Tag: Trust

Trust God’s Goodness

On By BrianIn PASSION Reflections

The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone.’” – Luke 4:3-4 (ESV)

Behold God’s Goodness. This is what devil wants Jesus to doubt in this temptation:

The Father said He loves you, that He is pleased with you. But He doesn’t care about you. He led you out here into wilderness where there is no food. Jesus you are starving. Why don’t you turn that stone into bread? If God doesn’t care about you, then you will have to look out for yourself.

We have all been here – going through a trial, and the devil whispers in our ear:

God doesn’t care about you. If He did you wouldn’t be here, you are going to have to look out for yourself with whatever means necessary.

This was devil’s tactic in garden too. We read in Genesis 3:4-5 – But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” In other words:

God doesn’t care about you, He’s keeping something from you. You have to look out for yourself. Go ahead and eat that fruit.

Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:33 – But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Seek the kingdom, and God will take care of your basic needs. But devil whispers:

God isn’t good. He doesn’t care. He isn’t going to add those things. He won’t take care of you. You don’t have time to seek kingdom, time to spend with God, time for church, time to help another. You can’t give money for sake of kingdom, money to help another. You have to look out for yourself.

The devil wants you and Jesus to doubt God’s goodness, but Jesus refuses to follow along. Jesus trusts God’s goodness. He points the devil back to Israel in wilderness, quoting from Deuteronomy 8:3 which reads – And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.

In other words, God provided food for Israel in the wilderness, and God will provide food for Jesus at proper time. God is good.

Jesus trusted in His Father’s care and provision. And we must trust in our Father’s care and provision – His goodness towards us – so that we might overcome devil’s whisperings, like Jesus did.

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

Redeeming the Time in the Days of the Coronavirus – Brent Osterberg (CBCD)
So, let’s consider using this time to do some of the spiritually-enriching things that we frequently say we don’t have enough time for…and let’s pray that these habits stick after we return to more normal life. Consider the following as possibilities…

Everything’s Canceled! Dealing with Disappointment in Pandemic – Abbey Wedgeworth (TGC) It can be hard to know how to deal with personal disappointments, how to feel about our own feels in response to loss. But life in a fallen world is marked by suffering, great and small, and pandemics only highlight what has always been true.  Here are four places the Bible invites you to look as you suffer disappointment…

Come What May: Finding Patience and Joy in a Slow Calamity – David Mathis (DG)
In other words, though the supply lines should fail, and the shelves be bare, and the economy tank, and the virus come to our own city, and street, and even home, yet — even then — this newly humbled prophet will rejoice in the Lord. Will we? Not in our supplies. Not in our health. Not in our own security. Not even in the defeat of the enemy. There is one constant, one unassailable surety, one utter security, one haven for true joy in the most challenging of journeys: God himself. He holds himself out to us as he removes our other joys. Will we lean anew into him?

What Are You Afraid Of? – Michael Horton
As Nebuchadnezzar discovered, we recover our sanity when we lift our eyes to heaven. We’re back in line with reality.  We’re not in charge, and never have been.  We can’t create or save ourselves.  But we have been created and saved by God in Jesus Christ!  Now we can see the needs all around us, our own and those of our neighbors and the creation, as opportunities rather than threats.  We want to play our part in curbing the spread of the virus.  We are called to defend the life of our neighbors, especially the most vulnerable: the unborn, our aging elders, the poor, orphans, widows and all victims of injustice.  We are called to be good stewards of God’s creation.  But this is because we fear God rather than anyone or anything else. 

COVID-19: Living by Probabilities or Providence? – Mike Emlet (CCEF)
Nothing is by chance. Everything comes to us by our Father’s loving and wise hand. Don’t live in these trying times unduly focused on impersonal probabilities, statistics, and risk assessments. They will prove to be an unstable foundation for true hope and reassurance. By all means follow the guidance of your local health authorities, but first and foremost, look to your faithful and loving God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who holds you in the palm of his hand.

How Can We Be the Body When Physically Separated? – Erik Raymond
How can we be the body of Christ when physically separated? While being physically present substantially enhances our fellowship in the body of Christ, it is not the exclusive sphere of our togetherness. In other words, the bond together as a body is not primarily physical but spiritual. This means that we as Christians can still do good to one another, even when we are apart.  Here are five ways we can be the body of Christ, even when we are physically separated.

Hope you have a great Lord’s Day!

Q&A#2 Reflections: True God

On By BrianIn PASSION Catechism

Q/A#2
Q: Who is this God we are to love?
A: This God is the LORD, the one true God in three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

But the LORD is the true God; he is the living God and the everlasting King.
– Jeremiah 10:10a

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
– Matthew 28:19

Verses for Further Reflection
Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory,
for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!
Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”
Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.
 Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands.
They have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see.
They have ears, but do not hear; noses, but do not smell.
They have hands, but do not feel; feet, but do not walk;
and they do not make a sound in their throat.
Those who make them become like them;
so do all who trust in them.
O Israel, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.
O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.
You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.
– Psalm 115:1-11

Discussion Questions Related to the Verses
What other gods are you tempted to glory in or trust in?
What is happening in your life right now for which you need to trust in the Lord?

Trust and Blessing

On By BrianIn Idolatry

Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”
Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.

Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands.
They have mouths, but do not speak;
eyes, but do not see.
They have ears, but do not hear;
noses, but do not smell.
They have hands, but do not feel;
feet, but do not walk;
and they do not make a sound in their throat.
Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them.

O Israel, trust in the LORD!  He is their help and their shield.
O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD!  He is their help and their shield.
You who fear the LORD, trust in the LORD!  He is their help and their shield.

The LORD has remembered us; he will bless us;
he will bless the house of Israel;
he will bless the house of Aaron;
he will bless those who fear the LORD,
both the small and the great.
– Psalm 115:2-13

Where are you placing your trust?

Where are you seeking your blessing?

Petition

On By BrianIn Habit of Prayer

This week we have been learning to pray from the Psalms.  We considered recognizing God’s presence as we begin to pray from Psalm 139.  We looked at confession of sins from Psalm 51.  We noted the importance of recognizing God’s forgiveness from Psalm 32.  And yesterday we discussed praising God from Psalms 29 and 117. 

Today we want to consider petition.  For most of us, petition probably makes up a large part of our prayers.    And this is okay, as long as we don’t neglect the other elements of prayer.  Indeed, much of the Psalms is also given to petition.  As we think about petition from the Psalms, I want to consider four principles.

1. Recognize Your Helplessness

David clearly recognizes his helplessness as he cries out to God in Psalm 61:1-2:

Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer;
from the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint.
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

His heart is faint.  He needs someone higher than himself.  He needs help, and out of that recognition, he cries out to God.  As we recognize our helplessness, we too will pray.  What we need to grasp is that we need God’s help for everything.  Too often we think we can do it ourselves.  But we need God for our next breath.  And in the spiritual realm: apart from God we can do nothing (John 15).  We always need God’s help.  And the more we recognize this, the more we will pray.

2. Cry Out To God

In the verses above, that is exactly what David is doing.  He is crying out to God.  Psalm 62:8 tells you to “pour out your heart before him.”  Whatever is on our hearts is what we should pray about.  Nothing is too big or too small. 

3. Trust His Will

Psalm 62:8 starts by telling us to “Trust in him at all times, O people.”  Not only are we to pour out our hearts to God, but we are to trust in him – and that includes trusting his will, his plan in our current situation.  We need to trust his answer to our prayers.

We need to pour out our hearts and trust his will.  I think we tend to stray one way or the other.  We might cry out to God in a way that becomes demanding.  Or we may stoically resign ourselves to his will without ever expressing our hearts.  Jesus as always is our perfect example here:

And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him.  And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you.  Remove this cup from me.  Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

Notice that Jesus pours out his heart.  He wants the hour to pass.  He wants the cup removed.  He wants to be spared the agony of the cross and our sins.  He cries out to God.  What is particularly interesting is that he knows the answer to his cries is no.  He came to die.  He has been telling his disciples for days that he is going to Jerusalem to die.  He knows the answer, but he cries out anyway.  He isn’t fake with his Father; he expresses his true feelings – and so should we.

But Jesus also trusts the Father’s will.  He closes his prayer with submission to the Father’s will.  He will trust the Father even in the horror of the cross. 

Jesus is our perfect example.  Tell God how you feel, but then trust his will.

4. Trust His Power

Psalm 62:8 again:

Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us.

We need to not only trust his will, but also his power.  Helpless, we cry out to the one who can help us.  He is our refuge.  He is bigger than any trial that can come against us.  Like David in Psalm 61, we cry out to the rock that is higher than we are.   I think of the example of Asa in II Chronicles 14:9-12.  A huge army is coming against Judah.  Humanly speaking, Asa’s puny army is about to be utterly defeated.  Helpless, Asa cries out to a God more powerful than any army.  And God defeats the larger army. 

Do you pray believing in God’s greater power?  Do you pray expectantly?  Regardless of the situation?  God is more powerful than anything that can come against us.  And he still answers prayers.  Trust his power.

Conclusion

Petition is an important part of our prayer.  Because we are helpless on our own, we must cry out to God for help.  We should share our hearts with him, even as we trust his answer.  And we should pray expectantly, remember that his power is greater than anything that can come against us.  So let us bring our petitions before him!

Learning To Trust Again

On By BrianIn PASSION Quotes1 Comment

When you stop trying to control your life and instead allow your anxieties and problems to bring you to God in prayer, you shift from worrying to watching.  You watch God weave his patterns in the story of your life.  Instead of trying to be out front, designing your life, you realize you are inside God’s drama.  As you wait, you begin to see him work, and your life begins to sparkle with wonder.  You are learning to trust again.

– Paul E. Miller in A Praying Life

Faithfulness

On By BrianIn Uncategorized2 Comments

I have been thinking about the question I left yesterday – “How does God’s faithfulness spur us on to love God more?”  I think it has to do in part with trust.  The more I see God’s faithfulness, the more I trust him, and the stronger our loving relationship becomes.  It is similar to marriage.  Unfaithfulness of one spouse (in any number of ways), will make it more difficult for the other spouse to trust and hence hurts the relationship.  But faithfulness lived out day by day by one spouse makes it easier for the other to trust and hence stregthens the relationship.  There is something attractive and delightful about people who are trustworthy.  We want to be around them.   Our great need is to recognize God’s daily faithfulness so that we might trust him more, delight in him more, and so love him more. That is my stab at the question.  What do you think?