God is always with us. Often, when He is the most silent, that is when He is working hardest. If you cannot sense the presence of The Lord, do not fear. Faith far exceeds our tangible senses. And when a God says He will never leave nor abandon us, He means it. So rest easy tonight. Sleep well. The Lord is with you always. Always!

Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger. – Ephesians 4:26 (ESV)

Anger has it’s place. However, anger aimed at a person is like acid to your soul. It erodes and pits our hearts and poisons our minds. And the longer that anger languishes within us, the more bitter we become.

Tonight, sleep well. To do that, you need to let go of the grudges. If you are holding on to ill will let it go. If you need to forgive someone, do it. Now. It doesn’t matter if the other party deserves to be forgiven. Our Heavenly Father has forgiven us much. Undeservedly but with abounding grace, mercy and love.

Good night, dear friends.

“Many are the plans in the mind of a man,but it is the purpose of theLord that will stand.” – Proverbs 19:21 (ESV)

 

“Man plans.  God laughs.” – old Yiddish proverb

I do not like having my plans disrupted.  Can you relate?  I’m betting you can.

I had a day full of writing planned.  I had set myself a goal to write 10 devotionals for the book I’m writing (ever so slowly), to start rewriting a humor story I had penned years ago (“Escape from Stalag 500” being the new title), and do some blogging.  I was feeling good, pumped, ready to roll.

Then I walked downstairs.

Jennie had the kitchen cabinet under the sink open, and all it’s contents spread out across the floor.  “We have a leak,” my beautiful bride announced.  “I think it’s the garbage disposal.  This needs to be taken care of right away.”  (Frankly, she’s been conspiring against that garbage disposal for ages.  I think she crammed a bamboo cane down in it without the water running.  She seemed awfully calm about it, which leads me to believe the act was premeditated.)

OK.  No problem.  I still have time to write.

Off to one of my favorite writing haunts.  Generally the noise at the coffee shop doesn’t bother me, because I have headphones on to drown out the ambient noise.  Today, I forgot them.  And this was the morning that the Loud Talkers Society (Hopkins Chapter, Local 574) decided to convene at my chosen café du jour.  I especially enjoyed the man who kept circling around the place talking in a foreign language on his cell phone at a volume that would suggest that he must have just left a Who concert.

Clearly no meaningful writing was going to get done here.

Then came a text from a friend wanting to meet for lunch.  Now I got it.  Moment of clarity.  God had a better plan for me today.  I was getting frustrated because I wasn’t getting my way when my way was not what the Lord had in mind.  So, I left the coffee shop, ran to a local big box hardware store to get a new garbage disposal, ran home to pick up my wife and son and headed off for lunch with our friends.

And what a blessing today turned out to be.

I even got to help my seven-year-old with his homework.  Funnily enough, homework was not on his agenda for the day, and he whined and grumped and complained and even threw his pencil in an angry little fit.  And, thinking back on my morning, I need to repent if I threw a pencil.

As 18th century poet Robert Burns so famously wrote, “The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men often go awry.”  Far better to heed the advise of a more modern-day poet, Steve Winwood: “Roll with it, baby.”  So often we get caught up in our own little plans that we fail to look up and around us.  We don’t bother asking the Almighty for guidance.  We just bow our heads, antlers sticking straight forward, and start ramming our way through life.  (No wonder we have such headaches when things don’t go as planned.)

God has a plan for our lives, and every minute holds the potential to affect someone else’s life.  What God would have us do trumps our own plans every time.  We have no idea what the future holds.  And I don’t just mean next month or next year.  I mean next minute.

So, when you see your plans for the day unraveling before your eyes, don’t stress.  Pray.  Open your eyes.  See what God has in store.  I guarantee you,  His plan is far more glorious than anything any of us can come up with.

(As for the writing… I still have time to get through a couple of devotionals before my head hits the pillow tonight.  As for “Stalag 500”, I’ll just have to escape another time.)

Before You Sign the Deal, Ask for Proof of Ownership

by Chris Courtney

 “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” – Matthew 28:18b (NIV)

Take a moment and go grab your Bible.  Go ahead.  We’ll wait.

Got it?  Good.  Turn to Matthew 3:13 and read to Matthew 4:11.

At the end of Matthew 3, we see the glorious moment of Jesus’ baptism.  We witness the humility of John the Baptist, the faithfulness of Christ, the glory of the Father, the power of the Holy Spirit… This is My Son, in Whom I am well pleased. 

And then…

How often have you heard of people accepting Christ and then, almost immediately afterward, having life hit the fan?  Troubles, hardships… I have heard it said many times that if your life is going smooth in all areas with no problems or difficulties, you’re no threat to the devil.  Which means it is time to reassess your life and whether or not you are living for the Lord.

I’ll buy that.  However, we shouldn’t be so quick to give the devil the credit.  Look at Matthew 4:1.  Who led Jesus into the desert?  Satan didn’t lure Him away.  The Spirit led Him there.  And the enemy went after Jesus, attacking by attempting to appease His most base human desires: fulfillment of physical need, power to do anything, glory to reign over all!  The devil promised to give Jesus all these things.

Here’s the catch: they were never Satan’s to give in the first place.  Oh! The delusion of ego… And the devil probably thought he had Christ up against the ropes.  Forty days is a very, very long time to go without food.  Consider this: in the early 1980’s, hunger-striking prisoners in Northern Ireland generally survived 46-72 days without food.  This means Jesus was right on the edge of starvation. 

But understand… the Spirit led Him into this desert.  But He didn’t abandon Jesus there.  The Lord was greatly tempted, but He never succumbed.  Not to sin.  Not to starvation.  He hung tough.  For every empty offer of the enemy, Jesus spoke Truth.  He knew by faith, not by circumstances, what was true and right.

And – see this – “then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him: (Matthew 4:11, NIV).  Decades later, James shared this truth thusly: Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you” (James 4”6b-8a, NIV).

The lesson here is simply this:

⁵ Trust in the Lord with all your heart,     and do not lean on your own understanding. ⁶ In all your ways acknowledge him,     and he will make straight your paths. ⁷ Be not wise in your own eyes;     fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. ⁸ It will be healing to your flesh     and refreshment to your bones – Proverbs 3:5-8 (NIV).

Don’t look at the circumstances and fear them.  Don’t be quick to the devil his due, because you owe him nothing.  And he has nothing to offer.  His deals are empty and false.

Trust in the LORD.  He will save you at just the right moment.  What you are facing right now may well be a test.  Even Jesus Christ was tempted and tested.  What makes any of us think we are worthy to escape the same?

Resist the devil.  He will flee.  He is a defeated foe.  You are a child of the One True God.  Fear nothing.  Embrace Christ.  Walk out your life with great faith and joy, trusting in His love and grace, knowing that – good times and hard – God is in control and you are not.

Please take time to visit my webpage at bouvillediarist.wordpress.com, or like the Bouville Diarist on Facebook or follow on Twitter.  Most importantly, please share this message with anyone you feel would be blessed by these words.  Thank you so much!!

 

(c) 2014 by Chris Courtney.  All rights reserved.

 

THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

1 I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.
2 My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.
3 He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.
4 Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand.
6 The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night.
7 The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.
8 The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.
– Psalm 121 (KJV)

Wake up.

Get up.

Look up!

Cast down the chains that bind you – the fears, the doubts, the dares and worries, the lies of the enemy… Cast them off and turn your heart’s gaze upward!

Look up.

Step up.

Open up.

This isn’t merely a talk to pep you up. It is from Above that our help comes.

Ditch the doubt. Trust in the LORD. When life is looking up. When circumstances are looking down. In all things, do not be complacent in your faith.

Look up!

Whether you realize it or not, you most likely know somebody who suffers from clinical depression and anxiety.  Not only that, my guess is that person may very well be taking – gasp! – meds to help calm their jittery nerves and lift their down emotions.

It’s funny (funny odd, not funny ha-ha) that many Christians freeze up in discomfort when they hear somebody say they have anxiety and depression.  We know how to handle people who are ill with cancer or any number of physical ailments.  But when it comes to emotional illnesses…

I don’t believe the inability of many Christians to connect comfortably with depressed / anxious individuals comes from any malice or lack of love.  The discomfort is deeply rooted in simply not knowing what to say or what to do.  So much of what we do to comfort a physically ill person doesn’t translate well when reaching out to someone suffering an emotional illness.  I understand.  We depressed / anxious people can be tricky to deal with, especially when we’re in the throes of a prolonged panic attack or episode of depression. 

How do you reach out to someone who is hurting so bad on the inside and yet, most likely, just wants to draw inward in the hopes that the pain will go away and the nerves will soothe and the black will brighten?  Let me help you to help us.

First and foremost, relax.  It isn’t your job to fix anybody.  You are (most likely) not a counselor or therapist or psychologist.  Understand that the onus of healing is not upon you.  None of us can fix ourselves, let alone anybody else.

However, you can love.  And love – sometimes tender, sometimes tough – is what we need.  Not coddling, but reassurance.  You see, those of us who deal with these things understand all too well the stigma that comes with anything some in the church view as “weak.”  Don’t immediately assume that someone who is depressed or anxious is paying some penance for an undisclosed sin.  Judge not, lest ye be judged.

But understand that we often feel marginalized by our brothers and sisters in Christ (no matter how unintentional).  We feel your discomfort.  And it drives us further into ourselves.  What we need, when we are roughly sailing life’s choppy waters, is understanding.  And reassurance.  And love.  We need someone to comfort us, tell us we’re not crazy (we’re not, by the way).  Speak God’s truth to us because, frankly, times like this often rattle our faith as well as our nerves, making prayer difficult (if not impossible). 

Realize that, despite how irrational it may seem to you (and, when we can look at our situation objectively, to us as well), anxiety and depression makes us feel like our boat is sinking.  Instead of pouring water on a drowning man, grab a bucket and help us right the boat.  Do it with compassion.  Pray with us.  Be there.

Be there

Understand that, yes, what we’re thinking and feeling is most likely irrational.  And you cannot rationalize an irrational situation.  But you can comfort.  You can be salt and light.  You can help draw us out of our worrisome shells.  You can help calm our fears. You can understand how lonely and isolated depression and anxiety makes one feel (after all, who wants to bring down the people around them with all their troubles?).

You can genuinely love people who deal with anxiety and depression, remembering the definition of love: 

⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. ⁸ Love never fails… – 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 [ESV]

Remember, you don’t have to fix anybody.  What we deal with is an ailment no different that any physical disease (and regardless of what triggers the episode).  We just need to be understood.  We just need love.  We just need reminded that we are loved and someone is there for us.

And, really, can you think of any human being who doesn’t need these things?

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all of your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. – Psalm 3:5-6 (ESV)

How much do you trust God? I heard a pastor comment that true joy comes through trusting God. When our faith is so strong that we realize that nothing – nothing – happens without God knowing in advance, and remember that “for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28, ESV), then we discover true joy and peace in our lives.

Circumstances shrink in importance because we realize God is in control. Not us. And He loves us. And He has a plan for each of our lives. And we need not fear anything or anyone, for God is our refuge, our strength, our joy, our rest… our salvation!

Anyone who believes themselves to be a “self-made” individual is only fooling themselves. Nothing happens that God does not allow. Nor does anything just happen. There is no chance or luck.

Sinatra may have claimed to do things “my way”, but none of us is truly in control. Besides, it is best to trust God, rest in Him, seek The Lord always. Seek Him in all things at all times.

This morning at Bible study, my brother and friend Phil and I were talking about obedience to Christ. You see, in Romans 1, Paul tells us we are to called to be saints. That is quite a calling! Literally we are required to be holy and venerable. Impossible, right?

Not when we are obedient to The Lord. And the key to obedience is not works. It is love. It is recognizing Who God is, what Jesus did on the cross for we who do not deserve His grace and mercy, and being faithful because of Who God is, not what He can do for us.

Obedience flows not from an obligation but from a heart go gratitude, because we trust God. After all, He is… well… God!

None of us is perfect. There will be times of struggle. There will times of failure. But, let me ask… where is your heart? Do you consciously strive to be a man/woman after God’s own heart? When we love The Lord, we want to follow Him. We want to please Him. We want to obey Him because He is God, and He is good, and He has only our best interests at heart.

Trust in God leads us to obedience. Love for Christ bends our hearts toward Him. Seek Him first.

When I Am Afraid

by Chris Courtney

“When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.” – Psalm 56:3

One of the most astounding aspects of God is how unpredictable He is.  Just when you expect Him to act a certain way, He doesn’t.  When God speaks, one anticipates the rumble of thunder.  But, just as forcefully, He sometimes speaks with a silence so loud it is almost deafening.

Jesus warned us that in this life we would have troubles, and He sure wasn’t joking.  Sometimes we get so caught up steering around life’s flotsam and jetsam that all we can see is the wreckage around us.  It’s easy to stare overwhelmed at our problems, twisting our brains into knots trying to figure things out or beating ourselves up with “what ifs” and “if onlys” and “now whats”.

Times of trouble can be anxious and lonely.  But, as David knew all too well, we have a place of refuge from life’s storms, safety from our enemy, refreshment from fear and worry and doubt. 

David put his trust in God.  The circumstances didn’t matter.  And they don’t with us either.  Did David bring on some of his troubles himself?  Absolutely.  And so do we.  Did David bring all of his troubles on himself?  Absolutely not.  And neither do we.  Either way, the answer is the same: run to God.  Seek Him out.  Ask Him to put it all to right.  Trust Him to do whatever needs done, whether it is a change of heart or direction or plans or circumstances. 

Whatever you are facing, God knows.  God understands.  If you need to be corrected, go to Him.  If you need to be protected, go to Him.  None of us is perfect.  But all who seek Christ and ask for forgiveness receive it.  All who are fearful can find peace. No person and no situation are beyond hope, beyond repair.  There is nothing so big, bad and ugly that God cannot handle it.

 (c) 2014 by Chris Courtney.  All rights reserved. 

Please share this piece with others.  It is my prayer that these words bring peace and hope to as many as possible through Jesus Christ.

Please visit the Bouville Diarist at http://www.bouvillediarist.wordpress.com

 

Lord, please show me what you would have me write. Give me the words that will bless people and bring them great joy and comfort all to your glory. Guide me as I type. Thank you Lord!

Now… before I start writing I better check my email. Ooh! Amazon Kindle daily deals… A Short History of Walrus Hunting in Tanzania for $1.99? I’ll probably never read it, but I gotta buy it.

Did I turn off the dryer before I left?

I really should have stuck with an iced tea today.

Hmm… wonder who’s on Facebook today… Hey! Darla made a casserole last night using cream of chicken soup instead of cream of mushroom. Daryl’s still doing the same Sudoku puzzle from two weeks ago. Give it up Darman… Wait! What’s this? “I don’t know you but I think you are my friend and as my friend you will agree that postal workers in Scotland deserve clean drinking water. If you agree that postal workers in Scotland deserve clean drinking water and you are my friend (and, you must
be my friend because we are Facebook friends and we agree that postal workers in Scotland deserve clean drinking water), then copy and paste this post to your profile for one hour.” Well… who could be against Scottish postal workers drinking clean water? Besides, this guy was in my second cousin’s first grade class back in 1974, so…

Eight-track tapes… worst idea ever. Had to sit through two songs you didn’t like to hear half the song you did – half because that’s the track the record company split between the end of track three and the start of track four so they could fit the whole album on one tape, even though they completely shuffled and wrecked the running order of the album to try to accomplish the same thing…

Did I pay the water bill?

What’s the weather going to be today? Ugh… humid again. High in the 80’s, chance of snow tonight. What a weird year…

I really ought to consider that time management training… But I don’t have time. Ha ha! I wonder if that would be considered irony or just humor…

News… Gotta know what’s going on. Let’s see… politics, war, plane crash, war, disease, war, famine, war, North Korea – how does he get his hair to stand up like that? – hate groups, war, Bay City Rollers reunion tour (probably the only original band member is the drummer), war, illegal immigrants, war, food poisoning… hold up! Taylor Swift cures Ebola!

Did I turn off the stove?

Did I pay the water bill?

I should have never signed up for that tap dancing in cleats class. Who has time for that?

Ding! New email. Better check… nope, not buying anymore miracle hair growth products.

Oh, my eyes hurt… need to divert my gaze off this screen and look out the window for awhile. Wow… why do they keep building all these mini-malls?Half of the ones they built two years ago are still empty.

Did I pay the water bill? Surely I paid the water bill.

Is she really wearing a sweater? It’s eighty degrees out already! Looks like she wrestled the skin off a live alpaca…

Squirrel!

Facebook again. Hey! Look at that little cutie. What a sweetie. Yeah, he definitely doesn’t like split pea and guava baby food. At least that looks like split pea and guava… Hmmm… Whoa! A link to an animal video on YouTube. Wow! I didn’t know a monkey could do that. Scroll down… great googly moogly, look at all these links to funny animal videos… Wow! I didn’t know a kitten could do that. Wow! I didn’t know a llama could that. Wow! I didn’t know a parrot could do that. Wait, what’s that guy doing juggling a chainsaw, a tuning fork and a live ferret while hood surfing on a 1967 Ford Fairlane at 70mph wearing a sombrero… Ouch! Dude… that’s gonna leave a mark. I didn’t know a sombrero could do that. Wait… yep, it left a mark.

What time is it? No! Not already! Time goes so fast… why can’t I get any writing done?