Through the Mist

04/07/2020

04/07/2020

Against You And You Alone

Have you ever had fear of committing one sin too many? Moving one step beyond the reach of God? A moment missed to receive the loving forgiveness of God?
This meditation from Psalm 51 is a contemplation on forgiveness. Living with the assurance that encounters with God will always include moments of forgiveness. Time with God is never wasted. God never misses a moment to bring glory to Himself.

03/29/2020

When coming to Christ, many have the wrong idea about who God is and it only leads to a disappointment in their faith. Instead of taking the time to understand who God is, they view Him as a “spiritual addition” to their lives that is supposed to make everything happy and increase their blessings.
And if you’ve been viewing God as a “spiritual asset” to your life rather than letting Him be Lord over your life, I want to challenge you.
You limit yourself from experiencing the fullness of the Spirit if you are still operating primarily within yourself.
We can’t do both.
We cannot serve God and our selfish ambition.
We cannot serve two masters (Matthew 6:24).
We will either let God be God in our life or we will continue to struggle to make our life work only to come up empty, anxious and frustrated over and over again.

The important concept I want you to digest today is God’s sovereignty.
I truly believe that when anxiety takes over our lives, it’s because we forgot who God is. We forgot that even though our fears are out of our control, they are still under His control. We stop trusting in Him and start depending on ourselves but that is a set up for failure because we are flawed beings.
We find peace within Gods provision, and we trust in The Lord when we understand how much He loves us. Many of us have been hurt and damaged over and over again to the point we don't know what safety looks like; let alone the safety of love. But God is challenging us to find this safety in Him maybe for the first time ever and be vulnerable enough to trust that His love is the real thing. That this grace is sufficient to cover, protect, provide and look out for us. It's a love that never lets go, a love that's inescapable, a love that won’t leave us hanging or questioning where we stand and pursues us to the ends of the Earth.
Trade your anxiety for His sovereign peace today.


Action Plan:

Start practicing making two columns in your journal and writing your raw, anxious thoughts on one side, while writing about who God is and what God’s Word promises on the other.
Yes, you may have to do some digging for verses but digging is good. Plus you have the internet to search for anything you can think of! Trust me, just taking the time to look up and write out God’s truth for yourself will bring a renewing process to you.
That’s the beauty of God’s word; when we take it in, it becomes a part of us. This refilling of our mind so necessary for our mental health.

Today's Prayer: Lord help me to put my trust in you in the moments I strive to turn to myself.

03/28/2020

Fear Not: Loss
Trusting in the God who is always faithful
We work hard. We work hard to feed our families, to do our jobs well, to raise our children with good manners and good morals, to take care of our parents, to get just a little in savings, to plan for retirement knowing one day our bodies will start to slow down. We work hard for our neighbors, for our communities, for those who have needs we can help with. And one day, when the sun is bright, and the stock market is up, we might be tempted to pat ourselves on the back and think ‘I’ve got this!’
But we don’t “got this”, do we? We are all one rainy day, one phone call, one pandemic away from rock bottom. Do you know what has a rock bottom? A pit.
We build houses, and skyscrapers, and businesses, and programs, and legacies, and lives, and yet the pit mocks us. It could all be gone in a second. How do we go on?
“… my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.” (Lamentations 3:20-22)
Verse 26 goes on to say "…it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord."
A pit is a pretty good place to sit quietly. It’s also terrible, and it’s heartbreaking, but as we sit in the quiet, we realize we are not forgotten. This is not the end. A hand reaches out. God is faithful in the midst of our loss.
“I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.” (Psalm 40:1-2)
Our feet are once again on solid ground, but we never forget who pulled us up. We are changed. We are humbled. We go back to work, but we hold it all more loosely. As we go, hopefully, we look more like Jesus. We remember that it is God who works in us to fulfill His good purpose. None of it is ours. It never was.
Today as you read, remember the faithfulness of God in your life.

03/28/2020

In the context of 2 Corinthians 10:3, Paul talks to us about spiritual warfare and our necessary role in destroying every obstacle that stands against the truth of Christ.
This includes the thoughts that arise in opposition of our faith.
But taking our thoughts captive and living by the Spirit rather than our flesh is easier said than done. Half of the battle of anxiety is realizing when you’re entering the battle. This is mainly because our fears and insecurities feel so true. We tend to go along with whatever pops into our heads.

But there is one thing that we must get down today if we’re truly going to start breaking free…
Just because the thought exists, doesn’t make it true.
(Go ahead, speak this to yourself, “Just because this thought exists, doesn’t make it true.”)

This is your reminder that you don't have to believe everything you think today.
You have this incredible God-given skill called metacognition.
Metacognition means you have the ability to think about your thoughts.
This means that you can pause, momentarily separate yourself from your thoughts and begin to discern what’s healthy and what is not; and discard the following.


Action Plan:

Work through anxiety in these 4 steps.


1. Identify the “trigger” (What’s causing you to react).
Start pinpointing the event or individual that keeps triggering your emotions.
Ask yourself: Why does this have so much power over me? Is my anxiety about the
situation appropriate or created by my own fears and insecurities?

2. Write down the thoughts that follow.
Write down everything that you’re thinking. Analyze those thoughts and be your own judge.
Ask yourself: Is my thought process rational? Is it being led by the Spirit or led by fear?

3. Note the Reaction
What is your first reaction in response to the trigger event?
Ask yourself: How does this make me react? What is a healthier behavior I can exchange this for (ex: praying, journaling, exercising, deep breathing)?

4. Bringing yourself around to the reality.
(choosing faith and weighing your anxieties against a more likely truth).
At this point, you separate yourself from your feelings, whether that be by journaling or talking through them with someone else and begin weighing the more rational reality. Think of 2 other ways you can view the situation.

Today's Prayer: "Lord help me become more aware of any thoughts that do not come from you."

03/28/2020

But we have this precious treasure [the good news about salvation] in [unworthy] earthen vessels [of human frailty], so that the grandeur and surpassing greatness of the power will be [shown to be] from God [His sufficiency] and not from ourselves. We are pressured in every way [hedged in], but not crushed; perplexed [unsure of finding a way out], but not driven to despair; hunted down and persecuted, but not deserted [to stand alone]; struck down, but never destroyed;
2 Corinthians 4:7‭-‬9 AMP
https://bible.com/bible/1588/2co.4.7-9.AMP

10/09/2019

This Book Is Alive
At times, we grow weary. We are confused and lonely. We struggle with doubts and fears. We battle disappointment and anger, guilt, and shame. We are so human. In any and all of these dark times, flee to God and His Word. Meet God in the pages of Scripture. Let the Word of God wash over you, cleanse you, and heal you. The Spirit of God will take the Word of God and revive your soul. How does this happen? Why does this happen? Simple—this book is alive. It pulsates with life, God’s life. A dead, dry book of theology? Hardly. Rather, it is aflame with life-giving power. When we read this book, we breathe the breath of God. Our soul is renewed, restored, rejuvenated.
John White was a psychiatrist, counselor, missionary, pastor, and writer. He penned eloquent words on the power of Scripture to revive his soul, and below is an excerpt from his book The Fight:
In the darkest periods of my life when everything seemed hopeless, I would struggle in the grey dawns of many faraway countries to grasp the basic truths of Scripture passages. I looked for no immediate answers to my problems. Only did I sense intuitively that I was drinking drafts from a fountain that gave life to my soul. Slowly as I grappled with textual and theological problems, a strength grew deep within me. Foundations cemented themselves to an otherworldly rock beyond the reach of time and space, and I became strong and more alive. If I could write poetry about it I would. If I could sing through paper, I would flood your soul with the glorious melodies that express what I have found. I cannot exaggerate for there are no expressions majestic enough to tell of the glory I have seen or of the wonder of finding that I, a neurotic, unstable, middle-aged man have my feet firmly planted in eternity and breathe the air of heaven. And all this has come to me through a careful study of Scripture.
That’s exactly how I feel about God’s Word. Without it, I would not have made it. “The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul.”

10/01/2019

Day Four: Crying Out to God

When you’re sad, are you stoic or do you cry? When you’re mad, do you rant or quietly seethe? What about happy news? Do you dance, or simply smile? Regardless of the ways you express emotion, we’ve all likely felt broken inside. You may even cry out to God like the Psalmists. No one hid their feelings from God in the Psalms. There is wailing despair, angry questioning, impatient ranting, exultant praise, endless gratitude, and everything in between.
· Is there an emotion or topic you’re uncomfortable sharing with God?
King Hezekiah cried out to God when the Assyrians were camped outside Jerusalem’s walls and he received a threatening letter from the King of Assyria. He ran straight to the Temple, spread the letter before the altar, and expressed his fear to Yahweh.
Later, Hezekiah became ill, and Isaiah relayed God’s message that he would die. Devastated and confused, Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and cried out to God, reminding the Lord of his faithful service. Did God need to be reminded? No, but Hezekiah’s prayer preserves for future generations the transparency of a pure heart before God.
· Pause to consider: what things have you thought but never directed to God in prayer?

New Testament Crying Out

On the night before Jesus’ crucifixion, He went out to the Mount of Olives to pray—as was His usual practice—and then cried out to His Father. To the point of sweating blood. Three times He prayed the same prayer, pleading with the Father to take the cup of suffering but letting obedience find rest in His heart.
God answers our cries His way. When Hezekiah cried out, he rose from his sick bed three days later. Hezekiah died, however, fifteen years later. When Jesus cried out, He had to drink the cup of wrath His Father poured. Jesus died on a Roman cross. But in three days—the same as Hezekiah—Jesus rose and provided life after death for all who believe.
Yahweh heard the cries of both Hezekiah and Jesus. In His all-knowing wisdom, He answered His children for their ultimate good and His eternal glory.
· Are you crying out today? Can you trust your Heavenly Father’s answer to be for your ultimate good and His eternal glory?

Fuel for the Soul:

· 2 Kings 19:1; 14-19
· Isaiah 38:1-6
· Luke 22:39-46
· Psalm 130

09/29/2019

Day Two: Obeying God

Obedience is an excruciating decision we make all day long. The alarm rings: get up or hit snooze? Drive the speed limit or 5 mph over? Then come children, and we get to teach obedience. I remember the defiant look in my toddler’s eyes the first time she grabbed the TV remote. She made a calculated decision to disobey, and I knew we were in trouble.
God knew humans were trouble from the start, and he sent prophets to tell them. Jonah preached repentance to Assyria, but he obeyed under protest (after spending three days in a fish’s belly). Hosea married a pr******te. And Isaiah walked around barefoot and naked for three years. What made these guys obey?
· What makes you obey a hard command from God?
Good parents teach children there are consequences for disobedience. At the end of Moses’ life, he relayed this concept to the children of Israel, detailing God’s blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience. Unfortunately, the rest of Scripture shows that neither punishment nor blessing motivated Israel toward long-term obedience.

New Testament Obedience

Jesus Christ provided for us the ultimate example of obedience. He was up early to pray and was always about His Father’s business. Even in the Garden of Gethsemane, He made the wrenching decision to obey His Father unto death.
· Why did Jesus obey the Father?
Love is a long-term motivator. Jesus described it as the “glue” that would bind the disciples to Him and the Father after He was taken from them.

OT and NT Collide

Though it’s true we are made righteous by faith in Christ’s shed blood, James reminds us that Abraham’s obedience proved his faith. Isaiah also proved faithful by obedience as did others in both Old and New Testament stories. The thread stitching together the Testaments is obedience based on a relationship with God. Loving the God who loves you makes obeying Him easier. We can trust Him now because of His faithfulness back then.
· In what ways has God been faithful to you in the past?
· What step of obedience is asking you to take now?

Fuel for the Soul:

· Isaiah 20:2-4
· Mark 14:32-36
· James 2:18-23
· 1 John 2:5–6

09/26/2019

When I Say Jesus

"When I say Jesus, the very mention shatters the darkness and calms my soul."

When we call upon Jesus, we’re not just stringing together words or names. There is true power in the name of Jesus.

In the name of Jesus, we find salvation. We are told to pray in the name of Jesus because it is through Him that we have a relationship with God. The Apostle Paul says in his letter to the church in Philippi that “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth.”

If the forces of evil in the world must bow at the mere mention of His name, then when we, as followers of the living God, call upon His name our very fears, anxieties, addictions, and sicknesses must bow to Him. There is freedom in the name of Jesus.

09/21/2019

Do you ever feel empty? Maybe dry and parched as though you have nothing left to give? You may feel as though you can only afford to give someone a drink if you actually have some water to give.

The theme of this meditation from 2 Thessalonians 3 is being filled with the love God and always having enough.



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