Good Purpose

for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. Philippians 2:13 NIV

I had a bit of extra time this morning so I read the whole chapter of Philippians 2. It's very uplifting and teachable. There's a part of the verse that calls Jesus' followers to not act in their own interests like the world does, but to reach out and help others and act in their best interests. In a world about me, me, me it's refreshing to know that as Christians we have God's teachings to guide us so that we act accordingly.

But I wanted to focus on the last part of this verse: to fulfill His good purpose. It reminds us that we are not here for us. We are here for him and his purpose. His purpose is to have as many come to believe in him as possible. We accomplish this work in many ways. Sometimes it's having a good attitude at work while others are complaining. Other times it's sharing your experiences in order to help others. We help with prayer, giving and helping. There are many ways to share God's love.

So how will you set yourself apart to be used for God's good purpose?  Use me Lord for your will.

Fear and Safety

Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe. Proverbs 29:25 NIV

We live in a world where we fear man, where we are afraid of our fellow humans. Power hungry leaders threatening annihilation. Domestic terrorist groups threatening civil war. Religious zealots threatening certain destruction of all who don't believe their way. And last but not least, the person down the hall, down the street or down state who might be offended by what we say or believe. I don't say any of this to anyone's surprise. It's also not new to the 21st century. These things have been happening since the dawn of time.

So it's no wonder our stress levels are higher than in years past. It's stressful just waking out your door in the morning. Which makes it that much more important to know that the God of peace is on your side. This verse says he will keep you safe. Your soul is valuable to him and he will ensure you are able to do exactly what he's called you to do.

So when you get up tomorrow and get ready to start your day, thank God for having it under control and for keeping you safe.

All the Noise, Noise, Noise

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 2 Corinthians 3:17 NIV

Some verses speak to me right away; others I dwell on during the day and as I'm reflecting back on my day, I see how God was speaking life to me all during the day. This verse spoke to me right away, but the world got in the way and changed how I view the message from today. How? News articles. Yep - those pesky pop-ups when you're perusing the daily news online. The one that caught my eye was a 'now trending' article on MSN health about a new study just published linking a skin condition to a higher risk of Alzheimer's. The condition? Rosacea. Yeah, that's what I wanted to hear today. For all the doom and gloom going around, all the uncertainty, all the strife, I needed to read that article. I have rosacea! I've dealt with it most of my adult life. And my mother has a form of dementia, not necessarily Alzheimer's and it wasn't 'early onset'. My mother kept her mind active her whole life. She was resourceful, smart, always reading and learning new things. I understand she has diabetes which has probably contributed, but I never thought in a million years she of all people would get dementia.

So then there's me - ack! No doctor I've talked to even knows how rosacea starts, what causes it or what causes breakouts. I've learned over the years what works and what doesn't, but it's always there. Now along with a familial history of diabetes and heart disease, I get a slightly elevated chance for Alzheimer's. Not how I pictured me in my golden years. So of course I looked into another article about how to lower your risk for all kinds of conditions, including forms of dementia.

As I was reading that last article, I thought about my daily verse and that's when I realized God has already taken care of it. Ain't he something? Freedom isn't just about doing what you want or having the ability to do what you want. It's freedom from worry, from pain controlling you, from stress, from fears about what may happen tomorrow, next week or 50 years from now. As the spirit of the Lord dwells in us, we dwell in him, and in him is peace and freedom. Real freedom. I don't need to stress about what may or may not happen in the future. I can prepare today, do my best to take care of myself, do my best at my job, do my best with our finances, do my best taking care of our children, do my best at being a friend. Then today will be over and I start again tomorrow. Taking each day as it comes and making each day count. In that alone there is a sense of freedom and relief. Knowing God is there to help and catch me adds a level of peace my human brain can't even understand but somehow does.

Tune out the noise from the world and listen to the One who created the world. He's all the news you need.

Planners Plan

In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps. Proverbs 16:9 NIV

My first thought: boom. Mic drop. There it is in black and white. We can plan all we want, but God will put us where we need to be.

I recently changed jobs. I had several reasons and did my due diligence by adding up the pros and cons. It wasn't a snap decision and it was almost a year in the making. I desperately wanted out of where I was; God was having none of it. He was teaching me. There were things I needed to know and understand before I could move on. In my pain and stress, God was there holding me up and letting me know it would be ok. He also knew I loved my work, so I would need to get to a place where I could let it go.

So I planned. And planned and planned and planned. I added up my new salary and how it could help. I looked at new career paths and what I could be happy doing. But God needed me to know he was in control. He would put me where he wanted when he wanted.

So if you're like me and a planner, plan away. Just build into your plan enough time for God to do his work on you.

Fire Fuels

Through love and faithfulness sin is atoned for; through the fear of the Lord evil is avoided. Proverbs 16:6 NIV

With love, sin is atoned for. With love, sin can no longer have a hold on you. With love. Not with yelling. Not with cursing. Not with strife. Not with violence. With love. Sin cannot feed on love. Much like we know cancer feeds and grows on sugar, sin grows on anger and hatred. It fuels the fire within and stokes the flames so that it rears its ugly head.

But love quenches the fire. God's love pierces the heart and pulls out the anger and fear and oppression of sin so that it no longer holds you captive. His light allows compassion and patience to live and thrive.

It's what we need in our world. More love, less anger. Be the one to quench the fire, not stoke the flames.

Armageddon

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope. Romans 15:4 NIV

I watched Armageddon tonight. We watched Independence Day last night. And all week we've been reading articles about how the world was ending today or it was the beginning of the end. If we do not know God's peace, this information could make us worry. There's plenty of voices loudly decrying the end of the world, the end of humanity, the end of freedom. We can listen to those but a better idea is to listen to the still, small voice that comes from the one who created the world. I think he would know when it will end.

This verse reminds us that God's words were written for our education and to give us hope for our future. Only God knows when he will return for his people. Only God knows his plans for the transformation of humanity. So why would we listen to fallible humans who only use a tenth of their brain power? Let's listen to the creator, who gives us hope and a future.

Take a Nap

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. Psalm 91:1 NIV

It's Friday night and I've enjoyed dinner and a movie at home with my family. It's been a long week. After about 6 weeks learning my new job and slowly getting accustomed to the work, this week got really busy. It's a good busy and I don't mind hard work and lots of it. I'll come home and work hard too, teaching and taking classes, preparing dinner, cleaning up and taking care of our household. We all have a lot on our plates. Some have more than one job or take care of multiple family units. We live in a very busy culture and a little hard work never hurt anyone.

But we also need rest. Our bodies are not made to function without it. Even God rested after spending six days creating the world. I'd call that a well deserved rest day. In order to find the rest we need and to be able to rest fully and completely, we must have the peace that only God can give. If we rest in him we need not worry about politics, nature events, financial crashes, or forgetting to respond to that email. God is above it all and so we can find the peace we need to rest.

So let the world rage on. God is in control. It's time for a nap.