GOD’S WAY OF INTERVENTION

“Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord.”—Psalm 27:14

 

Are you currently waiting for the Lord to intervene in some way in your life, or in the life of a loved one?  One of the struggles we face as Christians is trying to understand sometimes there are delays over matters that seem so urgent to us. Only the Lord knows all of the reasons.  However, there are some lessons that we can learn from when Peter and John were arrested and put into jail. 

 

Peter and John were arrested and jailed because they preached in the name of Jesus, the resurrection from the dead, and people were being healed.  When they were brought up before the authorities they refused to compromise and would not cease to give their testimony.  They were threatened and released.  Peter and John returned to the people that they were with, and then began to worship and praise God.  The place was shaken where they were all gathered and they spoke the Word of God with boldness (Acts 4:1-31). 

 

The first lesson is: Determine Your Focus.  In the urgency of the moment, it is easy to center your attention on the need instead of on God.  Peter and John remained focus on their message, not on getting out of jail.  We may start out waiting for the Lord, but end up waiting for the answer we want.  Soon we become more interest in what God can do for us, rather than our focus remaining in Him.  He wants us to delight in Him; not in just what He can give to us.

 

Secondly, Release Your Expectations into His Hands.  Peter and John said, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. Fore we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:19-20).  The Lord is working on your behalf, but sometimes we cling so tightly to a desired outcome that He must wait until we open our hands and let go of our own expectations.  Holding onto your own assumptions about how the Lord should intervene is emotionally exhausting.  But peace awaits those who trust that He will do what is in our best interests in every situation that we encounter.

 

Prayer—Father I thank you that I keep my focus upon You and I release my desire into Your hands as I wait for the answer, in Jesus Name. Amen.

 

 

NEVER GIVE UP BELIEVE GOD

“Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God for I shall yet praise Him. The help of my countenance and my God.”—Psalm 42:11

 

Discouragement can rob peace, joy, and contentment.  I have known people who appeared to be in an impossible situation.  Some time later, however, they were in a much better place, either in terms of their circumstances or their emotions.  The reason?  They never gave up.  Instead of sulking in self-pity, they chose to believe God, step out in faith, and climb out of the emotional pit.

 

Nehemiah is a good example.  He had every reason to feel defeated, because his people were in trouble.  After receiving news that the city wall had been destroyed, this man of God acknowledged profound disappointment and grieved.  Though pain flooded his soul, he did not allow himself to stay in that low place.  Instead, Nehemiah cried out to God seeking direction.

 

Sadness in the presence of royalty was a punishable death.  But the Lord answered Nehemiah’s prayer with amazing power, prompting the king to notice his servant’s sad countenance and then to ask what he could do to help.  This miracle led to the rebuilding of the wall and the redemption of God’s people.

 

“And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxexes, when wine was before him, that I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had never been sad in his presence before. Therefore the kings said to me, ‘Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart.’ So I became dreadfully afraid, and said to the king, ‘May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire?’ Then the king said to me, ‘What do you request?’ So I prayed to the God of heaven. And I said to the king, ‘If it pleases the king, and if you servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may rebuild it.’ Then the king said to me (the queen also sitting beside him). ‘How long will your journey be? And when will you return?’ So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time. Furthermore I said to the king, ‘If it pleases the king, let letters be given to me for the governors of the region beyond the River that they must permit me to pass through till I come to Judah, and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he must give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel which pertains to the temple, for the city wall, and for the house that I will occupy.’ And the king granted them to me according to the good hand of my God upon me” (Nehemiah 2:1-8).

The Lord can take impossible situation—no matter what it is—and move in ways mightier than you can imagine.

 

Do you live in eager expectation of what the Lord will do?  Or have you chosen to linger in the depths of despair?  Like Nehemiah, turn your disappointment into a petition for God’s help.  He can restore your hope and prevent negative emotions from gaining a stranglehold on your life.

 

Prayer—Father I repent for allowing negative emotions cutting me off from your best for me, and I ask You to restore hope in my life, in Jesus Name. Amen.

TRUST THE LORD HE WILL DIRECT YOUR PATH

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”—Proverbs 3:5-6

 

Have you ever heard the expression, “Oh, I’m just trusting the Lord?”  Have you every questioned what it meant to “trust” the Lord?   

 

The definition of trust and faith is surprising similar.  Trust is the confident expectation of something, or confidence in the certainty of the future fulfillment of something.  Trust is reliance on the integrity, strength and ability of a person or thing. Trust and faith go hand in hand. In difficult times, financial struggles, or health problems, it is not always easy to trust, but God has proven to be trustworthy over time on countless occasions. Once you realize that God can be trusted, it becomes easier to trust Him again and again.

Hebrews 11:1 tells us what faith is, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” The Amplified Bible states faith as, “Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses].”

Our Scripture reading, Proverbs 3:5-6 give God's guidance for life “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your path.”  These words challenge believers to put more confidence in God's ability than in their own, to not try to analyze and figure out every detail themselves, but to place their belief in God's wisdom, love and strength, to lean on God instead of relying on themselves or anyone else.

C. S. Lewis wrote, “To trust Him means, of course, trying to do all that He says. There would be no sense in saying you trusted a person if you would not take his advice. Thus if you have really handed yourself over to Him, it must follow that you are trying to obey Him.  But trying in a new way, a less worried way.”

Today I challenge you to trust in the Lord in a particular situation.  He will see you through and help you to make the right choices.

 

Prayer—Heavenly Father, today I lift up__________________to you.  I have done all that I know to do, and I now place this ______________________into your hands.  I trust you for the right answer for me in this situation, in Jesus Name.  Amen.

DETERMINATION AND EXPECTATION ARE NECESSARY WHILE WAITING

“Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord.”—Psalm 27:14

 

Are you currently waiting for the Lord to intervene in some way in your life, or in the life of a loved one?  One of the struggles we face as Christians is trying to understand sometimes there are delays over matters that seem so urgent to us. Only the Lord knows all of the reasons.  However, there are some lessons that we can learn from when Peter and John were arrested and put into jail. 

 

Peter and John were arrested and jailed because they preached in the name of Jesus, the resurrection from the dead, and people were being healed.  When they were brought up before the authorities they refused to compromise and would not cease to give their testimony.  They were threatened and released.  Peter and John returned to the people that they were with, and then began to worship and praise God.  The place was shaken where they were all gathered and they spoke the Word of God with boldness (Acts 4:1-31). 

 

The first lesson is: Determine Your Focus.  In the urgency of the moment, it is easy to center your attention on the need instead of on God.  Peter and John remained focus on their message, not on getting out of jail.  We may start out waiting for the Lord, but end up waiting for the answer we want.  Soon we become more interest in what God can do for us, rather than our focus remaining in Him.  Sometimes God delays until we get our focus back on Him.  He wants us to delight in Him; not in just what He can give to us.

 

Secondly, Release Your Expectations into His Hands.  Peter and John said, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. Fore we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:19-20).  The Lord is working on your behalf, but sometimes we cling so tightly to a desired outcome that He must wait until we open our hands and let go of our own expectations.  Holding onto your own assumptions about how the Lord should intervene is emotionally exhausting.  But peace awaits those who trust that He will do what is in our best interests in every situation that we encounter.

 

Prayer—Father I thank you that I keep my focus upon You and I release my desire into Your hands as I wait for the answer, in Jesus Name. Amen.