SERVING SIX ONE

Proverbs 3:5 tells us “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding.” This is probably one of the most difficult instructions to follow. Just why is it so hard for us to totally trust God and stop trying to figure out things for ourselves? We always try to handle things on our own and leave God totally out of the mix. If we would just trust in the God who made us, loves us and has the absolute best for us, we would be so much better off.

As human beings, we are always depending on our limited knowledge. But the Bible tells us clearly not to depend or lean own that finite understanding. We need to trust in God’s infinite knowledge and understanding. Don’t try to figure things out and go your own way. Instead, put your trust in the One who knows best. He will never leave you nor forsake you. He loves you unconditionally. He is a 24/7, on time, all the time, God, Who cares about everything you do and everything you are going through.

Sometimes it is so hard to trust God. That is because we limit Him to the way we think. But Isaiah 55:8-9 tells us that God’s thoughts are not like our thoughts nor are His ways like our ways. He does not operate nor think with limitations. All things are possible with Him (Matthew 19:26). Things that may seem, and quite literally may be impossible for us, but there is nothing that God cannot do.

That is why Solomon with all of his wisdom, told us to “Trust in the Lord with all of our heart.” He knew that we would not be able to see our way through difficulties, problems, troubles, trials without the direction of our heavenly Father. He also knew that when we do rely on our own vices, we make things worse and we miss out on so many blessings.

For after Solomon told us to trust the Lord and not lean own what we know, he then told us to be sure and acknowledge God. Proverbs 3:6 says “In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.” We need to make a conscious effort to tell God that we need Him. Acknowledge that He is the One who can make things right. Then the Bible says that He will direct our paths.

If we will trust God, and not ourselves, and acknowledge Him, then He will give us the guidance we need to help us. He will help us to see clearly and speak directly to us and lead us in the way we need to go. So trust Him. He will never let you down.

According to the New King James version Hebrews 11:1 tells us, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” The New Living Translation version says “Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us the assurance about things we cannot see.” This tells us a few things that are vital in our walk with God. It also is the foundation of truth that we need to live a victorious life here on this earth.

Let’s examine the words of this well known verse. Let’s start with the word faith. Just what is faith? According to the dictionary (at least the top two entries), faith is confidence or trust in a person or thing. It is also defined as belief that is not based on proof. Now if we combine these two definitions we can surmise the following statement. Faith is believing in someone that we cannot see and trusting in that someone without reservations.

To have faith in God then, we must first believe in Him, although we cannot see Him. As Hebrews 11:6 states,”he who comes to God must believe that He is”… In other words we must believe that He exists, even though we cannot see Him. This is the first and most important part of faith. Once you believe in the Who, then you can trust that He will do!

Now that we have determined exactly what faith is, let’s look at the rest of Hebrews 11:1.It tells us “Faith is the substance”. Substance is what a thing consists of, the actual matter of a thing, and we learned in elementary school that matter is anything that has weight or takes up space. So faith is actually what gives weight or actuality to something.

Faith is the substance of what? It is the substance of things hoped for. Faith is what makes up what we hope for. And what does hope actually mean? Hope is the feeling that we can actually get what we wish we had or that events or circumstances will turn out for the best. So, faith then is the actual matter, the consistency, or what gives weight to what we wish we could have or have happen.

Now let’s look at the final part of Hebrews 11:1. The last part of the verse tells us that faith “is the evidence of things not seen.” Evidence, we all know is proof. Faith is the proof of the things we cannot see. It is our assurance that though our eyes do not behold it, it is a reality.

So let’s put it all together and see what it all means. Faith or trust in God is what gives weight, realness or credibility to what we wish we had. It is our proof of things that we cannot see with our physical eyes.

So don’t doubt. Have hope. Trust in God. Have faith. It is your assurance that things will turn out for good. If you can trust God and hope for the best, then you can have the things you cannot see.

There is no better word than God’s Word, and when we praise Him and lift Him up, He lifts us up too!!! The Bible says, “ If God is for us, who can be against us?” When troubles come and there seems no help the Psalmist declares in Psalm 3:3 “But Thou O Lord, art a shield for me; my glory and the lifter of my head.” He is our shield that blocks the fiery darts of the enemy. He is the lifter of our head, the one Who lifts our forlorn faces up to His, looks into our eyes and reassuringly says “everything is going to be OK, because I am with you and I will never leave you nor forsake you.” And in Psalm 46:1 “God is our refuge and our strength, a VERY present help in trouble.” He is on the job 24/7. He doesn’t leave us when times get tough. When no one else understands, and we can’t even explain how we feel, God is there, always understanding, always ready to hold us, to carry us and to see us through! His peace passes all of our understanding. His loving kindness never ends, and His mercy endures forever!!! What a mighty God we serve!!!

Though we have troubles and the enemy is around us on every side, God does not leave us. He diligently watches over us. His hand is always ready to save those who cry out to Him. There are times when we get discouraged and think that God has left us, but He hasn’t. He never leaves us. All we need to do is call upon the name of the Lord and He will save us.

The Psalmist declared in Psalm 91 that “though a thousand may fall at our side and ten thousand at our right hand, it will not come near us” and that He will give His angels charge over us to keep us in all our ways; they will bear us up in their hands so we won’t even stump our toe on a rock!

God cares about you! He wants to bless you. He wants to take care of your every need. Just ask Him. Jesus declared that many times we do not have what we need simply because we did not ask. So ask, and believe and then you will receive.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.” Psalm 3:5
If you will only trust God and not rely on your own knowledge and limited understanding, and then acknowledge Him by talking to Him, spending time with Him, and including Him in your daily affairs, THEN He will then give you the direction that you need and guide you in the way that you need to go.

So trust Him. He will lift you up!

In today’s society, especially with the economy like it is, with doom and gloom headlines in the newpapers, on the internet and on the evening news, anxiety is a very present and common state. We have become major worry warts. We spend so much time worrying that we are virtually worrying away our lives. Worrying about what others think, worrying about what we will wear, worrying about bills, about taxes, about government, about tests, about mistakes we made or might make, worrying about our future or our kid’s future, worrying about our friends, our family, even about who will win the Superbowl, or over how we look, or how popular we are or aren’t. We are literally worrying ourselves sick.

Studies have shown that anxiety and stress can cause many sicknesses including high blood pressure, ulcers, sleep problems, headaches, immune system deficiencies, memory problems, some forms of cancer and even arthritis. Stress and anxiety can also cause mild to severe depression and even lead to alcohol and drug abuse in attempts to try to alleviate the symptoms.

Worry and stress have been plaguing people for years. People are looking for ways to deal with the added pressures of their day. People want peace of mind. They want to be able to not worry, to enjoy life, to be happy.

Back in 1988, a song came out written by Bobby McFerrin entitled “Don’t Worry, Be Happy. The song became the first
a cappella song to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and it actaully held that position for two whole weeks. Then, in 1989 it won numerous rewards at the Grammys. The song’s message was simple and was repeated over and over throughout the entire song. People sang it. They wore it on T-shirts. Pasted bumper stickers with it on their cars.  Billboards displayed it. The message was so plain and simple, but obviously what people needed to hear–to not worry but be happy.

The Bible gives us the same message. In Luke 12:22, Jesus told His disciples not to worry about everyday life such as if we will have enough food or what clothes we need to wear. He said that life is a whole lot more than food and clothes. Life is about living and when you worry, you are literally wasting away part of it. He went on to say that worry wouldn’t do anything good for you. SO why do it? It will not accomplish anything good.

But how can we deal with anxiety? How can we really overcome it? Philippians 4:6-7 gives the answer.
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

If you will REALLY take your problems, your needs, your cares, your concerns to God ask Him for His help and guidance, and  THEN follow up by thanking Him for taking care of you, you will experience His peace. He will flood you with a peace that is indescribable. But for you to genuinely experience it, you must really trust God.

You must believe that God wants to take care of you. He is a loving Father that wants to take care of your every need.
Luke 12:28-31
“And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you.
Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need.
So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.”

God loves you. He wants to take your burdens. So pray. Tell Him what you need. Know that He hears. Know that He cares. Trust Him. Thank Him. And then experience His peace!

No one is righteous and no one is perfect. Everyone from birth has sin, but God has given us a gift of Grace, and by this gift, we can be made righteous through the blood of Jesus Christ. All we have to do is accept it. The Bible clearly tells us in Romans chapter 3:21-29 that everyone has sinned. There is no one that is exempt. But through the love of our heavenly Father sending His Son to be a ransom for our sins, we can be cleansed and made right with God. This is because of the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he declares sinners to be right in his sight when they believe in Jesus. Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law. It is based on faith. So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law.” If we will only admit that we have sinned and believe what Jesus did for us and accept His incredible gift of grace, we can be delivered from sin and death and live anew in His wonderful love and mercy. And once the Son sets you free, you are free indeed!

“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he declares sinners to be right in his sight when they believe in Jesus. Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law. It is based on faith. So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law.”

Romans 3:21-29

Well then, if we emphasize faith, does this mean that we can forget about the law? No! Only when we have faith do we truly fulfill the law.

Romans 3:21-29

“All you need is love. All you need is love. All you need is love, love. Love is all you need.” These popular lyrics, written and sung by the Beatles, ring out a message of truth. Love is indeed all you need. It’s all I need. Quite frankly, love is all anyone needs, that is, when it is used in the proper connotation. You see, according to the Bible, God is love (1 John 4:8,16). Now if we apply the Transitive property of Algebra which states, if a=b and b=c then a=c. We would see that if (a) all you need is love = (b) God is love then the result would be (c) all you need is God. And yes, He is all you need.