TRUSTING IN THE LORD
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Romans 12:21
Romans 12:21
Problems, trials, frustrations, offenses, sicknesses, worries and burdens are common to all of us, aren't they? Jesus tells us in John 16:33b: “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” But previously to that, the Lord encouraged the disciples and us too, by saying: “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.” We may have peace in our Lord, in the midst of the storms of life, if we put our trust in God. Sadly, most “storms” take us by surprise. The only way to make it through them in one piece, without much hurt or damage, is by being prepared.
We are so used to worrying about our issues and problems, considering them from every possible angle, thinking about them constantly and even talking about them to anyone who will listen by choice or misfortune. While doing so, we forget that we could have our peace and joy in Christ. By worrying, we do not solve our troubles at all. Worrying and fretting only makes our problems worse. Sometimes we even lose relationships in the midst it, as we make life unbearable for those around us.
Doesn't everyone enjoy being around warm, funny, cheerful, positive people that always have something nice and encouraging to say, than with negative, grumpy, unsatisfied people that never stop complaining and murmuring about everything?
Years ago, I realized that staying frustrated and unhappy because of things I could not change or influence, never made anything any better at all. Time is needed to process bad news or situations, but there is also a time when we need to let something go and trust God. When we spend too much time being unhappy and unsatisfied, things never improve. On the contrary, we may make ourselves mentally and physically sick. The attitude of the heart and the thoughts we meditate on, determine how we handle the good and the bad of life.
By identifying the source of the thoughts that cross our minds and rejecting those that come from the evil one, we can have more peace and joy. Also in doing so, we will be happier with ourselves and be "... the true worshipers, (that) will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him" as Jesus said in John 4:23.
Many people are not happy to be alone by themselves and constantly need background noise (like TV, radio, etc...), because they try to avoid their own thoughts. It is so important, that after being truly born again, that we be renewed in our minds, by learning God's ways to think and handle life so that we can continue to live for Christ. (You may read more on the subject, at click here: "Renewing the Mind.”
If we choose to complain about our problems (to others who cannot help us like God can), it does us no good. We need to cry out to our Lord because He has the solution for every single problem or situation (no matter how impossible it looks) and He is willing to help us out. The sincere prayer of a faithful heart is the solution for what seems impossible.
What do we trust in? Is what we trust in truly secure and stable? People may disappoint us, no matter how much they love us or how good their intentions are, because they have weaknesses and shortcomings just as we do.
No human being is able to anticipate and fulfill all the needs of another person. No one else can know all that another expects of them to do, say and/or feel. The only “one” that is omniscient (who knows it all), omnipotent (who has all the power) and omnipresent (who is present everywhere at the same time) is God. Our family, friends, spouses, politicians, governments and even brothers & sisters in Christ, all let us down at some point. “God” is the only “one” that will never let us down nor forsake us! Sometimes it may seem that He did, when His answers to our prayers and expectations are different than ours, but in considering the bigger picture, He always does what is best for us in the long term. Always! You may read more about this in the message, "God Will Never Forsake His Children."
Hezekiah's father, King Ahaz, in order to please one of the kings of Assyria, forsook the Lord and completely violated and desecrated the holy temple of God, including making an offering for himself, abandoning the holy altar for one he had made, and completely disregarding God's priestly system. He even removed the gold and gave it to the Assyrian king. He was so evil, that he sacrificed one of his sons as a living sacrifice to a foreign god (2 Kings 16:1-19). Thankfully, Hezekiah did not follow in the footsteps of his father.
The faithfulness of King Hezekiah strengthened the people's hearts and caused them to not fall for the lies of the servants of Sennacherib, the Assyrian king. They were trying hard to terrify the people of Jerusalem in order to conquer them. It was a desperate situation, but Hezekiah chose to trust God and called for the prophet Isaiah to come and pray for the right solution. The king's right choice saved the whole nation.
God has all the power and He can save us from any the evil ones that may seem to be stronger than us. The best solutions, for the most desperate situations, come only from God. The Hebrew soldiers, even if they would have had the most powerful weapons of the time and the best training, could not do a better or faster job than an angel of the Lord did. There were no victims of the people who's king chose to trust the Lord God. But the camp that mocked God (2 Chronicles 32:17), lost every “mighty man of valor, leader, and captain” as they were killed by God's angel. Even their King Sennacherib, ended up killed by his own sons. He chose to trust in his hand-made golden god, who was not able to do anything for him. And because he mocked the Lord God, he lost the battle, his best leaders, soldiers and even his own life.
There are so many verses that urge us to “trust in God” and that it is “up to us” to do so. You may read them at click on this article: “Trust In The Lord And Never Give Up - Bible Verses."
God respects our free will and does not force us to trust Him. The choice is up to us and when we do, we can receive the benefits and blessings that come from doing so.
Often during hard times, we are tempted to be self-oriented and not think of anything (or anyone) else but our situation. Throughout the years, I have learned that no matter how tough my dilemma is, there will always be someone else with a tougher one. If I will look outside of myself and see theirs, I might be able to bless someone else somehow. It is a huge blessing to be able help someone else, while all seems lost personally. The joy that follows the help offered to someone else, helps us get through our own troubles and even causes us to see our troubles in a better perspective than we would have otherwise. A smile, an encouraging word, a hug or just listening to what is on someone else's heart, may be a huge value for someone facing a terrible suffering. The good done to others, doesn't have to cost money to be truly valuable.
Vengeance belongs to God, He is the One who will repay every bad deed. As for us, it is better not to allow ourselves to be overcome by evil, but instead we can overcome evil by doing good!
It may seem impossible to do as Jesus commands, but this is the absolute best way to handle things when we are hurt, offended or injured. Loving and praying for our enemies or those who hurt us, actually helps us to forgive them. When we forgive those who have done us wrong, we do ourselves a great favor. It sets us free! When we forgive the ones who hurt us, it does not mean they are not accountable to God for what they did. We are all accountable to God. You may read more about forgiveness in the article, "Forgiveness: Why Does Jesus Command Us To Forgive?"
Sadly, there are not many people that have trustworthy friends, to be able to talk about their troubles and feel safe with. But as Christians, we have more than great friends! We have the most perfect and trustworthy Father, that loves us and wants the best for us, even more than we do. He can solve any impossible situation for us, will keep it a secret and will never do anything to hurt us.
When we think that we are smart and we can work everything out alone, we are not trusting God but rather are trusting ourselves. Our “ego” is our lord, and not Jesus. And we already know how many times we have failed and even failed badly. True humility is in obeying God, spending time with Him in prayer and seeking to hear His voice and direction. Then when we act accordingly, we can make the best decision, even if it seems contrary to our human logic.
God's solution is always the best in the long term and eternally.
It is not enough just to simply read our Bibles to learn to truly trust God. We must meditate on the meaning of the verses, to study them in their context, together with other verses that are addressing the same subject. By meditating on what the Holy Spirit is truly saying in the verses, we start to grow in knowing God. We can learn what the Lord's will is and what His promises are for us and fortify our faith in Him. The more we trust God, the happier and calmer we become. We give less and less room for worry and frustration to develop in our minds, when we fill our minds with God's Word and choose to meditate on it instead of the problems we encounter. The plans we make with God and for which we trust Him, will be surely successful.
The trust we have in God brings peace, safety and prosperity. Greed even comes along with stress, anger, tension and constant dissatisfaction.
True protection and safety we find only under God's “wings.” If we fear people and we do all we can to please them, we will never be able to really please them and will fall into the enemy's traps and even sin against God. One of the most common tactics of the devil is to get us to fear men and not God, or spend time and effort seeking to get others to like us. We cannot please people and please the Lord too. Paul wrote about himself in:
We cannot have two masters, as Jesus says in:
The ones whom we try to please the most, we make the rulers of our lives. When we elevate other people over God and our own selves, we find ourselves making decisions that we would not normally make, or maybe that we even hate, only because we are choosing to please another. That means we are not seeking to obey God's will and not even our own will. This is a tricky slavery and not always easy to realize, because we lose our own identity, little by little, as times goes by in trying to appreciate what the other person appreciates. We end up by not even knowing what we really like anymore.
The more we seek to please others, the further from God we will go. We will never be able to please them all and as a result, we won't have even the illusion that those around us like us or appreciate all that we do for them (which sometimes are painful sacrifices). But when our relationship is right with God, when we love to please and obey Him, we will also have right relationships with other people, and we will be able to live satisfied and fulfilled lives. Jesus' emotions are not like a roller-coaster, He is always consistent, just and knows exactly what is going on inside of us. Our Lord's love, kindness, faithfulness and support are perfect, unchangeable, complete and always there for us, even if we are not convinced that we deserve it.
There are so many examples in God's Word, that prove God's faithfulness and how marvelous He is at helping and saving His children. Not even a large number of hungry lions can hurt the one who trusts God and lives in obedience to Him. The Bible does not tell us whether Daniel was scared or not, but for sure his faith was stronger than his fear, because he knew God and His power. There is no doubt that he could not forget how God had saved his friends from dying in King Nebuchadnezzar's hot furnace and also all the miracles that God did for him all of his life. It is important to remember during our trials and tribulations how God helped and saved us before.
These young Hebrews had such strong faith, that they would rather have been burned alive, than sin against God. They knew that the Lord could spare their lives, but even if He would not, they knew it was better for their bodies to die, than to lose their souls by worshiping an idol. Every single one of us have gone and continue to go through trials and tribulations in this life. We know that our Lord wants the best for us, but that does not mean that what we consider as being the best for us, or the right solution for our problem, is the same in God's eyes. He might choose to answer our prayers much differently than we expect.
We will have peace by trusting in the fact that God's answer is always the best for us. When He does not answer in our timing or how we expected at all, we must continue to love, trust and obey God. After all, what are we after? His face or His hand? If we seek God only when we are desperate, or when we need Him to do something for us, it means that we are seeking just His hand. When all we want to do is please God, as Jesus did, it means that we are seeking His face. The prophet Isaiah, inspired by the Holy Spirit, recorded in the third verse of the eleventh chapter of his book about Jesus, that “His delight is in the fear of the Lord.” This should be the goal of everyone of us as Christians, to get to the place where we are truly happy to please God by living according to His will.
If we live under the direction of the flesh (carnal nature), seeking to fulfill the lusts of the physical body, it will result in us “concentrating” on the everyday stresses of life and lead us away from God. However, if we concentrate more on heaven, on renewing our mind, thinking according to the Bible, appreciating the spiritual values more than the worldly ones, then we will get closer and closer to God. Only by doing so, will we become free indeed from all the chains of the past, because we will know the biblical truth that will break the bondage caused by believing the lies of the devil and negative thinking. The more we trust God, the less we will count on all that is of the world.
We read in Acts 16:18-22, how the apostle Paul commanded to a spirit of divination, in Jesus Name, to come out of a girl that followed them for days shouting: “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us a way of salvation!” Afterward her deliverance, the girl's master was very upset that she could not make money for him anymore, in practicing fortune telling. Because of the protesting of the girls' master, Paul and Silas were stripped and severely beaten with rods and cast into prison where they were bound in stocks. The girl's master never considered being happy for his servant's deliverance from the evil spirit that had been possessing her. For him, all that mattered was his financial loss. What a huge difference between that man and the apostles! Even if Paul and Silas were cruelly beaten and imprisoned, they still chose to praise God instead of despairing or pitying themselves.
By choosing to trust and worship God, they were a good testimony to the other prisoners. Their right attitude resulted in the reward of getting free. God shook the foundations of the prison by causing an earthquake, that opened the doors. The Lord touched the heart of the jailer and his family and probably many of the other prisoners too. Right choices always empower God to work in all situations.
If God had spared His children of being imprisoned, the jailer and all the others would have missed the chance to hear the Gospel. When the jailer saw that the prison doors had opened, he was sure that all the prisoners had escaped which would mean that it would cost him his life for losing them. In his despair, he was ready to kill himself. The jailer's circumstances helped him to be more open to the truth and realize that he was in need of a Savior. What Paul said when he arrived at Thessalonica, after all that had happened in Philippi, is even more amazing.
Paul continued to firmly trust God, even after he suffered so much in most of the cities that he preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ in. His example, makes many of the Christians of today look really bad. How different we are than the apostles! We often think that we deserve the best. We search out personal comfort and prosperity and complain about almost every little difficulty or challenge. We need to remember that when we leave this world, we will be followed only by the good deeds done with a pure heart, because we wanted to obey and please God. All the good works that have been done with wrongful hearts, will not eligible for reward and will not pass the test (more may be read on the subject in the message, “When Will Judgment Day Be?”). Paul, Silas and all the other great men and women of God, understood this truth and lived accordingly.
Truly trusting God is the key of a good, calm and peaceful life. There is nothing that can replace that! God never changes, He is the only constant in a changing world full of variables. Believing that God's promises are true and real for everyone of us, who are truly born again, and that He will always take care of us and help us through whatever we face, is the recipe for a life that is worth living.
We are so used to worrying about our issues and problems, considering them from every possible angle, thinking about them constantly and even talking about them to anyone who will listen by choice or misfortune. While doing so, we forget that we could have our peace and joy in Christ. By worrying, we do not solve our troubles at all. Worrying and fretting only makes our problems worse. Sometimes we even lose relationships in the midst it, as we make life unbearable for those around us.
Doesn't everyone enjoy being around warm, funny, cheerful, positive people that always have something nice and encouraging to say, than with negative, grumpy, unsatisfied people that never stop complaining and murmuring about everything?
Years ago, I realized that staying frustrated and unhappy because of things I could not change or influence, never made anything any better at all. Time is needed to process bad news or situations, but there is also a time when we need to let something go and trust God. When we spend too much time being unhappy and unsatisfied, things never improve. On the contrary, we may make ourselves mentally and physically sick. The attitude of the heart and the thoughts we meditate on, determine how we handle the good and the bad of life.
By identifying the source of the thoughts that cross our minds and rejecting those that come from the evil one, we can have more peace and joy. Also in doing so, we will be happier with ourselves and be "... the true worshipers, (that) will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him" as Jesus said in John 4:23.
Many people are not happy to be alone by themselves and constantly need background noise (like TV, radio, etc...), because they try to avoid their own thoughts. It is so important, that after being truly born again, that we be renewed in our minds, by learning God's ways to think and handle life so that we can continue to live for Christ. (You may read more on the subject, at click here: "Renewing the Mind.”
- Mark 10:27 But Jesus looked at them and said, “With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible."
If we choose to complain about our problems (to others who cannot help us like God can), it does us no good. We need to cry out to our Lord because He has the solution for every single problem or situation (no matter how impossible it looks) and He is willing to help us out. The sincere prayer of a faithful heart is the solution for what seems impossible.
What do we trust in? Is what we trust in truly secure and stable? People may disappoint us, no matter how much they love us or how good their intentions are, because they have weaknesses and shortcomings just as we do.
No human being is able to anticipate and fulfill all the needs of another person. No one else can know all that another expects of them to do, say and/or feel. The only “one” that is omniscient (who knows it all), omnipotent (who has all the power) and omnipresent (who is present everywhere at the same time) is God. Our family, friends, spouses, politicians, governments and even brothers & sisters in Christ, all let us down at some point. “God” is the only “one” that will never let us down nor forsake us! Sometimes it may seem that He did, when His answers to our prayers and expectations are different than ours, but in considering the bigger picture, He always does what is best for us in the long term. Always! You may read more about this in the message, "God Will Never Forsake His Children."
- 2 Kings 18:3,5 And he (King Hezekiah) did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done... He trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him.
Hezekiah's father, King Ahaz, in order to please one of the kings of Assyria, forsook the Lord and completely violated and desecrated the holy temple of God, including making an offering for himself, abandoning the holy altar for one he had made, and completely disregarding God's priestly system. He even removed the gold and gave it to the Assyrian king. He was so evil, that he sacrificed one of his sons as a living sacrifice to a foreign god (2 Kings 16:1-19). Thankfully, Hezekiah did not follow in the footsteps of his father.
- 2 Chronicles 32:8 "With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people were strengthened by the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.
The faithfulness of King Hezekiah strengthened the people's hearts and caused them to not fall for the lies of the servants of Sennacherib, the Assyrian king. They were trying hard to terrify the people of Jerusalem in order to conquer them. It was a desperate situation, but Hezekiah chose to trust God and called for the prophet Isaiah to come and pray for the right solution. The king's right choice saved the whole nation.
- 2 Chronicles 32:20-22 Now because of this King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz, prayed and cried out to heaven. Then the Lord sent an angel who cut down every mighty man of valor, leader, and captain in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned shamefaced to his own land. And when he had gone into the temple of his god, some of his own offspring struck him down with the sword there. Thus the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria, and from the hand of all others, and guided them on every side.
God has all the power and He can save us from any the evil ones that may seem to be stronger than us. The best solutions, for the most desperate situations, come only from God. The Hebrew soldiers, even if they would have had the most powerful weapons of the time and the best training, could not do a better or faster job than an angel of the Lord did. There were no victims of the people who's king chose to trust the Lord God. But the camp that mocked God (2 Chronicles 32:17), lost every “mighty man of valor, leader, and captain” as they were killed by God's angel. Even their King Sennacherib, ended up killed by his own sons. He chose to trust in his hand-made golden god, who was not able to do anything for him. And because he mocked the Lord God, he lost the battle, his best leaders, soldiers and even his own life.
- Psalms 28:7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song I will praise Him.
- Psalms 32:10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked; but he who trusts in the Lord, mercy shall surround him.
- Psalms 34:8 Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!
- Psalms 37:5 Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.
There are so many verses that urge us to “trust in God” and that it is “up to us” to do so. You may read them at click on this article: “Trust In The Lord And Never Give Up - Bible Verses."
God respects our free will and does not force us to trust Him. The choice is up to us and when we do, we can receive the benefits and blessings that come from doing so.
- Psalms 37:3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
Often during hard times, we are tempted to be self-oriented and not think of anything (or anyone) else but our situation. Throughout the years, I have learned that no matter how tough my dilemma is, there will always be someone else with a tougher one. If I will look outside of myself and see theirs, I might be able to bless someone else somehow. It is a huge blessing to be able help someone else, while all seems lost personally. The joy that follows the help offered to someone else, helps us get through our own troubles and even causes us to see our troubles in a better perspective than we would have otherwise. A smile, an encouraging word, a hug or just listening to what is on someone else's heart, may be a huge value for someone facing a terrible suffering. The good done to others, doesn't have to cost money to be truly valuable.
- Romans 12:19, 21 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord." Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Vengeance belongs to God, He is the One who will repay every bad deed. As for us, it is better not to allow ourselves to be overcome by evil, but instead we can overcome evil by doing good!
- Matthew 5:44-45a “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven..."
It may seem impossible to do as Jesus commands, but this is the absolute best way to handle things when we are hurt, offended or injured. Loving and praying for our enemies or those who hurt us, actually helps us to forgive them. When we forgive those who have done us wrong, we do ourselves a great favor. It sets us free! When we forgive the ones who hurt us, it does not mean they are not accountable to God for what they did. We are all accountable to God. You may read more about forgiveness in the article, "Forgiveness: Why Does Jesus Command Us To Forgive?"
- Psalms 62:5 My soul, wait silently for God alone, for my expectation is from Him.
- Psalms 62:8 Trust in Him at all times, you people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us.
Sadly, there are not many people that have trustworthy friends, to be able to talk about their troubles and feel safe with. But as Christians, we have more than great friends! We have the most perfect and trustworthy Father, that loves us and wants the best for us, even more than we do. He can solve any impossible situation for us, will keep it a secret and will never do anything to hurt us.
- Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding...
When we think that we are smart and we can work everything out alone, we are not trusting God but rather are trusting ourselves. Our “ego” is our lord, and not Jesus. And we already know how many times we have failed and even failed badly. True humility is in obeying God, spending time with Him in prayer and seeking to hear His voice and direction. Then when we act accordingly, we can make the best decision, even if it seems contrary to our human logic.
God's solution is always the best in the long term and eternally.
- Proverbs 16:20 He who heeds the word wisely will find good, and whoever trusts in the Lord, happy is he.
- Proverbs 16:3 Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established.
- Proverbs 28:25 He who is of a proud heart stirs up strife, but he who trusts in the Lord will be prospered.
It is not enough just to simply read our Bibles to learn to truly trust God. We must meditate on the meaning of the verses, to study them in their context, together with other verses that are addressing the same subject. By meditating on what the Holy Spirit is truly saying in the verses, we start to grow in knowing God. We can learn what the Lord's will is and what His promises are for us and fortify our faith in Him. The more we trust God, the happier and calmer we become. We give less and less room for worry and frustration to develop in our minds, when we fill our minds with God's Word and choose to meditate on it instead of the problems we encounter. The plans we make with God and for which we trust Him, will be surely successful.
The trust we have in God brings peace, safety and prosperity. Greed even comes along with stress, anger, tension and constant dissatisfaction.
- Proverbs 29:25 The fear of man brings a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe.
- Isaiah 12:2 Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; for Yah, the Lord, is my strength and song; He also has become my salvation.
- Isaiah 26:4 Trust in the Lord forever, for in YAH, the Lord, is everlasting strength.
True protection and safety we find only under God's “wings.” If we fear people and we do all we can to please them, we will never be able to really please them and will fall into the enemy's traps and even sin against God. One of the most common tactics of the devil is to get us to fear men and not God, or spend time and effort seeking to get others to like us. We cannot please people and please the Lord too. Paul wrote about himself in:
- Galatians 1:10 For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bond servant of Christ.
We cannot have two masters, as Jesus says in:
- Matthew 6:24 "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon."
The ones whom we try to please the most, we make the rulers of our lives. When we elevate other people over God and our own selves, we find ourselves making decisions that we would not normally make, or maybe that we even hate, only because we are choosing to please another. That means we are not seeking to obey God's will and not even our own will. This is a tricky slavery and not always easy to realize, because we lose our own identity, little by little, as times goes by in trying to appreciate what the other person appreciates. We end up by not even knowing what we really like anymore.
The more we seek to please others, the further from God we will go. We will never be able to please them all and as a result, we won't have even the illusion that those around us like us or appreciate all that we do for them (which sometimes are painful sacrifices). But when our relationship is right with God, when we love to please and obey Him, we will also have right relationships with other people, and we will be able to live satisfied and fulfilled lives. Jesus' emotions are not like a roller-coaster, He is always consistent, just and knows exactly what is going on inside of us. Our Lord's love, kindness, faithfulness and support are perfect, unchangeable, complete and always there for us, even if we are not convinced that we deserve it.
- Isaiah 41:10 "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."
- Jeremiah 39:18 'For I will surely deliver you, and you shall not fall by the sword; but your life shall be as a prize to you, because you have put your trust in Me,' says the Lord.'"
- Daniel 6:22-23 "My God sent His angel and shut the lions’ mouths, so that they have not hurt me, because I was found innocent before Him; and also, O king, I have done no wrong before you.” Now the king was exceedingly glad for him, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no injury whatever was found on him, because he believed (trusted) in his God.
There are so many examples in God's Word, that prove God's faithfulness and how marvelous He is at helping and saving His children. Not even a large number of hungry lions can hurt the one who trusts God and lives in obedience to Him. The Bible does not tell us whether Daniel was scared or not, but for sure his faith was stronger than his fear, because he knew God and His power. There is no doubt that he could not forget how God had saved his friends from dying in King Nebuchadnezzar's hot furnace and also all the miracles that God did for him all of his life. It is important to remember during our trials and tribulations how God helped and saved us before.
- Daniel 3:16-18 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up."
These young Hebrews had such strong faith, that they would rather have been burned alive, than sin against God. They knew that the Lord could spare their lives, but even if He would not, they knew it was better for their bodies to die, than to lose their souls by worshiping an idol. Every single one of us have gone and continue to go through trials and tribulations in this life. We know that our Lord wants the best for us, but that does not mean that what we consider as being the best for us, or the right solution for our problem, is the same in God's eyes. He might choose to answer our prayers much differently than we expect.
We will have peace by trusting in the fact that God's answer is always the best for us. When He does not answer in our timing or how we expected at all, we must continue to love, trust and obey God. After all, what are we after? His face or His hand? If we seek God only when we are desperate, or when we need Him to do something for us, it means that we are seeking just His hand. When all we want to do is please God, as Jesus did, it means that we are seeking His face. The prophet Isaiah, inspired by the Holy Spirit, recorded in the third verse of the eleventh chapter of his book about Jesus, that “His delight is in the fear of the Lord.” This should be the goal of everyone of us as Christians, to get to the place where we are truly happy to please God by living according to His will.
- 2 Corinthians 5:6 So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord.
- Ephesians 3:12 ... in whom (Jesus) we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him.
- Philippians 3:3 For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh...
If we live under the direction of the flesh (carnal nature), seeking to fulfill the lusts of the physical body, it will result in us “concentrating” on the everyday stresses of life and lead us away from God. However, if we concentrate more on heaven, on renewing our mind, thinking according to the Bible, appreciating the spiritual values more than the worldly ones, then we will get closer and closer to God. Only by doing so, will we become free indeed from all the chains of the past, because we will know the biblical truth that will break the bondage caused by believing the lies of the devil and negative thinking. The more we trust God, the less we will count on all that is of the world.
We read in Acts 16:18-22, how the apostle Paul commanded to a spirit of divination, in Jesus Name, to come out of a girl that followed them for days shouting: “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us a way of salvation!” Afterward her deliverance, the girl's master was very upset that she could not make money for him anymore, in practicing fortune telling. Because of the protesting of the girls' master, Paul and Silas were stripped and severely beaten with rods and cast into prison where they were bound in stocks. The girl's master never considered being happy for his servant's deliverance from the evil spirit that had been possessing her. For him, all that mattered was his financial loss. What a huge difference between that man and the apostles! Even if Paul and Silas were cruelly beaten and imprisoned, they still chose to praise God instead of despairing or pitying themselves.
- Acts 16:25 But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.
By choosing to trust and worship God, they were a good testimony to the other prisoners. Their right attitude resulted in the reward of getting free. God shook the foundations of the prison by causing an earthquake, that opened the doors. The Lord touched the heart of the jailer and his family and probably many of the other prisoners too. Right choices always empower God to work in all situations.
If God had spared His children of being imprisoned, the jailer and all the others would have missed the chance to hear the Gospel. When the jailer saw that the prison doors had opened, he was sure that all the prisoners had escaped which would mean that it would cost him his life for losing them. In his despair, he was ready to kill himself. The jailer's circumstances helped him to be more open to the truth and realize that he was in need of a Savior. What Paul said when he arrived at Thessalonica, after all that had happened in Philippi, is even more amazing.
- 1 Thessalonians 2:2 But even after we had suffered before and were spitefully treated at Philippi, as you know, we were bold in our God to speak to you the gospel of God in much conflict.
Paul continued to firmly trust God, even after he suffered so much in most of the cities that he preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ in. His example, makes many of the Christians of today look really bad. How different we are than the apostles! We often think that we deserve the best. We search out personal comfort and prosperity and complain about almost every little difficulty or challenge. We need to remember that when we leave this world, we will be followed only by the good deeds done with a pure heart, because we wanted to obey and please God. All the good works that have been done with wrongful hearts, will not eligible for reward and will not pass the test (more may be read on the subject in the message, “When Will Judgment Day Be?”). Paul, Silas and all the other great men and women of God, understood this truth and lived accordingly.
Truly trusting God is the key of a good, calm and peaceful life. There is nothing that can replace that! God never changes, He is the only constant in a changing world full of variables. Believing that God's promises are true and real for everyone of us, who are truly born again, and that He will always take care of us and help us through whatever we face, is the recipe for a life that is worth living.
Copyright © 2015 Carmen Pușcaș. May be used for personal study or instruction but shall not be copied and/or distributed in whole or part without permission or for financial profit.
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