all our works in us.

 

Isaiah 26:3

You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.

 

John 14:27

Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

 

John 16:33

These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

 

Alright, I have added verses from the Old Testament,  Psalms and a couple from John.  What stands out to you?  For me it starts with making sure I'm doing good and seeking peace.  How do we seek peace?  Don't do evil things.  Let us be honest with ourselves..when we do something bad does it keep you up at night?  If you tell a lie does it take all you can to keep the lie covered up?  That makes sense.

Seeking Peace?

It's often noted in the Bible despite me not posting scriptures that even Jesus needed time alone with God the Father.  In order for us to find God who the scripture above says gives peace when need that alone time.  It may be your drive to work or starting the day in prayer.  It might be when you go for a walk.  Those are just a few ideas.  If you wait until the end of the day it usually makes it tough to find that peace because you are physically and emotionally drained.

Peace I leave with you!!!

In John 14:27 Jesus says He leaves peace with you.  He goes on to say "Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."  If we believe He is who He says He is then we should know nothing is impossible for Him and that He also knows the hairs on our heads.  God is involved in our lives everyday.  How much you want to be involved with Him is totally up to you!  Our lives aren't meant to be lived from worry to worry or trial to trial.  We were made to live in peace.

Next time you feel that anxiety coming up in your mind, where you pulse is racing and everything is spirally out of control..STOP!  Find some time away with God by taking a walk, talking to God in a quiet place where not only you can talk but also listen.  I won't guarantee you will hear an audible voice but a scripture may come to mind.  You might find just getting it out to God makes you feel better.  Finally it will let you know how deep your faith really goes.

That's all for this month.  Have a wonderful Christmas and may God make it a peaceful one for you and those you share it with.  God Bless you!

 

 

 

 

 

Worrying

Worry is something most of us do from time to time but what does it mean?  Worry is defined in the NIV Bible as to feel anxious or uneasy.  It's easy to picture someone pacing or not being able to sit still.  You just can't get comfortable.  What do you worry about?  What does worry say about our faith?  Lets take a look at the subject of worry.

Matthew 6:25-34

New International Version (NIV)

Do Not Worry

²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷ Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life^[a]?
²⁸ “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹ Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? ³¹ So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

In this passage we can clearly see that Jesus is telling us how much we are worth.  He compares us to birds?  Our worth is more than those.  He then goes on to question how much faith can we have if we worry about things such as clothes, food, and drinks.  We learn that non believers run after such things but we being believers should not worry but seek God and these things will be given to us. 

 It sounds so easy but often we will go and complain to a friend, coworker, family member about our fears of having enough.  It's our job to seek God and trust Him, to have faith He will provide.  In the Concise Bible Commentary by Don Fleming it says Believers should trust in God and put the interests of His kingdom first.  They are under His rule and they should trust that as day to day difficulties arise, He will provide the answer.  Let's look at some other verses.

Luke 12:24-34

New International Version (NIV)

²⁴ Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! ²⁵ Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life^[a]? ²⁶ Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?
²⁷ “Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ²⁸ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith! ²⁹ And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. ³⁰ For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. ³¹ But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.
³² “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. ³³ Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. ³⁴ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

John 14:27

New International Version (NIV)

²⁷ Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

Proverbs 12:25

New International Version (NIV)

²⁵ Anxiety weighs down the heart,
    but a kind word cheers it up.

Proverbs 28:26
Those who trust in themselves are fools, but those who walk in wisdom are kept safe.
 

 We see in the verses above that once again we are worth much to God and two we are told that worrying can not add a single hour to our lives.  Worrying/Stress leaves us feeling fatigued and often frustrated because we are trying to figure everything out on our own.  In other words to do things under our own power instead of trusting God.  

In John we see that peace God gives us.  He tells us to not be troubled or afraid.  Are you able to do this in your everyday life or are you left with your heart pounding in your chest at the end of the day unable to sleep.  Lets see if we can dig a little deeper about why we worry.

Proverbs 3:5
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

Our fears come from not trusting God and trying to figure things out on our own.  We drive ourselves crazy with questions like what if?  why?  how?  when?  It's in those moments we are trusting ourselves to make sense of things we aren't meant to make sense of.  We are putting strain and stress on our minds and bodies because we are not resting, trusting and praying.  So what can we do?



 Psalm 55:22

New International Version (NIV)

²² Cast your cares on the Lord
    and he will sustain you;
he will never let
    the righteous be shaken.

 Philippians 4:6-7

New International Version (NIV)

⁶ Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
  

To sum things up we are to cast our cares, worries, fears, anxieties on God in every situation.  We are to pray and thank Him.  Our minds should be at peace trusting God and guarding our hearts so that worry doesn't return to our hearts.  We have to believe that He knows what He is doing and that He knows best.  That is faith!  It is essential to our walks and belief in God.   So I leave you with one last verse to think about before you turn to worry.

Philippians 4:8 ESV / 

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Seek God In Your Decisions

Matthew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

So here we are getting closer to Thanksgiving and God has put on my heart to ask are we seeking Him in our decisions?  Do we pray about things or do we just react based on our own emotions, reasoning, thoughts or plans?  We are just His creation...shouldn't we be seeking what He wants us to do in a given situation?


Psalm 25:9
He leads the humble in justice, And He teaches the humble His way.

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight.

 Proverbs 2:6-9
For the LORD gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding. He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk in integrity, Guarding the paths of justice, And He preserves the way of His godly ones. Then you will discern righteousness and justice And equity and every good course.

Psalm 25:12-
Who is the man who fears the LORD? He will instruct him in the way he should choose.

  John 16:13
"But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.

Philippians 2:13
for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure

James 1:5
But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

Jeremiah 29:11 -
'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.

Proverbs 16:9-
The mind of man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.


So based on the Bible verses above He is looking to lead us but we must also be humble, trust God, acknowledge Him, seek wisdom, let Him guide us, direct us and He will put us on the path He has for us.  It is so easy to reason something in your head and not seek God.  Often we don't think we need His help unless we get into a real jam.  Then we humble ourselves and cry out to Him with all we have.  Wouldn't it be less painful and more wise to seek Him from the beginning?  James 1:5 says above that God will give wisdom if we ask for it.

Now let's seek God in our decisions, trials and all that we are going through.  We don't want to learn the hard way so let's do it God's way.  Have a blessed Thanksgiving!

His Love

Never doubt God's love.  Here are some wonderful scriptures to remind us!

Romans 8:37-39 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

John 3:16  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Romans 5:8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God. who loved me and gave himself for me.

Ephesians 2:4-5 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, evenwhen we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ— by grace you have been saved—

1 John 4:9-11 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

Zephaniah 3:17 The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

1 John 4:7-8  Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.  Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

1 Peter 5:6-7  Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you,  casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.

Job 34:19 who shows no partiality to princes, nor regards the rich more than the poor,  for they are all the work of his hands?

Psalm 86:15 But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.

1 John 3:1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

Deuteronomy 7:9 Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations,

Proverbs 8:17 I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me.

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

John 13:34-35  A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.  By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Psalm 136:26 Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his steadfast love endures forever.

Romans 5:2-5 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

Colossians 2:6-7  Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.

Hebrews 12:28-29 Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire.

We are all Sinners!

1 John 1:8-10 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned we make him a liar, and his word in us.

Today I was sick. Physically sick with the flu. I got a phone call I didn't want. I used some very unkind words. I sinned. I tore someone down. It's is so clear that I will never out grow my need for God. I will always be a sinner no matter where I am or who I may become on this planet.

Ask God for forgiveness today. We can never have enough of him in our life. We will always be flawed.