Joy Can Be Yours - Today

Article by Kevin Carson

Regardless of your circumstances today, joy can be yours. Many Christians struggle daily with discontentment, discouragement, disappointment, and some depression. If you are in that group, joy seems like an empty, distant promise with no hope of every experiencing it. This is simply not true. You can begin to have joy today.

Joy is found in Christ.

Notice how Peter reminded his readers of joy:

6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, 8 whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.

Peter explains that the Christian should greatly rejoice or experience joy. When? Now – even though you are experiencing various trials. The reason? Because you rejoice with deep and glorious joy since you will ultimately experience the salvation of your soul.

What about being in Christ brings joy?

Peter stresses (1 Pet 1:3-5) that the joy comes from this confidence as an in Christ person: you are born again which means you will experience salvation. As a born again person, you have a living hope since Jesus arose from the grave. As a born again person, you have an inheritance kept by God that is reserved in heaven for you. And, your salvation by God will be revealed in the last time.

This is the reason for joy. Even though your circumstances may not be what you want them to be, God guarantees you something of much, much greater worth – your salvation. So today, begin making your way toward joy by focusing on what God provides you in Christ rather than focusing on your circumstances.

Posted at: https://kevincarson.com/2018/10/15/joy-can-be-yours-today-1-minute-mondays/

Lay Aside the Weight of Irritability

Jon Bloom

Sunday morning. The Bloom family is bustling to the van for church and a debate arises between two or three about who’s going to sit where. We’re cutting it close for time as it is. Out of my mouth come firm words in a sharp tone, “Stop the bickering! Get in and sit down!”

Saturday, early afternoon. The Saturday family chore list is still long and my anxiety rises when I think that we won’t get done what needs to get done. I move into sergeant mode and start barking brusque orders. Things get done, but the family tone has turned surly.

Weekday night, about 9pm. I enter the children’s bedroom to give the occupants their bedtime blessing and find clothes and toys still on the floor. With a clap of my hands I tersely say, “Get up and get these things put away — now! You were told to do this earlier!” Nothing like a peaceful bedtime blessing.

Irritability. I give in to it too often. It’s time to take this sin more seriously and lay it aside (Hebrews 12:1). Every time I’m irritable I burden myself with the detrimental weights of prideful selfishness and relational conflict. And as my irritation overflows on others, it burdens them too because my harsh words stir up anger in them (Proverbs 15:1).

Does God Get Irritated?

We like to blame our irritability on someone or something else. We try to convince ourselves (and them) that they make us irritated. If they were different, we wouldn’t be irritated. Or we blame it on being tired, ill, or stressed. But Paul diagnoses irritability as a heart disease; a failure to love: “Love . . . is not irritable” (1 Corinthians 13:4–5).

But we need to press on this a bit, because the Greek word that Paul uses here, paroxynō, which the ESV translates as “irritable,” can also be translated as “provoked” or “kindled,” or “incited.” It’s the same Greek word (paroxynō) that the Greek Old Testament uses in Isaiah 5:25 when the prophet said that God was provoked or kindled to anger by Israel. So if love (agape) is not provoked (1 Corinthians 13:5), and God is love (agape) (1 John 4:8), how can it be okay for God to be provoked to anger?

“There are just, righteous, loving, and therefore necessary reasons to be provoked to anger.”TweetShare on Facebook

The answer is that being provoked to anger in general isn’t the issue Paul is addressing. He (and we) knows there are just, righteous, loving, and therefore necessary reasons to be provoked to anger. Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:5is addressing the short fuse, our becoming too quickly or too easily provoked to anger. That’s why the ESV chose “irritable” and why the KJV translators chose “easily provoked.”

When God gets angry, he takes a remarkably slow time to get there (Exodus 34:6). God is provoked to anger, but he is never irritable. He only gets angry for very good reasons, when the glory of his holy righteousness and justice is despised and violated. And his anger, though when unleashed is the most devastating and terrifying thing any conscious being can experience, is always thoughtful, faultlessly appropriate, and perfectly measured. And like God, we too are to be “slow to anger” (James 1:19). We are to be angry, but not sin (Ephesians 4:26).

The Selfishness of Irritation

Our irritability never has its roots in the soils of righteousness. It springs out of the soil of selfishness and springs up fast, like the sin-weed that it is. We get irritated or easily provoked, not when God’s righteousness or justice is scorned, but when something we want is being denied, delayed, or disrupted. It works like this:

• When I’m weary I want rest, but if it’s denied/delayed/disrupted I get irritated.

• When I’m sick or in pain I want relief, but if it’s denied/delayed/disrupted I get irritated.

• When I’m preoccupied I want uninterrupted focus, but if it’s denied/delayed/disrupted I get irritated.

• When I’m running late I want to avoid appearing negligent, but if it’s denied/delayed/disrupted I get irritated.

• When I’m disappointed I want my desire fulfilled, but if it’s denied/delayed/disrupted I get irritated.

• When I’m fearful I want escape from a threat, but if it’s denied/delayed/disrupted I get irritated.

• When I’m uncertain I want certainty, preferably reassuring, but if it’s denied/delayed/disrupted I get irritated.

• When I’m enjoying something I want to continue until I wish to be done, but if it’s denied/delayed/disrupted I get irritated.

The reason irritability is unloving, unrighteous anger is that it is a selfish response to an obstacle to our desire. What we desire may not be sinful, but a selfish response to its denial, delay, or disruption is a failure to trust God at all times (Psalm 62:8) — and often a failure to value, love, and serve another human soul.

“There is never a right time for irritability. Love is not irritable.”TweetShare on Facebook

Jesus didn’t die for our punctuality, earthly reputation, convenience, or our leisure. But he did die for souls. It is likely that the worth of the soul(s) we’re irritable with is infinitely more precious to God than the thing we desire. We must not dishonor God, whose image that person bears, by being irritable with them. There are necessary times for considered, thoughtful, measured, righteous, loving anger at priceless but sinful souls. But there is never a right time for irritability. Love is not irritable.

S.T.O.P. Being Irritable

If you’re like me and have cultivated over the course of your life a habitual indulgence in selfish irritation, it’s going to take some hard work to retrain ourselves in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16). We need something simple to call to mind when the oft-pulled irritation trigger is squeezed. This might be helpful:

• S. — Stop, repent, and ask. We must awkwardly stop immediately — even mid-rant — to repent of our sin, and ask, “What am I desiring that is being denied, delayed or disrupted?”

• T. — Trust a promise. Collect promises like 2 Corinthians 9:8, Philippians 4:19, and Philippians 4:11–13 to trust that combat your areas of temptation to irritation.

• O. — Obey. Remember that your emotions are gauges, not guides. Don’t let irritation reign in you (Romans 6:12). As you obey 1 Corinthians 13:5in faith you will find that your emotions will, however reluctantly at first, follow. Love obeys (John 14:15).

• P. — Plan. Yes, plan. More forethought and intention can be a spiritual discipline, an act of love, and a weapon against sin by avoiding temptations to irritability. Ask yourself, “When am I frequently irritable?” To test your self-understanding, ask this question of those who know you best (and often may be the recipients of your irritation). And based on the answers, seek to put into place some systems and habits that will remove irritable stumbling blocks from your path. Pursue the escape from temptation offered by the Lord (1 Corinthians 10:13) by taking advantage of the grace of planning.

Don’t be discouraged by the fact that this is hard going at first. Changing ingrained habits is hard work. But it is possible through Christ who strengthens us (Philippians 4:13). Keep working at it. Faithful effort to lay aside this weight will result in lighter, more loving, and more joyful faith-running down the road.

Jon Bloom (@Bloom_Jon) serves as author, board chair, and co-founder of Desiring God. He is author of three books, Not by Sight, Things Not Seen, and Don’t Follow Your Heart. He and his wife live in the Twin Cities with their five children.

Article posted at: https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/lay-aside-the-weight-of-irritability?utm_campaign=Daily+Email&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=66595519&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_OYEzvfP0bRbvnKosKkFprg5vZ1d6BJivUgHq-r4ywLBd_8lqs1yK38CvM2efAV_aS6MPvUl1Iozk-EjHXhthpKgL5Zw&_hsmi=66595519

How To Diagnose Your Discouragement

Article by Christine Hoover

We sat in the sun and its heat beat down in the same way my heart beat up. I felt sunny, as if my heart were strolling along and whistling back at the optimistic blue sky. But my friend was a different kind of blue, and she told me why, and her tears sprang easily. I could see so clearly how God was using her and moving in her and gifting her and loving her, but her heart was clouded by that constant and persistent enemy: discouragement.

The questions I asked my friend and the words I spoke over her in response to her discouragement came in quite handy, for within the day the clouds rolled in on my own sun.

Discouragement feels much like an overcast day, doesn't it? Heavy, foggy, and cold. The clouds rolled in on me for various reasons--someone found my work distasteful, a child dodged (again) the wisdom I'd tried to impart, the endless demands kept endlessly demanding of my best energy and attention, several seemingly insurmountable obstacles jumped into my view.

I always know the clouds have rolled in when I find myself jumbled and uncertain, wondering most of all if what I'm doing for the Lord is worth the effort.

We all face the cloudy days. Though it is a worthy conversation, I'm not talking about depression or mental illness here; I'm talking about the days when we question if our lives matter, if what we're doing counts for anything, if God is at work. I'm referring to what Hebrews 12:12 calls "drooping hands and weak knees": the discouragement that comes with simply living.

The Christian is not immune to discouragement. In fact, because the Christian life is a fight against sin and flesh and all their wayward children, we may often find ourselves knocked down, weary, and needing to get back up again while feeling we lack the strength to do it.

This time, when the clouds rolled in, I thought back to my friend. She'd ask me, "How do you get out of your funks?" And I'd been so certain of my answer on that sunny day. Now, on the cloudy one, I needed to put into practice what I'd offered her. I needed to go back to the questions I ask myself in order to diagnose my discouragement.

What is Actually Happening?

Emotions easily rise to the surface when the clouds roll in, but they aren't always truth-speaking. I may feel discouraged or restless or that my work is pointless, but are these feelings true? My first step in diagnosing discouragement is to prayerfully dig down to the root issue that's causing me consternation. I ask myself these questions:

• What am I actually wishing for or hoping for in this circumstance? Is it a certain outcome or result? And is that outcome or result concerned with self-glory or God-glory?

• What was I doing in the moments before I recognized my discouragement? Was I comparing myself to someone on social media? Was I attempting to control a situation and not getting my way? Was I scrolling through an internal litany of worries or possibilities that make me anxious?

• Am I focused on being faithful or rather on how I (or my children) appear to other people? Am I doing what I'm doing for the Lord or am I rather looking for some form of validation?

• Where is my gaze? Am I staring hard at my discouragement, feeding and fueling it? Or am I making intentional efforts to respond to it with a God-ward response?

How Am I Responding or Have I Been Responding?

Noticing and acknowledging discouragement means I must also notice and acknowledge how I've been responding to it. My natural response is often an attempt at control: to work harder, to prove myself, and to overcome the obstacles in my life through self-righteousness. This is not a God-ward response to discouragement. In thinking through a response, I must ask myself these questions:

• God commands me not to be dismayed or fearful or full of worry. He says that I'm instead to "cast all my cares upon him because he cares for me." Am I casting my cares on him or holding them tightly to myself in worry or despair?

• Am I looking to other people to magically "fix" my situation and, therefore, rescue me from my discouragement? 

• Am I acting from a belief that if I work harder next time, I can prevent my own discouragement?

• Am I receiving the gifts of God's care that he's instituted for me: am I getting enough sleep? Am I getting exercise? Am I spending time with friends? Am I taking time off from work? Am I placing myself within the care of the Church through my presence, my commitment, and my relationships?

• After I've cast my cares upon the Lord, do I need to talk to someone about my discouragement? 

• What would it look like for me to trust God in what I'm facing?

What is True?

After diagnosing why I'm discouraged, I must then digest what is true.

• What does God require of me? The answer is always faith and obedience. Am I living from a different answer?

• Have I forgotten that Jesus said, "In this world you will have trouble"? How is my discouragement pointing me to him in order to "take heart" by the One who's overcome?

• How is God caring for me? How has he provided for me in the past? How does he promise he will care for me in the future? (It helps for me to write down specifics.) Do I believe him? 

• What do I see God doing in and around me? Am I only rehearsing a litany of my worries or am I purposefully noticing and thinking on the ways I'm seeing and experiencing God's goodness?

• Am I frustrated with a circumstance that is out of my control? How will I trust God in it?

• What specific verses or attributes of God speak to my discouragement? 

The greatest truth in my discouragement is that God is with me. And this is true for you as well. In whatever you face – discouragement or something deeper – God is with you at every turn. As you consider a diagnosis for your discouragement, above all, look to the Lord and wait patiently on him. The clouds may last for a time, but the sun will shine again.

Christine Hoover, a Regular Contributor to For The Church, is a Bible teacher and the author of several books, including Messy Beautiful Friendship and her latest book, Searching For Spring: How God Makes All Things Beautiful in Time. You can follow her on Twitter at @christinehoover.

Article posted at: https://ftc.co/resource-library/blog-entries/how-to-diagnose-your-discouragement

Depression: God is Not Silent When We Suffer

If we know anything about God, we know that He comes close to those who suffer, so keep your eyes open for Him.

By Edward T. Welch

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Never has so much been crammed into one word. Depression feels terrifying. Your world is dark, heavy, and painful. Physical pain, you think, would be much better—at least the pain would be localized. Instead, depression seems to go to your very soul, affecting everything in its path.

Dead, but walking, is one way to describe it. You feel numb. Perhaps the worst part is that you remember when you actually feltsomething and the contrast between then and now makes the pain worse.

So many things about your life are difficult right now. Things you used to take for granted—a good night’s sleep, having goals, looking forward to the future—now seem beyond your reach. Your relationships are also affected. The people who love you are looking for some emotional response from you, but you do not have one to give.

Does it help to know that you are not alone? These days depression affects as much as 25 percent of the population. Although it has always been a human problem, no one really knows why. But what Christians do know is that God is not silent when we suffer. On every page of Scripture, God’s depressed children have been able to find hope and a reason to endure. For example, take 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (ESV):

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

Come to God with your suffering

You can start to experience the inward renewal that the apostle Paul experienced when you come to God with your suffering. God seems far away when we suffer. You believe that He exists, but it seems as if He is too busy with everything else, or He just doesn’t care. After all, God is powerful enough to end your suffering, but He hasn’t.

If you start there, you’ll reach a dead end pretty quickly. God hasn’t promised to explain everything about what He does and what He allows. Instead, He encourages us to start with Jesus. Jesus is God the Son, and He is certainly loved by his heavenly Father. Yet Jesus also went through more suffering than anyone who ever lived!

Here we see that love and suffering can co-exist. And when you start reading the Bible and encounter people like Job, Jeremiah, and the apostle Paul, you get a sense that suffering is actually the well-worn path for God’s favorites. This doesn’t answer the question, Why are you doing this to me? But it cushions the blow when you know that God understands. You aren’t alone. If we know anything about God, we know that He comes close to those who suffer, so keep your eyes open for Him.

God speaks to you in the Bible

Keep your heart open to the fact that the Bible has much to say to you when you are depressed. Here are a few suggestions of Bible passages you can read. Read one each day and let it fill your mind as you go about your life.

• Read about Jesus’ suffering in Isaiah 53 and Mark 14. How does it help you to know that Jesus is a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief?

• Use the Psalms to help you find words to talk to God about your heart. Make Psalm 88 and Psalm 86 your personal prayers to God.

• Be alert to spiritual warfare. Depressed people are very vulnerable to Satan’s claim that God is not good. Jesus’ death on the cross proves God’s love for you. It’s the only weapon powerful enough to stand against Satan’s lies. (Romans 5:6-8, 1 John 4:9,10)

• Don’t think your case is unique. Read Hebrews 11 and 12. Many have walked this path before you and they will tell you that God did not fail them.

• Remember your purpose for living. (Matthew 22:37-39, 1 Corinthians 6:20,  2 Corinthians 5:15, Galatians 5:6)

• Learn about persevering and enduring. (Romans 5:3, Hebrews 12:1, James 1:2-4)

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

Try one step at a time

Granted, it seems impossible. How can someone live without feelings? Without them you have no drive, no motivation. Could you imagine walking without any feeling in your legs? It would be impossible.

Or would it? Perhaps you could walk if you practiced in front of a large mirror and watched your legs moving. One step, wobble, another step. It would all be very mechanical, but it could be done.

People have learned to walk in the midst of depression. It doesn’t seem natural, though other people won’t notice either the awkwardness or the heroism involved. The trek begins with one step, then another. Remember, you are not alone. Many people have taken this journey ahead of you.

As you walk, you will find that it is necessary to remember to use every resource you have ever learned about persevering through hardship. It will involve lots of moment by moment choices: 1) take one minute at a time, 2) read one short Bible passage, 3) try to care about someone else, 4) ask someone how they are doing, and so on.

You will need to do this with your relationships, too. When you have no feelings, how to love must be redefined. Love, for you, must become an active commitment to patience and kindness.

Consider what accompanies your depression

As you put one foot in front of the other, don’t forget that depression doesn’t exempt you from the other problems that plague human beings. Some depressed people have a hard time seeing the other things that creep in—things like anger, fear, and an unforgiving spirit. Look carefully to see if your depression is associated with things like these:

Do you have negative, critical, or complaining thoughts? These can point to anger. Are you holding something against another person?

Do you want to stay in bed all day? Are there parts of your life you want to avoid?

Do you find that things you once did easily now strike terror in your heart? What is at the root of your fear?

Do you feel like you have committed a sin that is beyond the scope of God’s forgiveness? Remember that the apostle Paul was a murderer. And remember: God is not like other people—He doesn’t give us the cold shoulder when we ask for forgiveness.

Do you struggle with shame? Shame is different from guilt. When you are guilty you feel dirty because of what you did; but with shame you feel dirty because of what somebody did to you. Forgiveness for your sins is not the answer here because you are not the one who was wrong. But the cross of Christ is still the answer. Jesus’ blood not only washes us clean from the guilt of our own sins, but also washes away the shame we experience when others sin against us.

Do you experience low self-worth? Low self-worth points in many directions. Instead of trying to raise your view of yourself, come at it from a completely different angle. Start with Christ and His love for you. Let that define you and then share that love with others.

Will it ever be over?

Will you always struggle with depression? That is like asking, “Will suffering ever be over?” Although we will have hardships in this world, depression rarely keeps a permanent grip on anyone. When we add to that the hope, purpose, power, and comfort we find in Christ, depressed people can usually anticipate a ray of hope or a lifting of their spirits.

FREQUENTLY-ASKED QUESTIONS

Is it okay to get medication?

The severe pain of depression makes you welcome anything that can bring relief. For some people, medication brings relief from some symptoms. Most family physicians are qualified to prescribe appropriate medications. If you prefer a specialist, get a recommendation for a psychiatrist, and ask these questions of your doctor and pharmacist:

• How long will it take before it is effective?

• What are some of the common side effects?

• Will it be difficult to determine which medication is effective (if your physician is prescribing two medications)?

From a Christian perspective, the choice to take medication is a wisdom issue. It is rarely a matter of right or wrong. Instead, the question to ask is, What is best and wise?

Wise people seek counsel (your physicians should be part of the group that counsels you). Wise people approach decisions prayerfully. They don’t put their hope in people or medicine but in the Lord. They recognize that medication is a blessing, when it helps, but recognize its limits. It can change physical symptoms, but not spiritual ones. It might give sleep, offer physical energy, allow you to see in color, and alleviate the physical feeling of depression. But it won’t answer your spiritual doubts, fears, frustrations, or failures.

If you choose to take medication, please consider letting wise and trusted people from your church come alongside of you. They can remind you that God is good, that you can find power to know God’s love and love others, and that joy is possible even during depression.

What do I do with thoughts about suicide?

Before you were depressed, you could not imagine thinking of suicide. But when depression descends, you may notice a passing thought about death, then another, and another, until death acts like a stalker.

Know this about depression: It doesn’t tell the whole truth. It says that you are all alone, that no one loves you, that God doesn’t care, that you will never feel any different, and you cannot go on another day. Even your spouse and children don’t seem like a reason to stay alive when depression is at its worst. Your mind tells you, Everyone will be better off without me. But this is a lie—they will not be better off without you.

Because you aren’t working with all the facts, keep it simple. Death is not your call to make. God is the giver and taker of life. As long as He gives you life, He has purposes for you.

One purpose that is always right in front of you is to love another person. Begin with that purpose and then get help from a friend or a pastor.

Depression says that you are alone and that you should act that way. But that is not true. God is with you, and He calls you to reach out to someone who will listen, care, and pray for you.

Article Posted at: https://www.familylife.com/articles/topics/life-issues/challenges/mental-and-emotional-issues/depression-god-is-not-silent-when-we-suffer/

God’s Peace Is Different From the World’s Peace

Article by Nivine Richie

People everywhere search for peace. They sing songs about it and travel on pilgrimages to find it. They even wage war to protect it. Many wealthy, famous, and powerful people would trade everything for just one moment of peace. What they often find, however, is the world’s false peace which is different from the peace offered by Jesus:

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. (John 14:27)

The peace offered by the world is an empty promise and can only bring temporary comfort. God’s peace is a permanent peace offered by the only One who can be trusted to keep his Word and heal our sin.

The world’s peace is fleeting and changes with circumstances.

During times of prosperity, nations experience temporary peace. But when economies struggle, countries find themselves on the brink of civil war as well as war with their neighbors. The peace of the world is a precarious thing. Conflict erupts when people are hungry; peace disappears when circumstances turn ugly:

Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who lead my people astray, who cry “Peace” when they have something to eat, but declare war against him who puts nothing into their mouths. (Micah 3:5)

The world’s peace is built on the weak foundation of compromise.

In the Old Testament, God warned the Israelites that if they inter-married for political reasons, they would face the temptation to compromise their love for the one true God and end up serving false gods. This compromise, though it would create a temporary absence of conflict, would ultimately lead to destruction:

Be careful not to make a treaty with the inhabitants of the land that you are going to enter; otherwise, they will become a snare among you. (Exodus 34:12, NIV)

Therefore do not give your daughters to their sons, neither take their daughters for your sons, and never seek their peace or prosperity, that you may be strong and eat the good of the land and leave it for an inheritance to your children forever. (Ezra 9:12)

The world’s peace ignores the root of the problem.

When asked, “What’s wrong with the world today?” many will point to volatile stock markets, corrupt governments, disappearing rainforests, poor diets, lack of healthcare, broken families, overcrowded schools, and more. The world tries to fix these problems by doing good: feeding children, building wells, regulating markets, conserving wildlife, funding charter schools, and thereby achieving a type of peace.

The world’s peace tries to fix the symptoms of sin but fails to see how the root of the problem is the sin-disease itself, something that can only be healed by Christ—not by money, regulation, or reform. Dealing with the symptoms of sin but failing to diagnose the sin itself is not new. In the Old Testament, the false prophets treated sin “lightly” and proclaimed the problem “solved” when it wasn’t:

They have healed the wound of my people lightly, saying, “Peace, peace,” when there is no peace (Jeremiah 6:14).

Precisely because they have misled my people, saying, “Peace,” when there is no peace, and because, when the people build a wall, these prophets smear it with whitewash. (Ezekiel 13:10)

In contrast to the world’s promise of peace, God’s peace is permanent and firmly grounded in his Word. He doesn’t ignore our sin—he heals it, making his peace a different kind of peace from what we find in the world.

God doesn’t ignore our sin—he heals it.

CLICK TO TWEET

God’s peace is permanent and secure.

When circumstances are free of conflict, we enjoy momentary peace. But when we face difficult relationships, health problems, and financial crisis, the momentary quiet is disrupted and chaos rules the day.

Our God offers peace in the midst of chaos. His peace doesn’t change with the circumstances; it is secure in spite of the circumstances.

“For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,” says the Lord, who has compassion on you. (Isaiah 54:10)

“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)

God’s peace is built on the sure foundation of his Word.

Young or old, male or female, we’ve all experienced the pain of a broken promise. No matter how much our families, friends, and coworkers love us, at some point, someone will disappoint us. And despite our best intentions, we are likely to disappoint someone else by saying one thing and doing another. God’s Word, however, can be trusted. He never contradicts himself or acts in a way that is out of character. He will never disappoint.

Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble. (Psalm 119:165)

You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. (Isaiah 26:3)

God’s peace is ours because Jesus heals our root of sin.

All religions other than true Christianity have one thing in common: They try to achieve peace with God by doing works and following rules. Christianity is different.

In Christ, we are offered peace with God because we who “once were far off” (Ephesians 2:13) have been reconciled to God through Jesus’ death and resurrection. Jesus’ sacrifice addresses the root of the problem that the world ignores. By his sacrifice, he bridged the gap that sin inserted between us and God. He took the punishment for our sin and, in exchange, he gives us peace with God.

But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5)

For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility. (Ephesians 2:14)

And the effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever. (Isaiah 32:17)

While we experience eternal peace through reconciliation with God in Christ, we also receive the gift of his Holy Spirit. Because of him, we enjoy the blessing of peace in our daily lives—even when we find ourselves in the midst of turmoil.

Nivine Richie is a women’s Bible study author and teacher in Wilmington, N.C., where she lives with her husband and two grown children. She is the author of Enduring Faith: An 8-Week Devotional Study of the Book of Hebrews. A university finance professor, she is actively involved in the Christian faculty association on campus. Nivine has participated in and taught many small group studies over the years, and she seeks to help others launch their own small groups. She loves the coast, camping, and a good cup of coffee. Find her at www.unfoldinghisword.com.

Article posted at:  https://unlockingthebible.org/2018/08/gods-peace-different-worlds-peace/

Don’t Trust the Peace in Your Heart

Article by Matt Rogers

It’s become a go-to answer to justify our actions.

Sarah is a high-school senior trying to determine where she will go to college. After four campus tours, she tells her parents that she “just feels a peace” about a certain school. Or a businessman considering a new career venture might quip, “I know it’s risky, but I just feel a peace that this is what I should do.”

When an internal sense of peace becomes the ultimate rationale for decision-making, no one can question you. It’s the ultimate mic drop—akin to saying God told you to do something.

Who’s gonna say God didn’t, or that your sense of peace is wrong?

Important Decisions

This might not be a big deal in morally neutral decisions, like selecting a college or our next entrepreneurial venture. But it’s a massive issue when it bleeds over to choices in other areas of life—which it almost always does.

What about when a sense of peace serves as the basis for choosing a church, even if the church preaches an impoverished gospel or lacks godly leadership?

Or when we justify a decision to end a contentious marriage because we simply “feel peace” when we’re apart?

Or when we assume a homosexual relationship must be God’s design because we have peace?

It sounds like a virtuous practice. After all, doesn’t God want us to experience peace? Isn’t internal clarity a sign of his blessing? Would he really want us to make a decision that didn’t yield immediate peace? Surely not.

Broken Compass

Unfortunately, our internal compass is fundamentally broken due to the fall. Apart from Christ, our feelings are wildly deceptive (Jer. 17:9). Our depraved natures can align feelings of peace with actions that betray God’s good design. We feel peace when we embrace our fallen nature, because we are acting consistent with that nature when we sin.

Responding to the gospel through the power of the Spirit, our nature is transformed. We are given new hearts that long to obey God and worship him rightly. When believers sin, then, they are acting against their new nature. Sin will increasingly feel grotesque and will fail to bring peace.

So, does this mean that those of us who claim to be Christians can trust our sense of peace? Maybe. But maybe not—for at least two reasons.

1. We may not actually have a new heart.

A sense of peace about ungodly actions may reveal that a person hasn’t undergone the radical heart reorientation that comes through genuine conversion. Regardless of someone’s religious pedigree, if they remain dead in sin, their internal compulsion won’t be in the direction of righteousness. Peace, then, becomes an ungodly fruit that unmasks a person as a false believer.

2. Christians may be deceived by sin that clings closely.

Regenerate believers should find a distaste for the sins that once brought joy and peace. Yes, they will remain susceptible to sin, and will often fall prey to its lure, but they will also respond differently. Sin will bring pain where it once brought pleasure. It will produce genuine repentance where it once brought mere momentary change.

Imagine a true Christian who rationalizes a certain sinful practice. At first the sin may bring conviction, but over time this inner sense of disquiet begins to wane. Sin may even seem justifiable, particularly if obeying God brings discomfort or pain.

Take the classic case of a Christian teenager dating an unbeliever. She knows the relationship is doomed—he doesn’t love God, and he’s leading her down the wrong path. But to not date him is to be alone, and who wants to be alone? The pain of loneliness outweighs the pain of an ungodly relationship, so she travels down the path so many have walked before her. Over time, she sears her conscience to the Spirit’s urging, and trains her heart to feel peace in an unhealthy relationship. We all know how that story ends.

There must be a better foundation for the decisions we make. Two questions are far more helpful in decision-making than simply “Do I feel peace?”

1. Does God’s Word Speak to This Issue?

If the Bible authoritatively speaks to an issue, then it doesn’t matter how we feel—the Bible is always right. Certainly, those who desire to pursue aberrant behavior will seek to reinterpret Scripture to justify their situation and the moral uprightness of their actions. But God’s Word must trump every sense of exceptionalism we feel.

For example, since Scripture speaks clearly on issues of sexuality, we must heed its counsel, deny our longings, and repent of our sin—even if embracing sin gives us peace. Since the Bible speaks clearly on issues of Christian love, we must seek our enemy’s best interests and love them as Christ loved us—even if doing so brings heartache and pain.

2. Do God’s People Speak to This Issue?

Christian community is a second checkpoint to help clarify our actions. We must be careful here, though. Just as we can always twist and distort the Bible to rationalize our actions, so we can always find a professing Christian or two who will justify our actions. Ironically, such support may come from those seeking greater comfort for their own sin.

If mature believers challenge our actions, we should heed their warning—even if doing so doesn’t bring peace to our hearts.

And yet the church is where believers train their hearts to find joy, peace, and contentment through obedience to Christ, where they can walk alongside one another to encourage holiness and discourage sin. In the church, we should find others who love us enough to point us to the forgiveness found in Jesus. If mature believers challenge our actions, we should heed their warning—even if doing so doesn’t bring peace to our hearts.

Right Order, Right Peace

This is where our internal compass may come into play. If the Bible encourages our choice (or at least doesn’t forbid it), and if fellow believers say it’s in our best interest, then we can ask, “Do I have a sense of peace about this decision?” or perhaps better, “Does God’s Spirit within me confirm this is the right thing to do?”

The problem isn’t the question, then; it’s the order. If we first ask what brings us peace, then we will make Scripture say what we want and find other people who agree with us. But, if we first ask what God’s Word says, then what his people support, we can put our sense of peace in its proper place—and walk confidently into decisions that will shape our lives.

Matt Rogers (MDiv, PhD, Southeastern Seminary) serves as pastor of The Church at Cherrydale in Greenville, South Carolina. He is the author of three books, including Aspire: Develop and Deploying Disciples in the Church (TIPS), Seven Arrows: Aiming Bible Readers in the Right Direction (Rainer Publishing), and Mergers: Combining Churches to Multiply Disciples. (Equip to Grow Press). Matt and his wife, Sarah, have four children. Follow him on Twitter.

Article posted at:  https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/dont-trust-peace-heart/

Evaluate Your Day Before It Begins

Article by Matthew Westerholm

“Was today a good day?” I crawled into bed and prepared to sleep, my mind anxiously evaluating the previous 24 hours. Using a haphazard set of metrics, I interrogated myself, “Was today a success? Did I accomplish my goals and get what I wanted?”

I never fall asleep quickly when my thoughts spiral like this. And any sleep that I get is not particularly restful. My problem is that I tend to overanalyze my day once it has ended.

Instead of this end-of-the-day anxious spiral, the psalmist provides believers with a confident prayer that flips worry on its head. Psalm 90:14 says, “Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.” It is easy to read these nineteen words quickly, but this verse contains glorious truths that enable us to evaluate our day before it even begins.

Our Ultimate Request: Satisfy Us

That first word, satisfy, might be the most important word in this verse. At the start, the psalmist asks God to satisfy him, giving us both an example and permission to ask God to make us happy.

While our long lists of dissatisfactions often cause sleepless nights, our neediness and dependence unmistakably reveal the truth that we are not meant to achieve satisfaction on our own. In every circumstance, this psalm calls us to turn to the Lord and ask him to satisfy us.

What might a prayer for satisfaction in God look like in different circumstances? If we are disinterested or lethargic, we should ask God to fascinate and animate us. If we are bored or distracted, we should ask God to delight and captivate us. When we are lonely or miserable, we can ask God to accompany and comfort us.

Morning by Morning

While the others spend the entire day searching for satisfaction, God satisfies his children at the start of their day. Having received satisfaction from God in the morning, believers are liberated each day to glorify God.

This satisfaction of God sets us free to navigate our lives in faith. The world uses work to chase satisfaction through personal accomplishments. We are freed by God’s satisfaction, liberated to glorify God with our work and provide for our families.

The world uses recreation to chase satisfaction through the pursuit of pleasure. We are freed by God’s satisfaction, liberated to find joy whatever the circumstances. The world uses people to chase satisfaction through approval. We are freed by God’s satisfaction, liberated to glorify God by loving people — genuinely interacting and caring for them.

God’s love helps us receive and interpret our circumstances instead of having our hearts controlled by them. Rather than looking at our schedules and hoping for a good day, or creating a plan to make a good day, we look to the satisfying love of God that he generously offers each morning.

Steadfast and New

And we don’t need to wonder whether God’s love for us is going to fade or fail; God’s love is just as steadfast as he is. As Jeremiah wrote, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end.” God’s love and mercy, the prophet tells us, are “new every morning.”

We describe God’s love as both “steadfast” and “new” — a confusing pair of adjectives. But because God’s eternal nature never changes, his love toward his children is steadfast. And because God upholds the universe through new, creative energies that he inexhaustibly sustains (his gloriously plural, “mercies”), his love for his children is new every morning.

“The Lord is my portion,” the prophet concludes, so we can “hope in him.” (Lamentations 3:22–24). God gives us his merciful love each day; this is our daily baseline for hope.

Daily Satisfaction, Eternal Happiness

Normally, Hebrew poetry uses parallelism. That means that the Psalms make their point by using two (or more) closely corresponding lines. A strictly parallel reading leads us to expect the verse to say something like, “Satisfy us in the morning, that we may be glad till the evening.” If God satisfies us at the start of the day, we expect to remain happy until the day’s end.

Here, however, the psalmist surprises us. In a twist of gospel math, a daily(“in the morning”) prayer for satisfaction is answered by a lifetime (“all our days”) of joy and gladness.

How can one morning’s worth of satisfaction provide a lifetime of joy? Certainly some of the answer rests directly in the verse — God’s steadfast lovewill last our entire lives.

On Easter Morning

But the rest of the Bible explains this equation even more fully. One morning, the Lord Jesus Christ walked out of his grave, conquering sin and defeating death. And the resurrection power of the Son of God has been given to all God’s sons and daughters (Romans 8:11). So, now, because of that greatest morning of all, we can rejoice and be glad all of our days.

We don’t need to wait until an evening of anxious evaluation to determine whether today was a good day. God loves us with a steadfast love. The Lord Jesus conquered sin and death on Easter morning. And because we belong to him, today is a very good day.

Matthew Westerholm (@mwesterholm) is the pastor for worship and music at Bethlehem Baptist Church and assistant professor of music and worship at Bethlehem College & Seminary. He lives in Minneapolis with his wife and three sons.

Posted at:  https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/evaluate-your-day-before-it-begins

Three Questions to Ask Before You Snack

Article by  Christopher Asmus, Pastor, St. Paul, Minnesota

Feeling utterly frustrated, I crawled up the stairs and headed to bed full, but empty; bloated, but deflated — again. After another self-made promise to “eat better today,” I had just spent the last twenty minutes binge eating pizza, Oreos, peanut butter, and a few other snacks.

I had such a good day, but as the sun went down, so did my guard. These junk foods called out to me like seductive sirens from the cupboards. I gave in — again.

I have ended my day with that scene more times than I can count. In fact, overeating is not an occasional incident for me; it has become part of my normal diet. Such eating habits have led me to the stark realization that my most habitual, persistent, and pervasive sin is gluttony.

Deeper Hunger

Johnathon Bowers succinctly defines gluttony as “food worship” and “table idolatry.” He says it’s “more about the direction of our loves than it is about the contents of our cupboards.” Gluttony is not about what we eat, but what we exalt — food or God.

Gluttony occurs when we go to food to satisfy our God-cravings. The glutton seeks satisfaction, or comfort, or fulfillment in food, while tossing God aside like decorative parsley on top of a sizzling steak. In short, habitual overeating is about our worship, not just our waistline.

It has taken me years to learn that my hunger is often not only signaling an empty stomach but pointing to an empty soul. And when I indulge in food without indulging in God, I have committed the sin of gluttony. Here are three questions to ask to help you gauge whether your eating is gluttonous or worshipful.

1. Will this food serve my mission?

Christian, as those called and commissioned by Jesus, eat to fulfill their mission. As military soldiers on the battlefield eat nutrient-rich, calorie-dense meals, specifically designed to help them stay alert and have energy to complete their mission, we should eat in such a way as to fulfill ours.

Jonathan Edwards modeled this well. On top of making several resolutions to maintain a strict diet, Edwards’s early biographer, Sereno Dwight, noted how Edwards “carefully observed the effects of the different sorts of food, and selected those which best suited his constitution, and rendered him most fit for mental labour” (Works I, xxxviii).

Edwards thought that when we finish a meal, we should leave the table feeling more alert and more energetic to do what God has called us to do. He saw food as a gift from God to energize and empower us for our mission.

One of the most destructive consequences of gluttony is that it renders us ineffective for our mission. Instead of leaving the table invigorated to do what God has called us to do, we feel lethargic, sluggish, and in need of a nap.

But in place of overeating, we can lay aside every snack and food option that will slow us down and cause us to be ineffective for Christ. May every meal help us “run with endurance the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1).

So before you reach for the cupboard, ask yourself: Will eating this make me feel more or less energized to do what God has called me to do today?

2. Will this food help me fellowship?

One of the primary reasons we eat is to experience the gift of community. Across every culture and throughout every generation, food has brought people together. In the Bible, God’s people feast often, and almost always in community.

The glutton’s issue is not that he feasts, for food is a God-given gift to be fully and freely enjoyed (1 Timothy 4:3). The glutton’s sin is that he feasts in the wrong way: devoid of worship and apart from community.

Feasting is a good gift from God to be enjoyed at specific times and in the togetherness of community. The time to feast is not late at night when you’re all alone. Sin thrives in secret, so it’s no surprise that gluttony prefers the dark. But special occasions like Thanksgiving, potlucks, birthdays, and Sundays with church family provide great opportunities to enjoy Jesus through feasting with family and friends.

Before you reach into the cupboard, ask: Who will enjoy this with me? If the answer is no one, the time to feast is probably not now.

3. Will this food help me savor God?

Food is a gracious gift from God for us to experience God’s goodness on the most natural, everyday level. The ultimate reason we eat is to taste and see his goodness (Psalm 34:8). Therefore, mindless snacking is not Christian eating; it’s cheapening the good gift of food as we disconnect the blessing from its Giver.

The Christian’s diet should aim at one primary target: the enjoyment of God. While the glutton eats to taste pizza, the Christian eats to taste God’s goodness in and through the textures, the aromas, and the flavors. Gluttony stands helpless against mindful, thankful, worshipful eating.

As you reach for your next snack or meal, ask: Will this food help me enjoy the One who created the snack (Genesis 1:29), the One who provided the snack (Matthew 6:25–34; Psalm 136:25), the One who sustains my life with the snack (Acts 17:28), and the bread of life and living water (John 6:35; John 4:10–14)?

Taste His Goodness

This week, most of us will eat about twenty-one meals, and probably several snacks. More important than what you eat or how much you eat, is why you eat. Eat to fulfill your mission, eat to enjoy the gift of food within the blessing of community, and eat to taste the very goodness of God.

“Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). And you’ll find that more than filling an empty stomach or tickling your taste buds, your next meal might just satisfy your soul.

Christopher Asmus (@ChrisAsmus) is lead pastor at Vertical Church St. Paul, a new church plant in St. Paul, MN. Christopher and his wife, Alexandria, are happy parents to their one son, Haddon

Article posted at:  https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/three-questions-to-ask-before-you-snack

Battle the Unbelief of Impatience

Article by John Piper

Impatience is a form of unbelief. It’s what we begin to feel when we start to doubt the wisdom of God’s timing or the goodness of his guidance. It springs up in our hearts when the road to success gets muddy, or strewn with boulders, or blocked by some fallen tree. The battle with impatience can be a little skirmish over a long wait in a checkout lane. Or, it can be a major combat over a handicap, or disease, or circumstance that knocks out half your dreams.

The opposite of impatience is not a glib, superficial denial of frustration. The opposite of impatience is a deepening, ripening, peaceful willingness either to wait for God where you are in the place of obedience, or to persevere at the pace he allows on the road of obedience — to wait in his place, or to go at his pace.

The Battle Against Unbelief

When the way you planned to run your day, or the way you planned to live your life is cut off or slowed down, the unbelief of impatience tempts you in two directions, depending partly on your personality, partly on circumstances:

1. On the one side, it tempts you to give up, bail out. If there’s going to be frustration, and opposition, and difficulty, then I’ll just forget it. I won’t keep this job, or take this challenge, rear this child, or stay in this marriage, or live this life. That’s one way the unbelief of impatience tempts you. Give up.

2. On the other side, impatience tempts you to make rash counter moves against the obstacles in your way. It tempts you to be impetuous, or hasty, or impulsive, or reckless. If you don’t turn your car around and go home, you rush into some ill-advised detour to try to beat the system.

Whichever way you have to battle impatience, the main point today is that it’s a battle against unbelief, and therefore it’s not merely a personality issue. It’s the issue of whether you live by faith and whether you inherit the promises of eternal life. Listen to these verses to sense how vital this battle is:

• Luke 21:19 — “By your endurance [patience] you will gain your lives.”

• Romans 2:7 — “To those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, God will give eternal life.”

• Hebrews 6:12 — “Do not be sluggish but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”

Patience in doing the will of God is not an optional virtue in the Christian life. And the reason it’s not is because faith is not an optional virtue. Patience in well-doing is the fruit of faith. And impatience is the fruit of unbelief. And so, the battle against impatience is a battle against unbelief. And so, the chief weapon is the word of God, especially his promises.

How the Psalmist Battled Against Impatience

Before we look at Isaiah 30, I want you to see this relationship between the promises of God and the patience of the believer in Psalm 130:5. How does the psalmist battle against impatience in his heart?

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
   And in his word I hope.

“Waiting for the Lord” is an Old Testament way of describing the opposite of impatience. Waiting for the Lord is the opposite of running ahead of the Lord and it’s the opposite of bailing out on the Lord. It’s staying at your appointed place, while he says Stay, or it’s going at his appointed pace, while he says Go. It’s not impetuous, and it’s not despairing.

Now, how does the psalmist sustain his patience as he waits for the Lord to show him the next move? Verse 5 says, “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope.” The strength that sustains you in patience is hope, and the source of hope is the word of God. “In his word I hope.” And hope is just faith in the future tense. Hebrews says, “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for.”

So what we have in Psalm 130:5 is a clear illustration that the way to battle impatience is to buttress your hope (or faith) in God, and the way to buttress your hope in God is to listen to his word, especially his promises.

If you are tempted not to wait peacefully for God, to let him give you your next move — if you are tempted to give up on him or go ahead without him — please realize that this is a moment for great spiritual warfare. Take the sword of the Spirit, the word of God (Ephesians 6:17), and wield some wonderful promise against the enemy of impatience.

The Impetuous Side of Impatience

Now let’s look at an illustration of Israel when she did not do this.

During Isaiah’s day, Israel was threatened by enemies like Assyria. During those times, God sent the prophet with his word to tell Israel how he wanted them to respond to the threat. But one time, Israel became impatient with God’s timing. The danger was too close. The odds for success were too small. Isaiah 30:1–2 describes what Israel did in her impatience.

Woe to the rebellious children, says the Lord, who carry out a plan, but not mine; and who make a league, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin; who set out to go down to Egypt, without asking for my counsel, to take refuge in the protection of Pharaoh, and to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt!

This is the opposite of waiting on the Lord. Israel became impatient. God had not delivered them from their enemy in the time, or in the way that they had hoped, and patience ran out. They sent to Egypt for help. They made a plan and treaty, but they weren’t God’s. The key words are in verse 2: “They set out to go down to Egypt, without asking for my counsel.”

This is a perfect illustration of the impetuous side of impatience. This is where many of us sin almost daily: charging ahead in our own plans without stopping to consult the Lord.

The Warning of the Lord

So the Lord gives a warning in verse 3: “Therefore shall the protection of Pharaoh [the king of Egypt] turn to your shame, and the shelter in the shadow of Egypt to your humiliation.” In other words, your impatience is going to backfire on you. Egypt will not deliver you; it will be your shame. Your impatience will turn out to be your humiliation.

This is meant as a warning for all of us. When our way is blocked, and the Lord says wait, we better trust him and wait, because if we run ahead without consulting him, our plans will probably not be his plans and they will bring shame on us, rather than glory. (See Isaiah 50:10–11 and the case of Abraham and Hagar for the same point.)

What Should Be Done Instead?

What should Israel have done? What should we do when we feel boxed in by obstacles and frustrations? The answer is given in verse 15 and verse 18.

For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”

Therefore, the Lord waits to be gracious to you; therefore, he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.

“If you trust in God, he will give you all you need to be patient.”

Here are two great promises this morning that should give you strong incentive to overcome the unbelief of impatience.

Verse 15: “In quietness and trust shall be your strength.” In other words, if you rest in God, if you look to him instead of dashing down to Egypt, if you trust him, then he will give you all the strength you need to be patient, and to handle the stresses where you are.

Then verse 18: “Blessed are all those who wait for him.” God promises that if you wait patiently for his guidance and help, instead of plunging ahead “without asking for his counsel,” he will give you a great blessing.

Preach to Your Own Soul

This is the way you battle the unbelief of impatience. You preach to your soul with warnings and promises. You say, look what happened to Israel when they acted impatiently and went to Egypt for help instead of waiting for God. They were shamed and humiliated. And then you say to your soul: but look what God promises to us if we will rest in him and be quiet and trusting. He will make us strong and save us. He says he will bless us if we wait patiently for him.

Then you might use the promise in Isaiah 49:23: “Those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.” And then Isaiah 64:4: “No eye has seen a God besides thee, who works for those who wait for him. And finally, Isaiah 40:31:”Those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”

So, you battle the unbelief of impatience by using the promises of God to persuade your heart that God’s timing, and God’s guidance, and God’s sovereignty are going to take this frustrated, boxed-in, unproductive situation and make something eternally valuable out of it. There will come a blessing, a strength, a vindication, a mounting up with wings like eagles.

Charles Simeon’s Patient Endurance

Let me close with an illustration of a man who lived and died in successful warfare against the unbelief of impatience. His name was Charles Simeon. He was a pastor in the Church of England from 1782 to 1836 at Trinity Church in Cambridge. He was appointed to his church by a bishop against the will of the people. They opposed him, not because he was a bad preacher, but because he was an evangelical — he believed the Bible and called for conversion, and holiness, and world missions.

For twelve years the people refused to let him give the afternoon Sunday sermon. And during that time, they boycotted the Sunday morning service and locked their pews so that no one could sit in them. He preached to people in the aisles for twelve years. How did he last?

In this state of things, I saw no remedy but faith and patience. [Note the linking of faith and patience!] The passage of Scripture which subdued and controlled my mind was this, “The servant of the Lord must not strive.” [Note: The weapon in the fight for faith and patience was the word] It was painful indeed to see the church, with the exception of the aisles, almost forsaken; but I thought that if God would only give a double blessing to the congregation that did attend, there would on the whole be as much good done as if the congregation were doubled and the blessing limited to only half the amount. This comforted me many, many times, when without such a reflection, I should have sunk under my burthen. (Charles Simeon)

Where did he get the assurance that if he followed the way of patience, there would be a blessing on his work that would make up for frustrations of having all the pews locked? He got it, no doubt, from texts like Isaiah 30:18, “Blessed are all those who wait for the Lord.” The word conquered unbelief, and belief conquered impatience.

“Battle the unbelief of impatience by preaching to your soul with warnings and promises.

Fifty-four years later he was dying. It was October 1836. The weeks drug on, as they have for many of our dying saints at Bethlehem. I’ve learned that the battle with impatience can be very intense on the death bed. On October 21, those by his bed heard him say these words slowly and with long pauses:

Infinite wisdom has arranged the whole with infinite love; and infinite power enables me — to rest upon that love. I am in a dear Father’s hands — all is secure. When I look to Him, I see nothing but faithfulness — and immutability — and truth; and I have the sweetest peace — I cannot have more peace. (Charles Simeon)

The reason Simeon could die like that is because he had trained himself for 54 years to go to Scripture and to take hold of the infinite wisdom, and love, and power of God, and use them to conquer the unbelief of impatience.

And so I urge you in the words of Hebrews 6:12, “Be imitators of” Charles Simeon and of all “those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”

For additional study, see the connection of faith/hope with patience in Romans 8:25; 12:12; 1 Thessalonians 1:3; Hebrews 6:12, 15; James 1:3; Revelation 13:10.

For other texts on patience see Psalm 37:9; Lamentations 3:25–27; Luke 8:15; Romans 5:3; 1 Corinthians 13:4; Galatians 5:5, 22; Ephesians 4:1–2; Colossians 1:11; 1 Thessalonians 5:14; James 5:7–11; Job 1:21; Luke 2:25, 38; 2 Timothy 3:10. For God’s patience, see 2 Peter 3:9; Romans 2:4; 9:22; 1 Timothy 1:16; 1 Peter 3:20.

John Piper (@JohnPiper) is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is author of more than 50 books, including Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist, and most recently Expository Exultation: Christian Preaching as Worship.

Lay Aside the Weight of "Not Feeling Like It"

Article by Jon Bloom

What do you not feel like doing today?

You know what I mean. It’s that thing that’s weighing on you, which you know would honor God because it obeys his law of love (John 15:12), or is a work of faith (2 Thessalonians 1:11), or puts “to death the deeds of the body” (Romans 8:13). You know it would be good for your soul or body or family or vocation or neighbor or church.

But you don’t feel like doing it. You know that God promises you more blessing if you do it than if you don’t. But you’re struggling to believe it because it feels difficult. It’s like you have weights on your ankles. You don’t want to muster the energy, and every distraction glows with attraction.

The Strange Pattern of Progress

While it’s true that this is our indwelling sin of which we must repent and fight to lay aside (Hebrews 12:1), the experience of “not feeling like it” can become a reminder of a gospel truth and give us hope and encouragement in this battle.

“If we want true joy, we must walk by faith in a promised future and not by the sight of immediate gratification.”

Think about this strange pattern that occurs over and over in just about every area of life:

• Healthy, nutritious food often requires discipline to prepare and eat while junk food is convenient, tasty, and addictive.

• Keeping the body healthy and strong requires frequent deliberate discomfort while it only takes constant comfort to go to pot.

• You have to make yourself pick up that nourishing but intellectually challenging book while popping in a DVD is as easy and inviting as coasting downhill.

• You frequently have to force yourself to get to devotions and prayer while sleeping in or reading the sports or checking Facebook is almost effortless.

• Learning to skillfully play beautiful music requires thousands of hours of tedious practice.

• Excelling in sports requires monotonous drills ad nauseum.

• Learning to write well requires writing, writing, writing, and rewriting, rewriting, rewriting. And usually voluminous reading.

• It takes years and years of schooling just to make certain vocational opportunities possible.

You get the idea. The pattern is this: the greater joys are obtained through struggle and difficulty and pain, while brief, unsatisfying, and often destructive joys are right at our fingertips. Why?

Why the Struggle and Difficulty and Pain?

Because God, in great mercy, is showing us everywhere, in things that are just shadows of heavenly realities, that there is a great reward for those who struggle through and persevere (Hebrews 10:32–35). He is reminding us almost everywhere to walk by faith in a promised future and not by the sight of immediate gratification (2 Corinthians 5:7).

“Greater joys come through struggle and difficulty, while brief and often destructive joys sit at our fingertips.”

Each struggle becomes an invitation by God to follow in the faithful footsteps of his Son, “who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2).

Those who are spiritually blind only see futility in these struggles. But for those who have eyes to see, God has woven hope — faith in his future grace — right into the futility of creation (Romans 8:20–21). Each struggle becomes a pointer saying, “Look ahead, past the struggle itself, past the temptation of the puny, vapor joys to the great, sustained, substantial Joy set before you!”

Endurance, Not Indulgence

So today, don’t let “not feeling like it” reign as lord (Romans 6:12). Rather, through it see your Father pointing you to the reward he has planned for all who endure to the end (Matthew 24:13). Let it remind you that his call is not to indulgence but endurance.

Then lay this weight aside and run with faith the race he has set before you.

This light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:17–18)

Jon Bloom (@Bloom_Jon) serves as author, board chair, and co-founder of Desiring God. He is author of three books, Not by Sight, Things Not Seen, and Don’t Follow Your Heart. He and his wife live in the Twin Cities with their five children.

Article posted at:  https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/lay-aside-the-weight-of-not-feeling-like-it