Category Archives: Trust God

Attitude adjustment

Posted on by
Reply

I applied for a new job after several other applicants had withdrawn. I assumed the job was mine. When I heard another candidate had also applied, I started to worry. What if I didn’t get the job? How would I handle the disappointment?

At the time my Bible study group was reading about Joseph (Genesis 37-45). The second youngest of twelve brothers, Joseph had big dreams—literally. He made the mistake of telling his brothers about these dreams in which they bowed down before him. Jealous because he was their father’s favorite, they threw him in a pit, then sold him to passing traders. He was taken to Egypt and became a slave in the household of Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials. God blessed him, though, and he was put in charge of the household.

Joseph thrived until Potiphar’s wife falsely accused him of sexual assault. He landed in prison. But once again God was with him and blessed him. God also gave him the ability to interpret dreams. Ultimately this led to his release and rise to power as the second-in-command to Pharaoh. Twenty-two years after his brothers threw him in a pit, they came to Egypt and bowed down before him, just as his dreams had foretold.

God used bad circumstances (slavery and unjust imprisonment) to work for good, both for Joseph and his brothers. Remarkably, Joseph was not bitter about the trials he had experienced. He told his brothers, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good…” (Genesis 50:20).

Reflecting on Joseph’s story and praying about my situation changed my attitude completely. If God could orchestrate Joseph’s astounding rise to power, I could surely trust him to guide my career path. I felt at peace while I waited to see what would happen.

Whenever we face uncertainty of any kind, we can turn to God in prayer. Asking him to guide our steps, we can wait patiently, trusting that he has not forgotten us. He promises to bring good from any situation, just as he did for Joseph. Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

By the way, after several weeks in limbo, I interviewed for and was offered the job. I accepted. Now I face the uncertainty of unfamiliar tasks and new responsibilities. Having trusted God with the outcome of my application, though, I find it easier to depend on him to help me through this transition. God is good—all the time.

Brave

Posted on by
4

I attended a Girls’ Night Out at a friend’s church, New Life Ministries in Endicott, NY. The focus verse for the event was Psalm 31:34: “Be strong and courageous, all you who put your hope in the Lord!” We received key rings with that verse on one side and a graphic with a single word, “brave,” on the other.

I had memorized a similar verse while teaching Vacation Bible School many years ago, yet somehow I had missed the connection between having courage and being brave. Brave. Isn’t that the opposite of being worried and fearful? Yet being brave includes acting boldly in spite of fear.

Where can we find the courage to be brave? The answer is found in Joshua 1:9: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” We can be brave because we’re never alone—God is always with us.

This week in my Sunday school class, we focused on the story of David. He was just a boy when he fought the giant, Goliath, with nothing more than a sling shot and five smooth stones. “How could David be brave?” I asked the class. “Because he was on God’s team,” answered one four-year-old. His answer resonated with me. If we have put our trust in God, then we’re on his team. We can be brave and face the giants in our lives, whether they come in the shape of worry, fear, resentment or discouragement. Praise be to God!

 

Life is Short—Live It Well

Posted on by
Reply

“Did you see the newspaper this morning?” my supervisor asked. No, I hadn’t. She’d seen an obituary for a woman we had known through PTA when our children were in elementary school. In her mid-50s, she had died from a malignant brain tumor. I was shocked and saddened by her death—my heart goes out to her family and friends.

I considered my response to her untimely death.  I could worry that I might also develop cancer and die prematurely. But that would be foolish.  “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” Jesus said (Luke 12:25). Instead I want to consider the lessons to be learned.

  • Life is short—too short to waste time on fear and worry. I will choose faith over fear.
  • Life is short—I want it to count. I will stop procrastinating and start working toward my goals.
  • Life is short—too short to waste on holding grudges or hoping for revenge. I will choose to forgive myself and others and seek forgiveness from those I’ve hurt.
  • Life is short— I will actively pursue health by eating right, exercising regularly and getting adequate sleep. (See the Daniel Plan for guidance.)

An untimely death is a tragedy, but a greater tragedy is a long life filled with fear and worry. Take a step today towards greater trust in God by coming to know him better. Buy or borrow a copy of Jesus Calling and read a devotion each day. Or open the Bible and read a chapter each day. (Start reading the Psalms if you’re unfamiliar with the Bible.) If you’re not able to trust God, tell him and ask for his help. Change is possible, because nothing is impossible with God.

Have you struggled with worry after someone’s death?

 

Warning Signals

Posted on by
Reply

BEEP. The piercing, high-pitched sound penetrated my consciousness. The battery in the smoke alarm must be dying, I thought, as I rolled over and drifted back to sleep. BEEP. There it was again. I didn’t want to get out of bed to check the battery. Instead I lay there, half awake, dreading the next BEEP.

Worry, like that intermittent beeping, is a signal that all is not well. Too often we tolerate it, just as I tolerated the beeping. It’s better to pay attention. Start by asking yourself, “Can I take some action to solve this problem?” Perhaps you need to make an appointment to see the doctor about the lump you found or call the dentist about the tooth that’s hurting. Perhaps you need to make a phone call to ask why your son or daughter hasn’t come home yet.

If you can’t identify an action that will solve the problem, then worry may be a signal that all is not well on a deeper level. It calls you to examine your life, to look below the surface, to seek out the source of your worry. As Francis Chan writes in his book, Crazy Love, “Worry implies that we don’t quite trust that God is big enough, powerful enough, or loving enough to take care of what’s happening in our lives.”

So take a few moments. Consider what you usually worry about. Ask God for insight regarding the underlying cause. Then ask him to direct you to a solution. Don’t hang back, because Scripture says, “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you” (1 Peter 5:7, NLT).

In case you’re wondering, the beeping eventually woke my husband. He got up and removed the batteries from both smoke alarms before finding the problem:  the carbon monoxide detector. Once those batteries were replaced, we were both able to get some sleep.

Don’t let worry interrupt your sleep. Track down its source, take action when possible, and trust God with the rest.

New Year’s Resolutions

Posted on by
Reply

Do you make New Year’s resolutions? How long do they last? If you’re like me, you’ve forgotten them by February. If you want real change, don’t make a resolution—set a goal. My local public radio station showed me how to set goals that work. Effective goals are:

  • Specific. WSKG set $130,000 as its fall fundraising goal.
  • Attainable. The overall goal seemed unattainable, so they broke it down further, setting daily goals and program goals. Raising $3,000 during the Saturday afternoon opera was doable.
  • Measurable. Progress toward the goal was easily measured by tallying pledges.
  • Time-bound. WSKG planned a ten-day pledge drive and set deadlines for individual matching fund challenges.
  • Positive. They focused on a positive goal, raising $130,000, rather than on avoiding a negative outcome.

Two attitudes also characterized the pledge drive:

  • Persistence. Even though listeners were probably groaning by day 2, WSKG kept asking for pledges through day 10.
  • Celebration. They celebrated the small successes, each goal met which brought them closer to the overall goal. They repeatedly thanked listeners who had pledged.

Did the station reach its goal? The answer is a resounding yes. Pledges exceeded the goal by over $10,000!

What does a pledge drive have to do with overcoming worry? Rather than resolving to worry less in 2012, set a specific, attainable, positive goal. Here are some suggested goals; choose one that will work best for you or write your own.

  • I will learn to trust in God by reading a devotion from Jesus Calling every day.
  • I will develop an intimacy with God and grow in my ability to praise him by reading one Psalm each day.
  • I will develop an attitude of gratitude by writing down three things I am grateful for at the end of each day.

Whatever goal you choose, write it down. Post it where you will see it regularly. Don’t be discouraged if you fail for a day or a week—simply begin again. Remember, you’re not doing this on your own. You have supernatural help. As Psalm 37:5 says, “Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you” (New Living Translation, ©2007).

Please share the goal you set, and check in periodically to let us know how you’re doing. Happy New Year!

 

Gift of Peace

Posted on by
Reply

I still remember the gift my parents gave me for Christmas in 1979. Why? Because it was the perfect gift—a 45-piece set of Lenox Temper-ware® dishes in the Dewdrops pattern. Decorated with impressionistic white daisies amidst a spattered blue sky and rimmed in colonial blue, the plates, bowls, cups, and saucers were beautiful and durable. I was a single student who’d been using cheap melamine dishes, so these were a vast improvement. Even my roommates were thrilled.

As wonderful as those dishes were, Jesus offers a better gift: “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid” (John 14:27). How can we receive this gift? The answer is found in Phil. 4:6-7: “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.”

Simply reading this passage didn’t allow me to receive the gift of peace. What did?

  • I stopped depending on myself and started depending on God. Whenever I faced some difficulty, I’d tell God about it and ask for his help.
  • I recited verses like “See, God has come to save me. I will trust in him and not be afraid” (Isaiah 12:2). As I spoke such verses aloud, I gradually came to believe them—not only in my mind but also in my heart.
  • I started to “thank him for all he has done.” As I took the time to notice how God had answered my prayers in the past, I became better able to trust him in the present.
  • I learned to dismiss fearful thoughts, turning them over to Christ.

Has all worry been banished? No, but worry doesn’t consume me the way it used to. And now if I catch myself worrying, I immediately stop and pray. Usually that’s sufficient to restore the “peace which exceeds anything we can understand.”

What keeps you from trusting God fully?

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Cleaning Out Closets

Posted on by
3

A few years ago a friend sent me a link to an article by Meredith Jordan about giving away twenty-seven things a day for nine days (http://www.gratefulness.org/readings/27_things.htm). The point was to “loosen those attachments [to things] to make room for what’s truly meaningful.” I didn’t count the items I discarded last summer (doesn’t that seem a bit OCD anyway?) but I cleaned out closets, cubbyholes and the basement with my family’s help. I donated bedding to migrant farm workers and clothing to a thrift store. I gave a carload of odds and ends to a friend to sell at his garage sale. I recycled an old computer at the hazardous waste facility and put countless bins of paper out at the curb for recycling. I (gasp!) threw away things that were useless. As each bag or box left the house, I felt a growing sense of freedom. My possessions no longer possessed me.

In her book, Having a Mary Spirit, Joanna Weaver lists twenty-seven things we should clean out of our spiritual closets as well. She includes fear and worry on her list. Of course it’s not as simple as packing up these negative emotions and habits and leaving them out at the curb. We don’t eliminate fear and worry by consciously trying to discard them. Instead it’s a process of turning around, shifting our focus from our problems to the One who has the solutions—the God who created the universe. It’s a process of admitting we are powerless against worry and allowing God’s limitless power to accomplish what we can’t. It’s a process of learning to put our trust in God’s abilities rather than our own.

How can your trust in God grow? I believe the answer is twofold. First, read and meditate on Bible verses which encourage you to trust God. (If you know how to worry, you know how to meditate—simply mull the verse over in your mind.) Try praying a verse back to God. For example, rephrase Proverbs 3:5 as “I trust you, Lord, with all my heart. Help me trust you more.” Then take a leap of faith and start trusting God in small things, to prove whether he’s trustworthy. As your trust grows, you’ll experience a growing sense of freedom from fear and worry. Here are a few verses to get you started.

“Those who know your name will trust in you,
for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.” Psalm 9:10

When I am afraid,
I will trust in you. Psalm 56:3

Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your hearts to him,
for God is our refuge. Psalm 62:8

Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6

“God is the one who saves me;
I will trust him and not be afraid.
The Lord, the Lord gives me strength and makes me sing.
He has saved me.” Isaiah 12:2 (New Century Version)

You will keep in perfect peace
him whose mind is steadfast,
because he trusts in you.
Trust in the Lord forever,
for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal. Isaiah 26:3-4

Have you found other Bible verses that encourage you to trust God? What else helps your trust in God grow?

Scripture taken from The Holy Bible, New Century Version, copyright © 1987, 1988, 1991 by Word Publishing, Dallas, Texas 75039. Used by permission.

Flood Watch

Posted on by
1

God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging. Psalm 46:1-3

Rivers are rising, homes and businesses are evacuated and schools are closed here in Broome County, as remnants of tropical storm Lee pummel the area. I could easily succumb to fear and worry as I listen to the rain pounding on my roof and watch the TV weather report which forecasts record flooding. But instead these verses came to mind. I don’t need to fear because God is my refuge and strength. He is an ever-present help in trouble, whether the earth quakes or flood waters rise.

When storms threaten, do you have somewhere to turn? Who do you depend on?